Reading out loud

All year, Owen fought me hard if I asked him to read out loud to us...this was most days as it was part of his school work. He reads to himself ALL DAY LONG, but I also need him to read out loud so that I can be sure he is actually reading and not just skimming or flipping pages....or at least to be sure of what level he is reading and such. So, school ended the Friday before Memorial Day, and since then, we have started doing something I am calling "fun work" some mornings for about an hour. This will give us a chance to have some structure to our mornings home this summer and keep him from falling completely out of the school routine. So far, they love it. We are actually doing things that we did all year during school, but calling it "fun work" has them asking when we get to do it. Also, Owen has been asking me if he can read out loud to us. Today he read about 5 books out loud. He also wants to read one chapter of his Magic Tree House books out loud each time we do fun work. He even put a stack of them in his work boxes to be ready. Each time he asks me if he can read to us, I jump at the chance! It's like your child saying "Mommy, can I please put away all of the laundry for you today?!" One thing this teaches me about Owen (I don't know how it will translate to my other two kids) is that I need to give him a little space and wait until he is ready to try new things. In some ways I baulk at this because I am the mom, he is the son, he should listen to me...right?! But I, as the mom, need to follow some of the cues he is giving. When he was potty training, he would scream if we suggested the potty...until he was 3 1/2(old for potty training!) and then he just sat on it and has had about one accident since then! With riding a bike, he has hated it until this past week when he finally felt confident enough to ride (with training wheels) at a birthday party and the park. Then again with reading out loud. I think it's reminding me to give him a little space and a little grace while still trying to push him in appropriate ways to not live by fear, but to trust God to give him strength and courage and such. Hard balance to find! Here he is with a captive (well, slightly captive) audience this afternoon reading "Poppleton in Winter" by Cynthia Rylant. A great read if you haven't seen it before!

Lucy's First Hair Cut

I have been wanting to cut the back of Lucy's hair for a while now - it was developing into a discreet mullet. Then it started getting really hot here. The top is too short to pull it all back and up off of her neck. We decided it was time to give Lucy a little trim - mostly to get rid of the very back that was super long, and to provide some relief in the heat while the front grows a little longer. I am mostly happy with it. She did have some super sweet curl in the long parts that is slightly gone, but I think it's worth it. Here are before and after shots...