Kindergarten trip to the zoo!

After several days of thunderstorms the sun finally came out just in time for the Kindergarten field trip to the Cameron Park Zoo!  Of course half the fun is just riding the bus!

 

 I had a great time as chaperone to this cute bunch :)

 

 

Hudson enjoyed the view from his stroller and loved being with all the kids!  He giggled at all of their silly antics.  Owen was so proud to have him there!

 

The teachers provided each group with a fun scavenger hunt.  They had to find and take note of animals that fly, eat meat, had a tail, etc.  They really enjoyed that challenge!



The weather was perfect and most of the animals were out and about.

 



The elephant exhibit was one of their favorites!

The kiddos were well behaved and enjoyed learning all about the animals.  They asked lots of great questions!

A highlight of the zoo is always sliding with the otters!

 

Sweet brothers :)

 

Owen is six-and-a-half!

Owen is officially six-and-a-half!  He is energetic, comical, fast, ornery, smart, playful and as clever as they come!  He keeps us laughing with his stories and wit.  He weighs 51 pounds.  He wears size 6/7 clothing and size 1 shoes.  

 

 

He enjoys playing Xbox, baseball and "school" with his sister & about a hundred stuffed animals.  His favorite foods include fettuccine, Ramen noodles, Nutrigrain bars, chicken nuggets and Pediasure.  He is still a very selective eater.  He eats a Drumstick ice cream every single night at Big Daddy & Lita's (good source of calcium, I suppose!)

 

  

 He has survived 100+ days of Kindergarten!  He is an excellent student and enjoys school days.  He is a socialite and has adjusted well to the mid year school move.  He has made lots of new friends and has even brought home a couple of love notes in his backpack!  :)  His reading skills literally took off after Christmas and he recently tested at an end of year first grade level.  He is focusing on handwriting and is showing great improvement.

 

On storybook character day at Woodway Elementary there was no question what he would be!  Pete the Cat, of course!  :) 

He is a wonderful big brother and takes great care of Hudson!  He always wants "the brothers" to lay down and watch TV together after school.  He loves making him laugh but doesn't want anything to do with the diaper changing or bottle duty responsibility!

He has recently developed a close bond with his beloved Build-a-Bear, "Bearemy".  He begged us to retrieve him from storage and has visited B-a-B store several times for wardrobe updates.  He even rides to school with us and occupies Owen's car seat during the day :)  Owen is very creative and detail oriented.  He will often spend an extended period of time on an activity such as a puzzle, project or play dough. 

 

Owen sleep walks and talks fairly regularly but never remembers doing so.  He usually ends up in bed with us at some point during the night.  He likes to sleep surrounded by all of his stuffed friends :)

 

We love our middle little and are super thankful that God entrusted us as his parents.  We pray that he continues to grow into the young man God created him to be!

 

STEM Night & Science fair

Last month Emma and Owen participated in the annual Woodway Elementary STEM night and Science fair.  The teachers did a great job hosting different experiments and activities throughout the evening and the students had lots of fun while learning! 

 

 

Emma received 3rd grade honorable mention for her Skittle project!  She tested how water temperature effects Skittles {how quickly they melt in hot, room temp & cold}.

 

Owen earned 1st place in Kindergarten for his Pop Rock project!  He dropped Pop Rocks into different types of sodas with balloons on the rim.  He determined which soda's balloon inflated the most, quickest, etc. 

So proud of our super scientists!  :)

Hudson at 13 months

Hudson is 13 months old!  He now weighs 19 pounds 5 ounces and measures 26.5 inches long.  He is still in size 12 month outfits, size 4 diapers and has 5 teeth {including a top one}! 

 

 

This month he visited Dr Recko, the pediatric opthamologist at Scott & White.  He was very cooperative during the exam (except when they dilated his eyes)!  Dr R determined that he has intermittent exotropia, which means that he occasionally has outward deviation one eye at a time.  He will continue to be monitored quarterly but may require intervention at some point.  The great news is that his vision is perfect and there was no sign of abnormal optic pressure :)

 

Where's Hudson?!  :)

 

He had an EGG-cellent Easter!  He enjoyed all of the festivities and even got to meet the Easter Bunny :)

 

 

 

He adores his big siblings!  He gets so excited when we pick them up at school each afternoon!

 

  

Hudson recently started {gently!} clapping and likes doing Pat-a-cake.  PT is going well.  Jaylon says that he is stronger than he knows and makes him work really hard on Mondays!  He still dislikes being on his tummy and will find a way to roll over to his back every single time!  He is becoming more confident with lifting a hand while in an independent sitting position but is very balance cautious. 

 

Dr Dewbre recommended we offer Pediasure, peanut butter and avacados to boost healthy weight gain!  He has recently started getting food from his tray to his mouth.  His favorite snacks include blueberries, cheese cubes and puffs.  He shows interest in what we are eating and is always willing to try new things.  One evening I offered him a bite sized piece of my grilled cheese sandwich and he shook his head "no" and loudly protested.  He proceeded to grab what was left of my sandwich and finish it!  Another day at breakfast he didn't seem satisfied with his tiny pancakes and fussed until I offered him my giant buttered waffle :)

He says "Mama" quite often but not much more than babbling otherwise.  In order to encourage speech I plan to start teaching him a few words in baby sign language.  This is new territory as I never attempted this with the older kids.  He still usually wakes up during the night.  He sleeps best on his side.  We are working on a regular nap schedule.  He typically awakens by 6:45am and is ready for a brief snooze by 9am.  He occasionally lays down for a longer nap after lunch.

 

Bluebonnets

One of the many things I love about being back in central Texas is the abundance of bluebonnets!  There weren't enough for photos in east Texas.  The older kids moaned and rolled their eyes about taking these but hopefully they appreciate them when they are older.......maybe!  

 

He sure loves his sister :)

I told her to strike a pose and this is what I got :)  She is growing way too fast!

 

This handsome fella stood still for about two seconds for me to snap this photo!

 



This little guy melts our hearts :)

 

Happy Spring, Texas! 

 

Opening Day 2016

This weekend was Opening Day for Midway Little League.  The kids have practiced for over a month now and were counting down the days :)

 

 

Jarrod was asked to be head coach for the Diamond Divas!  I think he looks great in hot pink :)

 

 

This is Emma's first season in kid pitch.  She is beginning to pitch and even got the opportunity to do so in the last inning of the game!  She did an excellent job!

 

 

She also played catcher and outfielder.  We are so proud of her skill progress!

 

Hudson is the kids' number one fan and even has shirts to match both!  :)  The wagon has really come in handy hauling chairs, equipment and other game day essentials!

Jarrod is also assistant coach of the Dodgers and keeps very busy!  He is certainly getting his coach fix ;)  These kiddos are so lucky to have him!

This is Owen's first season at coach pitch.  He takes baseball very seriously and loves game day.   He considers it such a success to make his white baseball pants as dirty as possible....

 



 

He played pitcher, catcher and 3rd base and is a lot of fun to watch!   

Between these two there are 25 total games.  The next couple of months will be crazy busy but we wouldn't have it any other way!



*PLAY BALL!!*