Parker - age 10 - 5th grade

Parker is doing so well. He sets an alarm and wakes himself up every morning for school. He makes his own lunch, gets himself breakfast, and rides the bus to school. The bus picks him up (the stop is directly in front of our house) at 7. He gets home on the bus at 3. He seems to enjoy school this year. He's has 3 teachers - one for science and social studies, one for language arts, and one for math. In 5th grade they do extra classes for 2 six weeks at time. On even days they have PE and on odd days they have music/art/drama. Parker does not like to sing and is not enjoying these 12 weeks of music class. His grades were all As except for an 80 that I think his music teacher was generous in giving.

Parker has been doing mixed martial arts (MMA) since April. He goes 1-3 times/week. Caden went for awhile with him until he got too busy with 7th grade. He likes it and it is good for him to get out and do something physical on a regular basis. He is also enjoying our new neighborhood. There are quite a few kids his age and older that play outside everyday. There is another boy who is 10 like Parker and one who is 13 and those 3 are always out. They ride bikes, throw the football, explore the woods behind our house and just enjoy each other. It is such a blessing especially for him to have kids to play with after school everyday.

Parker is obsessed with football. He thinks about football all the time. He talks about football all the time. He talks about professional players he hears about at school. He talks about what is going on in college football and he talks about the future when he plans to play football. He asks what position we think he will play. He tells us what he will buy us when he is a professional football player. I told him that he can play in a tackle football league next fall if he finishes his MMA course. He's on track. Bob would like for him to wait a year or two more to play but I'm not sure we can contain his enthusiasm for the sport much longer. He and I looked up what it would cost to play with the youth league here, KYA. He is already trying to figure out how to buy or be gifted the equipment and things he will need. He knows we don't have a lot of extra money right now and he wants to make sure that doesn't factor into whether or not he gets to play football.

It really is a miracle what has taken place with him in the past few months. Getting him off SSRIs and getting him neurofeedback treatment has made all the difference in the world for him. His anxiety is completely under control and there are zero signs of the rapid-cycling (prescription drug-induced if you ask me) bipolar disorder that he was diagnosed with last year. He is back to the happy, helpful, fun-loving kid we remember. It is WONDERFUL! He is a great kid and a blessing to our family!

Real Life...Primary Program 2015

So the good news is that both Parker and Sydney said their parts in the Primary program this year. They stood up for every song and helped make a great sacrament meeting program.

Here are the behind the scenes details that kept us smiling. Sydney has been very nervous about the program this year. When we offered to practice her part with her she flat out told us she was NOT going to say it. We never practiced at home with her. All week she was nervous and kept telling us she was not going to church this week. On Sunday morning she asked both Bob and I, "Don't you want to stay home from church today?" hoping she could find someone to stay home with her. I figured she would end up sitting with us during the program because she was so nervous. Bob had a different idea and once we got to church he offered her some rewards/bribes if she would do her part and participate. She ended up getting a movie date with just she and Bob (they went to see Inside Out at the dollar movie on Tuesday night) and an entire bottle of whipped cream for herself.

During the program Sydney would either cover her mouth or turn her back to us so that we wouldn't see her singing. We tried to ignore her and occasionally we would see her face and see her singing. We saw a lot of the braid on the back of her head and her two hands covering her mouth. Her class was one of the first to speak. The member of the Primary presidency that was helping the kids is a good friend of ours. Sydney told her she was nervous and Lindsey offered to say her part with her. They started together and Sydney finished her cute little part, "I know Jesus loves me because he gave me my parents."

Parker was also nervous. He practiced his part at home a few times on Sunday morning and was prepared. Parker hates singing. He would be happy to never sing and never hear his sisters sing. He stood up for every song and mouthed the words or pretended to be mouthing the words. During a lot of the program one of our kids had her mouth covered and the other was (reverently) singing "BaBaBaBa" or something like unto it. And you know what? We were thrilled about it. After some of the things we went through last year with Parker (weeks where we couldn't even get him to church), we couldn't have been prouder of what he did on Sunday. He overcame any anxiety he had, tried to participate in something that he really does not like and said his part with clarity, conviction and practice. I love our kids, quirks and all!

Spinning Top...

Parker had to build a top for school last Friday. They had to use a small pencil and a circle of a certain size. He could use paper or cardboard and add things to it. I helped him get started but then he kept tweaking it to get it to work better. He added more circles, colored a lot with the pencil to make the tip less sharp, and added rubber bands to hold it in place. On Friday at school he got second place in his class and his top spun for 13 seconds.

