Blue Ribbon Boy...

If you know Jordy then you know that he loves to draw, color, paint, create etc. He is our little artist for sure. At school he gets to attend Art twice a week and they are his favorite days. A few weeks ago Jordan came home and told us that his favorite Art Teacher Mr. Kilgore was submitting his picture in an art contest. We were excited to find out it was for the Arizona State Fair. It had been years since the last time we went, and we couldn't miss seeing his art on display so we took the boys the first day the fair was open.

Imagine our surprise when among the 1st grade submissions we found this:

Our Jordan won 1st Place in the colored pencil division! He was so excited! I don't think he understood that there were prizes to be won!

A closer look at the "fat alligator"

We spent the rest of our unseasonably warm (or so it seemed to me) day looking for all sorts of fun. Our little Dill Pickles found this wonderful thing:

Yeah! A life size pickle to pose with! :)

A favorite ride for both boys was the bumper boats. We had much better luck than the car version!

Who can resist fair food? I personally find it to be the reason to go. My deep fried cheesecake only strengthened that truth. The boys enjoyed super sized snow cones and their very first candy apple. It was deemed better than a caramel one!

A Photo Essay by Jordan:

A gray and cloudy Saturday, watching my little brother play:

Dilly taking a break:

My Daddy:

My Mama:

Self Portrait:

The Graduate...

Seems like it was just yesterday that Dillon and I dropped Jordan off at his classroom for the 1st day of Kindergarten. The year has come to an end and now we have a "Big First Grader" (Jordan's own words) on our hands.

Jordy had a wonderful teacher name Miss Kucher. We were lucky to share her first year teaching with her. Jordan started the year knowing the basics and reading a few 3 letter words. He is now reading a few grade levels ahead and recently tested into the Gifted Program. He is definitely our little smartypants!

The kids put on a little show at Kindergarten Graduation. My favorite was when the sang the old Girls Camp song "A Tootie Ta". Here is Jordan with his:

Thumbs Up

Elbows Back

Feet Apart

Knees Bent

Bottom Up

Eyes Closed

Tongue Out

Turning Around!

That's Jordy in Yellow!

A 6 year old...

Today our little man turns 6!

With school and Daddy working nights we celebrated his birthday all weekend long. So far we have done the following:

Friday- Ate pizza at Barro's and saw Gnomeo & Juliet at the drive-ins
Saturday- Shopped at AZ Mills, visited G&G Hunt, ate lunch at Oreganos (pizookie!)
Sunday- Church, party at G&G Karafa's

He gets to take cupcakes to school for all his friends tomorrow!

Of course Jordan wanted all things Mario, Wii and DS related. He made out like a bandit.

An interview with our 6 year old boy:
Favorite color: YELLOW
Favorite movie: ALPHA & OMEGA
Favorite TV show: PHINEAS & FERB
Favorite food: SPAGHETTI
Best present: SUPER SMASH BROS
What he wants to be when he grows up: A PHOTOGRAPHER

Happy birthday JoJo!

Tonsils...

Mr. Jordan and I skipped out of school a little early today for an appointment with the ENT. My little guy has been a big snorer all of his life and it's only gotten worse the last few weeks. Add in the constant night waking and freaked out Mom and you get a pair of extra big tonsils. The Dr. took one look in his mouth and said "Yeah, those need to come out".

So next week I will schedule a surgery for my guy (and I am more than a little freaked out about it too). Jordan will have his tonsils & adenoids removed. He is also getting a deep ear canal cleaning while he is "sleeping". The Dr. said his ears were full of wax and Jordan said:

"There are crayons in my ears????"

Little Champ...

Saturday was the second to last game of the season. Jordan's Coach, "Coach Joe" was deployed overseas on Sunday so it was a little bit of a celebration for him and the players.

