Puggles and Cubbies



We're about a month into Awana - and things are going so well!  Jeremiah knows the routine but his Cubbies class has grown quite a bit - I think there are 25 kids in his class.  Thankfully, there are at least 5 teachers.  He has a lot of friends in class from last year and also from Mops.  He's determined to get a teddy bear this year (that means he has to memorize every verse from his book!) and he's extremely motivated with that, so we're working hard on his verse every week. 

Sarah is warming up to Puggles.  This last class she didn't cry when she was dropped off (Shawn took her to class - maybe that's why) but she even told a teacher "I'm not crying today!"  She also didn't use her blankie, which she normally clings to for dear life.  I'm already noticing a difference in her vocabulary - she is trying to speak more clearly, since I think the teachers can't understand her like Shawn or I do.  So she's trying harder to pronounce her words correctly, which I love!  She also has several friends from Mops in her class, too.  

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Seriously, how cute are they!?!?  Man, I love these kids and I'm loving how much fun they are as they grow.  I haven't really updated on them in awhile, so here goes!

Jeremiah:  4 years and 3 months-ish.  So.  The attitude has kicked in full force with him.  See that face he's making?  Yeah, well, imagine seeing that face 10000 or so times a day, along with crossed arms, stomping feet, and the words "NO!" being yelled at you.  That's kinda sort of what I'm dealing with right now.  Don't get me wrong, he can still be the sweetest, most amazing little boy...but if he doesn't like what you tell him to do, he isn't shy about letting you know! 

He's doing fantastic at preschool.  Every day he comes home with a good report from the teacher - he's the first to help clean up, the first to listen, and is very obedient.  They really seem to like him.  He's becoming less shy, too - the other day he stood in front of his class and talked about fire safety.  It was so surprising (I avoid speaking in front of groups like the plague!)

He also started Cubbies again and was so happy to be back.  We're also back at Mops, so he's loving seeing all his friends again. 

He can spell his first and last name out loud, but he can't write it.  He knows all his letters (upper and lower case) and we're working on days of the week/months of the year.  He loves his calendar - when he gets home from school with a sticker (almost every day) he puts it on that date on the calendar.  

He's obsessed with hopping on one foot.  That's his preferred mode of moving right now.  It's funny but also SO. SLOW!

He's still small - I think 40.5" and 34lbs.  He's grown 1/2" since his birthday, which is pretty impressive! Still skinny, though. 

Sarah: 2 1/2 years!  (WHAT??)  She's also something else.  She's talking SO MUCH.  A lot of it is toddler-speak still, but she's getting clearer and clearer by the day.  She uses 3-5 word sentences and as her vocabulary grows, her tantrums are lessening.  That doesn't mean she won't have them, they're just less often!  She still likes getting what she wants right now, of course.  She's also very 'into' babies, dolls, etc.  She likes to put her dolls 'to fweep' (sleep) and cover them with a blanket, give them kisses, and then leave them for a moment.  She also carries her animals or dolls like babies.  It's really sweet and adorable!

She is in Puggles, which is the 2 year old version of Cubbies.  She really likes it so far, and I hope she continues to enjoy it.  I know they talk about Jesus, that's about all I can get out of her. 

She loves dancing, singing, and music, so I'm searching for a fun class to take with her while J's at school.  I found some classes in Chandler, which is a drive but I think will be worth it.  I also forget that she's not three yet, I don't know why...she just seems so much older than Jeremiah did at 2 1/2.    She's starting to fight her naps, which I'm not thrilled about, but with the cooler weather coming, it opens up a lot of fun possibilities!

Sarah continues to grow like a weed.  She's grown 2" since her birthday - now is 38.5" tall and 37lbs. 

I get asked a lot if the kids are twins, because they're so similar in size and now that Sarah's talking more they could be, I suppose.  It's funny - she still looks so baby-faced to me and Jeremiah looks so big, but I guess that's just a Mom's perspective :)

So that's about it in the Roland house!  



The first day of preschool...

Yesterday was Jeremiah's first day of school.  PRESCHOOL, of course (as he insists it be called).  He goes three days a week for about 3 hours at a time.  He was more than ready to go - so excited, and not nervous or anxious one bit.  Of course, I worried if he'd be afraid, not knowing anyone, but at his age everyone is a potential friend.  I wish I was more like that! 

