Levi at 5

Oh my sweet, inquisitive Levi, I can't believe that you are 5. It seems like just yesterday I held you in my arms, and you my sweet boy, made me a Mama for the first time.

You are almost 5 1\2 now, because I'm a slacker, and haven't done your 5 yr post yet. sorry kiddo. I was pregnant, sick, and tired, when you turned 5, and now I'm just tired. ;)

So at 5 you...

• are beyond active. you LOVE to climb, to jump, to run, to be outside, to climb, did I mention climb? You are crazy, climbing anything, and everything from trees to the poles on the swings at the park. It's nothing for you to climb 15-20 ft into our apple trees. you even climb the door frames in our house.. I really should take a picture, it's quite something. You even try to teach kids at the park how to climb poles by using your hands and gripping your feet together.  
• you still love animals, and you especially love learning about predator vs prey. Some of your favorite shows to watch are Shark Week (mama screens those), Man vs. Wild (because you LOVE to learn how to survive in the wild, and sometimes Bear eats gross things which you think is awesome), and really, any sort of documentary is up your alley, whether its about lions, crocodiles, volcanoes, or alaska, you're in. 
• you love all things boy in animal world, lions, tigers, bears, sharks, recently you've told me you want to have a king snake for a pet, and then we can get a rattlesnake and watch the king snake eat it.. yea. we're not doing that.
• you love to fish, we introduced you to it last summer, and for whatever reason, it drew you in. you talked of it all winter long, and come this spring, we've been fishing, and oh how you love it. 

• you love to draw, and will easily spend 30-45 minutes drawing a picture. you like drawing especially, you're not really into coloring pages, or anything like that.. a blank piece of paper and markers is your thing... I have so many drawings by you, and I really have no idea what to do with them, our kitchen is constantly littered with drawings on the walls.
• you can read easy reader books. you can do it, but it's not your favorite activity, simply because it's not easy and fast for you yet. It still takes quite a bit of thought for you, but you are getting better every day. 
• you are an amazing big brother. you have risen to the challenge well, and I don't think I could have asked for a better son in that regard. You are a HUGE help to me, both with Ruby, and Maisie, as long as you aren't body slamming Ruby into the ground. 
• still are little... and you still ask me to pour your milk (though you do that more and more on your own), you still want to come sleep in our bed at night, you still love hugs and kisses, you still sleep with your ni-night, it's so tattered and worn. I don't know what we'll do when it falls apart, but you sure do love it... 

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• can be a picky eater, kind of drives me crazy. but, we keep trying... maybe someday you'll like more than carrots and broccoli as a vegetable.. you do love any and all kinds of fruit.
• you love structure and order, and some of your favorite toys are things with a definite beginning and a definite end, such as playing a game, or building a lego set.. imaginative play is not your strong suit, though you do like to dress up, and you are getting better at that type of play
• will be kindergarten in the fall! how and where that time has gone I have no idea.. and please dont' ask me what we're doing for school in the fall, because I still don't know. We go back and forth practically every day. 
• have your first crush.. it's true my sweet little boy.. you do. when I ask why you like her you say it's because "she wears the pretty dresses in sunday school"  don't worry, I will mock you mercilessly when you are older. :)
• you have a best friend, Isaac, and he deserves a post all on his own, and oh my sweet boy, your heart is about to broken into a million little pieces because they are moving away soon. We've talked and talked about him moving, but I know that you don't really understand what that means.  I think all of our hearts will break. For all of your fighting the two of you can do, without a shadow of a doubt, he is your best friend and I know you will miss him. 

I feel like there are so many things I want to say to you, to wrap up into a post about you being 5, but I just don't feel like words do it justice. I love you more than you'll ever know, and I pray everyday that the Lord will use your love of learning to do good work for Him. 

I love you buddy.

Mama

School

School has been weighing heavily on our minds lately. We have been homeschooling Levi for this past year. It has had good and bad moments.

Good moments:
Time spent with Levi, watching him learn
Teaching him how to read, and watching him read his own stories
Exploring together
Doing things on our own time table

Bad moments:
The days seem long, hard, and at times, very isolating
A sick pregnant Mama, does not, a good teacher, make.
Figuring out how to juggle schedules, work, kids, and just general time to do "life" related activities.

Levi's favorite thing: playing math games, so he says. :)
least favorite: learning new things (read: things that are hard for him to understand)

So, with that... we've been weighing our options for next year.. Do we continue to homeschool him? Do we try private school? Do we go with public school? Do we do charter school?

