Charlie #10

Well, the last kiddo in our home to enter double digits has officially done it.  Charlie is 10!! He couldn't be more excited to be "two whole hands" and while I'm excited for him, I'm also sad. I'm excited for all the things coming down the line for him, but sad for us that each day he gets older is a day closer to him not needing us anymore. And that's coming faster and faster; he is such an independent kid. He feels so mature for his age that I sometimes forget he's only 10. Goodness we love our Chuck and couldn't be more proud of him! 

  Here's a little bit about Charlie:

• Charlie has no problem "hanging" with the big kids and even sticking up for himself when he needs to. He may get a bit emotional and have to explain things through some tears, but he does it! He is so good at explaining himself! 
• When Charlie gets home at the end of the school day, he immediately starts telling me every single detail.....from who didn't follow directions, to what Mrs. Rodriguez said to the kids when they didn't follow directions, to how great lunch was, who played what position at recess, etc. etc.! He vomits it alllll out.....and I absolutely love it! Of course once he gets home and is talking through his day, he prefers to not have any clothes on except his underwear! ha! 
• He loves to be silly and tell "jokes" and he is actually really funny. He asks all the time: "Mom, am I funny?" He is still figuring out when to tell jokes and when it might not be the best timing. 
• He still loves to tell all of us that he loves us and he loves to give hugs. He loves for us to snuggle with him on the couch and lay with him in bed till he falls asleep. His love language is definitely still physical touch and quality time right now. 
• Charlie is loud....when he laughs he is loud, when he cries he is loud, when he talks he is loud....you will never have a problem hearing what he has to say. He may have a problem with interrupting us while we are talking with someone else, but he's working on being patient and waiting. 
• Speaking of loud....he loves for the TV to be loud when he's watching it. 
• Food makes Charlie really happy though he is still pretty picky. He loves McDonald's chicken nuggets and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches the most. He also enjoys a spoonful of peanut butter while I'm making sandwiches. He really is pretty consistent on what he likes to eat on a daily basis....cinnamon bread for breakfast, pb &j or chicken nuggets for lunch and then pizza for dinner-anything other than those foods and he will usually do some sort of complaining. He really dislikes trying anything new, though he has gotten even better over the past year....but he does ok with having 10 bites at a minimum. This next year his goal is to work on eating more dairy and veggies. 
• He loves to watch WWE and football
• He loves tractors, trucks and any kind of construction equipment
• Charlie is a huge helper and loves to have a "job". Whatever job he is given, he really does well too! He also loves a checklist! 
• He loves to be outside! He loves to help John with anything....driving the tractor, yard work, tinkering in the barn, etc. 
• While driving, he will point out every single tractor, truck, lawn mower, semi, dump truck, excavator, etc. etc. etc. along the way. There is no such thing as a quiet ride with Charlie. He also asks thought provoking questions that sometimes I don't even have answers to.
• He is wearing size youth medium clothes but still really prefers just walking around in his underwear.
• He is very kind to Winston and loves to walk him on the leash. He also enjoys taking care of the chickens and anyone else's pets when they are out of town.
• His favorite snacks are goldfish/whales, pirate booty and clif bars
• He really only likes to drink water and apple juice
• He loves to cook anything in the air fryer and he also enjoys making chocolate muffins and pumpkin chocolate chip muffins. 
• He really enjoys playing just about any sport: baseball, flag football, basketball....he loves to compete and has a blast playing with friends.
• He can read very well! Reading is definitely his strong suit and doesn't even really have to study for vocab or spelling tests each week. 
• His favorite songs are anything by Morgan Wallen and Two Pina Colodas by Garth
• He loves listening to music on the radio and wants to know the name of each song too. 
• He wants to know about everything....he is curious about life and wants to see it all...and asks LOTS of questions
• Charlie can very clearly tell you what he wants/needs and can explain himself very well
• He is genuinely kind....he is constantly giving out compliments that are 100% sincere. And is even very interested in how someone is feeling about a situation 
• He speaks very well. He has quite the vocabulary, he can say his words clearly enough for most to understand, and speaks in complete sentences.
• If he isn't at church or school, you will see him wearing a hat 
• He is very kind hearted and just wants everyone to have fun.  If he gets in trouble or upsets others he starts crying and runs to his room. 
• Charlie is very outgoing around familiar people, but when in front of people he doesn't know, he is extremely shy
• He loves to dance! (He's got some rythm too!)
• Board games are an absolute favorite for him and he's super competitive (his competitiveness carries over into just about everything he does....he has my Jones genetics in him for sure!)
• This fall season, Charlie has really enjoyed following every team. He entered into a competitive "pool" with some of John's coworkers and has thoroughly loved picking a winning team for each week. He is totally invested.
• Charlie plans to be a football player when he grows up. His backup plan is to be a Paleontologist or be in the air force. 
• Charlie just recently had a classmate/friend pass away and that has been tricky for him to navigate. He's going through all the emotions imaginable. 

