Happy 80-month birthday, Joshua!

Joshua turned 80-months old on Saturday, May 18. He played t-ball that afternoon, and Mamaw & Papaw got to see most of the game, missing just the first inning. He was thrilled to have visitors come see him. :)

The biggest news for this month is that one of his top front teeth has come in! He has prayed and prayed for these teeth, ever since they were knocked out when he fell out of bed. And one of them has made its debut. It is a HUGE tooth, making me realize once again that we need to be saving our money for braces. Thankfully he's at the age that many of his friends also have missing teeth or weird-looking ones coming in, so it's no longer a big deal to him. But, please pray for all his teeth!

The other big news is that Joshua has officially learned how to tie his own shoe laces. Hurray!

The other day, Joshua sat on the floor and let Ryan sit on his lap to read him one of his favorite books. Joshua reads smoothly these days and actually enjoys it. He can pick up a book by himself and read - like a Thor book that Caleb picked out for him at the library when we were there. I thought Joshua reading to his baby brother was the sweetest thing... only I couldn't find my camera. It had been missing for awhile, but after Shawn bought another one, we found it in the bottom of the diaper bag. I do take it along, but I always put it in the same pocket. When it wasn't there, I just assumed it was in the house. Whoops! Either way, we should have pictures once again! For that reason, though, I didn't have any of Joshua on his actual birthday. :( :( :(

Joshua's friend wrote him a note that said "You are NUS" and signed it. Joshua brought it home and said "I think he meant that I'm nice, but it says I'm nus" and giggled. Daddy said maybe it was missing the 't' to be 'nuts' - HA!  Knowing the kid, I'm pretty sure he meant nice, but I laughed at Shawn's explanation. ;-)

Joshua has been loving playing catch in the back yard. He has been giving me several pointers! We have been learning together, and it's been fun. Shawn bought a T and a set of real bases, so we've had some games back there. We love our little house and yard!

My Bean broke the ladder to his bed in a rage/fit and felt really bad about it afterward. We talked and took away all electronics for two weeks - he could not have anything that took batteries or needed to be plugged in. I think he was the nicest, most bearable person to be around in those two weeks. And, I was able to contact the manufacturer of the bed (thank God we keep all records and I could find it!) and they sent us a new ladder immediately. So, it all ended well. I could tell Joshua felt awful about it, and we talked about how to deal with intense anger when we're truly frustrated. I gave him ideas like punching a pillow, doing jumping jacks or some sort of physical exercise to alleviate, to take deep slow breaths and think of happier things or places to try and calm down. It's hard, but it's a good life lesson to learn. While the Bible says it's okay to get angry, it's not okay to sin or hurt people or things in our anger. So, we have to be able to vent it in a more structured way. I also asked him to try and think about whether or not this thing was worth being that angry about - if someone is hurting him or his brothers or something is really wrong, then anger is appropriate. But, if it's just something minor that's frustrating him, maybe getting that angry and bent out of shape isn't really worth it. I know from experience! :)

Joshua in general is outgoing and full of emotions. When he's happy and joking, he is a complete joy to be around. When he's sad, it breaks our hearts. When he's angry - look out! He is full of life and we love him no matter what. He is still learning how to control all these feelings and he's still open to talking about what's going on. He has such a sweet, sensitive little spirit!

My boy is growing tall! He has really shot up in the last month or so. I see a big difference, and he is SO strong! He's learning lots and really transitioning into the next stage of life. I am not ready for him to be in school full days, but I think he's ready. How I pray for him! I am ready for summer and the ability to spend more time together. May we not take a single moment for granted!

Happy 80-month birthday, Joshua!