Homeschool
Let me just be real for a moment, mkay? While it's been fun to teach him new things, I have not loved homeschooling. It's hard, and it's long (not the time, but just the continuing nature of it), for me, it's isolating, It's hard to find a good balance with homeschooling and me working, I feel like we end up using up every ounce of our day between the two things, and there is just no give in the schedule... this year? school got dropped if we needed to do something else, which felt slightly okay since it was just preschool, but next year Kindergarten? yea... not okay.
I'm also really concerned about balancing a 5.5 2.5 and a 6 month old next fall..... it kind of makes my head spin when I think about it.
But, I LOVE being home with my little learner, I love watching him learn about things he loves, we are currently working on learning to tell time because HE wants to do that.   I read good books about homeschooling, and think yes... that's what I want for my kids, but gosh darn't... it's a hard sell for this extrovert Mama who likes to do things. Which of course, typing that, reminds me of just how selfish our own human desires are.... and that seems so silly and contrite a reason to not homeschool.

Private School
I think both Mike and I feel most content with this option, minus the $6000 pricetag that comes with it. yea. That kind of $$ just isn't even possible. They offer scholarships, but they are minimal, and I highly doubt that even a scholarship would allow us the semi-ability to pay for school. It was a fun idea, but I just don't see how there is any earthly way it will ever happen.

Public School
We fortunately live in a very good school district, with excellent teachers\staff, and all that goes along with that. Most people just kind of stare at us when we say we're thinking about other options, because why on earth would you consider anything else with the district were in. I can't even really tell you why, because I don't know why ourselves, but its' just something we're considering, I suppose.  I HATE the idea of him being gone for 7 hours a day.. he's my baby, my first kid love, and I can't imagine not having him home all the time. The harder part yet, is how this would change what I do... I will not teach lessons 4 nights a week and have my kid gone every day until 7. I'd never see him, and I'm NOT okay with that... but what that means? I don't know. Do I bow out and not teach for a while, do I continue to teach but in a smaller capacity, do I teach but only say 2 nights a week? I just feel like there are lots of hard questions, and not a lot of great answers..

Charter School
This option feels kind of like an interesting middle to public\private.  I read good and bad things about Charter school, I hear good and bad things from parents.  I don't know what to say about it really other than it seems like maybe somewhat of a middle ground.... maybe.


Last year, we felt that the Lord had really called us to homeschool this year, and we felt confident in that decision... I haven't felt any sort of "pull" in any direction this spring, which I suppose makes it a little harder. I could talk on and on and on and..... well, you get the idea, about my thoughts on school, and truly, depending on the day, who I am talking with, and how the kids are behaving, can seriously impact what I am considering in that moment. ;)

Levi reads!

My mama heart is proud tonight. Levi has been ready and wanting to read for quite a while now. Thanks to a dear friend, we've been working hard on it for about a week.

Tonight?

He read his first short story. I, of course, painfully recorded the entire 10 minutes it took us to get through 5 pages, but you know what? 

He did it! 

My 4 year old son, who I swear was just born, read a book! How on earth did that happen? When did that happen? I'm overwhelmed and so thrilled for him as he begins this new chapter (ha!) in his life.  And reading? well it opens the doors to everything and we couldn't prouder of him than we are tonight.

You can enjoy all 10 painful, amazing minutes if you'd like. :)

Levi's book

The other day Levi told me he needed paper and markers.
He later came to me and said he needed to use the stapler.

Do you want to know what he was up to?

My little kiddo wrote a book.

He brought it to me, beaming ear to ear and read me his story.
It makes this Mama heart smile.
So here it is.

Written and Illustrated by Levi

"I like to ride trains"

"I like to eat on trains. I like to drink tea on trains" 

The End. 

Yup. I'm pretty in love with this kid.

Levi at 4

My dear, sweet, Levi.

You are becoming a young man (ha!) before my very eyes. I feel like just yesterday you were born, and I head you in my arms for the first time. Instead, it has been 4! years. You amaze me every day with your tenacity for life, your energy, and the fun you have along the way. We love you so much little man. I'm so thankful that God gave me you, and that I have been given the amazing, and sacred, privilege of raising you, to be a man after God's own heart.

At 4......

