Tyler:
4th grade is going well and in less than 2 months, he will be turning TEN! Wow! Double digits! Tyler's teacher sent me the sweetest email at the beginning of January. She said that she wanted to surprise Tyler with his favorite treat because she said he is ALWAYS good at school and she just doesn't know how he does it! :) So, sure enough on Monday morning she had a King Size Kit Kat waiting for him! He was thrilled! His teacher is such an amazing Christian woman who loves what she does. She doesn't have children of her own so, the children in her class are like her own children! I'm so thankful for that!
Tyler has always been a big dog lover but because of his allergies we've never really been able to have a dog. Well, his love has just recently gotten stronger. He talks about dogs all the time and is even doing a power point on the iPad about different types of dogs. Robbie and I desire so much for him to have a dog, but with the house/yard we currently own, it's just not possible. We are really praying about what we can do to give Tyler the true desire of his heart! We welcome your prayers as well because we don't want Tyler's short childhood to pass him by without having a dog of his own. Tyler's love for animals in general is so amazing to sit back and watch. He doesn't have opportunities to really be around very many animals, but he is really into researching different types. He and Scott are really into doing these Key Notes (like Power Point) on the iPad and so far he's done one about dogs, birds, big cats and bears. He still has big aspirations of being a vet so, watching this love blossom in him at such a young age, is really cool! He told me just tonight about Siberian Tigers becoming extinct. He said he was watching a You Tube video about it and it made him tear up! Wow, what a heart! It makes me tear up to think of the compassion and love he has for animals! He then told me that when he googled "stray dogs" and clicked on images that the pictures made him sad. I'm telling you, this boy has a passion that can only come from God and I can't wait to see how God uses this!
Tyler's at the end of his basketball season and has had a great one! He has come so far in his basketball skills and watching him on the court is so fun! He is definitely not an aggressive child by nature, but boy does that change on the basketball court. He has shown some major defense and aggressiveness when it comes to fighting for a rebound, etc. He's scored a good many points, too! We are proud of him and love to see him excited about this sport!
Tyler in action:
Player of the Game:
Scott:
1st grade is awesome for Scott and he is doing REALLY well! His reading is thriving and he just recently read up to a 3rd grade level! Wow, who knew he could read that well! He's our child who doesn't show us what he knows until he's ready. He's always been that way. He sits back and takes it all in before trying it out and then showing what he knows. He has a wonderful teacher who truly loves what she does and you can tell! I've enjoyed helping her weekly this year and seeing what all goes on. Her classroom runs like a well oiled machine and it's amazing!
Scott is loving playing basketball and has been really into the NFL. He and Tyler both, actually, but Scott a little more. He has posters in his room, drawings, favorite teams and players he follows, etc. Throwing a football across the den is just about a daily affair with Scott. I love our daily throwing match, even if it's just 10 minutes. He's so cute with the different ways he wants me to throw it and the different ways he wants to reinact a certain play. This boys loves sports! He's scored several points in basketball including 6 points in each of the last 2 games. Yay!
Like Tyler, Scott has really gotten into the Key Notes and Power Point at school and on the iPad at home. His class created their own PP recently and it was so amazing to see what 6 and 7 year olds could do! He then came home and did some on the iPad about Sharks and one about the Gamecocks!
A funny saying by Scott the other day was in the car afterschool. He said, "Mama, I can't think today. My mind is on vacation!" It was priceless! I love the way he phrases things sometimes! :) His favorite game to play with his brothers AND his daddy, is JINX! They can all get on a roll with that and they all think it's just hilarious!
Here are some pictures of Scott in action on the basketball court.
Greyson:
Greyson is a prime time 3 year old right now! I love that boy to pieces and it hurts my heart to see him growing up so fast, but some days I wish 4 would approach a little faster! :) All in good fun, some friends of mine and I like to laugh about the behavior of 3 year olds and how you just never know what you are going to get. Sometimes a reaction to situation can be positive and great and other times that same situation might make a 3 year old mad and upset! Wow! It's ever changing and keeps life interesting! I laugh often at the way Greyson is sometimes because he acts like he's 8 half the time. He's a hoot and for sure a wild card from day to day! :) He started preschool for the first time in August and it has been interesting. He has an amazing set of teachers who love Greyson. They do a wonderful job truly teaching the children in their classroom about Jesus. I love how strategic they are with how they teach them as well as the cute arts and crafts they have them do! Every single day (with the exception of maybe 3-4) Greyson has had a very sad and hard drop off. The first couple of weeks were totally understandble, but then it just kept happening. I tried several different approaches from walking him in, to dropping him off, to taking a friend to school with us. Nothing was doing the trick for a good, easy, happy drop off so, walking him in is what I decided was best. He is fine up until we arrive at his classroom door. That's when he clings to me and his teacher has to come over and physically guide him into the room. But, everyday they would tell me that he was fine as soon as I left. My heart left hurting many, many times as he called my name and cried when I walked away. There was a time when we even thought about pulling him out or reducing his days. But, quickly decided that wouldn't help matters. He likes being there and is always pretty talkative about his day, which I'm thankful for, it's just the initial separation that has been so tough. Well, FINALLY just last week we had a breakthrough! In Greyson's mind, I think he finally decided it was ok to leave me at the door and go into his classroom without a fuss. Robbie had a pep talk with him last Sunday night and promised him some Coke (lovely!) on Monday afterschool if he went in like a big boy without crying. So, apparently that did the trick! On the way home that day, Greyson told me that he was going to be a big boy going into school now. He also said he would for Sunday School, too (we've been having a hard time with that drop off for a long time, too)!! I couldn't believe it and I told him how happy that made me and how proud I was of him! He thoroughly enjoyed every sip of his Coke Zero that day and I can happily report that for 6 days straight he has had an excellent drop off! Thank you, Lord!!!!
Here is G happily enjoying his Coke Zero! :)
Here are some recent pics of these crazy boys! Wrestling, indoor basketball and indoor football are a part of our everyday around here! I love it and wouldn't trade it for the world! :)
