September

Sigh.....

   

She was so excited to go this morning, until it was time for Jess and I to leave

Jaxon wants to go to school too!

After school nature walk at home

We have chickens!

Which also means we have eggs!

Trip to the Marine Science Center

Beautiful day at the beach!

Sierra's first sick day.  We tried to scare the germs away :)

School is here.  The first day was rough.  And by rough I mean that my child ran down the hall in tears trying to exit the building, rough.  Her first day of Kinder was such a breeze that I wasn't quite ready for the magnitude of the first day of First Grade.  She woke up excited to go and was in a great mood until it was time for us to leave.  Luckily Jess took the whole week off because he has banked up quite a bit of vacation time because we never go anywhere.  If he hadn't of been there, I probably would have followed her out of the school at a dead run too.  As soon as it was time for us to leave she LOST it !  She was crying hysterically and after trying to calm her at her desk, I took her out in the hall to try and calm her down.  I didn't want to be forceful but I had to let her know that going home was not a choice.  So after I talked to her and told her how wonderful her day would be (praying that was true), that it would go by quickly (thinking that was probably a fib), and that she had to stay and we were going to go, she got up and ran towards the exit.  I was yelling down the hall for her to stop and she just kept going.  I had absolutely no idea what to do.  Luckily, Jesse was able to get her to stop.  After about 15 minutes of this, I was just about to lose it myself when a school "angel" came and saw us struggling.  She was very kind and calm and took Sierra back into her class and told us to go.  We did.  And I cried all the way out to the car.  And then on and off for the rest of the morning.  Whoa.

When Jesse picked her up that afternoon she was in a happy mood and came home with a great report about her day.  I was so relieved.  The first several weeks still were rough for the most part.  She would get upset every time that I would try to leave.  Finally after the first two weeks Jesse told Sierra that if she would hold it together when I went to leave for a whole week, that he would take her to get a new toy.  Bribery.  Thank goodness for bribery.  It worked.  But she also got used to the new schedule, her teacher, her new bigger school, and being away from me for 7 hours.  It was so hard and I am so glad that she was able to get past it.  At the end of the month she actuallly requested that I drop her off at the front door.  She said it was easier to say goodbye that way.  When I walked her in to her classroom (which I had done every day in Kinder) she had more time to think about me leaving and it made it harder.  So I drove up to the drop off spot and watched her walk away and smile and wave.  And I cried again.  Good grief.

Jaxon's been a little bit bored without Sierra, but for the most part enjoys having the run of the house again.  He doesn't get bossed around and can sometimes sneak in and play with her favorite toys.  He usually pays for that after she gets home though. :)  He loves going places and after we drop Sierra off wants to know where we are going.  If I say back home, he argues that we need milk, or to visit GG, or that I should have a coffee.  In fact, by the end of the month when I was just dropping Sierra off, I would just wear my sweatpants and a sweatshirt.  He figured out that if I was in my sweats we most likely weren't going to get groceries or go anywhere else, so before we would leave the house he'd say, "Mama put on your pants!"  Ha! 

After struggling to get Jaxon out of diapers at night, we finally started waking him up to take him potty before Jess and I went to sleep at night.  He's a limp rag doll, but manages to pee when we put him on the potty.  So we are finally done with pull ups. Praise the Lord.  Now we're hoping we can eventually quit taking him and he'll make it to the morning.  Sierra was dry all night at 20 months, so it felt like FOREVER to be keeping him in pull ups at night.  But each kiddo is different and she was a much lighter sleeper.

To be honest, I'm so thankful that this month is over.  It's been very stressful.  I'm so glad that Sierra has settled in nicely and am proud of her for figuring out what works best for her.  Hopefully the rest of the year will go smoothly!

August

Benton County Fair!  It.Was.Hot.

Jaxon loved the rides.  He wanted to go on every single one.

Sierra went down the slide and carousel and that was pretty much it.

 

These kids love the garden!

It's full this year!  But our well is low because of lack of rain, so I really haven't been able to water it enough.

Sierra lost her first tooth just a few weeks after she turned 6....

