Gabriel Turns 7

Gabriel's birthday passed a couple of weeks ago, but no birthday is complete without a commemorative blog post.

As a family we celebrated the Thursday before we left to go to Georgia for Thanksgiving.  We went out to eat at Red Robin (Gabriel loves their "swirly twirly pasta") and then decorated for Christmas.  The next day I brought cupcakes to his class at school during lunch and everyone sang to him (he said "having 7 people sing to me is embarrassing").  Then on Saturday we headed to Georgia so that he could be there for his actual birthday on Sunday.

War Machine

Dragon and Army Men

He loves putting up Christmas decorations

Corban's on the left and Gabriel's on the right

Red Robin birthday dessert

When we asked Gabriel what he would like to do for his birthday what he really wanted was to eat at the Ninja (Hibachi) with his cousin Drew.  So that's what we did. We followed that with cupcakes, presents, and then going to see the "Nights of Lights" at Lake Lanier Island.

On Thanksgiving day we busted a pinata that Hannah Kate and Henry didn't get to use for their birthday party and then had more cupcakes and presents (we also decided that we need an annual family pinata for Thanksgiving.  Too fun).

As far as Gabriel in general, here are some birthday thoughts: Gabriel is really into The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, all things Lego, Narnia, and reading.  He still loves to pretend and is very active and creative.  He can be quite a leader and can rally others to do things with him (the other day when I stayed at school after lunch for recess he had a bunch of kindergartners running around pretending to be orcs).  He likes his Ninja class and violin lessons every week.

Gabriel really loves school.  He has friends in his class and is really good with math and reading.  I don't know if his work is really challenging enough some days, but he gets disappointed when he misses things at school and is always eager to go.  He still is challenged by sitting still and not talking too much.  We are trying to encourage him to remember to ask for "a break" when he needs it.  Sometimes just a few minutes alone makes a big difference in being able to focus.  One day last week his teacher said that he was having a hard time focusing so she sent him to the office for 5 minutes, not as a punishment, but to have a quiet place to sit.  She said that when she had him come back he sat right down and finished all of his work.  We have taken a break from OT due to some scheduling issues, but we are still trying to use the emotional management and calming down techniques that he learned there.  Some weeks go more smoothly than others.  Some weeks I feel like we really need more help in this area.  But just recently his Sunday school teacher commented that she could see some big changes in his emotional regulation and focus and that was encouraging.  Our recent trip to Georgia also went better for him than previous times.  He is working hard but it's difficult to remember sometimes that change is gradual.

His silly classmates

Another thing that he's been working with the last two months is some respiratory issues.  Back in October his seasonal allergies flared.  We started his zyrtec and singulair and occasionally the inhaler that we keep on hand.  He continued to cough and cough (especially at night) and he was eventually diagnosed with bronchitis and pneumonia.  When we were in Georgia he was running around outside one day and came in with red eyes and lots of drainage.  We started the allergy medications again.  Two weeks later and he is still coughing and not getting great sleep.  He started another antibiotic yesterday for bacterial bronchitis.  I don't know why when he gets respiratory things he can't seem to kick it.  He has a wellness appointment in a couple week so I want to have a chat about that.  Maybe we need a nebulizer machine at home.  Maybe we need to consider if he has asthma and needs to be taking some maintenance medications.  We for sure need an epi auto injector because bees love him and he gets very swollen when they sting him.  His immune system is just a little off, which is fine, but the coughing and not sleeping makes him tired and makes it harder to pay attention when he needs to (I'm right there with him.  It's hard to focus when you're tired).

DCA Service Day

 

He got invited to participate in the regional spelling bee, which he is still a little undecided about.  He feels apprehensive about the spelling bee process in general, so much so that at the beginning of the year he said that he didn't want to learn how to spell because that would require him to participate in a spelling bee.  He is, however, a pretty good speller.  If he doesn't want to participate that's his decision though.

He lost both of his top two teeth in the past week, both of which he pulled out himself.  He can truly sing "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth."

First one out on Tuesday morning

Second one on Saturday morning
(and, yes, that is his pretend ring from the Hobbit around his neck)

So, happy 7th birthday to Gabriel!  Our creative, energetic, strong willed, social, thoughtful, silly boy!

Fall Fun

The fall has been full of fun things, both at school and around where we live.  I am very thankful that we live somewhere that there is actually "fall," where the leaves change and the weather is cool but not cold.  As of this week it already feels like winter unfortunately, but we enjoyed lots of fall themed things over the past months.

Gabriel's class took a trip to a sunflower farm.  Corban and I came along as well.  I love that Corban can come along and be a part of things too.  Most Tuesdays we go and help with lunch in Gabriel's classroom and then stay for recess right after.  When we got there this week one of the other kids hugged Corban and when we were playing "hangman" during lunch another wanted the hidden word to be Corban's name.  Corban is excited to start Kindergarten at "Gabriel's school" next year.

I am so thankful for Gabriel's teacher.  Much like his teacher last year, she is patient and even tempered.  Gabriel had a hard time one day last week and she called to let me know that she was praying for him and wanted to know what she could do to help.

Gabriel still loves school and his friends there.  One thing that he has said many times that makes him nervous is the school spelling bee in the spring.  They had a practice one in the class one day and I think that contributed to him being very nervous and emotional.  We have told him that he doesn't have to do it if it makes him too scared.  Other than that he thinks that math and reading are fun and really looks forward to STEM every week.

