Dance Year 5

It's been a busy month!  Logan started her FIFTH year of dance this year.  I can't believe she's old enough to even be uttering that.  But, here we are.  She actually is starting leveled dance this year, which is an exciting, but sad transition for us.  She's been with the same teacher now for the last two (maybe three?) years and I am so sad that she's old enough to transition out of Miss Cori's classes.  This teacher sees hundreds of students a week and she still knows the name of every dancer's siblings.  We walk in and she knows both of my boys, their interests, etc.  It's amazing.  And I'm sad to see Logan moving away from her!

But, they said she was doing well enough that we could go ahead and advance her into the leveled classes a year early, and she's been dying to take acro (gymnastics/dance together) and a focused ballet class so we're taking the plunge.  She'll be doing two full hours of dance Monday nights and she's thrilled!

How big does she look in this picture?  Sniff.

And the five year comparison:

Lincoln doesn't quite enjoy being left out of a picture session, so Logan obliged and posed with him for one right before we ran out the door!

I love watching this little girl develop into such a precious dancer.  It makes my heart happy to watch her do something she is so passionate about.

Water Country USA

One of my favorite things about homeschooling is deciding, on a whim, to take a day off and go do something fun.  To celebrate the start of school, Mike and I took the kids to Water Country USA up in Williamsburg.  They have a great program for the military that allows you one free trip a year!

The weather was perfect, it was in the mid-high 80's and there were no crowds.  The longest Mike and Logan waited for a ride was maybe 10 minutes.  It was the perfect time to go!

We told the kids we were going to drive a couple hours to check out a new pool somewhere.  This may be the last year we're able to get away with saying something like that and getting Logan to believe it.  But, they all bought it and so when we pulled in and they saw all of the slides, and water falls, etc, they were THRILLED!!

Little miss fearless went on every single ride she had time for and then when we started running out of time she asked which ones were the most daring and just started going on those.  I'm thankful for her fantastic dad who never hesitated to take her on anything!

Lincoln and I hung back at the kiddie pools most of the day.  Brody would occasionally join us when he couldn't ride one of the rides.  It was nice, but it does make me look forward to a day when the kids will all be tall enough to ride those rides together and enjoy them so we don't have to spend so much time split up.

Had to get a picture of him conquering the gator.  Go Noles!

Homeschool 2015-2016

 It's August in the Kayle household and that means we're starting a new year of school right in our home.  This year, Logan is of first grade age but working through some 2nd and 3rd grade curriculum.  Brody is right on pace in K4 with his age!  And Lincoln?  Well, he's still getting into everything.

This year, Brody's curriculum is really geared at getting him reading.  He's got a lot of three letter words down so we're going to work on getting him reading short stories.  We'll be working through the Explode the Code books with him as well as Alpha-Phonics.  He's so excited!!

Logan's curriculum is a bit more....intense.  :)  We don't have to start reporting to the state for another year, but I'm making a conscious effort this year to try and lay out all of our plans, grade several of her items, keep a portfolio going and keep a good attendance record so that it's just second nature next year when it's required.  My lesson planner is massive, but I've got the first several months of school planned so I think it will make things much easier than last year when we kind of just went with whatever.

This year we have these fun things in store:

All About Reading Level 2 (spelling will come from this, as well): We loved this curriculum last year.  It can go as quickly or as slowly as you want it to and it really gives a fabulous foundation for reading.  It goes through every grammar rule you could ever think of and teaches them in fun, easy to understand language for the kids.

Handwriting with a Purpose Level B: We did the first two levels of this one last year.  Logan hates handwriting-- but what kid truly truly enjoys having to sit and do copywork?  I guess some do.  But these lessons are typically short and painless.  They write out different words from Bible verses throughout the week and then put them all together on Friday to write the full verse.  It's a great way to get them hiding the word in their hearts while doing school work.

Exploring Creation: Botany: We finished our Space book this summer and had such a great time with it we stuck with the curriculum.  Upon the suggestion of several we went ahead and purchased the "Notebook" to go with it (their junior version).  I thought it would be just money we didn't need to spend but it has turned out to be a fantastic resource.  It goes through every lesson, gives all kinds of activities and coloring sheets, etc.  It's great!  It takes the added planning I had to do with the Space book out, which I LOVE.  Logan chose the Botany theme this year.  We'll let both kiddos decide together what we do next year since Brody will be in Kindergarten!

