Jason's Last Day of Preschool

It is hard to believe, but Jason officially has one year of preschool under his belt. Jason has thoroughly enjoyed Miss Beth and Miss Susanne's class. On the last day of school, he and his closest classmates got together for some fun with chalk and rocks. You'd think they won't be seeing each other the entire summer. We have a playdate scheduled next week--and there's always summer camp.

Eating Machine

Michael is getting bigger, but, perhaps, not fast enough. This is a day in his life. It has got to be difficult being pushed, pulled, sat upon, rolled over. Though vocal about his opposition, he does manage to take it in stride. And, as I've mentioned before, Jason had better watch out. Though Jason refuses to eat at Miss Michelle's house, ever, Michael has no such issues. Today, he ate a full meal of liver, beans, rice, and, I think, chicken. Then, he came home and had more chicken with Jason. I'm pretty sure he ate more than Jason did after we got home, too.

Afternoon in the Sand

A beautiful Spring day, and Jason and Michael certainly took advantage of it. We went over to Miss Valerie's house to play with Caitlin and Colton, and as you can see the boys had a blast.

Mother's Day

Mother's Day was wonderful. For the first time, I think Jason understood it is a special day devoted to Mommy. He was more excited about its arrival than I was. At preschool, the kids made a craft for us mothers. And, Jason just couldn't wait to tell me. A week ago, the day he made the craft, he came up to me and said, "I made a craft for you for Mother's Day. It's a stick. Let me show you." I urged him to wait till the day of celebration. He was so pleased the day had finally arrived, he opened it himself. You can see the stick for yourself. I love it.

Not to be outdone, Michael is leaving the kind of present that keeps on giving....in the bathtub. Hopefully, you haven't just had a big meal, but these developments are too gross not to share. For the SECOND time, my number two has carried out number two in the tub. As a result, we are now doing our best to take baths in one minute or less.

Their First Air Show

The boys thoroughly enjoyed attending an air show this weekend. It was their first one. Jason particularly liked taking a walk through this aircraft. Pilots were doing death-defying stunts in the background. He didn't care. He took the tour of this plane twice. Of course, I wanted pictures to mark the event. But, the challenges of taking pictures of both kids continue. I've mentioned before the issues I'm having getting Jason to smile for the camera. In the past, it always looked like he was saying, "cheese." Which he was. Now, he'll smile. And this is the result--the surprised look, the goofy smile, or the ham. I don't know which one I like better.

Soccer Time!

It's hard to believe, but Jason's first soccer season is almost over. We're proud to say he's doing better at running up and down the field. His team is usually with him when he does it. He's not quite at the point where he'll kick the ball if anyone else is near it, but we know that will come in time. I also think Doug has enjoyed being the coach quite a bit. One of the best parts of their practices and games is the warm-up. Doug takes them through a series of stretches. The kids get on the grass and work their hamstrings and quads. They love it, and it really is something to see their smiles. One of the parents asked me if he would volunteer again. We'll see.

Michael's Revenge

I have figured out when Michael is at his happiest. After a good meal. Tonight, Michael almost devoured a plate full of chicken nuggets on top of a couple glasses of milk. This, after two bowls of rice at Miss Michelle's house. And, as a result, many smiles at bedtime. He was in a pretty playful mood, too. Very alert as you can see, as well. For the first time, I saw him climb on top of his big brother and smack him on the head. But, you'll see, Jason was too tired to care. He could barely eek out a goodnight to Daddy on the phone.

Little Brother is Catching Up

Michael is on a roll. Continuing to eat everything in sight. Tonight, I shoveled in food and milk. He just kept opening his mouth--all this, after a full meal at Miss Michelle's house. And for the first time, I saw him crawl over to Jason, who was laying on the bed, and start pounding on his back with his fists. Jason was surprised and quite upset. I think the tide may be turning for our baby Michael.

Akong's Birthday Celebration

We had the pleasure of celebrating Akong's birthday with him this weekend. Michael sure enjoyed it. I had to include this picture of him doing what he seems to be doing nonstop these days. Eating! He has GOT to be getting bigger. And, I've said it before, good thing. You may have heard me remind Jason, "Brothers forever, friends for life." Well, today, I started the phrase. He finished it "Brothers forever, friends for hitting." I think we're in trouble. Or Michael is.

Preschool Buddies Get Together

Jason has known for days we were planning a trip to Abree's house. He wanted to head over there the minute he heard the first thing about it. I told him at 10 o'clock one night. We finally arrived, and he thoroughly enjoyed his first playdate with his preschool buddies (his lack of smiles in the top picture with Abree was a momentary lapse). Faithlynn, Jason, Abree, and Matthew are good friends in class. And, they really play together well outside of it. Bubbles were a big part of the fun. Michael came along for the ride and made a new friend in Eli, Matthew's brother.

Doug's Night Off

What a nice treat. Doug got the chance to switch schedules and come home early to coach Jason's soccer game. Good game, although the team lost. Jason, for the first time, got in on the action. While he didn't get anywhere near the ball, at least he was running near his teammates. Yay! Doug also got the chance to take part in our nightly rituals. Bathtime, singing, storytime. You can see, we all enjoyed it.

Feeling Better

These are more pictures from our recent trip to Atlanta. Jason and Michael just loved being outdoors. It's a good thing they enjoyed it, since both boys have been pretty much cooped up inside all week. Michael caught a nasty bug, and as a result, probably looks a little thinner than he does in this picture. As if he needs to lose weight! The good news is he feels much better now.

Rolling with the Punches

As painful as it may be for him, I know Michael has to be getting some life lessons from his big brother. At the very least, he's learning how to roll with the punches!

