Time Is Passing...

Where has this summer gone?  It's nearly over, and I don't think I've posted but two or three times!

The grandchildren have had a busy summer.  Madison and Caden have both been on fun vacations with their families, and have been involved in various summer activities throughout the summer--including VBS and swimming lessons.

Chase has spent his first summer learning how to navigate.  He's gone from rolling to pulling up.  He can scoot, but hasn't quite gotten the hang of crawling yet.  I suspect it won't be long, and he'll be trying to keep up with the other kids.  It seems as if he's growing up more quickly than the others.

Summer is nearly over, and soon Madison will be beginning her second year at "Busy Little Beavers".  She'll be attending their newly-formed Kindergarten class.  She'll be attending school five mornings a week, instead of four.  She's lucky that she's already familiar with her teacher and her surroundings.  I hope it will be a happy and productive school year for Madison.

Caden will be enjoying another year at home, in the company of his mom and little brother.  He won't turn four until December, so he still has some time...He started attending "Storytime" at the library over the summer.  "Storytime" is when the librarian reads several books out loud, all with a common theme, then follows up with a craft project.  She also teaches the children a few "wiggles songs".

I'm so happy that my grandchildren have been able to spend all of their early years at home with their mothers.  What a blessing for them!  I don't regret a single day that I spent at home with my own children.  Time passes too quickly, and children are just too precious give up, until you don't have a choice!

I haven't posted here as regular as I once did.  I keep telling myself that I need to get back into the routine of posting regularly, but the truth is--I just don't have the time and energy anymore.  What a difference a year or two can make when you are older, especially when you have health issues!  It takes me twice as long to do half as much as I used to do :)  Gotta' love growing older.  Until next time, here are a few grandchildren pictures...

Caden at the library

Chase up on his hands and knees

Chase and Caden going for a wagon ride

Madison and Caden playing at the park

Caden and Madison roasting giant marshmallows

Where Are You Going, My Little One?

Today's post will be an update on grandson, aka "Baby Chase".  This is the last time I feel like I can call him "Baby Chase", because he is growing up so fast!

Chase continues to be a "Mama's Boy", and there isn't a thing in the world wrong with that!  While he gives the rest of us tiny smiles and some of his attention, he saves the best for his mama.  His smiles for her can light up the room!  Here's what Chase's face looked like after his mama left him with me earlier this week...So serious--almost sad!

I had the pleasure of Chase's company for a while on Tuesday morning.  It's rare that I have Chase all to myself, without any of the other "grands" around, but the others had gone to the park with their mamas, to play.  I'm not sure Chase knew what to think about being left behind, but I was tickled to have him all to myself.

I threw the old bean bag down on the floor and got down on Chase's level--something that's becoming increasingly hard to do these days!  Chase and I  played for a bit, and before long,  he began to enjoy himself.  I loved watching him explore.

After a while, I got the chance to sing and rock Chase to sleep for his nap--one of my favorite "grandma things" to do.  It's good to know that I still haven't lost my touch!  Is there anything more precious than a sleeping baby?  I would have taken a picture, but I was afraid I'd disturb him!  As it turned out, Chase's daddy called--and did disturb him!

Believe it or not, Chase is already seven months old!  He's rolling both ways, and actually pulled up for the first time on his seven month birthday!  I suspect that he's in a hurry to grow up and have some fun with his big brother, Cade,--who happens to be growing like a weed himself!

Look Who's Learning To Read!

I'm still trying to get a handle on this new blogger dashboard, as well as find the time to keep up a second blog!


Our garden is history at the moment, so perhaps I can now do better! 


 Summer is quickly passing, and boy is it hot! Everyone pretty much stays indoors due to the heat. 


Madison's mama has been keeping her busy with lots of indoor activities, and of course, Madison plays with Alex, the toddler that her mama is now keeping.  Those two have a great time playing together! 


 Some of Madison's indoor activities have included school work. Here's a preview of some of what she's leaned so far...I'm so proud! 

Blogger, I have a problem!

Imagine my surprise when I finally popped over here to write a post, only to discover the top section of my dashboard is covered up!  I can't get to the section where the title goes, or to the draft or publish buttons.  I can barely see the bottom orange edge of the "publish" button--and I can't seem to figure out what the problem is...