The Story of the World: We started this when Logan was in K for history and it was just too much.  I couldn't keep up while trying to figure out a good school rhythm and figure out what life was going to look like.  But, again, on suggestion of others, we purchased the workbook that goes with it to try this year and it's made all the difference.  It lays out lessons, gives you several activities for each lesson that you can pick and choose from.  Coloring pages, mapping activities, the works!  It's fantastic.  

Math U See: When you find a good math curriculum- stick with it!  This is, by far, the best math curriculum I've ever encountered.  This year Logan will learn to do 3 digit addition and subtraction (with carrying and borrowing), multiplication, money, all kinds of crazy things you normally don't see until you get a little further into elementary school.  But the crazy thing is that when I'm going through the planning, it's just logical to do those things in the sequence that they have planned for you and the way they have you teach it makes it so simple to understand.  

Both older kids will also be using Rosetta Stone for Spanish, ABC Mouse and Always Ice Cream for technology/computer time and will be doing some form of music.  It's going to be a great year!!

Four is Hard.

For some reason, with both older kids, age 4 has been hard.  2 was tough, learning to hear the word no and obey.  3 was exhausting because all of the sudden the discipline seemed less cut and dry-- they knew the word no and started to use arguing to help their cases.  But four.  Mercy.  

Some days it's explaining why all day long.  Some days it's disciplining for the same irritating behavior (that they now know is irritating and try and use to their benefit).  Some days it's loving on a child who is needy but doesn't know how to express it without whining and being in a bad mood all day.  It's hard.  When logic starts to enter the picture and they're able to question why things happen but are still too young to truly "get it" sometimes.

But for moments like these.....

I'd bottle up the age and hold onto it.  It 100% personifies who this little boy is right now and I love everything about it-- right down to the fact that he has on a pair of play clothes for bed instead of pajamas.

It's that crazy feeling you get when you're a mom.  You know-- the one where all you can do some days is get to bedtime because it's been so long and frustrating and then you walk in and see them like this and can't stop staring and thanking the Lord for his sweet grace.

Big Transitions

Lincoln climbed out of his bed.

21 months.  That's how old he is.  Brody didn't do this until he was a bit older and when he did it, he fell out and busted his lip so he didn't try again.

Up until now, he's been sleeping in a pack and play in Logan's room.  Their bodies are on much the same schedule (both morning people, Brody is much more of a night owl).  He's done so well.  We lay him down, he sleeps.  This transition is going to kill me!

So, we packed up the crib and put the pack and play, put up the bed and went to pick out some bedding.  We also went ahead and put the boys together.  This way they'll be done and used to it by the time their baby sister gets here since the girls will share a room.

He's thrilled.

Mommy's scared.  My nights might get a lot harder now.  And what about naptime?  Ahhh!

23 Week Bumpdate

So 23 weeks in and I'm still as sick as a dog.  I'm taking an anti-nausea med, and I'm still at the point where if I forget to take it I'm throwing up all day like I've got the stomach flu.  It's awful.  I feel bad for the kiddos on those days because I'm completely useless....though, they love it because we watch WAY more TV than their little brains need.  Thankfully, I've only forgotten it less than a handful of times.  But still.

How many weeks: 26.6

Weight gain?  13 lbs.  

Morning Sickness?  Yes.

Cravings:  Pickles, sour kraut, lemons, anything acidic right now!

Sleeping well?  Sleeping as well as I can with a one year old and being pregnant.

Labor signs?  Nope!

Things I miss:  Being able to go to bed not freaking out about missing a dose of medication!  ha!  Making it through a day without feeling like something is going to make me vomit.

Things I'm looking forward to:  Picking up some more pink, looking into girl names, and we're starting to plan for our upcoming school year, so that's exciting!!

Here I am at 23 weeks with all four kids:

It's a.......

Well.... it took a good while for our ultrasound tech to figure out what this baby was!  We went in and had a very routine ultrasound until she went to check and see what we were looking to add to our family dynamic.  This little baby had the cord stuck in between it's legs and it took forever to get the baby to roll around enough that it wasn't blocking anything.  After about 5 minutes the tech said she thought she was pretty confident about knowing but still spent another 10 minutes rolling the baby back and forth trying to get a good angle.  But.....after 15 minutes she told us to go ahead and start talking baby girl names, because she was 99% sure that that's what was in there!  (She says she never gives a full 100%)

So, to celebrate, we went out and got PINK cake pops!

We are so excited to be welcoming another precious little girl into our family.  It'll be nice to even things out a bit and you know I can't wait to get some big bows on that little one's head.  

