As "just" a mom, I have a front row seat to my children's growth and learning, daily little miracles, and the funny things that happen in a marriage. I feel so very blessed to be "just" a mom.
Ashtyn turned 11 and we all had a lot of fun celebrating her! And Ashtyn had a great day with family doing all the fun birthday things!
We started the day with homemade donuts, one of my kids' favorite traditions. I was really happy with how they turned out this time.
Then we spent the morning starting to decorate. Ashtyn wanted me to wait until morning so she could help rather than having it done at night for her to come down to in the morning. We took a break to go to the library with cousins, then came home and continued putting up decorations. Ashtyn wanted a "Hogwarts" themed birthday (she did Harry Potter last year) because she was turning 11.
Ashtyn and I used her paint markers and a poster board to make a Ravenclaw banner, since that is the house she belongs to.
We used our big brown paper to make an origami Sorting hat.
And Ashtyn made these "owls" from brown paper, twine, and balloons.
Leah loves birthdays!
For her cake, she wanted an ice cream cake made from ice cream sandwiches, which is pretty easy for me and I thought the decorations on it turned out cute.
The kids have started making each other gifts for each others' birthdays and I love it. They come up with some really cute ideas! Ashtyn also got lots of cards, some bow making supplies (she was very excited for that one!) and we got her a crafting book and a novel I thought she'd like.
Happy birthday to Ashtyn!
Ashtyn and Leah both had to wear their Harry Potter outfits for the party.
And Leah got to try ice cream for the first time! Ashtyn was super happy that her first time trying it was on Ashtyn's birthday. She loved it, of course.
After Ashtyn's party, we did her movie night with Mom and Dad (she was very excited to do that on her birthday as well) and then the next time after her siblings were in bed, we did her date. She really wanted to do a video game date and we themed it Harry Potter. She played Hogwarts Legacy and we did "Harry Potter" snacks.
She loved all the birthday activities. We are so happy to have Ashtyn in our family!
Somehow Ashtyn is turning 11! I'm not sure how she is already 11, she is growing up too fast. Ashtyn loves to craft, do gymnastics, write stories, read or listen to books, hang out with cousins, play chess and video games, shop at thrift stores, and find new ways to earn money. She is super excited to be growing up and can't wait to be a teenager. We love having Ashtyn in our family!
What is your favorite thing to do?
Hang out with Lizzy and play video games.
What are you best at?
Back flexibility (how flexible her back is).
What is your favorite color?
Pink!
What do you love to eat?
Hmm ... Does candy count? Peach rings and nerd gummy clusters.
Who is your best friend?
Lizzy and Kinzie.
What do you love to learn about?
I like to practice typing.
What is your favorite book?
The whole series of Harry Potter.
What is the best movie or show to watch?
Bluey. And Lost in Space!
What is your favorite animal?
Now that's a hard one becuase if I could be any animal in the world, I'd be a humming bird, but I like snakes and cats.
What do you love to play with?
Do video games count? Hogwarts Legacy on my switch.
If you found a genie, what would you wish for?
Enough money to buy a house for me and Lizzy to live in together.
What do you want to be when you grow up?
No clue. I would like to a crafter and sell my crafts, with a crafting room in my house.
What was your favorite thing that you did while you were ten?
Make Mia's cardboard wheelchair (Mia is a doll).
What do you want to do while you're eleven?
I've been working on my back flexibility and I'm hoping to relax with my head between my legs in a bridge.
September has come and gone and somehow we're already halfway through October. I don't undersand where the time is going! We had a wonderful month in September though. There is nothing quite like fall days and the changing of seasons to make you really appreciate life.
One of the things we started in September is an art class with cousins. We're using the Draw a Box curriculum (it's free online, and a very good curriculum). It's meant for an older audience, but Ben is taking each lesson and leading it for the kids and they are doing a great job.
The little boys just draw (or go play) during our lessons and they are so cute.
