first day for my first born

Well, it was a big morning around here--Noah started preschool (K4)! I can't believe that is my baby boy there, wearing a uniform and carrying a backpack! I, of course, was a million times more nervous than Noah. In fact, he really wasn't nervous at all. He has been begging to go every day, asking me constantly if it is time.

I actually had to wake him up this morning--if you know Noah, you know how wild that is. But he popped right out of bed, put on his uniform, brushed his teeth, complied with my photo shoot :), ate his favorite breakfast (blueberry muffins), and then proceeded to ask every 2 minutes if it was time to go yet! I should have let him sleep a little later! Mar Mar graciously came over and hung out with Sam so that Josh & could just focus on Noah during drop-off, and I am so thankful for that. It was pretty crowded in there and really would have been wild with Sam in the mix.

He seemed a bit more anxious as we were walking in the building, but he was totally fine once we got in his class. He hung his backpack on his hook, found his chair, and sat down to do a puzzle as if that's been his routine for months. He let me take a couple pictures and obliged when I asked for one last kiss, but he clearly was not torn up about us leaving :) Once we got into the hallway I did cry--but overall I held it together pretty well!

Carpool line was a new thing for us, and I could tell he thought it was pretty cool when I picked him up. He was in a great mood and said he played outside, played blocks, and had circle time, but he won't tell me much else. Oh, and this Mom of the Year forgot to send his snack--actually, I'm the clueless new school mom that didn't even know I was supposed to send one. Other than that, though, things went great!

Today he went for a 1/2 day, as he normally will 2 days a week. One day he will go a full day. We are really easing into this whole school thing, with 3-day half-day preschool. But it is just overwhelming to think that we are moving into the school years! I've talked to enough parents with older kids to know that this is when time really starts flying. I'm SO thankful for his wonderful school--where we pray that he will go until he graduates!--and proud of how he is growing up. I just can't say that I'm ready for this stage! Well, ready or not...

I feel like this is as good a time as any for a little update on our sweet Noah. 4 years and 4 months old--wow! Not sure when that happened. I have to say now that we've left the 3's behind and are a few months into the 4's, I LOVE this age! It is such a breath of fresh air after age 3 was honestly pretty difficult (okay, really difficult). I'm seeing some payoff for the work we've put into developing his little heart and character, and I am so thankful! A few things I want to note/remember

- He is strong-willed, determined, and competitive. NONE of these is a bad thing, not even that first one. I already see glimpses of that wise truth that many seasoned parents like to point out--that if we bend his strong will toward the Lord, there will be no stopping him.
- He is tender-hearted and loves his momma :) At least a few times a day, he will ask me to sit on the couch and snuggle with him. I honestly get choked up over this quite often, cause I just know that the clock is ticking and he will not be asking me that forever! He will often tell me out of the blue that he loves me, that I am the best mom, etc. He also loves to kiss me on the cheek.
- He also happens to think his dad hung the moon and can do ANYthing. The other day the boys and I were in the driveway shooting baskets and I shot one from really far away and missed. Noah said really proudly "you know, my dad can make it from anywhere." Josh recently brought home all his old trophies, medals, and awards from his parents' house and Noah loves looking through the box. In his room he has displayed Josh's trophy from 4-year-old t-ball right next to his own.
- He (usually) truly desires to do the right thing. Psalm 112:1 says "blessed are those who fear the Lord, who find great delight in his commands." I don't want Noah--or Sam--to do something just "because I said so" or out of a feeling of obligation or fear of consequence. I want them to truly find delight in doing the right thing and to see the benefit of obeying the Lord. I am seeing this start to develop in Noah. He is so proud when he knows that he has done what we've taught him is right and good. Lord please let this continue to develop :)
- He often is initially shy in new situations but loves to meet new people and make new friends. He likes to play with random kids at the playground or wherever we go.
- He is getting much better about including Sam when he plays and not treating him like the baby. This is a work in progress but it's getting much better. He has gotten much kinder with Sam and does genuinely love him :)
- He loves books and we will go to the library every few weeks to get a new crop of books to read.
- He adores Cars, Rescue Heroes, and Angry Birds.
- He is somewhat obsessed with spelling and sounding out words. We sound out words. all.day.long., I am not kidding. He's gotten really good at it.
- He has learned verrry basic addition--just adding two of the same number together (ie 2+2, 4+4, etc).
- Some other random notes: In the past couple months he has gone back to napping every day; his current favorite shows are Ni Hao, Kai Lan and Max & Ruby--I seriously love that he doesn't think he's too big and cool for these shows yet; he adores going on walks; one of his favorite things is to turn on Pandora and have a dance party; he could eat macaroni & cheese 3 meals a day--not gonna lie, some days he does have it for 2 meals; he loves all of his cousins with his whole heart

I know I am forgetting a million things! And I don't mean to make it sound like I think Noah is the perfect child. He has faults, obviously, but I like to focus on the positive :) I am so grateful to see how the Lord is working in his little life!

Wow, longest post I have written in a long, long time! We love you Noah James, and can't wait to see what God has in store for you this year as a big K4 kid!