9 1/2 years (63.6 lbs)

Hudson recently started 4th grade and his teacher is Mrs. Dye. She's new to Shadow Lake but we really like her and it seems like Hudson does too. We were very proud to learn that he was selected as the FIRST Student of the Month in September. Way to go Hudson!
In Math he is learning multi-digit addition, subtraction, and multiplication and how to apply those skills to real world problem solving scenarios. In Writing they are working on fictional narratives where they are focused on writing powerful leads and endings and developing meaningful characters through the use of dialogue, feelings, thoughts, and actions. We're going to work on elaboration strategies for Hudson to move his grade from 2 to 3. In terms of "Future Ready" skills he is excelling in being a community contributor, collaborative teammate and conscientious worker.

Hudson spent the Fall playing soccer (11th season) with coach Skyler and the usual suspects. The overall dynamics have changed a bit and I think Skyler might be willing to coach one more season (fingers crossed).  After Spring '18 we may give soccer a break for awhile. This season his jersey was a mustard yellow...AGAIN (as was his brother's) and they're team name was the SuperSounders.
We went to a Sounders game as a family and the boys had a good time watching Professionals real time.

Daddy got the boys outfitted for the ski season this year and we anticipate getting them on the hill to work on some basic ski skills this year. Mommy is jealous that they'll be on the mountain mainly when she's at work :( We hope that adding skiing into the mix will add some dimensionality to their activity repertoire. Especially now that both boys have graduated from swim lessons!!! Hudson is a strong swimmer and can do all the main strokes gracefully. I have no apprehension of him near water. Yah!

Hudson is growing a bit weary of Harry Potter and is newly into the Swindle Series. He is reading them in his classroom. Ironically, he finished the 5th Harry Potter book and only has two more to go to wrap up the series but I'm not pushing it. Since we don't have the Swindle Series at home he has been reading Old Yeller. *This makes mommy very happy*

Hudson is continuing to develop new friendships and this year it's Sam. Sam is our neighbor and his dad is an anesthesiologist at Valley Medical and a colleague of Dr Ichiro. We did a fun "play date" with Sam and took him up to the city to Discovery Park, the Troll and the Aboretum. It was the perfect day and the boys had a lot of fun. I think they were worn out by the time we got home.
Hudson is asking about having Sam and Graham over for a sleepover in the loft.

Hudson is becoming more articulate and independent. He no longer likes mommy to put her arm around him, hold his hand or smother him with kisses. Mommy is adjusting...slowly.
We can't figure out if he's more left or right brain as he seems to do well in both science and math but also enjoys writing, drawing and creating games and stories.
Hudson recently started practicing the electric guitar and learned how to play Happy Birthday by heart just in time for mommy's birthday. What a treat!

He has adopted the family iPad and enjoys playing Minecraft and some old school games like Mario Brothers, PacMan, and Qbert. He is a typical first child and loves to provoke his little brother but never with deviant or ill intent. He's also extremely kind and doesn't let his brother stay mad very long before he reaches out to bring him back into the fold. He is stubborn, opinionated, generous, and funny.

We love you SO MUCH Hudson! It's hard to believe you are 9 1/2 years old.

Hudson's Current Favorites:
Colors: Blue
Book: Harry Potter series "Swindle Series" by Gordon Korman
Song: Learnin' to Fly (Tom Petty)
Breakfast Food: Vegan Pancakes
Dinner Food: BLT's
Number: 50
Best Friend: Graham & Sam

9 years (61.6 lbs)

Hudson is on the home stretch of 3rd grade and has a field trip to the Pacific Science Ctr on June 1. His school year was extended by a couple days due to snow closures so his last day is June 16.

Hudson wrapped up Spring soccer (his 10th season) with coach Skyler and the usual suspects. There were a couple new kids on the team who had never played before which changed some of the dynamics. They didn't have a winning season but I think the kids had fun overall which is what it's all about. His jersey color was teal and his team name was the Sounders.

Hudson transitioned from Soccer right into Swimming. He is in level 5 for the month of May and June after which we'll see if he graduates to level 6 (last level). If he passes we may stop. He's in the deep end of the pool working on all 4 strokes for 100 meters plus deep angle dives.
We will take July/August off from sports. We are going on a 2 week road trip to Utah in July and the boys will be in the Methow for a week in August and at Montana Man Days for another week.

He continues to read Harry Potter and is currently reading book #5 "The Order of the Phoenix". He enjoys writing, drawing, and doing creative things like building lego mazes.
Mommy decided to expose everyone to a variety of experiences including watching classic movies,
going on several hikes (Rattlesnake Ledge, Poo Poo Point, Cougar Mtn - we hope to go to Rainier next month), doing crafts at Michaels, Family Fun Center for mini golf, bumper boats, and go-karts, Trampoline Nation, Ice skating, Roller skating, Peter Pan Ballet, Museum of flight, and a movie.

Hudson is celebrating his birthday this year with a "Camping" theme. Since we'll be at Dash Point over Memorial Day weekend we thought it made sense to celebrate his birthday while there.
We sent out cute camping invitations and asked his friends to bring their bikes. We have nylon camouflage bags for each kid that will have glow sticks, mini flash lights, compasses, and trail mix.

We did a small family birthday celebration on his actual birthday and he got a remote control boat (which he'll use @ Blue Lake in a few weeks), a Star Wars ship and some Pokemon cards. Nana got him a drone, Gma gave him $60 and Nana Nan gave him $40.

Hudson is doing much better with his anxiety. He went tubing at the Pass all day w his friend Graham. We were so proud of him and couldn't believe he did this on his own. He walks over to his swim lane and onto the soccer field on his own and seems to be fine with his picture being taken.

Hudson is getting taller and smarter every month. He continues to enjoy creative endeavors and is doing well in all subjects in school. He's been spending a lot of time in the new garage loft daddy made him and his brother. He is gentle and kind, stubborn and opinionated. A chip off the old block.

We love you SO MUCH Hudson! It's hard to believe you are 9 years old.

Hudson's Current Favorites:
Colors: Blue
Book: Harry Potter series
Song: Wip and Nay Nay
Breakfast Food: Pancakes
Dinner Food: Ribs
Number: 5
Best Friend: Quinn

8 1/2 years (59.4 lbs)

Hudson has started 3rd grade and has a male teacher (Mr Kostohris) for the first time.
He seems to really like him and has a lot less homework (so far) than last year. Go figure.

Mommy got to chaperone his Fall field trip to the Salmon Hatchery, bring treats into his Harvest party on 10/31 and attend their Open House to see their classroom, his desk and current projects.
He also had a "folk song" music performance lead by Ms. Tolliver.

Hudson just wrapped up Fall soccer with a new team and coach. It was a very tough start to the season transitioning onto a new team with kids he didn't know and a coach who wasn't familiar. The first practice was the roughest but we eased into it and before long he was friends with the kids on the team really enjoyed the coach and his wife (Jen). Needless to say, I'm sure Spring season will be much easier when he's back with the usual suspects. It's hard to believe he's played for 9 seasons already. His jersey color was burnt orange and their team name was the Onyx's.

We start swim lessons in a week and Hudson will be in Level 3 (2nd time) so we hope to advance by the end of repeating this class. He's leary of being in the deep end so looking forward to exposing him to this fear so he can conquer it and move forward.

We spent the whole Summer trying to find a book series that Hudson would gravitate toward. We weren't successful until school started when we encouraged/forced the first Harry Potter book. It was a little challenging for him for the first half of the book. But now he's really into the series and has started the 2nd book. He's actually such an advocate that he has encouraged Beckett to start reading them and Beckett is reading the first book. (crazy!) We incentivized him by saying he could watch the Harry Potter movies once he completed the book. So he's now watched "The Scorcerer's Stone?
He still enjoys writing and drawing which has been consistent with him. Hmmm....right brainer?

This year for Halloween we had to pull together some last minute costumes. Hudson ended up being a "bear'ista". He wore a green Starbucks apron and had a bear hat with bear slippers on his hands.
Beckett was a scuba diver named "Deep Sea B" and Beau made him little plastic tanks to wear.

Hudson watched "The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe" last night. I'm hopeful this drives interest in the Chronicles of Narnia series but we'll press pause until he's done with Harry Potter.

