Hill Huddle: September 2015

Sunday, September 27, 2015

Pre-Preschool

A documentation of what Z and G are learning before they start school.

THIS is my organization center. A year ago I felt I had too many ideas to keep up with, to communicate to Cary in the evenings, and to be consistent on. For Christmas, I asked for this chalk board, dolled it up a bit, and voila! This visual keeps the adult team on the same page, and the boys look forward to checking off practice days, changing our letter/number of the week, etc.

Here's an update of our board just before school started:

BIBLE VERSES

At breakfast (and whenever the boys choose), we work on our memory verses:

John 8:12
"Then Jesus said to them, 'I am the light of the world. Those who follow me will not walk in darkness, but have the light of life!'"

Deuteronomy 6:5
"And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and all your soul, and all your might."

Romans 5:8
"But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

1 John 4:7
"Dear friends, love one another, for love comes from God, and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God."

Luke 2:12
"And this will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger."

1 John 4:19
"We love because He first loved us."

Psalm 136:1
"Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good. His love endures forever."

EXTRACURRICULARS

And just in case you're starting to think all we do is sit around quoting scripture, check out Cary's latest teaching accomplishment... (Their first bar joke.) Zeke is his Mama's son - he starts with the punchline. Gabe's about got it down, but he likes to contribute endings more consistent with toddler humor - it's all about knowing your audience, I guess.

MUSIC
The boys have been taking lessons on the instruments of their choice for about a year now. In the past, when parents asked me when they should start their children on music lessons, the earliest I've ever recommended was age five. However, the boys started indicating at age two that they wanted -- really wanted -- to play the cello and the guitar. (We're talking, outside in the yard, picking up sticks and pretending it's a cello bow. Turning regular toddler toys into pretend guitars and asking Mommy and Daddy for a pick.) Cary and I desperately want them to have every opportunity to pursue the callings God has placed on their hearts, so... (after 6+ months of them asking), we began lessons. We have great teachers who are giving the boys enough material to practice every day, and this has meant a lot of discipline... for Mommy!! (Who herself was never an A+ practicer. Sorry, Mama.) Thank the Lord that these children remain motivated to practice every day. Another perk is that as the boys get older, practicing with them gets easier as they become more and more independent, developing new abilities almost every week! Here's a look into our practice routine, formerly mornings, but now that preschool and Bible study have started, immediately following their naps.

Here, Gabe is at the end of his practice... He's obviously tired and his attention span is about shot, but I love that he finishes it out.

Meanwhile, Zeke practices writing in his pre-writing notebook, and then colors.

Zeke's turn to practice! (Mom forgot to take video.)

Gabe's turn to practice writing and color - this is one of my favorite pages he's ever colored.

LEARNING IS EVERYWHERE

The boys take the learning everywhere - recently I got this new free screensaver (love it!) but it has been the best number practice for the boys! They walk into my room and yell, "Mommy!!! Mommy! 11! That's 12!"

And with all of God's glory right at our fingertips, what's not to love about being outside?

GARDENING

EXPLORING

ON THE FARM

READING

Zeke and Gabe, God has blessed you with sharp minds and big hearts, and I'm so glad to get to be a part of your discovery of His awesome creation! Looking forward to so much more, my big preschoolers. Love you so much,

Mommy

Thursday, September 10, 2015

This House Our Home: 1 Year Later

This House Our Home

Signs of fall have begun to appear outside, so we've started making the transition around the house.

As I was digging through the attic for last year's wreath, I realized we've now called this place home for a full year, since we moved in late last summer. (That's a gift for these former nomads.) And THEN I remembered a project my better, more-ambitious-self began way back then: A stop motion video of the transformation of our living room - the smallest, darkest, space to conquer as we moved in. SO I FINISHED IT! #whaaaaa #finishedit #markthisday #onlytookme1yr

So there you have it: One more stop-motion video for the Hill Family Archives.

Monday, September 7, 2015

So Long, Summer!

Summer 2015 was a winner. Spending time outside EVERY day, family walks, the neighborhood pool, and more time for projects like baking homeade breads! (Though this thwarted some of Mommy and Daddy's other summertime goals.)

We kicked off the summer with a Hill family trip to Hiltonhead!

There were some rare special days, like rainy afternoons worth remembering, and days when one twin woke up from his nap early for some one-on-one time with Mommy.

It appears Mommy and Daddy took a total of TWO date nights over the summer. (Must work on that total next season.) Steakhouse dinner one night, Jurassic World the other.

We celebrated the 4th of July on the lake with Grandad!

And spent a magical summer weekend with Grandma Ritt

There was a beautiful weekend in the mountains with the fam'!

One of the most memorable nights of the summer was spent watching my husband up on that ladder hanging my birthday present. After the boys' bedtime and dinner cleanup, I stood pointing and smiling while my man hung those beautiful lights, adding some whimsy to our backyard space. And then, of course, we invited all of our people over for a movie night on the lawn, to enjoy it!