She’s participated before, but this weekend, she actually did the whole class. Something about watching figure skating makes little girls want to dance!
Susie Joins Ballet Class
Feb 19th, 2014 by ECM
Happy Seventh Birthday, Tommy!
Feb 17th, 2014 by ECM
Tommy is seven today. I remember back when he was fourish, my mom told me to enjoy his sweetness, because he wouldn’t be a sweet little boy much longer. He’s definitely not a little boy anymore–he is all big kid!–but he has retained a sweetness that his mommy and little sisters sure appreciate. When he’s doing things like wrestling with other boys or getting sweaty after racing around the backyard (pretending to be a Green Bay Packers star), I need to remind myself that those are normal, good boy things to do. I want to enjoy the sweetness and the occasional cuddles on my lap, but I don’t want to mollycoddle him.
Tommy is such a classic firstborn. He is meticulous, thoughtful, a rule follower, pretty compliant (I can’t BELIEVE I read the Strong-Willed Child and thought any of it applied to him! But then, I hadn’t met Susie yet), and introspective. He is remarkably patient with his little sisters, though he does tell me he can’t wait until he turns 13 and gets his own room and be able to keep his legos out all the time. (For the record, if we get to move home sooner than that, he’ll be getting his own room before 13, but for some reason, 13 is the age stuck in his head. Right now, he likes sharing with the big girls.) He has an amazing memory that I should be taking more advantage of. He really wants to please us, and I have to be so careful not to crush his spirit when he gets in trouble. I’m so conscious that he is the firstborn of two firstborns. He also idolizes Daddy–any sport that Derek likes, Tommy likes (and draws endless pictures of, with the two of them in key playing positions).
Tommy is finally coming out of a 4+ year obsession with Cars and Lightning McQueen. (Halleluiah!) He says that Legos are officially his favorite toys now, especially after going to see the Lego Movie with Derek on Saturday. He also likes snap circuits, drawing, painting, and riding his bike. His favorite subject in school is writing (mainly narration exercises and copywork), followed closely by grammar (oral work on parts of speech as well as poem memorization). He loves going to CBS and doing his Romans Bible study with his best bud, Jonah. He is good at math but doesn’t enjoy it as much as language. He really doesn’t have any subjects he dislikes–French, typing, anatomy, geography, and fine arts are always done with enthusiasm. He’s really into reading those silly coffee table type books and can tell you way more than you ever wanted to know about the 2012 Tigers, alphabetical trivia relating to the Green Bay Packers, and the 100 Greatest Moments in Olympic History. (He has not broken into Frank Sinatra: A Life yet. Note that all these cheesy coffee table books belong to someone who is not me.) When he gets into a book, he’ll read it several times in a row–at the moment, he’s relishing How to Eat Fried Worms and Return to the Hundred Acre Wood.
Traditional breakfast in bed
For his birthday this year, we got him a 6-speed bike to replace his little single-speed 16 incher, and, of course, seven books! Elizabeth did extra housework to buy him an extra baseball so that they can practice ground balls together in the afternoons.
I’m so glad I’ve been Tommy’s Mommy for seven years!
Moral Support
Feb 15th, 2014 by ECM
Happy Valentine’s Day!!!
Feb 14th, 2014 by ECM
The Sea Center in Santa Barbara
Feb 13th, 2014 by ECM
This week, Katie and Jack met us up in Santa Barbara again for me to buy my new camera lens (!!!) and check out the little sea center that’s part of our SB Natural History Museum membership.
It was pretty small, but I think we actually enjoyed ourselves more than at the Monterey Bay Aquarium because we almost had the place (and the excellent docents) to ourselves. They got to pet a ton of starfish, sea cucumbers, and other tidepool life.
Then the best part was hauling up a pail of water from the ocean and examining it on a screen…
…The kids got tweezers to pick out any little specs that might look interesting and stick them in a dish…
…Then we put them under a couple of microscopes and discovered that our dishes were actually full of life!
Katie and I agreed that it was the perfect homeschool field trip–all four kids got plenty of hands-on fun, asked the volunteer tons of questions, and really seemed to learn a lot!
(And while these pictures were taken with my handy dandy new 23-105 lens, I discovered it’s really hard to learn how to use a new lens while wearing a wriggly little girl in my pikkolo. Hopefully we’ll see some improvement soon!)
Girls on Swings
Feb 12th, 2014 by ECM
Still Sick
Feb 10th, 2014 by ECM
We’re into week 2 of quarantine here, with Derek the weekend casualty to pinkeye and a reluctant addition to Janie’s and my coughing chorus. The big kids do seem to have bounced back quickly and are chafing at more housebound days (and rain–so they can’t even play outside!). Thank goodness for the Olympics. We are all glued to the TV for hours a day.
Meanwhile, Janie is loving the play kitchen, and Tommy was able to read the Sunday comics to the girls when Daddy’s throat was too sore.
Poor sick baby
Feb 7th, 2014 by ECM
Pray for Janie–she is miserable!
It’s Raining Here!
Feb 6th, 2014 by ECM
Not just a sprinkle–a real rain! Naturally, Elizabeth insisted on donning her swim suit and rushing outside….quickly to discover that 62 degrees is, in fact, pretty cold when you’re getting soaked.
Yeah, have I mentioned we’re all sick with colds….?!
Playing in Santa Barbara
Feb 5th, 2014 by ECM
We’re all feeling yucky with chest colds and pinkeye (thusfar Tommy is the only one who had symptoms, and I immediately started dropping breastmilk in his eye–one reason to be glad that Janie is not weaned yet). So any pictures of us right now would not be pretty. But here are some pictures from our field trip to Santa Barbara last Friday!
We stopped at the camera store to look at new lenses. The kids were remarkably well-behaved, and the big kids let me try out the lenses on them.
too close!
Then we met Katie and Jack to play in the creek at the Natural History Museum and then were introduced to a new playground nearby that Jack calls The Chocolate Castle!
Janie LOVED the swing. She giggled and laughed longer and harder than she ever has in her life. It made me wish we had a swingset in the backyard (and since we don’t, it reminded me that we need to go to playgrounds more often)…
We’d hoped to get back up to Santa Barbara today for me to buy the lens I decided on, but with all this sickness, we’re going to have to wait ’til next week. Oh well, as I told my mom, who wants higher quality pictures of green crusted noses and pink, bloodshot eyes? I might as well wait until my subjects are healthy again, anyway…