Other things in June

 Park playing with friends,

wii playing,

 book reading,

 Mormon Tabernacle Choir concert going,

 Babysitting for two days,

 and new creation creating!

A Dad with Mad Skills

So, my kids have a dad with mad skills.  All kinds of skills.  It is not for nothing that I call him my super genius but he is not limited to cerebral talents like lots of genius types. 

He has some mad dad skills!

They include:

Creative FHE activity planning,

 Curtain hanging,

 (and yes, they need to be pressed:)

 Wrestling,

 trampoline jumping,

 rainbow finding (even indoors!!),

 hike leading,

 and work ethic and yard beautification teaching.

I knew I got a good one!

Turning a Page

Ian went to preschool at the Greendale Playschool.  I love the teachers and the parents and school friends are pretty awesome too!

The end of the for four year old class is always a Garden Party for Moms.  They are so sweet.
They make flowers to gift to their mothers,  

  The kids make decorations (check out the garden behind the punch table), plan and make menu items (always punch and cookies) and then serve them,

 and plan and practice the entertainment-action songs and some songs with pictures.

 Mrs. Dankle

 Mrs. Patneaude

 Ian also was enrolled, in October, in K4 with the Greendale school school district. I had approached the principal of the elementary school where Ian will attend about what they do for those kids who show a particular strength in the core academic areas.  She answered my questions but the vibe I got was "everyone thinks they have smart kids."

But one of the things she recommended was that he be enrolled in K4 so he would be on the school districts "radar." They do some preliminary testing and that would help them know if he really did have some strengths in the core academics.

We figured we would enroll him, let him be tested and if he didn't like it, was overtired, or overworked we could drop out later.  It was a little bit of a transition for him but he really loved going and had a great time with friends.

 He had a great teacher here too, Mrs. Bushman.  She was helpful preparing the K5 teachers for what to expect with Ian next year.

Their end of the school year party was fun.  Sage really liked that she was also invited!

Father and Son Campout

AKA Chris' favorite weekend of the year!

He looks forward to the Father and Sons camp-out every year and starts reminding me weeks ahead of time that they are going.  How could I forget?

About a week before he makes the shopping list for me so I don't forget any of the essentials.

The boys love it just as much, if not more than, Chris!

Here are a few pics that Chris took of their trip:

Seeing them off with a picture that Sage had to be in!

 And when the boys are away, the girls get to play!  We went for ice cream-Sage's only request for the evening!

Spectacular 7

Noah was excited for his birthday.  We hemmed and hawed over cakes and themes and where to have his party.  We wanted to keep it affordable but I really didn't think I could handle doing it here at the house. That left not at home but not outside since the weather in April is predictably unpredictable.

Noah finally settled on the Big Backyard, an indoor playground. We got invitations out in the nick of time and had a pretty good turnout and all around fun time! (I particularly enjoyed the no set up, no clean up!)

First, we played! Most of the playing pictures were just too dark.  But Sage and Audrey played in the lighter areas:)

I caught some peakers during playtime.  I was gratified that they liked the cake, since overall it wasn't what I had envisioned.

  .
We called everyone in for cake.

There was quite a bit of discussion about who would get which ninja.  I blessed the boy who asked for a skeleton!  In the end, we had to cut some in half.

Then we opened gifts.  He was very happy with all he received.

Noah seems to be in a constant growth spurt and towers over his siblings and most of his friends-even those older than he is! In the past year he has really expanded his acceptable food list.  He tries new things and sometimes even eats them even if he doesn't like them just so he can have dessert.  His sweet tooth matches mine, poor kid!  He really likes math and science.  Chris was thrilled when for a recent 'daddy date' they went to the half-price book store and got a book on the earth and one on the elements.  Noah says he wants to be a scientist when he grows up.  He is helpful and thoughtful.  It is fun and scary to see him thinking through how things work in the world and how he fits in and how his behavior affects the world around him.  He is growing and learning and figuring things out. He has shared his testimony in sacrament meeting three times now.  His bravery and confidence in front of a whole congregation are awesome to behold.

I love this kid!  I try to snuggle him up but he rarely allows it.  But every time I get him close I marvel at how far he has come from his little 6 lb, 6 week early start.  I couldn't ask for more!