Kindergarten

Ezra started Kindergarten this year and I don't miss him or even make him get dressed. If he's late for school, no big deal. And if he just isn't in the mood, we skip... Okay, not exactly, but real life is in those words somewhere.

We are homeschooling.

For this year at least. Every other morning I second guess my decision and waiver on whether this is the right thing for my child, but I am trying my best to stick to it and make it work. I decided awhile ago that I was going to homeschool Ezra. I have a fairly long list of reasons (which I won't list, but if you are really interested then I might consider sharing..) I'll just share this one: I received an impression that this is what we need to be doing and I'm taking a leap of faith holding on to that main reason.

It is tough. It is the hardest thing I have had to do as a mommy so far mainly because there are so many insecurities and doubts I have, but every now and then I am blessed with a moment or two that reminds me why I truly want to be homeschooling right now. We are still figuring it out and I am trying to be patient with Ezra and with myself while we figure it out and make it work.

I was terrified that I was messing him up, but then I figured that since he is on the younger side of the Kindergarten class this year, worst case scenario is that we act like he never had Kindergarten and then send him next year. (Not going to happen, but it for some reason gives me a little peace of mind to have that thought). I also have a very long list of doubts and fears that sit next to my list of reasons to homeschool, but I'm trying not to focus on those.

So, here's how school works (and sometimes doesn't) for us:

We have goals. We are working on Memorizing, Reading, Writing, Spelling, Math, Science, Geography and Cooking ;) I hope to squeeze a little Spanish in there every now and then too, but I don't want to overload him, so we are taking it slow.

Our goal is to complete 3 lessons from 2-3 different subjects each day. This takes anywhere from 2-5 hours per day(not including my prep time oi!)
We always do reading and then we normally do math and then our 3rd lesson is what varies the most.
We are doing reading lessons from a book called, Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. So far so good. It is several steps back from the reading level he was at, but the complications it promises to solve are complications we have encountered, so we're giving it a try. I am trying to take this year slow and mostly use it as a time to teach him to learn (and teach me to teach).

Our goal is to memorize the 13 Articles of Faith. He has the 1st one down, we are still working on the 2nd. When we are done with these we will move on to simple scripture mastery (ex. key words or phrases)

Our goal is to have 5 spelling words a week and a spelling test each Friday. (These include site words like, "you", "the", "like", "have" and other easier phonics words like "cat", "dog", etc.

For science we are learning about the body right now (Ezra's request). He wants to know everything about how our bodies work, so I am doing my best to roll with this one. I am trying to come up with a new body topic for each week. Some seem harder to spend a week on. Like the 5 senses. I had a week planned, but that really doesn't seem like a week long lesson. We did it in a day and moved on. That's a great perk to homeschooling :)

We just got some amazing helpers from Grandma that has him extra excited about learning! Thanks Grandma! One of the things she sent was a Magic School Bus Chemistry kit. I'm considering joining their monthly science club to get monthly packages because it is so cute.

So this is all trial and error right now. It is stressful and confusing. It is overwhelming and intimidating, but we are doing it. I just hope I don't screw up our babies. It's kind of a scary place to be in when you realize that homeschooling means you can't blame anything on things he learned at school. You are school and what he learns will be your fault, like it or not! ;)

Our Dekle Bug

Don't pay any attention to the fact that this was taken the beginning of June. I am horrible at uploading pictures to my comp. He looks pretty much the same, just a little bigger now :)

Deklan is 8 months old. He is the wiggliest baby I have ever seen in my life. Seriously. He has always been that way since I first started feeling movement in my womb and he just hasn't slowed down. He wiggles the entire time I nurse him. Sometimes even in the middle of the night. I swear he burns more calories while he eats than he is actually taking in. He is impossible to change too. Every time I lay him down he rolls over and starts crawling away. I have learned to diaper him on the move, upside down, backwards, any way I can to get him dressed. It's insane, really.

