Here are a few of our favorite things from the month of February:
-Friday Date Night! We do a babysitting swap with another couple who has 3 boys and every other Friday night, mom and dad (and Turtle, for now) get to go out on the town or run errands, or plan big events, or just do whatever we want to. Something very much to look forward to.
-Scouts for Tiger. Being a cub scout has become a big deal in our house, and the month was topped off with a trip to our Regional Scouting office where a new shirt, handbook, hat, belt buckle, and patches were purchased. Tiger even spent the next couple of hours reading the handbook, for fun! The excitement has even turned into a little bit of missionary work, when Tiger invited a neighbor/classmate to come to scouts with him. We were very proud of him to ask, even if it wasn't quite his idea.
-Tuesday nights with Dad! Sam runs the show by himself on Tuesday nights, so I can go teach piano. He does an amazing job, and the kids love the menu which mostly includes chicken nuggets, pancakes/waffles or nachos!
-Scrapbooking getaways! I was able to go on an overnight trip (1st time away from Turtle) and travel with a friend to Columbus, Ohio for a regional event for Stampin' Up!. This company is all about rubber stamps, hand-made cards, and lots of fun. I had such a good time, that I signed up to be a demonstrator. I think it was a crazy idea, but I love to do this kind of stuff, so we'll see where this even takes me.
-Rolling, rolling, everywhere! Turtle will just whiz right by beneath you on the floor as he rolls and rolls around. Whether he is turning circles on his stomach or flip over and over, he can get where he wants to be in no time flat. He has started to get up onto his knees, so it won't be much longer before he is mobile.
-A Young Men's program! A family recently moved into our ward that has 3 teenage boys. Yes, we finally have a Young Men's program and President Sam can no longer be a slacker. Just kidding! He is very excited to have some concrete boys to plan for and to take care of.
-Talent Shows! I planned, executed, and delivered one of the best Relief Society talent shows that my ward has seen in many days. It was such a blast! From musical performances, to free-style rapping, to jewelry making, to dance lessons, and even a unicycle act, this was a night to remember.
-Meeting IEP goals! Toad has met and exceeded all his IEP goals from last year and after a 4 month review will officially be kicked out of the DART program that he has been a part of since he was 2 and 1/2. No more therapists, extra meetings, or paperwork to be filed. Yeah! And we even registered him for Kindergarten in the fall. Toad is very excited to finally be able to go to the same school as Tiger.
-The Return of Harry Potter! Tiger has begun reading the Harry Potter series and has really gotten into it. Which just makes us happy because we are Harry Potter freaks. We love to talk to him about what's going on and making guesses to what is going to happen. I really hope he likes the books and will continue reading the whole series.
-Making summer plans! We have nailed down our summer schedule, purchased plane tickets, and have pumped up the kids about beach time, camping time, and cousin time. So watch out Western United States, the Eskelsons will be joining the end of June and will be your guest until the last week in July. Anybody want to party?
-Lunch with the Principal! Tiger was honored for the second time to have lunch with his principal at the school. We are so very proud of his efforts, citizenship, desire to exceed, and love of learning. Way to go!