Kathryn is 6

Kathryn Grace, my first born, is now 6 years-old!  She has finished her first year in kindergarten and did a wonderful job.  She made lots of friends, excelled academically, and had a wonderful teacher.  Kathryn loves to learn.  Her favorite subject varied throughout the year but she loves books, loves math, writing, and science.  Lately she seems to enjoy writing the most.

Kathryn has finally came completely out of her shell.  I would no longer call her shy.  She still does not prefer big crowds but is more than willing to be social.  She has went to gymnastics, swimming lessons, played basketball, soccer, and t-ball.  She also tried ballet.

Kathryn is such a great helper around the house.  She unloads the dishwasher, switches laundry, and gets herself completely ready in the mornings (on a good day).  She is still quite the girly girl and loves to dress up in fancy dresses but also is always dirty and loves playing outside and with dirt.  Kathryn's best friends at school were Ava, Harper, and Jacey.

Kathryn was one of the shortest kids in her class but when she went to the doctor last week, she is actually very average for height and weight.  Kathryn still needs lots of sleep and would probably feel better if she could take a nap every day.

Kathryn is smart, kind, and fun.  I love getting to spend time with her.  This year on her birthday we went to the spa and got a mani/pedi, got her hair cut, and painted pottery.  It was a super fun day.

Just like last year, here are some questions/answers.

• Favorite food: Mushrooms
• Favorite color: pink
• Favorite toy: "I don't know", legos, board games, tiles, blocks, movies, books
• Favorite place to go: Grammy and Gramps and Grandma and Papa's house
• Best Friend: Ava, Pearl, Claire, Harper, and little Ava
• Favorite snack: Cheez Its, Cheetos
• Place for vacation: New York
• Favorite song: Moana "I've been standing at the edge of the water"
• Favorite movie: Moana
• Kathryn is really great at: building lego sets
• Kathryn loves: going to the pool
• Kathryn is thankful for: family

First Birthday
Second Birthday
Third Birthday
Fourth Birthday
Fifth Birthday

Jack is 4!

Started on April 3, 2017:

Yesterday as I held Jack, I teared up in disbelief that it was my last day with a three year-old.  I am so glad that I started writing these posts because I love looking back at all that has changed over the year and what has stayed the same.

Jack is such a fun kid.  He is super outgoing, exuberant, energetic, loud, and confident.  He is independent and extremely stubborn.  He is wild and crazy and has no fear.  He is the hardest working kid I have ever met.  Jack loves to play outdoors and loves fires and guns.  Jack enjoys riding bikes and playing with friends. Although they do fight, Jack loves Kathryn so much.  They are best friends!

Climbing on his new gift from Grammy and Gramps

He would split wood all day

Jack's speech is improving and I have no concerns with language.  He still has no interest in doing school type things (like writing his name) but I have quit worrying about it.

Jack appears to be very athletic but does not have a competitive drive at this point.  It is still super fun to practice sports with him.

My soccer players

I would still consider Jack challenging....he can throw fits with the best of them and naps have disappeared months (if not over a year) ago.  However, he also is really good at school and has an amazing heart.  Jack LOVES babies.

Some how this year, Jack got to celebrate his birthday three different times.  Ben said that is because I love birthdays so much that I tend to go overboard with the kids.  Jack celebrated in early March with extended family, the Sunday before with all of us (lunch and zoo), and then on his birthday I took a personal day and we went to the library before I cooked a steak dinner for him (his request).

At the zoo

Jack loves playing with guns.

Popping balloons

 Happy birthday baby boy.  I am so thankful that God put you in our family.  I can't imagine how dull life would be without you.

Older birthday posts:

Jack is 3
Jack is 2
Jack is 1

January 2017

January is always a welcome relief to the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.  As you can see in the pictures below, the weather varied greatly from our only real snow of the year to jeans and t-shirt weather.

The highlight of the month was when we got a good snow.  The kids along with their friends went sledding behind the truck and it was very nostalgic for me as that is one of my best childhood memories.

Loving the snow

These kids LOVED going behind the truck!

Sunny weather bike ride

Fun playing cowboy

Kathryn started ballet lessons

Fun shooting (pellet) guns at my parents

Enjoying time with the Sharps

December 2016

December is always such a busy month and I try to hard to fit everything in and cherish every moment.  

The month started off with a combined trip to celebrate birthdays.  William and Margaret elected to go together this year and we went to the Discovery Center and then to Chuck-E-Cheese.

A special treat this December was a trip to Silver Dollar City.  A friend was kind enough to let us use her friend passes and we enjoyed such a fun night.  I was shocked at how much the kids LOVED all of the rides.  It was an evening that I will not forget for a long time.

I always try my best to keep up with an Advent Calendar.  I was not able to do it every day but the days that I did were lots of fun.  One of the activities is always going to Bass Pro to see Santa!

The kids both had Christmas parties at school.  Ms. Tiffany had her kids do a small performance and it was ADORABLE!!

My family is always so gracious to have Christmas a week or two early so that we can go to Michigan for the actual holiday.  We always load up lots of snacks and presents and head to my parents for gifts, fellowship, and brunch.

We always finish off the year with a week or so in Michigan.  Last year we did not get any snow so we were very excited when there was snow on the ground (even if only for a day or two).  We built a huge snowman, went on a hike, and the kids enjoyed sledding.