Story Time

The boys were up early this morning, ready to enjoy the day! After breakfast, they rode bikes for a while outside. The weather was perfect before the heat comes back later this week! Then we headed to preschool story time at the library, but at a different branch than we normally go to. Jacob doesn't get to do story time at the library anymore because it never matches up with his preschool schedule. But, today was the last day of the school year they are doing story time, and since Jacob is already done with school, we squeezed in one visit! 

I am more and more amazed at how Jacob handles himself in large groups. He joins right in with songs, speaks up, raises his hand, answers questions, participates, and really enjoys being in the group. Today's theme was magic. They learned about magnets, got to color a magician's hat and pull a bunny from the hat (bunny glued on a stick), and read two stories. One story was about a man with magic boots that would take him anywhere he wanted to go. The librarian asked the kids where they would want to go, and Jacob's hand shot up. I expected him to say something like Florida, or camping, or places we have been. Instead, he said, "The North Pole!" Loved his original answer! Then, he told me I should raise my hand and say the same answer so we could go together. Joshua did pretty well during the story time considering it wasn't for his age group. He colored his hat a little bit and didn't run around, so that's a success! Joshua is surprisingly shy in large groups and doesn't participate in group songs or dances. He'll do the dances later, but not with the other kids. 

We came home for a picnic lunch, and then Jacob decided he wanted to practice t-ball. He had a blast, and is getting pretty good with his swing in the backyard. He really wants to play t-ball, so I have a feeling that is in our near future. Joshua hits the ball pretty far, as well! After naps, the boys played with neighborhood kids again before we headed to Chik-Fil-A for dinner. Jacob and I made a neighborhood with sidewalk chalk in the driveway. He is becoming a really good artist, drawing houses with garages and cars, a pool, and trying to copy anything I draw. He is so sweet. Days like today that are low-key, relaxed, and let the boys just pick what they want to do throughout the day make me so thankful I get to stay home and just be a part of the little moments throughout the day. Nothing major, but nothing I would want to miss!

Memorial Day

Joshua wasn't feeling well Sunday night, so we brought him into our bed in hopes of the boys not sharing the germs during the night. Joshua slept in, and I stayed in bed with him while Bob took Jacob into the garage to discover some dinosaur bones that Uncle Mike and Aunt Kris sent Jacob for his birthday.

Grandma and Grandpa came over for lunch, Bob mowed the grass, and the boys played with neighborhood friends the rest of the afternoon. Great, relaxing Memorial Day around the house!

Sunday with Family

Sunday morning we had some breakfast at Panera (where the boys were upset they were out of chocolate chip muffies, but had a pumpkin muffin instead) and then headed up to my parents' house for a day of fun. 

As soon as we arrived, we took the boys over to the high school across the street so Joshua could show off his pedaling skills. The boys had the entire parking lot to themselves, and enjoyed the space to ride around for a while.

 Then we headed onto the football field. The boys ran like crazy, played some football and soccer, and really wore themselves out. Jacob was able to throw the football through the field goal posts, so he was impressed with himself!

During their nap time, Bob and I headed out and did some shopping, and came home to enjoy an awesome steak dinner from my dad. It was a very nice, relaxing day. The boys were exhausted from all the fresh air and were ready for an early bed time!

Saturday with no plans

Softball season is finally over, so Bob can enjoy Saturday mornings with us again! He took the boys to pick up some donuts in the morning, and then the boys rode their bikes after breakfast. Joshua learned to pedal his bike! He is on a roll now, and getting faster and faster as the day went on. He is not even two and a half yet, and is determined to keep up with his older brother! Jacob was three when he learned to pedal, so to see Joshua be so young and pedal around the neighborhood is quite a sight for us. 

We headed to a nearby park that we saw had a new playground installed this year and enjoyed playing on some brand new equipment. The park is really nice now with all of the new stuff, and the boys love that there are a ton of open spaces.

Jacob threw the football around, and both boys enjoyed the frisbee.

 The boys always enjoy running around the baseball fields at this park, getting their shoes all dusty and running the bases.

 After naps the boys rode bikes with their friends. We had a pasta dinner, and headed to the Orange Leaf that just opened around the corner from our house. Both boys enjoyed some chocolate with lots of different toppings. Half the time we ate inside, and then both of them wanted to go outside even though it was pretty chilly.

 Joshua has a difficult time getting himself going when his bike gets stuck, so Jacob gives him a little bump to get him going forward every once in a while. Makes me laugh every time!

 Bob was working on the projector tonight to make sure it was working with speakers, so the boys cuddled with me and watched a movie before bed. Bob got the projector from school a few years ago, and now we are finally going to put it to use this summer with some outdoor movies for the boys. 

Friday like the Old Days

Whenever we go to Barnes and Noble story time on Fridays, it reminds me of when Joshua was an infant and would sleep in the stroller while Jacob participated. We use to go all the time until I joined MOPS this year. But, with MOPS over, we have been the past few weeks and are enjoying the stories and crafts.

Friday they read two stories and made a sun craft. The boys played on the train table afterwards, and then we picked out some books to buy. I bought a few I picked for the boys as well as their own picks. Joshua picked a super hero book, and Jacob a Titanic book - so fitting!

One of the books I picked up was the first Magic Tree House books, Dinosaurs Before Dark.  We finished the entire book on Friday, and both boys sat for the entire thing. I knew Jacob would, but Joshua surprised me with how much he enjoyed the story.

Here are the boys showing off their suns after we enjoyed some lunch in the mall food court.

 After the boys took a nap, we found a package for Jacob on the front porch. Uncle Mike and Aunt Kris had sent him some cool birthday presents. Bob helped Jacob set up his "prehistoric sea monsters," which are currently sitting on our kitchen window waiting to hatch.

 My mom came down for dinner, and then we headed to watch The Croods. The boys laughed and thought the movie was hilarious!

First Day of Summer

The boys and I started the summer off with a visit to the Children's Museum. We met our friends there right when the museum opened and made our way through a few exhibits together. First stop to the dinosaurs and trains, followed by Hot Wheels, which is closing this week.

After Hot Wheels, we headed up to the top level for the science area. Jacob and Joshua were excellent boys the entire day, and I was so proud of them for staying together, listening so well, and making the day enjoyable and easy. Luckily, they enjoy each other's company, so it makes it easy to stick together through the museum! And, I'm so thankful that Jacob sets a good example for Joshua. Since Jacob listens so well, Joshua follows his lead. Jacob is a fantastic big brother!

We enjoyed some lunch together, and Jacob started looking very tired and ready to go. He doesn't get tired very often, so when he does, I want to make sure he gets his rest. But, on the way in I had promised we could stop at the library that is located in the museum, so we stopped there and let the boys pick out some books. Jacob and Joshua enjoyed dancing in front of the green screen and seeing themselves on a TV, picking out train books and playing on the computers. Jacob wanted to find a fire truck book, so we went up to the librarian and said, "Excuse me, do you have any fire trucks in action books here?" He was so polite and waited for her to look on the computer. He answered any questions she asked him, and I stood back for a little while to give him space and watch him act so mature and like a big kid. 

Bob had to work late that night, so we headed up to have dinner with my parents. Jacob had an upset stomach, which explains why he was starting to fade during lunch. We enjoyed some dinner together and play time before heading home to get Jacob to bed so he could hopefully feel better in the morning! 

Great start to hopefully a great and exciting summer!

Last Day of Preschool

Jacob's very last day of preschool was Wednesday (May 20). 

Here he is on the first day back in August.

 And this is Jacob on Wednesday. He doesn't look drastically different this school year, compared to the huge change he made last year. However, if you look at where he is on the door, you can tell how much taller he is in just nine months! He grew a TON this school year. He has always been tall, but this growth spurt is crazy!

 Had to include this picture of the boys and their goofy faces - Joshua's eyebrows crack me up! It was raining a little bit before school, but I wanted an outdoor picture anyway.

 Jacob's birthday celebration for school was on the last day, which was so nice to go in and see him on the last day of school. Joshua loved coming in for the snack and sitting with his brother and the big kids. Jacob requested pizza and breadsticks, so we picked up Little Caesars before coming to school. Since all of Jacob's class has a March birthday and later, they have celebrated birthdays constantly the past two months, so it was nice to switch it up from the cookies and sweets and have some real food for the snack. Jacob LOVES his pizza!

 After school, we joined two other friends for lunch (at a pizza buffet, haha) and it was such a wonderful way to end the school year. We sat and visited while the four boys (Jacob, his two friends, and Joshua) laughed themselves silly. There were two fire trucks there, and the firemen saw Jacob's birthday crown and came over and gave all four boys a fire hat and said happy birthday. Made their day! So, of course, when we got home the boys had to start riding their fire truck.

Great end to Jacob's two years of preschool. Now on to kindergarten!!!