The last few months have been a whirlwind of practices, games, snack assignments and lost shin guards. I feel like after this week I will be able to breather again. I never fully understood what being a "Soccer Mom" meant. It means you eat, sleep  & breathe soccer for 3 months at a time. It is exhausting!

Jordan was really resistant to playing soccer. Blair and I are so proud of him! He put such an effort into learning the game and always played his hardest. Best of all he has had a great time doing it.

Way to go Champ! We love #6!

Bend it like JoJo...

The time has arrived for my baby to enjoy his first taste of organized sports. Another bonus of Mommy's commute/working day being 2 hours shorter each day.

Jordy was nervous before his first practice. He didn't even want to play soccer, we sort of forced him into it. We are mean parents like that. Right after that first practice he pretty much refused to get off the field. Boy howdy, my baby loves soccer!

JoJo plays in the same league and at the same field his Daddy played at all those years ago. Daddy was pretty happy to watch his boy slide tackle a kid during his first practice. Mommy wished he had chosen someone besides the coaches kid!

The first game for "THE TIGERS" is this weekend. We are all looking forward to it!

Mario- A Comic By: Jordan

Once there was a little alien walking down the street. And then it started to rain. It melted the little alien all up. And the little girl was happy because that alien looked scary.

SpiderMan flew up into space and then there was a meteor about to hit the Earth. And then Spiderman made the Earth have a bouncy thing around it. And then the meteor bounced off it onto the moon and then Spiderman turned the moon around with a bouncy thing around it.

And then there was a game I play with happy face and sad faces and I try to find all the happy faces.

Superman flew up into space and then he said "Go on Superdog".And then the Superdog spit a bomb at the alien guy and he blew up. And then he put up one of his guns to shoot something up at him before he fell down onto the moon. And then he fell on the moon. And then the meteor was going to hit Earth again and the alien blew up so he got smoke on it.

The end.

It begins...

Wednesday was Jordan's first day of Kindergarten. I dropped him off in his classroom and he never even looked back. The only tears shed that day were mine. Dillon did cry out "JoJo" pitifully as we exited the building.

As usual he was a little nervous about going. I admit I was worried for him. I was pleasantly surprised when he came home and told me that "he loved school", "didn't know it would be so fun", and most of all that he made a new friend named Casey. It's a Hunt family joke that every year my Mom told Betsy to find someone who looked nice and say "Hi my name is Betsy, do you want to be friends?" I totally gave him the Betsy talk and it worked!

Jordan is such a smart and intuitive little boy. He brings our family so much happiness. He is the best son & brother and we are all very excited and happy for him. School is just what his inquisitive mind needs! He sure is ready!

When I say "we" are happy I mostly mean Blair and I. His brother? Not so much. He misses his JoJo like crazy! (this was pretty much the look he had all day)

Jordan turns 5...

We've just returned from celebrating Jordan's 5th birthday at Disneyland. My poor kids are in for a surprise next year when the find out that you don't always get to celebrate there!

We had a magnificent time. The weather was great. The lines were short. The company was fun. And the birthday boy was as handsome as ever.

We were mean parents and told him he would have to wait until we arrived home for presents & cake but Jordan took it in stride. Especially after Mom told him that he could be in charge for the day. He got to pick our meals, snacks, which rides to rise etc... and was happy as a clam.

Up first was french toast sticks. And we ate them picnic style next to a wishing fountain.

Jordan wished that we could stay for 4 days. We stayed 3. Guess that will teach him to tell his wishes!

Our first ride of the day was Peter Pan. Jordan got to ride with his Daddy. They are best riding partners.

We rode all the fun Fantasyland rides. Nothing like imagination in the morning!

We had pizza for lunch (birthday boy's choice) and even had a little birthday surprise.

The birthday boy kindly shared with his brother:

He sure is a sweetheart like that. "Jordan in Charge" chose to spend the rest of the day in California Park. He "tricked" his Grandpa into riding Grizzly Rapids telling him that he wouldn't get wet. Blair told me afterwards that he laughed hysterically and shouted "I Lied to You!" after the first splashes. Silly JoJo!

Next we braved the rope bridges of Brother Bear. I recently bought the movie for the boys and this was the first time they have been interested in doing it. Jordan took a swing and fell right on his bottom. He sat up and laughed. That's our boy!

Jordan joined in on a little impromptu jamboree. He got a funky hat and everything. Yee Haw!

Toy Story Mania called my little buddy's name and off we went for our 45 minute wait. The ride is so fun that we don't mind the long line. It really doesn't get much shorter anyway, and allows for precious moments like these.

We ended our fun day on a great note... Sorcecer Mickey (as the birthday boy calls him!)

Then it was off for Happy Birthday Happy Meals and a nice long snooze at the hotel. Jordan has deemed this "The Best Birthday Ever". Just like he has the last 4.

He is such an incredible little boy. Blair and I love him so much and he blesses our lives everyday. You could not ask for a better son or brother. We love you Jordan!

Paisanos...

Lately we have a new obsession in the Karafa house. And by we I mean Jordan. Remember his carefully written letter to Santa requesting "Super Mario for the Wii"? Well Santa gladly obliged this boys request and he has been hooked ever since.

He wants to play at home. He wants to play with Grandpa. It's Mario first thing in the morning, all day long and night. He will give you unsolicited "tips" on how to beat Bowser. He asks the children at the playground if they want to play Mario. He wants to wear a Mario shirt everyday. The kid is OBSESSED. His cheeks flush and he runs a temperature while playing. I swear I am not kidding...

After several nights of tears told it was time to pack it up we made a rule that the Wii and especially Mario is a weekend affair. Tears or tantrums lead to losing Mario playing privileges. It's been a pretty good bribing tactic.

Poor Dilly could care less. Jordan tried giving him a crash course in how to play and Dill just keeps saying I died. I died" ! Poor Dilly. At least he is reading up on how to play better.

Little Man...

(with Daddy's hat & glasses, pretending to be him)

This morning as I flat-ironed my hair for work my little buddy came white faced into the bathroom and sat silently on the ledge of tub. One look into his chocolate brown eyes and I knew he wasn't feeling well. While being a mini-me of Blair in just about every other aspect JoJo has inherited the tell-tale "Hunt sick signs". Your brown eyes lose their spark when you aren't feeling well. No spark = hand to forehead for a fever check. And if his ears are white, grab a bucket. STAT.

(He finally got his Sorcerer Mickey hat)

He didn't want to tell me. Jordan's main operative in life is to make those around him happy. He always wants to please. It breaks my heart when I watch him be hard on himself if he thinks he has hurt someone or made them angry. After telling him I needed to know what the matter was so I could help him he finally broke down. Two tears rolled down his cheeks and he whimpered to me that his tummy hurt. Calls were made to work and Grandma and within minutes we were back snuggling in Mommy's bed, towels and bucket nearby.

He's moved on from snuggling. Has begged for food and Super Mario Wii, so I think it's safe to say he is feeling better. Nothing like a sick day with my boys!

My Boy...

Sunday marked the first of many Primary programs in our house. The primary children all wrote their own parts and Jordan chose "I know my family loves me because I love them and they love me." And he sure is right. We sure love that handsome boy of ours.

I know it's a parental cliche to say that he brings so much joy to our lives but he truly does. Jordan cares so much about pleasing others. Me, his Dad, his brother, his Grandma. He has no harsher critic than himself. It hurts me to see him be so hard on himself sometimes. Jordan has a big toothless grin that lights up my life. Everyday is a new adventure for him and he shares the excitement willingly.

One of my favorite traits of Jordan is his creativity. He has natural artistic talents. He draws, sings, and creates  every day. I love to upload my camera and find pictures that he has taken and see life from his perspective. I think he has a natural eye for taking pictures.

Being his mother is a gift that I cherish. I love my boy!

(even like this)