We all had to take photos with Jeremiah, now preschooler Jeremiah!

All morning I couldn't stop thinking about what he looked like when he was a baby, and of course it made me cry.  It's gone by so fast!

Sarah had to take a photo with her big brother!

This is his main teacher, Miss Merkle.  She's very sweet!  (And cool - she has her nose pierced!)

When I went to pick him up, he was listening to a book being read. Instead of running to me, like I thought he would, he stayed in his spot and listened to the rest of the story.  He also told me he got stickers for helping clean up and 'doing the right thing.'  He said he was a 'five star listener' but then later said that he wasn't told that.  Other than that, he enjoyed preschool - he did make one friend, who looks like his friend Seth, but didn't know his new friend's name.  I'm really, really proud of him!  Pretty soon, Cubbies will start (and Sarah will be in Puggles!) and then we'll have MOPs starting, too!

Interview with a Pre-Preschooler

Jeremiah starts preschool on Monday!  I cannot believe it.  He's very excited and I'm excited too.  And a little sad.  We'll see who cries first on Monday.  Stay tuned...

And of course, I have to include a video of Miss Sarah. 

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Sarah loves her big brother so much!


It's gotten hot enough for the splash pad!


Jeremiah loves the water!


Visiting Scooptacular, of course.


Jeremiah found Shawn's pilot headset. He loved it and pretends he's flying a space ship!


Jeremiah also had his awards night for Cubbies! I'm looking forward to next year.

Sarah is definitely an opinionated, smart, sweet, active 2 year old. She loves to help out and actually throws a massive fit if she can't 'help' do something. She loves to cuddle and when you lay her down for bed she'll say: "Forgot kiss!" so you have to give her a kiss, of course...her language is developing so quickly and she speaks pretty well for her age, in my opinion. Her favorite phrase right now is "I go??" - she asks whenever we're discussing a place - any place. We talk about our upcoming vacation to the beach and she says: "Mommy, Daddy, J, Sa-ah, go?" it's really cute.

Jeremiah is hilarious and sweet, yet so strong willed and assertive. He's already got the little back-talking attitude going on, and is so much more a four year old than a three year old. He loves to tell stories and jokes, even if they don't make any sense. He's sensitive and really, really dislikes getting into any sort of trouble. He is a major rule-follower, and, um...makes sure I know when other kids are breaking the rules.

These kids are awesome, we are so lucky they are ours!!

Easter Recap

We had a fantastic Easter celebrating Jesus. I love that Jeremiah 'gets' Easter - if you ask him why we celebrate, he says: "Because Jesus rose from the dead!" It's great.

We went to church in the morning, then headed to Aunt Cher's house for food, swimming and of course...an egg hunt.


There was no chaos here...84 eggs for 4 kids...everyone got plenty of candy!



Hunting!


Munching on candy, of course!



High Five!


A nap on the grass.


Swimming...it was cold but the kids didn't seem to mind.


"I fim Mama!!! Ook Me Mama!!" (translation - "I swim Mama, Look at me, Mama!")


I have more photos, but for some reason, blogger is taking FOREVER to upload them! They are of us killing Peeps :) It was a great Easter.

Wow.

This will be the last time I post about something like this. (And I'm not the least bit sad about it!!)



But this sweet little lady is done with diapers! I couldn't be happier :)

What's next? A bed?!?! I think not!

Guys Weekend!

Jeremiah and Daddy packed up and headed off to California to visit Grandpa Dan this past weekend - it was a guys weekend - "NO GIRLS ALLOWED!" Here are some fantastic photos from their trip:


Before they left Thursday morning - Sarah tried to stowaway in the back!


So happy to see Grandpa Dan!


Playing Air Hockey


Where Jeremiah slept - his fort under the dining room table!

They were heading out to Knott's Berry Farm when this stopped them...(something happened to Shawn's car, so they had to get towed!)

The tow truck! Jeremiah thought this was sooo cool.


He was thrilled to ride in it (he was in his carseat, FYI!)



Then they went to visit some relatives that had chickens!



J was able to help get the eggs.



"I was strong, Mommy, to carry that heavy bucket!"



All that farmwork is exhausting!


