Elijah turned 8!

I cannot believe this boy is 8 years old!  We celebrated his birthday (which was the 29th) with lots of laughter, food, family, and of course, creme brulee.

My big 8 year old - showing off his newest gap.

Here is Eli with the AT AT he built.  This was by far the most complicated LEGO set he's ever done. He did a fantastic job on it, and was very proud.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours.  May the joy of the birth of Jesus overwhelm you this holiday and into the new year!

Grading

Chris is teaching this semester - an upper level statistics course containing a lot of actuarial content.  His least favorite teaching task is grading.  This semester, he has 103 students, and his final consisted of 13 questions - you do the math.  Watching him grade is always interesting.  Daniel's physical stance in this picture represents Chris' internal stance.

I do not like finals week, even now.  Take a look at the piles and piles and piles of tests.  He uses 4 forms of the final, each printed on a different colored paper.  No word on how his students are doing so far.

Pressure Cooking

My mom used to pressure can a lot of things when I was a child, and that canner and the noise it would make would scare me to death.  I have gotten past much of that, and have been using a pressure canner for a few years to can things.  Tonight, I am finally experimenting with pressure cooking food - a beef roast.  At 15 pounds, we are hearing some crazy noises.  Not as bad as the when I was small, but loud.  My kids didn't even bat an eye, and all asked me to lift them up so they could see what was going on with the vent valve and the dial.  I explained what I had put inside of the chamber and asked Eli what was causing the valve to stay up - he almost immediately responded, "Pressure!  The steam is creating pressure."  Smart boy.

I hope this works out - I didn't thaw my roast in time, so I'm hoping this will method will correct for lack of cooking time using my normal methods.

Creativity and Imitation

Daniel is the child I have observed most closely transitioning through his stages.  That may seem a little odd, but due to the very close spacing of the first three, I felt like I was in survival mode much of the time.  I missed a lot.  Since Daniel is almost 3 years younger than Isaac, and the other kids are off at school, or in Isaac's case, very independent, Daniel is who I hang out with now.

He has always been a creative child, evident in how he talks and the things he points out.  But recently he entered a stage which I absolutely love!  And no, it is sadly not the "potty train by yourself so mom doesn't have to do anything" stage.  Still waiting on that one.  He has started constructing pretend scenarios and scripting his attendees.  We've seen pretend play in him for quite a while, but this is definitely something different.  Here is an example:

The Ogre, T-rex, and triceratops were placed in this configuration.  He set up their chairs around the box, his "table."  So far today, he has offered them scrambled eggs, and most recently he asked them if they wanted to play Tokyo.  Daniel watches Chris and the big kids play a game called King of Tokyo, and it must have left a huge impression on him.  He is using a handful of variable sided dice as eggs, by the way.  Purple eggs.  I love it!

BIG Tree

Our friend Linda gave us her old tree this year.  Our previous tree looked like it needed to eat a few cheeseburgers, so it was a welcome addition to our house.  This one is taller, and much, much bigger.  The kids absolutely love it, and I am very thankful for the gift.

Here are some pictures of our decorating fun.

Lost Tooth

Sophie's first tooth has been loose for a while.  She's not the kind of person who tolerates such things, so this tooth has been causing a little bit of drama around here.  I tried pulling it out one day - it was so loose that it bent completely forward, but she shrieked and I really didn't feel like it was worth it, so I told her to deal with it on her own.

Yesterday, she asked me for an apple.  I handed her a giant red delicious about the size of her head.  She complained that I didn't cut it into pieces for her.  Oh child, I know exactly what I'm doing.  So she heads off to eat the apple.  I rub my hands together like an evil genius.  Soon, there will be no more complaining and whining about how the tooth is hurting when she eats yogurt.  Seriously.

So she comes back up about 10 minutes later and tells me she can't finish the apple, it's too big.  I look in her mouth, and the tooth is GONE!!!  I asked her where it was...she produces an utterly horrified look and bursts into tears.  Plan backfire.  So now I have drama because the tooth is out!

I inspected the apple - no tooth.  We searched her clothing, the couch where she was sitting, the floor - no tooth.  So, Sophie literally lost her first tooth.  It's gone.  I'm just glad it's out.  Hopefully the one beside it will wait a little while to loosen up.

She is in a much better mood about the situation, so here's her showing off her gap - you can already see the adult tooth coming up behind.  Donations for our orthodontia fund are always gladly accepted.

