school picture dump

we have had some major technical issues around here and i don't expect them to stop. that's just what happens, one thing goes and they all go. thankfully i had these pictures uploaded to the blog from my phone before it just wiped itself clean of any recollection that it  was once mine and stored lots of daily images for me. 

i mostly use my phone to take pictures of our days and now that school is in session, it goes everywhere with me and is able to capture most things we do. we have been BUSY! and it's been a great busy but i am exhausted most days. i think it's a combination really of physical and mental exhaustion. but i feel full and am so very encouraged in homeschooling. i have a whole other post to write about that. 

grey is learning in so many ways and that's exactly the outcome we want!

here are a few ins and outs of activities and what we've been learning and studying.

{phases of the moon.}

{moon rocks and moon dust}

{reading to william}

{singing with friends}

{leaves and trees}

{he loves doing his work outside}

{an apple mouth}

{super sweeper}

{apple orchard field trip}

{applesauce}

{reading, reading, reading!}

skytop 2012

fun day! and thanks mom, for going with us this year!

wrc . 18 months

oh my boy. 

you are proving to fall right in step with your brothers at about this age. it begins.

that personality is through the roof. 

when things are good, they are good. and when they aren't, well, they really aren't. like screaming, tantrum aren't good. and as was with BOTH of your older brothers, MY attention is number one on your list of wants. this is testing mommy day by day as you constantly follow me around saying my name over and over just waiting for me to stoop to you, squeeze your cheeks, and spend hours playing with you. 

and when i can't...oh my word. meltdown central.

you continue to explore  and show great excitement at the smallest of accomplishments. you are talking lots. and running faster every day. you eat like a champ thankfully. you love rice, meat, beans, some fruit, milk, oatmeal, eggs, and cheese. but definitely NOT waffles for breakfast. 

you are very opinionated and we sure know when you do not approve of things. 

but that laugh.

it hasn't gotten any less endearing.

you love shoes and you love your bed. you love being around other people and having "serious" conversations with others. you talk AND listen carefully. 

you mostly enjoy playing with your brothers. and ask for grey and tucker immediately when waking up from nap or from the night. daddy is your number one man always and the more time you spend with him, the closer bond i am watching you two form. 

you very much excel in making animal noises, jumping on the trampoline, putting on your own shoes, pretending to be a puppy, and entertaining yourself when YOU feel like it. 

you are so very silly. all the time.

your eyes are bluer than blue and your hair the whitest of white. you are downright precious through and through. 

and we are so glad you are ours.

learning curve

i have so many things i need to get documented but it seems i can't catch life as it whizzes past me and doesn't even stop to say hello. i built in a few weeks of our school year as a learning curve to figure out life as we approach our everyday differently. it seems as though it's taking me quite a while to find the groove all the while our everyday still has expectations of it's own. 

i'm struggling with figuring it all out. with finding time to do laundry, and learn, and do dishes, and learn, and tend to a demanding 18 month old, and learn, and stop the quarreling, and learn, and run errands, and learn. the list goes on.

but one thing i am beginning to see in it all is one of the very best things about schooling from home. it's that ALL these things are learning. if i can just approach our tasks and time all as learning. it's all intertwined really. learning in and through everything. we are essentially our children's biggest teachers whether we like it or not. and it doesn't stop at the school table. 

and it's moments like today when grey found me in the bathroom and said these words, "mommy, i pinky promise i am going to obey you the first time all day today because i love you." that's when i realize maybe a little of what we're learning is getting in that heart. it's the genuine simplicity of a child and his mind processing his everyday life through the bigger picture. just a small grace of today. 

but there are graces all around if i would open my eyes more often. brothers learning to respect each other, learning to forgive. character building at it's finest. and it doesn't stop with the children. i believe i just may be learning more than i ever dreamed.

grey is growing and i want to watch it with eyes wide open. while floors are being swept, his heart is in motion. we talk and he takes in a little more. what he'll do with it only God knows. and that's precisely why i will struggle through our days here at home. 

learning all the while. 

waterway

the waterway was a magical place for the boys. really it was a magical place for all of us. 

i realize very much these children are made for exploration. and what an opportunity the waterway was to let them do just that.