Teeth, Transformers, and a Time for Giving Thanks

Proud Eli showing off his gigantic hole in his mouth compliments to losing his 1st tooth



Chinese tradition...placing the top tooth on the roof on your house

Can you believe this little tooth of mine was in my mouth?

This is how big I want my pumpkins mouth to be!

The guts....ewww! I remember when Eli would refuse to touch the inside of a pumpkin.

Our two Captain America's....two more costumes to add to their collection.

Captain America meets Optimise Prime and Bumble Bee

Can you believe its Santa?!?!

Thanksgiving speech..so proud of our little boy!

What a busy month the end of October and November has been! Rob officially earned his way off of FTO (field training officer aka riding around with another deputy.  He was able to bring his patrol car home...needless to say, the boys were beyond thrilled to check out his car. I am so proud of him and his accomplishments as this has been a lifelong dream of his.

Eli has had a whirl-wind month a half.  His adhd medication seem to be lagging in certain areas.  His 1st grade teacher has been so incredibly helpful to getting him back on track after his kindergarten year.  At times, there seemed to be a lot of pressure on him and he was resisting..creating a little boy that refused to complete any work at school.  This three week (not totally under control but incredible improved) period was tough on everyone.  We were considering holding him back in 1st grade (I know its early in the school year, but I never realized how many academic strategies he missed out on).  There may come a time that he needs academic support in the resource room due to his development concerns...then mix his adhd into the scenario!  Whatever it takes for our little guy to succeed will be worth it...this has taken me awhile to accept! During this time, we also had parent-teacher conferences.  Granted, I have had my share of conferences, but its totally crazy when your the parent instead of the teacher.  I found myself thinking...man, I really wish I could see a hidden camera to watch him in class because this is such a different kiddo than I am used to having at home! His teacher has made it a mission to help him become successful.  She gets him. Understands him. Loves him. Tears are welling in my eyes as I type this because a week later, we received the most awful news.  His teacher had passed away, taken from this earth far too early.  God must have needed a very special angel in heaven, because he received one amazing, caring, and understanding lady. I don't think a day has done by that I haven't thought about her children and grandchildren. May God look over her family and all the students hearts that she has touched, literally changed forever. One last assignment that she had assigned the students was to create a speech about their Thanksgiving.  Those of you that know me, realize how adventurous our Thanksgivings Thankmas' used to be...the entire fam at the casino for what would always be an amazing time. Getting back to the assignment...we I was struggling with this assignment..Thanksgiving just isn't the same as when we lived in Michigan. Dad and Eli created the pre-planning sheet, then the poster that was used as a prop.  After several days of practicing, it was the big day. His poster was one of the only ones that didn't have adult assistance...he drew every picture and wrote every word.  We were so proud of him! His presentation went great...just needs to work on projecting his voice. Way to go, Eli!!!

Little man Jace has finally started growing...two inches since April.  This is a huge feat for him as he doesn't have height on his side! Along with his growth spurt, he has become the little chatter box. Even daycare told me the other day that they remember when Jace was so complacent (umm..scary) and rarely spoke...not anymore! He rambles his day away, which is great as his speech has also began to improve.  We continue to work on the letters b, f, s, and several others...everything with time.  Something else that has also grown on him is his stubborn and sassyness...whoa he can give you a run for your money.  He and his daycare buddy got in trouble for calling another daycare friend a baby...not just once but over and over. What a little stinker he can be. On the other hand, his ability to be an absolute goofball has also increased.  There will be times that he will just start laughing and dancing around the house. His laughter is so contagious! He has the most amazing expressions. He loves to go to school...everyday, he asks if it is a backpack day! Then on Mondays, he has a speech class that he attends at night. This is an interesting class as some of the people that attend the class...well, let's just say I would move to the other side of the road if I were to see them walking down the road...yeah, hibby jibbies!!