Cicada Exploration

Have you ever seen brown cicada shells attached to trees and fences? I was thinking the other night that even though we have tons of those in our yard (Caleb likes to collect them), and I've seen a few cicadas in my lifetime, I've never seen the actual live bug inside the shell (called a nymph). On a whim, I grabbed a flashlight and headed to our fence, where we find most of our shells. I hunted around in the dirt, and quickly found exactly what I was looking for! A nymph, covered in dirt, had pushed out of the ground and was jerkily heading toward the fence, seeking higher ground. He has to get his job done before morning, when the birds wake up hungry! I grabbed him and stuck him inside a bug jar with a stick, and the waiting and watching commenced. The "big event" happened about midnight that night. I tried to wake Caleb up to show him, but it was almost impossible. I'm glad we had already found a video on YouTube for Caleb to watch. The next morning, we dubbed him "Flyer of the West" and released him. It was a poignant moment. (ha!)

Cracking open with the cicada bulging out.

He hung like this for a very long time.

Completely out and wings expanded. Now just to let them dry.

All dry by morning!

School Days

Today is the first day of school for lots of kids. My nephew, Ian, is probably coming home from his first day of Kindergarten as I write this, and I can't wait to hear how the day went! I know he's going to do great!

A couple of weeks ago, we started home schooling Caleb. It's sort of a trial year. He's too young to start Kindergarten in public school, but he's ready to learn, so we decided to try it. Home schooling appeals to us for many reasons for both our kids, but we will just see how this year goes! If we get bogged down and don't enjoy it, well then, off to Kinder he'll go next year. But, if he loves it and learns--and if I love it!--then we just might keep it up. We shall see, and I make no promises either way.

We have met a great group of home schoolers in the area. They meet weekly for group classes, and sporadically for field trips and other events. The ages range from Kinder to Senior year, and there are around 50 kids who participate.

The group classes do not start until September, but I decided to start Caleb's home classes early, since I would like to take off a few weeks when the baby is born.

The Saturday before we started school, a local restaurant had a Back to School Bash, complete with a bounce house, a fire truck for Caleb to explore (and honk the horn!), and face painting! He and I spent the day picking out a few final school supplies and going to the library for books. And don't forget a Sonic run during happy hour! All in all, it was a great day to celebrate starting school. I didn't get pics until we got home, but here he is with his dragon and his new dinosaur backpack.

I had fun getting everything organized for school. It's all neatly stacked inside a cabinet by our dining room table (aka: school room). Every day it's a simple task to take out what we need, and then put it back at the end of class time!

On Sunday night, I laid out everything we would need for Monday. Now that we've done this for two weeks, I have figured out just what to pull out when I need it, instead of getting it all out at first.

Yes, I realize the calendar says September...now. It occurred to me in the middle of the night that Sunday night, and I fixed it before school the next day.

Jon and I also strung up a few streamers to the fan, blew up a couple of balloons, and wrapped Caleb's chair. It looks pretty unimpressive to me, but Caleb was ecstatic the next morning. I hope he's always so easy to please!

Caleb wanted to wear his crown to mark the occasion. (And you'll notice the corrected calendar.)

We are starting our third week of class today, and so far it has gone very well. On day 2, Caleb asked, "Do we really have to have school today??" I was a little surprised by that, but I suppose for a kid who hasn't had any daily requirements of him, doing something two days in a row (and longer), might seem a little tedious. But he's doing a good job, and has learned about the sun and the moon, counting, cutting, pasting, and handwriting.

Today, when I told Caleb we would be making a mobile today, he said, "But I don't want to make a mobile!" Without explaining what it was, I simply said, "You will love it. It's right up your alley."

After doing the work we do every day (marking the calendar, adding to our 100 Chart, and tracking our progress on making raisins), he said, "Is it time to go to my alley, yet?"

And sure enough, he loved making a mobile, and even added a few ideas of his own.

So far, I love the flexibility we have. I love that he is able to do most of his work before breakfast, then complete some worksheets while he is at Hope Landing with James. I love that. I love the hands-on and outdoor activities that are incorporated into the lessons. I don't love the negative attitude that Caleb sometimes has about it, even though once he gets started, he really enjoys it. Then again, I've mentioned before that "attitude" has been a problem with him lately, so it's not confined to school.

Anyway, our big FIRST of starting Kindergarten has come and gone without any more fanfare than a couple blown-up balloons taped to a chair. Because we're not fully decided, and Caleb could be doing Kindergarten in public school next year, and because I wasn't leaving Caleb at the door with a dozen other little boys and girls, it just hasn't been that different. But it's still a mile marker! And I am excited about it, and about watching Caleb learn and grow this year!

What We've Been Up To: Newbie3

I am very far behind on the baby updates! My brain has been so scattered lately, it's been hard to sit for an extended period and put thoughts together.

I am at 20 weeks--halfway there!

My last appointment with Dr. W was a few weeks ago, and here are the stats from it:
My bp: 120/68
Weight gain since last visit: 3 lbs
Baby's heart rate: 160

We discussed the Level 2 ultrasound I would be getting at 19 weeks, and she said we would not have the normal 20-week ultrasound in her office.

I asked about the pain in my tailbone, and she said it has to do with the position of the uterus, and the lax nature of the bony structure in my spine. Everything is stretching out for the baby!

That was pretty much the extent of the appointment. The fast heart rate started putting a little doubt in my "it has to be a boy" philosophy. Maybe...a girl?

Well, this past Thursday, we went to our Level 2 ultrasound. Of course, the main purpose was to find any medical problems that might indicate Down syndrome or other chromosomal syndromes. Within a couple of minutes, the sono tech said, "Well, I'm not looking at it closely, yet, but I can already tell you it's a boy!"

Haha! Another baby boy! What a blessing. Jon has his plate full in raising some good men! And my job isn't easy, either, trying to teach them how to treat ladies and look for godly women to be their helpmates in the future. What a responsibility, this parenting is!

But the more wonderful news of the ultrasound is that the doctor found no major health problems. All the "soft markers" that could indicate Down syndrome were non-existent, and all the major organs looked perfectly healthy. We were scheduled for a more detailed look at the baby's heart next week, because of James's medical history of a VSD, but the doctor said this baby had a "beautiful heart"--or maybe it was "beautiful ventrical septum,"--and there was no need for further study.

Prior to the ultrasound, we met with a "genetic counselor" whose main job was to explain what to expect in the ultrasound, and then to meet with us again afterward if any problems were found. He would explain the implications of what was found, the next steps or further testing recommended, and then also to handle the emotional stuff that could happen. We understand the possibility of what could happen, but God had taken care of us so far, and no reason to doubt that now, no matter what we found. Not that we would be bundles of smiles if we had found out some devastating news, but what a powerful peace we have knowing that God is in control--not my body, or the doctors, or anything else in all its imperfection. The perfect God is in control.

I have given up my pile of pillows that bolstered me up at night. They also kept me awake, and I fought with them any time I moved. So I'm going without, until I can't sleep without them.

Oh my goodness, I almost forgot! The name for little Newbie3!

Jackson Lee Norvell

We will call him Jack.

I'm not quite used to it, yet. I haven't said it enough times, I guess. But the boys can both say it, and that's good!

Jack is quite the mover and shaker! He was really wiggly during the ultrasound, and I feel him moving around all the time.

What We've Been Up To: James

James. My James-Man. What a stinker little boy!

We are so proud of everything James has accomplished. At almost 3 years old, he is quite the walker! And into EVERYthing. He pulls interesting things out of the trash. He topples folded laundry, or brings it to me, wherever I am in the house. Any container is free game for his desire to "undo:" box of toys, blocks, books, etc. His latest past time is getting into his brother's sock drawer. I can't tell you how many times I've caught him with an armful of socks, making his way to the living room. He dutifully picks them up and puts them back where they belong (as he does with the laundry or other messes), and then smiles at his accomplishment. Stinker.

Potty training is slow-going. I can't believe the strides he's already made, though he certainly hasn't made it. He can keep a dry diaper for several hours, and will almost always go potty if I ask him to. He will rarely tell me if he needs to go potty, but he has even started doing that a little, and I think that is awesome! He had a few days of potty training boot camp with my mom, but it only showed us that he really was not ready, yet, for full-blown potty training. For now, though, I'm perfectly happy with the progress he's made. I really had not expected him to be this far along at his age.

Our latest surprise with James is finding out he knows his alphabet! As in, if I hold up a letter, he tells me what it is--almost every single time! Again, I attribute the iPad to his success. He spends lots of time flipping through alphabet flash cards. But it was very funny the first day we figured it out, and I cautiously asked his occupational therapist to confirm what I thought: That a boy who couldn't even identify his colors, yet, knew his letters. Sure enough, the OT called me into her session with James so I could see him confidently pulling the correct letters out of a choice of three...and occasionally picking one up from the pile and saying, "P" or "8" just to surprise everyone. (Yes, he knows his numbers, too, and surprised us awhile back with counting to ten...not perfectly, but at least understanding that some numbers follow others. His favorite is, "Eight...NINE!!")

