Pumpkin Patch

How do I get so behind? Could it be that we are busier than ever? Its a fun busy but, definitely busy. Here I am now, two weeks later, writing our post about our annual trip to the pumpkin patch.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am obsessed with fall. I love this time of year. The beginning of a new school year, the fall colors, sweaters, boots, pumpkin flavored yumminess, candles, soups, scarves....I could go on and on!

This year we headed out to Spooner Farms.We had a very busy day with lots of plans, but the first stop was the pumpkin patch! It was a gorgeous day! Seriously, it was so sunny and warm, and dry! Usually it is kind of wet and muddy, but this year it was dusty. This year was special because it was Henry's first trip to the pumpkin patch!
 This was by far the best pumpkin patch we have been to. It was adorable. I loved the giant, smiling spiders all around. The kids like them too!

 We explored the pumpkin patch and then got down to business and began our search for our pumpkins! It was so hard to choose. There were so many great pumpkins this year!

We ended up with four, because there are four of us in our family! Henry got his own pumpkin.

Henry's first trip to the pumpkin patch!

We loaded our wheel barrow and headed over to weigh our 59 pounds of pumpkins! 

We paid for our pumpkins and headed to see Matt's grandpa. The day was far from over for me and the boys. The story will be continued.... Until then more pictures!

Pumpkin Patch 2012! Maybe someday the boys will look the same direction.

 

And here is where the pumpkins will make their final home! Our front porch!

Preschool!

Jack started preschool last week! We are going to the North Tacoma Cooperative Preschool this year. I chose the school because it was during hours that worked with my work schedule ( a plus for being part time), and I loved that fact that two year olds got to do preschool. I also loved the fact that it was a co-op!

We talked a lot about preschool in the weeks preceding the first day. We talked about making friends, riding trikes, and mommy staying the whole time. Jack was pretty excited. He was ready to go very early in the morning!

Here he is posing with his backpack. He would not turn around. :)

Me and the boys. Henry's hair looks so red in this picture!

 When we got to preschool, Jack would not take off his sunglasses or his backpack. He was so nervous, so I didn't get any other pictures of him. Finally he settled down when he realized I was not leaving. He really struggles with me or Matt leaving him.

Getting ready for snack!

 From the moment we arrived, Jack had his eye on the car, one that the kids ride in but use their feet to drive. Unfortunately, another friend got to the car first and Jack got his first preschool lesson in waiting turns! He tried out the trike. He has a lot of practicing ahead of him!

Finally, it was his turn for the car and he was so happy! He loves driving his car in the backyard. This one was way cooler because it had a door and a gas station to drive up to!

We are excited for our year at NTCP! We are hoping to make friends and learn how to take turns and share.

Doin' the Puyallup!

On a sunny Saturday morning, we loaded up the kiddos and headed to the Puyallup Fair. Matt and I have gone every year since we have been together. In fact, he used pictures from the fair as part of his proposal! 

I love the atmosphere of the fair. We don't do rides or games, but enjoy eating a little food, seeing the animals, people watching, and looking at giant produce! This year was special because it was Henry's first time to the fair! This is how the family looked last year!

And here we are this year!

 Jack was nervous when we first got to the fair. We always come in at the same spot which is by the Extreme Scream. Jack did not like hearing the people screaming. Once we got past that point he was pulling us around the entire fair! Henry hung out in the backpack and soaked in the sights.

 We checked out some animals. Jack really like the pigs. He still is talking about the pigs' noses! 

After petting some animals and checking out huge horses, we were off to the pioneer section of the fair. We always come see the pumpkins that the fair grows. Jack and Matt got to help cut some sort of food using old tools. Jack thought it was pretty cool.

We then ate some curly fries, a cow chip, and made our way home for naps. Both boys were wiped out from all the excitement. I think they had a lot of fun. I know I did. I think that being a parent makes events so much more fun! 

I am excited for next year and the excitement the fair will bring our little guys. 

 

 

New School Year

The new school year is up and running. There were a few minor hiccups in my schedule this year, like 35 second and third graders all in one class! Yikes! We reconfigured classes and now my largest art class is 30, a much better number.

I thought it would be fun for my readers to see my classroom! I know I love seeing other classrooms around the web. I drew from a lot of other teachers' classrooms from Pinterest. Don't think I am too creative!

