Another Catch Up Post On 'The Grands'...

Try as I might, I can't seem to keep up with anything, these days, and that includes this blog!  It's been a while since I posted here, so it's long over due for a 'catch up' post concerning all of our 'grands'.

Madison after the recital

Madison - Our oldest grandchild, and only granddaughter, is about to finish up her first year of home schooling.  I had the pleasure of sitting in for Madison's mama, last week, so I got a first hand look at some of what Madison is learning.  Let me tell you, Abeka Academy has got it goin' on!  They're reading, they're writing in cursive, they're counting backwards by 3's, and they're memorizing entire Bible passages!  I was impressed.

Madison has also been taking violin lessons, and performed her first solo in a recital, last week.  She played 'Ode to Joy', and performed very well.  Our little girl is growing up!  

Chase and Caden

Caden - Our oldest grandson, who is five, is about to finish up pre-K at Busy Little Beavers School. I know he can count to 100, he writes very well, and he can read.  I can't wait to see what else he's learned at his end of the year program, next month!  Caden reminds me so much of his father, at this age.

Caden has played T-ball for the past two years, but when he found out he'd be moving up to the pitching machine--and have to wear a helmet and face mask, this year, he declined playing ball. I don't blame him!  I wouldn't want a machine hurling balls my way either, and let's face it--wearing a helmet and face mask just doesn't seem like fun!

Chase - Chase, who is Caden's younger brother, is almost two and a half.  For a long time, Chase was quiet, and didn't say much around us, but, lately, he's come alive!  I love to hear him talk; he's very 'matter of fact' and to the point!  He's now talking in sentences, too. Of all of the grands, Chase is the most entertaining, so far :) 

Chase has been potty trained since he was two, which I find impressive, 'cause none of my boys were!  Even more impressive is the fact that he can work his mother's smart phone!  He loves playing games on it.

Evan - Our youngest grandson will turn 6 months old in just a few days.  That baby is growing like a weed!  He's wearing a size 6 months, and will soon be learning how to sit up by himself. His favorite past-time seems to be standing up on someone's lap!

March was a rough month for Evan.  He's been sick a lot, even spending one night in the hospital.  Evan seems to catch everything that goes around his daycare--then brings it home and shares it with his parents!  Evan's bouts of sickness haven't put a damper on his spirit, though.  He's a happy baby, most of the time.

Well there you have it, an update on Mimi's 'not-so-little' ones.  I can't wait to see what happens with them next, and I'll try harder to keep it posted here!

A 2014 Valentine's Day Recap...

Before Valentine's Day gets too far in the past, I want to post about the grandchildren's activities. Valentine's Day has always been a 'big deal' around our house, and it's nice to see that the tradition lives on.

Since grandson, Caden, is attending pre-K at Busy Little Beaver's, this year, he got to address and give out a lot of Valentine's.  Unfortunately, his Valentine's Day party had to be post-poned due to an ice storm in our area!  I borrowed (from his mom's Facebook page) this picture of Caden addressing his own cards.  He's getting so big!

Caden's mama helped plan and organize his class Valentine's Day party. She's very good at that sort of thing. The theme of the party was "Wild About You".  Once again, I'm sharing a borrowed picture.

For the past couple of years, our daughter and daughter-in-law have planned Valentine's Day activities for the grandchildren.  This year, they took the kids to the park.  This, too, ended up being post-poned because granddaughter, Madison, woke up with a fever on the original day of the outing.  When everyone finally did make it to the park, it turned out to be a beautiful day, and I'm told everyone had a great time--especially the boys at the pond!

On Valentine's Day evening, Madison's family always celebrates, at their house, with a special meal.  The dining room is always decorated for the occasion. Sometimes they graciously invite others to join them.  This year's meal was home-made lasagna and salad.

The grandchildren managed to do a bit of celebrating Valentine's Day at Mimi's house, too.  They came to our house, after supper, where they received gifts from "Mimi and E", and exchanged gifts with each other, as well.

