Christmas Greetings 2011 {Benjamin ~ 5 years, Part III}

Benjamin turned the BIG 5 and is in kindergarten this year! It was an interesting transition at first being homeschooled while his big brother went away to the Grade School all day but he took to having me alllll to himself (esp. while Jeremiah naps every afternoon) very quickly and loves the extra attention and time!  Benjamin is also in Classical Conversations tutoring on Tuesdays from 9-1 and loves being part of that classical education community.  He is doing well learning two curriculums and is really feeling good about learning to read and gaining independence in that area (yes, you guessed it, because he is now big like his big brother!).   Some things he has enjoyed learning this year are all the states and capitals, skip counting (multiplication tables!), and his early American history sentences set to music.  I think he is also pretty darned cute during his public speaking/presentations. :)   He really enjoys being “the oldest” during the day for 7 whole hours lol!  We were blessed to be able to visit the east coast and Mount Vernon (George Washington’s home and the first presidential residence) this summer on his birthday so that was a great opportunity to connect some history dots!!  Being with him to witness the joy and wonder he experiences in learning is such a privilege and joy to my heart.  I didn’t fully understand God’s plan for my convictions to send Caleb to school this year but as the year has unfolded I see clearly that one reason was so Benjamin and I could have a lot of one on one time.  He learns differently than Caleb and needed it so much!!  This is has been his “training” year of sorts allowing him to transition into our learning schedule and I am thankful for it!  It was definitely a new thing for him to have all my attention and effort during learning time (read: not much room for his usual shenanigans, ahem. :)  He and Jeremiah have also become good buddies being the only two at home to play during the day during down/play/mommy’s chore time so that is another great outcome.  Usually when all three boys are home playing, the older two stick together and Jeremiah just plays by them etc. This has been changing lately, though, as Jeremiah is better able to express himself and is well, just plain growing up.  Since actually farming w/ daddy this past fall he now knows how to “play farm” pretty well too. Benjamin cannot *wait* for Caleb to come home each day and cherishes his time w/ his older brother.  He is also still very active and athletic and reminds me a lot of Tigger from Winnie the Pooh!  On our day trip to Starved Rock to hike this past Sept. Benjamin literally ran circles around us.  He would go ahead of us and run back and forth a couple of times by the time we reached the desired marker or destination – esp. on the stairs.  Phew, he tired us out just watching him!! He loved playing in the waves (for hours) at Myrtle Beach and also really enjoyed being able to play t-ball with Caleb on the same team this past summer.  I assured the coach that at 5 he would be “just fine” as he really does have a natural athletic ability and of course…wants to be just like his brother.  He did a great job and both boys played very well rarely having to use the actual T when it was their turn to bat.  The time they spent “practicing” with Ryan in the yard really paid off and they hit some good ones during the games.   It was nice having both boys on the same team and on the same practice/game schedule.  We’ll have to see how this coming year goes.  Ryan and I are trying to keep these younger years as open and free as possible so as to avoid losing our minds (ha!) and sacrificing much needed family bonding time running every child everywhere all the time.   There’ll be plenty of opportunity for that soon enough! :) Here are the rest of B's pics from our little shoot...you can see he hasn't changed much (check out pics on right side bar) he's still his fun, easy going, silly at times, and lovable little self.  He's grown and matured so much in the last couple of years...it's amazing to me and has been a priviledge to be a part of his life.  He sure is a fun, snuggly, and kind little boy.  {{Wub him!}} xoxox ♥