Anyone that wanted to bring in their tops again on Monday was welcome to for another spin off. Parker's friend gave him the disk from his top that was covered in duct tape. Over the weekend Parker added that piece to his top and experimented to get it to spin even better. He sent that thing spinning a hundred times probably.

On Monday he came home from school very happy. He won the second spinning contest! His top spun for 36 seconds. His teacher said she had never seen a homemade top spin so good! He got to pick out any snack and drink for her to bring as a prize for him. He chose Takis and a Sprite.

It is SO awesome to see him doing well, having fun and thriving again!

Right now...

We are moved in. We can find most of the things we need. I am loving the change so far. So many beautiful trees, walking trails and we are so close to everything we do/need.

My kids are giving me fits. Sage's favorite thing to say right is "You are stupid, (name of person she is mad at)!" She says it over and over again and hurts all of our feelings. Not sure how to deal with this/stop it. She poops in the potty by herself which is good except for when she gets off without wiping or puts her poo in the sink. Yesterday she went in her diaper at the pool - that's always fun!

Sydney is having clothing issues. She would be happiest to run around nude. Her panties bother her because they move so she'd rather go without them. She doesn't want to wear shorts, sometimes doesn't want shirts. She is making me crazy. I really don't care what she wears as long as she is covered!

The boys are picking on each other and their sisters. They aren't being very obedient when asked to do things. They enjoy dropping things off the staircase on top of people's heads. They are happy when active so we have been running or biking most mornings.

Allie is probably the easiest though she keeps butting in with snide comments when I am working with the boys. 

I really want to enjoy the summer with them but sometimes it is really hard to do.

He must like her today...

Parker just said "I wish I was in a different family so that I could marry Allie."

Special kisses...

Parker: "I still have Grandma Goossen's kiss on my forehead and Brinlee's kiss on my lips. I've wiped all the others off."

Playing Baseball...

Parker played his first season of baseball this fall. He was in the 8U coach pitch league. He had practices twice/week and games once/week usually. He played third base in most of the games. He played shortstop once but he preferred third. He caught several pop flies and made other outs throwing the ball. He almost always got on base, never struck out and hit several in field home runs. He was one of his teams top hitters.

He is a pretty good ball player and enjoyed the sport most of the time. After each game, one or two players got a game ball for hard work and good effort on the field. Parker is so proud of his game ball received at one of the last games. His coaches wanted him to commit to playing with them in the spring but he decided to play flag football instead.

I really enjoyed watching him play baseball. (So far baseball and swimming are my favorite sports to watch - I guess I like the slow ones!) His team did pretty well and it was fun to sit and watch them play. We took the whole family to 2 of his games but for most of them we left the girls at home. I hope there is more baseball in his future!

The Best!

Parker liked the offerings at the dinner table tonight and was in a cheerful mood. He said, "Mom you're the best mom in the whole world!" I replied with a big thank you.

Then in all seriousness he asked, "Mom are there any Moms that are better than YOU?" His tone implied that he really didn't think there could be. Love that boy!

Schooling Change for Parker...

Parker started refusing to go to school after the first week this year. He missed 2 days the second week of school and only went the other two days with the promise of ice cream and getting picked up early. He hated school this year. He didn't love it last year either but I think he got through knowing he would have a good recess. This year they can not touch at recess and can not play Tag which is about his favorite thing ever. I think he felt a little lost in the mix there. He is not the smartest or the dumbest and so gets looked over sometimes because he is doing well enough and doesn't cause trouble.

He is also the middle child. He gets looked over at home too by his loud and busy little sisters and his older siblings. He has been feeling bad about himself. He is an awesome kid but doesn't always see things that way when he compares himself to his brother (2 years older) and his sister (3.5 years older). At home they all get lumped together for chores and he thinks he should be as good as them in all other areas too. He forgets that they have had 2+ more years of schooling, etc.

When things started so badly for him this year in 3rd grade we started considering homeschool. He was begging us to do it. We started thinking it might be good for him too. He doesn't seem to be reaching some of the potential we see in him. We haven't been thrilled with his language arts and reading skills/improvement this past year. And I'm not sure he was being challenged enough in math. He is also great about tackling a list of things to do if he knows there is a reward at the end. I thought we could do this without me standing over his head all the time.