"Mimi and E" received some chocolates, an "I love you" bean plant, and some adorable hand-made Valentines from the 'grands'.

Since they live out-of-town, we missed having our fourth grandchild, Evan, and his parents, with us to celebrate Valentine's Day, but, as always, they were in our thoughts.  We'd given Evan his Valentine's Day surprise a week earlier.

Evan's Valentine's Day Gift

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, and I usually give our grandchildren something each year.  I must admit, this has gotten more difficult over the past few years, as the number of 'grands' has increased, along with my age! Last year, I settled for Valentine's Day cards, and tucked some money in each one.  The 'grands' didn't seem to mind.

Our family was blessed with a new grand-baby, just three months ago, so I felt like a little Valentine's Day shopping might be appropriate, this year.  Oh, what a chore it turned out to be!  I spent two hours wandering around Wal-mart, looking for the perfect gifts.

For the three older 'grands', I finally decided on some Valentine's Day candy, a couple of inexpensive gifts, along with a little shopping money in each card.  For baby Evan, the choice of a gift was a little easier.

While shopping, I saw a little stuffed Chihuahua dog, who was wearing a ball cap.  He was the spittin' image of our grand-dog, 'Jack'. He shook a couple of maracas and sang 'Hot, Hot, Hot'!  It was a 'no brainer', I had to buy this gift for Evan!

Evan and his parents live out-of-town, but they were home last weekend.  I knew I wouldn't see Evan again before Valentine's Day, so I presented him with his gift on Sunday.  I turned the little dog on, and what do you think Evan did?  He cried!  So much for my gift choice, huh?  Hopefully, as Evan grows older, he'll learn to like his new puppy.  I know his Mimi sure does!

Long Time, No Post...

I'm absolutely ashamed that it's been over ten months since I've posted on this blog! I'd think about posting here, from time to time, but somehow never seemed to have time. As a result, I don't have many "Mini Tales" for 2013 recorded! For that, I'm truly sorry.

 On the positive side, at least I've recorded many grandchildren highlights on my sister blog, 'Reflections By Kathy'. Another positive note--our family likes to take lots of pictures!

 During 2013, a lot of wonderful, noteworthy events happened, concerning the grandchildren, including the announcement of a pregnancy, and the addition of a fourth grandchild!

 Granddaughter, Madison, graduated from Kindergarten in the spring, then began doing a first grade, home-school course in the fall. In addition, she's been taking violin lessons, and continuing with dance lessons. 

Meanwhile grandson, Caden,played another round of T-ball, in the spring, then began pre-K classes at Busy Little Beavers, in the fall. Caden has grown so much, this past year. He hardly seems like the same child anymore!

 Grandson number three, Chase, perfected the art of running and climbing, learned how to speak using sentences, and became potty trained by age two! Chase didn't have time to spend 'being a baby', he he had to keep up with the older children in the family!

 Last, but certainly not least, is our newest addition to the family, baby Evan. Given Evan's mom's previous medical history, none of us thought a baby would ever be in her future. It just goes to show, doctors don't know everything, nor do we! Not only did our daughter-in-law, Jennifer quickly become pregnant, she sailed through her pregnancy with ease, until the end.

 For a time, we had quite a scare, concerning baby Evan, when tests revealed that both of his parents were carriers of Cystic Fibrosis. Once again, God showed Who is in control, when Evan turned out to be a perfectly healthy baby boy! Evan doesn't have Cystic Fibrosis, nor does he carry the gene for the disease. Praise the Lord for double blessings! Evan's growing like a weed, and recently turned 3 months old.

 Since I haven't posted over here in such a long time, I went back through our photo files (borrowing some from our DIL's Facebook pages), and made a movie of the past ten months. By doing this, it will sort of make up for all of the posts I missed writing. I'm going to try to post over here on a more regular basis, from now on.  I should be able to at least manage weekly updates.

For now, here are the past ten months in pictures: