FUN at Grammy and Pop's

The newest game is to push each other down the hill in the dump truck :)

First Day of First Grade

Well, friends, I am here to tell you that time truly does fly. William is seven this year and began first grade in August. He LOVES learning, so was very excited to begin another year. He was quite surprised when he began to realize first graders only went outside once a day and didn't always get to have center time. He has slowly come to love first grade, I think almost as much as kindergarten, but it's hard to beat kindergarten:) He has recently made large strides in his reading skills and is a wiz at math.



He has a great group of buddies, most of which are in the other class this year.

He insisted on sticking with the metal army lunchbox he picked out last year, but did opt for a brand new back pack. He told me he wanted a black, one strap bag. We went to Wal-mart to look for one. I was sure they would be all out or we would be unable to find them. Upon looking, I thought I was right, but William kept on looking and found it hidden behind other normal backpacks-he was so excited.
We look forward to a great second half of the year and more fun!!!

You are Seven

You are seven. You are smart and funny. You are special yo all who know you. You are thoughtful. You LOVE to read and be read to. You have read the entire Narnia series (with Dad) and some books twice. You have an amazing imagination. You try new foods. You love to eat. You love pancakes, pizza, sausage, noodlebake, tomatoes, Dr. Pepper, spinach, brocolli, and lots of other stuff! You love cowboy stuff, guns, drawing. You love art and creating and paining and photography. You love to talk and tell stories. You love Pheneas and Ferb, Wild Krats, and Electric Company. You love Sorry and play it well. You are amazing at Math. You are learning to read better and try really hard to do well. Spelling is not your favorite :). You ran your first race this year and did well. You LOVE to play with Lily and Joseph. You love to reenact. You love to wear warm pjs and cover up. You are sweet, kind, compassionate, creative, thoughtful, and loving. We are so blessed to have you in our family! We love you. You are seven.

We began the day with presents and a candle in the eggy-bread! William got a binder and copy paper (for his many drawings) and a digital camera. For months now William has been grabbing our phones and taking as many pictures as possible of as many things as he could find. So we decided it was time to get him a cheap real camera so he could even print off what he takes. Needless to say, he was so excited.



Of course, Lily and Joseph were ready to party, even early in the morning!
Mom checking out the new camera.
When Grammy and Pop got here they gave William a balloon and told him they had something in the car to help hold it down. When he looked in the van, he found a new bike. Now you might recall that we gave him a bike last year for his birthday. We got him a huge bike that cannot have training wheels, so this year we thought it would be a good idea to back up and get him the right bike. Grammy and Pop git him a nice orange and blue bike.

William wanted a soldier cake made of gluten free brownies and icing, so he got it!

Mimi and PaPa also came to the party and gave William a Spy Copter. William LOVED "flying" it around the house and taking video.
We ended the day with a cheese sandwich supper, a candle, and a carved pumpkin with a soldier on it.

You are 2

You are funny. You have the biggest smile I know. You love to be independent, but still love to rock with Mommy. You still suck your thumb. You have started to "borrow" other people's stuffed animals as your own, like someone else we know:). You like to hum. You love to eat. Your favorites include beans, hummus, and PB&J. You look like your Uncle Jason. You still have blond hair. You finally got a haircut and didn't cry. You are very brave. You can balance better than anyone I know. You love to take risks when it's fun. You like to come up with your own versions of people's names-Grammy is Gammy and Papa Bill is Pop. You love being in the same class with Lily at church on Wednesday and Sunday nights. You remember people's names well. You love to play. You love your nap. You love your Pooh blanket and your brown blanket. You like to watch birds and squirrels out your window. You like to play whatever Lily and William play. You even dress up with Lily while William's at school. You ask dad for coffee all the time and drink his dark, bold, black coffee. You come and get in bed with me almost every morning. You ask where Dad is every morning and answer it yourself once I've told you he's at work. You are special and bright and loving and compassionate and sensitive. You are 2 and we are so glad you are a part of our family!

Joseph's 2nd Birthday

This is a little delayed, but better late than never! Joseph had a great 2nd birthday. He started the day with a candle in his poptart.

At lunch we had cupcakes, and Joseph's had a candle, of course!


William and Lily enjoying the cupcakes as well!



The cake was a combo of monster trucks and motorcycles and cars. Joseph loved it!




Aunt Sarah and Lily at the party.



Mimi, Papa, Grammy, Pop, Aunt Sarah, and Uncle Jason all came to the party and we had a great time celebrating JoJo.

Beach Trip part 6

We had a really great trip. These are the last few pictures. There are a few more things we did and forgot to get pictures of. Aunt Hali, Uncle Daniel, Annalee, Aunt Sarah, and Uncle Jason all came for the day on Saturday. We had fun, especially when Dad and Uncle Daniel were holding Joseph and Annalee and saw a shark :)
We also went crab hunting several times. One night, Mom, William, and Papa Bill went hunting and caught the trip's record catch of 16 crabs. William also discovered he loves to eat shrimp and crab!

Did I mention that William LOVES the beach? He spent most of his time snorkling on the edge.
Please enlarge this so you can see their faces! We thoroughly enjoyed the trip to Suveneer City. Joseph found a monkey he calls "Munchky", Lily got a necklace, and William got a sea net with a sand dollar to hang his crab shells on his wall at home.
And this is what we did each day-TOOK NAPS!

Beach Trip part 5

We had some tokens left for The Track, so we revisited without Mimi and Papa. We rode gocarts a gain and rode water-bumper-boats. We got completely soaked, but ad FUN!

Beach Trip part 4

Dad and Joseph contemplating how nice the ocean can be when it's not scorching hot outside. We FINALLY figured out Joseph just was uncomfortable, not hating the ocean. :)
Mimi got William and Lily each a seashell bag. Lily insisted we put hers on her swimsuit so Joseph wouldn't sneak around and crush her shells.
We tried this a couple of times until a really big wave washed us both over and scared me to death not having hold of Lily. We had fun while it lasted!
Joseph wanted to sport the "redneck" beach look like Dad.
This was a little fort they built. It actually looked a lot like the forts in old westerns.
Mimi and Jospeh
William even got into the surfboard action.
Papa Bill and Lily chased and slapped waves...yes, I said slapped waves. Just one of their games :)
Lily buried Daddy.
Lily and William made a turtle with a little help from Dad. William worked especially hard on the feet.