Homeschool started to seem like a really good idea for him. I wasn't sure I could handle it though. I am already struggling with fatigue and mild depression and just got my Mondays and Wednesdays "off" with the little ones going to preschool. I was getting excited about the idea of homeschooling too. I've always been interested in it but we have been happy with the public schools. One night I was praying to know what was right for our family. I didn't want to make this decision just because I was excited about trying and learning something new. I wanted to make this decision knowing that it was what the Lord wanted for us/him. I prayed that Heavenly Father would put a stumbling block in my way if this was not something He wanted us to do. I prayed that I wouldn't go down this path without His direction. When I was finished praying my mind was immediately filled with thoughts about how to make this work for him.

From that point I knew that this was the right course to take. It has been a blessing to know that because I really have to trust in Him to make this all work. I don't have the energy to force Parker to do all of his work. Even after just one week, I can see that the Lord is taking care of most of that. I will take a nap thinking Parker will do nothing productive while I sleep and then he ends up working really hard and getting a lot done. I am starting to see what I need to do (pick curriculum, plan what he needs to do, teach, etc.) and what God is going to take care of for me.

So far I love having him home with me. Our first day of homeschool was one of the best days I've ever had with him. I think he is smiling more. He asks a lot of questions and we can get online and find answers to a lot of them. I see him interacting with Sydney more positively (although they still drive each other crazy sometimes). I hope his confidence will increase. I hope he will learn and feel as smart as he is. I hope the curriculum I picked will be good for him. Here's to a new adventure!

Boys!!!

We put the kids to bed early on Sunday night. The boys had not had enough sleep, Sydney had not had a nap and it was just one of those days/nights where we needed to be "done" early. So a few minutes after we got them all down, Caden (who had been rude/disobedient a lot that day) came out of his room screaming. He claimed that Parker had punched him. As we do on nights when those two who share a room fight, we sent Caden to go to sleep in our room. Parker came out shortly after that wondering where Caden was. He told us that Caden had been singing and talking while Parker was trying to fall asleep. Parker told him to stop. Caden told Parker that he wasn't singing and that Parker was just hearing things in his head. And then Parker decked him.

While Parker was out with us, he was lamenting the fact that he has to share a room with Caden. We jokingly suggested that he could sleep in the storage room as it is one of the only rooms in the house with no occupants. We then sent him to bed.

Last night, after reading with Bob, Parker took matters into his own hands. He set up his fan next to the storage room, got a sleeping bag and pillow, and laid down for the night. Caden was not happy with this arrangement. He said he doesn't like to sleep in the room alone. So he set up a bed in his doorway across the hall from Parker. This worked for them last night. We'll see if they continue the pattern.

Predictions...

We saw some missionaries riding bikes today. He boys were talking and made predictions about where they want to serve their missions.

Caden - Colorado (not too far away, good weather)

Parker - Tokyo 

Parker's Baptism...

Parker was baptized today. He said he felt different today after his baptism - really different. He mentioned several times the warm feeling he was having again. He can't really put into words how

he is feeling different but I think it is the Holy Ghost. I hope I can help him feel it more as the days go on. I hope I can help him hold on to that warm loving feeling that he experienced so strongly today.

Parker, You were baptized today with a girl named Ava Smith and another girl named Kathleen Paz. Ava is the daughter of a girl (Alicia Hansen Smith) from my stake growing up - the Gilmer Texas Stake. Her grandparents are from Quitman and are good friends of Grammy and Grandpa. They were surprised and excited to see each other!

The stake president said all three of you were very well prepared for baptism and answered all of his questions exceptionally well. You got to go first with everything because they did things alphabetically by ward name and we are in the Bonds Ranch Ward. They read your biography first and you got to be baptized first. It was a really sweet baptism day. The group in attendance wasn't too big and the spirit was strong there. Kathleen had to get baptized 3 times because her toe or knee kept popping up. You were probably getting dressed when that was happening. The stake president asked me to share my testimony after the baptism and before the closing prayer. All the moms got to share their testimonies today. After all of that was done, they had the different families separate for the confirmation. We stayed in the chapel while Daddy confirmed you a member of the church and gave you the gift of the Holy Ghost.

You looked so handsome in your new suit and tie. Daddy and Caden had matching ties as well. We took pictures outside when it was all finished and then went to eat with your grandparents at Pasados for yummy Mexican food.

Boys' Birthday Party...