He is crawling and pulling himself up. It's crazy how fast everything seems to happen after they figure out how to move. He has a harder time falling asleep now though because he likes to stand up in his crib. Speaking of sleeping... we don't. I am just no good at sleep training I guess because my last two babies have been horrible sleepers. Makai only started sleeping through the night after I stopped nursing him, so I am counting on that. I follow the guidance that the recommended books give and it just doesn't seem to work. Still trying my best to fight through it.

He is little. I just don't get chunky babies. People always like to comment on how skinny and little my babies are. I take offense to it sometimes because I have a crazy obsession with squishy infants. Though my children are of course still very lovable. He eats a ton, so I know he is healthy. His favorites are our smoothies. He does not care for bananas or avocados, but he will eat either mixed with something else. He has a dairy allergy. I may have already mentioned this; can't remember. He gets hives and they only get worse each time I test the allergy, so I think we are putting a hold on testing it for now. Ezra had a dairy allergy and grew out of it before he was 2, so I am hoping for the same with Dekles.

He still doesn't have any teeth which is perfectly fine with me. All his curls fell out WAY early. I think I was too in love with his hair that Heavenly Father took it away so I would focus more on the sweet spirit in my arms. (I'm kidding, but I was really obsessed with his curls.) Sad part is, I think it's my fault. He had cradle cap and that grosses me out, so I would scrub his head every day until I started noticing his curls were drastically thinning. Oh well, it's just hair. At least that's what I keep trying to tell myself.

He has the best raspy laugh and when he smiles he scrunches his nose. He loves to watch his brothers and be with them. He is a mommy's boy which makes James sad, but James was gone for 5 out of the 8 months of his life, so I'm sure that will change as he gets to know daddy better. For now I am soaking it up.

He's a sweetheart. He loves to snuggle and give hugs. He actually really loves to give me kisses which leaves mega slobber smears on my cheeks, but I adore every little kiss. He is fascinated by water. He loves the swing at the playground. He is always sporting at least one self-inflicted scratch on his face and has now added random bumps and bruises due to his wiggles. He is very interested in our blender. He hates to be left alone. He especially hates to be put down when he is expecting to be fed.

I love my little baby love to itty bitty pieces and I think he loves me too.

Our Move to Texas

We are together again! What a long 5 months that was.
James got back to Maryland August 14th and we loaded the truck the very next day.
We stayed at his parents house until the morning of the 17th and then we started our drive to our new home. Well, we stopped off in Pennsylvania to visit DutchWonderland first. The boys had a great time there! James mom and step-dad, Ilene and Duane, were able to make the drive in James' car with us, so they were able to enjoy watching the boys at the amusement park too. We were also able to stop and see one of Duane's sons in Tennessee along our way.

We got to our new home in Texas around 4pm on Wednesday the 21st. 4 days, some throw up and 7 sore bums later we had arrived! The apartment we are staying in is nice which is great considering the town we are living in. My first thoughts of the town were nervous thoughts, but the more I am here the more I realize it is not so bad. This could be home. Sure there are bugs all over and it's hot and there is no mall, but we have a pool and the church is true, so life will work out just fine :)

James is enjoying the official start up of his career and the boys and I are enjoying putting our home together, visiting the aquarium and the pool, and getting things ready to start school.

It was so terribly sad to leave our home in Maryland. We had made some wonderful friends and had really become comfortable with the area, but this is an exciting new step for our family, so we will do our best to be positive and make it home here quickly. But what a bummer... people don't have accents here. I think I'll still start saying y'all anyways. I did get hugged by a random lady in the grocery store the other day because she liked my kids and was happy to hear me say I wasn't done. That was a pleasant change from what I heard in Maryland :) All in all, Texas is not as bad as I was expecting it to be so far, so I'm feeling good.

We're all doing well and getting adjusted. I'll keep you posted on our little crawler, our crazy Mak and our big Kindergartener!

Makai is 3

Our little Maka Doodle turned 3 on August 14. He's the craziest "free" year old ever. There is so much personality bursting from every cell of this little body. He drives me crazy and yet I could just love him to bits. Here are some things about little Mak Attack:

-He gives the best hugs ever

-He loves to grab my face and kiss my lips even though I remind him my lips are for daddy

-He loves anything sweet

-He fights nap time and opts for quiet time almost daily which usually results in him falling asleep right when he would normally be waking up from nap. 

