Typical night in our house

The week in review

A quick disclaimer....this post is titled 'week in review' but it is actually covers a few weeks. Mostly from this week, but a quick recap on Blake's latest incident which I had forgotten to post about.

It's pretty hard to explain how it actually happened, but let's just say it involved Blake climbing on the KNOBS of my kitchen drawers (didn't even know that was possible), grabbing pot of coffee (thankfully warm but not hot), attempting to pour it on the floor, me intercepting the carafe before it shattered in a million pieces, ceramic mug falling on floor and breaking, Blake slipping and piece of ceramic mug cutting his cheek. Whew...don't think I could explain it much better than that!

The hardest part was trying to apply any pressure to his face and getting it to stop bleeding. After about 15 minutes (which seems like an eternity) of basically sitting on him and attempting to hold him down and having him cock his head back and scoot backwards along the floor, I told Sadie we needed to go in. In the midst of all this, Wyatt was getting off the bus, so Sadie went out to meet him and fill him in on the details. (Suffice it to say that Sadie was not happy with me as she thought I was hurting Blake. I tried to reassure her that this wasn't the case, but I don't think she believed me.)

I took Wyatt and Sadie to my friend Dixie's house and then borrowed her 10-year old daughter Addie to assist me. She had to hold him arms down in the car so he wouldn't rip the bandage off and was such a great helper! We stopped by Matt's office first so he could look at it and he suggested we use some of the dermabond he had used on Wyatt's head earlier in the summer. But he would have to go to the hospital to get some and he still had another hour or so of clinic left, so we headed over to the ER to try and get some.

They gave us all kinds of toys and bubbles while we waited.

When the nurse finally saw us and I told her what Matt thought we should do, she listened but also had to 'follow protocol'. So they put the numbing gel on his face and made us wait 30 minutes for that to work, then planned on washing it out and determining what course they would take.

(seeing himself on my phone camera)

After all that, Matt ended up getting done with clinic and came over, grabbed some of the 'magic stuff' from the OR and glued him back together! We never even saw the ER doc, which was fine since we just needed to get the dermabond on him. What an ordeal! But that explains the big cut on his face in the following pictures.

Matt and I got back from our trip to Dallas on Sunday and the kids were so excited to see what we had brought back for them. Ever since they tried on those cowboy hats at the state fair, they had been asking for boots and hats! And we couldn't disappoint!

Sadie and I in our 'cowgirl boots' (Wyatt also got boots)

These square-toed boots are the rage in Texas....not sure the trend will ever make it up here where we don't have many real cowboys, but Sadie thinks they are pretty neat.

I have been attempting to get more pictures of our 'everyday' life and part of that would be.....

Blankies....kinda funny how each of my kids has one and loves them! As long as we have these three blankies, we could go anywhere!

This is what it looks like from inside our room when Matt leaves for work

(excuse the quality....taken with my phone)

And this is what it looks like after school.....Wyatt, Grace and Lillie getting off the bus and Blake literally runs to hug them all (Wyatt first, of course!)

...apparently I had poor timing on the picture..not sure why Wyatt is making that face but he actually was excited..Blake's excitement always brings a smile to his face

Random picture of our garage??

I'll give you a closer look....

...one of these things doesn't belong here...

I couldn't find Blake inside the house and noticed the back door wide open (unfortunately it can't be locked from the inside....meaning, we can lock the door but it will still open from the inside). When I looked out in to the garage, I couldn't see Blake anywhere. I called for him and called for him, ran out through the garage and didn't see him anywhere outside. He lay completely silent and motionless the entire time....I only heard him when he moved a touch and once I realized he was very safe, I ran in to get my camera!!

A few other things he has been up to lately over at the park......

He can cross these things entirely on his own!

And yes, he climbs this without any assistance as well. In this picture, he was actually attempting to go down the wall (which he did succeed at, of course!)

Our friends stopped by the other day to pick up some winter clothes for their kids that my kids aren't using this year and Danny (2 1/2 yrs old) was so excited to fit into Wyatt's first pair of skates. Of course, then Wyatt and Sadie had to put theirs on!

(You'll also notice Sadie's haircut....she wanted to cut it short like mine. Kinda cute but I think we are going to grow it back out)

Danny is so into the gear, so we got out all the helmets and sticks as well.

