Neils is such a joyful soul. He is enthusiastic about life, and I love that. He is starting to grow into his role as big brother, which is wonderful  when it means he finds ways to help and care for his siblings. Not so wonderful when it means he’s just plain bossy and rude to them, but he’s learning. I cannot believe just how grown up he is these days. He’s as tall as my shoulder, I can almost wear his shoes, and so much fun to talk to. He is loving Cub Scouts and earned his wolf last Wednesday. He went backpacking for the first time with his Dad and some friends this summer, which was awesome, but I’ll let Conan post about that.

I got to be at day camp with him a couple of days this year and it was a riot. They had a climbing wall, and those who got all the way to the top got to sign their names up there… Neils did it his second try and signed in cursive! He was so proud. He had a lot of firsts there, including bb gun shooting, and archery. By the end of the week he got a bullseye!

Neils LOVES electronics and his Dad is only too happy to help him along. He has a small R2D2 he’s been building since last year, and is closer to finishing it than ever. He likes to use Scratch to learn programming, and now that there is a programming language for arduino that mimics  it, we’re going to have to get him hooked up and watch that kid fly! I can’t wait to see what he comes up with once we show him how to put those things together.

Neils also LOVES watching and making movies. He LOVES to watch the “making of…” bonus features on any genre of film, and is always scheming a new method to try. He has an idea for a Lego-mation (similar to clay-mation) movie he wants to make. We just need to get him the right equipment to make that happen. He’s now officially taken over my old imac, and I’m happy to see him put it to good use. He is familiar with imovie, itunes, and garageband after only a few forays. It’s amazing to watch him progress! He also LOVES to read. I am SO happy to be able to say that!! His favorite books so far have been the Fablehaven series, and the Percy Jackson series.

We are very pragmatic when it comes to our children’s educations. We’ve decided to send Neils back to public school this year, and it’s been really good for him. He thrived at home when it was time for him to be home. Now that he’s in school, and in the right school for him, he’s doing wonderfully well. His teacher is very patient, and he loves her. He loves meeting new kids and is enjoying all the new friendships there. He’s excelling in Spelling and Math, and while Writing isn’t his favorite subject, (read as:  ”excruciating torture”) he still got a “B” on his first assignment, so I’d say he’s doing GREAT!