Kid pictures

Since it's been so long, I figured I'd better get caught up on some pictures of the kids. They can grow quite a bit in a short time. I'll also try and do a little bit of an update for each, too.

Just for fun, here's a series of pictures of all four taken just about every two months.

From the last day of school in June (taken right after Andrew's kindergarten "graduation"):



Here's a picture from the first day of school (September):



And Halloween (we have three ninjas and a fairy princess):



Brendan ...



Let's see. He's in fifth grade now. It has been a bit of a challenge for him; they emphasize taking ownership (being responsible) for a lot more things than in years past. He prefers to let things just happen and hope they end up the way he wants them to, so he's been having to learn some tough lessons. He started band, and much to my surprise, he chose flute! This of course presents a whole new battle (practicing!) but time will tell whether he decides he wants to play enough to hold up his end of it. Extracurriculars - he played baseball in the spring, continued through All Stars over the summer, and then played fall baseball. He is in his final year of cub scouts and looking forward to crossing over to BSA in February.

Betsy ...



Betsy is still our household "sunshine." She is in fourth grade this year and continues to blossom. This is the first year (and teacher) to mention her gift with writing - I've seen it since she started writing stories before she knew all her letters, but this teacher is the first to comment on it. She started chorus this year and is really, really enjoying that. She is still in Girl Scouts - she's a junior this year - and has been having a blast. She also tried her first sport this fall - soccer. We were very impressed (and surprised) that she has a knack for it, she really gets in there and goes after the ball.

Andrew & Justin (super heroes, of course, note the "capes")



Andrew is in first grade now. That has been quite an adjustment from half days, but he's doing well. We've seen a sudden jump in his attention to details (his handwriting has improved dramatically). He continues to read on an advanced level for his age (he knows the Dolch words (sight words) through third grade) and appears to really enjoy reading. He gave soccer a shot this fall and while he enjoyed it, I don't think it's his "thing." He seems to enjoy throwing the ball in more than he does running around and kicking it. He started cub scouts this fall as a Tiger Scout. One funny side note there - the assistant scoutmaster for the BS Troop Brendan will be joining is also Andrew's den leader. It's a small world!

Justin started kindergarten. He loves writing and drawing pictures now (we refused to do so before we turned 5!). He is a bundle of energy and keeps us on our toes - he is constantly popping out with something funny (the first day of school he told me school was lots of fun, it was a party). He's still a monkey - he maybe small, but he's wiry and strong and pretty fearless. Justin also gave soccer a trial run this fall and he, like Betsy, really seemed to do well. Of course we did have a couple of "games" (U5 division doesn't play games - they have sessions) where he did cartwheels down the field instead of running.

That's it for today - it's incredibly rainy and windy here (apparently we're getting some weather from Noel) and I should fine something to do with the kids. Maybe play a game. We're trying to keep the tv and game platforms to a minimum recently - it's amazing how once we're used to having them on less, the kids seem more inclined towards finding their own amusements. That's been one definite plus to this summer's flea invasion (a whole other story - maybe nightmare - for a different day) - we were forced out of the basement and took a hiatus from the various idiot boxes - that has been a blessing. The tv and other things are on - for all four kids - a max of about 3 hours on the weekends, and 2 during the week (if that). It tells you something (or it does me, anyway) that today, on a rainy, yucky day where they can't go out to play, Andrew and Justin are being superheroes with balloons, Betsy is playing with legos, and Brendan is upstairs practicing (under protest! but practicing) - he will probably work on a puzzle with me when he's done. A few months ago, they would have buried themselves on the porch with the tv on. This is much better!