Gabriel spent a good part of October coughing.  I had pneumonia and then both boys got colds.  Gabriel continued to cough and cough, mostly at night, and it started sounding pretty bad.  After three weeks of coughing we went to the doctor and he was diagnosed with bronchitis and pneumonia.  Thankfully an antibiotic finally gave him some relief.

Field day happened in the middle of September and I had fun helping with that.  I like volunteering for things that like because I get to spend time with Gabriel but I also get to get a better feel for the dynamics of the kids in his class.

"I look cute.  Take my picture."

Hike with the youth group

Enjoying a game Corban got for his birthday

Corban loves the coin collection at Wal-Mart.  He was having so much fun with it that
one day an elderly woman walked over and gave him more change to put in it. 
Corban can be very still and observant.  He loves "Look and Finds"
and the "Spot the Difference" activities in the Highlights magazines.

Corban is still occupied most days by being a cat, singing songs (some he makes up, some are from preschool and children's worship), narrating elaborate stories about what his Legos are doing, and just overall being silly.  We've also started working on learning to read.  A couple days ago we asked him before bed what he was thankful that God made.  He said "kitties, puppies, and the pumpkin patch."

Another time recently Corban said "I can feel myself getting bigger every day" *(he then feels the air around him)* "Put your hand out Mommy.  Can you feel it too?"

Corban had an ear infection in the middle of October.  He didn't go to preschool for one day and he said "How come I never go to preschool anymore on these days?"  He says "these days" a lot when referring to things.  Speaking of his ear infection, Corban's biggest fear in life is having his ears cleaned out.  He had a bad experience having them unclogged at the doctor about a year ago and he still gets very upset about it.  His ears tend to make a lot of wax so this is sometimes a big issue.  He at least lets me put drops in them now.

Another thing that I've noticed lately is that Corban may not be so sure about talking to kids his own age, but he has no problem striking up a conversation with any adult.  In line at the dollar store today he was telling the cashier all about Batman.  Then he was talking to the elderly lady behind us about Gabriel's upcoming birthday.  The lady asked if he would come to her house and keep her company because she was enjoying talking to him so much.

Actual bars of soap from Grandma Cheryl. 
Corban insists they are called "soap krudge."

Lynchburg Children's Museum

Lynchburg Children's Museum

Breakfast date at Panera

Thornspring Farms Pumpkin Patch:

Scary little pumpkins

Gabriel made Halloween decorations for their room

Besides everyone being sick in October, we got rear ended on the way to Gabriel's appointment where he was diagnosed with pneumonia.  Everyone was fine, and besides the annoyance of having to get the car fixed everything was fine (I was pleasantly surprised at how helpful the other drivers insurance, the collision center, and the rental car company were).  The boys thought the whole experience was fun.  They got so excited when the police car arrived and the policeman talked to them for a long time while we were waiting on the other driver to find insurance information.  They thought a rental van was pretty exciting too.

To round out October we also found out that Loki is in liver failure.  She tried to bite a couple people (unprovoked) over the course of the month.  I took her to the vet and they did some labs, showing crazy high pancreatic and liver numbers.  She is on a medication now to help with encephalopathy.  Her appetite and attitude seem to have improved some, but she has some days that I'm not so sure about.  She spent quite a while one day recently growling at a bone, not sure what it was.  Basically, she's confused.  We have been told that once she starts getting worse it could be a quick decline, but she seems stable for now.  At least we have been able to prepare the boys with the news that she is sick, and knowing what is going on has also made me more patient when she's acting strange or confused.  She still likes to play and eats well so we'll do what we are doing for now.

Gabriel building "Bag End" in the Shire.  He recently finished listening to
The Hobbit with Taylor and it's his new favorite thing to pretend.

Barnes and Noble storytime

Sinkland Farms Pumpkin Patch with the youth group:

School field trip with Daddy

We certainly took advantage of all of the Halloween activities around here.  On Tuesday we went to a trunk-or-treat at Gabriel's school.  On Thursday (Halloween -- it was pouring rain), we went to a trunk or treat at Corban's preschool and then to a local assisted living home.  On Friday Corban had a party at school and we went trick-or-treating in downtown Blacksburg.  On Saturday we went to a friend's house for a party.  Gabriel wore his Bilbo costume to all of these things, but Corban was Optimus Prime, Darth Vader, Captain America, and Batman (all pulled from our home costume bin).

I for some reason I feel that this picture depicts each of their personalities well.

Gabriel wasn't sure about entering the town costume contest but Corban really wanted to do
it and they were in the same age category.  When he didn't win he was kinda bummed.

Open gym at Virginia Techniques.  Corban loves this trampoline.

Class party

Another very exciting thing is that our local Children's Museum opened again this past week.  It has been closed since January for fundraising and a location change.  I even went a few months ago with the director to the Christiansburg Town Council meeting to ask about funding.  A few months before it closed last year the director asked us to come with some other families to play at the museum and do a photo shoot for promotional things.  I took the boys, since a couple years ago Gabriel really liked doing this same thing and ended up having his picture on their fundraising cards.  This time Corban took the magic picture.  This picture was on their most recent email and is one of many hanging outside the new museum.  I can see why they used it.  He's pretending and learning at the same time. I did not consent to have MY picture used though. 

Opening Day!

He missed these plastic dinosaurs most of all

He found the cats.  And then gave them check ups

"Toy Story 4" day at school.  Gabriel shared his stuffed animals

That's all for now.  In a little over a week Gabriel will be 7 and then it will be Thanksgiving!