-He is becoming more tender and loving

-He's easier to reason with (this one gets me excited since it results in far less tantrums from both mommy and Makai.)

-He does crazy things like stick flowers in his ears, gurgle his drinks at every meal, runs everywhere he goes, sleeps with his bum in the air, says "Goodnight" and tips back first into the pool, drinks green smoothies like it's ice cream.

-He makes up his own versions of games (for example, while playing leap frog, when it was his turn, instead of jumping over me he simply belly flopped on my back and said, "Frog died". Awesome.

-He knows he cute and tells us often.

-He is potty training himself when I let him. We've just been in the middle of a move, so I haven't been ready to focus on it.

-He thinks Ezra is the best buddy ever and he laughs at anything he does. 

-He gives Deklan hugs and kisses and likes to remind him not to touch the poop when we're doing diaper changes. 

-He says something funny on a daily basis (Recently while he was saying a prayer he ended with, "And, umm.. Good-bye."

-He sings the "Maka Doodle" song and won't let anyone else sing along (aka Yankee Doodle)

-He doesn't know how to keep the water in the bathtub

-His feet are always dirty

-He make an sh sound with most words that start with an s for example, "shwimming"

-He tells me he's tired of things like, "I'm getting tired of going to bed."

-He always likes to scold us and say, "Well, we'll see about that."

We love our Kai Guy and all the craziness he adds to our days and our family. Happy Birthday little love.

(We are in Texas finally and we actually have internet!!! So after 8 months of being behind, I plan to catch up when I get the chance :) Stay tuned.)

Ezra is 5

Ezra turned 5 on July 17th. He was so excited to be 5. We have been counting down for quite some time. He was telling me all the things I needed to do for his birthday. Like our traditional balloons covering the bedroom floor when they wake up and where I needed to hide his presents and what special breakfast I needed to make. He is all about birthdays and it's adorable. Here are some fun things that make Ezra Ezra:

-He has the loudest high pitched laugh and that's how you know he really thinks something is funny. 

-He cries any time his feelings get hurt even if it's just because Makai told him "no". Gotta love his tender heart.

-He talks with his hands quite a bit.

-He would rather tell stories and run in circles during dinner time than sit and eat his food.

-He laughs and smiles when you're trying to discipline (this one is new and is a bit of a challenge for me..)

-He likes to be in charge and take care of his brothers

-He is ready to wrestle any time daddy is in sight.

-He loves playing soccer and running

-His favorite time of day is breakfast time

-He is excited to learn and be smart. 

-He is becoming a little boy and losing his interest in baby things (break a momma's heart.)

-His favorite character is Spider-Man

-He is a great sleeper and will still take naps for me if I ask him to

-He jumps off of everything

-He believes band-aids make anything better.

-He asks for a snack right after he eats

-He loves to snuggle

-He tells great stories

-He loves to read books and play with cars

-He says his favorite thing to do is play the wii (or any video game, really)

-He loves to be helpful

-He reminds me to read scriptures and say our prayers if I'm rushing them into bed too fast.

-He is fun to talk to and is a great listener when I can get him to sit still.

There is so much about my little Ezzy Bez's personality that I find hard to put into words. He is just lovable and tender. 5 years old I can handle, but I refuse to let him turn 6. Seriously, birthdays stop here.

Love you Ezza Roo.

It's Graduation Day!!!

James is graduating training today! I'm so proud of him. He's feeling so relieved that all his hard work has paid off. He has been doing wonderfully during training. He loves it. Last night he said, "Of course I love it. I'm good at it." lol. He really is. He is at the top of his class and really is good at everything they have been teaching them. Many of the tasks he has come away from being 1 of 3 or 4 agents that could actually do every step that was thrown at them. He is certified as an expert shooter as well, so don't mess with him!

