Look at those curls! He's my only one to have had them and I can't bare the thought of cutting them off yet! The kid loves baths, balls, new to cars, and above all, CLIMBING! Every day he seems to find something new to climb up and give me a heart attack -- up to the trampoline, the tall kitchen step stool, all the way up the ladder to the top bunk, dining room chairs, the couches. He lives to explore his environment and is often scarily independent! The last few days he's also gotten stuck under beds and furniture while seeing if he can fit or trying to get an elusive ball. But when he's tuckered out or just needs a hug, he comes to find me. I scoop him up with kisses and if he's ready for a nap, he'll yawn and then start sucking those fingers while laying his head down on my shoulder. It's moments like these that I treasure and thank God above that I am able to be a mother.
Today was our first real dip in temperatures indicative of fall weather. Jake will surely miss his favorite room of the house - the backyard! He pushes the truck, rides and climbs all over the bike, and ends up on the trampoline every time. I zip it up, throw some balls in there and he's good for at least 15 minutes just playing.
Jake's also recently been working on hollering my name. He perfects this while we are confined in the van together. He wants me to answer him each time and grins big when I do. It sounds more like "Maaa" as in "mad" rather than "Mom".
Here's our girl! She loves having her own soccer practice. When I announced Sunday at dinner that we'd have to miss her practice because of the boys' school open house, her lips frowned and a slow sad cry began. It wasn't a tantrum, it was real sadness! We declared a family soccer practice for FHE the following night in her honor which cheered her up and kept her going all Monday.
Morgan has enjoyed having some quiet time to just play on her own lately during Jake's naps. While I buzz around doing chores in the morning, she happily plays alone for an hour or so with her dinosaurs, cars, dollhouse family, and lots of books. She still loves baths and would take them twice a day if allowed. We've been working on being a kind big sister to Jake and it's been fun to start to see her understand that role and find joy in it. She has a hard time when Jake gets into her staged toys so I'm helping her figure out ways to distract him. They love to play chase and peek-a-boo around Ryan's spinning chair. Such a cute happy girl!
The kids aren't enjoying waking up for school and are rarely up on their own. I've been trying to make it a fun think like my dad did. If I'm not humming Beethoven's 5th while tickling them awake, I'm humming the Star Wars title song. It's fun to see them stubbornly giggle first thing in the morning, but if I'm not on my game and need to get them up without a fight, I'll turn on the TV to play the Piano Guys Star Wars parody, called Cello Wars. Awesome! Check it out below! Once the kids hear it begin, they're up pretty quick! Ryan added the funny dog teaser and it's been a hit too. And if I'm not up for arguing during breakfast, it's been great to turn on the Book of Mormon Stories videos since they're short and easy to cut off to get the rest of the routine rolling.
Last week we got broken in with a little homework for the boys so this week's "home learning" felt like an onslaught. Finding pictures for their Identity posters, spelling lists, reading time, mathletics and antolin.de time online, and the like. Ever heard of edmoto? It's like facebook for a grade school classroom. As part of Easton's Identity research unit, they're learning about being good digital or online citizens. Woah! The boys also started their school's after school activities of science club, Chef's Academy, and Easton starts piano tomorrow. Life's feeling full, especially our evenings! Thank goodness I've got Ryan to tag team the kids' needs and help keep life fun! I sure love this family of mine!
