Mugger our Reader

I believe we've let you know that Mugger is now reading independently, so I guess we should let you know just how much he is reading...

Mugger started tracking his daily reading minutes for the Scholastic Summer Challenge on May 17. (Yeah, I didn't realize until after I had told him about it that he's technically too young, but you try talking him out of a project once he's excited about it!)

So today, three weeks after starting the challenge, Mugger broke the 1000 minute mark and is officially at 1102 and counting. If you do the math you'll see he's become quite serious about this.

I see many days at the library this summer...

Edited to add: Apparently Mugger is just as intense when it comes to math. Mugger has been doing quite a bit of 2nd grade math with the 1st grade teacher this year (since he tested into 1st grade math in the fall), however, Papa just told me that the 1st grade teacher stopped him on Friday to let him know that she gave him the end of the year test for 2nd grade math and he got a 98. Apparently he's the only kiddo who consistently gets carrying and borrowing...

Another first...

Did you guess? The hint is in his smile-- or the lump in the pocket of the pillow: Mugger lost his first tooth today! Looks like Nonnie got his favorite shirt converted into a tooth fairy pillow just in time!

Mugger's Quote of the Day

"I have a loose tooth, Mr. Bathroom!"
Yes, Mugger is a bit excited this morning that he can wiggle one of his teeth (bottom left middle). They grow up so fast...

Mugger's Reading!

Normally Papa or I do the before-bed-reading, but last night after tubby time, Mugger got to do the honors. He read all of "Are You My Mother?" by P.D. Eastman and was so proud that he asked, "Are you going to put this on the blog, Mama?" What could I say but yes?

We hadn't read this in awhile, so long that Bug forgot about the machine that Baby Bird called a Snort. She thought that was hysterical and kept running around saying, "Snort!" all evening.

You know, our typical quiet evening as we settle down for bed...

Mugger and Bug's Fall Portraits...

Bug the "Big One"

For as long as we can remember, Bug's definition of a "big girl" has been one who is potty-trained. She's said, more than once, "I don't go in the potty, so I'm not a big one." Well, almost overnight it seems, she's a big one! On Tuesday morning when she got up, Papa told her that there were no more diapers, and for once, she agreed. (This isn't the first time we've tried potty training...)

She had a few accidents on Tuesday, but since then, she's made it to the potty every time. Hopefully next week, we'll be reporting that she's in her big girl underwear as she knows that she can have it as soon as she goes a week without accidents. And yes, her big girl underwear has ladybugs on it!

By the way, being a "big one" has its perks as Bug now uses markers and scissors (with supervision, of course!) Apparently being a "big one" also brings other changes as Bug has told us that now that she's a big one she likes butter on her bread and whipped cream on her waffles!

And doesn't she look old with those ponytails? Her hair is long enough that she asks for them all the time now. How is it that she'll be 3 next month already?

Mugger our Sports Maniac

Mugger started AYSO soccer this fall and LOVES it! He's already had 2 games and 1 goal! (The Flyers haven't had any wins yet, but that doesn't seem to bother him.) As you can see, 5 year olds take their soccer very seriously:
Elsewhere in the wide world of sports... last night was the big OSU vs. USC game and we just had to let the little sports nut stay up when the Beavers were ahead 21 - 0 at the half. He was ecstatic when the Beavers held on to win it and had to talk football with his kindergarten teacher first thing this morning, since he knew she had been lucky enough to attend. Don't worry-- he's had his Beaver fix as he got to go to the Hawaii game the week before!

We're now convinced there must be a sports nut gene, as this thirst for sports certainly isn't anything he learned from us. It extends to school, too, by the way-- every day he comes home and talks about nothing other than what sports he played at each recess!

Mugger's First Day of Kindergarten (*sniff-sniff*)

OK, first a little note... yes, I know I've basically missed the entire summer-- I was downloading pictures from MAY tonight! BUT... I promise to catch up soon, so brace yourself for a bunch of back-dated posts when I do. Now back to the topic of this post...

