May Artwork

Grant had a busy art month at school- he brought home lots and lots of masterpieces!! 

 He did lots of circus art the last week of school!

They also did a bug week where Grant made a roly poly and a caterpillar. The red thing is a crab (not sure what that was related to) and an umbrella. There are two of his worksheets too from bug week! I just love seeing his coloring improve, and as always- how he writes his name! Can't wait to see all the projects we bring home next school year! 

Our Decision

Grant is the neatest kid I have ever known! His energy and spirit is evident from the moment you lay your eyes on him. He has a remarkable smile that is more than contagious! His caring heart and odd sense of humor lend himself to make just about anybody smile! He is just incredible! 

But he also has some struggles. Some struggles we've faced head on these last few months. Some struggles he's overcoming day by day, and his happiness and spirit and energy have yet to fade!

We've known since before Grant turned one that he has an eating issue. Introducing table food was a horrendous process for him. He gags at the sight and smell of things, and most definitely at the taste. He won't even like things in his vicinity if it looks or smells gross, let alone on his plate. He's hesitant to try anything new! It's gotten more severe over time, causing many mealtime arguments, changes of clothes, and nights he's gone hungry. But the worst part was when it started causing anxiety. 

The trigger moment was when he was crying and crying about going to school one day- first time he's ever done that. He just kept saying he misses me while he's at school, but wasn't really giving me a reason. So I kept him home to try to understand what was going on. It eventually came to the table that he was scared they were going to have chicken noodle soup for a snack. He was scared. And that's not ok. So after a few trips to the doctor and my insistent nagging, we got a referral for occupational therapy.

Since Enid has few resources here, we were VERY lucky to have been assigned the most delightful therapist I could ever imagine Grant working with! She is a fellow military wife, new to her profession, so she's learning it all along with us, but is more than willing to go the extra mile! 

We've been working with her since February. After his initial evaluation, its been decided that Grant has a sensory disorder, which is where some senses are heightened, while others are dulled. Taste and smell being two that are heightened, while his vestibular system is dulled. This creates problems in eating, as well as in his coordination and ability to remain calm, and also interferes with fine motor skills (mainly writing and cutting) and certain large gross motor skills (balancing, core body strength). 

It's funny, back when this whole therapy process began, I set up a conference with his teacher to talk to her about the things that were going on. She said had I not brought this to her attention, she would've never known, that Grant always works hard and tries his best at school! Which was good to know that he wasn't being affected by any of it yet- he blends in with the rest of the preschoolers. But I worried- what if he doesn't blend in with the kindergartners? What if he gets frustrated, falls behind, begins to dislike school? I didn't want to set him up for failure before his feet even hit the ground at school. 

After a few months of thinking and praying about it, we made the decision to send him to pre-k next year instead of kindergarten. I know he will be 5.5 years old this fall, and 6.5 upon entering kindergarten, but age won't help him. Time will. We still have all summer left of occupational therapy (as well as speech therapy!) and possibly into the school year if its necessary. We will have homework time at home this summer to help him as well. And honestly, the schools here in Enid kind of scare me anyway. With us probably moving next summer, we felt it would be in his best interest to just wait til we move and start fresh in kindergarten then! 

So that's the big decision for our biggest boy! I never imagined this whole process would be so hard on me! It's hard to watch your kids struggle, no matter if they realize they are struggling or not. In Grant's case, he enjoys all his therapies and hasn't become discouraged knowing he has difficulty with things that most kids don't. So he doesn't see any of this as a struggle. He just knows he gets lots of special playtime with his therapists!

I know as time goes on he will only get stronger and more confident. I also know that nothing will ever take away his spunk, his determination, his excitement for life, and the love in his heart!

Looking forward to a wonderful school year with BOTH of my boys at Oakwood Christian Preschool!!

Last Day of School!

Grant had his last day of school on Thursday! It was a bittersweet day, as I love the routine of school each day, but I also am ready for a break from that routine...at least for a few weeks anyway! I can't believe the school year is over already! I'm not quite sure how it snuck up on my so fast- well, probably because it snowed the first week in May I thought it may have been winter still!  But looking back, Grant has grown up so much since that first day! He has grown physically, academically, socially, and spiritually! It's been a great year of growth all around!

