Wyatt turns 5!

 Can you even believe this little monkey is five?  I know I can't.  He is the most precious little spud and we are thankful that God gave him to us!  Of course we celebrated with cake for breakfast, presents, and some special Avengers decorations.  First was the presents!

He got a Mario racing set from us, a Star Wars thing from Noah, and a Super Mario Bros. poster from Annie.  Can you tell how thankful he was?

This could maybe be my favorite picture ever!  Oh, and he also got a new game downloaded to his Leap Pad. 

He was super tickled with his Hot Wheels cake.  We did not have any problem getting any of them to eat some!  :)

Even though he is five now, he is still my little baby.  Noah was so different from him at this age, perhaps because he is the first born and we are always in such a rush for him to be grown up.  Wyatt is a bit more laid back as far as growing up goes!  He is so sensitive and loving and I wouldn't change a thing about him!

Civil War exhibit at the HMNS

Noah has had a bit of an obsession about the Civil War I guess since he heard about it.  I mentioned it at some point during school and he just clung to it.  So when he saw the billboard advertising the exhibit at the HMNS we knew we had to go.  He loved it, of course, but Annie was a nightmare.  She cried and whined and wanted to run around.  She is normally so good, but geeze she was difficult.  After the tour we went to our favorite eating spot in town for dinner.  It was so nice out we ate on the patio and Josh got these gorgeous pics of the kids.

Noah really thought he was a soldier with that hat on.  And Wyatt was just a goofball.

He was pretending to sleep in the last one, if you couldn't tell.  LOL  Annie was super hammy as well.  She loves to eat all the M&Ms off of the monster cookies, but leave the cookie part.  It makes quite a mess!

Can't wait till the next exhibit comes that the kids are interested in.    We got these cute hats, a gorgeous book about the Civil War, and some reprints of Civil War era money ALL 75% off.  Evidently if you go during the last few days of any exhibit they put all the stuff on sale.  The hats were under a buck each!  :) 

We love Harmony Fine Arts!

Do you see that smile on his face?  While doing an art lesson?!?!  Shocking, I know!  The boy is so down on his artistic abilities, but he really loved doing this art project.

Do you see those two flattened balls?  Those are hiney cheeks.  He was so tickled with that!  We were reading in our art book about how certain sculptures look thick and heavy while others look thin, light and fragile.  So they sculpted people that looked thick and heavy and then made wiry people out of fuzzy sticks.  Wyatt was bummed out cause he couldn't do it....

But then perked up with the pipe cleaner people..

I thought Noah's was cute because he made a soldier just like in the painting of British soldiers we had looked at in the book earlier.  Check out my awesome sculpture...

We have been using the Harmony Fine Arts first grade program with both the boys, and I am absolutely loving it.  A couple of months ago I kind of had a freak out about how far behind we are this year, and how we have just not gotten art done.  So we changed things up and have been doing art and music first, before anything else.  And now their art notebooks are filling up!

We study one artist each month, with one specific painting each week.  We add the painting to our notebook and memorize the titles.  We also color the corresponding coloring page from our Dover coloring books.  Trying to color them just like the original has really had them notice all of details that we had just skimmed over before.  Then we do one hands on art project from the Oxford First Book of Art.

The other days of the week we complete the art and music lessons that are already schedule in My Father's World. 

I cannot recommend Harmony Fine Arts enough!

Easter at Granny's

 Honestly, this is all kind of fuzzy to me.  Cause in reality it is July but I am backdating this post so that it appears chronologically correct.  I WILL catch up on this blogging thing!!  I do remember that we went over to Granny's house for dinner the Saturday before Easter.  With Josh's schedule it is very difficult on holidays to see everyone, so we are so thankful Paula was so gracious to invite us over the night before.  AND I got to dress everybody up twice, which is always fun.

 Could she be any cuter in the dress Paula found for her?  I don't think it is possible!  She was really tickled by the big Easter eggs Granny had out for decorations.  She sat right down in the flowerbed to play with them and then was pretty annoyed that all the mulch stuck to her diaper.  

And obviously my boys were adorable as always.  They are looking so grown up these days!  I love how tightly Wyatt holds on to Noah when they get together for a picture.  They are definitely best friends.

 

  Love, love, love this group of kids!

Mowing the yard a.k.a. Playing while Daddy works

The kids cheer when we say it is time to mow the yard cause they love being outside so much!  Noah even mows a little each time, but mostly they just play.  And I don't mind it with the weather being as nice as it had been!

Annie insisted that she wear Wyatt's helmet and she was so cute I had to run in and get the camera to snap some pics.  Please pardon her filthy, lunch covered dress!  The girl loves eating push pops and will cry till she gets one!  She and Wyatt are alike in that sense!  Without fail, I know that he will ask if we can have one, anytime we are outside, even if only for a few minutes.

And what would mowing the yard be without sun fun with the blower?    The neighbors even came home and the kids got to have some fun together.  I'll be glad when summer comes and they will be home more often.  Noah and Wyatt wait and wait for Maddie and Emma to come home each afternoon with hopes that they can play outside for a few minutes.  I am truly thankful they have such good friends right across the street!

And it doesn't hurt they let the boys drive their Barbie Jeep!!  ;)