Homeschooling in Progress

Today we studied some Fritillary Caterpillars who were attracted to my now blooming Passion Flower Vine which is a host plant for these furry little caterpillars.  I counted 7, Andrew and Kathlena each had an opportunity to hold one. Kathlena's caterpillar was a lively one and was soon crawling all over her. Andrew's however, was content to remain still in his hand. I find this most humorous as this is so like Andrew and Kathlena's different personalities.

For some close-up photographs of the caterpillars visit Pixelation Exploration.

Calvin 9 Months

Calvin sitting with his Great-Grandmother Davis "Mema" during our annual 4th of July celebration/family reunion. 

Calvin helping me unpack the food at the hotel in San Antonio for the Baby Conference. 

 

Calvin has changed so much in the past month.  He is on the move and so curious about the world around him.  He understands and can respond to Daddy and Mommy's voices when we say "no,no" he can and will stop.  It is great fun to train him and see him capable of learning self control at such a young age.  He is still a very calm and joyful little boy.  He is a little man of many faces and cracks us up with his endless cuteness.  He now boasts a mouthful of teeth-7 well, 8 to be exact as #8 has just emerged. His latest accomplishment is cabinet or couch "surfing".  He is loving the mobility and loves exploring his new 2 ft high world.

A New Look...for the girls

Here is Mom sporting her new look.  I like it Mom.  Kathlena below with her first pair of glasses.  She picked them out herself...purple of course.  ;)  I didn't think it was possible for Kathlena to look any cuter, but she does.  Best of all it seems she can see better and seeing small things like bugs in a new light.  Exciting times for Kathlena.  A whole new world just opened up for her...yeah!

Calvin 8 months

(By Gina)
Calvin you are growing up to fast.  Now that you are crawling you immediately wanted to stand.  After one week of crawling you began to pull-up on everything.  Then after two weeks you began to try and stand holding on with only one hand.  What happened it seems only yesterday we were waiting for you to arrive and now you are trying so hard to begin walking.

 Calvin did finally figure out how to roll over this month.  It would make him made to put him on his back because he couldn't turn over and crawl, but he finally got mad enough to do it.  Now he flip flops like a fish out of water.  Calvin is understanding "no, no" and will shake his head no when he hears you say "no,no Calvin".

Calvin is eating solid food very well now.  He eats liver, cooked blueberries, peaches, raspberries, carrots, green beans, chicken, quail (loves this!).  Mango-avocado-kefir water also is a favorite.  I have so enjoyed making baby food combinations in the Vita-Mix one of my favorite kitchen tools.  Calvin seems to just enjoy food and is not picky.  I am trying to follow Nourishing Traditions for babies.

Calvin has made a new friend.  Our dog, Chase is such a good dog and loves kids. 

Here is Calvin playing with our friends dog, Jackie who is also very kid friendly as you can see below. 

A Very Special Swing...

...long, long ago, before my three youngest siblings were born, my family lived for two years on my grandparent's ranch in Hillsboro TX. I was four when we moved there and it was love at first sight. At around 765 acres it was the world to me back then. We had a white picket fence around the little ranch house, a storm cellar, several cats and dogs, a little garden and a swing set. That swing set still remains on the ranch though no one lives in the old, run-down ranch house now. My uncle and grandfather recently moved the swing set near the lake along with a real retired merry-go-round from an old park that was remodeling their playground. They don't make em like this anymore. On our last trip to my grandparents my littlest brother, Calvin got to sit in the very swing I used to swing in when I was little...and I think he liked it. :)

What was funny was that we didn't even have to push him. That's the beauty of swing sets of antiquity, as long as somebody's swinging on it-albeit on the other side-the whole set rocks back and forth in unison. :)

Kathlena's Favorite is the merry-go-round.

Calvin Crawling

Calvin learning to crawl.  He took off quickly and within a week was pulling up and trying to stand to play.  Here are a few video clips we put together of him taking off.  He is growing so fast!  I love all the videos of him chubby.  I am sure that now that he is crawling he will be losing a lot of his chubbiness.

Thank you Emily for helping capture some cute moments on film and preserving these precious memories for your family.

Introspection Video 2010

Another year has passed. We celebrated today our second family day with Andrew and Kathlena. Here is the post about our day on our adoption blog.

Here is Emily's Introspection Video for this year. To see how much they have changed here is the link to last years. Emily thank you for this special gift of interviewing and videoing these precious moments with Andrew and Kathlena.

Calvin 7 months

Calvin continues to amaze us with his many faces.  He loves to scoot and push back and sit up.  He hasn't quite got the hang of crawling yet, but he is very close.  I am in no hurry though as time seems to be going so quickly with him being little.  Crawling is the first step towards toddlerhood that will be upon us in no time. 
Calvin I love your smile and the way that you giggle.  You are such a happy boy.  You are learning to like solid food.  My favorite time with you is early morning when all is quiet in the house and you are still a little sleepy-eyed. 

A Great Summer Find

I recently stumbled upon this great resource- My Audio School . Many of the materials on this site are original resource materials. In our house we love to listen to audio books, especially in the hot summer afternoons or rainy days. I like how the site is structured by time periods and yet searchable by title as well. So if you are looking for a good book, old time radio drama, or biography to listen to you might find something to interest you here. I found Shakespeare, Captains of Industry--entrepreneurs of the 1800s radio dramas about their lives, A Child's Garden of Verses, King Arthur's Knights and much more. About 25% of their database of audio materials is free, but for a nominal annual fee of $14.99 you can subscribe to all of it.
We are looking forward to a summer of listening and learning!

Beach Vacation Slideshow Days 3-5

Here's another slide show Emily did for the remaining 3 days of our vacation to the beach. We had a great time.

*remember to turn off the music in the sidebar.

For some interesting silhouettes Emily took at the beach house visit Pixelation Exploration.