JCPS Kindergarten and Academics

School is out for summer! Hurray!

Kindergarten Graduation- In case you didn't notice, Austin is sporting a new short haircut for summer.

I've written off and on about our public school experience this past year, so I thought I would give a few closing thoughts to wrap things up for summer.

Spout it Out Saturday

Spout: vb to utter (a stream of words) on a subject, often at length

About the Kids:

Austin's class was featured in our local newspaper a few weeks ago, and I just realized that there were some pictures of Austin in the online version. Check out the link here: Field Elementary's Career Day. Austin is in pictures #2-5!

I signed Austin up for soccer. He will be staying after school one day a week for the program, so it will be super convenient- no long Saturdays at the soccer field for us :) This will be Austin's first time doing sports, and I think he is excited that some of his classmates are going to play with him. It is an informal program where he will learn how to play the game. You can see more info at this link: www.4kicksforkidz.com

David has recently been evaluated for speech therapy since he is not talking much. The lady who evaluated him said that he should qualify for First Steps, which is a state program where a therapist comes to your home instead of having to go to a doctor's office. He should be starting therapy in the next few weeks, so that is good.

Grown-up Stuff:

We are having neighbor troubles. Since I work for an attorney and am wise enough not to rant about specifics on the internet, I'll share two Bible verses that spoke to me this week:

"Though they plan evil against you, though they devise mischief, they will not succeed." Psalm 21:11

 "You must not harbor hatred against your brother... Do not take revenge or bear a grudge against members of your community, but love your neighbor as yourself; I am Yahweh" Leviticus 19:17-18.

Neighbor troubles are no good.

In light of the Leviticus verse, I'm reading through the Bible chronologically this year with our church. It is going to be very interesting to read the Word from a different perspective, and I'm hoping it will help me to get a better understanding of the big picture of scripture.

Kindergarten Cup--- half- empty or half-full?

Is the cup half empty or half full?
What do you think?

Austin has made it to the half-way point of the school year. He just received his third six-weeks report card, and we are so proud of the progress that he has made (see video of him reading here).
Overall, I have a positive feeling about our public school experience so far and don't have any regrets about not homeschooling this year. Actually, by sending Austin to school to learn the basics, we have been freed up to focus more in depth on phonics and reading when he is at home. As a result, Austin is at the top of his grade-level in that area.

It must be in his genes...

In the past two weeks, Austin has had a serious breakthrough when it comes to reading on his own. In fact, it's really only been about six weeks or so that he has even been reading books at all. Granted, we have played around with BOB Books for several months, but until recently, it was always a lot of work for Austin to read even simple three letter words.

However, like I said, since Christmas, Austin has just taken flight when it comes to reading, and he actually likes it. Joseph and I are both lovers of books, so we couldn't be more proud.

To illustrate how far Austin has come, let me tell you

A third of the way done with Kindergarten

Making a ghost tootsie pop with Mrs. Rachel and Eli at their Fall Party.

 So, Austin has already finished 2 six week grading periods. That means he is a third of the way finished with this year. Wow!

Here's a link to a video I took of Austin's class. He is the one to the left of the teacher. She has to tell him to pay attention. He does look a little zoned out, doesn't he. Ha!

Austin is suppose to get his second report card this week. Last six weeks, he had all satisfactory marks except for in writing. I think his handwriting has greatly improved since then, so we'll see what his report card says this time.

The glamour and newness of school has begun to wear off. Austin is starting to complain that he doesn't want to go to school anymore. I'm thinking this is normal. I mean who doesn't remember complaining about school at some point as a kid? Anyway, he's got some breaks coming up, so I'm sure he will enjoy the time off from school. He gets Wed-Fri off next week for Thanksgiving and then two weeks at Christmas.

Now, what are we going to do with Austin during all that time off?

Helpful JCPS Links

This post is for anyone in Louisville considering public schools. It can be a little complicated to enroll your child in school here, so I thought I would provide a few helpful links to get you started.

Oats

Yesterday, Austin's teacher said something about Austin and "oats." It was loud, so I didn't catch all of what she said. I assumed she said he was sowing his oats. (I'd heard the expression but wasn't sure what it meant.) Upon googling around, I'm pretty sure she said Austin was starting to "feel his oats." (being playful and energetic) If he was sowing oats at this age, we would need to seriously reconsider this whole public school thing! Yikes!

So, what did you do in school today?

First Day of School- Check out those new shoes!

PTA

The other night, I rushed to make dinner, woke Joseph up to watch the boys and headed to my PTA meeting 15 minutes late, and guess what- it had been cancelled. Go figure.

Couldn't be more pleased

First Day of School

I couldn't be more pleased about our exerience with public school so far. Austin loves it, and we are all settling into a daily routine which basically looks like this:

• I try to get up between 5 and 6 so I can get my day started before everyone gets up.
• The boys get up at 7:00 a.m. They eat breakfast, and Austin gets ready for school.
• Austin usually has half an hour or so of free time before school starts at 9. Today he watched an X-men cartoon.
• I either work or run errands or clean the house, etc. until it is time to pick Austin up. Austin is technically a walker, which means I park my car in the neighborhood and walk him to the entrance of the school. David and I did take the stroller one afternoon to pick him up, but it was too hot! When the weather cools down a bit we will probably do more walking to and from school since it's not that far (about 1 1/2 miles roundtrip). When it is hot, though, we'll probably park and walk. I know it sounds silly to do it like that, but I'm not ready to do the whole carpool thing yet. I've seen the carpool line, and it is really long, and the school has a no idling policy, which means it would be very hot and boring sitting in the car for half an hour waiting for Austin. The biggest perk of Austin being a walker is that I've been able to meet some other moms outside the school when we are all waiting for our kids to come out. I'm getting excited about this opportunity to reach out to lost people. Pray for me that I will be bold and not just blend in!
• Austin gets home around 4:00, strips off his shoes and socks and runs wild with David until dinnertime.
• I usually give the boys a bath, have Austin work on his homework page (which I like because it helps me to see what he is learning in school) and get the boys in bed around 7:00 or 7:30. Austin hasn't actually fallen asleep that early yet, but I'm hoping his little internal clock will adjust to his new bedtime soon.

It's a busy routine for Austin, but really, he is thriving on the structure. I've never been good at having my kids on a schedule at home, so I think he really enjoys his days at school.

It's like pulling teeth trying to figure out what he does all day, but here are a few things I've gleaned from our conversations:

• Austin has made a new friend named Molly. He talks about her every day on the way home from school, so I think they play together a lot. I've been trying to get him to introduce me to her, but have been unsuccessful thus far. Of all the kids he has talked about these past four days, Molly is at the top of the list. I'm very curious to see what Austin is like around the kids in his class.
• Discipline in the classroom- I guess a kid got sent to the "office." (Austin has no idea who the principal is, but somehow he knows that the "office" is a place that you go when you are bad.) Austin has assured me multiple times that he is good at school. I wish I could be a fly on the wall and see how he really behaves in class. At least I haven't had any bad reports from the teacher :) Austin told me once that there is a "quiet carpet" in his class and that sometimes the class has to put their heads on their desks (He's learning the injustice of the whole class being punished for the wrongs of a few.)
• Funny story- Austin said something about somebody getting sent to the office for a spanking, and I was like "Whoa, they give spankings at school these days?" Austin said, "No, they call the parents to come spank their kids." Ha!  I asked him where he heard that from, and he told me he just came up with it on his own. Cracked me up!
• Austin's class has twenty or so students and a teacher and a full-time teacher's assistant. Austin loves his teacher's assistant, Rachel. She is young and little like my sister Megan. I can just imagine him going up to her all day asking her to play with him. Ha! Well, on the walk to the car today, he told me that Miss Rachel was his favorite. After probing a little bit, I found out that Miss Missy (his teacher) got "serious" today when a girl got in trouble for "messing around" with her backpack in class. Miss Missy is very fun and loving toward the kids, so I think he was a little surprised to see her get "serious" at anybody. It makes me chuckle inside to hear him talk after school.
• Austin learned something new about manners. As the child of two "yankees," I was never brought up to say "Yes, Ma'am." I know this is a shock to you southerners, but people in the north don't say "ma'am." It might actually be considered kind of rude to some. Anyway, we've always taught Austin to say "yes, Mommy" or "yes, Daddy" but we've never stressed saying "yes, ma'am." Anyway, to the point... We were in the car on the way home one day, and Austin answered a question by saying "Yes, Ma'am" with a strong emphasis on the "ma'am." I thought it was cute because he was obviously proud of himself for saying it. He told me that it was a nice thing to say "yes ma'am." I asked him if his teachers told him to say it, and he said no. The other kids say it, and he just started saying it too. I was tickled pink that he learned a good habit from his classmates. I guess some peer pressure is a good thing :)
• The class is still getting settled into their daily routine, but I think eventually they will have gym a few days a week, music/art one or two days a week and Chinese class three day a week. Yes, my kindergartener will be learning Chinese, which strange but interesting. He also goes outside every day to play on the playground. He really likes recess time. I think he plays pirates with Molly.
• Austin has had four days of class so far, and I think most of the time has probably been spent learning rules and routines, which is fine. That's probably the most exciting part about Austin going to public school- He's learning how to sit still in a classroom, listen to a teacher, obey rules, etc. It's great!
• I've got my first PTA meeting tomorrow night. Hoping I'll make some new friends.

You have no idea how happy I am that this public school thing is going well. I've been reading some Christian books lately that have reinforced our decision, and I am excited about being able to influence our local public school with the gospel of Christ. Pray for us!

Project Kindergarten: A Success!

Austin's first day of Kindergarten

Austin did great this week. His first day ended up being on Wednesday, so he had a short first week- only three days. He is really loving school. Every morning he has practically dragged me out the door because he is so excited to get to school.

I'm tired, so I'll just share a few videos that I took on his first day.





FYI, the following video was not one that I posted on facebook, so you all who read my blog are getting the inside scoop :)

By the way, David and I have had a good week as well. We haven't had any trouble finding things to fill our time :)

Mommy-Austin Date

We had a big storm blow through on Saturday, which caused a good bit of damage and power outages throughout Louisville, so the first day of school was postponed. I decided to take advantage of the extended summer vacation by taking Austin on a Mommy-Son date. We went to the zoo just the two of us, which never happens. I always have David with me. Really, I think Austin and I have only been together by ourselves a few times since David was born, and they were probably for doctor visits or grocery trips.

It was fun hanging out with Austin at the zoo. It was nice not pushing a stroller. We were able to weave in and out of the crowds with ease. The weather was great, too! I didn't realize until uploading this picture that we even matched. Ha! What can I say, our family likes orange :)

So, school starts tomorrow. I've got Austin's clothes and shoes set out and his backpack ready. We've prepped him for what to expect, and I told him what he should ask for when he goes through the lunch line. (cheeseburger, side salad, fruit, roll, milk- yes, he likes salad) I wrote his teacher a really long note filling her in on all things Austin. Really, she has no idea what she has gotten herself into by having Austin in her class. Just kidding. Austin will do fine.

Not sure what David and I are going to do tomorrow while Austin is in school. It's going to be different for David being the only child in the house during the day. I think I'll be able to get a good look at his unique personality once big brother is gone. The few times that David has been by himself, I have seen him play in ways that are very different from the way Austin plays. David seems to be more organized and tidy. One day, instead of dumping out a box of puzzle pieces as most kids would do, he carried that box all over the apartment, and if one puzzle piece fell out, he picked it up and put it back in the box. Another time, he carried a tin of Lincoln logs from his bedroom to the living room without dumping it. As I've said before, Austin likes to make the messes around here, and David helps to clean them up. I just have to ask David one time to clean up something, and he immediately goes to work. I'm not sure if this is just a phase or an indication of David's personality, but I'm going to enjoy it while it lasts!

Kindergarten Camp and other Misc. Ramblings

Before I forget, I wanted to let everyone know how Austin's MRI turned out. Thankfully, the neurosurgeon said that everything looks the same as it did two years ago which means we just see him again in 18 months for another checkup. Austin isn't having any symptoms (headaches, blurred vision, snoring, lost gag reflex, etc.), which is great.
Now on to the school post:

Tuesday we went to Austin's school to meet his teacher for the first time. I like her. She seems really fun and friendly. This is her first year teaching kindergarten, but she has been teaching public preschool for something like fifteen years. Since Austin is the youngest in his class, I think her experience with preschoolers will be very good for us.

When we first entered the classroom, Austin was not nervous a bit. He zoned in on the class pet (a rabbit) and made a bee line for it's cage. (I didn't even notice it when we walked in. Maybe he was looking for it. Anyone seen the show Wonder Pets? If you haven't, I don't recommend it. The pets are kind of whiny.)

