School Updates

We are officially rolling in school. We have our schedules down, and everyone is getting used to what their week looks like. We had parent teacher conferences a little bit ago and I was so proud of both my elementary boys. I was able to have a very long discussion with Josh's teacher. We talked about the class, and all the amazing qualities that Josh is showing. He is also above average in every area. (which I was not surprised-he is a smart kid) But, we also talked about Rowan. We talked about what it could like for him when he starts in Kindergarten and the challenges and also all the positive things that come from have a special child in a family. 

Kaj..I wasn't sure what to expect. He was not liking 2nd grade very much at the beginning. (that has changed not) and I really didn't know how well he was doing in school. She showed me his scores with reading, accuracy, and comprehension and he was above in those areas and he has also been doing great in math. She mentioned that his attention seems iffy at times. (no surprise there) but she said he is not disrupting and still doing really well in all his work so it is not really an issue. All in all very good reports. I have to admit even though Josh is great at school, he follows the rules, he does his work, and he is making a lot of friends he is having more of an attitude at home. I recall with Kai Kindergarten was a hard year of transition at home as well. I am not worried about it, but it is different. Josh was always my helper, my listener, my cooperative kid and it has been hit or miss. I suppose it goes to show how much I can rely on Josh at home cause it is definitely making an impact at home. But, he is a kid, and he is working hard all day long and I think he comes home and just wants to not be on. 

Rowan continues to do really well in preschool. His teachers tell me he is interacting with them more. He loves letters right now- and he knows all of his letters also. He gets really excited when he sees letters and he likes trying to write them. There is a lot in that little mind of his we just have to be patient so one day he can better tell us. But, in terms of language there is a lot more expressive language and I find he is understanding more complex requests now. 

Josh receiving his award 

school pictures 2017

Jonah is awesome. I really have felt so happy to have Jonah in our lives lately. He has such a personality and he loves being with all of his brothers. He wants to be a big kid, and I am realizing how quick he picks up on things. He likes to ask: "What's this?" and point to all the pictures on the walls. Jonah and Rowan seem to like a lot of the same things, and I love seeing them play together. 

Kindergarten school picture

The Emotional Yo-yo of being a Mom

Devil's Lake

It should come as no shock that being a mom is rollercoaster ride. Sometimes it is really fun, and other times you scream and you hold on for dear life. It is also a yo yo.. I think kids don't believe adults to have feelings... at all. I have incidents that I can think of just in saying that phrase so there is proof in the pudding. Is it because kids think we're too old we don't care if our feelings get hurt anymore? that we are tough enough to handle it? or that we really are just null in void of them altogether? We may never know. 

A moment from the other night I will iterate the yo yo effect. It was a night that I was handling the boys solo. (It is going alright by the way - it still can get very long at times but for the most part it is fine) Anyways, I was getting the boys to bed and Kaj was deciding that he wants to live close to us when he is married and a dad. "In the same neighborhood"  were his very words. I tell him I would love that. He takes it a step further saying that he is only going to marry someone who likes me. 🙌🏻 Angels are singing, my heart is soaring, this is the kind of thing boy moms love to hear! Josh walks in after overhearing our conversations and weighs in, "I'm going to live really far away." 💀😭 Back to the downward part of the yo yo. I mean, it is funny now, but it actually really, truly hurt my feelings that night. It was just one of those days. And, honestly, fillling in the gaps Josh was being poopy because he was unhappy about losing his free time that night.. maybe he still meant it but I'd like to believe he did not. And we are bouncing back up again. 

Shevlin Park

The Beginning of the New School Year

School is in session. It comes around later than most places  but we are finally in the thick of it. I have a second grader, a Kindergartener, and my Preschool boy. 

Kaj is still trying to get used to second grade. He does not have his buddy that he had in both Kindergarten and first grade, but he didn't seem concerned about it. He tells me how long it is, and how they go to the "meeting spot" to much, and that lunch starts really late. 12:20. I really do hope that he starts enjoying it since there is a lot of year left. 

Josh. I am not surprised how amazing he is doing. He loves school. He loves learning. He is smart. He is not afraid to answer questions. He has made lots of friends. He tells me about a new friend he has made every day. I am so happy about it. They give these character trait awards out each month and so for October the first month they are doing this Josh is getting the award for responsibility and respect. He really makes me feel like a proud mom. Not that I can take any credit he is just the way he is. 

Rowan bears is the one I worried about most. Last year for preschool for 1 day a week he cried almost every time. It just was not a great experience. I was bracing for the worst, but I have been pleasantly surprised. He has not cried once. He is happy when we drop him off and picking him up. He always tells me, "Go say hi." Not only did he start preschool but the same time he started ABA. Applied behavioral Analysis. This was the recommendation when he received his diagnosis. I have liked every one I have interacted with so far, and he seems to respond well to each of the people he works with. He is up to about 10 hours a week, but they want him to get up to 25. 😳 That is a TON! He is 3 years old, but research suggests blah blah blah (it suggests that intensive time at this young age has the most optimal results) But, he is my son, and I will gauge how is doing and do what's best. He goes to ABA Monday thru Thursday and has preschool in the morning on Tuesdays and Thursdays so he is busy boy. By the end of the week it does catch up with him, He is so tuckered out. I am so impressed by how amazingly he is doing. He is already meeting and passing off goals while being delightful. 

Wrapping up the Summer '17

We had a great summer. We made a list at the beginning of the summer of ideas-it is not a bucket list- I find those feel a little overwhelming if the idea is to put that kind of pressure on yourself to do every thing on the list- but, I digress, we did do most of them. We had a lot of swimming days and biking outings. Rowan has improved leaps and bounds on his strider this year. It is so fun to have him keep up with the other boys. He even tried his legs at a pedal bike but didn't have the patience to learn, but I was proud of him for trying.

Just as we were about to begin school we were hit with terrible air-from the fires going on all over 

Central Oregon. I must say, it is still a strange "season" to get used to...fire season? Every summer since we have moved here we are warned and asked to take precautions about fire safety because of hot summers and trying to keep the fires at bay, but also since I have moved here there have been humungous fires. This year was by far the worst. We were checking the air quality multiple times a day just to get windows of time to go outside, and sometimes we would not be able to leave the house at all. Luckily, the boys were fine- well Kaj and Josh were fine- they have been playing with Legos so much this summer and I have not stopped them. I love having them play so well together and make all these creations. 

I will now take some time to talk about Legos. I did not grow up with Legos. We did not have them in our house. I believe that it is because they are small and they are everywhere my mom did not want to go down that road. Mom?? Whatever the reason-it is all good. My Barbie world would not have let Legos infiltrate that anyways. So, fast forward, to my current life with 4 boys, and it has only been the past few years we have become a Lego House. I was hesitant- for the very same reasons I mentioned above. I did not want all these tiny Lego everywhere all over the house-that you can step on, and babies can eat them, and they are never ending...and they are. They are absolutely all of those things but...my boys can be in a lego world as I was in a Barbie world. I am sometimes invited in. And they figuratively and literally build the story as it goes. It's cool. And-they create amazing things! Yes, I am bias, I get it. But they do! I am amazed to what they can create. I think it is great that they are using their minds in this way, and because I really believe it is talent they are developing before my eyes-I mean you never know. Also, it links boys together. If there are friends over and perhaps interests are across the board. The common ground is Legos. Amen. 

heading to Phil's trail

summer boys

My boys really are so fantastic. They are helpful. They can be so kind and considerate of each other and myself. I am a lucky mom. Also, Jonah has also been so much fun this summer. He is at such a fun age. He loves the brothers and he sure can get a lot of attention and he eats it up. He laughs and laughs even more when he sees they are laughing also. He is really quite adorable. He is really adventurous

despite his inability to walk. He can climb everything and he does. I am super excited to see what he is all about next year, because he sure has me me wrapped around his finger. It was a great summer. I am realizing more and more...my boys are growing up..😕 I am not thrilled. I am noticing their boyish faces transforming and it is weird. Still cute. But so weird. They get so excited to be older and I get kinda excited to, but then I think: mm better not.

new red wagon

juniper pool

splash pad

Utah Trip 2017

Why does this trip seem like so long ago already? But, it totally does. It was a really fun trip. A while back when Sam was first going to be taking his new job at OHSU, and anticipating a schedule where he would be gone 3 days of the week I knew I was going to have to break up my time, so I planned a trip at the end of July as the boys were finishing up their swim lessons. But, as the trip got closer it ended up that Sam's parents would be in Utah as well as his sister at that same time- just happenstance, and so Sam decided to take time off to come with me and the boys...oh...and because we also ahem got a dog that we would have to drive back! 😂 

Megan and Alan had their whole family at Cate and Erik's house and our family stayed with Whit and Justin. It was a strange trip in that way because we usually have a home base with mom and dad where we could all be together but with my parents house in the making it just wasn't possible. Megan and I talking afterward would say we had a great trip with Whitney and Justin as she had a great trip with Caitlin and Erik but it just didn't feel as together. Despite that it was a really fun trip. We made a lot of plans, the kids had a blast playing together, and hanging out at night was a a lot of fun. Whitney and Justin let us stay for a week. It went by pretty fast, but a week be a long time for visitors so it was really nice of them. 

In a nutshell- we did a hike, went to the water park, had a BBQ, did family pictures, saw some friends, spent some time with Sam's family, had a sister morning, and had a great time. 

So, I have to mention the story about the hike. It was this little trail off Wasatch. We had never hiked it before, but it looked like a short one that led to waterfall. It was great. There were uphills, but the kids were all able to do them, and we didn't need to stop for longs breaks we made it to the end in one shot. The older kids began scrambling up this hill. We sat and watched them, and I was just telling them that I did't worry a lot of Kaj and Josh- I trusted them, and I truly was not worried. Fast forward 5 minutes and Kaj falls from the waterfall. He really did. The older kids with help from Sam were climbing up by the water fall, it wasn't that high up, and it seemed like it could be neat for them to do. Kaj was pretty excited to be up there. He even did a little dance. He had reached for out to touch the water, and you guessed it, fell. 8-10ft. I saw him land. It was awful. He landed on rocks, His head hit a rock. I screamed. I grabbed him and carried him out of the water to the side so I could better assess what had happened. I looked at his eyes and asked him questions. I looked at his head which was really just a dent looking thing where he had hit, but I had expected much worse. Sam was getting the other kids down, and came over to make sure Kaj was alright. Kaj was saying to me over and over, "I am dying. I am dead." That was scary. But, he was ok. It was really a terrifying moment that I kept thinking things can change so fast. We were all enjoying the outdoors, this beautiful hike as a family and suddenly - it could all change. 

Kaj ended being fine. Which felt miraculous, actually. Later talking to my sisters, who had missed the fall, they looked over to see him on the ground and said it looked like he hadn't just been gently placed there. Also, my family was so nice they had told me how great they thought I handled it, and how calm I stayed...later on Sam told me I shouldn't have grabbed Kaj 😳 cause if he hurt his neck etc. but, for that day I was thinking how great I had been in that crisis situation. I also have to say it was amazing to see in that situation how everyone rallied. Alan, who was wearing a boot on his leg for his own injury to his tendon was helping Rowan down the mountain. (that is not an easy feat) Thinking of this later that when I was saying I don't worry about Kaj and Josh I really did believe that but, I realized that a lot of my energy is spent worrying about Rowan. But, it reminded me...I have to worry about all my kids. Accidents happen. We were very fortunate. 

Aforementioned-the kids had a lot of fun together. It was also very sweet to see the interactions Rowan had with his cousins as well as Whit and Justin. Bless Whitney's heart- she vacuumed with Rowan every day while we were there. Sometimes multiple times a day. And lucky for us that daily vacuum continues since we have been home. 

We were able to go up to Midway to see my parents new house. It is very beautiful in a beautiful place, and it is exciting to think that our family visits will be up there. My dad showed us the plans for the basement and I could really envision everything as he explained. I left thinking how amazing it would be if we lived closer to have the boys go over to learn from Pappy. I definitely miss living closer to family. 

The boys also could not have had more fun with their cousin, Ben. Ben is 12. He is good kid. It was fun seeing the boys look up to a kid who is just a little older than them. 

We also really enjoyed visiting with the Hughes. We sure do love them. We only spent the day with them but it was as if we never left. It is nice to have people in your life who you know time, distance won't change things between you. Just love.

I hope my kids will have those kind of relationships with the family that lives far away. It was a great trip and I look forward to the next one.