September Review

 September was a fun month for us. We are really in the groove of homeschool for one, public school for two, and the delicate balance of it all with a two year old. We are all doing the best we can but, in most aspects, we do seem to be really flourishing. Every single one of us.

Probably my most favorite picture of this month is of my family, gathered around to do absolutely nothing but watch a movie together in my bed. Our lives have picked up the pace and it's really hard to factor in down time. We have to really fight for it these days. It's a battle truly worth it though. This time we introduced them to Honey, we shrunk the kids. They all enjoyed. 

                                         

Avery is really into taking her baby outside to play. She loves to carry her, push her in her stroller and do all the things a mama does. 

Or I guess what she thinks a mom does. And then she takes selfies of her experiences:

One day Jayden didn't go to school and we took him to an appointment. Then we went shopping and to the children's museum for some fun. 

I seem to be finding more and more selfies of my child:

We randomly talked about how the kids used to play a game called baby Jesus. They played this all the time. Basically, one child was Jesus and the other two were the caretakers or people coming to worship the baby. Jayden didn't really remember this game as the other two did so they re-enacted it for him: 

All in all, it melted my heart to remember this game and all the time they spent playing it. The truth is, time is so short. I don't think I ever really thought that season would end. I miss it.

We got out for a homeschool field trip to an apple orchard! It was so fun and we learned a lot. We walked the orchard and then left, headed for a picnic lunch at a nearby park. 

                                        

                                                    

                                                            

We got out our bounce house for Avery. It has seen better days but she enjoyed this time:

I made banana chocolate chip bread:

We went together as a family and picked potatoes for a morning. It was fun and we are hoping this will last us a good chunk of time (a year maybe?). We are hopeful at least. 

We had our local town's Septemberfest and had a blast celebrating. We looked for coins in the sand, did the parade and even participated in a local organization's cow pie throwing contest. Yes, you read that right. 

Payton, Jayden, and Monte all won. Monte donated his winnings back to the pool for kids. My other two kids got gift cards to use. They have enjoyed spending this money. 

I took Payton to a local college's volleyball game. It was a blast and I hope we make it to another one this year before the season ends. 

We took kids out for ice cream on a random Thursday evening. 

A random picture of Avery sleeping. I treasure being able to see her sleep. My own child we had a video monitor for and it's been a real treat. 

Riley took an art class this month. He loved it! Really loved it so much he wants to do another one ASAP. While he did his class, Avery and I went to play at the children's museum and then headed out for a girls lunch. Riley had lunch as part of his class. 

A selfie I found of these two:

Riley has started a new hobby this month, an ant colony. He is working hard to learn about ants and documenting his journey as he goes, from getting his ants to opening them and then putting them in their new home:

A random picture I found that Avery took. We are homeschooling. I am entertaining the toddler with her books (which must be widely successful as she has a phone and is taking a picture) and having the 4th grader work on his social studies (reading a Benjamin Franklin book). It's a total balancing act and we are all learning a lot. I wouldn't trade this time for the world though. 

Another real life homeschool moment. One child is working on his art project while Avery colors in her book. 

A moment of the girls cuddling after school one day:

Riley attended one more class out of the house! He went to the extension office's class on butterflies! He loved this as well. They learned all about butterflies and played a game where they pretended to be a butterfly to better understand their life cycles and ways they can be harmed. We got to town early for this class so we grabbed some donuts together first. Because, is there ever a bad time for donuts?

Jayden is playing football and loves his team. They are really focused on socializing so they host a meal each week for the team so we can all get to know each other. We have found it to be a real blessing our whole family loves. 

Payton and her friend, Skylar, at one of the meals:

The team photo:

Football ends in a few weeks. We will be sad to say goodbye to this time but will cherish the moments we have had. 

Along with saying goodbye, we knew the corn next to our house would be harvested soon. So I snuck the kids out for one last photo. 

The corn was gone the next day.

Public schools had a day off, so I took the kids out of town for some time at the park. And, Riley had another class start. He is doing weekly PE at the local college. If you are counting, that is 4 adventures with homeschool we took on this month. This is the only one that will be weekly. The art class and butterfly class were a one time thing. We plan to get out for more homeschool field trips as our schedule will allow. 

The kids loved the fresh air and outside time:

Payton and I had a wedding shower to attend:

Riley went to a baseball day camp and Payton had her first volleyball tournament:

Both kids had a blast! They look forward to doing more with these sports as time allows. 

I will end this post with outside time at our house. The same as we started, but inside our house. This is really where it's at for me. I love being home. We are blooming where we are planted.

I hope your September has been as full of life (with some downtime) as ours has been!