James is a man's man. Where Caleb hugs all the ladies, and tells them they look beautiful, James holds up his arms to the men in our church, asking to be held. He loves his Daddy most of all!

Beyond the developmental things that James has accomplished, he is definitely headstrong. The battle ground is usually mealtimes, where he would much rather just drink his milk than eat his food, or he would rather I feed him than he feed himself. He very easily lets us know what he wants, when he wants it. Usually with pointing, grunts, signs, and words--he uses whatever it takes to let us know! Sometimes it's, "I will not eat until I am watching the Andy Griffith Show!" Sometimes it is, "Bubba is taking my blocks, and I am not happy about it!" And lots of times it is, "I need to watching Signing Time!!!"

He has really gotten into reading "big boy" books lately, looking intently at the more detailed pictures in them. And he's playing with blocks in a more intentional way--stacking instead of just throwing.

He loves to dress up. We have a bin of hats and costumes, and he's constantly pulling on a hat and maybe some beads or something else he can put around his neck.

We enjoy watching him, and watching his mind and body grow and develop. Just like we sit back in wonder at Caleb, we watch and wonder at James. Usually a pause, and then, "Gosh, he's a cute kid." We are so blessed by our little second-born!

Newbie3 is up next!

*Note: The awesome shirts in this post were made by the super-talented Kim Davis. Visit her etsy site for your own custom-painted shirts!

What We've Been Up To: Caleb

My boys are gone for the week. The whole week! I keep telling people this is the first vacation I've had as a stay-at-homer. The first time I've been at home while my children are gone. No youth camps, mission trips, or anything. Just home! It's lovely.

It's also a little lonely! I gotta admit I just started thinking about Caleb's little quirks, and how I miss them. Mind you, it's been a little over 48 hours. Hard stuff for a mama. :)

So, you're in luck! I think I'll just write about my boys, and maybe I won't miss them so much. And you get to know what's going on in their worlds these days. Keep in mind that I miss them, so forgive any overly sappiness or glossing over the little heathen traits they have. :)

My firstborn.

Caleb.

Gosh, I love this kid. He is just like me! He drives me crazy with his stop-and-smell-the-roses mentality, but I really love it. He and I compete for slowest eater, most likely to cause everyone to run late, and other exciting contests. Now that I think of it, together we probably drive Jon bananas.

It's been no secret that we think Caleb is exceptional (we are his parents, after all). I've been working on a preschool curriculum with him, and when I say something like, "Today we get to learn a new letter: P!" he'll say, "Oh, yeah, Mama, I know what that one looks like." And he'll swoosh his finger in the air in the shape of a P.

"Okay," I say, "maybe we'll learn about Q today then."

"Yeah, it looks like this!" And he correctly puts a little tail on the circle he drew in the air. Then he tells me what sound it makes, and several words that start with Q.

I attribute most of his genius to the iPad.

His recent kick is science. As a science-lover myself, I love this! These days, his block creations are less often castles, and more often science labs...usually complete with a mad scientist. He includes secret doors and traps of all kinds.

We have started a bug collection! I am not timid about bugs, but I will say I was a little nervous pulling them out of the freezer. Were they really dead...or just really cold? None of them have wandered off, yet, so the collecting continues.

For his birthday, Caleb wants a science party. I'm not sure exactly what he expects from this science party, but it's a GREAT theme, and I can't wait to get planning for it!

One day, as we drove in the car, Caleb asked, "Mom, do you actually know any scientists, and can I go see their lab someday?" I had to admit to myself that I did not know any scientists! But a plea on Facebook found a friend of mine who is now teaching 8th grade science, and she has agreed to show Caleb some fun bubbly things on Skype once it gets a little closer to school. I thought that was super-sweet. It's fun to be able to run with my kids' current interests.

In June, we had several camps and VBS at our church. The kids that came forward to commit their lives to Jesus and be baptized sparked quite a few conversations with Caleb. He would tug on my dress and tell me he wanted to be baptized. After discussing it quite a bit with him, and Jon and I together, we are grateful for the sensitive spirit that he has, but he doesn't yet understand what becoming a believer truly is. On one hand, does ANYone ever fully understand that? But on the other, he is very young, and we want him to be very sure.

In the meantime, I enjoy the sincerity of his prayers. For a long time, his prayer consisted of, "Thank you, God, for a great day, and for helping Mommy and Daddy feel better." Every. Day. It didn't matter if we had been sick or not! We finally asked him to start thinking of one thing to thank God for, and one thing to ask God for. Now I'm amazed by the prayers that come out of this little boy's mouth. Some things he says are things he hears us pray, while others are from songs, or things he simply says on his own. Some of the sweet prayers I can remember at the moment:

Thank you, God, for making things good. You took bad and made it good. You took sin and made it not sin.  (This was in response to a discussion about how bad things in life--animals and bugs, specifically--would not be bad one day. The lion laying with the lamb.)