And the really big news this week?? Wyatt's tooth....

That darn tooth has been ready to come out for WEEKS and we have been asking Wyatt when he would pull it out or let us pull it out. Unfortunately, as with most things in his life, he was scared about what it would be like. He said, "Mommy, I've just never lost a tooth before and I am scared." I tried to reassure him but I also didn't want it to fall out at school or while he was eating and actually lose the tooth itself. So finally, on Thursday night before dinner, he asked me if I would pull it out. He let me take a picture first but didn't want anyone else to know what we were doing upstairs. I think he just wanted it to happen without any extra attention or excitement, which probably would have made him more nervous.

It was an absolute miracle that that tooth was still in his mouth....I barely pulled and it just came right out. But of course, he didn't like the bleeding in his mouth and decided he didn't want to eat any dinner that night for fear that it would hurt. He also didn't want to put the tooth under his pillow because the idea of a tooth fairy also scares him.....he just can't comprehend why anyone would be okay with a stranger coming in to your room at night, while you are sleeping, and reaching under your pillow! I guess you can't blame him. Matt suggested maybe putting it under his pillow while he was at school to see what would happen but Wyatt didn't like that idea either....still not comfortable with someone he doesn't know in his room while he isn't there. So the tooth fairy may not be coming to our house for a long time....but we do still have the tooth in a bag on the counter in case he changes his mind. He is, however, excited to take it to school on Monday and bring the 'tooth book' home (a book each kid gets to bring home whenever they lose a tooth and put a picture of themselves with their missing tooth in).

Sometimes I feel so bad for Wyatt that he is so fearful of so many things that I just never gave a second thought to! We try to talk through things with him and make sure he knows that we love him and always want what is best for him, but sometimes the only way he learns is to actually go through the situation himself. Matt was very similar as a kid which gives me hope that Wyatt will learn to overcome his fears, but in the meantime I just feel bad for him.

And thankfully the tooth fairy isn't a big deal at all....the tooth fairy could never come to our house and we wouldn't be any worse off. But it is something that is supposed to be fun and for Wyatt, it seems to involve more fear than fun!

Drawings

Last week Wyatt brought home some pictures he had drawn in school. More impressive than the drawings, to me, was his attention to detail. He notices things I never even see (and certainly didn't notice when I was his age). But he gets this from his father....Matt pays so much attention to the details. And not just of things that are important, but he has this ability to remember inconsequential details about almost everything. Ok....enough about how much Matt and Wyatt notice details...here are the pics:

Two guys playing baseball (notice home plate, the cleats, the long grass in the outfield, Wyatt with blond hair)

I thought this picture of the school bus was great as well....notice the side-mirror that he drew out in the front? I barely even notice those now!

Are you ready for some football?

Last weekend my in-laws and sister-in-law came in to town to celebrate Matt's brother, Tyler's, birthday. I also happened to work out that Wyatt had a football game on Saturday morning that they were able to come to. But it was our first cold game of the year (yes, fall has arrived) and we weren't fully prepared for the bitter winds!!

Sadie and her friend Taylor (Taylor's brother is one of Wyatt's friends/teammates and Sadie and Taylor couldn't be more thankful for each other. They spend every practice and game playing on the playgrounds at the nearby parks.)

Now on to the game....

It's flag football, so the only 'equipment' they have is their mouthguard and the flags. But Blake obviously thinks his big brother is pretty great and we have a hard time keeping him off the field. So when Wyatt gets subbed out of the game, he plays a little game of football with Blake.

No fair-weather fans here!

Blocking....one of Wyatt's favorite things to do.

You gotta love the post-game snacks at a 9am football game!

Sadie becomes an instant fan once the game is over and snacks are being doled out

Once we got home, Papa decided to show Wyatt some football moves, which then quickly progressed to wrestling moves. (My father-in-law played football and wrestled at the Naval Academy, so he knows a thing or two about it!)

That evening we celebrated Ty's 22nd birthday. And since Ty had a bit of a cold, he asked Wyatt to help blow out the candles, which he was more than willing to do.

Blake was pretty concerned about what was going on...

We had a great weekend with them and also got to spend some time with Mollie before she left for the year to go to Kanakuk Kamps Link Year program.