And lost her second one at the end of the month

It's been a hot one!  And I've loved it.  We did miss out on some fair time this year because of the heat.  I usually take the kids almost every day but this year it was just too hot so we only went only went twice.  Jaxon loved the rides and we bought wrist bands on one day for both of the kids.  Jaxon got his money's worth.  He went on the roller coaster with his hands thrown up in the air and a giddy smile on his face, and went on as many rides as fast as he could after that.  Sierra went on one ride with him that went up and down and she ended up in tears after she got off.  After that she refused to try anything else besides the slide and carousel.  Jesse always works a lot during fair week, which is why we get in for free, but it's always a very long week.

Sierra continues to struggle with separation.  I signed her up for a 3 day dance class put on by the high school dance team that she was very excited about.  But when we got there she froze and started to cry when they tried to get her involved in a game she came in late on.  It's like she's a totally different child from last year.  It breaks my heart.  She ended up really enjoying the class but I had to sit there the whole 3 days and watch her for 2 hours, so she had enough confidence to stay.  I'm starting to worry more and more about school starting.  But I was worried last year, and she went to Kindergarten without any problems, so hopefully I'll be pleasantly surprised.  She's supposed to do a dance that she learned for the first home football game during halftime.  She seems excited about that.  So despite her need for me to be close, she is still not paralyzed by fear the way I was/am about being in front of people.

She did discover about a week into this month that 1st grade will not be half day, and she freaked out.  She apparently thought I was always going to come pick her up at lunch, and when she realized that wasn't the case we had some very rough and emotional days.  Finally Jesse was able to get her to calm down by explaining that it's not much longer than Kindergarten (to me 3 hours seems like a long time).  But she's started waking up at night with bad dreams as school is nearing.  Poor kiddo.  It's so rough growing up.

Jaxon and Sierra play so much together I wonder what his reaction will be to having her gone all day.  He's more independent than she is, so it might not be an issue, but a big change in schedule always takes some time to get used to.  I'm hoping once we get settled in to the fall schedule that him and I can do some fun things like swimming lessons or tumbling, especially once the rains start in.  We spend so much time outside it's always really rough when it starts raining and we are stuck indoors all day.  

Right now Jaxon loves playing with cars and monster trucks, riding his tricycle which he still wants to push with his feet instead of pedal because he can go faster, play with Sugar the dog, and swing and slide.  He eats almost all fruits and veggies (except tomatoes and broccoli) loves yogurt, lentil soup, bacon, and pancakes.  He doesn't eat much meat so I make a lot of meals that involve bacon.  He still will not touch noodles.  We worked hard and he got over his aversion to berries and now he eats blackberries and raspberries like nobodies business.  But he never got past his aversion to pasta.  I still work hard to try to get him to eat more things and he is finally starting to try things but still won't each much of anything new.  I'm hoping he'll be like Sierra someday and try anything he sees.

Well, school is here, ready or not.  Wish us luck!

July

Such a helper :)

Sierra recited a memory verse with two of her friends in front of about 200 at VBS

Working on her car....

Trying to finish up the garage so we can get final inspection.

This is how Jaxon felt about sparklers

The first year Sierra actually held them and didn't run too :)

Jaxon practicing tball with Sierra.  He wants to be able to do everything she does!

Warm July evenings.  I LOVE summer.

First tomato.  This girl loves her garden tomatoes.

Tball!  Ready position.

Isn't she just the cutest?!

She made it!

Sierra and Sugar have became good friends but she still misses Zoey an awful lot!

Nothing sexier than a big tattooed man frosting pink kitty cupcakes for his baby girl!

Sierra's 6th birthday party.  Such a sweet group!

The girl still loves kitties, and her cupcakes turned out great.

We sure have been enjoying summer!  It's been nice to take it easy and have nowhere that we have to be.  The kids are getting used to being around each other all day every day again and get along most of the time.  There are also days when they can't be in the same room without glaring at each other or saying something rude.  We've been trying to do two fun things a week.  Library, park, swimming, play dates, etc.  The other days we mostly stay home.  We spend a lot of time outside which all 3 of us enjoy.

