Back to School

School is in full swing already, but I thought the grandparents especially would appreciate the annual "first day" photos! 

I can't believe Jackson is officially in 3rd grade. I remember 3rd grade vividly & I hope that Jackson has a wonderful "pivotal" year as everyone calls 3rd!

 Eli started Kindergarten! Unbelievable!! He was so excited all summer long. I don't think there was ever a kid more ready than this guy! Unfortunately though, he had to wait 2 excruciating weeks to start after Jackson because they stagger in the K kids.

 Jackson was super excited for him to start too, i think. This picture on the porch of them together on Eli's first day has already become one of my newest favorites of these 2 buddies.

One of the perks for Eli all along has been the bus. He started asking about riding the bus long before he was even out of preschool. It took me 2 years to let Jackson ride the bus, if you remember, but Eli was not wavering (in true Eli form, of course).

  He didn't even want me to take him into the school the first day! I drew the line though & told him that a mama has a right to walk her baby into the class on the first day of Kindergarten!! I compromised & let him ride the bus home that day though.... (it was the only way to avoid the teetering tantrum over it during classroom orientation!)

 Oh, so proud of himself. He felt like such a big kid!!

I wonder what I will do with my quiet days at home????

Fairy Tale Ball

 Today was Jackson's Fairy Tale Ball at school. This has been talked about in the Moss household for about a month now. Jackson has been so excited. The ball was a cooperative effort of the 2nd grade teachers, along with the PE & Music teacher. They are studying a unit on Fairy Tales in the classroom & so they learned the Waltz in PE and a special song about a waltz in music class. Then all their hard work was put together in the Fairy Tale Ball.

They walked in through the door of the castle...

 

  

Then they all stood on the bleachers & sang/swayed to a song about Teddy Bears Waltzing...

 

But, the best part was after the song, when they all lined up with their partners & began dancing the waltz.

 Melt.My.Heart.  

  

I thought I had the tears under control.

And then he did this....

 

Oh.My.Word. Floodgates began all over again as soon as that twirl happened. It was the most precious thing I have ever seen. 

Here is the video of it... (I added a few captions to help you find him & to know when a twirl was coming up, but they don't appear in the correct place unless you view full size, or on Youtube site!)

After the kids finished dancing, they announced that they we were to head to the dance floor because our kids were going to teach us the Waltz! What!?  

Yep... Tears again, as soon as he showed me where to put my hand in his...

 

Here is a video that Randy took of us waltzing together... A little blurry at first, but then he gets it together!

Man, I don't think I could love this kid one iota more!

 

After the waltz was over, they started the Chicken Dance Song! It was so funny! No pictures of that, but don't you worry- we shook our tooshies!

Eli was very excited when it was all over, because- well, you know- he has to get a big hug in! Huggiest kid in history, that Eli!

 The most handsome 2nd grader in that gym today was my little man. You didn't have any doubts, did you!?

 And we had to sneak in a picture of him & Mrs. Daves. I don't think he could love a teacher more than he loves this woman. She dotes on him, loves on him, hugs him, calls him wonderful and amazing. And then she tells us how she "wants to just keep this one." I wish we could keep HER for about 4 more years!! :)

 

And here is the official dance partner picture. Jackson & his friend, Hannah.

And here is our family! We managed to snag someone to take our picture & everyone cooperated! Miracle in & of itself!

What fun today was! Maybe Jackson can teach me the jive next!!

2nd Grade Field Trip: Museum of Natural Science

Back in mid-March, I was able to go on a field trip with Jackson's 2nd grade class. I was pretty excited because I knew that Jackson would love the museum we were going to in Downtown Raleigh- The Museum of Natural Sciences. We had been about 3 years ago & he liked it then, but now that he is older & very much so into animals/reptiles/nature- i just knew he would love it even more now.

I was right! We saw a LOT of snakes!This snake was trying its best to get a hold of a bug that was stuck in between the double pane glass.... look closely & you can see the bug...
The class got to participate in a learning class about metamorphosis vs "just grow bigger" - comparing animals that change (frogs, butterflies) & those who just grow bigger (turtle, bird, etc). It was so much fun to sit in & watch Jackson participate. He particularly liked getting to touch or look up close at the animals she was describing...

Here he is checking out a HUGE bullfrog...
And he got to touch the back of a bird (i think it was a dove)...
And finally the turtle...
Lunch was a picnic outside & whoa- it was chilly out there!
Jackson & his friends, Gerardo, Hannah, Rachel, & Dru
Jackson & Gerardo (the only two I was in charge of for the day)...

This tree was 700 years old! Whoa! Jackson was impressed!
Once the field trip was over, I signed to take Jackson home with me rather than have him go back to school. And then we took a little time in the museum by ourselves. It was so nice to have one on one time with him!

We saw a crab eating a fish (ack!)

Checking out the seahorse...
Jackson is just growing up & becoming more & more independent. And that is the first thing I thought when I saw this picture out of my phone.... He just looks like a big kid! :(
But I enjoy him so much... I love you buddy!

Big Milestone!

Big news around the Moss house:

Here is your hint....Yep.
You guessed it! Eli is no longer using training wheels on his bike!!

I really think it was more of a confidence thing for him than ability. He liked knowing he wasn't going to fall. But when you have a big brother who wants to get out there & help you....It's hard to refuse the offer! Jackson literally taught him how to ride all on his own. And I think that is so special!

Everything from using the brakes, to putting your foot down so you don't fall when stopping- all Jackson's doing. The only thing I helped with was showing him (in literally one pep talk/take off) that he really could take off all on his own.... He just needed the encouragement to see for himself. And he thought I was holding on to him!

Voila! A new independent bike rider over at our house!

Here's a video of him riding!

Pets are Fun to Have....

