Kids Update 2-15-08

Madison is still clogging and has now started playing basketball through the YMCA. She has games every sat. and really enjoys playing. Paul and I really worked with her on blocking out and running the plays her coach is teaching her. She was being very timid and we are hoping that after our little coaching session she will be more aggressive her next game. For the past 5 years she has clogged on different teams but she is finding basketball to be a very different environment. She has a lot of confidence clogging and usually the other girls are looking at her for guidance instead of her watching for clues on what to do like she is in basketball. She is my best helper and watches her siblings for me while I am running one child or another to their practices. When I arrive at home she has all the kids chanting "Madison is the best babysitter."

Jaxon is trying out wrestling right now. It is a very involved sport and he has 1 1/2 hour long practices every Mon. and Wed. He has been showing us some of the moves that he is learning. He practices on Madison, which she just loves. Animals are still the love of his life. My cousin Adam just sent him a packet with posters and printed material about the reptiles and different animals in Missouri. Jaxon was ecstatic when he received it. We took all the pamphlets, took the staples out, cut them down the binding and put them in sheet protectors in a binder for him to have them all together. He loved it and took it to school to read during reading time.

Greta is very excited for soccer to start. She is signed up and not being very patient. This year she tried Ballet instead of Clogging and really enjoys it. At the beginning of ballet they get to dance around with scarves and she is always persistent that she needs to be early so she doesn't miss it. Greta has one of the most unique attitudes I have ever seen. She constantly has her hands on her hips and is reporting one story or another to me. Kindergarten has been a new experience for her this year and we were worried that she started to young. She made the cut off by two weeks. Recently she has shown so many signs of improvement and scored high on her IRI. I am very proud of her, she has had to work very hard for it. She never complained and was always ready to study.

Wil is my sidekick. He doesn't think he needs to do anything without mom or vice versa. He is always telling me "You got it, Mom" with a thumbs up when I ask him to do something or not to do something. It is so cute!! He gets very upset that he isn't on a "team" of any sort right now. He is actually going to start T-ball this spring. For his 3rd birthday he got a pitching machine and does really well hitting the ball. He has a natural talent for playing baseball. None of our kids have started playing sports so early. Madison started clogging when she was 4 but that is it. We knew once we started the kids in sports it would never end. Right now we have some kind of practice every day but Friday. Wil likes to ride in the car with me to make every drop off.