10 Year Wellness Exam

Weight: 66.36 pounds

Height: 4' 8" (he grew 2" this past year and is projected to be around 6' tall!) 

Thankfully, this appointment was almost identical to last year's and the year before that. Charlie talked with Dr. Fahler about his eating habits, football, school, friends and plying outside. Dr. Fahler was pleased with Charlie's growth and his projections are still that he will be slim and 6ft tall. After Charlie's physical exam, we got our paperwork and were on our way out. He didn't get any shots, but still requested a cake pop from Starbucks before going back to school. I say this with every single yearly checkup, but I am so thankful for an uneventful exam. 

Birthday Celebration
Charlie decided to have a large party at the trampoline park this year and you know I love a party at a venue! We had pizza and cookie cake and celebrated our favorite 10 year old with lots of friends! He may have rolled his ankle but still had an amazing time!! 

I did a terrible job of him opening presents, but he did get a snare drum and deer target that I hear and see every single day! ha! He has so many amazing people in his life who know him so well and I am always so thankful for our family and friends that love on our family. 

Happy Birthday Charlie! We love you so much and are so proud of the young man you are becoming!

September 2026

I think we are in the groove of school and activities at this point. For a while it felt like we were drinking out of a fire hose with everything we had going on including me working at the start of school for the first time in 16 years! It's been quite an adjustment. I love my job, but it's added some complexity for sure. I've really tried to be intentional about being present in everything this fall....even the minor things like the car rides to and from activities and bed time "good nights" and homework assignments.....I'm trying to soak it all up because I know that one day, we won't have all these things and I will miss it! 

This might be my favorite picture so far this season....our girl looks TOUGH! She's having a great season so far and the team is currently headed into sectionals which will be played on our home turf! 

One of the teachers at the middle school has a little boy who hangs out in our building before school starts. He likes to make my rounds with Johnny and I some mornings. On this particular morning it was just him and I and he asked to hold my hand....I took this pic off the school cameras and sent it to his mama because it was just the sweetest! He says I'm his best friend in his mom's building.....I will take that as a huge win! 

Charlotte is running cross country this season, so Mellany and I went to watch a race....she did great! I am always so impressed by the runners! 

With Johnny going into middle school, it was time for he and John to go on the middle school trip. Mellany and I went to IOP in South Carolina when she went into 6th grade but these two boys decided that Branson was the place they wanted to go. They made a pit stop in St. Louis to see the arch along the way but then spent a long weekend in a cabin, fishing, riding go carts and spending way too much time in Bass Pro. They worked through a bible study and had some "grown up" conversations about life and had such a wonderful time! 

While those two boys were gone, Mellany had a sleepover which left Charlie and I by ourselves. He requested to watch a movie in our bedroom with M&M's (after a texas roadhouse dinner of course) and you know I'm always up for a cozy night!

We also spent the weekend dogsitting for a neighbor. And Charlie was most sad when her owners came home.

More flag football! Including flags for faculty night. Mellany chose to recognize Mrs. Gray who has been her teacher and dance coach for the past three years and just has been an amazing influence in her life! 

Johnny got injured at recess a few weeks ago and after a week of limping we decided to take him to the doctor. Turns out he strained some tendons and earned crutches and a knee brace for a week. 

Dad & Teresa came to town to catch some flag football and spend the weekend with us. Of course it was the hottest set of games to date, but it was still fun!

Twin day at school and we are serious about our spirit days! 