I love the side by side of his first day and last day! He just looks like a big kid! 

 I was excited to see what exciting things Grant's last day of school would entail, as it was a Circus-themed week! They started their day in the gym at the Big Top! They had a ginormous parachute all the kids gathered around! They sang songs, raised and lowered, shook the balls, walked and danced! Grant pretty much smiled the ENTIRE time! It was adorable!! I remember parachute days from kindergarten PE and that was always my favorite day! Then they headed into the Big Room for circus games- ring toss, bean bag throw, bowling, bouncy house, and face painting! Grant wanted nothing to do with the face painting. 

 Then it was time for snacks! They served hot dogs, and then each kid was given a wallet with three circus dollars to buy circus snacks! Grant spent his money on one bag of popcorn, one bag of chips, and one bag of cotton candy. (Grant didn't even allow the hot dog on his plate!) While they munched, they watched a video on the big screen about a circus. It was a good showing of what a real circus is like, since we've never taken Grant before. After snacks, each child was presented with their "portfolio" of special work collected through the school year! It was one of those things that I will save forever and ever and ever and ever!! Fun fact from his portfolio: He grew 3 inches and gained 3 pounds this school year!

 And these two, Grant and Gracie, how they will miss each other next year! Gracie is heading off to kindergarten at a new school and I know Grant will miss seeing her adorable face next year! But luckily he will get to see her brothers cute face instead!

It was a wonderful school year!! Beyond blessed that we found Oakwood as our school and church home! It's been a perfect fit for us! And I'd be alot more sad if I knew we weren't going to get to do it all over again- with both Grant and Wyatt next year!! (More on that in the next post!)

But for now, its time for SUMMER VACATION!!!

Mommy Moments

Just a few funnies from Wyatt's mouth:

- While fixing breakfast one morning, Wyatt said he wanted whip cream with his strawberries. But instead of asking for Cool Whip, he asked for Buggy Whip....which is the name of our street. And then he said, "Wait a minutes, what's that whip cream called?" I just had to laugh!

- On our way to town one day, Wyatt wanted to make sure I wasn't going to fast, but he said, "Are you going the lemon speed Mom?" I said, "Do you mean the speed limit?" He said, "Oh yeah, I got confused!"

- I keep telling to the boys, "NO MORE GROWING!" because my babies are just getting too big too fast, but Wyatt insists that he wants to get big, just like Daddy. So he was trying to prove to me how big he is getting. He said, "See these pokey stick things on my legs? Those are hairs growing. That means I'm getting to be a grown up. And see these tooths here? They are getting wiggly. That means I'll get grown up teeth that are real big. Is that ok Mom?"

I love my sweet silly boy!

Mid-May Instagram

Just a quick IG dump, for your viewing pleasure!

-Grants "treasure" collection after a shopping trip at TJ Maxx

-My childhood home, which I pass by each time I'm in Kansas City

-Jimmy John's- a #12 please!

-Wyatt did all these puzzles BY HIMSELF

-Wyatt multitasking- snuggling his lovey while playing iPad

-Wyatt being his cute self!

-My big monkey swinging from a tree

-Two crop dusters (look closely!)

-Two cute boys playing so nicely in a drs. waiting room

If You Give a Mom a Flower...

...she will smile from ear to ear and her heart will be filled with love!

I absolutely ADORE these two pictures of my sweet boy! He truly has the sweetest most sensitive heart! Sometimes its hard to notice through all his crazy antics, but deep down he has a heart of gold. 

While exploring at the pond, he saw this purple flower and tried to surprise me with it. He picked it, put it behind his back, and said, "Mooooom, I have a surprise for you!" I saw his whole thought process so I had my camera ready to snap when he turned around.  I put it behind my ear and hugged him with all my might!

Then after speech one day, he ran across the parking lot to pick a "sunflower" just for me! He said, "Isn't it just beautiful Mom? I knew you'd love it!"

I do Grant! And I love you too!!

Oh, and because I want to keep this memory forever, this was my Mother's Day card Grant made at school!!

I love you to pieces too buddy!

Almost Summertime!

