It's the beginning of Fall

A new word for Ellsyn this past week was "football". Pretty perfect as we gear up for the season. D has been practicing the JETS cheer with Shadd as well as the Central Fight Song. Don't worry I think a few - "Go Cyclones!" have been thrown out too.

Some other things that have been happening this week - We started preschool with Shadd (Ells too, I guess). I am using this Raising Rock Starts curriculum that I found here. 1plus1plus1equals1. It is awesome. She has a ton of free printables and some stuff you can buy. I went ahead and purchased the raising rock stars preschool pack as I am always looking for an easy quick download and convenience. Plus in purchasing we were able to help them as they are full-time missionaries to the inner city and we love to support the work of the Lord.

Anyways we were only going to do it 3 days a week but Shadd is loving it and asking for school today on our day off so we will probably try and squeeze in some activities this afternoon. He has his memory verse down pat already and we studied Daniel in the Lion's Den this week as our letter of the week is L. We even watched some lions roaring on youtube. Gotta love the internet.  I will try and get some pics of school uploaded in the next couple of days and keep you posted on our progress. Shadd struggled with scissors and it is hard to teach as it is so second nature for me, so we will see. Maybe God will teach us both something in this preschool adventure.

As far as Ellsyn - we are doing a little battling with night time and naptime sleeping. So we are retraining as I am listening to her scream while I type this. We are beginning to see that she is strong-willed. So we are trying to break it. Not her spirit just her will. In fact, two nights ago as we were letting her cry it out with our door shut and the fan on high - she fell asleep standing up in her crib. I wish I could have gotten a pic but at 4 am it was not worth the risk. Last night her face was pressed against the side of the crib - thankfully we were able to transition her to stomach. So not much sleep at this house when it is absolutely necessary. Just one more season in parenting that too will pass. I just have to continue to remind myself that.

As far as the fall line-up we are getting geared up for some road trips. Dubuque to see Uncle Nick's team play, then Junk Bonanza, the apple orchard, pumpkin patch, etc. This is my favorite time of year and we already seeing the leaves starting to change colors and fall. God's creation is just beautiful this time of year and we live in the best place to view the drastic changes in the seasons.