Boys

Last week was great for Parker at school, this week not so much.  He was on a hot streak getting green everyday in Feb until 2/13.  Not sure what we do differently before school that makes the day good or bad but we had 3 yellows this week.  The worst part (as a parent) is that it is for silly things that are so easy to fix.  His warnings or reminders at school are for not sitting up straight at his table, laying down on the carpet and being goofy when it is time to get ready for class or recess.  If only he could multi-task!  Again, not so much.  


Parker and I attended Technology Night at school to learn about the aps they use on the iPad2 during class.  It was nice to see what they are using all of the technology for so we can try to emulate some of it at home.  Crazy to think that before 1st grade they are teaching computer class, using iPads and reading e-books.  


And then you have Gooey who loves to high 5, hug and give knuckles as if he going around the horn on a baseball field.  We originally thought he was going to be our trouble maker but he has a soft side that is already showing.   Tonight his cousin Caden is visiting and Crosby went over to give him hugs 1/2 a dozen time times in only a  few hours.  Hmmm, I think spending time with Jack & Riley at daycare is paying off!  At dinner I decided to give him free reign and he knocked down a burrito faster than his big brother. Then he took down a raspberry yogurt and a fruit cup of peaches.  I think our baby is growing up, too fast of course.  


More pics coming soon from Caden's visit.

I ate my burrito now leave me alone dad

Wanna see a big bite, here you go

Super Weekend

Quick weekend update.  Perfect weather for winter in Wisconsin, mid 30s and sunny.  Parker and I went up the road to play at the park where it was wet and muddy.  It was a blast to be able to get outside and enjoy the fresh air and we stayed relatively clean.  Parker also spent some time making Valentines with his friend Maddie.  He said his favorite part was playing in the basement with all of her toys.  Sounds like they had a blast together which is no surprise at all.  Penny also taught them Grey Duck.  It's what most normal people call Duck Duck Goose.  Apparently in MN you play Grey Duck instead so you can teach your kid to call the other kids all kinds of colorful names, and grey duck = goose.  Anyway, next time we need to get pictures of them together so we can compare them as the seasons roll on.

Super Sunday was filled with time at home.  Crosby decided he needed a 4 hour nap so Parker and I took advantage with a little dodge ball game in the basement.  Mom went shopping.  Parker has so much to learn!  We worked on aiming low, you've got to aim at the legs below the knee so its harder to catch the ball!  Come on man, its simple.  After that he found a dinosaur bone kit that had hidden bones inside a block of compressed sand or something like it.  The tools that came with it were too dull so I gave Parker a flat head screwdriver (great parenting I know).  It resulted in a gash on the hand but he toughed it out and kept working.  After that it was on to air hockey (mini version) and Crosby decided to take matters into his own hands (and mouth).  Next weekend we get to celebrate Madisyn's birthday, can't wait.

Oh, and Crosby had spaghetti for dinner, HA.

Working hard to find dino bones.

Dad helping (sort of), I may have broken
a few dino bones in the digging process.

Crosby working on the red sauce facial

Worst part is that he thought it was funny
Look at the dimple, it screams GUILTY.

First air hockey game.

Parker was lovin it, easy victory.

Hey guys, look at this huge red nook I found.

If you can't win, end the game your way.

Mop Top

Yesterday I picked Parker up earlier than normal so we could tackle the mop top he has grown.  I couldn't even tell you the last time he had a haircut, maybe April 2011.  Usually we cut his when Mark comes over to cut mine but Parker decided to grow his out like Brian last year.  It was time to get a trim to say the least.

Crosby was sick this week with a terrible cough and runny nose.  He was rocking a 102.5 temp on Wednesday and is now finally getting back to normal.  The worst part is that he has decided that he needs to fake cry to get your attention.  Ughhh.  Hoping that goes away with the cold because we could live without it.  Its good to see him feeling better.

Parker at school on 2/2/2012.
Mop top is understatement of the year.

Parker 2/4/2012.
We have our boy back!

Crosby fighting off the fever in dad's lap.

The Report Card

This week Parker brought home his 2nd Q report card.  For most parents this is probably an exciting time to check on their child's progress but it is one of the most stressful days for me.  I expect a lot because I know he is capable of doing very well.  I actually asked Penny if I could look at it first, alone.  I need to process my thoughts before talking to him because he doesn't respond well to the Bobby Knight coaching style, he needs encouragement mixed with discipline.

Lets break it down.  The grading system goes something like this

B = Beginning     (shows little understanding of concepts)
D = Developing   (shows some understanding of concepts)
S = Secure        (can apply skill accurately and independently)
E = Exceed         (can apply skill beyond the expectations)

The areas that each child are graded on are the following:
Science, Social Studies, Reading, Writing, Math, Art, Music, Phy. Ed and Work Habits

Work Habits - 1 "S" and 7 "D"s.  
-Improvement from last quarter but probably the most challenging area.  This involves staying on task, getting work completed timely, following directions and organization.  Ughhhhhhh.  Such an easy thing to fix when you are 33  and understand the concept.  Not so much at 5.

Science - 1 "E" and 2 "S"s
-If you know Parker, this category is a walk in the park.  This quarter the class worked on Seasonal Changes, Plants and Animal recognition.  His favorite movies are Human Planet, Planet Earth and the Life series.  He could probably teach this subject if you asked him too.

Social Studies - 4 "S''s
-Family, Economics (really?), Transportation and effort.  This one speaks for itself.  We must do an ok job of talking about those topics because he is doing well.

Reading - 1 ''D'', 8 ''S''s and 2 ''E"s
-Parker does really well with reading.  He has loved books since he was little and we tend to read books that are about nature, dinosaurs, reptiles....pretty much boy things to him on a regular basis.  2-3 times a week he brings home assignments for reading and is able to read the books all by himself.  We are so proud because this is something he enjoys  now and hopefully that continues.  Most of the level 1 books we have he can read independently.

Writing - 1 ''D'', 1 ''S''
-The class is working on simple sentences, writing down what they are doing or describing a picture that they drew.  One thing I learned is that we should let him write words based on how they sound to him instead of having us write them first.  Now that we are doing it correctly you can see the wheels turning when we work on this at home.  We love watching him figure it out on his own, the tough part is not helping him with the spelling of his words.

Math - 1 ''D'', 3 ''S''s and 3 ''E''s
-This seems to be natural for him, the only area he struggled at was his effort.  Is he bored?  Not challenged?  We'll have to see what happens during this quarter.  Nice work Parker!

Art - 4 ''S'' and 1 ''E''
-Another area that he really loves is art.  Again, if you know him it all he will color or play with play-doh all day long if you let him.  I remember one day when we were packing up stuff before moving and he played at the kitchen table with play-doh for almost 8 hours.  Who does that?  I think we actually have a picture with about 100 sharks made out of play-doh.  I told you he was going to be my art major!

Music - 3 ''D''s and 2 ''S''s
-Pretty much the same as last quarter, he doesn't love music right now but he does well enough to get by.

Phy. Ed - 2 ''D''s and 3 "S''s
-He actually regressed in this subject for not following instructions.  This is our biggest challenge.


Notes from the teacher:
Parker is doing a nice job on consciously being aware of his need to work on organization and staying on task.  I have seen a significant improvement from last quarter!  Academically he continues to be strong in all areas.  I will continue to challenge him to gain more independent skills at being able to stay on task by trying to get him to work with the higher Math group.  He is able to do the skills they are working on academically, he needs to work on staying on task to keep up with the pace.


We are so proud of him and know what we need to work on together.