Reuel, age 3

Reuel is three and a half! He may not be in school yet, but life is still pretty exciting for this very spirited and energetic boy. When we made a kindergarten poster for Keziah, Reuel insisted on making one too.

Reuel is 3 but he thinks he is 30. He wants to do it all and do it all by himself! He is always taking something apart because he is confident he can put it back together. He is so eager to learn how to do so many things, most of which are years down the road, unfortunately. But he has taught us that he really can do so much if we just let him. He loves power tools and is eager to learn how to use them all. Recently Michael Paul taught him to use the drill press and he loves drilling holes in things. He is really good, and really responsible about it too. 

When this fork lift made a brief appearance in our driveway (a delivery of roofing supplies from Home Depot), he thought the fork lift was a present for him. And yes we totally let him press all the buttons and run the thing for a bit. And yes he was heartbroken when the fork lift was taken away. So he asked for one for Christmas. And he knew to specify, "a real one, not a toy one" because he honestly believes this would be an appropriate gift for himself.

When he's not into heavy machinery, he can be found swimming, running, and just playing hard. 

If he is sitting still for any length of time, it's usually because he is getting dirty, or riding on/in something. Here's a picture from a recent boat ride with daddy and papa:

(that's a genuine happy Reuel smile, very hard to capture because he usually gets goofy as soon as he sees the camera)

Our trip to our cousins' farm was seventh heaven for this boy. Tractors, and 4-wheelers, oh my!

Yes, we absolutely let him ride a 4-wheeler all by himself. He was very good. Fast, yes, but very careful.

And as for bike riding, well that balance bike was long ago boring and he was ready to move on to the real deal. He had mastered balancing and so getting on a real 2-wheeler was a piece of cake. And boy is he fast!

I recently asked Reuel what he wanted to be when he grew up. This was his answer: "a digger man, a tractor man, a train drivin' man, a worker, a man who works on a road and holds a stop sign, a driver for a truck, aaaannnnnd i guess dats all for now!" 

Lots of ambition, this one.

Keziah, Kindergartener

My baby started kindergarten today! I can't believe it, really. Keziah is the main reason I started this little blog here, to keep our friends and family up to date, and to force myself to record the milestones and my thoughts along the way. Well here we are five years later and my baby has started school! 

I asked her to tell me what the best part of kindergarten was going to be. She said learning a new language. (They do have a spanish enrichment once a week). And then she added that she was looking forward to the computer because it's a big one with lots of games we don't have on the iPad.

She graciously let me walk her in and take one picture of her in her classroom. Then she kissed me and said, "ok, bye, see you later." 

She had a great day. I asked her if she got to use the classroom computer. And she told me how when it was her turn, she clicked on something and it stopped working and no one could get it to work again. So, apparently she did inherit her parents' complete lack of technological ability. That is the first thing she told me. But she has since told me of new friends and coloring and the playground. She is real excited about her purple bag and folder with roses on it. And she was thrilled to find the "I love you" note in her lunch box. On the way home, I asked her if the day felt long and she stated she kept wondering when the day was going to be over because it felt so long. But I think she meant that in a good way, like an 'I'm so glad the day's not over yet' way. She crashed into bed half an hour before her usual bedtime. I'm sure there's going to be a bit of adjusting, but for the most part, she is off to a great start! 

And since I haven't really updated on her recently, here are some pictures of what she's been up to this summer:

We went camping in my parents' RV and played at a little lake beach. She has gotten much better at swimming and loves the pool, the lake, and any kind of sand.

On that camping trip, she lost her first tooth. And she just lost its pair last night. So now she has quite a hole in her mouth and $2 from the tooth fairy.

We got to hang out at a cousin's farm and Keziah fell in love with horses.

And did some 4-wheel riding as well.

She is definitely not my baby anymore. To quote Michael Paul, "she's a bonafide kid now!" The baby/toddler/pre-school days are gone. There is so much she can do now and so much she is learning so fast! I am so proud and in love, I could just burst.

Go get 'em baby girl!

Solomon, 7 months

Solomon is 7 months old! He weighs 19 pounds. He has big blue eyes and the longest eye lashes I've ever seen. His first two teeth finally came in this week.  He rolls, scoots, and army-crawls to get where he wants to go and he is so close to crawling. I have a feeling the baby gates will be going up pretty soon. He is quite the escape artist and can get himself out of the bumbo and the bouncy seat. The safest place to put him is the floor and he loves sitting up and playing with toys now.

He laughs all the time, much more than my first two babies. I don't know if it's his personality or just that he has a lot more to laugh at. His siblings can be quite entertaining. He also loves the water and splashing and playing outside. We've had a fun summer of swimming at the pool and lake, camping with grandparents, and visiting cousins and family in Georgia.

This is how a mountain baby survives Georgia in August!

We learned he hates long trips in the car. The driving was pretty miserable. But other than that, he was pretty laid back about all the new places and people. All in all, he's a great baby. It's so much fun watching his little personality come alive. Time sure does fly by.