ONE YEAR OLD!

I won't wear bows.  Or shoes.

I love my Mama.  She's the greatest!

I almost always wake up happy!

This cupcake was super yummy!

Smiling for a picture

Fish gills?  No, peek-a-boo, Katie-style

Mom & Dad + K

Loved my hat

Brothers love me.

Math is 4!

Party time! 

SWING!

Hard to believe, but our little dude turned 4!  He was so excited to have his very first birthday party (if you don't count his mini-gathering last year).  We rented a bounce house, ordered pizza, and had yummy sports cupcakes.  He's big now.  He LOVES music & can listen for hours in his room.  Music is clearly how he learns - he memorizes the lyrics to every song.  Seriously.  You should hear him sing Jump or Bennie and the Jets.  Amusing.  He is stubborn & opinionated.  Loving & polite.  He is spunky and adorable.  All at the same time.  Love you, Math.

Second Grade

First day of Kindergarten, 2010

First day of First Grade, 2011

First day of Second Grade, 2012

Wow.  He's just getting so big.  Second Grade.  Everyone who knows me well realizes what an emotional person I can be.  For example, I was watching the bad 2000s movie, First Daughter, starring Katie Holmes and found myself crying bucketfuls of tears when the President sent his only child off to college.  Sigh.  And I know at LEAST two people who did just that this school year and took it much better than I did watching the movie.  What do I know.  Maybe by then I'll be "ready".  Here's what I know: I was emotional yesterday.  Something about my big kid being so confident, ready to just conquer 2nd grade.  He wanted us to walk him to his classroom (THANK GOODNESS!), but didn't need us for anything other than that.  A quick goodbye and we were off.  Mom in tears.  I am proud of him, excited for him, and can't wait to see all the things he'll accomplish this year.  This is right.  It is best for him.  Yet, a small part of me wants to hold him tight and lock him away from the big, bad world.  My tears quickly ended.  My day was busy with other children.  I was so glad when he came home.  Glad to see him and hear about his fantastic day (but not his BEST first day of school, as he took quite a spill at recess.  The head now has some injuries).  Day two?  No tears from mom, no reluctant child, just a normal walk to school.  I was even required to leave him "before the crosswalk".  Funny thing is, after school he told me he "looked back" to see if I was watching him go.  I wasn't.  I let him go.

Historical Figure

Any guesses on who this is? Nicholas had to research a Historical Figure last month... and this is the bust of his famous person.

Mama

Two weeks ago, we were sitting in the "sick kid" area of the Dr. office, waiting for Matthew's appointment. With all 3 kids and it being the sick area, I decided to just leave Katie in the baby carrier (this ended up being her very last time in this car seat... sadness). She didn't really mind, at first, but eventually became frustrated with her surroundings. She looked at me, pleadingly, and said "Mama, Mama, Mama". I jokingly asked the boys if they heard it - her very first word! MAMA! **Side note: this is a HUGE deal. My boys were very late in saying Mama. I think Matthew had a vocabulary of 10+ words before uttering the most beautiful sound in the world** The boys essentially ignored me. Crazy mom - thinking a SEVEN month old is capable of that. Later at home... I ran out with N to get dinner for the family (Math's sickness was wearing me down!). We were nearly home when I get a FRANTIC call from Jason. "GET HOME NOW" I panicked. After he reassured me that no one required immediate medical attention, and the news was GOOD, I raced home to see what was happening. According to Jason, Katie spent the majority of the time while I was gone looking at our big family pic above the fireplace and saying, "Mama, Mama". AND (here's the kicker), I didn't even tell him about the Dr. office earlier that day!! It's official! I'm writing it down in her book! (if I remember, that is). Honestly, she may not really be saying "Mama", but it sure sounds like it. She says a host of other sounds (I'll probably leave some out) including: Dada, , Duh-uh, Uh-Buh, Buh-buh, Mmmmm, something that sounds suspiciously like "I did it", Hi (but not really "Hi"), and others... Other Katie updates... she has been sitting up, unassisted since a week or two before Christmas (so right at 6 months old). She has yet to roll over, tummy to back, or back to tummy. Honestly her doctor wonders if she will at this point. She will most likely crawl first. She loves standing, and is fairly successful standing and holding on to something. When sitting up, she reaches for toys to the point where she crawls onto her tummy. She also scoots her bottom around to reach toys. Little girl is super content, crying only when hungry, tired, or poopy. She comes with me to music class twice a week and sits wonderfully, watching all the big kids singing songs. She still sleeps 12+ hours at night, waking up happy and content around 8am each day.

Valentine's Craftiness

Happy Valentine's Day! We had a lot of fun this year with craft projects for both of the kids. Matthew was sick the week before the Super Bowl, so he was unable to attend a party in the neighborhood. We stayed home together and made crayon-shaped hearts (thanks, IKEA, for the ice cube tray!). It was a fun project for an under-the-weather boy. Nicholas had to make a box for his school Valentines. Craftiness is not my forte, but pinterest saved me! I found a cute Monster Box & we decided to make it. Nicholas did 90% of the work himself, so it was that much sweeter when he finished.

The kids at Nicholas' V-day Party

Heart Crayons... before

Heart Crayons... after

The MONSTER!

He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not

Valentine's Day... we don't go all-out with our kids on this day. We tell them we love them, do something small & special, and keep on going. This year, we took the kids out to dinner (a few nights early to avoid the crowds!), made burgers for dinner (a family favorite!), and gave them each a sweet treat (although they had so many from school... why bother?). On Tuesday, Nicholas came home from school and immediately went to work, creating the perfect gift for his dad. In a Valentine's picture frame he made at school, he placed a picture of Dad & N from a baseball game. He also wrote a sweet note to his dad, and gave him a small bag of candy from his school treat bag. Wow, right? And how about mom? Nada. Zilch. Nothing. He actually pulled a Ghiradelli Chocolate (dark chocolate + raspberry, YUM!) out of his bag as an after-dinner treat... I made a big deal about how much I LOVE those chocolates... they are my FAVORITE... and he ate it. Bummer. No special note, treat, or hugs for mom. Just an average day. So I felt a little down. I'll admit it. Fast forward a few hours... Math woke up around 9pm with terrible growing pains in his leg. He found us watching TV in the media room and clearly needed a hug. Both Jason & I reached our arms out to hold him... Jason said, "pick your favorite parent" (jokingly, but only because he thought he'd win!). Guess what?!?! He immediately came to me! And snuggled! Awwww. Jason offered to take him back to bed, to tuck him in. He said no, he wanted Mommy to do it. What have I learned? Our kids love BOTH their parents so much. We are so lucky to have sweet children who love to express their love all the time. Nicholas may not show me lots of love on Valentine's Day, but there are so many other moments when he does. I am a lucky mom.

He's HOW old?

Wednesday, February 1st was Nicholas' 100th day of school. In Kindergarten, we had to create a shirt with 100 items on it (we used googly eyes... so fun!). This year (and for the rest of his elementary years) he had the chance to "dress like he was 100"! So... he wore normal jeans + shoes (we aren't THAT crazy), but bought an "old man" shirt, hat, and cane. We also sprayed his hair silver, but it really didn't take well. The BEST part for me was spending time alone with N, shopping for the "perfect" items for his day. He had a blast, even though his cane was taken away (it's a WEAPON!). Enjoy!

All smiles before school

The complete look, scowl and all!

The Days are Long, but the Years are Short

I look at our little guy and can't believe he is SEVEN. SEVEN. Say that out loud. SEVEN. It sounds old. Definitely school age. Definitely big. And getting bigger. Various things I've read tell me that seven is a MAGICAL year. They are older, more mature, focused, settled, calm, etc. Part of me is so excited about that - it sounds wonderful! (especially the calm part) But then... I look at him and his "baby" features are disappearing. I can hardly see the little boy he was (just yesterday, right?). I can now picture him at 10, maybe even 15. Watching him grow is exciting and oh-so scary. When I think back, it seems he hasn't changed all that much from 6. He still LOVES to read and is currently reading the Chronicles of Narnia series. Harry Potter is old news. We've moved on from reading & re-reading those books to other authors and series. In the past year, he has gravitated toward sports themed fiction, mystery, and historical books. I estimate that he reads 2 or 3 hours a day on school days, more on the weekends and days off. When he is not reading, he is playing with Matthew. The boys "race" and play various sports in the backyard (golf, football, baseball, tag, Hyperdash, etc.). One will usually cry, sometimes more than once, but the brothers are pretty good at working out their problems. Matthew likes to be Nicholas' shadow and we are reaching the age where N finds that annoying (unless he wants a playmate, then it is perfectly fine). During alone time, he is always sorting his baseball and football cards (some are his, others are Dad's cards from the 80s). He plays pretend games using each player's stats and even creates his own teams who compete against each other. While I couldn't believe he wanted to spend so much money on *SILLY LITTLE CARDS*, he loves those cards and it occupies him for hours! Nicholas is also in training to become a magician, after receiving a cool magic set for Christmas. School is interesting. Academically he is fine - we have no concerns & he continues to progress. Behavior is a problem. Not a big problem, but a problem nonetheless. He is "silly" and "disruptive" at school. Making people laugh is a new hobby & talking at all times is problematic. Ugh. Hoping this is a stage. I feel so helpless when I can't CONTROL his behavior or be a bug in his ear while he is at school. Guess this is part of letting go. Knowing he will make some great choices, and then some awful choices. I need to be ok with both. Emotionally, he is still my sweet boy. He still likes to snuggle and hang with his mom. I know that will (too soon) be ending, but for now, I'll give him a squeeze and enjoy my little seven year old!

Wow!

I haven't posted in a long time! Trying to get back on that horse, and juggle the rest of life! Until then, enjoy a picture of Math. An old friend made this for N. Wishing she could see how cute he is!