Update on all the boys (2/4/2020)

It has been too long since I've really written a good update on all the boys, so here we go. 

Porter-  He has gotten really into basketball since we got our basketball hoop and he's been playing on a basketball team.  He plays almost every day.  His favorite people to play with are Meg, David, Ash and his friends.  He thinks I'm annoying and I cheat....  I do not cheat.  We found him a new piano teacher and I'm so excited to have him back at it.  She seems to be a great fit too.  She's introducing the use of the metronome which is hard for me and Porter to get used to.  But, I think it'll be great for Porter.  Porter still doesn't love school.  He was invited to join a discovery group once a week with some other kids and he was excited about this, but it doesn't enjoy it as much as he did his group from last year.  Porter has started bearing his testimony at church on Fast Sunday.  We never know what he's going to say, but his testimonies have always been spot on, clear and have inspired other people.  I love that he enjoys to do this.  He still loves constantly doing something like playing board games, playing with friends usually football or basketball, talking with adult guests at our home that he likes, going on bike rides and reading.  Unfortunately we found out at his last dentist appt that he had 3 cavities, so that was a bummer.  For a few days after that he was really good at brushing, flossing and using mouth wash.  When he had his cavity filled we were really nervous, but he did tremendous.  Way better than myself or the dentist expected, but Dr Pettit really wanted to make sure it was a good experience for him and it was.  Porter has started typing Come Follow Me on his own and types up his own thoughts are summary of the reading.  I know he will love the scriptures as he does this.  Porter has confidence in all that he does. 

Jonas-  It is sad that we only have half a year left until Jonas goes to school.  I'm not really sure what Mason, David or I will do.  Mason and him are the best of buds and play all day long.  Jonas has started reading with is preschool and I love watching him learn to sound out words.  He is growing taller and is so strong.  His spirit is strong and he is able to articulate simply the truths of the gospel.  Just tonight he sang me the sweetest song that he made up as he went along.  It was about how he loved me and he would be sad if I died, but that if I did die I could live again because of Heavenly Father.  I wish I had recorded the entire song because it was precious.  Jonas has also started to learn some football and basketball.  He is so thrilled anytime he does something new or for the first time.  The first time he made a basket, the first time he made it all the way across the monkey bars, etc.  The other day we were playing at the playground and he kept working at the monkey bars until he got it and he practiced over and over again until he was faster and faster.
Jonas used to get discouraged when he'd practice writing if he didn't think his letters looked good, but his writing is so good now and he doesn't get discouraged anymore. 
Jonas continues to be a devoted friend to Ollie and is not concerned about getting more friends.  His prayers often consist of thanking Heavenly Father that he could play with Ollie or saying he missed playing with him, etc.  Jonas also gives the best compliments.  The other day, out of the blue, he looked at me and told me I was beautiful.  Melt my heart.  He also loves to give hugs and pinch your back while he's doing it.  He thinks it's so funny.  He also still gives kisses on the lips which is pretty tender. 

Mason-
A couple of weeks ago we found out Mason had to get glasses and last week we were able to pick them up.  They are adorable and he must notice a difference because we have no problem getting him to wear them all the time.  Usually he just takes them off for playing rough. 
Mason is growing tall and skinny.  He is fiery and knows what he wants and is not afraid to tell you.  He makes me laugh often.  He likes "tittles" (skittles).  If I ever need a helper, he's always the first one to be right in on the action.  He still needs to be potty trained, but he told me he would do it when he's as tall as Porter.  He does pee/poop on the toilet sometimes, but it's whenever he feels like it. 
When Mason gets mad, he'll say, "I'm not going to play with you ever again."  Obviously he's bluffing, because not much later he'll be playing again.  David and I both love to snuggle him and sometimes David needs a nap and he'll take Mason in the room with him and they will snuggled up together and go to sleep.  Mason is not scared of much, but sometimes he does appear shy.  But, let's be honest, he's not a shy kid. 

Brooks-
He's almost 5 months!  I love this snuggly little boy.  The past few weeks I feel like he's started to do a lot more.  He loves to grab his toes and roll to the side.  He's getting so much better at tummy time, but he still doesn't love it for that long.  If I put him in his bouncy seat, he will pull himself up so he's sitting upright rather than reclining.  I always think he's about to tip out.  He is ticklish and his giggles are the sweetest.  He is starting to love dad and Porter more too.  He started clasping his hands together a lot and now grabs at toys.  Brooks is becoming more interested in food and the other morning he was sitting on my lap and pulled my cereal pull off the table onto both of us.  He was not happy about the cold milk.  Neither was I.  He's still only had bananas and avocado, but he's definitely getting more interested in food. 
We're getting a little bit more of a predictable schedule during the day, but he still wakes up a lot at night.  But, I'm happy to see his sweet smile and kiss his squishy cheeks. 
I'm also pretty sure he likes to dance.  I hope so, the other boys all love to and they often ask Alexa to play different songs. 

12/25/19- Christmas Morning

When you wake up at 2:10am Christmas morning, you throw on your Christmas jammies because Dad said you couldn’t come upstairs without them.  After going to the bathroom you notice an iron man tattoo on your arm and it turns you into a believer in Santa again.  Porter comes in showing me his upper arm and says something like, “He really did it.  He got it good.”  Then he runs into the living room and says, “He brought Lucky Charms and a basketball for Jonas.”

Yesterday after the boys opened their new basketball standard, first Jonas informed us that he didn’t even like basketball. Then he says, “We don’t even have a basketball.”  Porter quickly found a Star Wars bouncy ball in the basement, but Mason had a fit (I like to claim it’s because he’s sick, but let’s be honest, he’s fiesty and fiery).  So,  David and I decided that Porter should open his new basketball.  Jonas was then sad that he didn’t have one and we realized that only one basketball could cause problems, so we told Jonas that maybe Santa would bring him one.  Thankfully Ash came through with the win and was able to find a similar “shiny one” at the store so Jonas could get one from Santa. 

So between the tattoo, Lucky Charms cereal and the basketball, we’ve successfully converted Porter into a believer again!

Christmas Day was magical.  The boys were so grateful and happy all day.  We played basketball, we played our new board games,  Jonas built Legos, we played Playdoh, Mason played with his annoying speaking hamster, etc.  It really was the best day with our little family and Ashley.  We read Luke 2.  I loved spending this day with our little family.

Jonas 5 year old check up (1/9/2020)

Jonas continues to be a tender, sweet boy.  Although, he definitely gets angry if bothered by his brothers.  He is doing well in preschool and it is so fun to watch him start learning to read.  Jonas is a little more of a perfectionist than his brothers, so he gets frustrated with himself if his letters aren't written perfectly, but he actually writes really well.  He is pretty athletic.  He still prefers to stay home and does not like new people or large crowds.  His best friend is still Ollie Griffis and that's really the only person he wants to play with besides family.  Jonas loves playing legos, riding his bike, playing games, reading, playing ninja and just having fun.  He can playing quietly by himself or with others.  If he gets in trouble or gets upset, he sometimes takes himself to his room and he'll fall asleep.  If it's during the day he'll take a nap, but if it's closer to bedtime, he'll be down for the night. 
Jonas has some really special gifts, but I don't think he is as confident as his other brothers which makes me so sad since David and I think he's pretty amazing. 
For his birthday he had Ollie come with us to Chuck e Cheese and then we had mac n cheese for dinner with Donuts and raspberry sherbert for dessert.  He was really worried Porter was going to ruin his birthday by teasing him.  Fortunately, he had a good birthday. 
I sure love this kid. 

BP 97/60

Pulse 72

Temp 36.7 °C (98.1 °F) (Temporal)

Ht 42" (106.7 cm)

Wt 17 kg (37 lb 6.4 oz)

BMI 14.91 kg/m²

BMI: Body mass index is 14.91 kg/m². (percentile 32 %ile (Z= -0.46) based on CDC (Boys, 2-20 Years) BMI-for-age

Mason 3 year check up (1/9/2020)

Mason had his 3 year check up a little late.  He is such a fun boy.  He's actually pretty easy going, but he definitely has some spice and sass.  If someone is going somewhere and they invite him to go, he's ready to go.  He likes to be on the move.  Jonas and him are the best little buddies and they play really well together for the most part.  Mason loves his hot wheels, legos and riding his bike.  He also really loves treats and if you ask him what present he wants, he will ask for candy.  For a while now, Mason has been the best helper.  He is always eager to help and work on projects, it doesn't matter what it is.  He loves his daddy and loves when dad gives him kisses and tickles him.  They have a sweet relationship and are best buddies.
Mason invited two friends, Tyson Mitchell and Tyler Lindberg, over for a birthday dinner of mac n cheese and chicken nuggets with strawberry cupcakes and sherbert ice cream for dessert.  It was fun to have his little friends over and they watched him open all his birthday presents and then played with him.  We got him a hot wheel track and a few cars.  The present was a hit and all the boys including Porter and Jonas loved it.
I adore Mason.  He is such a joy.

BP 97/57

Pulse 92

Temp 37.2 °C (99 °F) (Temporal)

Ht 38" (96.5 cm)

Wt 14.2 kg (31 lb 6.4 oz)

BMI 15.29 kg/m²

BMI: Body mass index is 15.29 kg/m². (percentile 26 %ile (Z= -0.64) based on CDC (Boys, 2-20 Years) BMI-for-age

During his appt we determined that he might have some vision problems.  These were the results and we are going in for an appt with an opthamalogist next week on Jan 14th to do further testing.

Vision Screening

Edited by: Makenzie Collins, MA-C

		Right eye	Left eye	Both eyes
	Without correction	20/30	20/40
	Comments: Vision screen completed using WelchAllyn Spot Vision Screener with the following results:   OD (right eye) DS (used to calculate visual acuity): +3.25   OS (left eye) DS (used to calculate visual acuity): +4.00   Vision Screen results: Hyperopia

Brooks 4 month check up (1/7/2020)

How can Brooks already be 4 months old!  We love him so much.  His cheeks are squishy, he's smiley and he loves to laugh when tickled.  He is starting to take about 3 naps a day, sometimes this changes if his nap gets interrupted.  He still wakes up 2-3 times a night to eat, but he's starting to go to bed earlier between 7 and 8:30pm, so that's good.  He does not love tummy time and I'm not very good at making him do it.  Brooks is no where near rolling over, but he does kind of pull his upper body up when he's sitting in his bouncy seat.  He's working on his abs:).

At his 4 month check up these were his stats:
Temp 37.1 °C (98.7 °F) (Temporal)
Ht 23.86" (60.6 cm)
Wt 6254 g (13 lb 12.6 oz)
HC 41.3 cm (16.26")
BMI 17.03 kg/m²

He got 3 vaccine shots and one oral vaccine. He cried for his shots, but calmed quickly after. Later that night I did give him some tylenol because he was fussy, but after the tylenol he was so pleasant and happy.