Jesus, we don't deserve you. But we need you.

Dear God, help Great Grandpa. His batteries went out, and he needs new ones.

Thank you, God, for a great day. You are wonderful. You are ... (well, I can't remember the word, but it was a big one, and most likely from some song on the radio! Magnificent, maybe?).

Caleb is very excited about the new baby. Last time around, he really had no idea what was going on. This time, if I tell him, "I'm sorry, I can't share these raisins; I really need to eat them," he'll say, "Is the baby hungry?"

And a few times lately he has hugged my belly, or zerbered my belly, or spoken to my belly in a silly voice--all for the baby.

I love how tender Caleb is. He is sweet and kind. He is certainly not perfect. We have had to deal with a quite a bit of attitude lately (which, sadly, he has picked up from us!). But in general, Jon and I marvel that we have been blessed with such a neat kid.

 James is up next!

Be careful, little ears...

I have been struck by how much Caleb hears. He may not understand it all, but he listens and remembers. Of course, there are the things he repeats that I wish he had not heard...or maybe that I wish I had not said. But it is so cool to hear truth come from such young lips!

Here is Caleb singing his Awana Cubbies theme song.


Caleb prays the same prayer every time he prays: Thank you, God, for a great day, and for helping Mommy and Daddy feel better.

Recently, we asked him to pray something different. After all, Mommy and Daddy were not sick any more. And he said, "I'm praying that you'll feel better from your sin!"

Huh. Oh. Well, keep praying for that, then!

He has branched out to pray other things. Sometimes it's funny, often sweet. And every once in awhile, a reminder of how much he listens. A few nights ago, it was, "Thank you, God, for a great day, and for helping Mommy and Daddy feel better. And please, God, we don't deserve you, but we need you."

In church on Sundays, he often answers the pastor's rhetorical questions.

Bro. Doug: "Do we follow others, or do we follow Christ?" (pause for dramatic effect)
Caleb, from the pew: "CHRIST!"

And now that we've been doing Cubbies for a semester, he's got quite a few verses tucked into his brain...or at least snippets of each one. His favorite seems to be, "Jesus is the resurrection and the life." But it's just as easy to recall, "All have sinned" or "God loved us and sent His Son" when we're trying to explain things.

I don't say all these things to say what a spiritual child we have; he's a "pleaser" and would probably remember whatever he thought was important to us. He's too young to understand much of what he says. However, it is such a reminder for me, as a parent, that it is never too early to start talking about the truth of Christ! It's good for him, and it's good for us, too!

James is a Climber

James has learned how to climb.

For several heart-attack-inducing, goose-egg-producing weeks, he has not known how to climb back down, and simply teetered over the edge head-first. Yikes.

Thankfully, we've seen him successfully climb up and down on Caleb's small chair, the "daddy chair" rocker, and Caleb's toddler bed. Talk about the school of hard knocks!

James's current favorite thing to climb is Caleb's small chair. He has even figured out how to stand up in it.

I'm losing years off of my life here, people!

The video below is what I watched him do four or five times yesterday. Believe me that I made this video for posterity's sake, and then promptly (and sternly) got James off the table. That boy is pure second child. Where a stern "no" will stop Caleb in his tracks (most days), James will endure even worse discipline, then head right back to what he was doing.

No children were harmed in the making of this film...only a small heart attack on the mama's part.

Happy Father's Day

I think for the first time since Jon has been a dad, I've had my act together ON Father's Day, instead of making him wait months (or years) for the completed project. This year, I decided to give him bought gifts, instead of getting the boys to make something, which inevitably requires a bit of work from me and I get behind.
ANYway, all that to say that this year I kept it simple. Leanna told me about a site called Trendy Ties, that I fell in love with. The boys wore ties at Easter, and Caleb said that he was "a daddy," which made his own daddy very proud. (Considering Caleb is usually "a fairy mermaid princess," being a daddy is a bigger step than you might think!) It's hard to find ties for little boys around here, so I was happy too find them online, and with daddy ties to match!

I also made a cake. It wasn't pretty, but it was good!

Jon has been gone the whole week before Father's Day, so we decided to celebrate with banners when he got home on Saturday night. The homecoming was sweet. Both boys insisted on being held by their Daddy, and neither would let him go for anything.

Sunday morning, all my men.

I love the bow tie!

Caleb is moving past his cheesy camera smile...for now!

