GOOOOOOOAAAAAALLLLLL!!!!!!

Will's soccer season is in full swing, so I wanted to get a video of his fancy footwork.  Here is one of his 3 or 4 goals that he made at tonights game:)  He's #5, and I apologize in advance for the shaky camera work and the loudness of my voice!

Will's 5th Birthday

 

Happy 5th Birthday Will!!!!

Your BIRTH day:) 

 

 

First Birthday!

Second...

Third...

Fourth...



Will,
You are such a dear boy!  We thought you would be our last baby...and then you became a big brother!  Most days you do a terrific job in that role:)  Some, of course, you would rather that you had been the last Simpson born!  It is so sweet though, on those days, and in those moments when you lovingly take Ryan under your wing and teach him how to do something, or share an adventure.  You still have that Jekyll and Hyde thing going on too:)   One minute you're an angel and the next...watch out!  Mean boy on the rampage!!  Thankfully, you are getting much better about getting control over your emotions and you are usually so quick to demonstrate a contrite heart.  You love to be read to and of course are following your dad and brother's footsteps in the love of the outdoors and hunting.  You were anxious to begin school with Jack and Ella-Kathryn, so you began a kindergarten math curriculum as well as a reading program. You are so much better about being dropped off at church etc, and for the most part like to try new things.  Your two "friends" are Will Bankston and Annabella Tyburski.  You are playing soccer for the first time and at your first game scored three goals!  It was so much fun to watch you play even when you stole the ball from your own team-mate to score! 
Ella-Kathryn says "he's the second funniest kid in my family" (she puts Ryan in first place:))
Jack - He is a nice, kind person and sometimes tries to hurt me:)
Ryan - Will plays with me (this was a coaxed answer which came after he said that he liked Will's haircut, his spider man t-shirt, and that he was a fish:))
We love you Will!  Happy 5th birthday! 

Daily

 First day back to school after a LONG summer break.  We began back in June - did a unit and then ended up having one thing pop up after another.  So we just said we'll wait...and wait... and then finally September rolled around and we really needed to get back to school!  We are studying the Middle Ages and enjoying learning about knights and castles:)


This goof ball had a blast at the lake on Sunday.  The family who opened up their home for all of us, also had a great dock and the kids could step off and right into the lake.  It was the perfect depth there for them to walk around and splash a bit. 

Jack has enjoyed playing with airsoft guns for a while now and of course the little guys had to get in on the action.  Will bought his first gun with some mad money he got from his Pappa (Jeff's dad).  Here he is ready for action:)  I will say that on this day they had been driving me bananas wanting to actually shoot one another and finally I caved - 1 minute after this pic was snapped Will came running up to the same door screaming that Jack had shot him in the arm!  There was a decent welt there for days:(  But he hasn't asked me to shoot at each other again! 

 

 Ryan does NOT have an airsoft gun, but likes to hang with the big boys.  He mashed his face up to the front door and yelled, "mommy!  Take a picture of me!  I'm cute!"

 
and before I forget - Will and Ryan and I were headed to a friend's house to pick up the big kids.  It has been a really hot and humid summer here and Will was telling Ry that it was so hot out still, at 6:00pm, and that the reason it felt so hot was because it was also so "human" - or humid as the rest of us like to say:)

Baptism!

Ella-Kathryn attended VBS a couple of summers ago.  She told us that she had accepted Christ as her lord and saviour:)  We were so excited for her - there is no greater joy than knowing that your child her relationship with the Lord and how that will carry through her life.  What tremendous peace comes from knowing that you can have hope in this seemingly hopeless world; that you have a divine purpose; and that you will be immeasurably loved, beyond the love that you feel from your parents, all the days of your life!  She wanted her daddy to do the honors of baptising her, as he had done for Jack.  Jeff was not excited about getting up in front of our huge church family to do this again:)  Crowds and public speaking are not his thing!  So this opportunity presented itself - to baptise her at a local lake with friends who would be baptising their daughter, who is a dear friend of Ella-Kathyrn's!  Yes, we were in! So today, Sunday September 09, 2012, Jeff baptised Ella-Kathryn. 