It has been a long 3 months and it is about to get even longer! We still have 2 more months until we will all be together again. He won't be coming home until mid-August and then we are booking our little behinds out to Texas!! (Still so much to do. Hopefully James has a little more time these last 2 months, so he can help me plan and prepare for this move!)

I'm getting more and more excited (still nervous, but very excited). I am so proud of James and the more he tells me he loves this and the better he proves to be at this stuff, the happier I feel for him. He was miserable in his last job, so I am so pleased that he is now in a career that he loves and is right up his alley of expertise.

Happy Graduation Day Tressler!! We are soooo proud of you and all your hard work!

Our First Trip to the ER

My friend Kelsey asked me if we were still alive (Glad to know you're checking in. We're still alive!)... I guess it has been awhile. Where has the time gone? Here's the first of a couple catch up posts :)

May 19th, 6:30pm

Once upon a time there was a little boy who liked to chase and be chased by his big brother. He has many bumps and bruises, but only recently had his first experience with the emergency room. (My first experience as a mom as well.)

He was running away from Ezra while they ran in circles around my parents house and he slipped into the dining room chair. I saw it happen and jumped up to comfort him and watched his forehead explode (okay, I'm dramatic, but head wounds really do bleed a lot and this was my baby here, so it was traumatizing.) I just said, "Oh no, he needs stitches!" and ran to him to stop the blood. He screamed for a good little while, but mainly because he was mad at me for keeping a wet rag on him covering his eyes. Once I moved the rag out of his eyes, he was fine. I had Ezra grab Makai's shoes and my diaper bag, my mom grabbed the baby (didn't know how long we'd be gone and I knew he'd need to eat). We jumped in the car and headed to the ER. Makai instantly became the life of that waiting room. He offered his lollipop to an elderly woman with a cut on her forehead and a grown man who didn't react, so who knows what was going on there. The rest of the group chatted with him and laughed with/at him. 

He never stopped jumping and climbing. The wound never really stopped bleeding while we waited for 2.5 hours to be seen. I was panicked that he was going to split it open more, but at least we were in the right spot if he did. 

Still smiling. It's so gross and I cringe just looking at this because of the first images I have in my head. Though most of you are probably just thinking, "it's tiny". To me it was awful!

Ezra stayed at home with Grandpa. I was worried about his tender heart with how panicked I was while we were leaving and I don't even remember if I said good-bye to him. Before we left I was asking him to get a bunch of things and his first response to me was (nervously), "Okay, umm... So... What was the first thing you said?" Poor kid. I found out later that he told my mom he thought Makai was going to die. Breaks my heart to think of the worry I left him with. Thankfully Grandpa took good care of him and got his mind settled and distracted. 

I called him while we were waiting. When he got on the phone he sounded calm and asked to talk to Makai. I put it on speaker and heard him say, "So, how you doin' little guy?" Makai then shared his experience about how the doctor was going to fix his "owie and make it all better". Ezra was very interested. It brought me to tears how concerned he was. It was so sweet.

Finally in a room a waiting to be seen by the doctor. By the way.. he was in love with his new "brace-wet" that said, "Makai went to doctor today" lol.

The doc FINALLY came in and told us the cut was in a good place, so he didn't need stitches, just some glue. (I didn't know they could glue people closed like that. Cool. Though I was worried the glue wouldn't be as strong as stitches would. I repeatedly warned them about my active child, but the doc assured me that the glue would hold.)

I wasn't feeling too great, so I held the baby and let my mom hold Makai down. He actually got mad at her for holding him down, so she let go and he stayed still.

All glued up and so proud of himself for being such a good patient.

After 3.5 hours (or 4.5 if you ask my mom :) we were walking through the exit, the wrong one, but we were getting out of there one way or another!

I still wasn't so sure about the glue, especially during his wild nights, so we put a butterfly band-aid on it after a quick, careful bath, and then into bed for this little munchkin. Thankfully it lasted and sealed up just fine.

Finally going to bed!

It may sound silly, but it was hard to not cry about this. It's very small, but it's smack dab in the center of his forehead. Right where you look at him. He'll have a scar there now and it made me feel sad. His perfect little body now has a scar and it's right in the middle of his face! I just hope it's not the first of many, but who am I kidding?

