Sam is EIGHT

My sweet and sincere Sam is eight. His birthday was at the beginning of the school year, so his blog post also got lost in the shuffle. My Sam is such a people person. He loves being with people all. the. time. In fact, when his older brother wants a little alone time to read, Sam gets frustrated because he can't understand it. While Sam does finally enjoy reading, he would much rather be doing something active with someone else. This boy is highly competitive and although he is doing better, he can be a bit of a sore loser. (Something his not very competitive mama struggles to understand!) He aims to please people and hates to disappoint anyone. (Please note how many ties there are in his interview) However, he is entering the age of thinking he knows better than everyone else, so we are beginning to butt heads more than we used to. Thankfully, he is very empathetic, and when I explain to him how his tone makes others feel, he quickly looks shocked and is genuinely sorry. Sam loves spending time with his siblings, and this school year he has become a great playmate to Will and Maggie when Jon and I need to work on school. Needless to say, the younger ones love when their big brother plays with them! Sam says he doesn't know what he wants to be when he grows up, and honestly, I think that is great. I think it's safe to say he has a little time to figure that out! :)

~What is your name? Sam, or the Goose
~And how old are you? 8
~How does being 8 make you feel? Good
~What do you want to learn this year? How to keep my backpack clean (said with a laugh, but then he clarified that he is serious)
~What was the best thing about being 7? being on the swim team
~How did you celebrate your birthday? Had friends over, had pool birthday party, ate Chick-fil-A, and went to the Newport Aquarium with Dad
~What was your favorite gift that you received? Nerf gun from Noah
~What is your favorite color? green
~What is your favorite food? "ham, pizza or brownies--it's a tie! Wait, cancel that, it's Grandma's chocolate cake!"
~Who is your favorite person? "God! I have a lot of friends, so it's hard to choose, but God created me after all!"
~What grade are you in? 3rd
~What is your favorite thing to do at school? math
~What is your favorite game to play? Minecraft or Super Smash Bros
~What do you like to do with Daddy? Pillow mazes
~What do you like to do with Mommy? make cookies and brownies
~What do you like to do with Jon? play legos
~What do you like to do with Will? fight him with our plastic weapons
~What do you like to do with Maggie? "EVERYTHING she wants to do! It's true! She's so cute!"
~What’s your favorite thing to do with the whole family? go to the zoo or watch a movie
~What’s your favorite store? Target
~What’s your favorite place to eat? Chick-fil-A ties with Bob Evans
~What’s your favorite book? Life of Fred-Dogs, it's really funny!
~What’s your favorite song? Indescribable by Chris Tomlin
~What’s your favorite thing in the Bible right now? 1 Kings. I think it's interesting to learn about all the kings. One of my favorite stories is Noah and the ark.
~What do you want to be when you grow up? I have no idea...

A Decade of Jon

Jon turned 10 way back in August, but life gets busy and the blog takes the back burner. This boy has grown and matured so much over the past year or so. It has truly blessed me to see him learn to think of others more and to control his temper more. While he still has his moments--don't we all?--Jon is a great kid, and I really enjoy getting to spend my days with him. Speaking of spending our days together, it has been wonderful to see how he has grown as a student, too. He used to HATE math. While he was never terrible at it, he would grumble and complain and it was not a fun part of our day. He has finally come to accept that he will be doing math and has realized that a good attitude helps tremendously. He's also realized that he's pretty good at it, so if he puts his head down and does the work he can breeze right through and get it done somewhat quickly and move onto the next thing. Jon loves science. I would not be at all surprised if he goes on to become an engineer or some sort of scientist. But let's not get too ahead of ourselves, the kid is just turning 10. Jon has a quirky sense of humor and is learning about the right time to be silly and the right time to be quiet. He still enjoys riding his bike, playing in the tree house out back with the neighbors. being on the swim team and is just starting guitar lessons. 

He has asked a few times when we were going to do his birthday interview and I kept putting him off. But alas, the time has come. The interview has taken place. Here are his answers for all to see: 

~What is your name? Jeff, I mean Fred. (silly boy, his name is Jon)
~And how old are you? 10
~Does being 10 make you feel? not much different
~What do you want to learn this year? how to play guitar
~What was the best thing about being 9? getting the Coach's Award for swim team and church camp
~How did you celebrate your birthday? Did cool things with the neighbors, had a birthday party at the pool, and went the museum Center with Dad
~What was your favorite gift that you received? money or legos
~What is your favorite color? Red
~What is your favorite food? Ravioli
~Who is your favorite person? Sam
~What grade are you in? Fifth
~What is your favorite thing to do at school? Reading
~What is your favorite game to play? Mario Bros on the Wii
~What do you like to do with Daddy? Have him chase us around the house
~What do you like to do with Mommy? Snuggle on the couch and read or watch a movie/show
~What do you like to do with Sam? Play video games or play outside with him and the neighbors
~What do you like to do with Will? Wrestle with and chase him
~What do you like to do with Maggie? Play pretend with her and be silly with her to make her laugh
~What’s your favorite thing to do with the whole family? Family Wii night
~What’s your favorite store? Target
~What’s your favorite place to eat? Tie between Marcos and Olive Garden
~What’s your favorite book? The Great Brain
~What’s your favorite song? Indescribable by Chris Tomlin
~What’s your favorite Bible verse or story? John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
~What do you want to be when you grow up? An inventor or scientist
I love this kid!