Grandma and Grandpa drove in from Virginia this afternoon for a visit. We are all excited and looking forward to an event-filled weekend…trick or treating, Jonas’ last soccer game of the season, Jonas 5th birthday party, and Daddy and Grandma skydiving. More to come…
Jonas and Xander were so excited to wear their costumes to preschool this morning for their Halloween parade, trick or treating, and Halloween parties. (I even put Roman in his costume…nothing’s cuter than three little boys on the front porch in their costumes on Halloween morning.)
I was totally inspired by Kim and her five children…to buck up and do what needs to be done without a complaining heart (adding a little Mary to the Martha), to not carry shame about needing and operating on a household routine (enjoying the peace and freedom that can be found in order), and to start the big boys on helping with chores (preparing for the days when I can let go of more and they can take on more). So, I decided to start them on making their beds (to the best of their ability). It was so cute to see them get so excited about their task. Here’s one very proud Xander…
Jonas and I went on a mommy/son trip this weekend to North Carolina to visit my precious friend from college, Kim, and her family. It was so good for my soul to spend quality time with Jonas, reconnect with an old friend, and enjoy a quick weekend break from day-to-day life in Tennessee. Thanks to Tom for holding down the fort with Xander and Roman so Jonas and I could go on a little adventure together. Here’s to more where that came from (next year it’ll be Xander’s turn)!
The boys had so much fun playing at the park with Daddy this afternoon.
I was so excited to be able to help out with Xander’s preschool Pumpkin Fest this morning. I enjoyed being at the Storytime station, reading books about pumpkins and Halloween to the precious little friends from the 2, 2/3, and 3 year old classes. Xander had fun checking out all of the different stations…having pictures taken with a pumpkin, doing crafts, working with playdoh, playing games, getting face painting and tattoos, eating snacks, washing and painting pumpkins, and checking out the insides of a pumpkin. Yay for Pumpkin Fest!!!
I went in to turn off Jonas’ light last night and saw this preciousness…
Xander loves to play Go Fish. Here he is showing off his silly side.
Roman and I went on a little walk this morning. He wanted to take his “car car”, his “dgink”, and his “ah ah”. Here he is taking a ride and giving a ride.
Today was a cold and rainy day, and Friday has become our take it easy day. So, the boys and I just enjoyed doing a whole lot of nothing that ended up being a whole lot of a really great something.
After breakfast, while Xander was building with Mega Blocks and Legos and Jonas was drawing, I had fun helping Roman with his dinosaur window cling creation.
It was a rainy day today, so I busted out the contact paper, the masking tape, and two buckets of leaves the boys collected from a nature walk and let them have a go with creating fall nature collages in the garage. Jonas, by far, seemed to be the most into it. He did a mix of old leaves and new leaves on one, and then he discovered that Xander’s tricycle made really cool track marks on the other (he had a blast with that). I love the unedited creativity of children!
Tom surprised the boys and I by joining us on our drive out to Pratt’s Orchard for an apple picking adventure this morning…what a great way top off the long Fall Break weekend!!! The boys picked mostly Fuji and a few Yellow Delicious apples, and we all enjoyed one on the way home. Now, we’re just trying to figure out what special treat we want to make with them this afternoon.
We took the boys to Walden Pumpkin Farm this afternoon. It’s the same farm we’ve visited every year since Jonas was almost a year old…it’s fun to see how the boys and the farm have changed.
We brought Xander’s preschool class pet, Marshmallow, home to spend the long Fall Break weekend with us. The boys (not to mention Petra…she’s beside herself and has not yet calmed down about it) are super excited about her. They love holding her (Xander especially…she’s so comfortable with him that she almost falls asleep in his lap), checking out her goings on throughout the day, and helping with her daily care. They each even drew her a picture for her…so sweet.
Jonas went on his first field trip this morning with the 4 and 4/5 year old classes to The Discovery Center in Murfreesboro. He checked out all the different exhibits…loving especially the art and engineering centers. He had a blast going down the super twisty slide, playing in the ball pit, and meeting a ferret, a tortoise, and a chinchilla. It was so sweet for me getting to share the experience with him (I drove and chaperoned three kids including him).
Here are a few memorable Jonasisms:
Jonas: “How many birthdays will it take to get to heaven?”
Mommy: “Well, it depends on the person.”
Jonas: “You mean…God.”
“Mommy, you are such a talented girl.”
“I think Mom’s favorite kind of day is when you’re home, Dad. It’s hard with all three boys.”
Tom busted out the bow and arrow and the target this afternoon in the backyard. Jonas and Xander were all about it and got right in there with him.
Xander built the coolest Lego creation yesterday at quiet time (the holes are for his eyes to look out from). He was so proud to show it to Jonas this morning at breakfast. Yay for Xander and for his creative building!!!
In his nineteenth month, Roman is: saying things like “eat faffle butta” for “eat waffle butter”, “sit bottom”, “outshi fing” for “outside swing”, “loud”, “DaDa wort” for “DaDa work”, “dough” for “play-doh”, “brudah” for “brother”, and “come on come on”; taking a consistent turn as our loudest child; going down the treehouse stairs and slide; showing his toddler colors with tantrums and hitting and biting and starting to do time outs (he’s really good at staying put and apologizing to his brothers); enjoying spending a solid block of time with just mommy two days a week; having fun in his bible study class with friends his age, learning about the book of Matthew; and continuing to be our resident mover and shaker and Houdini extraordinaire.