We decided to have an Amazing Race themed birthday party for the boys this year. We divided the kids into 5 teams of 2-3 people each. Then we sent them through a series of tasks to complete. Here are the teams ready to start (neighbor kids, kids from school and church). We let them paint on their faces and arms before we got started.

The first task was to run cups full of water from our yard to the neighbors' yard through our little gate. They had one big Dixie cup and as many small cups as they could manage. On the other side each team had a bucket to fill.

Caden was so intense when he would cross into our yard to get his next cupful of water. I loved seeing his competitive spirit and speed running back to the water.

I didn't get pictures of the next tasks. They had to make a certain number of baskets at the basketball goal from taped lines. Then they received a clue to come back to the porch to pop balloons. Inside the balloons were puzzle pieces to make a puzzle (a picture of the boys). Each team was supposed to pop the balloons in their color and then assemble the puzzle before receiving their next clue. We had the balloons in a blow-up swimming pool with a sheet on top. When the first team came to pop their balloons some of the balloons started floating over the fence into the front yard. Then one of the younger boys came over and started popping all the balloons (he didn't read his clue very well). I quickly realized this task was not going to go as planned so I gave them their next clue.

They had to count the boards on the fence between two pieces of BYU duct tape. There were 166. The next task was the eating task. One player from each team was supposed to eat all the cereal out of these little cups until they found a specially marked cup (smiley face at the bottom). They had to eat a lot of cereal to find the special cups. We let their teammates help after awhile.
This one was funny for me to watch.

The last task was to launch 10 water balloons past a certain mark in the road. 

 As always this part was a hit!

The green team finished first! Not long after they finished off the water balloons with a water balloon fight.

Then we had pizza, cake and ice cream, opened presents, and let the kids play wall ball and kick ball in the backyard.

I had planned a whipping cream pie part of the race that was a no-go when I over whipped my cream. I put the stiff cream in tins anyway and put them in the fridge. One of the boys found them there when he was getting water and decided it would be fun to cream Caden with one. The kid Vincent thought it was funny, Caden did not. Other than that, it was a great party.

We couldn't have done it without our great neighbors the Glenns. They let us use their yard for the water race and Michelle kept the little girls so we could do the race part of the party. Then they joined us for pizza, cake and the rest of the party. Aaron Legrand also came and helped Bob hold the water balloon launcher - couldn't have done without him either.

Good boy...

Parker usually doesn't like us to see anything he brings home from school. If he sees us trying to read/save/admire anything he has done, he tries to grab the paper, rip up his work and throw it away. Something was different about this note. He was very proud of this. He wanted me to show everyone and asked especially if I would put it on the blog. He's a good kid!

Parker - age 7

Activities: I think Parker's favorite thing to do is play in the backyard with our neighbors. There are usually between 5 and 10 kids (age 7-10) in our backyard every afternoon. Parker loves to swing and play kickball or baseball. He also enjoys jumping on the neighbor's trampoline. He works really hard to get his reading, piano, chores & homework done so he can play outside every afternoon. We contemplated letting him play baseball this fall but it didn't work out with some of the other things we have going on. He wants to play flag football in the spring. He still also loves to play computer and video games when given the opportunity.

 Piano: Parker just started taking piano lessons. He seems to enjoy practicing and is working through his books very quickly. He rides his bike down to lessons and coordinates with the other two on who is going to have which time. It is nice that all three of them have this "chore" in the afternoons now.

Chores: Parker is usually the first to get all of his chores done. He is very focused and will work continuously without stopping until everything is done. Some of his chores include: setting the table, unloading the dishwasher, washing dishes, putting away laundry, cleaning bathrooms & folding clothes.

Reading: Parker is reading and finishing small chapter books this year. He only reads the amount that he has to but seems to enjoy reading nonetheless. He is reading Magic Treehouse and Cam Jansen books right now.

Food: Parker loves to eat. He loves eggs. He will scramble his own or eat hard-boiled ones that I have made. He LOVES ice cream! His favorite food that I make is chicken enchiladas. He loves heating up frozen chicken taquitos as a snack. In the last year he has decided that he likes shrimp. He will eat my shrimp tacos but is still picky about some things I make. It is difficult to get him to eat fruits and vegetables.

Sleeping: Parker is usually the first to wake up on the weekends. He still doesn't really sleep in. I rarely have to wake him up in the morning as he and Caden are getting up to an alarm clock. He goes to bed between 8 & 9 every night although sometimes I still think he could use an earlier bedtime.