As I write this, I am actually sitting in the airport in Dallas. Matt had a conference Thursday-Sunday that he spoke at and I decided to join him for some R & R. But wouldn't you know that when we decide to take a trip without the kids and spend some much-needed time together, Wyatt scores his first touchdown!!! My parents are staying with the kids and I had a voicemail Saturday morning from my Dad's phone. I listened to it and heard Wyatt's voice saying, "Mommy, it's Wyatt. I just wanted to tell you I scored a touchdown. Ok. Thanks, Bye."

It killed me!!! Both Matt and I could not believe it! In his first game, his coach had asked him to carry the ball and he refused. His coach told Matt this, I think mostly to let us know that their was a reason why Wyatt hadn't touched the ball that game. Being our timid child, Matt had a discussion with Wyatt that he needed to listen to his coach. "If coach tells you to be the running back, you say 'ok' and do it." The next game Wyatt did carry the ball once, however, he ran backwards more than he ran forwards and almost went down before he got his flag taken to avoid being tackled. (Yes, it is flag football but there is still a bit of tackling that takes place.) So in this, his third game, not only does he take the ball but he also scores a touchdown!! Amazing! But so bummed to have missed it.

Matt made me feel a bit better when he reminded me that the only time he scored a hat trick was when his Dad wasn't at a game. And I also felt a bit better since this is 6-7 year old flag football. Wyatt didn't seem too disappointed that we missed it, but more excited about scoring a touchdown and that Pops and Nani were there to see it! He told us he'd score another one next weekend, so hopefully its just the beginning of many to come! And maybe he did so well because we weren't there and he didn't feel any pressure, who knows?

Our reader

Last Thursday, my sister-in-laws came to town for a meeting and some shopping. They stayed with us on Thursday night--just in time to be at our house to finish up a little homework Wyatt had. This kind of homework, however, was the fun kind. Wyatt's entire school had a summer reading BINGO game and each square was filled with a specific place or type of book each kid had to read. We had a few squares left to finish and one of them said, "Read a book under a tree". So Mollie helped Wyatt finish that off.....

Of course Sadie wanted to join in...

There's something about reading a book under a tree, even a little tree like this one, that is so relaxing and serene. And to have your aunt join you? That just makes it even that much better!

Sadie's First Day of School

Sadie's first day of school was on Wednesday, which was actually really nice because they each got to have their own 'special' day. Sadie was SO excited to finally be going to school---this girl loves all things social and I think she was just expecting it to be one big party!

We had cinnamon rolls again (two days in a row is unheard of in this house!) and then got ready for school. Sadie wanted to wear her hair in a side-pony (can you tell she watches all the 'big' girls in our neighborhood?!)

Wyatt was dying to wear his Liberty Ridge T-shirt (his elementary school) and I wouldn't let him wear it on the first day, so he got to wear it for day #2!

Both Wyatt and Sadie were so excited to get Blake in on a picture

(I really need to figure out how to reduce the glare on Wy's glasses, though!)

Headed out the door....with her box tops that she has been saving all year!

At school, in front of her hook

It's funny when I think back on Wyatt's first day of preschool and how much different these kids are....and also how much farther along Sadie is in her school knowledge (writing her own name, writing the alphabet, sounding letters out, etc)

"Are you done taking pictures yet Mom?"

Despite the fact that Wyatt went to the same preschool, a lot of things were still new to us because they moved the classrooms around so now Sadie's class is in where the Kindergardeners used to be. So Sadie's friend Hollen (her older brother was in Wyatt's class and so these two girls used to play together when we'd drop the boys off) got to show Sadie where to put her papers after she signed in and where all the 'centers' were.

Sadie and her teacher, Mrs. Hulse

And one last picture with Mommy before she ran off to play!

I had to tell her I was leaving for her to notice and she looked at me and said, "Bye Mommy"!

I am so excited for her and all that she will learn this year. And it's fun hearing about every single detail of her day when I pick her up. I really don't think she leaves a single thing out and I love it! Once we got home, she immediately set up her baby dolls and played school, teaching all the babies the Bible story that they had gone over that day--something I know Sadie will just soak up. She loves stories and I am so thankful that the christian education portion of the preschool is their primary focus. I know she will just blossom and grow this year and I am beyond thrilled for her!