So glad this happened when I had two extra sets of hands. Had I been all alone I would've been in tears and so lost about how to get everyone into the car and over to the hospital.

Poor little Mak and his crazy craziness. Gotta love him. 

Easter

We didn't do a whole lot for Easter this year. I wanted to, but it just didn't happen. We did have an Easter Egg Hunt/Play Date at our house where we also colored the window with Easter pictures and played pin the tail on the bunny. It was so fun. Then we went to a Community Easter egg hunt put on by a local church. It was great. The boys loved it. The last community egg hunt we did was in Rexburg Idaho and Ezra only got one egg. Parents were running with their babies in arm grabbing eggs :( This time he filled his basket with no problem. He kept telling me he won!

Waiting for the egg hunt to begin. They were so excited.

"Yeah! We won. High five Makai!"

They also had free snacks and face painting. Of course both of the boys chose Spider-man .

I have never seen Makai so still while he was awake. He barely took breaths while she painted his face. Lol. 

Aunt Dale came with us to join the fun!

The boys got to go to a friend's house Saturday night while I attended a church meeting. There they got to dye eggs with their family. I am so grateful because we just didn't get to that this year, but at least they weren't entirely deprived.

This is Ezra's friend Rachel while they were coloring eggs.

Sunday morning I had intended to take pictures of my handsome little men, but nothing went as planned. The Easter bunny dropped the baskets off late the night before and didn't hide any eggs for us. I think the Easter Bunny just needs an assistant some times. Maybe a nap too.. We opened baskets, played a little and then had a normal CRAZY day. Which is why we didn't get pictures. Our normal days are filled with tantrums, a super tired mommy and grumpy faces. This is the best I got:

One of their gifts from their basket. I figured if they are going to punch each other anyways, why not try to make it more fun?

On the way to church. Ezra was obviously very excited.

That excitement continued into dinner.

Deklan was a handsome little guy:

I can always count on him for a smile.

We had a wonderful Easter dinner at James' mom and stepdad's house and then we all went to bed early. We made an Easter basket to send to daddy, but didn't get it out in time. He got to celebrate Easter about a week and a half later.

I'm planning an update on all the boys as soon as I am able. Including Mr. Tressler all the way in no man's land :)

The Circus

Last month the circus came to town and Grandma and Pop-Pop took us all to see it! It was wonderful.

The boys got a sugar high with a snocone, cotton candy and lemonade.  

On the edge of their seats :) 

And then back for more sugar..

The cats were my favorite part. 

I love the circus. Though there are always some acts that make me cringe. For example, this time they had the "Hair Sisters". They spun on ropes with just their hair and lifted each other up by connecting their pony tails and swinging from a metal right. For someone who is having major post baby shedding, all I could think of was how I'd be afraid to go bald!

Since James left for training before the circus, we had a spare ticket, so we had a friend of ours come along. She had never seen the circus before. I made sure to warn her that it is likely to make her want to join the circus when she grows up. (at least that's what it does for James and me :) I wouldn't mind being a clown if there's ever an opening!!

We all had a great time. Thanks Grandma and Pop-Pop!!

Luray Caverns

Another hurried vacation was to Luray Caverns in Luray, Va. 

Do you see the wooly mammoth? 

This is the best family pic we got. Deklan slept the whole tour and Makai ran most of it.

Catching water

When you touch them, the stop growing, so we had to be careful, but there were some areas throughout the tour that they allowed us to touch and Ezra thought that was pretty cool.

At one point Ezra walked ahead of us while we hung back and took another picture and then they turned all the lights off. I panicked waiting for Ezra's screams thinking he'd be terrified. I ran ahead calling for him and heard nothing. Then they turned the lights back on and he was just standing there, not frightened in the least. Such a brave boy!

Throughout the whole tour we picked out spots that we thought Batman lived in and where we would set up our tent or our rooms if we went down there to live.

Though I can confidently say we will not be moving down there any time soon :)