A Lousy Beginning

May ended on a great note, so apparently we needed a little change of rhythm. We started the month with an amazing, drenching rainstorm (which reminded me of the monsoons in Arizona). Loved the storm, but it was the prelude to a month of rain. It rained for 19 of the 30 days in June...

The real fun was the stomach bug that hit everyone in the family.

Except me.

Still not sure which is worse: stomach flu or cleaning up after the stomach flu 

Four sickies on the couch

Poor sick Princess!

And then there's my kid, playing in the street: 

I am an awesome mother.

Jon's Turn

For years we've had this plan with our friend Melissa (who also has a late May birthday). We were going to throw a big birthday bash, invite all our friends and celebrate together. It's never happened due to a lack of space for said party. But guess who has a giant yard now?  Woo hoo!

On his mission, Jon attended a dinner where they served a bunch of different kinds of fish. He's always talked about how delicious it was, so we decided to host one ourselves. We researched fish, gathered recipes, spent almost $200 (!!!) on fish, and hoped everyone liked seafood (okay, we had chicken for those weirdos who don't). 

Jon cleaned his plate

A small sample of what we had.

We served Parmesan baked tilapia, crab-stuffed salmon with dill sauce, Thai curry Mahi Mahi, plus grilled salmon, Mahi Mahi, wild salmon, halibut, grouper, and yellow tuna.   The tuna was our definite favorite, followed by the wild salmon. 

For dessert we had Jon's favorite no-bake cookies and my favorite, cheesecake. Jon was quite pleased with his party. I think we may have to make it a tradition!

30!

One time, I turned 30. 

Aaron celebrated by being Aaron:

I told him it was my birthday and that he needed to leave me alone.

For some reason that was ineffective.

I celebrated by buying myself a bunch of new clothes and shoes.

And by "new" I mean "from the thrift store."

Four dollar shoes.

Four dollars.

Catherine made sure I was stylish and glamorous for my date with Jon:

Aaron was also glamorous:

Thanks to some wonderful friends, we were able to go on a date to a nearby Asian restaurant. Besides the laughably small (like the size of a teacup saucer) salad, the food was delicious. With Jon being gone so much and with all the house stuff to do, it was nice to have a break.

I'm excited about thirty. I have a wonderful husband with a good job, three beautiful kids, amazing family and friends, and a house more wonderful than anything I ever dreamed of. Life is really, really good and I am so grateful. 

Cruel Parents

Sometimes, you just have to let them learn things the hard way.

Things like "it's pouring outside and you won't like it."

And then you take a picture while they scream because you're an awesome parent. 

Seth Goes to School

We love homeschooling. There is nothing better than that one-on-one, instant assessment & correction that happen at home. It's been a joy to watch Seth learn and develop his skills and talents.

But homeschool can be lonely. Especially when your co-op falls apart and when you move away from your neighborhood full of friends. 

Homeschooling is great--we can be done with EVERYTHING in just a few hours. But that leaves a lot of time to be bored. Especially when your new neighbor friends don't get home from after-school care until 6 pm. 

We were ready to finish up Seth's first grade year at the end of May (there should never be school after Memorial Day). Everything was done and I was prepping for my review.  But public school wouldn't be out for another month (!!!). Seth was going to be bored, bored, bored. And so we made a last-minute decision: let's send him to school!

We knew we were going to send him in the fall. There are times and seasons for all things and Seth needed some time in a more formal setting and with a lot of peer interaction. Some things are better learned from your peers than from your mom. But some wise words from a friend got me thinking about sending him early so he could get a feel for things and not get lost in the mix at the beginning of the year. When we gave Seth the option, he jumped at it. 

And so, with four weeks left in the school year, I enrolled Seth.  

Backpacks are not Seth's favorite thing

I cried a little when I left him. I know this is the right decision for Seth at the moment, but I miss him. The drive home was so quiet. Catherine was bored for days. I feel like I have so little time with him now (and what time we do have is now engaged in battles over homework). It's not ideal, but it's the best option right now. Homeschooling may very well be the path we take again in the future. If nothing else, I'm grateful for the perspective it's given me: that my children's education is MY job, not the school's. I wish there were some option where I could do both: homeschool part, public school part. But Maryland is not open to many alternate forms of education. And so we're forced to pick from one extreme or the other. 