Battlefield field trip day for Charlie where he learned about water sheds. In this pic, he is a pollutant.

We only got to do half of the field trip because Mellany had a doctor's appointment in the afternoon. Charlie could have stayed but decided he wanted to have lunch out and then go home. I love some afternoon snuggles! 

White out night for flag football versus McCutcheon who is their biggest rival! We love when our besties are around. Again, I don't know why I try getting a really great perfect picture! 

Messaging my mom one afternoon about "Dolly Day" and told her it was spirit week at school so I opted for the black and gold instead of my Dolly shirt (a TOUGH decision). She mentioned she hadn't gotten any spirit week pictures, so I snapped this and sent it to her! I'm sure she was meaning pics of Johnny and his friends but I thought maybe she needed a recent one of me too :) 

Rounding out September was the event the boys have been WAITING for! They saw the advertisement during the Garth concert and were begging ever since. They have been so into WWE over the last several months that we couldn't say no. These boys were in HEAVEN at the WWE Friday Night Smackdown in Indy. John said he's never laughed so hard before! 

August 2026

 August might be my least favorite month of the year because that means we have to get back into a routine with our sleep schedule and homework and such and I do not like that at all. And if you ask the kids, they really don't either. I go from being the "yes" mom to "no" mom and its such a fun hater. With all that said, the adjustment was just fine. While we don't really want to be back at school, it's been a great start to the year so far. Everyone has switched into new buildings (Mellany went to the high school, Johnny went to the middle school and Charlie went to the intermediate school) so that has been really exciting. Each building has a different start time (my "start" time is also different) so that has been a bit tricky to navigate, but we are getting there. Only 9 months until summer! haha! 

Here's a few pics of what we've been doing in August....

We set up Johnny's locker....and he helped me assess some things in the school building that needed fixed, like the projector screen I was trying to snap a picture of to remind myself. haha! 

We walked Mellany's schedule at the high school with Charlotte and let me tell you, navigating the school that houses 2100 kids each day is INSANE! I even taught in a large school and this was crazy. My watch asked me several times if I was working out....

Mellany tried out for the Raiderettes dance team in May and didn't make it. She decided to pivot and try flag football for the fall. She had tryouts right before school started so she spent several nights throwing around the football with John.....and made the varsity team as a freshman!! She is one of 4 girls that made the varsity team! We couldn't believe it and are so excited for this new adventure for her!  

And then the first day of school was upon us! We were sad, we were excited, we were tired, we were nervous, we literally had all the emotions....

Mellany headed off to Freshman year! Her school starts at 7:30 so her pictures didn't include the boys because they were still sleeping. 

But she did get a pic with her proud daddy!

Johnny was off to 6th grade....which is in the middle school in our corporation...

And Charlie headed off to 4th grade which is at the intermediate building.

I don't know that these two will ever take a "normal" photo, but I keep trying! ha! 

Waiting for Charlie's bus...

Mellany's friend Elizabeth brought me the sweetest set of flowers. Made my day! 

The kids completed their yearly start of school questionnaire.

During the IN state fair, Johnny was asked to take care of the cows at the diary farm and he didn't even hesitate. He loved every minute and we couldn't hardly get him to leave each night! There is currently a bottle calf at the farm, Brynn, and Johnny has begged to show her next year. 

And if I'm being honest, I think John loved doing farm chores just as much as Johnny. 

And I loved being with my boys and getting driven around :) 

The farmer is a huge Green Bay fan with a banner hanging in his office. So while he was gone I decided to do some sprucing up and add a little color to his world. I didn't hang the flag in his office though, I hung it front and center when you walk in! He says he's upset with us for vandalizing his property, but I think he really loves it! 

It's been pretty hot, but we've gotten to watch lots of flag football and we really love it! Mellany is so happy when she's playing, she loves the girls on the team and has really enjoyed learning something new. 

Garth Brooks came to town so you know we took the whole family. The boys weren't super impressed but the rest of us were in heaven! 

Charlie celebrated his best friend Griffin turning 10! 

We watched more flag football....this time in the rain....

And to round out August, Mellany decided to cut quite a bit of length off her hair. She says she feels so light and free! And I think she looks stunning! 

And that wraps up August!