Friday, May 27, 2016

May 27, 2016

A very eventful week.

Last Saturday, my in-laws, the kids and I went to Houston for the day to celebrate Abby graduating from pre-K. Francis had to stay home and study for his qualifiers (poor guy!). Well, we got there early and so we stopped at a starbucks in an outdoor shopping center only to find there was a car show going on. There were really nice cars and super old cars. William liked the Ferrarri's and the Delorean. He also liked any car who had door that opened "funny". Robert liked a "batman" car. It was fun! We then headed on to Abby's ballet/tap recital. Abby did great and the kids watched her with excitement. They even got to give her flowers afterward which was very special. We went back to the Boerger house to have pizza which is when Austin and his boys Ranger and Asher arrived. The kids played, we all went swimming at the neighborhood pool, we all had cookie cake, we watched a movie and then we went out to dinner. It was a good day and everyone was rightfully tired by the end. William got some presents (as did Abby) including a Superman backpack for next year. He is ready for school to start! The kids love their Abby. What a way to celebrate!

William has been putting his math skills to good use. The other day he asked me what 3 times three was. I asked him if he knew and he answered 9. then he said. Ok then there are 9 windows on that building because there are three groups of three. He was right! He also wrote his first "books" on Sunday. He cute out paper to make 2 books. One which said, "Once upon a ime, William loves his brother Robert, The end" and the other said, "William loves his Hannah." He then gave out the books and read them to each of his siblings. It was super cute. At play camp this week he built a beaver dam out of blocks. When kids tried to help them, they apparently gave him "random" blocks he didn't need and they eventually built a castle behind the beaver dam that needed protecting. Such an imagination!

Robert has been building Robots all week out of different legos and objects. When he isn't building them, he is pretending to be one. His imagination is also flourishing. He has also started telling jokes which are sometimes extremely funny, though most of them involved physical comedy and won't translate to the page. It a "you had to be there" moment. He's a ball of energy and his teachers loved him at his camp this week. He has started to ask lot of good questions and really want to understand. I love it!

Hannah took her first steps on Monday. She had taken a couple side steps during the afternoon when the boys and I were playing with her. When Francis got home we were chatting on the floor with Hannah and Lucy-dog in between us when Hannah took a big step toward Lucy with no help. Francis and I both celebrated! She'll be running around in no time! Hannah turned 10 months on Tuesday. Ten months!!!!! I can't believe it. She can crawl almost as fast as I can run past her to get something off the floor away from her. She can say momma, dada, brother, and bye bye. She can sign "more" and a couple other words when prompted. She still doesn't like to sleep much and very much has a mind of her own. We love her so so so much. My heart overflows with thankfulness that God lent her to me.

Francis is currently taking the last of his qualifiers. After studying non stop studying for weeks, he has had testing Monday, Wednesday, and today. he has been under a lot of stress and pressure, so we look forward to celebrating his completion later today. You can do it Honey!

While the kids have been at "camp", I have had three full days of Parent Practicum for Classical Conversations. We have chosen to participate in this program as part of our homeschooling for next year and this was a crash course in everything about the program. I admit I went home crying the first day because I was so overwhelmed. I'm told this is pretty common. I know I will learn more as I go, but I am grateful for this foundation. Our last day the kids from each camp came in and did a presentation. William now can tell me the phases of the moon and parts of a flower. He had fun AND learned a lot. Best of both worlds! Yesterday wast the last day of PP and it was very eventful. At lunch they had a dad's lunch so all the father's of the families arrived and were eating together in a different room. All of a sudden around 30 minutes later all of the dad's were standing in the doorway and none were smiling. "There's a tornado out the window. We need to seek shelter." Sure enough through the doorway and out the window, I could see the tornado and it looked very close. Now among the dads we had 2 police officers, 2 paramedics and a fireman. They quickly and calmly ushered us to a safe area with each family together by a wall. We ended up in the nursery area, so the kids were able to play with toys while we waited. It was a tense few minutes and I was so glad Francis was there. We got the all clear momentarily and then had to seek shelter a second time because the storm was circling back. We found out later that it touched down just across the highway from us. Around 30 homes were reported destroyed/damaged. The rain was pretty extreme, but Francis left anyway and he eventually made it home safely to study. We tried to go back to our meeting, but after a time we had to seek shelter a third time. This time the kids were not with me (I had taken them back to class after having lunch with them). I ran down the hall, grabbed them and we waited. We waited for what seemed like an eternity, When we finally received the all clear the rain had let up slightly. reports were that it was going to continue through the evening so I made the call to try to make it home. The highway was shut down because parts of it were underwater and they were having to do deep water rescues. 18 wheelers were apparently floating away. Crazy stuff. Well, I drove through the rain and had a few close calls. the water was up to the bottom of  my doors a couple times. I crossed two bridges where the water from the river was dead even with the road, but not coming over. I prayed the whole way. There was really no way to turn around. God is good and He allowed me to get home. Not something I would like to repeat any time soon! Other than that the practicum was good and I bought many of the supplies I will need for next year. Kindergarten here we come!

