Sometimes I can't believe I have a 1st grader. I mean really?! He's that old already?!
Here is his First Grade school picture.
Awww.....
Hudson is such a delight. He gets into projects like these dinosaurs you assemble with brads. Mrs. Hopson gave them to him and he just LOVED them!
This reminds me so much of my brother:).
In first grade we have nightly homework now. Math and spelling.
I love how he can read his homework now...few ;).
Hudson has become an entrepreneur as well. He opened a book making stand. Well these were blank books that you buy and make. He was quite proud.
His first customer was neighbor Eli:).
Hudson continues to do Karate.
He still wants to be a black belt and I honestly hope he accomplishes that!
Karate is 2 nights a week and we chose to do the later class, when they bumped him up in classes. He goes from 7:15-8pm Monday and Wednesday. It makes a late night but that way Jared can take him and I don't have to bring the girls. Jared LOVES karate and they practice together. It's their bonding time and I love that:).
He's now an orange belt:).
One night I was able to take him to karate and see what they were doing.
Here he is getting on his sparring gear.
They had just completed their black belt testing so tonight was "fight your instructor" night.
The kids LOVED it!
Yes this is Mr. Wilson picking Hudson up! LOL
Ready go take on Mr. Piper!
That didn't last long:).
My favorite part was hearing Hudson talk with another little boy about how they should both tag team Mr. Wilson. They had a great plan. They counted and started to attack but Hudson didn't...the other kid went in kicking and using moves but Hudson just circled him. LOL Gotta love my docile kiddo:).
Hudson is a collector, of all things!
Rocks, feathers, bones, weapons, you name it! To Hudson, trash IS treasure! I am constantly having to declutter his room but we are also learning some solid life principles as we go along:).
He is so much like my brother...
He also loves ropes...
Yes he is napping with his rope attached to his pillow pet and blanket:).
The most exciting news is that he learned to ride his bike!
We just were given a "big kid" 2 wheel scooter and he finally learned to balance that. I told him multiple times that he understands how to balance and he can ride his bike at any time now.
So then Aunt Tiff and the girls came over. They were scootering and then...
Aunt Tiff helped him a bit but really he just took off!
He then wanted morning bike rides before carpool:).
And of course to ride his bike to the barn to look for feathers.
It was a bit tough and we had to end up walking it for some of it.
Then I blinked and he grew up even more.
Hudson loves both of his sisters but he LOVEs to hold Hope whenever he can:).
He really has developed a love for writing.
He posted these notes around the neighborhood saying "Every where you go find feathers for Hudson."
He also has a crush. Well he's had a few but this little girl Ilayna has something extra special:). He wrote about her in his homework!
He told her at school he had prayed for her when she wasn't feeling well. Then she hugged him.
SO then Hudson proceeded to draw pictures for her, hoping for more hugs:).
Apparently she kissed him at school twice one day.
We've had lots of talks about appropriate touches (hugs and kisses) and how those are only for family members! And this is first grade!
He also likes a few how-to-draw books:).
This note was on my door one morning before church. He had asked to ride his bike before church and said no. I saw him writing this note...
"Since you didn't let me ride my bike I will leave my feathers all roughed up and my geese feather ruffed up and my turkey feathers."
I read it and could see this was his way of getting any with me. So I told him why we don't ride bikes before church (getting ready, chain oil, etc) and then he crossed it out and wrote a new one that said
"I'm sorry I didn't know that will you please forgive me."
I love this kid, what a sweetheart!
Another way he's expressed himself through writing was to his health and fitness teacher.
"open it"
"I want to be absent for the zombie dance because the creeping out freaks me out."
"Can they not do the zombie dance ? Can someone sit away from the zombie dance?"
So apparently there was some sort of zombie dance at school and the raising up from the dead bothered him. I'm so proud of him for expressing himself. He told it bothered him and I shrugged it off and said it wasn't a big deal. Then I told him I'd be there for it and he didn't have to do it. A few minutes later he wrote that note. He asked to give it to the teacher but I suggested he read it to her (so she knew what it said!). The teacher was wonderful and made him feel better and changed it from raising from the dead.
SO I went on the Halloween party day, when this dance was to take place. The kids run laps before their party. Then the speaker went on and Micheal Jackson was blaring! It was Thriller! My kid was scared to dance to Thriller. I noticed he was off in the corner of the field, not in the center dancing with the other kids. I guess this was his way of still not being comfortable with it, which is fine with me! I was proud of how he handled it and articulated himself.
Some spelling homework
Another activity we have committed to is Awana. This is Hudson's 3rd year.
Karate is M, W and Awana is Tuesday.
He has 3 late nights in a row and this kid is tired by Thursday, as am I! At least small group fell on the Awana night so it's one less commitment:).
Hudson is blessed to have Mr. Hopson, Jeremy, as his leader.
On this particular night it was parent nights and now I understand a bit more. Filtering information from a 6 year old is hard! Hudson said the New Testament books of the Bible to Jeremy. I went to high school with Jeremy. HIs dad was my basketball coach, his mom was my home ec/drama teacher and I played basketball with his sister. I couldn't ask for abetter mentor for my Hudson. Thankful for male leaders like this!
Hudson is obsessed with fishing and his tackle box, still:).
He will show whomever will listen all his hooks and bait. Hannah is a good listener.
These past few years we have been visiting an ENT looking at Hudsons ears.
It started with a severe ear infection during the summer with swim lessons. His tonsils were mentioned but really it was the ears we were observing.
