Now that 2016 is officially here...I better get the kid's six and three year updates posted before too much of the year goes by!
Kate
Kate turned six in September and it has been an
adventurous year so far. She started Kindergarten at Roberts and has thrived.
I’m so proud of how well she has done starting a new school and a new after
school program (Killearn Kids at Killearn United Methodist Church). Kate has
made several new friends in her class and she adores her teacher Ms. Hughes and
her intern, Ms. Daniel. We are going to miss Ms. Daniel next semester when she
graduates but maybe she’ll get a permanent job at Roberts (fingers crossed).
At six years old, Kate is talkative, sweet, energetic,
outspoken, confident, smart, sassy and funny. Some of her hobbies include
crafting and baking. She loves to go shopping with me but also cherishes any
time she gets alone with just Daddy. Kate also loves to sing and dance. There no
lack of entertainment when Kate is around, that’s for sure! Her favorite game to
play right now is the “Animal Guessing Game”. Every time we are in the car, she
asks who wants to play. The person who is “It” gives clues as to what animal
they are thinking of and everyone else guesses. Honestly, I’m quickly running
out of animals to think of that we haven’t already said.
One of Kate’s favorite places to go is to church and
specifically, bible class on Faith Lane. She is motivated to learn her memory
verses and bring her bible every Sunday morning and Wednesday night so she can
earn Bible bucks and shop in the Faith Lane store. It’s ridiculous the number of
stuffed animals that girl has purchased and she remembers every single one. I’m
amazed at her memory.
Since starting Kindergarten, Kate has excelled in
reading. I’m so proud to hear her read out loud and am amazed at all the sight
words she has learned in just a couple months. Earlier this year, Kate was the Star
Student for her class! Ms. Hughes said when they announced her name, she jumped
up with her arms stretched up and shouted “yes!” and took off running out of the
classroom (to collect her certificate and prize in the Media Center). I wish I
could have been there to see her reaction. Aunt Katie sent this sweet
picture:
She is still a picky eater but slowly getting better. I
have tried several times to get her to buy school lunch but she told me “they
don’t have real lunch”. When I asked her what she meant, she informed me that
they serve “dinner food” like mashed potatoes and green beans and not “lunch
food” like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Haha. So for now, Kate takes a
pb&j sandwich or lunchable, chips, juice box, and an apple squeeze in her
lunch. Every.single.day. A couple new things she has tried are liked lately are
Publix turkey subs and cheese tortellini pasta. Thank goodness she is branching
out, even if it is just a little at a time. She still loves quesadillas at Moes,
Chick-fil-a nuggets and Red Elephant pizza (just like her momma). All of our
regular places.
Kate is wearing size 6 and 6X clothing (some size 5
pants) and size 11 (or 12 for extra room) shoes. She is still petite for her
age. Here are her stats from her six year old checkup:
Height: 43.5 inches (20th percentile)
Weight: 42.8 lbs (35th percentile)
Kate’s bedtime is 7:00 – 7:30 each night and we wake her
up at 6:30 every morning. We usually leave for school at 7:25 so she has almost
an hour to get ready, make her bed, eat breakfast and read or play on the iPad
(Lexia Reading Program).
Kate is a wonderful artist and is always drawing pictures. Here are a couple recent drawings:
Kate drew this of me.
She said when her friends saw it they laughed, which made her cry. I tried to tell her I don't think they were making fun of it...I smiled when I first saw it but that's because I love it!
Ballerina Kate.
Beautiful rainbow.
Kate's signature horse picture. Love them!
Kate is a wonderful artist and is always drawing pictures. Here are a couple recent drawings:
She said when her friends saw it they laughed, which made her cry. I tried to tell her I don't think they were making fun of it...I smiled when I first saw it but that's because I love it!
Justin and I are so proud of our little girl and thank
God every day for her!
Fall 2015 School Picture
At Elli's 6th birthday with Elli (center) and Eden (right).
I love all the sweet friends Kate has made at school.