That's it for now!

Thursday, May 19, 2016

May 19, 2016

It's our last week of no plans all Summer. Crazy how things will ramp up next week and not cool down until September. Granted they will all be fun things and we will try not to be to busy, but we have at least one (fun) thing to do each week from here on out. This week we kind have been winging it. We've been to the children's museum, the library and even shopping at Walmart. All's relatively quiet here, which is a nice change of pace.

I am surprised Hannah has not taken her first step yet. She is capable, but either leans while standing so you'll catch her, holds onto something to walk around, or stands there for a while smiling at you, sits down and crawls to you. It almost happened night before last, but she grabbed onto Francis mid-step so we didn't count it. She'll get there and we won't rush her. But I do know we are close. Hannah has also turned into an avid climber. She can get on almost anything. She loved getting on the boys' little picnic table and then calling for me because she can't get down. Yesterday she found a way to get onto the kitchen table without assistance. Francis and I were just talking when William said, "uh mom!" and I turned around to see Hannah in the middle of the table laughing. Silly girl. She also likes climbing up on this portable toy tool cart and having the boys push her around. I'm glad that thing is sturdy! She also loved chewing on shoes so if you come in my house, beware! I love her quirkiness and every though. She's a keeper!

Robert has been asserting his opinions much more lately. He will mostly only wear his superhero flip flops when we go out. He only wants to wear shirts with capes until he runs out during the week. He knows what snack he wants and when he wants it. He wants to do most everything himself. He's not pushy or ugly about it, and he's pretty agreeable even when I try to help and he doesn't want it. Yesterday at the Children's museum he got it in his head that he wanted to go tot he potty by himself and that he needed to lock the stall to do it. That part was all well and good except he couldn't unlock the door. Not wanting to ask for help, he tried for a bit before William climbed under the stall to release him. "Tank you" Robert said. "Are you going to lock the door next time?" I asked. "YEP!" Oh that boy! He also has been getting ever more elaborate at his dinner table prayers. Last night after thanking God for all of the family members, he thanked Him for Batman and Superman also. It was pretty stinkin' cute. He's also so generous with his stuff. Someone commented on Robert's generosity and William fully agreed adding, "yeah he is, but me...not so much."

William is getting ready to be a five year old and a Kindergartner, and both are ever present on his mind. He has all sorts of ideas of what life will be like. I hope it lives up to his expectations. We have officially signed him up for Classical Conversations at our church next year which will more or less cover his history, science and music for kindergarten. He'll have at least one of his friends in his class, and he is very excited. I am still mulling over the math, reading, and writing curriculum I would like to use, but I have narrowed it down. This journey scares me to pieces, but I know I'm doing the right thing homeschooling next year. I see a lot of myself in William. He even eats all of the "crunchies" out of his cereal to save the best ( the marshmallows) for last. He likes to go last during reading time at nap and bedtime because it gives him longer to anticipate his book being read. I'm hoping our similarities will help and not hinder us next year. He's a sweet boy and I love watching him...all of them...learn.

That's it for now. Duty calls!

Thursday, May 12, 2016

May 12, 2016

It was a great Mother's Day weekend. Saturday My in-laws picked up the Kids and me (Francis was studying for finals), and we went to Blessington Farms after having lunch with Cyndy, Chris and Abby. The kids had a blast at the farm trying out everything. They even got to hold chickens, pet goats and sheep and see peacocks and camels. We came back from Houston in time for dinner with Francis so we had a Mother's Day dinner with Francis's parents. She is a great mom and grandmother, and definitely worth celebrating.