Caleb's First Movie

Caleb is a very imaginative child. It took quite awhile for us to be able to watch movies with a plot. Often he would scream at the intense parts, and we'd have to pause and explain. So we've waited awhile to see a movie on the big screen. I wanted him to see Brave, but don't think he could have handled the bear fights. But, in the summers, our theater offers a different movie every week for free to anyone who wants to come. I figured that would be our best bet, so if things got out of hand, we could leave, no money lost.

However, all the movies are geared toward older kids, so finding one appropriate for Caleb was hard. Finally, they showed Mr. Popper's Penguins this week. Not only is that a fairly mild PG, it's also a movie he'd seen before, so I knew we'd be okay. We even pre-watched it at home a week ago, just to make sure there were no surprises, like a huge penguin honking in the camera. (Okay, writing this, I sound like a paranoid parent....)

On the Big Day, I asked Caleb if he wanted to go to the movies, to which he gave me a pretty solid "no." For some reason, he was convinced he wouldn't like it. I asked him if he wanted popcorn, and he said "no." I asked if he wanted Dr Pepper (something he's only ever had a sip of), and his eyes lit up.

"I like Dr Pepper!"

Well okay, then! We'll get Dr Pepper! Then he asked if they had Diet Coke, because he liked that. (Thanks, Mom, for putting that idea in his head!)

He was still a little unsure about it on the way. Jon was unsure about the Dr Pepper. I mean, seriously, we still water down his juice and lemonade! (To be fair, that's the way Jon drinks it, too, so it's kind of normal around here, but Dr Pepper would be quite a departure.)

Not a great picture of me, but I couldn't resist that cute face!

Big boy headed inside!

Immediately on arrival, Caleb disappeared into the arcade. There weren't many people there at that moment, so I just kept an eye on the doorway as I stood in line for our popcorn and drinks. More kids arrived, and things were starting to get hectic. Caleb had not come back, despite my calling his name, so I had to go find him--sitting in the driver's seat of some arcade game. That boy has NOT learned how to stick close, yet--a product of being a minister's kid in a small church, I suppose.

Once at the counter to order our snack, I pointed out the Icee, and that's what we decided upon, a Strawberry/Coke Icee and a large popcorn. We headed to the theater, where I learned my lesson to get there early! I found a couple of open seats on the second row, and the movie started!

Caleb was in awe, I think. He gazed at the huge screen, deftly grabbing bits of popcorn without looking. Very often he would say, "Drink, please," and I would hand him the Icee, which he sucked down so quickly that I had to start taking a sip before every time I handed it to him, just to make sure I got some!

At one point, Caleb looked at me and squealed, "I love the movies!"

He giggled when all the other kids giggled, he gasped and "ew"ed. He stayed in his seat until near the end, when he asked to stand. He never got fidgety, and never wandered. When the story ended happily, he clapped with delight.

Then he turned and said, "It's time to play games!"

So we headed to arcade, and I changed a dollar for quarters...and then quickly after, another dollar for quarters.

We drove the game I'd found him on before the movie. Turns out 50 cents gets you about 50 seconds of play time, and then you have to pay more in. Perhaps good driving could earn you more time, but my husband can tell you that I am no good driver when it comes to arcade games! I'm pretty sure Caleb and I took out an airplane.

Then we moved on to The Claw games. Lost our money on the first one (big surprise), but the second was full of balls, and all the kids ahead of us were having good luck scoring them. Sadly, the top layer "easy pickin's" of balls was already gone by the time we got there, but Caleb did a good job trying.

At this point, we were out of quarters again, and I realized he had just as much fun without putting in the quarters, so we zigged and swerved on the "snowmobile" game until it was time to go. As I looked around, I found out that most of the kids were doing the same thing!

As we headed out the door, we found a large tattoo that someone had spent 50 cents on. I picked it up and asked a nearby adult if any in her passel of kids happened to lose a tattoo. She paused to look at a kid taking a fistful of tattoos out of his pocket, then looked back at us and said, "It's fine. He can keep it."

It's a diamond that says, "Lucky" on it.

Well, that tattoo was the highlight of the movies. He ran out to show his Daddy (who had taken James to therapy during our adventure, and was now coming to pick us up), and told him all about the movie and the Icee and the popcorn.

I was so grateful that I could see this "first." I enjoyed every minute of it.

When it was time for nighttime prayers, I asked Caleb if he wanted to thank God for the movies. His eyes brightened as he thought of what he wanted to thank God for.

"Dear Lord, Dear Lord, (repetition is key in his prayers lately) thank you for a great day. And I have the coolest tattoo ever. It is a diamond. Amen."