Birthday boy Seth

"I am six today"

It's hard to believe our little big boy is 6 years old! 

birthday Lucky Charms

We were out of the house most of the day because of people looking at the house and us meeting our realtor, but he was happy to go to school and then play at the park afterward for most of the afternoon.  Dinner at Kidd Valley, a quick stop at the church for a scout court of honor, home for baths and jammies, and THEN it was time for presents and treats.  He asked when his friends were coming over for a party, and when I told him we were going to have a family party this year, he just said, "OK that sounds great."  Such an easy-going little pleaser.

Reading his birthday cards himself!

Can you tell he loves Star Wars Legos??

Yes, there are only 5 candles and yes, 3 of them are pink.  It's what's left in the house after packing up most of the kitchen.  Don't judge.

At 6 years old, Seth:

*loves to put things together...puzzles, legos, tractors, cars.

*has taken off with reading.  His kindergarten class did early reading assessments, and he tests above his grade level.

*likes to play checkers with Dad.

*tells me all about the friends he makes at school and on the bus.  He's unafraid to walk up to someone new and ask their name and if they want to play.

*is very thorough and serious about coloring.  He'll spend 30 minutes coloring in every single thing on a page in his coloring book.

*is smart, clever, a little bossy, loving and ALL BOY!

***Happy Birthday, Seth!  Your family loves you!***

12 of 12 - September

1 - Kind of a weird photo, but it feels so good to have my ankles back, as opposed to the swollen, tight imposters that took over the last few months of my pregnancy.

2 - Check out my guns!  I'll mess you up.

3 - The kids like to mix their cereals, so every morning, this is typically what the kitchen counter looks like.

4 - This is the view from the front doors of the library.  I'm so happy voters chose to keep the Cedar River Library in its current location.  It's the only public library in the country that is built to span a river.  Pretty soon we'll be able to look down and watch the salmon making their way up the river to spawn.

5 - This cute little bronze statue of a boy reading a book is a favorite of the kids at the library.  We usually go to story time at the smaller Highlands library on Tuesdays, but we'll probably start going Wednesdays because of Lydia's preschool schedule.

6 - The outside of the house is almost done getting painted.  Goodbye light-gray-that-almost-looks-lavender-on-a-cloudy-day color and hello "Weathered Shingle" with creamy white trim.

7 - A very close up of a project I'm working on, without giving too much away in case the recipient reads this post.

8 - Bye Seth!  Have a good day at school!

9 - Lydia likes to "help" when I'm in the kitchen.  Today we made chocolate waffle cookies for an after-school treat.

10 - Matt had a work function until late tonight, so dinner was mac n' cheese and nectarines.  Does it look like the kids feel cheated eating an easy dinner?  Sometimes it seems like the less effort I put into dinner, the more the kids like it.  Anyone else feel that way?

11 - Another picture with me and my little cutie Peter.  I don't know how to look normal when I take a picture of myself in the mirror.

12 - The best shot of the day.  He's a good little sleeper for just being 8 weeks old.  He wakes up a couple of times a night and goes right back to sleep.  I sure love him!  

School Days

September 5th was Seth's first day of Kindergarten, and boy was he ready and excited to go!  We got up and had a yummy breakfast and got a few things done until it was time to catch the bus just after noon.  The bus stop is just at the house across the street, so already we love the convenience!

New clothes?  Check.  Giant backpack?  Check.  Cutest cheesy smile?  Check.

Here comes the bus!

Bye, Mom!

I can't believe I didn't even cry a little bit, and I'm usually the biggest bawl baby of all.  All morning, I was prepared to lose it a little bit, but I was so happy and excited for him. 

Lydia was a little lost without him for a few hours.  The minute we walked in the house she would ask "Where's Seth" and "When is Seth coming home?" about every 10 minutes while he was gone.  I didn't quite realize how much I depended on him for her entertainment.

When we met him at the bus stop, he bounded off the bus and said school was "amazing" and that he already has two new best friends, Solomon and Emily.  It's going to be a great year!

~~~

Then on September 11, Lydia headed off to her first day of preschool.  She has a backpack "just like Seth" (minus the princesses on his) and was ready to get going.  Her new BFF Miriam is going to preschool there too, so she was excited to see her. 

 When we got there, she put her shoes in the shoe bin, hung up her backpack and was so ready to jump into things that she almost forgot to say goodbye to mom!  She loves Miss Tammy and wears her backpack around the house all day and asks when it's time to go to preschool again.