-- you are in preschool this year, 2 days a week. You love it, because you love learning.
-- you can write all of your letters, both capital and lowercase
--you easily recognize and can write your name
-- you can sound out some small 3 letter words, and recognize many words by sight
-- you can count to 30 without hesitation. you can count backwards from 10.
--  you can recognize and count up to 100 (thank you chicka chicka boom boom)
-- you don't really nap anymore, but you get up around 6-6:30 and go to bed around 7.
-- you love, and I do mean, LOVE crafts. we regularly spend part of our day doing some kind of craft together. painting, cutting\pasting etc..
-- the main love of your life? travis.  yup. you pretty much love him unconditionally.
-- you still love trains of all varieties, and you even got to ride on one for your birthday this year!
-- you love spending time outside.
--you love winter.... love snow, sledding, and all things related. you are definitely my son
-- you love books. we spend a good 1\2 hour each day reading and looking at books. we frequent the library, and you love to pick out new books each week.
-- you are a wonderful big brother. today, I found you, helping to get food for Ruby for lunch. You love her a lot, even when she takes your toys and knocks down your blocks.
-- you are really into playing games right now. we do this quite often as well.
-- you enjoy going to kids club at church, and get excited about going each week

I love you little man, more than you will ever know.

I love you little man, more than you will ever know.

Pumpkin Fun

We picked 'em.. 

We gutted 'em... 

We drew on 'em... 

We created 'em.. 

Quite the imagination...

When I work at school, I always come home for about a 1\2 hour so I can nurse Ruby, mostly because she won't take a bottle anymore. Today, I came home and Levi asked why I was home, so I told him. The next thing I know, he's got his shirt up, holding his Elmo, that he is recently obsessed with, trying to nurse him.

I about died.

So, we talked about how God made Mama's and Papa's and how only Mama's can make milk, etc etc. 

The next thing I know he's disappeared downstairs.He'd gone downstairs, gotten a sippy cup with milk, come back up holding the cup to his nipple, and attempting to nurse his Elmo.

oh. my. stars. 

I had tears I was laughing so hard.

1st day of Preschool

There are not words for my heart soared for you and wanted to pull you back into my arms all in the same moment. I love you little man. 

Showing off your lion backpack... 

So grown up

Papa and Levi

Mama and Levi

Heading down the hallway to your room

Saying good morning to your teacher, Mrs. O.

preschooler

Tomorrow, my adventurous Levi, you will add a new title to your role in life...

student. 

Tomorrow you will grace the halls of preschool with your head held high, wonder-filled eyes, waiting to see what it will be like. We've read countless books on "going to preschool", and you are most excited about this new adventure you will be embarking on. 

This decision has been hard for Mama and Papa. We talked a lot about where\what we wanted for you this year, and eventually landed here, at this small Christian preschool. I know you'll do great, and I'm excited to see what this year holds for you. 

You L.O.V.E. learning, and I pray that your teacher will see that delight in your eyes and help you to keep learning about the things that you love. 

Mama will stand by and let you go, but I'm pretty sure I might need to collect myself and hold back some tears. You are growing too fast my sweet baby boy. I love you more than you'll ever know. 

Mama.

Monsters

Lately, Levi has been terrified at night of monsters.  You name it, he's scared of it. He is afraid to sleep in his room, afraid to nap in his room. We talk about it, pray about it with him every night, and every night, he comes screaming into our room, slamming every door behind him, saying the monsters are chasing him.

*sigh*

Last night he flat our refused to go back to his bed saying the monsters were in there. I often wonder if he really believes there are monsters, or if he just likes sleeping in our room? I really do think he is legitimately afraid, but I would also love for to see him work through his fears and be able to sleep well again.

(read: mama and papa would like to sleep again)

I do also think that the monster fear is equated with bed-wetting. He has been potty-trained since he was just over 2, and at 3 1\2 he is still very inconsistent about being dry at night. Nothing we do on our end seems to help, he's just a hard sleeper, and doesn't wake until after the fact. (i'll take ideas on this as well!) Then, I think, that wakes him up, and then the whole monster thing comes into play.

So, lately, he's been in our bed for probably a good half of the night. While I know in my head and in my heart that these days are fleeting, I'm selfish, and my queen bed feels very small with a 3 yr old in it. I am just plain out of ideas on what to do. He is currently napping, by sleeping in a tent to keep the monsters out. This was a new one and his idea, so we'll see what happens.

Any Mama's have any great advice?

pretty please?