We went from snow to 90's in about 10 days!! And holy moly, 90 felt HOT!!!! We got out and enjoyed the warm sun though, and it gave us a great taste for what's to come this summer! I love living where we do, just on the border between country life and "town" life (because using the word city doesn't really describe Enid!)  Lots of land to explore and space to run and play! The boys and I headed down to the pond in the front of our neighborhood. We've seen some crawfish and were told there were some fish in there too. The boys sprinkled some fish food all around the pond, but we never saw a single creature! But we had fun exploring, and throwing about 50 rocks into the pond! I still haven't figure out why little boys are so attracted to rocks, but its a good thing they are! They are just so cute throwing rocks as big as their heads into the pond! Wyatt gasped each time he got splashed back- so funny!

And just yesterday, we bought our summertime plastic pool. Because what summer is complete without one! We set it up on the back patio this year, instead of the driveway. Might keep some of the Oklahoma junk out of the pool!  The boys literally jumped right in, even though the water was frigid! Levi and the boys had gone to Atwoods earlier in the day for diving sticks and goggles, so those got a test run too!

I have a feeling water play will be a big part of our upcoming future- this mama doesn't do well in the heat. But I am thankful its almost SUMMERTIME!!!

Firepit and Ice Cream with Friends

Our neighbors, The Kinney's, are getting ready to move to Korea in two weeks. It'll be a sad day for all of us, as we've grown very close over the past year! The boys will be especially sad to see their best friends leave. Seriously the worst part of being a military is having friends coming and going all the time. We had one last firepit together last weekend! It seems like forever ago we were able to do that, since we were in a burn-ban starting late spring last year and continued all the way through fall! So we were anxious to get the fire going and the smores cooking! 

 We also got to celebrate Aiden's 6th birthday at Cherry Berry with them! 

And we had a fun playdate at our house resulting in this picture....

It will be an adjustment to not have these guys right next door! We are praying the transition goes smoothly for all, although I know it won't be without tears, especially from Grant! We made lots of memories and we are so happy we got to share a year in our lives together!

Playtime at the Park

Two doors down from my parents house is an elementary school and public pool and park. LOTS of fun things for my boys to play on! Which is why going to the park is one of their favorite activities when we visit my parents! Unfortunately, the weekend we went to KC, we arrived to SNOW (on May 3rd!!!) and cold, wet temps all weekend long! We did manage to sneak in about 30 minutes at the park the day before we headed back to OK and my boys enjoyed every second!

Wyatt has hated strollers ever since he was about 15 months old. He'd much rather walk (or be held) then ride in a stroller. In fact, our stroller has been up in our attic since we lived in Florida! The one place he likes to go in the stroller, though, is at my parents house. I think its because those are his memories- when Levi was on deployment and we stayed at my parents house, he was so little, he had to go in the stroller to the park. And he still likes to do that! So he had a stroller ride, and Grant rode one of Mimi's bikes!

They are already asking to go back and play at Mimi's park again! If only we could do that more often! :)

Our Shared Day

Today is not only Mother's Day, but its also Levi's birthday! I don't typically like sharing my special days, but I figure, without Levi, I wouldn't be a mother anyway, so its only fitting we celebrate him as well!! A very low key day, just church and house stuff! 

But before church, we managed a few pics of our kiddos, who have made us become the people we are. The reason we are called Mom and Dad. The reason God puts two people together. The reason why we wake up each day! They are our lives, and we are theirs. And together, we are a family! 

10 Years Since College?

Two weekends ago, my friends and I celebrated our 10 years from graduating college. It seems like just yesterday, we were celebrating our 10 years from moving into the dorms! Actually, it seems like just yesterday that we were actually IN college!! Time flies as you get older, I guess!

We had a wonderful weekend reminiscing and visiting about the "good old days." We stayed at the new hotel just outside campus called The Oread, and it was beautiful!! Unfortunately, we had a schizophrenic weather pattern that brought on a huge cold snap, so no fun sundresses for us! But that's ok- we learned that college kids don't wear cardigans, but thirty-somethings do!! We had dinner at one of our favorite old hangouts, Quintons! Then we headed down Mass. Street for a few bar hops- Sandbar and Red Lion. And a weekend at KU wouldn't be complete without a visit to The Wheel for beers and pizza! All of us stayed at the bars til at least midnight, and some even lasted til last call! We were pretty darn proud of ourselves!