Mother's day morning I awoke to chocolate chip pancakes, cards and a gift: a 4 TB hard drive. Before you go thinking anything, I asked Francis for the drive to store pictures. He did good, and I'm please to have a place to put pictures again. We went to church where I had nursery duty and then I was treated to lunch at McAlister's. We attempted to have nap time (where I at least got to lay down for a bit) and then went out to wash the car in the rain (which was more fun than it sounds I promise!). We finished off the day by getting Icees, Layne's chicken and having family movie night at home. A successful day!!!

Not much to report this week. Things have been quiet. Francis has been studying for his Qualifiers at the end of May. Since none of our Summer stuff starts up until June, we are just chilling around town.

That's it really. Short and sweet.

Friday, May 6, 2016

May 6, 2016

It's been a relatively quiet week with a few notable exceptions.

Friday evening we (Francis, the kids and I) headed to Dallas to surprise Danielle as we knew a special event was to take place the following day. We had a late dinner with my parents and then got to climb in the spa tub which had been warmed up to a comfortable 92 degrees for all to enjoy. The boys and Hannah loved swimming, Francis enjoyed the more chilly swimming pools, and I loved how it felt on my achy back. Saturday after breakfast, the boys got a haircut, after which mom, Hannah and I went shopping for party decorations. We got some super cute stuff! We met up with Francis and the boys, Dad, Christian and her family at BJs for an early Mother's Day lunch. Mom got her presents and we got a picture of everyone (minus Danielle who was having her own adventure with Kevin). We then all headed back to the house and feverishly decorated. Danielle and Kevin finally showed up at my parents' house, Kevin proposed, and then we suprised Danielle with an engagement party! That's right, Danielle is going to be a Mrs.! I am so happy for them both and will pray for them as they take this next step toward each other and Christ! The party was amazing and after food, pictures, and more swimming, we finally all called it a night. So. Much. Fun.

Sunday morning, Francis, the kids and I hurried back to College Station and made it to William's AWANAS ceremony with 3 minutes to spare. He got his award, and then we went into the church parking lot for music, food, and bounce houses to celebrate. It was a fun but completely exhausting day! William is so excited for his summer to start. I'm just amazed he has already completed Cubbies and will be a Spark next year!

Robert is learning what is means to obey this week. Although his "listening ears" seem to have been "broken" a lot this week, I do think he is getting better. He's such a joker and so cute; he thinks he can get away with anything. I gotta keep an eye on that cute little pistol. Hopefully he will find a way to use his powers for good!

Hannah is so so close to walking. She stood up on Monday leaned toward me, toughed me with two fingers and then stepped toward me. Almost there! She stands up and pushes her walker around the room like it's the easiest thing in the world. She's getting pretty fast and I think she's even intentionally rammed the boys a couple of times though I have no proof. The pictures from he photo session last week turned out like a dream. She is looking less and less like a baby and more like a girl all the time. Soon she'll be a toddler.

Duty calls!

Thursday, April 28, 2016

April 28, 2016

Well, as of Sunday, Summer will have officially come to the Phillips house. We finished MOMs last Thursday and finished Bible study on this Tuesday. William finished his second AWANAS book on Sunday and will have his awards ceremony on this coming Sunday. We told him that is when he will "officially" graduate pre-K and then there is a party following with inflatables and activities to kick off the summer. It's going to be great!

Hannah turned 9 months on Sudnay. AH! That was fast. She had her check up today and is long and lean with a big smart brain (29.5 inches and 18lbs respectively). She's did great and didn't even cry when they pricked her finger for a small blood draw. Big girl! She's crawling all over, standing and pushing the walker around like a champ. Any time now she'll surprise us with that first little step. I'm so happy to have been blessed with her! She has started to say "momma" just as much as she says brother, but mostly when she's mad or upset. I hope this is not a foreshadowing of things to come. She's happy to be around people and loves her teacher at church: Ms. Wilma. Each day is a new adventure! We did Hannah's nine month photos at my friend Robin's house. Hannah gave Robin a run for her money by not wanting to stay in place for photos. I'm sure we got a couple of cute ones though despite Hannah's best effort to crawl off.

