School's Out for Summer!

Both the boys finished school last week and summer has officially begun!  Bear had a great year at preschool.  He is a homebody by nature and slightly begrudgingly went to school twice a week.  He always seemed to enjoy himself while there, but told me he wants to do homeschool preschool next year.....the jury is still out.  I may have shed a tear or two when I was driving home after dropping Bear off at his last day.  His teachers are soooooo wonderful there.  I am grieving that he can't spend one more year there before he starts Kindergarten with me, and that Belle will never get the chance to experience it.

On the days Bear was not at school he would usually sit with Bug and I during HS.  He has learned about 20 sight words and can read "Dick and Jane" books.  He is also doing really well with 0-5 addition, some subtraction. and answering story problems.  He loves mazes and coloring.

 First Day of School Comparisons.........he looks so grown up compared to September.

 Bug is done with Kindergarten!  We actually survived our first year of homeschool.  I was very nervous when the year began.  There were a few days here and there where I thought it would be nice if I didn't have the responsibility of teaching him, but all in all, it has been a really great experience. I am SO glad we made the choice to begin the adventure. 

In most regards he is a very easy kid to teach.  He remembers things the first time I introduce them and understands difficult concepts even when I feel like I have done a terrible job explaining them.  He is stubborn and willful, so we have had power battles here and there, but it has been a good learning venture for both of us.  I have LOVED the flexibility homeschooling has allowed and that we could move on to more challenging things when Bug was ready for them.  He finished Kindergarten and 1st grade math curriculum and finished his second grade basal reader the day before school let out. 

First day comparison.  He looks about the same to me, but he has definitely come out of he shell socially, at least with kids.  He is still fairly shy of adults.

 We celebrated the end of the year with a "School's out for Summer" party.  The boys had the cutest idea for the cake.  Bug wanted to make a school that said "closed" on it and Bear wanted two kids with their hands up in the air and smiling faces.  Bear made himself on the right and Bug made himself on the left and the cat in between them.

 Bond grilled some delicious pork chops.

 They each got to pick out a helium balloon at the dollar store.

 We had plans for a family dance party after dinner and cake, but the beatiful weather was calling us out to play.  Three cheers for Summer!

18 Months

Belle turned 18 months old last week.  This age is so much fun. She is a little ball of excitement and playfulness.  She threw a royal tantrum at her check-up.  She clearly remembers her 12 month shots and doesn't want anything to do with the doctors or nurses.  It was hilarious.  As they were trying to weigh her she was throwing herself all over the place, but as soon as they walked out the door she let me weigh her.  18 pounds.....such a petite little thing. She wears 12 month clothes and size 3 shoes.  She doubled her teeth this month from 3 to 6.  She has two bottom teeth, one top front tooth and the top side tooth beside the front one, and her two top molars.  The other top front tooth and the one to the side of it are about to break through any day.

 Her absolute favorite thing is to read, with music, dancing and singing falling close behind.

 This is my favorite way to do her hair.

 I am so happy to have this ray of sunshine in my life.  She is almost always happy and easy to take places. Poppi took her to nursery for the first hour on Mother's Day and left her alone for the second hour.  She did great! I was shocked and pleasantly surprised.

Why are Mr. Potato Head glasses always so funny?

Graduation

Ready for Graduation! 

Waiting, waiting, waiting.

Bond getting hooded, to the right is his dissertation chair.  She has been incredibly helpful and supportive. 

Bond DID NOT want to walk for his graduation, he doesn't like to be in the spotlight and thinks the whole ordeal is overly pretentious, but luckily his mom and I were able to persuade him otherwise.  Neither of us walked for our undergrad degrees and this is a major accomplishment.  He has worked his tail off the past 8 years, going to school, working, serving in time demanding church callings, and taking care of us. 

Bond with his family.

Bear and Pops.

Bond with his little bros.

Bond and his Mom.

Celebration dinner at our favorite sushi restaurant. (I am sooo gonna miss this place when we are gone.)

My parents were kind enough to watch Belle during the ceremonies so we had to get a family picture with her the next day after church. 



Soccer

 Bug is playing YMCA Rec Soccer this year.  He really enjoys organized sports.  On the way to his game last week he said, "Soccer is one of my favorite sports."  Oh, that warms my heart! It is so much fun to watch him learn and play.  He is a defender by nature, so he tends to hang between the mass of kids going after the ball and the goal the other team is trying to score in.   But he has still managed to score a couple of goals this season.  He is doing WAY better in the crying department.  The past two years he played he would totally lose it when the other team scored or won.  He is visibly upset when this happens, but you can see him self-talking his emotions to remain in control.

 

Intensely guarding an opponent for a throw in.

 Going for the ball.

 Half-time pep talk from the coach.