Funny story- so while we were sitting a booth at the wheel, and we obviously stuck out like sore thumbs, the girls at the booth next to us totally kept eyeing us. Finally, one of the girls asked us, "We want to know how to get wifed..."  We all said, "Huh?" She was like, "Well you guys are all wearing rings, so you're either engaged or married, so we want to know how you did that!" It was pretty funny swapping stories with them about what our college days were like and what our married and career lives are like now! They were pretty envious, and I have to say, although college was so so so SO much fun, I'm happy with my life where I'm at!

We ended our trip with breakfast the next morning at Einstein Brothers, another good old tradition!!

I love my friends!!

Happy Mother's Day!

From the day you became a mom to me

to the day I became a mom to them,

and all the days before, in between, and still yet to come, 

I love you Mom!

Thanks for always being there, no matter how far away I've lived! You've taught me everything there is to know about being a mom and I am forever grateful!

Happy Mother's Day!

Canola Fields

The canola fields are in full bloom around here and I can't believe I haven't wrecked my car yet, because I'm mesmerized each time we drive by them!! I've tried a few times to take some shots of the boys, but its always been so windy, no one has cooperated! So on our way home from Grant's program tonight, the air was still and the sun was right and the boys were cute and I had my good camera! Perfect timing for a photo shoot! Wyatt wanted nothing to do with getting in the canola, which I don't blame him- it was about a foot taller than he was! But Grant happily jumped in! And I'm so glad he did, because it was CUTE!!! We may not be able to take beach pictures anymore, but I think this canola is just as beautiful!!! 

Grant's Preschool Program

Grant had his Spring Program at school tonight and it was so so so so adorable!! I know I've said this all year long, but we are just so in love with his preschool and his teachers! They do such a fabulous job!! The kids sang lots and lots of songs, recited memory verses from the Bible, and had a cute little picture slideshow! It was simply adorable! 

Grant was in the back row and I was so proud of him for actually standing (pretty) still and paying attention to his teachers in the front! He participated in all the songs and even did the hand movements! He loved waving and blowing kisses at us about every two minutes, smiling ear to ear! (He even had a little Harpy in his pocket that he would pull out from time to time!) He got to recite a Bible verse at the microphone with two other boys, Brenden and Nash. They said, "Blessed is the King. Luke 19:38." Just precious!! The last song they sang before their "Goodbye" song was a Mother's Day song that definitely made me tear up! There is just something about children's voices that make me smile- they could be singing the phone book and I'd probably tear up- so hearing such sentimental words really did it for me! 

 Of course, Grant and Gracie had to do a little photo opp afterwards, which I adore!! Those two kind of make my heart melt! Grant was a little gentleman and guided Gracie by putting his hand along her back and then put his arm around her during pics (he definitely didn't learn that from his dad!)

 And we did a few other photo opps at the end too. Those four kiddos are such good buddies, and totally precious!! Grant just adores Ms. Terry, as do I! I wish she could be Grant's teacher forever!! And of course a little family photo, and one more with Mimi!

Next year, both our little guys will be standing up there singing their little hearts out! I can't wait!
And a few extras- here is the program for their program!

And the adorable "invitation" they made to tell us about the program!

April Instagram

Busy month on the Instagram front...

If you can't tell, this month we had schizophrenic weather, lots of thumbsucking, yummy eating, brotherly love, and my boys just being their cute happy selves!! I love these special little moments in our life!!

April Artwork

Lots of artwork sent home this month!!

 They started their month by doing a trip around the world! They made a passport and everything! They went to Hawaii, Japan, and Australia the days Grant went to school! He made a lei, hibiscus flower, Japanese fan, and Australia book.

And these were the randoms- a cloud (they discussed types of precipitation), a #10 worksheet, a zebra, a rainbow, and a kite. He also did a week of ocean animals, and he brought home a few pieces of art that he played with and got ruined before I took pictures. Darn!

And from their bible stories, Jesus Calms the Storm, and Zaccheus. Grant loves both of those stories and hopped out of bed each morning excited to go to school and listen to those stories. Especially Zaccheus- he played with this little tree for so long- Zaccheus is on a clothespin and Grant liked making him sit in different spots on the tree. Pretty darn cute! They also read Jonah and the Whale, which is also part of the artwork that I didn't get any pictures of.

Until next month....