On one visit Hudson took some pictures of the doctors tools
We do lots of ear drops! We are trying to get the fluid out of his ears without tubes.
Hannah is so sweet and sits next to her brother.
But alas, the ear drops didn't work this last time. After his pnemonia in July, he was on antibiotics for a little over 5 weeks. He then had a hearing test and failed it. He needed tubes. I kept praying that it would be obvious what to do. Hudson had been on the verge of tubes for 3 years about but it came to head this summer. Since we were doing the tubes, the tonsils and adenoids were going to get taken care of as well. I also asked about his tongue and getting it clipped because as he's gotten older he has very limited range now. So we set the date. I was a wreck but I prayed it would be clear and it was clear what needed to be done.
So I set the surgery for November. The night before we had this huge windstorm and Grandma came in early to watch the girls. We're lucky she did because it was a very dangerous windstorm leaving people without power for over a week now. I was worried so many places were without power, they would cancel his surgery so I called the night before. They didn't! We had a 6am check in, that means leaving the house around 5:30 am, ugh. Hudson was such a trooper! It was a bit eerie driving to the hospital because the hospitals and downtown had power but not a lot of there places. The storm had quit around 2am and it had left many people without power. Fortunately we never lost ours.
Checking in
Reading pre surgery
Every child gets a stuffed puppy before surgery at Deaconess. Hudson has loved on this dog the whole time during and after surgery.
Then he was headed towards the OR. Luckily I was hungry and distracted by that. I just kept praying.
Dr. Hubbel came out and debriefed with us. He said it went well. He had also been with his daughter the day before with this surgery (minus the tonsils) so he knew how we were feeling.
Hudson was pretty emotional at first. He was upset by his IV, heart rate monitor and he was just confused. It broke my heart with his tears.
I rubbed his back and Jared just read and read to him.
By an hour or so he was ready to go home. From the start of surgery we were home within 2 hours. Wheeled out in style!
And carried in by daddy:).
He parked down in front of the TV.
Watching Planes Fire & Rescue thanks to Aunt Tiff!
He even perked up to write us a few notes. He was talking a bit funny because of the tongue clip.
Lots and lots of rest and snuggles and shows!
Day 4 he wanted to do homework! What?! So he got out his bird book and did some writing and drawing. He was also wrestling his sister, eating pizza, I could go on!
He even wrote me a note:
"When I go away I will pray so that you will not be in too much pain when you have another baby. From Hudson"
I explained I've been in pain with each baby but it goes away.
Some of his meds and our schedule.
The favorite drink or a capri sun
Dancing with sister
But then he woke up on Day 5 and he was in tears. He was upset and in pain. The scabbing process had started. I was lucky to get 40oz of fluid down him. Day 6 started the same. He eventually turned around and started to drink and play a bit.
He found the love of popsicles and Hannah went along for the ride:).
He finally was able to enjoy the snow outside for our second snow day. He wasn't feeling to well the first day it snowed:(.
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| Animal tracks |
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| See how long you can balance that snow on your head! |
Hudson asked me to take this picture...
And he just LOVES baby Hope:). Well all babies really.
He did go back to school 11 days after surgery. He was ready and I was ready! Being cooped up is only so fun for so short while. We had his conference after school his first day back. The teacher asked us to pick him up early, the last hour of the day, for the rest of the week. She said he could barely keep his head up. Hudson was tired each and every day. We didn't do karate or Awana that week. His second week at school he was still tired and she asked we pick him up early again. I could tell that by the end of the second week he was doing much better! When we (Nana, Pops, Gigi or Gpa) picked him up, his eyes were red and he was tired, but not the end of the second week. He was full of energy and ready for more and that was with karate the night before. He's back! Few!
FOCUS: I will say the tubes didn't help with the listening...I feel like I have to say "Hudson FOCUS" every morning while he gets ready for school. He wants to play or sees something and starts playing with it...squirrel...then it's ben 5 minutes or 10 and we need to leave! Yikes I have to stay on him in the mornings. FOCUS!
Hudson has been studying birds this fall at school. The end of their unit was a field trip to the Coeur d'Alene to see the eagles. I have been there but never really paid much attention. Seeing it through Hudson's eyes was very fun. Since Grandpa loves birds almost as much as Hudson, ok maybe more, we invited them up for the field trip. They have talked about coming and seeing the eagles but it finally happened this winter!
Here Hudson and Grandpa are researching birds for the field trip:).
It started out raining but cleared up! Some years I guess it's been SUPER cold but it was a nice, not too hot and not too cold.
Mr. Van Huessen let Hudson and the kids look through his telescope. Most of the eagles were across the bay on this particular day. We did see a few close up and swoop down for the salmon. Mr. VanHuessen is an ornithologist who has been visiting this class. He has really helped shape and develop Hudson's love for birds.
Here he is explaining why the eagles are there, to eat the salmon! Sockeye salmon to be specific!
There is just tons of dead salmon everywhere. It's kind of crazy!
My little ornithologist!
Another thing about Hudson in first grade is how he cherishes his KG memory book. He loves looking it over and remember what a great year he had. Melts my heart!
The other day he fell hard on his two front teeth (that have been loose since he was 1 when he fell in the jogging stroller). He was pretty upset. I missed the call from the school and he pulled himself together and went back to class. Everyone told him what a great job he did. He said "Yup, that's just the way God made me!" Love that kid!
Hudson has a heart of gold! He's caring, sensitive, kind and silly:). He prays for his classmates and teachers when they are sick. I pray his little light will shine for Jesus each and every day!
I can't wait to see what God has in store for his future!
Love you Hud Bud!