Jack | Right Now

Reading | the first book in the Percy Jackson series. Up next is book two. His reading skills have improved so much in the past year, and more importantly, he is reading for fun. He is in the top reading group in his classroom and has come so far from his "I don't need to learn to read" days (hello Kindergarten). 

Playing | Playmobil, Lego, his own made up Minecraft games, Roblox on the computer, Nerf guns. He has always been a kid who loves to play, and he still loves play above everything else.
  
Wearing | a uniform to school. At home he mostly wears joggers or track pants and a t-shirt. We also had to buy him a new sweater this year (he outgrew his previous sweater) that turned into a big argument. Jack insisted on wearing his old, too small and in need of replacement sweater, and refused to let me buy him a new one. I finally bought him a new one right before Christmas and he responded with "I guess that will do". Oy, he is a finicky kid.

Studying | math, English, orthography, Spanish, science, and history. History is his favorite subject and he loved studying the ancient Greeks this past fall. 

Eating | grilled cheese sandwiches, pizza flavored fish crackers, waffles and pancakes, milkshakes, apples, and GoGurt. His favorite food is french fries, preferably from McDonald's. He is also a fan of the free bread at Texas Roadhouse (but nothing else on the menu). 

Loving | beanie-boos, the color blue, playing with his neighborhood friends. Riding his bike. Learning about history in school after school snacks. Joggers and sweatpants. Asking to be tucked in before bed. 

Not Loving | going to school five days per week (three or four would be better), homework, cleaning his room. 

Watching | Dan TDM on YouTube. Pokemon cartoons on Netflix. Cat videos with his mama. 

Anticipating | two field trips in March (including a trip to the movie theater to see the new Beauty and the Beast movie... I won't be missing this field trip!). A sleepover at Arianna's house that has been in the works for a few weeks. Grandma and Grandpa visiting in April. His birthday party at a nearby park with his classmates. 

Thriving | as a second grader. He had a hard time adjusting to first grade (longer school day, more rigorous curriculum, less playtime), but he has turned the corner in second grade and I am seeing huge improvements across the board. I couldn't be more proud of my sweet Jack.

B&N Night | Traditional Layout

A couple of weeks ago the kids and I participated in Barnes and Noble Night in support of their school. I took a a bunch of photos of Jack running around the store, filling out his scavenger hunt sheet, and several of him reciting the Preamble with the rest of the 2nd grade scholars. I picked the best four photos, printed them to 2.5 x 3.5 inches, and trimmed them keeping a white border around each photo. 

I pulled out the Studio Calico Roman Holiday scrapbook main kit for my layout. This is such a versatile kit and I used bits and pieces from most of the embellishments, plus two pieces of patterned paper. 

My favorite element of this layout is the adorable chipboard pencil. How cute is that?! I added an aqua enamel heart on top and adhered it to the bottom right corner with two other elements. The black phrase stickers are from Ali Edwards' Read Story Kit, and the plastic stars are from the Studio Calico Smalls kit.

A few things to note:

• I am loving white borders around my photos right now. I use a Canon Pixma photo printer and I adjust the pictures so I have a thin (or sometimes not-so-thin) border around the edges. 
• Scrapbooking the boys' school events has become a priority. Their school has so many wonderful programs and activities and I want those events represented in their albums. 
• In 80% of my photos, the boys are wearing their school uniforms. I need to make sure to pull out my camera after they have changed into street clothes... all of my photos look the same! 
• This basic grid design is super easy to replicate and works with virtually any photos (everyday, birthdays, holidays, etc.). 

I'm hanging out in chilly Washington this week with my family. I haven't been able to celebrate my birthday with my parents in almost a decade, so when my parents offered to fly me to WA for a week as an early birthday present I jumped at the chance! My birthday is mid-March but I'll take what I can get. 

Have a great week!