Sebastian Time

I am never eager for the children to go back to school in the Fall. I love having them home. I love that they have plenty of time to play together and let their imaginations run wild. I love that our evenings are full of swimming and picnics and movie nights, instead of going through papers, practicing spelling lists and helping with homework and last-minute projects. I love that our mornings are laid-back and stress-free--no food to pack, special clothes or gym shoes to wear, or show-and-tell objects to remember.

So, imagine my surprise when I discovered that I really do love having them in school too! Now they are getting a bit older, they can remember our routine better without having to be constantly reminded, some of them can even tie their own shoes, and, best of all, they are all excited to go learn and have fun! What I didn't anticipate was how fun it would be to have solo time with Sebastian. That first week of school I put on the Wiggles for him to watch and he really loved it! I realized then that his TV experiences had always been for the older kids. In fact our whole daily routine had been for them. It has been so nice to focus on this developing little almost-2-year-old. It has also been thoroughly enjoyable to have a 2-3 hour nap time block in the afternoon to attack projects that are normally too far down the list to get to--like organizing my pantry, switching out the kids' summer and winter clothes, organizing the kids' school papers from last year into memory albums, or cleaning out my own closet.

One day I organized a trip out to a local farm with a bunch of other mothers from church. Sebastian really enjoyed the animals, and couldn't get enough of the old farm tractors!

We have made all the other kids jealous by going to the gym to swim with Sandy a couple times. Sebastian loves this so much that he frequently bursts into adorable little happy dances while playing in the water.

We also started going to a little storytime at the library. They do a couple little stories and songs for the little ones and then bring out some toys to play with. The librarian remembers their names and does a great job preparing. She can't carry a tune at all (not even row, row, row your boat!), but the little ones don't mind in the least. :)

We have had gorgeous autumn weather and this little guy is never happier than when we can play outside.

 I love waking up happy to start another great day! I guess that's a sign that life is good. :)

Back To School

We love waiting till after Labor Day to start school here in Michigan. It gives us a chance to soak up more of the gorgeous late-summer sunshine. After getting back from our camp-out, the kiddos, with Emma's persuasive influence, decided to have a lemonade/popsicle stand and toy sale. It kept them busy all day and many of our neighbors came out to support them, so they felt it was a great success. At the end of the day one neighbor invited us all to swim in their new pool--a perfect way to end our last day of summer.

The next day everyone was very excited for their 1st day back to school!

Since our elementary school is K-6, this year I have all 5 of these cuties at the same school. This will be the only time this happens so I plan to savor this all year. Emma started 6th grade, Maya and Isabelle are in 2nd, Tristan is in 1st and Alex began Kindergarten. Alex was very excited, but nervous too. It was very nice to have all his siblings to give him the lowdown, especially because he has the same teacher Tristan had last year.

Sandy and Robert came over to watch Sebastian while I went over to be with Alex, so they were able to see them all off at the bus stop.

 Alex got on the bus for the first time with the others, then I got Sebastian situated with Sandy and Robert and I headed over to meet him at the school.

He beat me there and was herded with the other Kindergartners into the gym. This was scary for him as he thought I would be there when he got off the bus. :(  I found him sitting by two boys from our neighborhood, looking very worried.

We went over and greeted his teacher and the principal did a little presentation. By the time they had to line up to go to their classrooms, he was happy and confident once again (with genuine smiles).

Oh my, this little boy definitely owns a piece of my heart! He is such a tender, loving son.

The first day of school was just a half-day, so they were all home for lunch. It was with great relief that I listened to everyone's excited and happy accounts of their first day, including Alex. Now that he had faced the scary unknown, he was thrilled with all the new friends and fun things they were going to be doing. All Kindergarten classes in the state of Michigan are now full-day, so the next day he got to eat lunch in the cafeteria too. He was also very excited that all the Kindergarten classes have ipads now with special math and language arts programs, where the kids log-in and work at their own level. Tristan did not think it was fair that he didn't have ipads last year in Kindergarten. :)

Pinery Camping Trip

Our camping trip got off to a bit of a rough start this year. We were scheduled to leave at Noon on Wednesday. Sebastian had been struggling with a really bad diaper rash for the past few days, so while we were loading up in the morning we let him run around diaper-less. This is the best way to let a little's ones skin heal. Usually I wait till they've filled a diaper and then let them run free for a bit to avoid any accidents. Unfortunately, Sebastian's digestive track seemed to be on overdrive and we were kept busy cleaning up his poop and pee in the midst of our packing.

We had been working toward refinancing our home, and it came through just in time--before our interest rate lock expired. Unfortunately this also meant that we had to fit this document signing appointment into our morning as well. The great part was that with Quicken Loans they come right to your house for this.

Finally we got everything and everyone loaded in the Suburban. Poor Sebastian was crying because it was an hour or so past his nap time. I went inside to get our passports as the campground is across the border in Canada. We always keep them in the same place, but, of course, they were not there. After looking for 10 minutes I honestly started to panic. All our planning and preparation would be for nothing if we couldn't find these documents. I went out to tell the kids what was going on. Luckily Sebastian had fallen asleep. Emma suggested we say a prayer to ask for help. She did and then I went back inside. Within a minute of going in Jeff called down that he had found them, buried under a pile of things in our closet! I never would have found them there, and I have never been so grateful for divine intervention!

We hopped in the car and...
...the car won't start!

Sebastian had been playing in the driver's seat while we had been loading up and the lights had been left on. Thankfully we had jumper cables in our other car and could jump the battery. Needless to say we were all VERY relieved to be on our way.

This year three other families were joining us at the Pinery. Unfortunately one of them got stuck at the Canadian border and had to turn back. They hadn't remembered to check their passport expiration dates, and one was expired. We were very sad they couldn't make it. :(

We had a great time with the Jensens and the Jensons though! We had planned ahead and took turns with some of the meals, so it was really nice to cook less and enjoy everyone's food! The first night we just did a hotdog/bratwurst roast.




 
Camping wouldn't be the same without our hammocks! All the kids love them. Too bad Jeff and I don't get to use them more! :)  This year the three girls were in their own tent next to our giant one. They loved it!

In the morning we all couldn't wait to head for the beach on Lake Huron. After breakfast we packed up a picnic lunch and hiked over the sand dunes. I love the spectacular first glimpse of the lake.

 We live in such a beautiful world!

This beach is the main reason we come here to camp. It is so beautiful and we spent most of the next 3 days enjoying it.

 Sebastian LOVES the water! He kept putting his face in over and over again.

 These beaches are not crowded!

 This year we brought an inflatable boat and tube. They were a hit!

 All the dads worked with the kids to make this cool sand castle.

 Lunchtime!

 Jeff created this neat balance beam that was challenging for most of the kids.

 Sebastian managed to fit in a nap in the backpack.

Back at the campsite the kids found a number of huge caterpillars. Sebastian was enchanted!

 

We certainly enjoyed lots of good food!

We all had campsites right by each other, so once all the kids were tucked in we could sit around the campfire and visit with our friends. There's nothing like good company and a crackling campfire!

Fun August Family Videos

One of Sebastian's favorite games:

These three came up with this performance all on their own and we had to make the music for them.

There's nothing better than a little one's laugh!

It didn't take long for this 1-year-old to figure out the scooter.


Isabelle's 7th birthday


My good little swimmers!


And my littlest swimmer: