Pre-K Graduation

Tonight was Ryker's Pre-K Graduation ceremony and program.  It was such a great program and the kids did a great job.  Ryker has had such a great experience at Weekday Preschool and I know we are both sad to see his days there come to an end.  Robert and I are so proud of him though!

My big boy all ready for his program.

Waving to us.

They sang Proud to Be an American which we've been practicing for weeks.  They had a slideshow of pictures of the kids' family members who have served in the military...let's just say Ryker's family dominated the slideshow. hehe!

He was the letter X during the alphabet song.

He sang the "Let's Go Swimming" song.  He was not a fan of his floaties however.  He said afterwards that they were too tight. 

"Swimming" away

Mommy and Daddy with their big graduate

The best way to get him to smile for a picture is to promise to do a silly one too....so here's our silly one. :-)

Nana and Papaw with their boys.  Cam did surprisingly well throughout the program and I was so proud.  (He doesn't enjoy holding still for very long...)

Nana and Papaw were so proud of him!

Cooper, Ryker, and Jonah all go to church together and will be at NPE for kindergarten next year.  Ryker says they are his best friends. :-)  So glad he has such good buddies.

Ryker and Mrs. Steele.  He has truly loved having her as a teacher and she has been so good for him. We will miss her next year!

Ryker and Mrs. Goshen.  Mrs. Goshen goes to our church too and he loves seeing her at school and on Sundays.

Dave and Cara's Wedding

Today was the big day!  David and Cara said their I Do's.  I've known both Dave and Cara as long as I've known Robert.  Cara was Michelle's best friend growing up and David was the pesky little brother.  Until two years ago, when everything changed. :-)  They fell in love and we are all so thrilled to have Cara join the Brown family officially.  The wedding was gorgeous as was the bride.  Robert was the most handsome man there as he stood next to his brother in the front of the church.  All the men in the wedding party (except two) were/are military men.  They were all in their dress uniforms and they made for the studliest groom and groomsmen you've ever seen.  I sadly didn't get many pictures since Robert's duties as groomsmen kept him very busy and the boys kept me very busy (Camden in particular...imagine that!).

Jay is Robert's cousin's daughter.  I used to babysit for her and now she is babysitting for everyone else.  She loves the boys and they love her!

For the most part, this stud was my date. Check out that bow tie! ;-)

This picture cracks me up!  He and Nonna were having fun. :-)

Introducing Baby Joe Dirt!  They had a photo booth with tons of props.  Queen took the boys so I could attempt to eat for a minute and Cam came in to show me this ensemble.

It might've been one of the funniest things anyone saw all night.  The whole room was dying laughing.

Ryker had a blast with all the props.  We took several strips of photos.

He also enjoyed busting some moves on the dance floor. 

Aunt Chelle took Cam for a spin on the dance floor which he loved!

My loves. 

Daddy and Cam

Some studly Brown men (David, Robert, and Tony)

Queen was gorgeous and a huge help to me with the boys.  :-)

SSMT: Verse #9

"If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate."

-1 Corinthians 13:1 MSG

Park Playdate

Today after preschool we grabbed some lunch and headed over to Southeastway Park for a playdate with Auntie Em, Kainen, and Piper.  The forecast had originally called for great sunny mid-70 degree weather.  That wasn't the case when we arrived however.  I had dressed the boys in shorts and sweatshirts.  They were freezing!  Thankfully, the spare set of clothes I keep on hand for both of them was a set of pants and a long-sleeve t-shirt.  I changed them quickly and they were much happier.  We've had a ton of rain recently so the park was pretty muddy.  Ryker and Kainen enjoyed finding sticks and using them as fishing poles in the puddles.  Camden might've shaved a few years off my life trying to do EVERYTHING he saw his big bro do.  That kid keeps me on my toes for sure!

Cam and Piper shared some QT on the swings

Ryker was trying to teach Kainen how to pump his legs.

Hudson LOVES to swing and has the cutest giggle when he does.

It warmed up eventually once the sun came out and we took a walk around the park.  These two were having some great adventures.  :-)

It's such a fun park and we can't wait to go back again soon. Ryker wants to walk the trails.

Asthma X 2

I've had a wretched cold all week.  Sadly, Camden started getting it yesterday and it quickly escalated into an asthma flare up.  I tried giving him a nebulizer treatment at home, but our machine was broken.  Thankfully, they were able to get him in quickly at the pediatrician's office.  They tested his oxygen levels when we first arrived and they were only around 90-92%.  Not good at all.  Thankfully, after a treatment, he was up to 96%.  Sadly, since these flare-ups have been happening consistently every time he gets a cold, he earned himself an official asthma diagnosis today.  :-(  Dr. Anderson put him on the same treatment plan as Ryker.  He now will do a preventive treatment inhaler twice a day and a rescue inhaler as needed for flare-ups.  The bright spot in this is that she allowed us to use the inhalers instead of the nebulizer treatments.  He HATES the nebulizer and it is awful trying to give them to him.  However, he sees Ryker do his puffs (that's what we call them) every day and since he has a severe case of hero worship for his big brother he thinks it is cool to do whatever Ryker does.  Thankfully, he has adjusted very well and the treatments are working great and he is breathing and sounding much better.  I'm disappointed that both of the boys have to live with this, but am hopeful they will outgrow it as Dr. Anderson has said is a possibility.

Playing and waiting for the doc to come back in.

Parent/ Teacher Conference

Today was our parent/teacher conference with Ryker's school.  Just yesterday when I picked him up Mrs. Steele said that he had worked on reading and writing his sight words with Mrs. Skinner earlier in the day.  Mrs. Skinner said he did the very best out of the entire group.  :-)

The conference went well with no major surprises.  He has really grown and matured through the year according to his teachers and they commented on his ever-present and VERY strong imagination!  He is doing great socially and his small and large motor skills are right on target.  He still needs help zipping some coats from time to time and we haven't even begun to work on tying shoes (Mommy fail???)

Mrs. Steele said he can be a bit wiggly sometimes when he should be listening but for a still-4-year-old boy I'm saying that's NORMAL!  She said he gets bored with some things (like certain songs) at times too.  He is an opinionated little guy and will tune out if it's boring.  This boring thing applies to flashcards too...specifically alphabet flashcards.  Flashcards are just plain boring in his opinion.  When they tested him on his alphabet she said he was so excited to have one on one time with her he was too interested in telling her stories to concentrate much on the letters.  However, at home, we make a  game out of it and he usually gets all but about 14 (out of 52-both upper and lowercase letters), so I'd say he's doing pretty well.  We need to continue working on his letters through the summer and some of his numbers.  He did great on sorting, shapes, patterns, and even his colors which is a relief given his colorblindness.

We've seen a major change in him in the last 6 weeks or so at home too.  He has cut out his afternoon nap and spends some time with me working on school things.  He asks now how to spell words and can sound them out and write them when he wants.  He made tickets to his "show" the other day with little help from me.  His handwriting and attention span has improved greatly as well.  He's showing a desire to do more and more things independently.  I think as he nears his 5th birthday he's just growing up.  Part of me hates and the other part is glad to see he is growing and maturing as he should.  As we struggled a bit with the decision to start him in kindergarten or not these changes have been reassuring that we are making the right decision for him.

A recent sample of his handwriting...looking pretty good I'd say!

A little afternoon cuddle time watching his favorite show, Dino Dan.  This kid knows so much about animals it's amazing! 

And, just because he is so absolutely precious... :-)

We're very proud of you, buddy!

SSMT: Verse #8

"...'Prepare the way of the Lord; Make His paths straight.'"

-Matthew 3:3b