Robert moved up rooms at church. He did great and likes his new teachers. Having been up at church a lot, he knows most of the of the workers, so he wasn't much of a change really. More than one of them tells me how he is always so sweet. With mother's day coming up, they asked him why he loved his mom (for a project) and his answer, "mommy feeds me, plays with me....just because!" Melt my heart. He tells me he loves me all the time. So stinkin cute! He has got a great imagination too. His favorite game lately to to pretend he has "robot arms" or to build robots out of legos and play with them. A future engineer, maybe? Inventor? Time will tell!

William has had a fascination with math this week (nothing new)...specifically with multiplication. He's been asking Francis and me all sorts of multiplication questions and mulling over the answers. I turned the tables on him on Tuesday. "Hey William, What's 2 times 2." "4" I assumed he was answering like it was 2 plus 2 as he is very good at addition and subtraction. "Okay, what's one times one." "It's one mommy. Anything times itself is that number." I looked a little shocked, but kept going. "What's 3 times 3?" He didn't answer right away so I left to help Robert with something but when I returned he had on an impish smile. "9!" he said without hesitation. I asked him how he did it and he told me that he did three 3s on his hands and then counted. I asked him to do 4 times 4 and he used his toes, but came up with the right answer. Turns out he can do any multiplication problem up to five times four because then "I run out of fingers and toes".  He can also multiply any number by zero or one and can multiply by 10 up to 100. Who knew? I'm amazed. Truly amazed.

I think that's it for now. Till next time!

Wednesday, April 20, 2016

April 20, 2016

Last weekend was Parent Dedication. What is that? It's where parents' dedicate themselves to raising a child (baby) by continually seeking after Christ and following His lead. some call it baby dedication, but not Central.

My parents came in on Saturday. We met them for lunch at Chuy's the kids were delighted to see Sweetie and Papa! After lunch the men took the boys back to the house and my mom and I went shopping with Hannah for a new dress for me. We got new clothes for everyone (except poor Hannah who already had an amazing dress that we just couldn't top). My dress was striped navy and white with a pink belt and we even found shoes to go with it. Hannah was a trooper. I don't get as much time with my mom as I'd like, so this was a special treat. We all had dinner at Grub Burger out on the patio. The weather was just perfect and the company also.

Sunday we all got dressed and headed to church. In addition to my parents, Cyndy, Chris and Abby came up to see the dedication. I'm so happy they did. Hannah wore the cutest petal dress that went from white at the top to dark pink on the bottom. She got many compliments on it. The boys and Hannah were great while we were on stage and only got a little goofy once the service was over and we tried to take pictures. we got a gorgeous family Bible and they prayed over us. It was a special time. Everyone had lunch at BJs to celebrate (with a "kid" end of the table and an adult end). There was laughter and the love there was palpable. I'm so thankful for times like these. Everyone came back to the house. Abby and the boys played a bit before the Boergers and my parents had to head out. I was a little sad to see them go, but its hard to be sad when your heart is so full. Thank you God for family. Especially mine. 

Tomrrow is our last MOMs meeting of the year, and William's last ever. He finished "PreK" on Friday and he so excited to start Kindergarten. He keeps talking about what he will do when he's in kindergarten and gets to move over from the preschool building to the children's building at church. We've been praying a lot about what to do with him next year and it looks like I will be joining the ranks of Home school moms. Our church is starting a Classical Conversations group and I feel a tug at my heart that this is where we will be next year. I still have to decide on and order separate literacy and math material, but baby steps! It will all come into place in His time. 

Robert is still loving his Batman. My mom got him another batman shirt (and William a superman one) so he can now be Batman every day but Sunday (gotta draw the line somewhere). I'm sure the fascination will wear off but for now if I  mention batman, I can get him to do almost anything ("I bet batman would eat his vegetables"). Honestly, it's pretty cute.  

Francis got done a little early yesterday and took us out for dinner to Blue Baker. The boys were super excited, and we had a great time as a family. We had to rush to William's skating lesson without dropping Robert, Hannah and me off though, and yet by the grace of God I had accidentally left William's jacket in the car so he wasn't cold during his lesson. Robert and Hannah got to play upstairs as we watched William skate. He's gotten faster than me all of a sudden. I'm amazed!