 At any rate, he made himself at home on the rug and listened when the teacher led story time. (Only three kids sat on the rug. The rest were too nervous and sat with their parents.) Then, the parents went to the library for a meeting while the kids went with their teacher to the gym to play games, do a craft and have snack. Austin had a good time and was in a good mood when I picked him up. He even made a few new friends!

We were only there for a total of two hours, so Kindergarten Camp was a nice practice for the real thing.

Last night we went back to the school for Meet your Teacher night and a picnic (which consisted of eating hot dogs in the cafeteria- We went to McDonald's afterward and got ice cream.). The whole school was there (K-5 with parents, siblings, teachers and groups trying to sell after school Karate lessons, etc.), so it was pretty overwhelming for Austin. I'm hoping it will be more calm and orderly the first day, at least once everyone drops their kids off and the bell rings.

I definitely realized last night that walking to school may be a better, less stressful option than driving. Parking is limited, and from seeing all the cars along the side streets last night, I can imagine what the car pool line looks like in the afternoon. Speaking of picking up and dropping off, elementary schools in JCPS have different hours than I did growing up. School starts at 9:05 and gets out at 3:45, which seems really late, but I guess it's the same amount of time as I went, only later. I think we would start at 7:55 and get out around 3:00. At least Austin will be able to sleep in on Mondays. (I used to get on the school bus at 6:30 every morning and get home at 4:00. Now that I think about it that way, 9-3:45 doesn't sound that bad.)

I've got some pictures to post, so stay tuned...

Busy week ahead

Austin starts school in a week, and until then we have something big going on just about every day. Here are the highlights:

Monday (today): Austin had a brain MRI this morning. He had to be sedated so he is very sleepy. In fact, we've been home for two hours, and he hasn't budged from his bed. We have no plans the rest of the day other than catching up on some superhero cartoons.

Tuesday: Kindergarten Camp! Austin will meet his teacher and have a dry run at this whole kindergarten thing. I'm excited to get in there and start meeting people. Austin is clueless, but I think he will do fine once he gets used to being at school all day. There are going to be so many kids to play with. He's going to love that. He's also very smart, even if I am a little biased. (I also work on Tuesdays, and there is a big kindergarten kickoff event in the evening, but I doubt we'll have the energy to attend since we have so much else going on.)

Wednesday: We see Austin's neurosurgeon to get the results of his brain scan. For those who don't know, Austin had spinal surgery two years ago to release a tethered cord. While the doctor fixed the tethered cord problem, Austin still has what is called an Arnold Chiari Malformation. The MRI scan was done to check on the status of this condition. We are hopeful that nothing will need to be done at this point. From what we understand, surgery is not a pleasant option, so we want to avoid that if we can. If you are interested in reading more blog posts about Austin's spinal surgery in 2009, see #1, #2, #3, #4, #5 , #6, #7, #8 , #9 and #10.

Thursday: work and cleaning (my parents are staying the night on their way through town)

Friday: I'm doing a personal opinion study for a research center nearby, so I have to pick up the products I am testing (you can probably guess what kind of products they would test on mothers of small children- think baby care). We also have another event at Austin's school with a cookout afterward.  Fun!

Saturday is a free day, as of now, which is good because Sundays are really busy for us.

The first day of school is next Monday. Wow!

Kindergarten Ramblings

Ideally, we would love to send Austin to a top notch private Christian school, but we don't have the financial resources for that right now. (Have you checked out tuition for private school? $5,000/year is pretty typical for two or three day kindergarten. It goes up in cost for every grade. That's like college tuition people!)

After realizing that private school was not realistic, we were left with two options:

1. I quit my part-time job at the law office and homeschool, or
2. We try to get Austin into a good public school and see if that route is even an option. If not, we homeschool.

As I have indicated in prior posts, we don't know anybody who sends their kids to public school in Louisville. One reason for this is that many, if not the majority, of Louisville's schools are weak academically. Another reason is that many Christian conservatives have given up on the public school system because of religious and ideological reasons.

We were willing to give the public school system a shot, but only if we could get Austin into one of the two schools nearest our home. Since Austin was chosen for a good school within walking distance, we decided that we would see how things go for kindergarten.

What's the worst thing that could happen? We pull him out and homeschool. Not that big a deal.

