School Days!?

Soo David is getting ready to start kindergarten this week and we are all exited (nervous too!). Hopefully he will be as excited about school as we are. :)

Goal!!

Another soccer season is coming to a close and David once again had a blast! He has gotten more comfortable with the ball at his feet and doesn't shy away from bumping shoulders for possession like he did during the Fall season.  He says his favorite part of soccer is scoring goals (..and he scored a lot. We aren't supposed to keep score, but Momma couldn't help herself.) and taking the ball from the other players.  In the end, I am just glad he is enjoying the sport and I hope it continues for many seasons to come. :)
-Kyle

Attack of the Phantom Menace

Soo... I believe I have been raising David right, and by right, I mean with healthy doses of Star Wars mixed in to insure proper character development! :)

Up until the release of Episode 1 in 3D, David had not seen any of the prequel movies. (I figured he needed to get his basics down first.) However, since seeing The Phantom Menace in the theater last month, he has been on a Star Wars kick you would not believe!

It has been fun watching him play with his action figures, running around the backyard reenacting the movies, even while cleaning the bathrooms. I hope he always keeps his sense of play, and hopefully I haven't steered him too far down the Dork side. ;)

He's Growing Up!

This summer's been fun, full of learning and firsts. We visited the farm in South Dakota, he took swim lessons two times and practiced at home and in Jackie & Susie's pool, spent lots of time in Daddy daycare, spent a week with Poppy & Granna, fed horses for the first time, participated in his first VBS, and shot his first gun. He learned how to write some of his letters, and even drew his first family portrait. Overall, it was a great summer!

Look Who's Five!

David recently celebrated his 5th birthday with family and a "How To Train Your Dragon" cake. We ate at Cafe Antigua, bought some soccer shoes for his upcoming season, and napped before the party began. Then it was all fun and lots of cake and ice cream! Happy 5th b-day, kiddo!

Pre-K, Here We Come!

And so it begins...David started his Pre-K program yesterday and had a blast. He and I both were pretty calm and relaxed about it all, probably because Kyle and I took him for a visit last week and have been talking it up until now. When we picked him up, he was nothing but smiles, and his teacher, Ms. Staci, said he did really well and was incredibly polite. The morning teacher, Ms. Diane, said the same thing this morning when I dropped him off. "He has manners!" (That was definitely nice to hear.) His favorite aspect of the day was riding the little red bike; he said he was pretending to be Lightning McQueen off of the CARS movie. Looks like he's off to a great start because he's all smiles when we drop him off and pick him up!

Growin' Little Man

ALL BY HIMSELF

For a few months now, David has been fully taking a shower, applying lotion, and getting his toothbrush ready. One final step to independence: brushing his own teeth.

CHART

For Christmas, David received Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace Jr, so we upgraded his chart and posted a picture of Flo (the CARS character), his first item to purchase. After many weeks of chores, he finally earned enough to go get his toy. His next financial goal? Battle droids and Cad Bane.

Work hard, little man! E

Cold Discoveries

This week we've been snowed in for about 3 days now, and David is completely excited. For months, he's been talking about when it's going to snow.

"Mama, when it snows, I gonna throw a snowball at Daddy."

Well, one little boy got his wish yesterday! :)

On Monday, Kyle threw our old fridge ice out onto the back porch. David finished his chore of feeding the dogs, he opened the back door to finish, saw the ice, and exclaimed, "Mama, we can't go to Cathy's or work! There's ice on the ground!"

Funny kiddo. E

Just Checking

A keen observer, David checks in every now and then to make sure his rules are our rules.

#1--

Kyle: "I'm going to take a shower."

David: "Daddy, wait!...Don't forget to wash behind your ears!"

(Jan. 23)

#2--
(Kyle made cookies after lunch.)
David: "Mama, you finished? I take your bowl to the sink." (David looks into my bowl, eyeing some remaining fried rice.) "Mama, no get a cookie! She didn't finish her food!"
Me: "Alright, bring it back here." (I eat my food, David checks my bowl, and I get a cookie. All this happened as Kyle snickers in the kitchen.)
(Jan.15)

"Piggy Pig"

And so it begins...Since seeing guinea pigs (or what he calls "piggy pigs") in his recently acquired animal encyclopedia (Thank you, Daddy!), and after hearing stories about my childhood guinea pigs (Elmo and PeeWee), David has been fascinated with acquiring his own. However, Kyle has set a few facts straight.

Convo #1:

David: "Daddy, I wanna piggy pig."

Kyle: "Maybe after the dogs die."

David: "Oh...uh, okay."

Convo #2: (2 minutes later)

David: "Daddy, after the dogs die, I buy a piggy pig."

Kyle: "You'll need to save your money. It needs a cage, water bottle, and food."

David: "Oh...uh, okay."

Convo #3: (2 minutes later)

David: "Daddy, I need a guinea pig and a cage and a water bottle."

Kyle: "Who's going to take care of it?"
David: "I will!!! ...I give it water and food."
Kyle: "What about when it gets sick?"
David: "I prolly take it to the doctor."

Kyle: "What are you going to name your guinea pig?"

David: "Uh...prolly...Pancakes!"

Too cute! E

The Christmas Story--Starting New Traditions

Kyle and I have really wrestled with what "traditions" to establish within the Farnham household, especially regarding holidays. We tend to ask, "What makes this day so special? Why should it be different from every other day?" While we both were "raised on Santa," we both feel like it distracts from the real meaning of the Christmas holiday, Jesus' birth. After stepping back and considering options, here were our conclusions.

1) Instead of a Christmas tree, we purchased a nativity set around which we place the presents. "Since Jesus was our gift from God," we explain to David, "these presents are our gifts you." Also, to remind us of the "reason for the season," we made a birthday cake for Jesus.

2) We read the Bible Christmas Story version the week of Christmas.

3) No more pictures with mall Santa. Instead, it's David in front of our yard Santa, who is kneeling and praying to Jesus.

Merry Christmas! E

Man "Firsts" with Daddy

I've had to work long nights due to the one act play competition, meaning that David and Kyle have been sharing a lot of time together. Recently, Kyle had the awesome idea to get out his tent so he and David could sleep outside one night. Throughout the night, David asked Kyle, "Daddy, what's that sound?" When they came inside in the morning, David was grinning ear to ear, beaming about his time with Daddy and telling me all about the sounds of the night.

Another "first" shared event was attending a Cooper football game with Daddy. David enjoyed being called "cute" by all the girls as well as eating his first game nachos in the stands.

On "Men only" days, they also eat something for lunch that they both really enjoy like pizza rolls or fish.

I know David loves his "Man Time" with Daddy.

Until next time, E

Santa Baby

Before we left to take David's annual Santa photo at the mall, Kyle asked David what he needed for Christmas. David lamented, "I need to tell Santa I need Anakin, Asoka, Jabba, & Ventress toys. I don't have any." Sure enough, while I was paying for the pics, Santa asked David, who was still seated on his lap, what he wanted for Christmas. David told Santa about his need for new Star Wars figures, and the two of them engage in a finger light saber display/battle. Afterwards, all David could say was, "Mama, Santa is a nice man!"

Indeed! E

A Batty Halloween

Fun times at Lowe's Build & Grow program. Nothing like a wooden bat in time for Halloween! (Oh, and the fun part was that I misread the instructions, which resulted in a bat with backward wings. Mom of the Year!)

Later, E

Thanksgiving 2010

Thanksgiving week has been filled with memories.

• We spent the holiday in Tulsa with Poppy & Granna. We spent time playing with their new kitten, Zoey, eating too much yummy food, and enjoying our time together.
• When I asked David what he was thankful for, here was his list: 1. Food, 2. Toys, 3. Books, 4. Peanut Butter & Jelly, and 5. Outside.
• David's realizing the tough reality that he has to wait his turn to talk, which means that we don't always respond when he says our names. This week, he's discovered that using our names when we're not immediately attentive can be effective. He recently called out to Kyle: (In a sing-song tone) "Daddy...Daddy...Kyle!" We couldn't help but be amused!
• The same was true this weekend. Instead of being at Poppy & Granna's, according to David, we were at Poppy & Gail's house.

Until next time, E

Gotcha Day #2--Nov. 8, 2010

We recently celebrated Gotcha Day, our special anniversary of when we got David in Guatemala and became a family. In the morning, David opened his little Chick Hicks pit crew cars (from the Pixar CARS movie), and we ate at Cafe Antigua. We spent the rest of the day enjoying playing with his new toys.

Hard to believe that two years ago, Kyle and I were nervously waiting his arrival in our hotel lobby in Guatemala. So glad you're a Farnham, kiddo! Happy 2nd Anniversay!

Love you, Mama

David Philosophy

‎"When I bigger I drive your car Daddy. I drive your car to work."

"Where are you going to work?"
"...prolly an office. I work on scrapbooks and bring my toys. I just do work stuff. Talk to students."
Atta boy.... never to early to start career planing!

"Daddy it's windy! Stop wind.... STOP WIND! The wind not stop."
"That is because you're not Jesus!"
...haha first lesson in "God is God and I am not."

David and Kyle went to work for a teacher lunch. The kids stopped to say hello and comment on how adorable he is. When they got back to the car, David said, "Daddy, the girls say I cute!"
**Oh no!** ...don't get a big head kidddo! :)

Aunt Andrea recently fell off her horse and broke her arm. When we told David the news, he thoughtfully responded, "Aww! Poor Andrea! That's okay! She can buy another one...maybe a pig arm!" (Nov. 2010)

David was climbing on his Man Cave rock wall and had too much in his hands (his rope & a stick) to climb, so he fell off and barely scraped up his side. After a little crying and a few hugs, Kyle and I asked, "Are you okay? Is anything broken?" Holding his right side just below his ribs, he replied, "Yes...I broke my heart." (Nov. 27, 2010)

Oh, the funny things he says! E

Fun times with Poppy & Granna

Pumpkin Patch

Mammy & Pawpaw (Em's parents) invited us to the Pumpkin Patch in Newcastle.

We saw lots of animals: baby ducks & chickens, a pony, goats, and baby pigs.

David also loved leading us through the corn maze.

We went on a hay ride and played in the hay.

Finally, we choose our pumpkins!

When we got home, David wanted to decorate the pumpkins.so I think now we're set for Halloween.

Thanks, Mammy & Pawpaw! E

Touch a Truck

David and I recently attended Mustang Community's "Touch a Truck" show, which allowed him to experience and touch all kinds of occupational vehicles: police cars, a firetruck, garbage truck, school bus, ambulance, etc. His favorite was the police car because he got to make the sirens blare.

We had a really great time! And the best part was that it was all free! E