Art

“A blueberry and a strawberry and me and my daddy holding hands under shooting stars. And daddy has a belly and I have no belly. And hearts, and butterflies, and darkness, and we can touch the sky… And that's all” – L

Lucas

Lucas had his 4 year check-up in February. Still tall and skinny. Matt and I did always joke that our kids would have no wrist and no ankles. Apparently though they have no butts. He is projected to be 6'2" by his pediatrician. Not sure I buy it. For now this is where he is:

Height: 42 3/4 inches (90%ile)
Weight: 38 3/4 pounds (70%ile)

Lucas has given us so much to be proud of recently. He is turning into a fine little man. As sad as it makes us to see the toddler years go, we are so proud of our big boy. He loves building, math, science, and reading. I think he will feverishly await starting Kindergarten in a year. Name writing is easy and he loves practicing all his other letters as well.

He's silly but sweet. A little rough with little sister at times but at the same time so loving.

Sharing his popsicle

Feeding the ducks

Red Caboose Park

Mommy, take a picture of my silly face!

Snow Day

With February came our first (maybe last?) snow for the year! It stayed for just a few hours ... just enough to get our feet wet.

Haley staring longingly at the window. 

Lucas: Art, Legos, & Other Fun

What's our little boy up to these days? He is outgrowing the "terrible" threes. Tantrums are starting to be less frequently seen visitors at our house and the word "yes" is falling more and more frequently. We love it! Lucas is sweet and funny and we are loving watching him grow. 

He is turning into quite the artist. Markers, paint, crayons, or stamps. Coloring books, workbooks, or self-made pictures. He loves it all. The new stamp set he got for Christmas was quite the hit on a no-school morning.

 

Lucas' newest obsession: Legos!! Matt and I love it and are happy to sit with him for hours building (even though Lucas already really doesn't need our help). He builds by instruction and makes up his own creations. So much for 7 and up!

 Lucas has also started ice skating and by lesson three is able to stay upright on his own two feet and even glide a little bit. Day one did teach almost exclusively how to fall.

And other fun: Hiding with the iPad.

Cuddling Morris

And cuddling Baby Sister

Lucas Turns Four!

On December 5th our little boy turned 4. He is oh so proud of his new age and will share it with anyone and everyone: " Hi, you remember, I four now." As his mommy, I can't believe that he is already four and wonder where all the time  has gone. I feel so very blessed to have such a fabulous, energetic, smart, little rascal as my son. He makes us laugh, he keeps us on our toes, and he teaches us so many things. 

We knew that this year Lucas' birthday would have to be a big deal (he's only been talking about it since this summer). I planned and thought of one thing after another (and discarded one idea after another) but finally I came up with the perfect plan for a four year old thanks to a friend giving me the tip (key element: the party was not at our house!).

We had a pirate party at Shipwrecked Playhouse in Cool Springs: pirate ship + ball pit + lots of toys + most importantly his favorite friends + no clean-up for mom = perfection.

Can't go wrong with a train table!

Our little pirate

Our favorite twins Anna & Ella

Car races

Ellie and Emma all dressed up

Emma caught in action

Bennett and big brother Carson in the ball pit

Ship Ahoy!

Also exciting for us parents: the separate play area for the little ones. 

Little brothers Peter and Christopher hard at work 

Will out for a ride

JD exploring the ball pit

HK unsure of the ball pit... but if JD is doing it...

 Pirate Cupcake Cake!

On Lucas' real birthday, we celebrated again (just with the four of us this time). 

Every four year old needs to take some milk shots on their birthday.

And with the past year have come so many passed milestones and so many new skills and loves. At four Lucas can add, he can (almost) write his name, he does workbooks with excitement, he loves to color, he loves to play ball, he loves to be wild with daddy, and read book after book at bedtime (and after bedtime). He will eat almost anything (except nuts and honey), always asks for seconds at daycare, and is a grand helper in the kitchen. He still sleeps in mommy and daddy's bed way more than is pediatrician recommended and has learned to sleep without his Morris (since Morris is no where to be found - a fact that makes mom want to cry). He loves his sister but would rather not share with her. He is outgrowing Duplos and has started seeing the joy of Legos. He can almost swim but is still a timid bike rider (even with training wheels). He will talk to almost anyone and will climb up anything. He loves school and all his friends. He is 90% the sweetest boy ever and 10% full of stubborn tantrums. He has started playing board games and is getting more and more skilled during his precious few minutes of iPad time. He makes us all laugh daily and knows 12 different types of knuckles. It's a long list but encompasses only a select few things of our sweet boy. I love him dearly and am so thankful for him. 

Love you my happy four year old!

Mini Kickers

A few weeks ago we had a big day for the Israels. Lucas had his first day of soccer (and I'm officially a soccer mom). Lucas is a Minnesota Thunder along with BFF Emma. The mini kickers were not quite sure which way to kick or even if to kick the ball but they were so cute. Matt is so giddy too which is adorable. He's been wanting a kid in soccer since I told him I was pregnant. He just wishes he could be coaching. Maybe next year. But Lucas did a great job even though he did want to bring his own ball into the game instead of playing with the one the other kids were playing with.
Haley's big news was that with a little help of the soft grass at the field, she sat all by herself!!!
So stink in' proud of my kids!
And last but definitely not least. Matt and I had our first celebrity spotting in Nashville! Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's daughter Sunday Rose is playing in the same league as Lucas and they were on the field right behind us about 20 feet away! Had to try really hard to stay cool.

Before the first practice, I got my sweet boy to let me get some pics in his new gear:

Getting first instructions from their coach:

Finally kicking!

A quick pep talk

Sweet Kids:

Huddle and "Thunder" cheer