Author: Jodi

Xander Lately…

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I’ve missed several monthly updates on Xander over the summer, so I’ll catch you up. He is loving gymnastics (he has a REALLY small class…two kids including himself…and a super sweet coach), having a blast with swim lessons (he went from crying and clinging to fearlessly jumping in and going underwater and swimming to his coach), and enjoying his preschool class (he has bonded very quickly with his new teachers and is blessed to know half of the kids in his class from last year). He’s been showing a bit of aggression towards his brothers lately (which is out of character for him, but I think, being the only introvert in the house besides Mommy, he’s just trying to find a way to establish his boundaries and carve out a space of his own). He’s turning out to be the most laid back of the three in a lot of ways, is almost as tall as his big brother and wears the same size shoe and is looking like such a big boy, and continues to bless us with his tender heart and sweet spirit.

Franklin Classic 5K…

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Jackie and Phil surprised me by coming in town to cheer me on in the Franklin Classic 5K!!! It was such a grand gesture that meant the world to me…what special people who teach by example how to love in action and not just in word.

It was a hot morning for a run, and I went too fast out of the gate and ended up almost getting sick and having to walk for a little while about halfway into the second mile which killed my time…oh well, what can you do but live and learn not to give in to the adrenaline. Next time, I’ll try to stick to my best training pace…atleast I beat my time from the last race and hit my goal time on my last training run before the race.

“A real fighter fights whether or not the bell rings…I know why the caged bird sings…” – Matthew Ryan

On the Lake…

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The boys and I loved going on a boat adventure on the lake with MeMe, PaPa, Aunt Jean, Aunt Julie, Cousins Jordan and Dylan, and Aunt Jeanne. Jonas, Xander, and I went out on the tube (Xander and I fell in, which if I’m to be honest was more a little scary for me). It was fun just hanging out on the boat together and eating lunch with everybody on the dock.

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Jonas’ First Kindergarten Project…

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Jonas worked REALLY hard on his first project for kindergarten…a shoebox shop in a nursery rhyme town that he named “Jonas’ Jelly Beans”. Xander, Roman, and I had fun picking up some fun crafting supplies for him to work with (foam stickers, glitter glue, and rick rack), and Jonas picked out bags of jelly beans and rainbow striped peppermints to really give it that candy store feel. He was very specific in what color construction paper he wanted to use and where, how he wanted the front door and counter top to work, and the patterning of stickers and candies. It was so cute to see him doing that excited walk run into school with his special creation in hand.

Preschool Picnic…

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The boys had fun at the preschool picnic tonight…jumping in the bounce house, drawing with markers, and climbing trees. It was so precious to see Jonas reunited with his teachers from last year (and the years before) and Xander connect and love on his teachers from this year and last year. They were welcomed into open and loving arms, and it filled my heart to overflowing with gratefulness for this preschool community that feels like family that we are blessed to be a part of…here’s Xander with Mrs. Kapolas, his dear teacher this year who he’s already LOVING just two days into the school year.

Xander’s First Day of Preschool…

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Xander had his first day of preschool today…

He met his sweet teachers at his allergy meeting and at his Get Acquainted Day last week and had warmed up to them a little bit but DEFINITELY started putting the breaks on this morning when he realized Jonas wasn’t the only one headed to school. On the way there, he said, “Mommy, I want to be a baby so I don’t have to go to school.” How much alike we are…I remember feeling that same way…not wanting to grow up…when I was a little girl. He started bawling as soon as we pulled into the parking lot. Roman started pitching a fit too (oh the timing of siblings), but he just wanted to wear his backpack (my big boy diaper bag for him). So there I was…carrying a crying Xander and his backpack while Roman be bopped in like he owned the place, toting his own and keeping me from losing it while I laughed at his cuteness. Roman even tried to get into the classroom while Xander was sprawled on the floor crying in front of the door. Poor buddy…I’m so thankful for the compassion that God has revisited upon my heart for Xander that’s competing to take the place of the frustration and impatience that tends to crop up when I see so much of my young self in him. I’m just trying to coach him through it…there are great gifts that go along with all of that sensitivity…so I’m just trying to concentrate on those in moments such as these and pray for the wisdom of when to back off and when to give him a gentle (if uncomfortable) nudge. The gentle uncomfortable nudge was definitely the way to go today…when I picked him up, he was all smiles with two pictures in hand that he made for me…dear sweet boy. Tom was at home with a sleeping Roman, so I took Xan-Man to Sweet CeCe’s to celebrate his bravery in making it through his first day even though he was scared. Yay Xander…Mommy’s cheering you on, buddy!

Xander’s Get Acquainted Day…

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I went with Xander this morning to his Get Acquainted Day at preschool! He got to meet his teachers and half of his classmates (two of whom were in his class last year), sign in by writing his name on an easel, color a fish for the hallway bulletin board, get his picture taken for the first day of school, work on an art project of his own making, circle up for story time, and find his cubby. He went from hugging me to hugging his teachers in no time. I think he’s going to love what he gets to do and learn about in class this year…I’m so excited for him.

Sprayground…

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Xander and Roman and I drove out to the Sprayground downtown this morning for some water play with a few friends from our moms’ group. I was so glad I wore my bathing suit because it was such a hot morning and so fun and refreshing to play in the water with the boys…they loved splashing me and pouring cups of water over my head. It was the perfect splash pad for little ones especially, as the water sprayed up from the ground in varying degrees of height and strength and there was plenty of room for kids to spread out and do their own thing (even when it started to get more crowded). I can’t wait to go back…hopefully before they close for the summer…and take Tom and Jonas. We even got an Icee from the concession stand on the way out (I hadn’t had one of those since I was a little girl…my Grandpa used to buy them for my dear cousin and I when we stayed with him and my Granny for a week every summer). Yay for bringing back and making childhood memories!

Xander’s Card for Mommy…

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Xander made me the sweetest card today! He asked for my help in spelling “From Xander To Mommy”, so I started at the beginning and let him know each letter in succession. He was super excited about already knowing how to spell his name when he got to that part, noticed the start of a pattern in “Mommy” with the M’s and O’s, and enjoyed alternating each letter in ROYGBIV order. Yay for Xander!

First Day of Kindergarten…

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Jonas had his first (half) day of kindergarten today!!!

He asked me yesterday, “Mommy, were you scared when you went to kindergarten? I’m not.” I told him that I was nervous because I didn’t know what to expect but that he’s good to go because he’s been in and out of that school since he was a baby, played on the playground, met all of the kindergarten teachers on screening day, and knows a lot of the kids from his preschool and our neighborhood and moms’ group. I’m so excited for him!

(I have been a bit of a nervous wreck this week, but I’ve found myself feeling WAY more happy than sad about this new adventure for Jonas. Having worked at this precious school, I’m thankful for the parent-teacher-staff partnerships and know that he’ll be welcomed into the arms of family and that feels really good.)

He was all smiles this morning and just be bopped right into his classroom. Tom and I got to go in with him and show him his cubby and his desk (a special first half-day perk) and give him a hug and a kiss goodbye…we enjoyed our special morning with just him. Tomorrow, I know his little brothers will be excited to…in the words of Roman “go for school”…and drop him off at his classroom door (a special second half-day perk) with more hugs and kisses. Yay for Jonas!!! What a huge day.

Blackberry Picking…

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The boys and I went blackberry picking this morning. We tried out a different blackberry farm close to home. It’s their first season open for picking, and they were super laid back. The farmer was really sweet with the boys and had them all fascinated by and taking turns holding a shiny green bug before they even set foot on the blackberry fields. It was just us out there which was so peaceful. The blackberries were wild, so it took some getting used to the thorns. Roman was the least into it, wanting to be carried and saying, “Don’t prick me, blackberries! Them pricking me, Mommy!” We brought our own containers at the request of the farmer, and we left with two sand buckets and one Easter basket…each filled about a quarter of the way full…not bad for a morning’s work of picking.

Lily’s Visit…

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Lily came to stay with us for a few weeks to help out with the boys, followed by a weekend visit from The Paccassis!!! It ended up being a SUPER busy time with VBS, swim lessons, park and pool play dates, a marionette show, a zoo visit, a fire department tour, a Centennial Park/Parthenon hang, and a van tour (Seyfried style) of downtown Nashville. Phew…it makes me tired just thinking about it…ha…but we had fun! Lily and the boys ran in the sprinkler and went down the water slide, made crayons, finger painted, and did lots of creative play. And she and I even got some good girl time in (we painted nails, worked on a sewing project, and went for a thrift store/ice cream run). Here are a few pictures from our time together…

For more pictures from Lily’s visit, click on the “Lily’s Visit 2014” page to the right.

Swim Lessons…

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Jonas and Xander have had SUCH a good run at swim lessons this summer!!! They did three two-week sessions. Although they about gave me a heart attack doing anything and everything but staying on the platform during their lessons (even when it wasn’t their turn), Coach Betsy went right with the flow and took Xander from crying to smiling and from hugging her tight in fear to fearlessly diving in the water and swimming to her AND took Jonas from wild man to wild man with a purpose in the water. What special people teachers are…especially teachers of children.

VBS…

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We missed VBS at our church this summer as we ended up going on vacation the same week (next year I’ll double check that before we book anything), so the boys ended up going this week to a little church down the road. It was much smaller and less overwhelming, and there were lots of familiar faces from our neighborhood. They learned about the twelve tribes of Israel and had a blast doing it. (I was so excited that Xander actually went…when the sweet girl who babysits for us saw him when we were picking up Jonas on Monday, she asked him if he wanted to be in her tribe for the rest of the week and he said yes!) Here my big boys are with their precious tribe leaders (both of whom I taught in the library years ago).

Painter’s Tape Roads…

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While Jonas and Xander were playing with the Lego table (we bought a few Lego plates and Tom used them to convert the top of a car/train table into a Lego table for the boys), Roman and I had fun making some painter’s tape roads on the kitchen floor for his cars. We used a big salad bowl as a hill and small popcorn bowls as car garages. Xander and I enjoyed adding a few more twists and turns to the roads, and even Jonas couldn’t resist tweaking the road design a little bit.