February 2014

Jesper started preschool in January and absolutely LOVES his new classroom. They do a lot more activities with numbers and letters, and expect the kids to work together in groups as well as play independently. It's been a great transition for Jesper. Our only complaint is that now he really doesn't want to be picked up in the evenings - he's having so much fun at school that he doesn't want to leave! We are so grateful to have a wonderful daycare center!

First day of preschool

So smart! Jesper already knows his alphabet, and seems to really enjoy the letter challenges at school.

Some of our favorite things that Jesper is doing right now:
 - If you tell Jesper that he's a goofball or a silly goose, or anything else, his patented response is "I"m not a ____, I'm just Jesper"
 - He goes to bed around 8pm every night. As part of his bedtime routine, Dad has to "fly" him to bed like an airplane every night. He loves it and asks "Can we do it again, Daddy?" every time.
 - He recently discovered Candy Land and really likes to play against Mom and Dad. Usually, he wins. :) We tried Candy Land only a few months ago unsuccessfully, but we got it out again shortly after the holidays and his attention span is finally long enough to play!
 - This is not a "favorite thing", but is certainly something that we've been working on with Jesper. He is a notoriously picky eater, and we have often been guilty of making separate items for his dinner when we are eating something that we're pretty sure he won't try. We decided a couple months ago that we had to stop doing that, so we now serve Jesper the same thing we eat almost without exception. He is expected to try a bite of food that is new to him before he can have more of something else. For example, he has to try a bite of sloppy joe before he can have more applesauce. It's been rough going for a few nights, but he's starting to catch on. And Josh and I are getting more comfortable with him leaving the table without eating anything if he flat out refuses to try the food that we're serving.
 - Jesper's favorite things to play with are still cars, trucks, and trains. He really likes his "working trucks" (i.e. construction vehicles), and setting up his train tracks. He's also getting really good at setting up his flexible car track by himself.
 - He is starting to drop his nap. Some days he easily sleeps for 2-3 hours, but there are usually 1-2 days per week that he doesn't nap at all and just lays quietly at school or at home. It's really terrible timing - I'm hoping that he is still consistent enough with his naps that I have at least some opportunity for the triple nap once Baby Gray arrives! Jesper will be staying home with me on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, and going to preschool on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

In other news, Josh took me on a very fun date to Barrio for my 29th birthday. We had a wonderful dinner and then went to the MOA to play miniature golf. However, we were enjoying our leisurely walk around the mall so much that the mini golf course closed before we were able to go. Oh well - we had a great time just hanging out together. I'm still the luckiest girl in the world. :)

29th birthday date - 36 weeks preggo

 

Gourmet Group at Pitzl's in early February - oh how times have changed. :)

I had Valentine's Day off, so Jesper and I surprised Josh at his office with a cupcake and a card and then went to Jesper's Valentine's Day party at school. I really enjoy spending time with him in his classroom so I can see and experience what  his days are like while Josh and I are working. There are a lot of new faces in his preschool class, so it's also nice to meet some of the new kids that haven't been in his classrooms before. Jesper and his friends made heart necklaces and got to mix up food coloring into buckets of snow. He had a great time!

Jesper and his friends played with colored snow at his Valentine's Day party