Has anyone else ever experienced this problem?

I'm going to click on the "orange edge" and see if this will publish.  Of course, even if this publishes, I still won't be able to give this post a title.  I'll keep searching for an answer to my problem...

Maddie Loses Her First Tooth...

Last Friday evening, June 22,  marked another important milestone in the life of our granddaughter, Madison.  She lost her first tooth--with a little help from her dad!  The first tooth was quickly followed by the losing of a second tooth on June 24.  Madison pulled the second tooth out by herself.

We'd been expecting these baby teeth to come out for several days, since the permanent teeth had already come in directly behind them, and were completely through.  For a while, Madison had been the proud owner of 4 front bottom teeth!

The tooth fairy made a visit to Madison's house on Friday night, and left her five dollars.  My how times have changed!  I remember getting a quarter for my teeth, while our own children usually got a dollar.  I guess the tooth fairy has to take inflation into account, these days!

Another thing that's changed is how this whole thing with the tooth fairy works at Madison's house.  There's no placing of the tooth under Madison's pillow!  Madison has a special little pillow with a "tooth pocket" which hangs over the door knob of her bedroom.  The tooth fairy doesn't even have to enter Madison's room--which was certainly fine with Madison!

Man, the tooth fairy has it made these days--except for the amount of money that she has to leave!  Five dollars per tooth--let's see, that could run into quite a bit of money over time...and inflation is still on the rise!

Little Things Mean So Much...

My husband and I celebrated our 40th wedding anniversary on June 18. As usual, we went on a little "anniversary get-away" to celebrate.

 I wanted us to just concentrate on being with each other, without any outside distractions, so I left my laptop at home--something I rarely do!

 Ed and I had a fabulous time enjoying each other's company, while sitting in the sand, and soaking up the wonderful, relaxing atmosphere of the beach. I like to think of the beach as "my little piece of Heaven on earth".

 We got back on Tuesday evening, but I didn't check my computer. When I finally got around to checking Facebook and my email, here is what I found: 


    

 These two delightful boys are our youngest grandchildren, Caden and Chase. They belong to our oldest son, and this photo greeting is special to me for several reasons!

*The oldest boy, Caden, hates having his picture taken!  He runs at the sight of a camera, yet here he is smiling and posing!

*Getting two small children to pose and smile at the same time is a real feat!

*It really means a lot that our daughter-in-law, Christina, took the time to make that sign for Ed and me, then surprise us with the greeting via email and Facebook!  Time is a precious commodity for a mother of two small boys.

Thanks so much for the well-wishes, guys!  We'll treasure the photograph always.

A Little "Chase Update"...

I'm afraid that I've been a bit slow in posting updates concerning our youngest grandchild, Chase, and I feel bad about that.  I'm getting older, time is passing more quickly, and sometimes I feel like baby Chase gets lost in the shuffle of daily life.  I remember feeling the same way about my third baby.  Perhaps age has something to do with it, or perhaps it's birth order, who knows?

I'm proud to be able to say that Chase is a very healthy, active,  little one.  He recently turned 5 months old--already!  I can't believe it.  Like I said, "time is passing quickly".

Chase has a very serious nature, he can look right through you with those piercing brown eyes--and he's also a "Mama's Boy".  He likes to have his mother within his sight at all times!  Chase also loves to eat!  I've never seen a baby get so excited at the prospect of being nursed.  His enthusiasm is unmistakable!

Recently, Chase discovered "his voice", and delighted all of us with the different sounds he is learning to make in his throat.  He's also discovered his feet, how to hold a toy, and is currently learning to sit alone.  He's got a way to go before he can sit without falling over,  but he's learning.

Just yesterday, I watched as Chase found great delight in watching cousin Maddie's swim suit dangling from the ceiling fan above where he was laying.  Who needs fancy toys? Ha!

I find that I haven't taken as many photos of Chase as I did of the other two "grands".  (It was the same with our third child.)  That could be because there's always a lot more going on, and everything takes a bit more effort than it used to.  I need to do better in this department!

I did manage to take a bit of video about a month ago--which I'm just getting around to sharing.  His serious side is evident in the video.

Here's little Chase enjoying one of the baby toys at MiMi's house: