Lily's Kindergarten Thanksgiving

When we found out that Lily's class was going to be having a Thanksgiving feast and that they would have to choose between making a pilgrim costume and an indian costume, I crossed my fingers and hoped that Lily would choose to be an indian.  And she did!  We both thought that that costume would be a hundred million times more fun to make.  So we went to Goodwill, bought a cheapo shirt, then went to Walmart for some puffy paint and feathers, and we crafted away together.  It was fun!

 

 

We could have brought the whole family, but since it was during naptime, I thought it would be safer to just have one of us go.  Lily eventually chose to have Ben go and so he got to indulge in the Kindergarten Thanksgiving Feast aka really gross cafeteria food.  This was Lily's first time buying lunch and she thought it was heaven.

 I don't remember ice cream bars being a part of the original Thanksgiving feast, but then I wasn't actually there so I won't make assumptions.  And let's just say that we ate a whole bunch of Southern food at my Thanksgiving feast as a kid and for years I seriously thought that the Pilgrims ate Brunswick stew.

 Lily with one of her friends, Addison.  And by the way, I am finally starting to see that Lily might actually be related to me.  These pictures, to me, don't look too different from Kindergarten Heather.

 "I'm thankful for everyone."

 

Since Skyler got his chance at playing with the camera, Lily wanted hers.  She took the following selfies.

Have I ever mentioned that Lily's eyes have turned green?  3/4 of her grandparents have green eyes so it was bound to show up in one of our kids. 

 

We hope your Thanksgiving is full of gratitude and yummy food that does not involve a school cafeteria.

Snapshots

Ella's newest skills: folding her arms and saying "amen" during prayers, sort of eating with a spoon, and cleaning up aka spreading the mess around, and eating two slices of pizza for dinner.  Some friends told me it all probably goes to her hair.

The tiniest one is getting cuter.  Proof:

 Poor kid is being subjected to male pattern baldness in infancy.

 But look at that cute face!

 

The rest of the pictures are all ones that Skyler shot.  I let him have the camera for 10 minutes and of the 97 photos he took [yes, 97] some were serious winners.  Here they are in no particular order.

 A day in the life of Skyler: watching Magic Schoolbus during Ella's morning nap -- a common occurrence.

 First selfie.  He has some serious eyelashes.

Precious Thad and his not-so-precious cradle cap. 

 "Look Mom!  I can even take pictures upside down!"

If Skyler had a facebook account, I imagine that this would be his profile picture.

 

I know I've said this a hundred million times, but one of my most favorite things ever is listening to the kids pray.  I really feel like I get more of a sense of their thoughts when they pray.  Here are some of the things Skyler prayed for this week:

• "Bless the food so our bodies will be healthy and strong so that we won't die any time soon."
• "Bless Lily to be good at school so that Mrs. Lockhart won't yell at her."  Even though Lily's never really been in trouble and Mrs. Lockhart is the nicest woman in the world...
• "Bless Lily to not suck her thumb."  This is an everyday thing.
• "Bless us that we can do some cool stuff with Jesus."

Nanni and Papa's House

My parents are a huge part of our kids' lives, but for some reason I never take my camera to their house, and for some reason I don't usually blog about anything I haven't taken pictures of.  So they're sort of these invisible giants around here on my little blog.

 

Any time we say that we're going over to Nanni and Papa's house the kids get excited.  They know that my parents spoil them way more than Ben and I do.  Their house has a bunch of cool toys, actual TV other than just the PBS that we pick up with our antenna at home, Mia, and always something yummy to eat.  [On lucky days we get treated to Cook Out.  It's sort of awesome.]  Any time the kids eat breakfast there they know they're getting chocolate chip waffles, my favorite breakfast from childhood [and adulthood].  Plus, my mom actually buys juice.  And in boxes!  Double plus!  Basically food is just way cooler at Nanni and Papa's.  The kids even get excited about eating boxes of raisins for their snacks.  ????

 

Here are some pictures to prove that my kids actually do hang out with my parents.

 

 

 I can't remember what these foam thingies are called but the kids love them.  Here they were making an octopus and a jellyfish.

 The coveted time with Nanni and her iPad and playing Bugs and Buttons and Super Why games.

 One thing I don't think I've ever shared about Ella is that she hates men.  As in, a man looks at her and *BAM!* she's in tears.  The only man she loved from the get go was Ben.  Probably this last Spring Ella finally warmed up to my dad because [shocker] he knew the secret to earning Macbeth love.  Food.  Now every time we go over there he always gives her a big handful of Goldfish and she's one happy woman.  They have a great bond now.

