Category: Jonas

Pastries with Parents…

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The boys and I had an “adventurous” time at Pastries with Parents this morning. You’d never know by the picture. Jonas basically skipped the line…he ran up to say hello to one of his friends and then proceeded to help himself…much to mine and his brothers’ annoyance (they were shouting, “No fair!!!”). I didn’t want to get out of line and lose our spot because Roman is quite possibly the most impatient person I’ve ever met (bless his heart). Plus, I was trying to keep Roman from going into full fledged meltdown mode…I don’t know if it was anxiety about all of the people, the excitement of getting pastries for breakfast, the boredom of waiting in line, or him looking up and not seeing me for one second while I stepped out of line super quickly to save us a table. Either way…geesh. I ended up picking him up and holding him and swaying with him until he calmed down. After we got settled at our table, Roman accidentally spilled his orange juice and then Xander’s water. So, we had to go home for a change of clothes for two kids. Ack!!! I’m trying to remember this…
“When little people are overwhelmed by big emotions, it’s our job to share our calm, not to join their chaos.” – L.R. Knost

Easter…

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We spent Easter with Pops, Maw, Hilda, Jennifer, and Kerry this year. We had a delicious potluck lunch, watched the boys hunt for Easter eggs, and sat on the front porch…enjoying the spring weather and each other’s company.

Tennessee Aquarium…

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We took the boys to the Tennessee Aquarium over Spring Break. We loved swimming in the pool at the hotel, playing on the climbing wall at the playground, sliding down a huge hill on cardboard boxes over and over again, eating dinner at the Mellow Mushroom, walking with our delicious ice cream cones down to the river at sunset, spending the day checking out all of the interesting creatures at the aquarium, and watching one of the best IMAX/3D marine animal films.

Click on the “Tennessee Aquarium 2019” page to the right for more pictures.

Mall Adventure…

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I took the boys on an adventure to the Opry Mills mall this week during Spring Break. It was the first time I’d braved the mall with them since they were little. Surprisingly, they did great! We checked out the Lego store, took our picture together in one of those photo booths, met Maw for lunch in the food court, walked around, and stopped in to the Disney and the Build a Bear stores. They all spent some of their allowance money on a little something for themselves…Jonas picked out a little Pooh bear to add to his collection and Xander and Roman chose to build bears (named Fluff and Cuddles). They did so well that I think I might bring them back to the mall again this summer to check out Dave and Buster’s.

Literacy Night…

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It was Literacy Night tonight at the boys’ school. Jonas presented a board game that he designed to go along with a book he read (one of his and my favorites), Magyk by Angie Sage. Roman dressed up as one of the little monkeys from Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed and shared a quick book review. Xander is his own man and just did his own thing which I love about him. Literacy Night is always really fun for the kids with scavenger hunts, Kahoots, crafts, face painting, etc. I love NES!!!

The Things They Say…

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Thinking about what to say to his friends when they ask him why he’s always leaving school early…
Jonas: “I got problems, people. It’s my get out of jail free card.”

Wondering how the fish in our tank have lived for so long…
Xander: “Maybe they are actually waterproof security cameras that are controlled by people with video game controllers…”

Musings in the car…
Roman: “Can I tell you something, Mom? People are dummies at some things. People are geniuses at some things.”

Braces…

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Jonas has been such a trooper with his braces for the past year and a half…I’m so proud of him. After all of his hard work, he got his braces off today!!! To celebrate, we had his favorite dinner (pizza), cake (that he helped me make and top with his favorite chewy/sticky treats he hasn’t been able to have) and a movie night. (He also got a haircut…that he ended up not being too enthused about after the fact…but I think it looks great on him.) Yay for Jonas!!!

Mommy/Son Dodgeball Night…

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It was Mommy/Son Dodgeball Night at the school tonight. The boys always have a total blast.

This year, however, it ended in tears for all of us…

Jonas was still upset about having his finger pricked and his blood drawn at his well visit earlier in the day and was getting into emotional wads about the prick/draw sites impeding his dodgeball throwing prowess. Xander didn’t want to take a selfie with me and knocked my phone out of my hand and it hit me square on the chest bone…I was so mad/hurt/embarrassed that I walked straight to the bathroom, locked myself in a stall, and cried. (It had been a long day already for me with a 4th grade field trip and a traumatic well visit, and I was feeling really overwhelmed with all of the sound and activity at the end of a long day/week). Xander got knocked down, when dodgeball morphed into football, and left the court with a bloody nose that just kept bleeding and bleeding. After all of that, Xander and I were ready to go home, but Roman flipped into meltdown mode and refused to go because he was only able to play dodgeball for a short amount of time due to his belt testing starting at the same time. So, I carried him out in tears. Gracious.

My take away is this…my dear friend, Rebekah, who is also a nurse saw Xander go down and leave the gym bleeding…all I heard behind me as I was following him out in my last straw moment was, “I’ve got you.” It touched my heart, and I’ll never forget it. May we all know that on our worst day and in the most trying of circumstances… when we’re walking into yet another trial…God is right there with us, saying, “I’ve got you.”

New Year’s Day…

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We had such a great New Year’s Day. We went for a walk on the Nolensville Trails, played football with an emoji stuffed animal at the Nolensville High School football field, enjoyed the Pomerantzes annual New Year’s Day gathering (complete with the most delicious ribs, black eyed peas, greens, and corn bread), and watched some football by the fire.

Happy 10th Birthday, Jonas!!!

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Happy 10th Birthday, Jonas!!! It is unbelievable to me that my oldest son…the first one who made me a mommy…is now entering the double digits. Jonas, you are one of the brightest people I have ever known. You are so creative and funny…a truly voracious reader and an incredible artist. You keep us all on our toes, and we love you.

Walden Pumpkin Farm…

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We headed out to Walden Pumpkin Farm this afternoon. It was super muddy after all of this rain we’ve been having, so the boys ended up with mud all over them after emerging from the corn maze. BUT…they still had fun going down the potato sack slide, walking through the Creepy Corner, playing in the corn bin, sending little plastic ducks down the water pump half pipe, and picking out a pumpkin. Happy Fall, Y’all!!!

Fall Break: Camping

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We were so blessed to be able to go camping over Fall Break!!! It was definitely on the chilly side but so worth it to just get away from it all and be out in nature together…what a great way to ring in the fall season.

We are so grateful to one of Tom’s good friends from the Nolensville Volunteer Fire Department, Marc Fielder, who graciously lets us camp out on his land a few times a year.

We loved hiking, collecting and chopping firewood, drinking hot chocolate, eating s’mores, and hanging out around the fire.