Fall Morning

Today was a lovely Fall morning. The air was cool and crisp. The leaves are continuing to fall. It was great.
On the way to school this morning Everett asked me if I was sad and missed him when he was at school. I said I missed him and he replied, "You don't need to worry mommy. Kindergarten is fun!" This just made my heart so happy!
Later in the morning, Hampton and Eleanor watched "A Barney Christmas." We are already getting in the holiday spirit around here!

 

This little thing sure knows how to relax in her recliner. This is her chair.
 

And Thatcher took a nice morning snooze. I love watching him on the video monitor and seeing all the funny positions he gets himself into.
 

We then headed upstairs and made some pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. We are loving all things pumpkin.
 

And I toted around this box of tissues all morning due to a nasty cold. Tis the season.
 

And Daddy took a break from studying to give a ride.
 

I then took all 3 outdoors for a walk around the neighborhood. Even though this is a double stroller, we make it into a triple by Hampton riding in the very front! After our stroll, Hampton and Eleanor had fun collecting leaves and then throwing them into the bird bath.
 

 

It was then time for lunch. Thatcher loves bananas!

After lunch it was time for warm bubble baths and Little Bear. Rest/nap time soon followed. It was such a wonderful Fall morning!

The Kindergarten Kid

We are so proud of Everett and how he has transitioned to school. I definitely did not imagine it would go this smoothly. These are the things I want to remember about our Everett.....

You have not once (yet) stated that you do not want to go to school. You are happy to go every single day.
You have only wonderful things to say about your teacher, Mrs.Sharpe. The other day you told me there was a boy in your class that has not been making good choices, but that you always do. In fact, you have gotten "green" every day of school so far, meaning good behavior. I am so proud of you!
You have homework at least 3-4x a week and you love to do it! You have your special Spiderman pencil you use and you usually work on it before dinner. You already take such pride in your work.
When I pick you up from school I know you don't want to be chatty, telling me every detail of your day.....so we decided you will tell me at least one thing. However, once you start talking about that "one thing" a whole lot of things come up. Like yesterday you told me, "do you know there are a lot of planets?" I love hearing about what you are learning at school!
You have a favorite friend that you talk about all the time named Grayson. You told me he is your best friend.
Your favorite "center" is housekeeping. Your teacher confirmed this.
You have started working on sight words, or "popcorn words."
Your handwriting continues to improve and your coloring is beautiful!
You come home from school a bit dirty, a bit tired, but I do believe very happy. I am so glad you are loving learning and playing with friends.

Oh Everett. The time has flown. I feel like it was just yesterday I was rocking you as an infant in our apartment in Louisville. I am so proud of you and can't believe that my baby is such a big boy! I nearly choke up as I drop you off in front of the school and watch you walk up the sidewalk with your dinosaur backpack. You have such confidence and I could not be more proud of the boy you are becoming.

 

Apples and Pumpkins

We celebrated the first day of Fall by going to the Apple Orchard! It was a perfect day, with the perfect weather. Crisp and not a cloud in the sky. Strolling around the orchard, taking bites of apples that had fallen off the tree, riding on the "cow train," picking out gourds, eating lunch by a pond under a willow tree, and then apple doughnuts for dessert. Sweet memories made.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Around Here Lately

Eleanor is still continuing her potty training. She is having a good number of accidents, but we press on. Many days she spends just in undies and nothing else (well, except a bow of course!).

 

And Thatcher Reid (the children call him by his first AND middle name. I have no idea why!).....well, he is loving his solids. Last week I took a couple hours at the end of the day and made a ton of home made purees. He is loving it.
 

And Hampton loves his toboggan!
 

The perfect spot to relax......
 

And one afternoon called for my favorite chocolate chip bundt cake....and Everett got to lick the spoon.
 

A make shift tent.
 

And Thatcher is sitting up so well now! He likes his new view. Eleanor is "reading" to him here.
 

 

 

 

 

 

And this girl knows how to relax. This is HER chair and she will let anyone know that it is hers-ha.
 

Potty Girl

On a complete whim yesterday afternoon I decided to potty train Eleanor. I remember when I decided (at around this age, just barely 2) to potty train Everett. I got a ton of supplies-incentives, a new potty, learning to potty books, Elmo Goes Potty DVD. I was prepared-however it took him nearly a year to master it! So with Hampton, I prolonged this dreaded task. I waited until a couple months after he turned 3! Hampton did great and was very successful. So I wasn't quite sure with Ellie. However she has shown a lot of interest in using the potty and she had started telling me when she had to go. There was no avoiding it. But she has done great! She's had a couple accidents, but way more successes. I'm sure being able to watch her big brothers has mostly to do with that. And she has some really cute Tinkerbell undies. Go Ellie! We're now down to just 1 baby in diapers. It's a miracle!

 

Pretties

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Afternoon Homework

With Everett having homework now, we are entering new territory. I have found the best time to do homework is while I am cooking dinner. I set up Everett and the other children at the table with their "homework." It mostly involves coloring.

 

 

 

 

And I am so proud of Hampton-he finished his first 100 piece puzzle! We call Hampton our little puzzle genius. He is amazing to watch work a puzzle, and his persistence and patience at the age of 3 is  incredible. It took him 45 minutes to complete this puzzle and he had little to no assistance. Yay Hampton!