Friday

With Monday "missing" from this week, I found myself scrambling to finish strong, as I kept thinking I had another day to come:)  Oh well.  I headed back to the eye doc to check my new lenses - alls fine so they sent me home with a new supply of contacts.  Much needed after a long summer of wearing them to/in the pool.  apparently a major eye no-no.   Again, oh well.  I mean they told me to wear goggles. Um, no thanks.  I'll take my chances against those super scary eye diseases you have exploded to the 100th power on the wall chart over there.  I'm a rebel like that.  And super vain. 
So, we end the week miraculously on schedule with school and eating dinner through a doozy of a storm which Jeff said had 70 mph winds.  We were all good here - a flicker of the lights right before we sat down to eat, but the kids ran and got their various headlamps/lanters/flashlights, so  we were well prepared for the non-weather that followed.  Good lesson in better safe than sorry, I suppose.  The kids are watching their Friday night movie, one from the late 80's(The Explorers with a very young River Phoenix and Ethan Hawke)  that I don't remember ever seeing.  How that's possible I also don't know:)  Jack just poked his head in and said, "this movie's awesome!"  I'll take him at his word. 
Been thinking about this trip lately...

wishing we could go back for another week or so, sans kids:)  It was such a great time together just the two of us alone no little people - well you get the picture:)
But also knowing I would miss these crazies...and for the record I still pee my pants every time I see the one with Ella-Kathryn - not her but Jeff in the background.  I have no idea what he was doing, but that expression is PRICELESS!!! 

So that's it for the week:)

Renewal

I have decided that if this is to be a place to document our childrens' lives, then it must be done on a far more frequent basis:)  So, here goes.  The launch of a new blogging philosophy.  I intend to post every day - even it is only a few quick sentences.  Mark the day so to speak.
Since my last post we have celebrated my birthday as well as Ryan's, Jeff's Kathy's, Ella-Kathryn's, and sent cards to Poppy for his bday.  Yet none of this is here:(  So here we go...
Ryan celebrated his 3rd birthday!  He is such a funny boy, and loves to be funny.  He makes great silly faces and is really getting into story telling, aka making stuff up:)  We will have to really watch this part of his personality - don't want a compulsive liar on our hands!  He loves music - singing, dancing, seems to just be a musical kid.  Still is not great about going to sleep and/or staying in his bed at night, but really we've not done much to discourage his nightly visits to our room, so I can't complain.  can't wait to see what this next year has for him!
                                                        Headlamp-gift from the Woelkes

Camo backpack - from Poppy.

Ella-Kathryn celebrated the big 8!  We did parties with family and then with a few girlfriend - so fun!  She is blessed with some dear girls who love to be silly and have fun with her.  She continues to be our encourager and helper.  She enjoys reading and does well in "school" and as much as she loves her dolls and dollhouse, she also gets a thrill from hauling heiny around the yard on our little dirtbike!  Oh that girl!

Jeff's back injury from late June, finally healed enough for him to return to light duty in early Aug and then regular duty a few weeks later.  He did step down from his Sgt. position too, in an effort to care for his health better and hopefully make a dent in the issues he's been having with cholesterol and blood pressure!  He is on the 3-1 shift now and while it's been an adjustment not being in charge, he is getting a full nights sleep now!  We weren't able to go to FL this summer b/c of his back - didn't think we should leave him here alone unable to walk:)  We are hoping Poppy can visit in the fall!  The Woelkes came for Labor day and while it was super hot, we did have a great time hanging with the cousins.  Karen and I did some shopping sans kids on Sat and then we hit the pool on Sun.
Ok, so for some administrative stuff for my benefit:
Current curriculum -  A World of Adventure - unit based curriculum, using for J and EK; MCP math; A Reason for Handwriting
Will - MCP math and Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons
So far so good - some days are super easy and others are really challenging!  Jack and i still "battle" on a regular basis:(  I am often left wondering if this is really what God wants for us:)  Jeff assures me that it is.  I know it is too, it's just that when it's hard, you just want to throw in the towel and farm them off to someone else.  Refining experience this is...
I am beginning the study for the book Unlgued, by Lysa Terkeust.  It deals with anger and how what we do with the anger in our lives.
Fun reading:  finally got around to Jeffrey Eugenides - reading Middlesex; read The Marriage Plot (good, great literary ref, not just the title, and overall good read)
Also reading Grace Based Parenting, Kimmel; Stepping Heavenward, Prentiss;