I promise this life over here is not all sunshine and rainbows, but I do try to put mostly good stuff on here because that is what I want to choose to remember. Till next time! 

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

April 11, 2016

It's been a full week and a half.

Sunday before last, Kristi, Gershom, and their three girls came to stay at our house for most of the week. Other than Tuesday during the day and Thursday morning, we hung out with this delightful family! Gershom had a conference on A&M campus, so he and Francis carpooled each day. Momday Kristi and I took all the kids to PetSmart. Then we went to lunch at Chick-fil-a and saw the ever sweet and fun Audrey Brower. the kids played and the ladies got to talk a bit. After a nap and some play at home, we walked with the kids to a nearby park. The walk was warm, but the kids had a blast. We all went out to Dinner in the college station favroite: Double Dave's. The kids had fun eating all the pizza, but especially the dessert pizza. When we finally got the kids to bed, the adults played Settler's of Catan. And I actually won!

Tuesday the kids and I had bible Study and a quiet afternoon, but when everyone arrived home it was a joyous reunion. The boys had very much missed the girls. It was so cute! That night Kristi and Gershom taught us how to play Eucher (sp?). We laughed so hard I'm amazed we didn't wakt the kids. Wednesday Kristi and I took all the kids to the Children's museum here and then out for a picnic lunch. After a brief resting period, we went back out to find a place to do bluebonnet pictures. We were unsuccessful, but we did have fun in Research park and hanging around with some friendly ducks and turtles. One funny thing happened. While we there a man in uniform came up and said, "Don't be alarmed, but some men are about to come through here with fake guns." Sure enough we turned around about 3 dozen men from the corps were in their fatigues carrying weapons. They had just finished their war games and were heading back. The kids thought it was super cool. I'm just glad they warned us! WE finished off the night by all going to Blue Baker and meeting up with our husbands, Tracy and Dave Brower and their kids. The gang was reunited and we all agreed at the end that it had been too long. We are so blessed that God had put such sweet friends in our lives!

Thursday after my moms meeting, The kids and I met up with Tracy, Kristi and their kids at a nearby park for a picnic. We tried to soak in every last minute of them being here. Kristi, Gershom and the kids were gracious enough to stay for dinner (I made tacos) before heading back to Ft Worth. The kids all said fond farewells, and we hope to see them again in July. We could not have asked for better house-guests!

Friday, the kids and I went on a field trip to a hospital where we took a tour or an ambulance and a helicopter. The kids got to look at all the equipment in the ambulance. William got strapped into the board they use to transport people, we saw the helicopter land, and then all the kids (even Hannah) got to sit in the pilots seat. It is not a day they will soon forget. Friday night was Junction (parent's night out). After dropping off the kids at church, Francis took me to Luigi's and we had a delightful time. Somehow we got off on the topic of our honeymoon, and together we recounted all we could remember from it. Each of us had memories the other had forgotten. We had ice cream from Sonic before heading back. I love this man I married.

Saturday William had his next hockey lesson and the Francis took the boys to A&M for a science exhibition. They had a great time and came back with all sorts of stories. Hannah and I went dress shopping with Audrey, and although we had fun I did not end up with a dress.

This week we've been getting back into the routine. The school year is almost over, and I'm sad to see it end. Summer promises new joys and challenges, but I will feel better when we've nailed down what we are going to do in the fall.

William's last week of "school" is this week. He will finish both his books on Friday and I'm sad to see "pre-k" come to an end. He's excited though and who can blame him! He is reveling in the excitement of growing up. He is a delight to my heart and seeing him grow and change gives me a glimpse into how the Father sees us.

Robert is fully in the "me-do" stage. He also likes his privacy. He is pretty much in full time underwear and take himself to the potty. If I barge in when he's going, he kicks me out and tells me to close the door. If only he could give me the same courtesy! I am so thankful for his laughter and silliness. He makes each day more joyful!

Hannah is standing independently now. I think she learned it from Elliana (who is a year old) last week. On Wednesday I turned and she was just standing there holding a toy in her hand and grinning big as day. "When did you learn to do that?" I asked. She just sat down and went on about her business. She's done it a few times since and thinks it is hilarious. she is also getting good at using the push walker instead of the one she sits in. I foresee first independent steps before I know it! Thank you God for her and her infectious energy!

I think that's all for now!