What's New With The Kids

This is the journal entry I keep needing to make - the one to remind myself of where we were at this time in our lives, a few years from now...  I'm sharing so you can peek into life as we know it right now!

Brendan ~ Eight-and-a-half now, beefing up suddenly and he seems sooo big. He still asks for hugs every day, and I'm seizing these opportunities, while hoping that they won't really go away, even when he is a much bigger boy. I think to myself almost daily that I am not ready to be the mother of big kids!! The Transformer craze is not going away. Some days I wish we could have diversified a little more or steered him in another direction, because I am left wondering if there is any way this interest could contribute to a meaningful future. It made me feel better one day to hear some teenage boys in our homeschool group discussing the parallels between the Transfomer storyline and medieval history. Now that would be a fun way to learn! We are commonly held hostage to long "reviews" about individual Transformers, complete with step-by-step instructions for getting them into different modes (yawn). I have to say, Brendan's vocabulary is immense, and one reason he reads so well is because he's pursued something he's passionate about. I would rather have him reading Transformer packaging than Dick and Jane books, truthfully. He still loves marine life, although it's not as much a part of his daily activities at this point. He is a good helper to his siblings, even if they frequently irritate him. He's a Transformer buddy to Benjamin, and a creative playmate to Molly, easily getting into her schemes and instigating rowdy games of "chase" and hide-and-seek. Of course she adores him and eats it all up.

Benjamin ~ is our kid gifted with wondrous natural abilities of all kinds. He has endless pieces of electronic equipment dissected in his bedroom, boxes of circuit boards, fans, wires and other parts. He's a Lego wizard, and plays with building toys in a really unique way that we haven't seen with other kids. He collects those free apartment guides to study floor plans and exteriors, and "designs" future building projects with a ruler and pencil. I hope he becomes an architect and builds me a pretty house someday :) It's amazing to see how building is in his soul already! He's also naturally athletic, especially loving his pogo stick from St. Nick last Christmas. Sometimes we call him "monkey boy" because he's always perched on the edge of something, holding on with his toes, or twisted up like a pretzel. Ben's a relatively new six-year-old, so he's still super-cuddly and loves his Mama lots. He's the one who first started saying "Mama - all mine!" a few years ago, which now has passed down to Molly. Sometimes they fight about it. Oh, the hardship...

Molly ~ is so precociously two right now. Extremely imaginative, decisive and opinionated, she keeps everyone hopping to keep up with her ideas. I'm daily astounded by her verbal abilities. Of course I never compare (wink) but I am certainly not used to so much conversation with someone barely two-and-a-half. Frequently heard during the day: "Hey, I had a ideee-a!" She insists on endless "role-playing" with her stuffed animals and dolls, and really likes making them cry so she can make them feel better! I have to hold them upright and make them "talk" until she is content, and God help me if I am done before she is! Fortunately, she is pretty distract-able. I just have to mention another idea, ("How about making a picnic for Moosie?") and she's off and running with it. An interesting character named "Monser Beww" (Monster Bear) has emerged in the dramas. He chases everyone and tries to eat them. So, also frequently heard: "I a Monser Beww! I do-nna EAAT you!!! Yesss!" Great fun, running and screaming with big brothers. Thankfully, she also like to play "baby", informing me "You a Mama, I a bee-bee," while snuggling in for hugs and kisses. I wish it would never end!

Victory!

...and by that I mean, above and beyond having a working keyboard again!

I know eight is a pretty mature age for a kid to learn to ride a two-wheeler, but that's what happened with our first-born. He inherited my natural, ahem, "grace", and also loved riding big wheels with his brother, so we didn't start to feel the need to move him up until last year. He finally got the two-wheeler, from his grandparents, for his 8th birthday in June.

Since it's been so hot, we haven't been outside much for practice sessions. Until this weekend. In only a few hours, he mastered the art of balance.

You never saw a prouder kid. He acts like he just grew two feet taller. We couldn't get the smile off his face! And he kept zinging me with funny one-liners as he circled past me in the driveway - words that made me alternately giggle and cringe:

"I think I was made for speed, Mom!"  (aaahhhh....)

"Now I finally understand why some kids never want to come inside." (ha ha ha ha)

"Wow, that was the most fun wreck yet!" (gaaahhh! Obviously we haven't had a bad one yet.)

 
"Double thumbs up... wink!"    

 

Sunday Afternoon Routine

Fireflies!

Aka: Lightning bugs!

Have you had a jar full somewhere in your house recently?

Here is a wonderful link for firefly study ideas and projects. What a great summer science adventure! I am so excited to do some of these with the kids.

This morning, Brendan said to me: "Fireflies eat flowers, pollen and other bugs." (He then showed me the petunia he had pilfered from my one of my tiny struggling seedlings, to feed to his bugs...)

At first it didn't register, but after a minute, I asked him how he learned this.

"I searched it online," he said.

Now that makes me feel happy! And sort of dispensable...

Photo Credit: Firefly
on Flickr, Creative Commons

First Communion Preparation

We are so blessed that our first child will be receiving his First Holy Communion next month. We received permission from our pastor for Brendan to receive for the first time at my parents' wedding vows renewal Mass on June 26th. It promises to be a joyous day of grace! At the moment, we're trying to make the most of our final weeks of preparation. We are using the New St. Joseph First Communion Catechism as our base.

Other materials include some First Communion saint stories and coloring books that were given to me. I found a wonderful list of resources here. If time permits, I may draw on some of the suggestions. One thing we will be doing for certain is a special notebook similar to this. I know the hands-on aspect will really cement the lessons we have been discussing so far.

Please pray for Brendan as he prepares to receive the sacraments of Penance (Reconciliation) and Holy Communion for the first time!

From the sublime to the ridiculous...

Brendan: What does a bee do when something is blocking the road?
Me: (silence...) Huh?
Brendan: He takes a bee-tour. (Detour. Get it?)