Helper

Just when I think Joel is not paying any attention to me or what I am doing, I find him with a swiffer duster, attempting to clean the wood blinds... which I had been doing earlier in the day while he was playing with his toys. It's amazing how much toddlers pick up from watching us do

anything and everything.

Football Season

Mitchell seems to be enjoying this first year of tackle football. He's pretty tough too, as he has only had one injury, while most kids on the team seem to have had several. He plays QB, as you can see in the picture below where he is grabbing the snap (I have no idea if that's how you say it, so I'll probably get laughed at for that one.), but... there he is. Unfortunately, he was only in a few plays in this game before a leg injury, but he'll be back on the field this weekend, so hopefully I'll get some great pictures of him throwing some spectacular passes.

Jeff is enjoying coaching with Vince and Kyle again this year. This is their 3rd year coaching football together. They take their jobs as coaches quite seriously. I tease Jeff that they actually think they are the coaches of the Vikings, for how dedicated they are, but in all seriousnous, the parents of the kids love them and they are really good at working with the kids.

Mitchell, hobbling off the field after a leg injury (luckily, it was not serious and he is doing fine)

When my parents aren't in town, we get a babysitter for Grant on Saturday mornings, so just Joel and I get to go to the games. I think it's much better this way :) Grandpa John was actually at this game with us, but the pictures of him didn't turn out.

This turf around the field is really bumpy and sticky... I bet Joel tripped and fell about a dozen times during the game, but this didn't stop him from continuing to run on it, of course.

Friends are Fun?

I wanted to get some good pictures during this playdate the other day, especially since the playmate is just one week younger than Joel, about the same size, and has red curly hair. His name is Finn. Anyway, I was having trouble getting pictures because Joel was quite cranky during the playdate. But, I think it's actually funny because the look on his face in the pictures captures exactly how he felt about this new red-headed friend coming over to play with his toys and take over his house.

Independence is Hard Work

Before I took these photos, I secretely watched Joel make about 20 attempts to get his shorts on. I was amazed that he didn't get frustrated when it seemed he was not going to have any success (this is unusual for Joel). I was also surprised that he was so determined that he continued his attempts even long after I started taking pictures of him. He never did get the shorts on, but I thought it was a pretty good first attempt at dressing himself.

Big Man on Campus

Today marked Mitchell's first day of 5th grade, and final year at Tatanka Elementary School. Watch out BCMC, one year from today, Mitchell will be walking through the doors of the Buffalo middle school into a whole new world. But, for now, I'm sure he'll enjoy this last year as the most senior class at Tatanka Elementary. In honor of this "senior" year, here is a look back into the past 6 years... it's amazing to see how he's changed and grown.

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Kindergarten (2003)

1st Grade

2nd Grade

3rd Grade

4th Grade

And this morning... 5th Grade

And 5 years, and 2 little brothers later, what a young man he has grown to be. Such a wonderful role model for these little guys that will be so happy to see him when he gets home this afternoon.

Fun at the Farm

Here are some photos from our trips to Grandpa and Grandma Benson's Farm this summer. You'll notice Grant is missing in the photos... he was usually sleeping during the fun outside... next year we'll let him in on the fun and the animals.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

New Tricks

Down... Set... Hut

Grant started rolling this week and a few days later he has the trick mastered and does it every time I put him down. He can go from his stomach to back also, but he doesn't do that one as often. Not bad for 3.5 mos, since it's typically a 5-6 month skill. That's my boy.