Vacation Here I Come!!

I don't have any cute pics of Laura Beth to post this week. Not too much exciting going on. Last weekend we went to Kaden's 2nd birthday party in Flowery Branch. Laura Beth enjoyed the kiddie pool and water slide. The slide was meant for the bigger kids but we couldn't get the babies off of it. Of course Laura Beth went down a few times! Landon's been busy at work and Laura Beth and I have been enjoying what's left of our summer. I have been quite busy with my tutors and monogramming. I currently tutor 3 little boys going to 3rd and 4th grade. I am working on reading and writing with each one but their needs vary greatly. It's something I love doing! My new tutor Sean has only been working with me for a few weeks (6-8 sessions I think) and for those of you who understand teacher lingo... on the first day he read 49 wpm (words per minute). Today he read 72 wpm!! What a great feeling! We haven't even worked on reading fluency the entire time because his writing skills are so severe. I was so proud of him and that just made my day. I hate to see kids struggling with their academics. It truly breaks down their soul. And I admire the parents that take action and get their children the help they need before they fall tooo far behind. I feel like I can open the gates for these kids to share all they have to offer with the world. This particular boy is so bright but looking at his paper you'd never know it. I am so excited and optimistic about his progress!

And as for my little student.. Laura Beth! She's keeping us on our toes and making making me laugh and grimace each day. I just grin at her silly personality and all that she does. I grimace at her strong willed, stubborn ways. She's full speed ahead and learning more and more every day! Yesterday Landon said, "when did she start that?" I turned around to see her trying to walk down the stairs instead of her usual scooting on her bottom. Of course I then witnessed her tumble down the stairs. Oh my girl! She must have decided that if Mommy and Daddy can walk then so can I. :) She continues to be obsessed with food, dogs, books, and going outside. She also recently started calling Landon... "Landon" instead of Daddy. It cracks me up but he's not to fond of it. If she can't get his attention she'll revert to "Landon." This week she picked up more letter sounds. Yes, I said letter sounds. O.k. I always worry about bragging but Landon and I just look at each other in amazement each day. Laura Beth is like a sponge! (I am sure every parent thinks their child is so smart :) She can now tell us the sounds of all but about 17 of her letters. Only 9 more to go! I am going to have to get it on video so we can watch back someday.

Well we are off to vacation tomorrow. We are going to the lake with some friends-- 2 couples and their one year old boys. Then next week we head to Hilton Head for the week. I can't wait to be at the beach! We decided we must squeeze in one more beach trip before school starts since Laura Beth had such a blast last time. And of course it's mommy's favorite place ever !! I'll have lots of pics when we return!