Our last night of having a 4 yr old

There's just something special about ages 2 - 5. So much growing up, innocent naivety,  and just plain fun. They are magical years.

Tonight is our last night of living with a 4 year old. Nathan turns 5 tomorrow.

I'm really happy to see him turn 5, but am already missing 4.

Love you, Nathan!

The last of the firsts - Nathan looses his tooth

Not even 5 years old and already loosing teeth. 

 It is great to see them grow up fast when they are the first born. 

The baby of the family is so much harder. 

 I just don't want him to grow up too fast.

Caleb goes to school

The day has come.  Caleb goes to school for 2nd grade at our local public school.

He was up and ready without any asking on my part.

David encouraged him this morning:" Caleb, I think you will have a good first day."

Caleb responded:" I have a feeling I will!"

When we dropped off his supplies last week we noticed his classroom had a lot of dead bugs to examine under the microscope.  That couldn't have been any better for Caleb.  He is interested in rocks, shells and all things nature.  He has been looking forward to the microscope all week.

When I picked him up he was in high spirits.

"Mom, I don't have any bullies in my class.  I have some who look like bullies, but they're not!"

"I got lost at recess but Julius helped me find the right door."

"There is a paper schoolhouse on my desk, it is for tickets for good behavior.

We didn't get tickets today, but I would've gotten one if they did."

"I hardly did any work today. It was so easy!"

A good first day indeed. 

"

Feeding the deer

It has been 8 years since we fed the deer in the WI Dells.  David was 3 and since he was at camp, I took the other 2 boys.

I have been wanting to go back for some time.  I was glad to go this time of year because the bucks' antlers were amazing. 

The boys really enjoyed how gently the deer took their crackers.  'Lots of grins and giggles.

Crescent Lake Bible Camp

Once again David went to camp for a week this summer.  We had to reschedule him since he broke his arm.  But, it all worked out in the end.  He was able to attend the last week of camp cast free.  It sure was quiet at our house with him gone.

I'm glad to have him back but equally glad he got to experience camp again this year.

Jelly Belly and Civil War

Yesterday we decided to take a day trip to Kenosha. They have a Civil War Museum and we also toured the Jelly Belly Factory.  What a great day!

The Jelly Belly Factory was a blast! We rode a train around learning how the jelly beans and other candies are made.  Then we got to sample any or all the jelly belly flavors there are.  Caleb even tried the Skunk Spray Jelly Belly.  He liked it! BLAH!  See video below.

It was cheap and fun entertainment. the tour is free.  You receive a bag of Jelly Bellies each for free. I gave each boy some spending cash to purchase a memento from our visit.  What they each bought was completely representative of each of their personalities. 

Caleb purchased the Been Boozled game.  This is a pack of Jelly Bellies that has the gross beans mixed with good tasting beans.  The are the same colors so you don;t know which is which.  It comes with a spinner and you play a game with the box.  You spin and whatever it lands on you have to find that bean.  You could get the blue bean.  It would either be toothpaste flavored or blue raspberry.  You might get the orange colored bean.  It could be peach or it could be barf!  Maybe you get the white bean.  It could be buttered popcorn or rotten egg!  John was a good sport and played the game with the boys.  It was hilarious.

David bought the best value for his money.  They have what they call belly flops.  These are candies that taste the same but either stuck together or weren't the right size.  He went for volume of candy for his dollar.
I can testify they were tasty.

Nathan bought a Christmas ornament.  He loves looking at pretty things and playing with trinkets.  I was amused at their purchase choices. 

After Jelly Belly we walked the shore of Lake Michigan.  The kids were amazed as a group of teens where jumping off the ledge into the lake. It was a mild weather day and we saw a number of sailing ships and other boaters.   It was a beautiful scene.

Last stop was the Civil War Museum,  They had a lot of  cool weapons, a Morse code machine and a train that was really outstanding.  The train had 8 different mannequins in each seat.  The boys could sit next to one of the "people" and it would begin to tell you their story.  This was really outstanding.

We did this whole day lunch included (but not gas for van) for less than $30.  Much better than taking them to the fair. 

John writing this time:

I was downstairs late the other night, working on something, and Nathan climbed into bed upstairs with Jenny. The thunderstorm must have woke him up.

When I finally went to bed, I climbed in next to him and spent several minutes just watching him sleep and running my hand through his crew-cut hair - something you can't do with a picture 14 years from now, and an opportunity that rarely comes up during waking hours.

 

We're coming to the end of his snuggle/sippycup years, and I'm really excited for him. He deserves to grow up like his big brothers and is already very mature for his age. It would be a disservice to keep him at this stage (as if we could). But I have to admit I'm a little sad at the same time.

The next morning, he got up and showed me his first loose tooth.

The timing was just weird.