School: Parker is in 2nd grade this year. He has two teachers this year - Mrs. Brewer for language arts and social studies and Mrs. Scriven for math and science. He thinks they are strict and doesn't seem to like them quite as much as his past two teachers. He rides his bike to school almost everyday with Allie and Caden, gets good grades, and comes home happy.

Quirks: Parker is a funny guy! He often hears things wrong and then says something funny related to what he thinks we said. This year for Halloween he decided to be Harry Potter again but was also thinking about combining HP with a Ninja - Ninja Harry Potter. He ran around with his HP glasses and an old Taekwondo uniform one day.

BOYS!!!

The boys were being ridiculous on Sunday afternoon. Bob got tired of them and locked them outside while the babies and I were taking naps (he was trying to nap too). When I woke up I was sure the neighbors were over playing outside with our kids. When I looked out the window I was SHOCKED to find that so much noise was being generated by just these two boys. They were throwing balls, chasing each other and eventually doing this:

 

 Mud pies, mud throwing, mud in the hair, washing off, more mud pies, digging in the mud, etc.

 They were filthy and happy!

When it was time for dinner, Bob had to hose them off before they could use a towel, come inside or anything.

Today...

Today was school picture day. The kids also had a guest speaker visit the school today (Special K from the Harlem Globetrotters). Parker woke up knowing these things and would NOT get out of bed. I tried all the coaxing that I know how to do but he wouldn't budge. He didn't want to see the basketball player, did NOT want to have his picture taken, & didn't care if he lost his privileges for the day for not going to school. I finally took the other kids to school and left him at home.

He ended up staying home all day and we had a great day. I want to record and remember a few things from today. I think a day like today was just what he needed. He's promised me he'll go to school tomorrow and I think he will go happily. Here are some things that I remember:

Working on a Singapore math placement test together and alone.

Reading an article about a lioness who befriended a baby antelope in Uganda on the computer.

Parker constantly talking about our homeschool day. He wanted to have all the subjects, recess, etc. He didn't ask for tv or complain about being bored.

Driving to Walmart and quizzing him on math facts, spelling words, and geography on the way.

Parker taking a seat in the double seater giant shopping cart with Sydney. He wondered aloud what other people might think about this big kid being at the store during school hours.

Science time included watering the plants and making hard boiled eggs in the oven.

Parker being really sweet and helpful unloading groceries, putting away cans and having "recess" with Sydney.

Parker packed his own lunch for school last night. He pulled it out for "homeschool" - 3 bags of goldfish, 1 bag of popcorn and some grapes! Lovely!

I love that boy (even though he can be a stinker at times)! It was really fun to have this day with him!

Goofy Smile...

Parker lost two teeth in one day last week. He has a pretty goofy smile right now. The top teeth are not growing in very quickly.

Caden lost one of his teeth in my parents' pool over the weekend too. We've got a tooth-losing bunch around here!

Swim Team...

Swim team is keeping us busy so far this summer. Every day we drive 30 minutes to Trophy Club for practice and we have a meet each weekend. While the kids swim, the babies and I go running/walking to pass the time. I like that we are all getting regular exercise.

At the first meet all of the kids got ribbons. Caden got 3rd in the backstroke. Allie's relay got 3rd in the freestyle relay and Parker got 2nd in backstroke and 3rd in freestyle. Both of the boys are the oldest in their age group which helps I think. We think they are doing really well especially for their first year. At practice they are learning to dive, & do the butterfly and breaststoke. 


This picture was taken after the second meet. I took my little camera along but never got any real pictures of the kids swimming. I made them get out of the car before we left to at least get one good picture. We think Caden got 1st place in the backstroke at this meet and the boys were on a relay that got first (out of 2 teams). Caden and Allie both got a bad start on backstroke but were able to make up some time swimming. Allie's relay placed 4th and she PR'd in freestyle. I am interested to see the final results to see if they all improved their times. Parker accidentally had to swim with an older age group so I don't think he placed as high as an individual. The boys are REALLY excited about the blue ribbons they are going to get for the relay!

Sage and I attended the entire swim meet with the big kids. Bob and Sydney came for about an hour but she is crazy at the meet and they went home after the kids swam backstroke. I think I will stay home with the babies this week and let Bob go to the meet alone. Allie took this picture of Sage sleeping on the towels on the floor in the hall of the natatorium. We covered her up with a team shirt since we didn't have a real blanket. She was a trooper at the meet.