Here's a little snippet of a conversation with Jackson this morning:

Jackson: "You know, I like the name Lola for a cat."

Rachel: "Me, too. Did you know that I named her that because I like people names for animals? And Daddy didn't like the name Lola for a baby girl, so I used it for the cat since I liked it so much."

Jackson: "Yeah, I know all the animals have names like that."

Rachel: "Except Opie, our old cat. We named him that because Daddy liked Andy Griffith Show so much, not because it was a name for a real person."

Jackson: "I like having pets. They are fun to have."

Rachel: "They sure are! I love having pets too."

Jackson: "Yeah. Some people even have things like hamsters."

Rachel: "Well, do you want to know what my rules are on pets in the house?"

Jackson: "sure"

Rachel: "Nothing that slithers...."

Jackson: (grinning) "... like snakes."

Rachel: "Nothing that flaps its wings..."

Eli chimes in: "like birds!!"

Jackson: "OH! A bird would be so fun to have."

Rachel: "No, it wouldn't. Aunt Becca had one when we were growing up & it was obnoxious. Chirped at all hours & always woke everyone up early in the morning. No birds. And nothing that hops...."

Jackson: "like bunnies."

Rachel: "And nothing in the rodent family..... "

Jackson: (strange look on his face.... apparently the word "rodent" was foreign)

Rachel: ".... That would include hamsters, mice, gerbils.... uh huh. Not happening."

Jackson: (thinks for a moment, realizing that pretty much what we've got is all we're getting in terms of types of animals).... "I want a German Shepard!"

Rachel: "Oh, you do huh? We already have a dog & they are a lot to keep up with. I am not sure we can handle two!"

Jackson: "Yeah, I want a German Shepard." (And then in his most convincing voice...) "They are REALLY protective."

Rachel: ".........So are boxers." (Case closed.... and Jackson knew it, because he just chuckled & gave up)

.... and because it pains me to have a post without pictures, here are some of the pets!

EIGHT.

Yep, you guessed it. This guy:

Yes, my quiet, sweet, little Jackson is turning EIGHT today.

This seriously seems too soon. The age of 8 is old. Too old to be a kid of mine, right? Hmmm. I guess it will take some getting used to. Seems like just yesterday we were rushing BACK to the hospital for him to come barreling out (well, not quite) within 45 minutes of arrival!

What a sweet little thing he was but as we were discussing in the last day or so... He came out with a foreshadowing of what was to come. He was immediately tenacious, stubborn, & predictable (well maybe the walking at 8 months old wasn't so predictable!) And he was also the cutest, chubbiest, thing I have ever laid eyes on. I had no idea how much my heart could really hold until that day 8 years ago!

In honor of his big day, I have compiled a list of his top 10 favorite things right now. (And that might also be because I am going on a scrap retreat in a few weeks & want to do a page about that! Planning ahead!)

These are in no specific order... just whenever they came to mind!

1-Harry Potter - anything & everything HP is a big deal around here these days!
2- chewing gum - he chews 2-3 pieces at a time if we don't stop him first!
3- football - he will kick/throw a football for hours at a time & right by himself
4- paper airplanes- oh, the paper & the staples, & the tape he uses to get them just right!
5- legos- these are still among the most played with toys around our house.
6- reading nonfiction- Jackson always checks out books from the school library that are on real subjects - like the army & wildlife & weapons. One of his favorite things to do at night is read a Children's Dictionary Nanny got him last year!
7-computers- Jackson has become a computer whiz lately & knows how to maneuver around to the sites he is allowed to go to! And he is teaching his little brother, too! He specifically loves Google Maps! :)
8-Popcorn- he asks for it everyday for an afternoon snack, pops it in the microwave & "cooks" it all by himself. (And makes a huge mess while eating it!)
9- Camouflage- these days anything camo is cool to him.
10-Bow & arrow- He got a bow & arrow after Christmas so he could shoot with his Daddy & yeah, he pretty much thinks he's the coolest kid in town, now! He loves to shoot it!

Jackson,

We are so proud of the strong-willed, smart, creative & kind hearted kid that you are. I love our little chats (when you finally decide to open up!) and love hearing all about the things you love to read about... from insects & civil war weapons, to the capitol of Paris (which is France, you told me one random day!). You are so bright & I can't wait to see what this next year has in store for us while we watch you grow even more. Happy Birthday!!

Love,

Mama

Halloween 2011... The best costumes yet!

Happy Halloween to you all! We hope you all had a wonderful, chilly, day like we did. This was certainly the worst halloween in terms of weather we have ever had since kiddos. It turned rainy & nasty just in time for trick or treating! Boo!

But in terms of costumes? BEST ever!
I managed to pull off costumes that suited not only my kids personalities, but their current interests!

And this was the first year that I took on actually making their costumes... from scratch.

Jackson was Harry Potter (& the cutest one I have EVER seen, I might add)...
Eli was a viking. As in, vikings are in one of his favorite movies- How to Train Your Dragon... He played his part well!
I had a lot of help from my friend, Theresa, on Jackson's Gryffindor robe. She'll tell you that she only hemmed it, but I will tell you that she was 75% of the brains behind the how-to in terms of how to construct it! And was my cheerleader.

And he was thrilled!! He really got into character & was dancing around all evening with his wand (that Randy made him! complete with his initials, JM, since Harry's was engraved with HP)

Eli also got into character, whacking that $1 axe on everything! In case you are wondering... his "fur" is made from toilet bowl covers! lol! Got that wonderful idea from "I am Momma, Hear Me Roar!" I love blogs!
We had to convince him to wear a beard, though... which involved me demonstrating it on myself first. Oh, the things we do! But it paid off, because vikings need facial hair. They are a rough bunch. They can even train dragons, ya know!

We hope your halloween was as fun as ours!!!