I am hopeful that things will work out. I've joined the PTA Facebook page, and it seems like there are a lot of active parents. We have lots of activities next week to get ready for school. Austin will go to Kindergarten Camp for a few hours next week, and we have a school wide cookout to attend.

There is something in me that just loves to fill out a planner. I've already transferred the school calendar to my personal planner and made notes about things like school picture day and PTA meetings. I know they are doing a Field Trek in October, which is like the Panther Prowl walkathon that they did at my elementary school to raise money for the school. I've been collecting box tops and signed up to link my Kroger card to the box tops website.

If I'm going to send my kid to public school, I'm going to do it right. I'm going to be involved and know what is going on at my kid's school. I'm going to meet other parents and teachers. I'm going to get to know the school's new principal. I'll volunteer to chaperone field trips and do room mom type things.

You know, this whole kindergarten thing might actually be fun.

School Supplies

We've been getting Austin ready to go to school for several weeks now. Boy, the stores really do make out big at "back to school" time. We got Austin some new clothes (nice quality from consignment), new shoes (New Balance on Amazon- spent more than I spend on my own shoes :/), new socks, underwear and undershirts, and today we bought some school supplies and a new pair of jeans. It's crazy how much stuff kids need for school supplies. Here is our list:

6 glue sticks (seriously? Who needs that much glue? At least they are only 20 cents a piece right now.)
2 spiral notebooks
1 composition book
24 pencils
5 jumbo pencils (couldn't find these at Target- I'll have to look around)
2 boxes jumbo crayons (They were way overpriced at Target. $2/box for 8 crayons)
2 boxes regular crayons (cheap right now- like 50 cents)
pencil box
vinyl 2 pocket folder with inside brads
3 two-pocket folders
kleenex
zip top gallon bags
wet wipes
zip top snack bags
blunt end scissors

We don't have to buy a backpack because Austin has half a dozen different backpacks that he has gotten from the library's summer reading program every year.

We are getting down to the wire here- only two weeks until school starts! I've got nervous excitement. I'm nervous for Austin because I know it will be an adjustment, but honestly, it is exciting to think of all the free time I am going to have with him at school. David still takes a long mid-day nap, so I will have 3 extra hours to do housework and hobbies :)

About hobbies- I've always thought that I needed a hobby, but I've never stuck with crafts and such. It hit me the other day, though, that I really enjoy blogging. So, I guess I do have a hobby after all.

Factorial Anyone? Books 16-19

I learned something new today.

10! is pronounced "ten factorial" which means 10x9x8x7x6x5x4x3x2x1 =3,628,800
Likewise, 4! would be 4x3x2x1, etc.

Now, I made an A in high school calculus and aced the AP exam, but I don't remember learning about factorials. I'm sure I did at some point, but it was like learning it all afresh today when Austin and I read Anno's Mysterious Multiplying Jar by Masaichiro and Mitsumasa Anno. Such a fun way to teach math! I definitely recommend it.

Cir Cumference and the First Round Table: A Math Adventure by Cindy Neuschwander is another great math story. (about King Arthur and the "round table")

Paul Bunyan, a tall tale retold and illustrated by Steven Kellogg was a fun read as well.

Splash! by Ann Jonas was a simple counting book (appropriate for children learning to count- Austin enjoyed it)

Note about Kindergarten: For those who care enough to read my blog, you will probably be interested to know what we plan on doing for school in the Fall. While it is not carved in stone, we are intending to send Austin to the public school nearest to our home, Field Elementary. It is supposed to be one of the best schools in Louisville, and it has a good principal. We are also happy that the school is only about a mile away- we could walk him to school some days if the weather is nice!

Even though this decision has kept me up at night recently, now that we have a plan, I am relieved and actually excited about sending Austin to school!

Stay tuned to our blog throughout the summer as we read lots of books and start teaching Austin to read.

Our Summer Reading Goal

I've been doing a lot of reading about home school curriculum, good books for kids getting ready for kindergarten, etc, and I have come to the realization that I haven't been reading books to Austin like I did when he was younger. With him going to kindergarten in the Fall (at school or at home- to be decided upon very soon), I have decided to challenge myself to read Austin 100 new books by August. That is a little more than one book a day. (The library's summer reading only requires 10 books.)