Library Love

This is the current stack of books we have checked out from the library, and that was with me limiting what we brought home. 

His current favorites? 

The giant picture books on the bottom. 

He loves them!

I love my little reader. 

Accomplishments

This week Ruby did this... 

and Levi drew this... 

(a lion, in case you're not sure ;)

I love them both more than words can say.

We are blessed indeed.

A boy and his frog

It was a good day.

Play-doh Fun

The other day it was cold and rainy, so we made Play-doh. 

This is a "Levi Snowman"

This is a "Levi Snow Dog" 

He never ceases to make me smile.

Growin' Up

When did he go from this? 

To this? 

or for that matter, 

When did she go from this? 

To this? 

Feeling grateful and blessed.

letter writing

Levi loves letters. 

He has been fascinated with them for a LONG time, so long in fact, that letters were a theme at his 2nd Birthday.  He can tell you all the letters and the sounds they make, and lately he's been learning how to write letters.  I went online and found some traceable letters, threw them in a sheet protector, and have let him practice. 

At first he got really frustrated because he couldn't do it right. If his line so much as got a fraction off the dot, he would cry. (First born, anyone?) But, he has kept at it and been getting better and better, and now he can write his name without tracing.

What can I say? 

I'm proud of my Son.

Sick

Ahhh. the joys of parenthood. The kids were in bed, Mike and I were enjoying the quiet when we heard it..

 *hack, hack, cough, sputter... and SCREAMING*

 We didn't even have to see.. we knew the sound. Levi had thrown up in bed. It was 10pm. Over the next hour and a half he threw up 3x. By 8 yesterday morning he had thrown up 7 times. He spent most of the day on the couch, sleeping.

He would wake up for maybe 10 minutes at a time, where I tried to convince him to take a sip of Gatorade or some Tylenol.  My noon, his fever was around 103, and he was refusing to take Tylenol. I decided to let it ride provided it didn't get to high.  Finally, around 3, he woke up DRENCHED in sweat, and talking a mile a minute.

My baby boy was back. 

He fought the rest of the fever off the rest of the day, and we had a full night of sleep last night. I've done probably 15 loads of laundry since it all began, and I've used our handy lysol to spray down every surface I can.

 We're praying and believing that this bug will pass and noone else will get it.

Rainbow Cookies

Yesterday afternoon Levi asked to make cookies. He kept asking to make gorilla or monkey cookies. While I can hold my own in the kitchen, I had zero idea how I was going to make a monkey cookie.

So, as any parent knows, distraction is one of many keys to success. I suggested we make "rainbow" cookies. Levi is majorly into rainbows right now, anytime we go anywhere, he searches out rainbow colors and arranges them in the proper order. "_ I wasn't sure how we were going to do it, but I knew I could use food coloring to my advantage. After perusing cookbooks, I decided on a basic snickerdoodle cookie recipe.. We mixed it up, separated the dough into bowls and colored the cookies in red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple.

It was a success, and Levi loved it!! :)

ni-night, levi!

Levi LOVES and I do mean LOVES his ni-night. It all started innocently enough. He slept with a blanket, I dutifully rotated blankets because I didn't want him to become attached to one blanket. (that makes me a good parent, right?)

When he was around 15 months old, I tried laying him down with a different blanket for a nap one day. He threw it on the floor, grabbed a blanket, brought it to me and said.. "ni-night, mama"... and that was it...

the ni-night was born

Well, over the past 2 years, this beloved ni-night has been slowly falling apart. You see it was a handmade beautiful flannel quilt. One particular piece of fabric had ripped in every spot it had been used in. Well, because Levi is my particular little boy, he hated the "rippers" as he called them.. We turned the blanket every which way as the "rippers" began to take over, but eventually we were out of "turning" options. well, it got so bad that he started wrapping another blanket over his ni-night to cover the rippers.. (another flannel blanket, on my kid who already sleeps super hot)

Today, Levi had the opportunity to go the home of the woman who made his blanket, and together.. they fixed his rippers.

see the color difference? i couldn't believe she still had the fabric she had used over 3 years ago when she made his beloved "ni-night"



the finished product





I have a very happy boy on my hands.

hand hand....

..............fingers thumb!

Miss Ruby has found her thumb, and I would dare say I'm going to officially call her a thumb sucker...see?




In other news..
Spring has sprung around here, and we've been jumpin on the trampoline.
Levi is very happy about it.