Grandma's Visit

Landon blessed Finn on a Thursday night at the church so we could have Grandma there before she left for California.  We had to borrow an outfit from a friend.  I'd returned Landon's blessing outfit  to Nonna because we were done having kids after Logan.  And then we were really done after Dane.  But now we're done for realsies, which is the superlative of done-ness.  Now that we've had Finn, we can truly say we are "Finn-ished."  (Sorry, not sorry)

Grandma was our principal baby holder while she was here, so she and Finn got along well.

Finn and his proud parents.

Grandma throwing gang signs and doing her job: holding Finn.  She commandeered the Boppy pillow during her stay, stuffing it her behind her back whenever she sat on the couch so her feet would reach the floor.

An example of Chloe's advertisement savvy.

Jones.  Dane Jones.

Sissy with Baby Finn.

Chloe, Logan, Tristan, and Kaia (our neighbor) pose in front of a bayou. 

After they read "The Hobbit," Landon watched the J. R. R.  Tolkien movies with Jocelynne and Chloe.  They enjoyed their Daddy time.

Christmas 2017

Laser guns from Grandma and Grandpa were a hit.  A direct hit.

Costco fun with Grandma.  

It snowed for two days, so the kids enjoyed a break from school.  I tried not to go anywhere, since the van's heater is broken.  Brrrr

The girls soaking up Baby Glow.

Found Dane's first selfie on my phone.  Had to document the historic moment.

Baby Envy.  He doesn't quite fit on the Boppy.

Reminds me of Jocelynne's jealousy after Chloe was born.

Angelic little boy.

He's busy growing his hair.

We're still in Louisiana, waiting for a post-doc opportunity.  Landon has a part-time job working with nesting birds in Cocodrie (Cajun for "crocodile") starting in March that will go through mid-May.  That will give him time to land a job and allow the kids to finish the school year here.  Because it's part-time, he'll also have time to work on publishing papers, which will make him more competitive in the job market.

Cocodrie, Louisiana

When I was at the school a couple of weeks ago to pick Tristan up from a field trip, his teacher caught me in the hall and said, "You're Logan's mom, right?"  Then she proceeded to tell me how proud she was of him because he got the highest NWEA score (a test that tracks students' progress throughout the year) for reading in the 1st grade.  His score improved by 44 points from the beginning of the year, which is remarkable since most students see a 12 point increase on average--and that's at the END of the year, not the middle.  His kindergarten teacher from last year heard about this feat and bowed to him in the hall.  :)  Ms. Yeargeau (his teacher) had him march up to the front of the classroom to tell everyone his secret.  She then did a perfect impersonation of Logan doing his silly duck walk with toes pointed out, neck craned forward and teeth biting his lower lip.  He then announced to the class that they should listen to the teacher, take their time, and read every question twice.  Obviously Ms. Yeargeau has earned Logan's respect and  found the best way to motivate him: she's been giving him treats for reading.  And it has paid off.

Jocelynne played the right hand to "As Sisters in Zion" last night for a young women's activity (I played the left).  Besides some long hesitations between verses, she did a great job.  She declared in dismay she will never do it again, but I had a talk with her YW president to make sure Joss has the opportunity often.  :)  Chloe is excelling in school and making a powerpoint with photos entitled "Chloe is Awesome" for fun at home.  Tristan has moved up to Bears in cub scouts and enjoys the activities.  During an FHE lesson on bullying, the story came out that a couple of bullies came up to Tristan last year and declared meanly, "You're so weak and puny."  Tristan retorted, "Blah blah blah, who cares."  The bullies didn't like his response and told on him, and they ended up getting detention.  We all had a good laugh about that.  Dane is a busy 2-year-old, only happy if he's destroying something.  He likes to pretend he's kissing Finn when he's really just opening his mouth and letting saved-up drool drench his brother's hair.  Finn's learning how to smile and sleep through the night.  He's a delightful baby and we're so glad God sent him to us.