Class picture!
Ramsie's mom is a Police Officer and talked to Kate's class one day.
Kate was so excited to receive this letter from Princess Sophia in the mail. It's been a while since I've seen her light up with pure joy. We had seen a commercial on Disney Junior that instructed us on how to send a letter to Princess Sophia and she would write back. So neat!
When we moved switched Mason's room and the office back at Labor Day, Kate also got a new trundle bed that used to be Aunt Melanie's. She was very excited about picking out her new bedspread and we both love it!
One of the afternoons Kate asked to be wrapped up like a "baby burrito". So silly. She still likes to be swaddled occasionally at six years old.
Wearing her matching outfit with Madison.
Our beautiful six year old:
Six years old!
Mason
Mason is now a big three year old! There are no baby
things left in our house since he is now fully potty trained (6 months earlier
than Kate was) and is sleeping in a big boy bed. It’s sad and exciting all at
the same time. He loves his new big boy room (the old office) and enjoys having
all his toys in his room. I was worried we would have trouble with him staying
in his bed (why, I don’t know since he never gave me a reason to think that) but
he has been an angel. Every morning he stays in bed until we come in and get him
(if he’s even awake). Sometimes he even starts calling “Mommy….Daddy” on
Saturday or Sunday mornings.
Mason's new big boy bed. The crib converted into a full bed so we moved Kate's full bed into Mason's room and Kate got the trundle bed. Both kids were excited about their new beds/rooms.
Potty training was very easy with Mason. He started
staying dry all night back in the summer and was having fewer and fewer
accidents during the day at school. For whatever reason, I decided on Labor Day
weekend to get rid of the pullups and have Mason only wear underwear. He did so
great and we have never looked back. It’s so much easier with a boy than I
imagined it would be. Or it could be that Kate was just that difficult/stubborn.
One of his new favorite things to do is “pee pee in the garden” (in our yard).
One afternoon I walked outside and Mason had his shorts at his ankles, shirt up
under his chin, and he was shaking his hips, dancing the middle of the
cul-de-sac. Kate came running up to my laughing and asked me to help Mason pull
his pants up because she wasn’t doing it. Apparently he had been playing in our
neighbors yard and was peeing in their yard as they pulled in the driveway. So
embarrassing! I never thought I would say this but I shouted to Mason, “Next
time, go potty in our yard!” Boys.
Another thing Mason loves right now is speed bumps.
Weird, right? When we leave day care, we have to go the long way around the loop
because there are several speed bumps to drive over. Most people avoid them when
possible, but I now look for them to see my three year old light up.
Mason escaped his most recent three year checkup without
any shots. Thank goodness! Here are his stats from his three year old
checkup:
Height: 35 inches (8th percentile)
Weight: 31.2 lbs (50th percentile)
Poor guy is on the (very) short side. Whenever people ask
how old he is they always look surprised when I say three. I’m now realizing it
probably because of his height. He takes after his daddy (although I'm not very tall myself). Maybe he'll have a big growth spurt in the future and if not, he's perfect just the way he is.
Fall 2015 School Picture
Cutting the grass with daddy.
Praying with Granddaddy - I couldn't resist taking a picture of this sweet moment in church one Wednesday night.
Mason loves to help daddy around the house anytime he can. This particular night they were changing out light bulbs.
His sleeping positions are almost always side to side. I love that he had his legs curled up underneath him, just like when he was a baby.
Mason is really into Matchbox cars and specially Corvettes. He was asking Granddaddy what each car was at Thanksgiving. And later that night, our little Indian put on his headband and Kate's sparkle flip flops and said "Take my picture Mommy!". Haha.
Wearing Mommy's boots.
Mason asked daddy to open the gate so he could go in the backyard. He fell to the ground and started wailing when Justin opened only the right door and not the left one. So rotten.
He also likes to be wrapped like a baby burrito - but it lasts about 30 seconds before he breaks out.
Little monkey.
Our handsome three year old:
Three years old!