As with our tradition, baby girl Kayle does not have a name.  We always have ONE name going into our ultrasound and every time it's been the opposite gender.  That should have given us a hint into what this baby was.  

We were all very excited, well, all but one of us.  It took several attempts to get Brody to give us a smile.  As it turns out, he must have really, really wanted another brother.  Not thrilled at all. 

Thankfully, we all know he will be head over heels for his little sister and will most definitely take on the role of "super hero brother" for her.  He just needs to meet her.  :)

Mornings at the Park

Our kids LOVE the park.  Any park really.  But this summer has been brutal in the heat department-- so bad that several days they've issued heat advisories and closed the POOL so that lifeguards aren't sitting out in it.  It's awful.

But, every once and a while we can get our stuff together and get out of the house before 8:30am and we can beat the heat for about an hour.  The kids love it when we can do this!  We get the park to ourselves, it's not crazy hot yet and they get to play to their hearts' content.

This particular park has gotten very parent friendly and has added several apparatuses to make things so easy.

My favorite is this new swing contraption where you (or your older children) can sit on one side and the baby can sit up in the baby swing.  Pump your legs and you're both swinging!  No more standing around behind the swing to push.  It's amazing.  It's even more amazing that my 6 year old can enjoy it with him while I sit in the shade and watch.  :)  

Happy Father's Day 2015

Happy Father's Day to this dad of almost 4!

Getting a picture with all three kids looking at the camera and looking even mildly amused is tough....I know 4 will be the end of it!

It's ok, the fun and the chaos is worth the pictures that don't turn out "perfect."  Though, I know Mike and I will look through all of these blog posts in 20+ years and agree that these pictures ARE perfect because they're just life.

The older two made a road map shirt for Mike this year.  He puts it on and they run their cars and trains along the trails they marked.  It's a win win!  They get to play with him and he gets a massage.  Everyone is happy.

First vs. Last

Here is Logan's first day of K-1 vs. her last day.  She grew a TON this year.  When we started planning our Disney trip in August of last year we measured both kids and started talking up rides they'd be able to go on.  We know she had to have grown at least 3 inches through the course of the year because by the time we went to Disney she was in an entire different riding bracket!  

Life With Boys

I'm learning a whole new dynamic having two boys in the house.  I grew up with a sister and a brother, so I'm all too familiar with the sister spats and the brother who enjoys teasing....but seeing two boys in action together is a novelty!

Our days are full of super heroes.  

They each seem to have a new favorite daily.  They run around wanting to save the day and fight each other.  

I'm also finding that messes are just a normal, everyday part of life.  And that child #3 does not like to wait for ANYTHING.

But there's so much fun in all of the energy and excitement that those boys bring.  Trips to the park where we scale dangerous mountains (slides)....

Or sword fight with anything and everything.  (Zucchini on this particular Target trip)

Mud is also new territory for me.  They love to create it and splash in it.  Something their older sister wanted nothing to do with.

But, oh, those sweet moments when you know that you're the only woman in their life (for now).  What treasures.  

They're messy and loud and don't think much of injuries and blood, but it's worth every single second of insanity.  I wonder if we'll be adding another boy to our bunch or if we'll even things out with another precious little girl....only a few more weeks!

Hilton Head 2015

After our week at Disney, we packed up the car and headed about halfway home to Hilton Head Island, SC for another week with the other side of our family!  It was a fun get together because we got to meet all of our new family now that Papa and Grandma Deb have tied the knot.  

Brody was very excited to see a pool when we arrived.

I think everyone was happy.

Especially this little fish who you had to drag out of the pool at the end of the day!  Some days she would swim for 5-6 hours.

It was fun getting to hang out with new cousins, Logan and Layla bonded very quickly (they're a year apart) and it was hard to separate them.

The kids all loved the park we took them to on the second day of our trip.

 That night, we all dressed up in our blues and whites and headed to the beach to take an updated family picture.

Logan had a lot of fun with her new Aunts and Uncles who spent a lot of time on the beach with her building castles.  

What did I tell you about the pool?  

 On our last day, several of us took the older kids on a pirate ship where they got to help search for treasure and destroy a bad guy.  It was so much fun for them!

It was Brody's first time out on a boat and he was a little nervous, so he spent a lot of time right near momma.

But every once and a while he'd venture back out with the other kids.

Our last morning brought sweet goodbyes from these girls.  They had so much fun together it was sad to have to say goodbye.  But it's also fun that they have each other to hang out with, now, at family gatherings.  

I don't know when we'll all be in the same place, again, but it was a great time!