I'm going to blog about it. Here's what we read yesterday and today:

1. Three in a Balloon by Sarah Wilson ("based upon the true story of the world's first air passengers- a sheep, a duck, and a rooster- who flew over France in a new invention, a Montgolfier hot air balloon, on September 19, 1783)- Austin's story time teacher at the library read this to the class, and Austin asked to check it out. It says it is a true story. Very interesting that they sent farm animals on the first hot air balloon ride!

The following books were recommended by the Well Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home by Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise. I checked them out from the library. They all relate to math in some way, as you will see.

2. How Much is a Million? by David M. Schwart ("If you wanted to count from one to one trillion... it would take you almost 200,000 years.")

3. Math Curse by Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith (would be great for when Austin is older- has math puzzles)

4. Pigs will be Pigs: Fun with Math and Money by Amy Axelrod (very cute story about a pig family who has to scrape up enough spare change around the house to go out to eat- would be great for when Austin is learning about money)

5. Divide and Ride by Stuart J. Murphy (an entertaining way to practice division- above Austin's grade level, but still enjoyable for him)

You can pray for us about kindergarten. We will find out for certain what public school Austin is assigned to very soon (maybe tomorrow), and I have been reading up on homeschooling as well. There are pros and cons to both. This is a very hard issue. Any prayers are greatly appreciated!

Big News! New Church!

We've got great news! 

Joseph has been called as Associate Pastor with emphasis in Children's Ministry at Farmdale Baptist Church in Frankfort, Kentucky. He will direct and oversee the children's programming which includes Sunday School, Children's Church and Sunday Night Praise Factory. 

The position is part-time and works perfectly with Joseph's UPS schedule and my job at the law office. It is a Sunday only position so we will just stay in Frankfort all day and come home after church in the evening. The pastor, Steve Weaver, and his wife have graciously opened their home as a place for us to rest on Sunday afternoons, and since they have five kids (with another on the way), Austin couldn't be more pleased with the accommodations.


In school news...


I turned in Austin's kindergarten application this morning. The process for enrolling a child in school here is not as easy as signing up at your closest school. There are 14 schools in my "cluster/neighborhood" to choose from. I pick my top 4 (2 from good schools in the area and 2 from not-so good schools). Then I am able to pick 2 more from a list of about 3 dozen magnet schools/programs across the whole city (some of the schools choose students by a random drawing).

JCPS is going to be cranking the results for the next few months, and  we should know where Austin is assigned to attend by May 1st. The student assignment plan here in Louisville has caused quite a stink among many local parents as some students end up being assigned to a school far from their home or in a bad part of town. We can only hope that the system will work in our favor this year.

Home schooling is always an option if we don't like our school assignment, and actually very popular among the Christian community here. However, the idea of Austin being in a classroom setting is appealing to me. He does very well in Sunday School- volunteers answers in class, is attentive and very outgoing. That being said, there are benefits to teaching your child at home, so we are keeping our options open.

About the baby...

David is so funny. He is walking probably 75% of the time now and gaining more personality every day. This morning, Joseph turned around and realized that he had climbed up onto the couch and was sitting in a pile of laundry! He's only 12 months old, but it seems that he is already a good climber.

He and Austin are the best of friends, and they keep each other entertained all day long. It's nice that I can let them play in their room along together and not worry so much because Austin is certain to sound the alarm if David starts getting into trouble.

One Year Checkup Stats- tall and skinny:
29 3/4 inches tall (above average)
20 lb 1 oz (below average)

The most interesting thing about me these days...

I've started exercising with my new Wii Fit, and I actually enjoy it. Anybody who knows me is aware that I've never been one to exercise, and I've never had any motivation to start since I have always been so small. However, you can be small and still be out of shape, have poor cardiovascular strength and not be very strong.

I am proud to say that I have exercised 17 out of the last 21 days for at least 30 minutes (usually more)! The Wii Fit is so much fun because it gives you  points and it keeps track of your time, the calories burned, etc. Plus, I don't have to leave the house to exercise. It's kind of relaxing to pull out the balance board and do some yoga before the boys get up or after they go to bed. Austin has even been playing some of the games, and he especially enjoys boxing. It seems to be helping his coordination and motor skills, which is excellent since he has always been a little behind in those areas because of his prematurity. 

..............

Well, I just caught David fishing in the toilet (yuck!), so I guess it's time to wrap up this post.