Catherine waited patiently all day for Seth to arrive home from school. Just before it was time to head to the bus stop, she dressed herself in this getup, called herself Queen Elsa, and proceeded to put on a show for anyone driving past: 

This was my favorite--a happy boy, happy to be home.

And his little sister, who missed him dearly: 

Silly Things

This silly thing could not understand why I wouldn't let her wear this to church:

These silly cousins spent most of their time together playing dress-up:

These silly cousins have mastered the art of the glare: 

These silly children forced Aunt Joanna into slavery: 

I am surprised Joanna survived. 

Seth is not a small boy.

This silly conglomeration is what happens when you realize you have no chocolate chips in the house and have to cannibalize the leftover Easter candy instead: 

For the record, they were delicious cookies.

These silly kids LOVE having a huge backyard to run in: 

Our townhome had no yard to speak of and a kitchen sink that faced an inside corner. When we toured our now home for the first time, I fell in love with the window over the sink as I imagined our kids romping in the yard together. I still feel like this is some wonderful dream. We have been so blessed.

Aaron

Aaron likes "driving" the new stove.

Mom is grateful said stove has a lock feature:

Aaron likes sticking his chubby cheeks between the slats on the staircase: 

Aaron likes playing peekaboo: 

Basically, Aaron would be happy all the time if I would just do nothing but play with him all day.

If only life worked like that, little man!

Spring

It's technically still spring, but when it's 87 degrees and feels like a sauna outside, can we all just agree to call it summer? 

Spring means caterpillars, Catherine's favorite pet.

Mom is not sure about the caterpillars in the house.

Spring means humidity curls: 

Spring means fun field trips while the rest of the kids are still in school:

Magnets that spin like wheels?

Aaron heaven!

Mother's Day

Jon was out of town for Mother's Day (two years in a row now!), so I had to celebrate myself. I woke up to snuggles from Princess, which is a lovely thing to wake up to:

No breakfast in bed, but I did get some bean dip for breakfast!

Breakfast of champions right here: 

I also bought myself two pounds of saltwater taffy.

I'm generally not a candy person, but taffy is my weakness: 

And, once again, the Knoxes invited us over for Mother's Day dinner so I didn't have to be alone. I'm grateful to have such wonderful friends!

Seth at Six-and-Three-Quarters

If you ask Seth how old he is, he is sure to inform you that he is "six and three-quarters." Those three-quarters are very important to him.

When he's not on an electronic device (which is what he would prefer), Seth loves to draw. This is one of his creepier pieces, which he calls a Zombie Reindeer:

Future Tim Burton?

Seth is also definitely a little boy, with lots of energy and difficulty sitting still for long periods of time. Jumping on Mom's beautifully made bed is a good release for all that boyness (and the reason I never make the bed):

My son is a blur

Seth loves my phone, despite the fact that I intentionally have no games on it. He loves to text his relatives or to send them random photos or videos. Thanks to all who put up with the crazy texting from this little man!

A Seth selfie:

Those freckles! Love!

Seth has been attending the boys' class at KYA gymnastics every Friday. He LOVES his class and it's a great way to channel the energy:

Seth is also a huge reader. Currently he loves the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, Alvin Ho series, and anything involving zombies (but not too creepy--he is still my sensitive child). I need to get him started on Harry Potter...

But Seth's true love (and complete obsession) is Minecraft. It's all he wants to talk about/play/imaginative play. It gets a little intense, even for his other Minecraft-loving friends. This is what he drew one day when I kicked him off the iPad:

(Despite many, many conversations, he still thinks it's "Mindcraft")

I tried the "let him play until he plays himself out" method to no avail. As far as I know, Seth has no Minecraft limit. After a few grumpy days, I decided it was time for a break. We instituted a week-long iPad fast (actually longer, since he cheated a couple of times). It was hard and there was much whining, but it was very good.  Now the iPad has a password so he has to ask permission before he can play. He hates it, but it's the best way to control his playing. 

Bye, bye, iPad!

On a closely related note, Seth has been working and saving his money for months in order to buy Minecraft for PC. There was much whining about the slow rate of money accumulation (his fault) and the paying of tithing (non-negotiable), but he finally had enough:

My computer is now shared with Seth.

Oh, joy. 

Seth is a sweet boy and really tries to do the right thing. He still enjoys tormenting Catherine and being in charge, but his heart is in the right place. He still asks constant questions and isn't afraid to ask his questions to complete strangers. I love watching his independence develop. 

Love you, my Seth man.