Life Back To Normal

We've settled back into normal life, with some dark patches on Miles's chest as the only visible reminders of his time in the hospital.  The patches and the PTSD that Jamie and I seem to be suffering from, that is.  

I'm sure that will go away in time, though!

Gisèle is still in gymnastics, which she loves.  Her class has 7-8 kids in it, all 5 years old, and usually about 6 show up any given week.  The instructor has more patience in his pinky than I could ever imagine possessing.  Gisèle will never be a gymnast - she's too cautious - but she really enjoys her class and she loves "exercising her body" every week with her friends.

Something was delivered to the house (I don't even remember what), and the kids spent a solid 20 minutes coloring the box.  I had forgotten how much they could do with so little.

 

We read a bedtime story as a family every night.  I wasn't feeling good one night, and Jamie read to the kids one the other couch so I could stay lying down where I was.  It was nice to be able to see their faces while they experienced the story.

Miles is still cracking us up, intentionally and unintentionally.  The picture below was taken very stealthily, with flash, after I checked on him before I went to bed one night.  (I apologize for the poor quality, but it was taken in a pitch-black room.)  Yes, he's sleeping basically standing up with his upper body laying on the bed.

  

The kids and I spent a day playing board games and dress-up games and make-believe games while Jamie did a ton of yardwork.  This (Sequence) is one of their favorites.

 Gisèle is still a great big sister, though she and Miles butt heads more often lately than ever before.  Miles doesn't always want to go along with her plan when playing, and he's no longer quite so willing to hand over whatever she wants whenever she wants it.  They still love each other dearly, though, and can't wait to greet each other after school.  Here she's helping him get his socks on straight.

I made some really good cranberry dark chocolate granola bars, and the kids loved them.  It's my second batch of granola bars, and I think it's safe to say we're all addicted.

Now I have to decide what variety to do next!

 

Miles's new thing is that he likes to "do art."  It doesn't hold his attention for very long, but he looks really sweet while doing it.

 Gisèle had a day off of school, so the two of us had a mother-daughter day after she finished throwing her first set of tantrums.  (Oh, I haven't mentioned those?  Yeah.) We had lunch at a favorite restaurant - Freebird's.  She can make her eyes go in two different directions!

After lunch, we went to the mall to use up an old birthday gift card she had.  She chose a pair of rain boots, which went perfectly with her eclectic outfit.

 

We also made some Oreo marshmallows.  Yum!

We dyed Easter eggs with the kids.  Miles had a good time dying them all one color, and then he was ready to play.  Gisèle got really into it, putting multiple colors and patterns on hers.  She's our artist!  She also picked some "flowers" from the yard for our Easter centerpiece.

Easter weekend, we broke out the Wii and let the kids do some boxing.  It didn't last long before they got bored, but Jamie and I had a good time watching Gisèle box.  She's intense!

She's also smart.  She's in the G/T (Gifted/Talented) program at school, and she has been doing really well reading.  This is from her latest 9 weeks report card:

It says that in the 3rd 9 weeks, her expected reading level is "3" and her actual independent reading level is "8."  She was right on track in the 2nd 9 weeks, when she was just beginning to learn, but in the last couple of months, she has taken off.  It has been amazing to experience!

That's our latest update!  We went strawberry picking last weekend, so I'll upload those pictures (from my actual camera!  Not my phone!  Seriously!) soon.