It's also been nice to be healthy!  It's the first full month of health since last November.  Seriously.  That's a reason to be joyful.  Sierra went to bible school again this year.  It's a week long and from 9 to noon.  Some of her friends from school were there and she loved it just like last year.  There is a lot of music which is her favorite part.  She's also done really well at memorizing her bible verses this year and ended up reciting one of them in front of all of the families at the end of the week.  She spoke last year in front of everyone too, but it wasn't a memory verse, she just spoke about crafts. 

Sierra has been very clingy this summer and hasn't wanted to be away from me at all.  She's always been a mommy's girl, but it's been pretty extreme and I sure am hoping she'll do ok when school starts again (she did do well at bible school).  She's tried a couple of sleepovers at her grandparents, but usually ends up being brought home in tears before bed.  Jaxon on the other hand, LOVES to spend the night with his Grammies and Pop Pop's and would probably do so every single night if he could.

Sierra May turned 6 this month.  I'm having a hard time thinking about her going to first grade.  That means she's gone ALL day.  Last year just seemed to work so perfectly, but we'll make it work.  The good news is that she is finally sleeping all night and doesn't have any apnea problems anymore, so hopefully that will help her have the energy to make it all day at school. 

We had a nice little party at home for her with her friends for her birthday.  It was one of the few days so far this summer that it rained, so we had to ditch all of our plans for an outside party.  But the girls enjoyed their time together and we loved having them over.  It's a very sweet group of girls.

It's hard to believe that school will start in four short weeks.  Here's to a happy and healthy August :)

June

End of the year kinder field trip to the Newport Aquarium

Jess took the day off and got to come too!

We drove ourselves instead of riding on the bus.  It was a very quiet ride home :)

End of the year field day games.

 

Last day of school.  The kiddos used shaving cream to clean off their desks.

It took all year for Sierra to master this.  She's not a fan of heights but she kept trying!

Sierra and her teacher.  She was great!

Garden deliciousness!

Candy land!

:)

Jaxon is feeling pretty bummed that he is not old enough for T ball.

A trip to Mary's Peak.  There were butterflies EVERYWHERE!

We made it!  We all survived Sierra's first year of school.  She's done superbly academically, made some very sweet friends, and has matured in so many ways.  We are so proud of her!  She absolutely loved her teacher and only had a few random days of not wanting to go to school.  She made it through her tonsillectomy, so many germs, sleep apnea that kept her from getting a good night's sleep for almost the whole school year.  It was definitely an adjustment for all of us, but we made it together.  We are all glad that summer is here.  I'm looking forward to hopefully a few months of health, no rushed mornings, and time outside with the kids.  I'm trying not to dwell on the fact that when school starts next year, it's going to be a whole new ballgame.  1st grade is going to be 3 hours longer for Sierra and I'm hoping the transition won't be too tumultuous.  

Sierra started T ball this month.  She had two games a week.  She has done great!  My biggest worry was how she would handle games in the heat because her little body just does not handle heat well.  Her very first game was in 98 degree weather.  She struggled a bit, but made it, and handled it much better than I expected.  She hits left handed and can smack the ball pretty good!  Jaxon wants to be able to do everything that Sierra does and it's hard for him to sit back and watch.  It's funny the things you realize as a parent.  I not only understand obviously things more from my parents perspective, but I kind of see things from my siblings perspectives as well.  Jaxon being younger and always wanting to do things with his sister, and being hurt when he isn't included.  It hurts my heart when they don't get along.  And the first few weeks after school got out we had a lot of fighting.  They had gotten used to being apart and Jaxon had the run of the house in the morning.  They want to play together but are trying to figure that whole process out again.  I'm trying to let them work some things out on their own, but there is still a lot of intervening.  I'm hoping that they get it figured out before summer is over and things change when school starts again.

Next month my baby girl turns 6.  It's so amazing how the years are starting to fly by. I'm hoping that summer doesn't pass by too quickly.  I'm ready for some laid back days, if that's possible.....