Cuddling with Grandpa


My cute guys :)


Last photo with Grandpa Dan!

They got home on Sunday afternoon and Sarah and I were so happy to see them!

Our little Stars

Sarah is clearly destined for the stage:
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And Jeremiah, well, he's something else on the t-ball field!


Sorry the first is so big, I cannot figure out why it does that! We've had a rough week around here. Jeremiah started feeling sick Wednesday evening and has been throwing up off and on (and on me) ever since. He hasn't been sick since last night, though, and ate pretty well this afternoon...so maybe he's over it? *fingers crossed*

Monkey see, monkey do

I know this picture is a little blurry, but it illustrates how much Sarah wants to be like her big brother. He fell and really cut his chin, so we put a band-aid over it to keep it from getting messed with. Sarah followed me around pointing to her chin until she got one, too.

Everything Jeremiah does, she wants to do. And for the most part, Jeremiah tolerates her very well. They've been playing together so nicely, and it's great. Although, sometimes, they don't play so nicely. The other day, Jeremiah came to me and said: "Mommy, Sarah's in my room and I want her to leave!" Already?!?!

It makes parenting a little difficult sometimes. If J gets a regular cup, Sarah wants one too. I have to decide if I want to clean up after her and risk a broken cup (we don't use plastic cups except for sippy cups), or have her whine about wanting one.

The kids are so fun right now, and I'm so happy to see them growing up together! If only they'd stay so close forever.

What we've been up to...

Really, we haven't been up to much of anything! The last few weeks we've gotten sick, I got very sick last week, but now we're all better. Sarah's been walking up a storm and has her first pair of shoes. Jeremiah is cute, as usual, but also infuriating. Shawn is studying up a storm for his CFP exam next month (please pray for him). Our awesome church, Poiema, is currently homeless and searching for a new home, so please pray for us there, too! I think we need to start doing some exciting things so we have fun pictures to post.

What is THAT?!?! It's just hummus! She loves it. Refuses pretty much anything that's on a spoon now, she wants to do it all herself. So, this is what we get. I'm totally okay with it, I looove a self-feeding baby!


Strong girl! She likes to carry anything she can around, usually the heaviest, most awkward thing she can find.


This little goofball loved eating this lemon. He actually ran and grabbed more after he finished this slice.


Just a little Sarah.

The kids

I love them so, so, so much. They crack me up all the time.
Here they are playing on J's Spiderman couch.


Actually got J to sit still for a picture.


We've been skyping with Bubbie. So much fun!




Sarah - current likes: food, any kind. That means baby food, food she can have, food she can't have, food I'm eating, or even if I open the pantry she crawls as fast as she can to get in there. She also loves being around bigger kids, like Jeremiah, loves chewing on objects, eating paper, being held, her mommy, feeding herself, drinking water and spitting it out, yelling at the top of her lungs, doing things she's not supposed to and being an overall klutz, just like her mommy, see the bruise on her forehead?

Current dislikes: Having her clothing or diaper changed (it's like wrestling an alligator!), naptime if she's not ready, sleeping through the night, taking longer than a 2 hr nap, if you take something out of her mouth that she was eating, being put in any childcare, being away from mommy.


Jeremiah - current likes: sleep, the phrases: "Why" "Why Mom" "What" and "What mean" (as in what does that mean?), ignoring requests, milk, goats cheese, running, jumping, somersaults, being tickled, being chased, swinging high on the swings, digging in the sand, playing outside by himself, fixing things, helping mommy (see above), Caillou (Uhhhhhhhhhh) and cuddling.

Current dislikes: using the potty, being told it's time for a nap, being told no, the 'quiet game,' doing things when you ask him to, when you laugh and he's not (he thinks you're laughing at him, I think), getting hurt.

So busy!

Life has been crazy (like I'm sure it is for everyone right now!) Bailey turned 3...


Sarah's top 2 teeth popped through. (J loves this photo, he says: "Saza laughing")


These two eat as many Cuties as humanly possible without turning orange.


They made me a stylish hat. (Jealous Jen?)


We saw SNOW! (Okay, shaved ice in a parking lot)



Date night!


A cute moment of sharing.


Happy birthday Jesus playgroup - making no-bake gingerbread houses...


And learning about Jesus being born.