Happy 76-month birthday, Joshua Douglas Good!

Joshua turned 76-months old today, Friday, January 18, 2013. This morning I really thought about how much he has grown since God introduced him to us nearly 6 and a half years ago. He is really blossoming into a neat kid! I told him when he woke up how much I trust him - he doesn't get into things, he doesn't color on the walls or dump things or do things he knows he shouldn't. I told him how much that means to me. I appreciate that he tries to do the right thing and make good choices. I am often told by different teachers or helpers how much he helps clean up, how he listens, and how kind he is to other children. He really is a good kid - growing right up into that name God gave him since birth!

Today, for example, he told me that he "clipped up" once again at school. He's done that several times this month already (enough that I lose track). Once he said the whole class did for doing well at something-or-other, once he said that he took extra time to help someone else clean up, and today it was because only he and two other kids followed the directions when it was time for their math test. I'm glad he's doing well in school and that he tries hard to be obedient.

I also LOVE to hear how well he's doing in school. He has timed math tests, and he always finishes them in more than enough time. He said that he was timed in school and finished quickly and easily. Most everything so far has come easy. I also received a paper home today that he already knows all the kindergarten sight words, so there was an attachment of all the first grade words that he can start learning as well. He already knew more than half of those (probably more than 3/4 quarters of them came with ease while others he had to think about what they were before he said it out loud, so I put a check by them to come back to).

 The paper above was one he brought home today. It says "My hat is greay with a green tag." He wasn't sure if gray was spelled with an 'e' or 'a' since he's seen it both ways, so he put both in. How cute is that? I love it! One thing he's working on right now is spaces between letters. While his teacher says a finger space, being a lefty makes that difficult (it ends up being about double the space he needs because he has to right over the hand that's marking the space). When he tries to tighten it up a bit, he goes back to all of it together. We worked on it today, though, and I told him just to make a little dot next to his finger then move his hand and start writing. This went MUCH easier, so I'm hopeful that this will show him the relative space he needs for his own handwriting.

 This was another piece that came home this week that I loved. It has his name at the top and says "Can you find my mittens? My mittens are Orangd [notice he put a 'd' instead of the 'e'] with blue qocados [his 'p' was backward like mine always were at this age, and he sounded out the rest of 'polkadots']." I thought this one was particularly cute in that he has all the punctuation in it, something else he's learning. :) :) :)

Joshua LOVES to exercise and hang out at the gym. But, I've noticed a few times where he's stayed behind to play with Ryan. I think that it's sweet that he interacts with his brothers. I told him he needs to be his brother's keeper, and he knew all about the story of Cain and Abel from the Bible. I was surprised! That was one I wasn't planning on sharing with them - after all, one brother kills the other. But, he said he learned it at our old church. And it's part of the Bible for a reason.

I just signed him up for t-ball this Spring. I hope he enjoys it. We have to do fundraising for it, which I dread. So, get ready, family and friends who are reading this! Haaa!!! But, I'm glad he has the opportunity to try new things.

Tonight as we were looking at the moon, he told me that he believes it's very far away - probably 150 miles! I love these little things and know that I probably won't remember all of them, which is why I write them down. He has another lose tooth, but it doesn't feel extremely loose to me. He only has two adult teeth (his front bottom) at this point. I keep praying that the teeth that come in will be stronger than his baby teeth and give him the handsome appearance that the rest of him already has! :)

I just noticed Joshua has had a growth spurt. His size 6 pants are becoming short enough I can see his socks, but he is SO skinny in the waist. We bought him a pair of 7 slim today and they are still a little baggy but a better length. He has been eating a lot lately and asking us if something has protein in it to make him big and strong. He loves salads, fiber bars (which we limit to one a day for obvious reasons, but they do help him in other areas), yogurt, butter bread or toast, waffles, pancakes, bacon, steak, pork, chicken, noodles, carrots, peas, cheeseburgers, fries and more!

Joshua reads easy reader books with ease, but he still enjoys just being read to most times he brings home a library book. His most recent one was a book of poems about winter. We talk about what some of the different phrases mean.

My boy loves his electronics. I've been limiting them, though, so that he plays other things and is more well-rounded. I think he'd play Wii or his DS all day every day if we let him. But, we've said "Wii" is for the "wee-kend" and when we do turn off the various media, he and his brothers are much more creative in their play and doing things together.

We've been doing the boys devotions at the breakfast table (when they are all gathered in the same area). On Wednesday morning, the boys' devotional was called "You're Awesome!" and talked about Psalm 66:3 "Say to God, 'Your works are amazing!'" It talked about compliments and how God might like to hear them, too. At the end it told us to shout together "You're AMAZING, God!" We talked about things we think are amazing that God does for us and who He is. Then we shouted together (the boys' favorite part, I think). I love how Joshua seems to really think about the verses we talk about each morning. It's been a fun way to start our day together. 

Then we walk to school. There is a woman who is a helper as the buses come in who told me that the kids always look nice and we're pulled together and walk every morning and how much work it must take. And while it IS work, it is SO worthwhile! I love each one of my boys and am glad to have our mornings together. I thought her comment was sweet. I always give Joshua a kiss goodbye (while he'll still let me!) and tell him to have a great day. He all but skips into school, excited for his time with his friends and teacher.

He is really a sweet kid. He still has his fits when he's tired. He still has times where he will talk back or question why we've said 'no' to something. But he's starting to really understand reasoning. He's also starting to make his own choices and I love to see his growth in many areas. 

I am thrilled God blessed us with Joshua. I think of him as a gift from the Lord. With all his health issues, I knew that God must have a special plan to keep him alive. I'm excited to see what that will be as he grows and matures. Happy 76-month birthday, my love!