So, here's a long awaited (haha) update on everyone in our lovely, little (haha) family:
Lizzie- She had more than one full night's sleep in a row since sometime in July. She goes back to the ENT tomorrow where he will hopefully decide to take her large tonsils out really soon. Brett and I walk around in a daze most of the time, fully understanding the concept of sleep deprivation as torture. She is talking up a storm, but the only kid she consistently calls by their name is Eli. She can say it perfectly and it just cracks us up. She is a tough little girl, nothing slows her down. And she is our "little monkey". She climbs on everything and she is a whiz on the playground.
Eli- This little boy just blows me away sometimes. He has a very sharp mind and has a very strong desire to learn to read. He is blasting through his "school" books and is quickly approaching a Kindergarten level. I've struggled with this because on one hand, I don't want to push him too fast and I don't want him to catch up too quickly with Gavin, but on the other hand, I don't want to hold him back. And he has some weird natural ability- a lot like Alyssa at that age. He is such a sweet brother/son. We call him "Pastor E" because he is always putting other people first- whether its giving Gavin his new Power Ranger to play with first or letting Lizzie take his spot on the couch/at the table/on my lap. He just finished his first session of "bitty soccer".
Gavin- The past couple months have been big for Gavin. He has joined Cub Scouts, lost his first two teeth, and it seems as if he's grown another three inches. We have really been working on his school work this year because I feel like I've let him fall through the cracks in previous years. As Alyssa gets more independent, I'm finding I have more time to focus on him. He is reading easy reader books without too much trouble, and we are working through our first chapter book. He's finally realizing that he can read words around him- coming up and reading my emails over my shoulder or reading signs we pass. He is making more and more connections in his school work and is starting to retain more information. He says, "Oh, I know!" or "Oh, yeah!" a lot these days. By the way, anybody want to buy some popcorn???
Lauri- Our first few weeks of school went really well, but she's been a "challenge" for a couple weeks now. "Challenge" is a nice way of saying we have days when I just want to scream and throw her on the nearest passing school bus. But, we're working through it. She is starting to realize that daily practice really does make things easier- like when I handed her a Latin translating sheet, she looked at it and said, "Mom, I know this stuff!" She is so much smarter than she thinks she is that it is a delicate balance between giving her materials that push her but still making sure she doesn't get overwhelmed. She loves her soccer team and has really benefited from playing on a team of girls her own age.
Alyssa- She is doing very well in her work, and she is becoming more and more independent. She still devours books faster than you can imagine and seems to fall in love with every new series she starts. Her preteen hormones are definitely starting full-force, but most of the time it has to do with other areas- like her siblings or chores, not so much with her school work. Everything else is going okay- we're kept busy by evening activities and trying to keep the house cleaned up. I'm not finding as much time as I'd like for my favorite activities (running, reading), but I'm trying to recognize that this is just a hard/busy time right now, and things will get easier as the kids get older- they will get easier, right????
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