Nathaniel and Dogs: August 2016

Friday, August 26, 2016

Happy Shoppers

Seth and Joel love the car carts . . . even though they are nearly impossible to steer. The pictures of the twins look a little funny, because Seth is scrunched up in his seat and Joel isn't. Although it looks like Joel is bigger than Seth, they are almost exactly the same size. Their weight is usually a tenth of an ounce difference. And height usually the same.

The first week of school, I took the little boys to the gym. When I came to pick them up, they were playing together. Joel saw me and started to run over happily saying "Mama" in his excited voice, but he stopped quickly. He turned around and ran over to Seth and sweetly said "Seth, Seth." He tapped Seth on the shoulder until Seth saw me also. Then they came running over together. It just melted my heart.

Joel wearing Daddy's glasses

First Day of School

I can't believe we made it here already - the first day of first grade! Nathaniel even combed his hair all by himself. The shocking thing is we had to wake Nathaniel up at 6:45 and the little boys were still asleep until 7. This never happened all summer. Just the first day of school. Go figure. :)

And look at how tall he is compared to last year!!! And Will did not get to cut his hair this year. :)

Here's a shot from Meet the Teacher last week:

I know it's going to be a great year! He's had a great week so far, and LOVES his teacher. I'm so happy for him.

End of Summer Fun

We tried to do a few fun things the last week before school. Will and I took all 3 boys to the aquarium, which was a blast. Seth was really enthusiastic about everything. Joel wasn't as excited, but I think he was tired that day (and teething). Seth loved to watch the sea lions swim overhead. As soon as we got home, they started saying some new words - "turtle," "shark," and "whale." I feel like their vocabulary is really exploding. Seth will take my hand and lead me to the closet and ask for "toys." I will ask if he wants something, and he usually tells me no. Yesterday he told me he wanted "puzzles."

Cuddled up and watching the Olympics together

At the Children's Museum (Ginny and Seth)

Joel

Nathaniel especially had a good time on our little outings. I'm glad we got to do some fun things together before school starts again!

Monday, August 8, 2016

Mimi's Visit

Mimi came to visit last week. It was so much fun to get out of the house, despite the heat. We also went swimming a couple of times and visited an indoor playground, but I didn't get a picture of any of those trips.

Sidewalk Paint

Seth

N and Joel

Seth and N

Tea Party

We removed the high chairs . . . which have been a staple in our kitchen for over a year. The boys are now in booster seats. It's kind of hard to believe!

Best Friends

The boys have been so sweet to each other lately. Joel started calling Seth "Sef" this week. If Seth isn't in the same room, then Joel runs looking for him yelling "Sef!" Seth hasn't mastered Joel's name, but he calls him "Baby." That's what they were calling each other until Joel starting calling Seth by name this week.

Somehow their bond seems to have strengthened. They pat each other, and hug each other if they are upset. It's so sweet. Of course they still love Nathaniel. They give him hugs in the morning, and get upset if he leaves to go somewhere. If he cries they love on him and comfort him. Nathaniel continues to talk about how much he likes being a big brother. I'm so proud of him for how much he loves his brothers.

The little boys are also having a language explosion. They are repeating a lot of words that I say, especially when we are reading books. I have heard them say "teacher" and "trash truck" today. Other new words are "cookie" and "night-night" and "tree" and "car track" and "peaches."