I love living 35 minutes from my parents.  We're far enough away that both families definitely live their own lives, but we're close enough that we can see each other whenever we want.  It's likely that both of my sisters will also be moving back to the area within a few years.  Growing up very far away from all family my whole life just makes it odd that there's the possibility of us all being back together again.  It's so wonderful to think about.  Grandparents, siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles.  Aaaa!  Awesome.  My sisters and I have joked about having a co-op.  Lizzie will give all the kids piano lessons, Becca will give voice lessons, and I'll give art lessons.  Woot!  And if any of our kids want to be athletic, then we'll just have to pass them on to the uncles. 

I love family!

Thaddeo

Each of our kids has a nickname (or several).  They always come naturally and so we waited for Thad's to make its appearance.  It didn't.  I was tempted oftentimes to call him "Bishop" because he's our first baby to lose his hair and has this fantastic ring of hair around the bottom of his head like he's balding.  But I thought that was slightly inappropriate so I never went through with it.

 

But a couple of weeks ago we were loading the kids up in the car at my parents house when Skyler called Ben "Daddy-o."  Then he looked at Thad and said, "Thaddy-o."  It stuck.  He is now Thaddeo.

• Thad full blown smiled for the first time during our nightfeeding last night.  I asked him if he was ready to go back to bed and he gave me a 2 minute smile.  I was basically a puddle on the floor after that. 
• He only coos when the two of us are alone.  He likes to wait to have conversations with me when it'ss perfectly quiet and he has my full attention.
• He is a cuddler.  This is a good and a bad thing.  Lily was our only non-cuddler and I can remember wishing so badly that she would just give in and snuggle.  Little did I know that when you have a cuddler, they don't like being put down.  Ever.  So Thad is held for a better part of the day.  I can survive a disorganized house and last minute dinners for his first year until he's more interested in running around than being in my lap.  I know how quickly these days disappear.
• He loves church music.
• He is starting to put on chub.  It's no surprise to me because he drinks 4-6 ounces per feeding.  I'm a happy mama right now.  Chunky baby thighs are heaven.  The only strange thing about his eating habits is that he doesn't spit up.  Instead, maybe once or twice a week, he vomits -- as in projectile vomiting.  It's pretty scary when it happens. 
• Speaking of eating well, he typically has a bigger feeding right before we put him down for the night and then he sleeps 6-7.5 hours at a whack.  Not shabby for a month and a half.  I'm not complaining.
• He's our first newborn who doesn't scream through every bath.  In fact, he doesn't cry at all.  High five Thad!
• I am so thankful that I opted out of nursing completely this time around.  I have been on so many medications since I had him that it would have made life even crazier than it already is.  Not to mention I feel so much better emotionally.  Yay for formula!

Thad is the baby.  Naturally he is adored by everyone.  All of his siblings love him, but the relationship that interests me the most is Ella and Thad's.  It's like Ella gets that he's tiny.  Lily never learned how to be gentle with Skyler so that's what I was expecting with Ella.  But she totally gets it.  She's soft and sweet and gives him kisses all day long.  I can't say that I blame her.



The Outdoorsman

I think it was for Skyler's 4th birthday when I wrapped up this Nerf gun that I had gotten on clearance.  This is how I shop.  I casually walk around the clearance sections at stores and see if there's anything super cheap that my kids would love.  We've been Christmas shopping for months this way and we only have 2 presents left to get.

 

Okay.  That was a serious tangent.  I guess I'm just excited that my Christmas shopping is basically done.

 

[woohoo!]

 

Anyway.  *ahem*  Ben looked at that gun and said something like, "Uh, that's way too big for a four year-old."  And me, not knowing anything about guns other than that target shooting is fun, said something like incredibly smart like, "Oh."

 

So we kind of hid it in the garage.

 

Until HE found it.

 

[HE meaning Skyler, naturally]

 

So I showed him the ropes with Ben's help every now and then.  Don't blame me for not knowing how to load a Nerf gun.  I didn't have brothers growing up, remember?

 

He's been intrigued by his gun ever since.

 

 This morning while Ella and Thad were napping, Skyler and I pulled out his gun again once we had raked that "ginormous" collection of leaves from our one tree in the front yard.  We plopped down on the porch and time after time he would hit the trunk of that tree.

 

This kid is amazing!

 Then we raked the backyard and Skyler requested a visit to the stream behind the fence.

 

[I spy Skyler]

 After a fun morning outside with one on one time, I told him it was finally time to go in.  That's when I was told that I was "The Worst Mom Ehhhhh-verrrr."

 

I don't take it personally.  I never do.  I usually just take it as the morning was a success and he was sad to see it end.

 

Me too, Kiddo.

Why I'm Grateful for My Cute Human Mops

 I just had to post a picture of our backyard (okay, really our neighbors' backyard) in the Fall.  Our own trees were red for about a day and then turned brown.  Ha.

 Ella's new favorite thing is wearing my baby carrier like a backpack.

 



 We all know who Ella loves most!

 The kids' favorite thing about hardwood floors?  They can lie like this and scoot around the kitchen and dining room.  They're basically the cutest human mops on the planet.

 

 The other way they like to mop the floor.  It's a good thing Ella loves being dragged around.

 

 Thad looks a little weird here, but he is definitely getting cuter by the day.  And chubbier too!

 

It's a good thing I've got cute kids to keep me happy right now.  I had to go to the hospital again on Sunday for another allergic reaction to another antibiotic.  I feel like I haven't felt normal since before I got pregnant with Thad.  Today I'm off to my opthalmologist to discuss my eye surgery.  I still have that blind spot in my vision that started back in March.  Since it's Thanksgiving time, I just want to say that one of the things I'm most thankful for this year is insurance.  I have already accumulated over $30,000 worth of medical bills for just me alone this year!  With three trips to the ER, testing on my heart, seeing a cardiologist, being pregnant and delivering at the hospital, getting gestational diabetes and having to get diabetic supplies and seeing a registered dietitian, and then being prescribed a ton of medications since having Thad.  Whew!  And I haven't even had my eye surgery yet!  To say we're pinching pennies right now is an understatement.  But when I got back from the hospital and was heavily drugged on benedryl again, the kids made me cards and it brightened up my day.  Reading "I luf you Momy" is worth all this craziness. 

Even though it could have been taken the wrong way, the one part about my allergic reaction that made me laugh was when Skyler asked what he could bring to church.  I told him that we weren't going to be able to make it to church since I needed to go to the hospital.  He clapped his hands and said, "Yes!  That means Nanni and Papa are coming over!"  Gotta love how brutally honest kids are.  :)

Teaching Each Other

Spending time with Nanni.

 

 

 

To Lily, starting Kindergarten was a dream.  Everyday for over two years she would talk about school and how exciting it would be to go.  Having her excited made me less worried about her actually going.  So when August 26th rolled around, I handled everything better than I expected.  I didn't cry.  Lily didn't cry.  She came home the first few days pumped because everything was "so cool."  The cafeteria, the playground, her teacher, the centers in her classroom, her specials -- everything.  It was almost too good.  And it was.

 

It didn't take long before the real kindergarten began the frustration hit.  Someone pinched her.  Someone didn't want to sit with her at lunch.  Anything that used brain power was "too hard."  Lily stopped being Lily.  Smiles vanished.  Temper tantrums started appearing.  There were things thrown across rooms and many doors slammed.  There have been several times when I have broken into tears.  Not because of the hundreds of times that Lily told me that she hated me, but because I didn't know the root of the problem which meant I didn't know how to make her happy again.

 

Ben and I were in agony.  With every frustration babies and toddlers put us through, nothing could compare to the pain I experienced with this.  I would take the paint Skyler smeared all over the carpet any day over this. 

 

I was desperate for my parent/teacher conference that was coming up.  I wanted to know what was going on behind the scenes.  We hit the jackpot with our very first teacher.  Mrs. Lockhart is the ultimate kindergarten teacher.  I wish all four of my kids could have her.  We sat down together and looked at Lily's work.  I was completely shocked by what I saw.

 

Lily started out the year on track but as the year has progressed she has gone far and beyond what is expected of her at this level.  In every area she is ahead.  My favorite part was looking at her writing skills.  She would draw a picture and then write a sentence about it using all of her own spelling.  The child almost spelled "refrigerator" correctly!  WHAT?  Mrs. Lockhart kept going on and on about how well Lily was doing. 

 

So why the tears?  I brought it up and Mrs. Lockhart mentioned that Lily would cry all day long in the beginning of the year, but now she is much more in control of her emotions.  Both of us noticed one thing: Lily cries when she's challenged or when she has to try something new.

 

When I figured this out, I literally felt pain in my chest.  This is a personal pain because Lily is becoming me.  I was the exact same way when I was young (and still am to a degree).  For example, this is why I'm not musical.  It didn't come easilly to me so I pushed it away and I still really hate music.  I told Ben I'm not sure if I'm ever willing to have a piano (or any musical instruments for that matter) in our house because that's how much I made myself hate music.  I have had an inner battle with myself to get over this because if one of my kids inherited Ben's genes and wants to take music lessons, I'm going to have to say yes and get over myself. 

 

Having Lily become me would be so hard for me to watch.  So I have had to try to figure out how best to help Lily.  Ben and I have really pushed encouragement when she accomplishes something and we take baby steps to get there so that she's not overwhelmed.  We also try to tell her just how smart she really is, but she waves it away and talks about how frustrating her homework is.  I had one thought.  If she sees us doing something hard, maybe she'll be more inclined to try hard too. 

 

I just wish she could see her potential.  I've seen her progress.  I've seen where she ranks.  I know just how well Lily is doing, even being one of the youngest in her grade.  But when I see Lily as a reflection of me, it makes me wonder if I see my potential and if I'm actually willing to work hard to get there.

 

I wonder if I teach Lily nearly as much as she teaches me.