 This is where I gather the classes to give instructions. My rocking chair has traveled with me every year of my teaching. On the wall each class has a crayon box. Their goal is to work together to earn a crayon. They earn crayons by keeping the letters, ART, up on the board. They lose the letters by being loud, or not following directions. When they get 5 crayons, the class gets an art party! The kids really like this system, and it has been working great!

 This is the back of my room. I keep portfolios for all my students in the cart with the lamp on it.At the end of the year, every student will have 1 piece of art featured in our art show!

 This is my art word wall. Ha! I need to redo the "s" because it got stuck to something in the laminator!

 This board is where I feature my artists of the week! I pick one student from each class, each week to be featured. They have to work hard, work quietly, have a positive attitude and help others. I love this because I get to recognize more artists than just doing an artist of the month.

 This is another shot of the front of the room. I post learning targets under the word art. You can see one of the little paper decorations in this picture. I have tons hanging from the ceiling with pennant banners crisscrossing the ceiling too.

This is my desk area. I plan on putting drawings my kiddos do for my on the bulletin board behind me. My desk is usually cleaner!

So that is my classroom. It is a bright and cheery place and I think kids like coming to art. I will post some of the projects we are doing throughout the year. Right now I am excited about some Pop-Art portraits my 4/5 class is doing!

Looking Back

Today I was looking through pictures on our computer and I came across this picture:

I just kept staring at it and made Matt look at it too. I was just so overcome with gratitude for having answers for my poor little Henry. I look back on the three months when we had no answers, when we were desperate for solutions to make our baby feel better. In those three months, we barely slept. We were beyond stressed going back and forth to the doctor, only to be given more steroid creams and no real answers. I have never felt so helpless as a mother, watching my child suffer, knowing something was seriously wrong, and not having an answer.

I am so thankful for the doctor who referred us to the allergist. I am so thankful that my prayers were answered, that we had answers to why our baby went from being completely healthy with smooth skin, to a child covered head to toe in oozing eczema. Praise God we know what Henry is allergic to.

Here is a picture I took literally minutes ago. I can't believe how far we have come. Life is so much less stressful now that we have answers. I am so happy that Henry is healthy, happy and flourishing! He is such a blessing to us, and I am so thankful to be his momma!

Leavenworth

For the past three years, my parents have got a time share for a week in Leavenworth. The first year we went, we were wondering, "what in the world will we do for a week here?" We were so ignorant to all that Leavenworth has to offer. Now we go back every year and cherish our time we get there.

This year, the time share was not until the last week of August. For two educators this is not a good time of the year. We made it work and went on Sunday to Monday. We filled our 28 hours full of fun (well except when we were sleeping.)

When we got there we went straight to the river. It is just so pretty!

 We got there soaked in the sights, breathed in the fresh air, and felt relaxation come over us. We dipped our toes in the water. It was very cold!

Jack and Henry loved having out with Nana and Papa. Matt and I enjoyed relaxing, eating yummy food and drinks.

 We woke up early the next morning, after a not so restful night. They seriously had the worst pillows ever! We drank our morning coffee outside and enjoyed the warm sunshine.

 We then headed out for a walk. Jack insisted on bringing his backpack that was full of books. It got so heavy for him, my mom ended up carrying it for him. Yes, he is in his pajamas on a hike. A real highlight for Jack was learning how to pee outside! He did it the first day we were there and kept on insisting on peeing outside. At one point on our hike, he stopped pulled down his pants and went! Oh boys!!!

 One thing we were looking forward to was taking the kids swimming. Jack had a little pool in the backyard this summer and loved it! He was very excited to swim in a big pool. Once it got down to it, he was a little nervous to get in, but once Matt got him in, it was hard to get him out.

 Henry LOVED the pool! He definitely takes after me more. He is a water baby. When Jack was first in the pool, Henry did not have his swimsuit on, but he was trying to get in the water! Once he was in he was splashing and trying to put his face in the water. It was too cute!

 We loved our time in Leavenworth. It was a short trip and we can't wait to go back next year for a week! Now its off to work, and getting into the school routine. Bye, bye summer!

Henry is a crawler!

Henry started crawling on Sunday! He is now moving all over the house and even pulling up on furniture.He crawls just like Jack did when he was a baby. Henry keeps one leg up and the other kind of drags. I think its because of our hardwood floors. Maybe its time for Babylegs! I cannot believe this little guy is old enough/big enough to crawl!