Summer's End
Somehow the end of summer crept up on our little family. In a moment of panic, we held a family night and made a list of all the activities we wanted to fit in before school started. High on the list was a visit to Blue Lake, a beautiful park with disc golfing, plenty of blackberry bushes, and a splash pad! As an added bonus, we got to spend the day with our good friends the Spence family.
While we golfed, Austin and Maylee browsed the blackberry bushes,
Sam and Ty perfected their throws,
and Ryan carried a few kids when they got too tired.
We were all glad for the splash pad to cool off afterwards!
School Days
The day finally came! Sam's very first day of Kindergarten. He was so excited, he did not want to stop to take pictures. Austin on the other hand...not too happy to lose his best buddy.
"No time for pictures Mom, I'm off to Kindergarten!"
Waiting for the bus with his neighbor and one of his best friends, Grant.
Austin cheered up when he realized he gets Mom to himself for a whole couple of hours each afternoon.
All smiles getting home from his first day! He loves every minute of school so far.
One day I got a little crazy and dyed my hair red. I love it, but my boys reviews are mixed. Sam keeps stroking it, Austin thinks I don't look like his mom, and Eli doesn't seem to care.
Sam's 6th Birthday
All Sam wanted for his birthday were Legos and a Lego Party. The boy is OBSESSED with Legos. Thanks to the magic of Pinterest, that request was fairly doable! Entertaining/Wrangling 12 little boys ages 3-6 was another story...
First up was Lego building. Thanks Uncle Carson for lending us your Lego collection! The boys all played for quite a while. It was great!
Then we had a couple of Lego-themed games.
Everyone's favorite was pin the head on the Lego Man.
Time for dinner and cake! Look at all those cute boys!
My handsome brand-new 6 year old. At his yearly check-up, he was 44.75" tall (34%ile) and 40 lbs (14%ile). He loves running, climbing, jumping, biking, building, drawing, reading, wrestling, singing, learning, and cuddling (sometimes). His favorite food is Mint Chip Ice Cream. When he grows up, he wants to be a SWAT team police (although this changes on the day!). His favorite books are non-fiction books about Airplanes and Dinosaurs. I wish I could freeze him right at this stage. He is old enough to be a little independent, but still likes to cuddle with Mom :) It is really fun!
Getting 12 boys to hold still for a photo is impossible. This was as good as it got.
Who am I kidding, I love everything about this picture.
Sam had a great time with all his buddies and couldn't wait to build with his new Lego sets!
Eli turns 1 1/2
A few days later, Eli turned 18 months. I can't believe he is already 1 1/2! At his checkup, he was 35" tall (100%ile!) and 26 lbs (69%ile). Here are a few of my favorite things about Eli...
The way he sleeps.
The way he lines up cars all over the house.
The way he carries around 3 cars: one in each hand, and one in his mouth.
(I've quickly learned that lining up the cars like this is just a boy thing.)
Back to things I love. The way he brings me his books to read and then plops down on my lap.
These are his two favorites. He loves to point out the cars, trucks, and airplanes in the first. In the second, he LOVES poking his little fingers in the holes of the fruit. These poor books have seen better days.
(Mom, why are you taking my picture again? Just come read with me!)
The enthusiastic way he helps put away the silverware. I have to put away the sharp knives as quickly as possible, because he seems to always find them first!
Stretch!
What a good-looking bunch of boys. I think I'll keep them.
