The End of Summer

Wow! The summer of 2010 flew by! We've already been in school for a week now and everything seems to be going relatively well. T1 started 7th grade at his new school and is adjusting nicely. He's enjoying his teachers and making friends in his classes. T2 started pre-k and is thriving, and T3 started pre-school and is still adjusting. T3 cried when he had to change rooms, so now I am taking him to his old classroom in the morning and the owner of the school moves him to his new class shortly after I leave. I am told he does just fine in his new class, but he certainly won't let me know that. Such a stinker.

Before school started, we celebrated T3's 3rd birthday. Yes, my baby is 3 years old! I sure wish he would embrace it! He didn't want to turn three and still insists he is two. He didn't want a party and shied away from the birthday spotlight even when we were opening presents and hitting the pinata. We celebrated T3's birthday at the same time we celebrated my nephew's birthday and I thought that might excite him, but no dice. It's been a month since his birthday, but he'll only admit to being two. In typical fashion, T2 is the polar opposite of T3 in this regard. The day immediately after his 4th birthday, he started saying he was almost five. T1 is about to have a birthday (as well as several other Parker peeps), so more birthday fun is on the way.

We recently went to see the emergence of the bats from the largest bat colony in the world. This was the third time we've been and it still amazes Matt and I. The little ones? Not so much, but I hope that will change. I think it's simply too much to require they be quiet for any extended period of time.

Our church had a free concert the other night and the youth were encouraged to invite friends. T1 called one boy and two girls and asked them to come. The boy had other plans, so T1 was stuck with two dates until a third girl called him and asked if she could go. T1 said yes, so he was there with three girls! I picked up all girls and took the chatty crew to CiCi's before the concert. The girls got a little catty a couple of times, but I think they all ended up having a good time.

On a completely random note, we had to buy new tennis shoes for T1 today and he's now wearing a size 8 1/2. Crazy! His feet are growing faster than the rest of his body, but I'm sure there is a growth spurt in our future. :)

Here are some pictures from the last few weeks:

Where's the party?

T1 had a friend, Kadyn, over today while Matt and I were at work. T1 and Kadyn are going to be the new kids at school this year and they're both nervous about not knowing anyone. I guess they were talking about how to overcome this and decided they were going to throw a party at our house and invite lots of kids from school so they would be popular. They were so excited about this that they spent two hours cleaning the house. While I was very appreciative of their cleaning effort, I was left wondering how soon they were planning to have this party for the kids they have yet to lay eyes on. Hmmm... In addition to cleaning the house, they made a long list of decorations in my house they want to take down in advance of the party. Oh yeah, and T1 informed Matt that he's supposed to take me on a date night on the evening of the party. T1 was bummed when Matt affirmed that he would absolutely be chaperoning the party (of course, we're not really letting him have a party). T1 later changed his mind about the whole party and popular thing, deciding that the cost for food and decorations would be too expensive and he'd rather save his money for college.

Yale

For the last hour I have been sitting next to T1 supporting his dream of going to Yale when he graduates high school. He's been on the Yale web site reading about the admission requirements, watching promotional videos, learning about campus life, and he's now begun the essay that will one day accompany his application. We've talked about the need to be well-rounded in high school, secure his teachers' favor (for good recommendation letters), earn excellent grades, and be active in the student body. He's also realizing that moving in this direction will separate him from his peers, as most kids aren't thinking about college, but unlike his peers T1 has been dreaming about going to Yale for a few years now and has been really excited to grow up. As a parent, I am thrilled at his foresight and vision. So much can change between now and the time he applies for Yale (if he really ends up doing so), but I hope the drive he is evidencing now will continue through life and result in success and happiness regardless of the path he takes.

T1 is home!

We picked T1 up from camp a couple weeks ago and it was so wonderful to see and hug him again! As a matter of standard practice, the camp staff stage all of the parents in an area a couple hundred yards across from the camper's cabins. While the parents pull up and get situated, the campers anxiously await in their cabins, hanging out the windows, searching for their parents. Only when the bugle sounds can the campers run out of their cabins to the excited arms of their parents. I love that moment, watching T1 run through crowd of boys with a smile on his face. It's such a great time!

I was worried that maybe T1 didn't enjoy camp as much as normal because Matt and I, as well as many others, received several letters from Tyler this year (atypical for him). The letters were a decent length and he ever so sweetly let us know how much he missed us. The frequency and poignancy of his letters actually caused me to slightly worry that maybe he was homesick; fortunately, all of my fears were allayed when the first things out of his mouth were "this was the best year at camp ever and my counselor was the best counselor I've ever had!". What made it a great summer? Well, T1 was in the cabin with again with several of the same campers he's befriended over the years. He was promoted to a warrior status within the black eagles and is hoping to be up for chief next year. He once again LOVED riding the horses more than anything else he did. In addition to riding horses, he played tether ball and ping pong, participated in extreme sports, went scuba diving, canoed and kayaked, shot rifles, played water games, and much more.

The one and only source of complaining was in regards to the camp food. T1 said it was horrible and was begging for good food as soon as we drove off the camp grounds. Can't blame him there!

When we got home, the little guys were excited to see him, particularly T3, and T1 was just as excited (if not more) to see them. It's been wonderful having him back. Here are a few pictures: