Three months

Miriam is three months old. Smiley and sweet and social. She learned to giggle, but things are only funny once to her. So don't count on a repeat laugh, as often as you try. She seems to be settling into a pattern and rhythm. She is so loved, it's unbelievable. She snuggles. She sleeps okay (but is growing, so that sleep is a bit compromised recently). Her naps are improving. She weighs 13 pounds to the ounce. Her eyes won't decide on their color, although blue seems the most predominant. She found her hands. I think it is so funny when she just stares at her fist. She is grabbing things and is as uncoordinated about it as most babies are at this age. I love the "misses" when she tries for something and her hands snap together with nothing between them.

Someone didn't want to be left out of the "I'm three months old" pictures.

And wanted his own. I guess we'll call this, "I'm three and a half years old." Because he is. He turned 3 1/2 on Sammy's birthday. Their birthdays are six months apart to the day.

Six!

Sammy turned six this month. Last year, when being 5 years old was pretty shiny, I made him promise to turn five again this year. I thought I could have this five year old unchanged for two years - you know, pickle him for awhile.

I love watching our children grow up. Children are delightful (and other things, of course). Every year, I still love them dearly, and the new year brings new treasured times with them. But there is something about looking at your child and knowing the way they say those words, their mannerisms, even the cells in their body are being gradually replaced. Sure, it is the same soul in the changing body. But I know I'll never see that particular child again other than in digital form.

I have a dear older friend and mentor who says she misses those days when all her children were under one roof and she could provide what they needed and know that they were safe. I know I'll miss these years, too. I already do, really.

And this little guy who requested a candy cake and had his candles blown out before the song was over (before they had even been lit long enough to show their "magic" and relight) - he holds a special place in my heart. Happy Birthday, Samuel!

As a side note: here's a great way to be able to entertain your baby sister when your mom won't let you hold her.

She likes it.

Look!

It's a girl! I'm not used to talking about "my daughter", and the newness hasn't worn off a bit. She is three months old now, and we adore her. Silas calls her "Mim". So the boys have taken to that little nickname as well, in spite of the fact that Silas insists that he is saying "Miriam".

We are so thankful for her.

A little school

We have a homeschool co-op of four families which meets twice a month to do science experiments and geography. We really enjoy each family. We moms take turns handling each section, making for a nice break.

For geography, we are moving continent by continent. At the end of every unit, each child must present a report on something of their choice from the continent studied. It's been a really good experience for them to be in front of a small crowd.

Sammy's first report was a laugh. Literally. That's all he did. He giggled and barely said anything about the Indonesian houses he had studied. As a mom, it was all I could do to keep myself in my seat and not go "help" him. I silently suffered, pretending he was in a classroom and had to fend for himself a bit. I wanted to avoid what I think is a disadvantage of homeschooling; Mommy always being there to assist you. I try to be quite unhelpful now and then.

Sammy chose the Alps for his second report when we covered Europe. He loved painting his prop. And he did a fine job actually giving the report. We were proud of him for working so hard on what he was going to say. It was a big improvement. Of course, he didn't have far to go to improve from his previous laughfest!

Eli's European report was on Spain. His favorite things to tell about were their enormous annual tomato fight and the Running of the Bulls. He must be a boy. Like Sammy, he did much better the second time around.

Jake chose Austria. Being in fifth grade, he had a little more work to do and complained nearly every step of the way. From the research and notetaking to the rough and final draft writing and finally the practicing of giving the actual report, he realized just how much work goes into a full report. He almost bailed at the last second and then fully enjoyed it. I don't have a picture because his report was a size that could be saved. That's my way of getting rid of salt dough maps and other unwieldy projects: take a picture.

Miriam's job is to be an appreciate audience. But I just deleted her picture by accident. I'll pop it in next time.

Do you see what I see?

I guess it was only a matter of time. And not that much time, apparently. Would someone please tell me where young boys find beetles in the dead of winter? This picture was taken at the beginning of January. I wanted to be horrified. But what can you do? At least they didn't feed it to her.