Yesterday was Mugger's first day as a "Zion Lion" and he LOVED kindergarten. Of course, being the outdoor kiddo that he is, when I asked him how his day went, the first thing he said was, "We had THREE recesses!" Trying to get further details out of him didn't get me much more, as the next thing he had to tell me was that he went across the playground rings 6 times!

Anyways, here's some Day One pix, the first two taken before school and the last one after with his teacher and the beloved rings:It sure was hard to leave him that morning as our good-bye felt like I was putting him on a bus to summer camp: at the end of the opening chapel, they called the kids up to their classes, one by one. No hug, no wave good-bye, just a scamper up the aisle to join the other kindergarteners. With as crazy as our life has been in OC the last couple years, it was hard to see him go-- part of me wishes I could keep him home, yet I also know he's more than ready and will have a ball. Now if we can just get them to let him into the 5th to 8th grade Chess Club... (Yeah, our little Mugger has become a bit of a chess fiend over the summer, but that's a whole post of its own!)

So what did Bug do with Mama all to herself all day? Well, once we walked home, we decided to bike to the post office to mail Gramps his cookies-of-the-month. Bug loves her bike seat!After the post office, we stopped by Riverfront Park for a picnic lunch (thanks for the lunchbox, Nonnie!) since Bug had decided we should go to a park while we were out.
She definitely loved being out and about: she told me she wants to ride the bike to a park and walk to school (a mile away!) everyday! The morning walk and bike ride wore her out-- luckily Papa was home so she could keep sleeping when it was time for me to walk Mugger home.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame...

Well, Mugger and Bug went to their first baseball game this weekend to see the hometown Corvallis Knights defeat the Kitsap Bluejackets 6 to 0. Mugger's favorite part was either the score (since he loves it when "his" team wins) or the border collies that ran out in between innings to catch frisbees. Bug's favorite part was the metal bleachers: she was able to jump up and down and make all the noise she wanted! They both liked getting to run the bases at the end, too, so I'd say a good time was had by all.
Update: We saw one more Knights game this summer, one of the Knights last regular season games while Nonnie and Gramps were here in August. They again won in a landslide, so we weren't actually all that surprised when they ended up as the post-season champs!

Happy Birthday Mugger!

Today our Mugger is 5-- how can it have been 5 years already? I asked Mugger tonight as I tucked him in (after his big day playing at Disneyland and California Adventure) if his first day of being 5 felt any different than his last day of being 4 and he said...

"Well, now that I'm 5, I think my bed feels smaller."

Dear Mugger...

Tonight was your preschool graduation. I don't think you wanted preschool to end. That's OK, we didn't either! You and Jackson and Allen and Colleen were the only graduates in your mixed-ages class since John had already moved. The 4 of you walked in as a proud little line between Mrs. Howard and Ms. Clements. We wondered if you were going to sing any of the 4 songs with the other kids and realized you couldn't concentrate on singing until you saw where we were sitting. Once you found all of us (Papa, Mama, Bug, Nonnie, Gramps, Great-Grandma, and Aunt Susie), you finally smiled and relaxed and enjoyed the singing.
You got to be part of Papa's message by holding up the first S in JESUS up front and you came up again when Mrs. Bradley wanted to thank Papa and bid us farewell. However, the most precious moment for me was when I saw you sitting on Mrs. Howard's lap-- you told me that you had told her that you didn't have enough room in the pew. I know she was pretty glad to hold you though. I think she's going to miss you lots-- and miss being Bug's teacher, too. I was so glad to hear that she'll be coming to your birthday party in the park.

You were pretty excited afterwards when Jackson told you that he'd be coming to your birthday party, too-- it was all you could talk about all the way home, at least until you remembered that strawberry shortcake was waiting for you for dessert. (You and Bug ran into the house chanting "Strawberry shortcake! Strawberry shortcake!)
Jackson sure has been a good friend to you these 2 years of preschool. I got some great pictures of the 2 of you hugging after the service because there were so many hugs.

We're proud of you, Mugger. You're a big kindergartener now, and as Coach K told me on Monday after your last Amazing Athletes, God has big things in store for you!