Jason's First Soccer Game

Soccer season is here! I believe Doug and I are the most excited people in the house about that. Jason has taken part in two games so far. In the middle of the first game, Jason begged to leave and go home. Sadly, there was no way to accomodate him. Doug is the coach.

Atlanta Family Reunion

It has been a whirlwind week. We are back at home now, and yes, happy to be here. But there are lots of stories to share from our fantastic vacation to Atlanta. Jason and Michael had such a wonderful time visiting with Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Bud, Aunt Joyce, Aunt Jeanne, Aunt Stacie, Uncle Dave, and his cousins, Ezekiel and Elijah. It was a family reunion that both boys won't soon forget. (Of course, I'll be there to remind them). It started with a long, long, long drive in our packed Honda Accord. Poor Michael, who hates car rides anyway, couldn't stand it almost from the first minute. It wasn't until the ride *home that I realized he just wanted some face-to-face conversation, and a bit of singing, to put him in the proper car-riding mood. We will keep that in mind from now on. The discomfort was forgotten the moment we pulled into Dacula, though. From the minute we arrived at Grandma and Grandpa's house, Jason realized he finally could enjoy his personal playground, filled with cool toys not found at home, cool grown-ups to play with (also not found at home :), and simply fun things to do 24 hours a day.

Thank goodness Jason packed some good behavior into his little traveling bag. Everyone else must have brought along patience, too, considering grown-ups (not Mommy and Daddy) played Mouse Trap, built log cabins, and constructed intricate lego buildings--over and over and over. We also took part in some "field trips," visiting the mall, where we caught up with Miss Susan. We visited the Mayfield Dairy, where Jason made his mark, breaking a planter that has now found a place in our home. And, we can't forget what is probably Jason's favorite memory, from Aunt Stacie's house. The bouncing he endured on the trampoline in their backyard. He still giggles when he talks about it.

Baby Fights Back

It's tough being the baby. For so many months, he could only enjoy the scenery where we left him. Boy, the baby is fighting back now. Just in the last couple of days, Michael has started pulling himself up on anything that will handle his weight. Tables, toys, Daddy's knees, Jason's head. You do what you have to do. And Michael is getting there.

Jason the Cookie Maker

To Jason, baking is a great stress reliever. And, with Grandma's visit last week, he figured he would be able to roll up his sleeves and make chocolate chip cookies using his cow-shaped cookie cutter. Thankfully, the result was a tasty treat for all of us. Really, Jason surprises us with his independence and his desire to help. A couple of examples. He's now able to cut his own fingernails. I don't know whether this is an accomplishment, but I was pretty impressed. Anyway, he always complained I was hurting him when I did it for him. This is a decent alternative. Yesterday, he asked if he could carry Michael. He's never asked to do that before, and quite frankly, I don't know why he would do it now. At 20 pounds and growing, Michael is more than half Jason's weight. The gap is closing by the hour. Then, at the YMCA today, he held the door open for a little girl. It's the first time I'd seen him do that. I was so proud. Another emotion rose to the surface, though, when Jason lunged at Michael with a crayon in hand and yelled, "I have to color you, Michael!!!" Don't worry, I stopped the artist-to-be just in time.

Michael's First Birthday

Another milestone, a big one, for Michael. He turned one year old this week. And, he had two big parties to help ring in the new year. The first one, on St. Patrick's Day--brought Grandma and Grandpa to us. Michael had ice cream cake, which he enjoyed very much, until some of it flew into his eye. Take a look at the second picture. Ouch. Then, a few days later, Amah and Akong came over, to dress him in a traditional birthday celebration outfit--and another cake. He took it all in stride. He seems a bit heavier these days.

Peyton's Birthday Party

The boys have been busy over the last week. A major highlight--a birthday party that both Jason and Michael attended at My Gym last weekend. The pictures really speak for themselves. The party was so well done. Always moving, the kids always involved. Jason enjoyed all the climbing, jumping, and rolling. He especially loved all the rides that were set up. Jason even spent some time in the ball pit with the birthday girl, Peyton.

Pictures to Come

The boys received haircuts yesterday. Pictures to come!!! I am happy to say both of them got through the process remarkably well. Doug thinks it's because they're so used to it. They both have so much hair!!!

Montessori Lessons

I'm fascinated with the Montessori way of learning. One of the concepts it stresses is sequencing. A book I read recently shared an interesting lesson, encouraging us to take pictures of Jason's routines, in order. I'm supposed to print them out, then have him talk about what he's doing, put them in order, paste them in a book, etc. This is as far as I've gotten. We'll get to the next steps soon.

Michael's word count has increased by about two. If you'll remember, his first word was "cheese." He's moved on to "uh oh." These days, everything we do is an "uh oh." And, just yesterday, so clearly, he spits out, "Daa-Dee." Doug is thrilled.

Here's a snippet of conversation with Jason after I picked him up from preschool today.
Me: "How was preschool, Jason? What did you do?"
Jason: "I played with toys, and with Abree."
Me: "Oh?"
Jason: "We didn't kiss!"

It is as if he's a teenager already!

Jason's Talking Letters

Lots of milestones to report. Jason and Michael are playing together more and more. By choice, which is nice. Michael has started to enjoy peekaboo with Jason. The giggles come out when Michael bends all the way to his left (while still in his feeding chair), then looks at Jason, who does the same thing. It's the funniest thing to watch. Above is one of the first crawling pictures I have been able to capture. He's getting sooo fast, I can't snap the picture fast enough. And when he hits vinyl, he KNOWS he can move quickly. It's hard to believe Michael is just a few weeks away from turning one.

Jason knows his alphabet. The Leapfrog Talking Letters Factory DVD singlehandedly made it possible. It's amazing. He knows the letters and the sounds they make. Just amazing. Here, he's playing (finally) with the tower of blocks that Grandma and Grandpa got him when he was born. He loves it now, more than ever.