Back to School

 We are three weeks into the new school year and it is off to a pretty good start! The girls all have to wear masks indoors, but they are allowed to play anywhere on the playground, have chapel every week, and allow parent volunteers this year. We also decided to have them ride the bus to school in the morning!

Lydia is in the P4 Spanish class with Senora Polinder. She has school M/W/F mornings and wakes up every morning asking if it's a school day. Her class has 19 kids in it, which is the biggest class any of our kids have ever had. Hopefully, we can get to know some of the kids this year.

Haleigh is in 2nd Grade with Senor Berroteran. Her class meets in a new portable building that was just put in over the summer. He is such an amazing teacher and does a lot of singing/playing the piano and art projects, which are both things that Haleigh loves! 

Starting the morning off with worship songs around the piano!

Annaliese is in 4th Grade and has a new teacher, Maestra Gonzalez. She is in a combined 3/4 class this year, and there are only two other 4th graders. It seems like they are doing a little bit better job this year at taking some of the traditional things that kids at LC do and also having the kids in the Spanish Immersion program do them as well. Annaliese just signed up for something called CREW, which is an opportunity for fourth graders to volunteer around the school. She is hoping to be on a card-making CREW, so I will have to share more about it once it starts and we actually know what it involves! 

Maestra Gonzalez and Annaliese!

I have definitely had a few issues with LC and the Lynden community in general as we've navigated through the past year and all things Covid-related, but I love our teachers and everything about the Spanish Immersion Program. After going to parent night last week, it is so evident that these teachers care about our kids so much and they invest so much of themselves into teaching and loving on our kids. I am excited to see our kids grow and flourish this year!

Haleigh wouldn't get in my picture...and the other kids wouldn't move...but at least she smiled for my photo!

Ice cream cones to celebrate the end of the first week!

Lydia is 5!

And just like that, my baby girl is 5! She's been looking forward to her birthday for quite some time and requested Legos, doll stuff, and stuffies. She wanted pizza and ice cream and Grandpa and Grandma to help celebrate. We celebrated a few weeks early while Grandma Kelley and Papa Jay were in town, and then had another birthday cake on her birthday!

When the only birthday shirt you can find says "I am 7," you wear it confidently!

Lydia is full of spunk, has the best smile, gives incredible hugs, and is happy 95 percent of the time...but when she's not happy, she is definitely not happy. It's hard to believe that someone so cute can scream and scratch the way she does! She is observant, an encourager, always has a compliment for everyone, and loves to play with Haleigh. She likes playing at the park, riding her bike, playing dolls and legos, and any kind of game. 

Lydia and Haleigh still share a room; they go to bed about 7:30ish, with the goal of lights out at 8:00. Lydia likes to read books before bed and still sleeps with her blanket. She usually wakes up around 7:00ish. Every once in a while I will have her nap with me, but she doesn't usually fall asleep until just before it's time to get up...and then she doesn't go to sleep as well at night. 

Sometimes you need a dog and an umbrella to get a good night of sleep...

Clothing: Most clothes are 5T and shoes are size 10. Lydia has her own style and picks out her own clothes every day. She also loves shoes...especially boots!

Activities: Lydia loves life...she loves playing, snuggling, biking, eating, making dinner, helping in the yard, playing at the park, watching a show...pretty much any activity that is going on! 

Making zucchini muffins.

I taught the girls how to play 'Set' and Lydia caught on super fast!

Dislikes include loud noises, eggs, onions, root beer floats, and being told to do something. 

Lydia brings so much joy to our family and it is so fun to watch her grow and develop her own personality. She has a great memory and a big heart and it will be both challenging and exciting to see how God is going to use her!

 

Papa Jay and Grandma Kelley's Visit

 Papa Jay and Grandma Kelley were recently here for a long weekend visit. They arrived Friday, just after lunch and stayed until Tuesday morning. It's been a few months since they've been here, so we had lots of catching up to do! They stayed at my mom and dad's house the first night and then the Inn in Lynden for the rest of the time. 

Saturday we hiked Excelsior Pass. It was cool and foggy which made it pretty in a different sort of way. Apparently, there are some pretty amazing views of Mt. Baker, but we didn't hike high enough to see that anyways! 

Sunday we went to church together, played games and then had Grandpa and Grandma H., Auntie Kim, Uncle Thane, Uncle Ben and the kiddos over to celebrate Lydia's birthday. 

The rest of our time was filled with playing games, neighborhood walks, and hanging out at home. We went out for dinner, ordered take-out, and sipped on wine. It was such a fantastic weekend (with very few pictures to show for it!)