Eli's First Performance

One of the things I love about our school is that they put a big emphasis on "specials."  Art, Music, PE, etc.  Eli has been practicing with his classmates for his first special performance, one themed for Veteran's Day, in music class.  It was a short performance, with 3 of the second grade classes participating.  I was very impressed.  The kids were clearly having fun and loving the performance aspect of music.  Eli was thrilled when he got done.  He was proud of himself, and knew that they had done a good job.  I clearly remember performances on the East Elementary school stage when I was in elementary school.  I have been trying to gently push him toward singing and loving music, but I feel like I've been striking out.  I hope this performance will tip the balance.

Since this was a Veteran's Day program, the kids dressed in red, white and blue.  The Captain America "costume" became useful yet again.

TOT 2014

Last night our locality held Beggar's Night (or what I grew up calling Trick or Treat, though nobody else appears to use that term).  I've been hearing from friends all over that it is very odd not to celebrate Halloween on the 31st, but again, I've never know anything different.  We had fairly nice weather, and the kids had an absolute blast.

Let me tell you about Daniel, though.  Daniel dressed as the "Itsy Bitsy Spider," which is one of his favorite things in the world.  A lot of stores this year used spiders as themes for their Halloween area, and now each time we go into a store, he yells for the Itsy Bitsy Spider.  Kroger had enormous inflatables - and as a result is now his favorite store.  I'm wondering how long it will take him to realize the spiders are hibernating until next year.  Anyway, we walked down to one of our neighbor's houses to start.  The other kids run ahead, TOT!, and come back.  The adults are encouraging Daniel to come and get some candy.  He walks halfway up the driveway, and when I tell him to go ahead and get candy, he takes his plastic pumpkin and hurls it at them.  I was mortified!  Daniel is a very happy, calm, friendly kid, but boy, that temper flares up when I am least expecting it.  I am sad to see my kids growing up, but I will be glad to be out of this toddler stage for many reasons.

The other kids had an absolute blast.  We saw so many neighbors and I got to meet a few of the kid's classmates and their parents.  I could take or leave Halloween - it's not something I even really think about much, but it is such a great way to connect with the neighborhood.

Here are a few pictures for you:

The Itsy Bitsy Spider, Captain America, a minion, and a ballerina.  

My "fire pumpkin" as Daniel calls it.  You can't tell, but this
pumpkin is huge!  The lady at the local nursery still had some
as of yesterday at noon, which is when I got around to buying
one.  It was carved at 4:30 and on the porch just in time.  

2014-2015 School Pictures

Opening up a packet of school pictures is a little like opening - well, I really can't explain it.  The element of surprise is definitely there, along with the expectation of nothing amazing.  I hope for eyes open (all the way!).  Bonus for a smile.   Sophie came home from Kindergarten today and told me there was an envelope with 4 of her heads on it for me in her backpack.  The moment of truth.  She is a very photogenic kid, so I wasn't expecting it to be too bad.  Eli's will be the true test, but he isn't home yet.

Here is Sophie:

Update: As predicted, Eli's are pretty bad.  We will be doing a retake for him.  I'll update when I get the second round back.  Thankfully we are doing family pictures soon, and I know those will be great!

Cakes

When I was young, one of my many creative aunts would decorate amazing cakes for her children's birthday parties.  It left a huge impression on me.  As I got older, I worked on cake decorating through 4-H projects with my mom, and sometimes displayed cakes at the county fair.  I still like to decorate cakes - I try to make each kid a fun cake for their birthday.  But I cut it off at age 5.  While it's something I like to do, it takes too much time!

Here is Isaac's 5th birthday cake.  His final decorated cake.  He will join his siblings in thinking of new desserts to choose when his birthday comes around again next year.

The request was for a red dragon.  He didn't notice that it didn't have wings.  I'm not actually sure if dragons are required to have wings or not, so this was a wingless worm.  

Happy 5th Birthday, Isaac!

There is so much joy and excitement in our home this week!  Today we celebrate Isaac's 5th birthday!  Funny and passionate, determined, energetic and brave, and very sweet, this boy blesses our home and our family with who he is and how he lives.

I am glad that he is home with me for this last year before he starts school!  I keep trying to convince him to stay little forever, but he doesn't want to.  

Happy 6th Birthday, Sophia!

Today, our sweet girl turns SIX!  Our family's caretaker, confident and quirky, gentle, compassionate, kind and caring.  I love that God gave us this girl, and am forever thankful.

She didn't catch any fish on this trip - mostly due to Daniel launching rocks into the stream, but partly to blame is the fish being blinded by the neon pink top and sequin skirt - a new trend in fishing attire.  

Sophia's First Day of KINDERGARTEN

I think it was possible to scoop up some of the excitement this morning and hold it in your hands!  Sophia was all smiles as she got ready, ate breakfast, and waited for the bus.  She missed the district cut off to go to kindergarten by about 6 weeks last year, so she has felt ready for this for some time.  This is always a difficult milestone for me - I know these kids are growing up and I love to see it, but I feel deep loss with this one like no other.

Here are some pictures - 

So excited!!!

Eli has been providing coaching all week.  :)

"The bus is coming!!!!!!"  

Doesn't she look like such a peanut next to these huge second graders?  

I am praying that Sophie will adjust quickly, continue her deep love of learning, and make some amazing friends.  

First Day of Second Grade

Here is Eli, ready for his first day of second grade:

 Eli is my late sleeper, but he was up early this morning, very excited and ready to go!  

I know he's a big second grader now, but he still seems small in many ways.  

Pray for Eli's school year - that he will be challenged, that his learning will be fun and exciting, that he will grow in confidence, and that he will make great friends!

My Newest Mess

Er...project.  When we moved into this house a few years ago, there was a paver patio in the back.  It was sunken in the middle when we moved in.  But over the past few years, especially after the deep cold of this past winter, it has really started to sink.  The steps are sinking with it.  Thankfully, nobody has ever tripped, but it's starting to become somewhat of a safety concern.  

I asked my neighbors if they remember it being built, and one told me she couldn't believe how badly it had held up.  Looking at it, I had assumed it was put in place shortly after the house was built and had settled with the land.  My neighbor said it was built less than a year before we moved in!  If anything, the steps have to go and be built in a way that is level and safe.  I pulled up the patio pavers right up to the steps just to see what we were dealing with.  Those paver steps are parked right on top of....DIRT!  ha!  No attempt was even made at any kind of foundation.  It figures.  

Not to worry, we have called in the help of an expert, so tomorrow our construction foreman, my dad, Tom, will arrive to help consider the options and attempt to make repairs.  If you are bored this weekend, and are thinking that it would be super fun to lift up, move, fix, and replace multiple tons of pavers, gravel, sand, and concrete, come on over! 

A Big Accomplishment

Next time you see Eli, please ask him about his bike.  I took him out on Tuesday with his training wheels still firmly in place.  I couldn't figure out how to transition him away from them, and he was pretty scared.  He seems to be on the late end of learning to ride his bike from what I have observed with his friends and other kids in the neighborhood.  So Tuesday I took them off, and we went over and over and over and over trying to get him balanced.

The change in the past 48 hours has been really amazing.  He has figured out how to get himself started, and can ride for over a mile without falling off, or getting scared and putting his feet down.  I am so very proud of him.  More importantly, he is proud of himself, and that makes my heart very happy.  :)

PYO

I haven't been to a PYO (pick your own) farm in a loooong time.  I can't even remember last time I went.  This morning, a friend posted that a local PYO had ripe black raspberries ready to pick.  I got this crazy look in my eyes, and I said, "Get your shoes on kids, we are leaving NOW."  I love black raspberries.  LOVE them.  I almost never see them in the store, which is sad.

Now, let me tell you how motivated I was to get these berries.  I didn't look at the weather.  Rain or shine, we were getting black raspberries.  I didn't pack lunches.  I grabbed water and sunscreen and ran right out the door.  The trip there was fine.  As we pulled into the parking lot, Daniel,who has apparently started to suffer from motion sickness in the past few weeks, vomited everywhere.  I thought about just stripping him down and wiping out his car seat, but it was too much of a mess.  So home we went, got him re-clothed, and wiped down the car seat as best as possible.  And then we turn around and drove right back out there.  As we are getting out of the van, Sophie developed the most ridiculous nose bleed I've ever seen, and we waited it out.  It finally stopped, but not without a pretty fantastic mess all over her clothing.  If you are going to bleed all over yourself, doing it right before you are going to be covered in bright red berry juice is a good idea - nobody will ever know.

So we finally made it out to the fields, and were able to pick 9 pints of of black raspberries.  They are wonderful.  The lady told us to eat as many as we liked while picking, which Daniel, on a now empty stomach, considered a personal challenge.  He probably ate a pint on his own!  Eli ate 1 berry and said they didn't taste good.  I can't even understand it.

These boys are great berry pickers!

"MORE BAYEEEES!!!  MORE BAYEEEEEEEES"

Sophie loved picking as well, though she was far less
tolerant of the fact that berry bushes have thorns.
 Also, she forgot a hair band, and all I had was a clothes pin.  

Happy Twosday!

Today is this sweet, lovable boy's second birthday!  I cannot believe two years have passed since Daniel joined our family.  There is no way to overestimate the joy he brought when he joined our family and continues to bring.

Pretty

...and soon to be pesto.

Can you identify these?  It's my first year growing them.