Parker was mad here because I made her sit somewhere she didn't want to.
They started with learning how to hold a pen and draw a confident line, and now they've been learning how to draw boxes from different perspectives.
Ashtyn drew this cereal box using what she had learned.
We've had a lot of fun with the art class and have made it a bit of a coop with some other homeschool families.
Building at the library! We love going to the library at the end of each week.
Ashtyn and Thomas made up this Jenga game together.
I used to do science experiments with the kids fairly regularly, but the last year or two, I haven't really done a lot. I wanted to get back to it this year, so we've been trying to do something hands-on with science each Wednesday. The kids have loved it and it's been fun for me as well!
Oliver used a stencil to draw ... a cinnamon roll! It took me a minute to figure out what he'd drawn, because he couldn't remember the name of it (just that we eat it), but once I figured it out, it does look like a cinnamon roll.
It's a little hard to see behind the marker, but he also draw a tractor, in the rain and mud.
This is Oliver's drawing of a snake with eggs.
And this is a really fat snake and a snake with two heads.
I love when kids start drawing things that actually look like the things.
Rylee drew this to submit to our library's magazine (Ashtyn wrote a story and Parker made a little graphic novel page).
We went over to Lindi's the day of mediation for Adam and Melissa (Ben went with Melissa) to help with Melissa's kids. It was long day, but we were so thankful they were able to come to an agreement.
Leah loves cousin Thomas!
Leah is learning to sit up! She is still pretty wobbly, but she's getting there.
Chris and Ashley had their baby girl and we are in love!
I loved this picture of Ben holding her while also solving a rubics cube 😂
We are just so in love with the little cutie!
Apple pie and homemade ice cream.
I was working on my 2026 bullet journal pages in September whenever I got a free minute for myself.
I changed up the way I am doing my stats pages and I really like the new format.
A picture that Ben drew when he was younger of his Grandpa Johnson (the one he is named after), hanging up in Leah's house (Grandpa Johnson was her Dad, which is funny because her dad Benjamin had a daughter named Leah and now her grandson Benjamin has a daughter named Leah).
More of my bullet journal. I finished all the pen part in September (it still needs colored pen and pencil in places and filled out).
I love my bullet journal!
I also participated in two reading challenges in September--30 books in 30 days and Series September. I had a lot of fun with them and they pushed me to focus on reading again for a little bit, which was fun.
We think this was from a bug bit that Oliver got 😱
Oliver learning to do summersaults!
Oliver also learned to ride a pedal bike in September and loves it.
I love having them use a balance bike because then it just doesn't take them long to pick up on a pedal bike once they want to learn.
Just crusing around all over the place now.
September has a day where it is Hobbit Day and White Chocolate Day.
We always watch the cartoon of The Hobbit with our homemade white hot chocolate (we were a day late this year).
We also met up with some friends at the pickleball courts. They brought pizza and we brought rice krispie treats. They have some kids simliar ages to some of our kids (they also have five, but their youngest is about Oliver's age and their oldest is in high school). The kids had a lot of fun playing together and we got to play some mixed doubles of pickleball while the kids helped watch Leah. This was Ashtyn watching Leah at the end (she was starting to be done with the day).
They don't happen frequently and are short when they do happen, but sometimes we still try.
One new "skill" Leah learned was blowing raspberries with her mouth. It was so cute to watch her do it. I kept trying to get a video of it, but everytime she'd notice the phone, she'd stop, so Aunt Jessica got a sneaky video for me of it.
I also love this bookshelf. It makes me happy everytime I see it set up (and now that we have a baby in here instead of a toddler, it stays this way when I set it up a lot longer!).
A cute tummy sticking out!
I only caught the tailend, but laughing at cousins and siblings!
We had such a wonderful month in September. It is so fun to spend time with family and soak in the last of the nice weather before winter, and we love watching Leah grow. We are so blessed with so much good in our lives!
