Zeke Is 9 Years Old!

How can my youngest boy be turning 9 years old?!?!? The last year of single digits! 

It really is hard for me to think of Zeke as being that old. He's still such a cute little thing. Most people would never guess that he's 9. I don't necessarily thing he's too much smaller than Owen or Jack were at this age it's just that he is so much smaller than they are now so it's hard to compare. All of my kiddos are basically smaller than other kids their age so that's normal for us. 

Let's see what Zeke has been up to this last year! 

For Zeke 8th birthday we were right in the middle of Covid so instead of having a party with friends he had his friend Kaiden over for a playdate. These two are so cute together. They just love to be with each other. Kaiden is actually coming over again this year for a special playdate a few days prior to Zeke's party. 

For Zeke's birthday party we just had family over and it was so nice. He got totally spoiled with all his toys and cash! 

Sweet 8 year old boy! 

He LOVES chocolate cake and has asked for it again this year. 

I should frame this picture for Zeke. He LOVED that Spiderman coat. It finally got too small though and I was able to convince him to pass it onto Jaymes. 

There is a new neighborhood that got build next to our. There's a small park there...it's not super amazing, but it's fun. The kids and I enjoyed walking there last summer until they closed it. I think it's reopened since then. We'll have ride our bikes down and check it out again. 

Since we were doing virtual/homeschool and I was the teacher I decided to end our school year at the end of May. It was the best thing for our family! This year with us doing full-time homeschool I'm again having us finish at the end of the May. It's SO amazing to get to make our own schedule! 

Hanging out in the playroom with his big brother! 

At the end of the actual school year we got to go do a drive by to get a few things and say goodbye to the kids' teachers. I just love Ms. Castle. She was such a wonderful teacher for both Ella and Zeke. 

Zeke has pectus excavatum. You can google it and see some pretty crazy pictures. Basically his rib cage goes WAY in. Michael has too as well as a couple of his cousins. I believe it's hereditary. Zeke's primary Dr. thought it would be a good idea to have his heart and lungs checked out to make sure they weren't being impeded. We had to go to Tacoma twice...once to see a pediatric cardiologist and again to see a pediatric pulmonologist. Thankfully everything looks great now. His lungs and heart are functioning perfectly. It is good that we had him check out because now we have a baseline to go off of. We are planning on going back and having him checked out every 2 years. We've decided when he's older if he wants to have surgery to correct this that will be his choice. If nothing is physically wrong then it will be cosmetic, but if it's something he wants done then we'll do it. It can make you very self-conscience about yourself, but the surgery is very painful so we're going to leave that up to him when the time comes. 

Field day at Ms. Starr's house was so fun!

He made a habitat for the bugs they found too! 

Skinny boy! 

Finding his army parachute guy on the 4th of July! 

Uncle Sam himself! 

Roasting marshmallows! 

Celebrating Daddy's birthday early since we were going on vacation to Wyoming! 

On the road to Wyoming....getting MCD's for a lunch pit stop! 

Zeke loves to play at parks! This particular park in Bozeman, MT. is our favorite! 

In the Big Horn Mountain....having the best time at our family reunion! 

It's hammock time! 

Photo re-creation at a park in Buffalo, Wy. 

Look at this cute baby! 

Trekking around Devil's Tower! 

Swimming at the Rec Center in Gillette, WY

The crazy thing is those swim trunks that he's wearing are size 4T. He has another pair that are 3T that still fit! 

Swimming at the C'mon Inn in Missoula, MT. 

Playing at the Beach. 

Prior to the kids getting their curriculum from Lighthouse Christian Academy they had to take diagnostic testing. That was really hard for Zeke. The whole point of the test was to get him to a place that he didn't know the answers, but he didn't like that one bit. I think he also didn't like the idea of having to do school. It had been such an unconventional school year, by this point he hadn't had a normal day of school for months! 

Zeke had so much fun painting his race car while we were on vacation in Gillette, WY. He was so proud of it! 

Jammies and his Spiderman coat were his go to outfit for our camping trip in August! 

This was Zeke's first time riding his bike more than just around in front of our house. It challenged him a lot and he was not happy about it. He's gotten better at riding, but he's still hesitant. Everyone was so proud of him when he caught up to us on the Discovery trail! 

Being a goofy boy at the lighthouse! 

Sunglass and sand equal a good day at the beach!  

My kids all go through phases of playing with each other. Zeke and Ella have fun doing all sorts of activities....playing with stuffed animals, riding bikes, playing games. They don't always get along, but they do enjoy each other. 

Starting 3rd Grade! 

Cute wacko! 

This year has been an adjustment for all us from virtual learning/homeschooling to full on homeschooling. The kids have done great though. Whenever they talk about public school they now call it their old school. Zeke does struggle a bit with staying focused. He and Owen trade off on who's the last kid done for the day. I have to tell him to focus umpteen times during the day. It's exhausting, but I know he'll get better as he matures. 

These buddies have enjoyed sitting next to each other at their desk. They haven't had any issues at all this year. 

Math has been Zeke's toughest subject...especially multiplication. I did get him and Ella a times table book where they will do one sheet each day to keep up on what they've learned. I do not want the summer slide to effect their progress. 

Zeke has accomplished about a year and a half of work in just one year. He's still technically behind his actual grade level, but only in a Science & Social Studies. 

This boy will complain about having to walk too far or stand too long, but get him in an environment where it's an adventure and he's all about it. 

He's small, but that cave was smaller! 

Finding all the frogs and naming them on our camping trip in Ephrata! All the kids can not wait for us to go back to Oasis in June! Let's hope this time there won't be smoke from any fires! 

Grubbing on pizza at Great Wolf Lodge! 

We were sad last year that Wild Waves never opened, but I just found out they are opening in June and I already have our first reservation. We are so ready to get out and have some fun! Not that we really let Covid stop us at all from enjoying life last year, but it will be nice to have more things open up! 

Getting out and enjoying the open park! 

Ziplines are the best! 

At Halloween, Zeke created a pretty crazy pumpkin! 

He made a great Army Man! That wasn't even a costume we just had all those camo pieces of clothing. 

Our church didn't have a traditional Fall Festival, but we did have a hay ride and they gave each of the kids a big bag of candy. It was something small, but super thoughtful! 

Zeke dressing up like an old man! 

Look at that handsome boy! 

His homemade snow globe with the Made in China sticker on it. :) 

Helping Mama with Christmas baking! 

He loves his new Bible. He misplaced it for a while and was so sad. He keeps a little magnifying glass with it so he can read it using that. It's not like the print is too small...he just like to use it! 

Zeke loves his marble run that we got him for Christmas. I love it when we find a toy that's truly a hit and doesn't lose their interest quickly. 

Zeke and his giant LEGO stack at Christmas. Dude made out like a bandit with LEGO's. 

Owen created Jeopardy game for us and Zeke was taking it quite serious!

This was most likely Seahawks day at church. He loves to do whatever he can to participate with the theme. My favorite was Tortilla Chip day. He wore his hooded sweatshirt backwards and put a bowl of tortilla chips in the hood. Silly guy! 

So happy we got snow this year and that it was on a weekend! The kids had loads of fun outside! 

Lovin' on Ga-Ga! 

Since Zeke is the youngest it's easy for us to still think that he's too young to do certain things. This last year I've specifically been trying to be better about getting him involved in the bigger kid tasks. Right now his weekly task is laundry and he's doing a great job. Here he and Owen were helping Michael by getting the baseboards pulled away from the wall. 

So proud of his Easter cookies! 

In April our church celebrated 20 years! All the previous seniors Pastors were in attendance. I made sure to get Zeke's picture with Pastor Brett because he was the one that dedicated Zeke. I think he was also the last baby or the second to last baby that he dedicated.

Zeke has a style all his own. Basketball shorts with a button up shirt, jammies outside, long sleeves with shorts. At this point in parenthood the only time I really care about what he wears is on Sundays and when it's time for his birthday pictures at JCPenney's! 

Zeke is always creating things with paper and tape. Oh...my tape! He's always running off with it and it drives me crazy. He does end up making some pretty cool stuff like a hang glider for his little tiger. 

One Sunday morning Zeke and Jack decided to make their clothes look like a real kid sitting in the chair. They used dowels to make the legs and stuffed the torso with a pillow. Owen got this silly mask at Halloween. It actually made me do a double take a couple of times. Finally after it had been up most of the day I made them take it down. It was starting to creep me out! 

Happy Mother's Day morning with my boy! 

The Dial family isn't able to make it to Zeke's party this year. We had plans to have dinner at their place and Rachael was so sweet to make Zeke a cake so they could celebrate him with us. She didn't have candles so she put suckers on the cake to be pretend candles! 

We have been hard at work in the backyard making something fun. We happened to get it finished in time for Zeke's birthday. We really hope his friends enjoying playing on it for his birthday. I'll post more about it soon. 

I just can't believe that Zeke's 9 years old! 

 Zeke really is a stealthy kid. He's always there, but he blends into the background and is content being there. He doesn't cause waves or rock the boat most of the time. He's there soaking it all up and learning from others. He doesn't need to be entertained. He can find something to do with others or on his own. It's a really great skill to have! 

Zeke is quite tenderhearted. He doesn't like to disappoint people and he gets really emotional if he does. Sometimes he shows the wrong emotion by laughing, but that's just his nervous energy coming out. Recently we had to leave Charlie at the vet and he was an emotional wreck about it. I honestly didn't even think he liked Charlie, but after that fiasco now I know better. 

Zeke has developed this new habit of tapping. He taps on everything...the table, his knees, your shoulder. You name it he'll tap on it. There are many times during the day I have to put my hands on his hands and tell him to stop tapping. 

Zeke is the only kiddo that can still fit in my lap and I love that he loves to be snuggled. He is most snuggly in the morning time. He also has the sweetest voice when he stretches and says, "I love you mama!" 

My sweet 9 year old boy I love you bunches! You are such a character. You are constantly making us laugh with your antics. I love that you can laugh at yourself too. You definitely don't take yourself too seriously. You my sweet boy were the perfect addition to our family. The end of the alphabet...our last kiddo! Daddy and I love you so much buddy! You are such a joy and you bring so much joy to others. I pray that you will continue to shine your light all the days of your life. God has big things in store for you Zeke man. Follow Him and He'll lead you where you should go! 

Love you buddy! Happy Birthday!