Josiah gets an "A"

Josiah & I are spending a few minutes each day of his summer vacation reviewing the letters of the alphabet. We just started Monday with the letter A. At the end of each letter, we are celebrating by making some kind of cool craft or something.

Today, we decided to make homemade Applesauce! YUM!!!

Josiah LOVES to cook. So, I let him take the lead on this recipe. Here he is preparing the Apple for peeling.

After we peeled 4 Apples, he chopped every one of them himself. He did such a great job.

We have really been working on reading & he helped read the recipe & measured each ingredient himself.

Here is what the Apples looked like once they were cooked.

Once Josiah mashed the Applesauce well, we sat in the living room & munched away. It TRUTHFULLY was the BEST Applesauce I've ever had.

So, in learning the letter Aa & cooking Applesauce, Josiah gets an "A!"

Jumping Around!

Today, Grady & Gabe came by for a play-date.

They were excited to see Josiah's new toy...the trampoline.

The boys just bounced around for close to an hour after playing with toys & racing each other on Mario Kart.

Amanda & I enjoyed soaking up the sun while sitting in lounge chairs watching the boys.

What a fun day jumping around!

A Very Merry Un-Birthday to you!

Tonight, Josiah got a very BIG surprise. Granddaddy Edward & Grandma India gave him an early birthday present. Josiah's birthday isn't until December, but they wanted him to enjoy his birthday present when it was warm outside.

We walked Josiah onto the deck & told him that he was getting a birthday present. We asked him to wait until we called him to come down. Dustin was ready with the video camera & I was ready with the still camera. Look at his face!

He turned the corner & froze in shock at the sight of the trampoline. He was SOOOOOOO excited!!!

Josiah got right inside & just jumped his little heart out.

Look at how much he is loving this new yard toy!

I grew up with a trampoline my entire life since 2 years old. It was one of my very favorite things to do. So, I just couldn't wait to get on it with Josiah. I taught Josiah how to sit down & play popcorn. He laughed so hard .

Then Dad needed to take a turn. They got all rough & rowdy, as boys do. So, I got them to stand still for a moment to smile for the camera before they went back to wrestling.

After almost an hour of jumping, it began to rain. We could NOT pry Josiah off of the trampoline. So, I just went inside & got a hat, sweatshirt, sweatpants & socks to keep him warm in the rain. Who can blame me...you can't just give a child a toy & then turn around & take it away. So, I sat outside with him & figured if he gets sick, we'll suffer together. Ha!

So, Josiah, in the words of The Mad Hatter, "A Very Merry Un-Birthday to you!"

Summer Learning!

Today marks the beginning of summer break from preschool. Josiah is always wanting to learn something, so I decided to spend some time each day this summer reviewing & teaching new academic skills. Every few days we will be working with a letter & a number. I am also beginning the reading program I used when I was a Kindergarten teacher.

Today we began the letter Aa & the number 1. Josiah already knows all of the letters & letter sounds. He also knows all of his numbers to 100. So, we are reviewing, working mostly on writing letters & numbers & having tons of fun, too!

We began by reading a book about the letter Aa. Then, we had a letter Aa hunt. I hid all kinds of toys that began with the letter Aa & Josiah put them all inside the Aa bag. He ran all over the room looking for them & shouting when he found something. Then we worked on writing the letter Aa. Here, we had just finished putting together a cut-out Alligator & Josiah was coloring a habitat for the alligator.

Josiah had so much fun learning today. I can't wait until tomorrow when we begin the reading program. Who would have thought that Josiah would love summer learning!?!?

Happy Birthday, Asher!

Today was Asher's 4th birthday party!

Asher is one of Josiah's friends from preschool. As you can tell, the party was pirate themed.

After a ton of time playing with toys, Lea had the kids line up for "Pin the Flag on the Treasure Chest."

The kids had such a good time with this game...especially Josiah.

Then, Lea introduced a pirate hook game. It was played like "Hot Potato." I'm not sure if this one went over very well. These kids are not used to being told, "Oh well...since you have the hook, you're out of the circle." I thought the kids were going to break down & cry. Josiah came in 2nd place, though. He caught on pretty quick & didn't want to be caught with the hook in his hand.

After the games, it was present time. Josiah was jumping up & down the entire time Asher opened his "Pirates that Don't Do Anything" game & puzzle. This is Asher's favorite movie.

After presents, we ended with cupcakes & snacks.

Josiah & Ellie (another preschool friend) just laughed & made jokes the entire time. It was really funny to see their little personalities click.

Josiah had a great time & didn't want to come home. We did leave, however, with chocolate all over his face. In my opinion, that's the best way to leave.

Happy Birthday, Asher!

Josiah's Last Day of Preschool!

Today was Josiah's last day of preschool!

As soon as we walked in the door, you could just feel the excitement in the air.

The children just kept talking about it being the last day as they made 4th of July necklaces.

Josiah even took a minute to pose for a picture with Mom.

Of course he didn't mind posing for a picture with Bella. She's his "girlfriend."

After having cookies, ice cream with all the toppings you could imagine & tons of fun, he said goodbye to Teacher Nicky, Teacher Julea & Teacher Bonnie.

As he left the classroom, the teachers gave each student a picture frame & a sand pail filled with candy. I don't know if he was more excited to get treats or to see Dad & Mom coming to pick him up together. That hasn't happened since the first day of preschool!

To celebrate, we took Josiah to McDonalds after preschool. Once we arrived, we handed Josiah his "congratulations present." He kind of stared at this white envelope in confusion. He's never gotten a present in an envelope before.

This is what he found when he opened the envelope. A ticket for opening day of "Toy Story 3" in 3-D.

Since Josiah is already reading, we just kind of let him read the homemade ticket for himself. As he read the "3" in Toy Story 3, he had it figured out.

He then lifted his ticket & went berserk. He was SOOOO excited!

After the initial excitement subsided, we began to eat our lunch. About a minute after we started, our friends Lisa & Joshua came in. Joshua is in Josiah's preschool class & his mom brought him to celebrate as well. How funny! So, we all sat together & had a nice chat while the boys went crazy at the Play-place.

Here is a picture of all the goodies Josiah received on his last day of Preschool!

Josiah Finished his 1st Year of Preschool!

Today was Josiah's last day of preschool for the year.

How is it possible that my baby has finished his first year of preschool?!?!

It seems like yesterday when we stood in front of our house & took these pictures!

In the course of 10 months, Josiah has changed so much & learned so much!

We are so proud of the little man you are becoming, Josiah! We love you with all of our hearts & can't wait to see what your 2nd year of preschool will hold!

We just can't believe Josiah finished his 1st year of Preschool!

End of Preschool Family Picnic!

Today, Josiah's preschool celebrated the end of the school year with a family picnic at the beach. Josiah was thrilled! He loves his preschool friends & he loves the beach. What a great combination!

We sat down with Paul's family to eat our picnic lunches first.

After we got a little food in Josiah, we finally relieved him of his begging & let him run down to the water with his friends. They all had the best time playing in the sand, throwing rocks & playing with caterpillars.

As we were playing, Teacher Nicky arrived & the kids went crazy.

Before we left for the day, the kids made their way to the beach playground & had a blast.

Here is Josiah being the captain of the pirate ship & making others beg for their lives before he made them walk the plank. HA! These kids were laughing so hard & trust me...they took turns & made Josiah suffer the same fate! HA!

This picture is my favorite of the day. I just love Bella. Josiah does, too. He says she is his girlfriend. Bella is the sweetest little girl & is so curious. She just sat in the sand for the longest time pouring sand from one shoe to the other. Oh & by the way, she has flames on her shoes because she says they help her fun faster. Ha! She is too precious!

What a great day at the end of Preschool Family Picnic!