Hudson has some anxiety and we've identified ways of working through it. Casey encouraged us to talk about "what's the worst thing that could happen?" and then go from there. It sneaks up on us so we try to warm up to new things early by talking about expectations and being open to questions.
This ranges from fear of taking team/school pictures (sensitive eyes) to new kids/teams (Sounder soccer camp - getting separated from Chase; new Fall soccer team with unfamiliar kids/coach). It's a delicate balance of parental encouragement and realistic expectations we have of him at his age.

Hudson is up to mommy's chin and almost able to wear the same size shoe. He is gentle and considerate, sensitive and stubborn. He is creative, serious, and an introvert. He likes to ride his bike, ascend the new climbing wall in the garage, play in the creek and outside with his brother. He also likes to sit quietly and build lego's in the playroom, draw, and create little games/plays.

It is so interesting to watch the person he is becoming. There is so much to love about Hudson and we feel so blessed to have such a healthy, helpful, and conscientious member of our family.

We love you SO MUCH Hudson! It's hard to believe you are 8 1/2 years old.

Hudson's Current Favorites:
Colors: Blue, Green, and Gray
Book: Harry Potter series
Song: Eminence Front (The Who)
Breakfast Food: Waffles
Dinner Food: Coconut Shrimp
Number: 5
Best Friend: Colton, Graham, Tyler, Sam, Juan

8 years (55.8 lbs)

Hudson is turning 8 this week!

We just celebrated Hudson's birthday a little early with a LegoCity theme. We hosted it at our home and got the Kent Fire Station bouncy house. Hudson welcomed kids from both school, soccer, and our closest friends. In keeping with tradition, daddy made him a cake in the shape of "Emmett" from the Lego Movie. We will have another simple celebration on his actual birthday but mommy/daddy leave for a 2 week trip to Europe the same day so Gma will take the reigns.

We recently attended a curriculum fair/art walk for his school and got to see the variety of projects they have made and what they're learning. Their current focus is on Central and South America. Hudson has a music program at the end of the month where they will perform folk songs indigenous to this part of the world.

Hudson just wrapped up Spring soccer and it was great to have him back with his usual crew. He really has fun playing with the same kids that he first started with. He had a couple amazing goals this year which was really exciting to see and confidence boosting for him at the same time.

We have started initial consultations with orthodontists for Hudson and learned something very interesting. He has 3 teeth that do not have a permanent tooth behind them. We need to schedule an appointment with an oral surgeon to have a couple teeth pulled and will start ortho work in a couple years.

This year for Spring Break we took a ferry to Victoria. The boys had fun riding the Black Ball ferry out of Port Angeles and exploring the city. We had our car so we spent one day in the city and one day venturing beyond. Interestingly enough, out of everything we saw, I think they enjoyed the beach the most. That, and eating at Spaghetti factory!

Hudson occasionally enjoys reading although he seems to be hot/cold. He found a new series at the library called the "Stink!" series. He has a pile of them in his room and when we can get him to pick one up, he'll enjoy the story and the time spent reading. Otherwise, it's a bit out of sight out of mind. He does seem to enjoy writing and drawing which has been a constant. He definitely lives in his imagination to a certain degree and enjoys the art of creating. I wonder where he gets that from?

We recently watched the original Star Wars movies and Hudson is all of sudden, REALLY into it. He sings the theme song, pretends to be an Ewok, and flies his ships around quoting the movie. His little brother is really into it too which makes it even more fun to pretend to be Luke and Han Solo.

Hudson is growing taller and will most likely eclipse mommy by the 4th or 5th grade. He is a compassionate, sensitive, stubborn, creative, curious and serious boy who seems to enjoy his friends, his time at school and his little brother. Well, they are BFFs at least 50% of the time.

We love you so much Hudson! It really is hard to believe you're turning 8 years old this week!

Hudson's Current Favorites:
Colors: Red, Blue and Green
Book: Stink! series
Song: Ghostbusters
Breakfast Food: Oatmeal & Cereal
Dinner Food: BLTS and hates Stir-Fry!
Number: 86 zillion
Best Friend: Colton

7 1/2 years (53.5 lbs)

Hudson started 2nd grade this Fall and his teacher is Ms Mondul. He seems to really like her and we do too. We have his parent teacher conference this Friday!
The curriculum is currently focused on learning about Native Americans, states of matter (solid, liquid, gas) and doing double digit addition and subtraction. We went to an Open House and got a chance to see his classroom, meet his teacher (again) and learn more about his daily routine(s).

Summer 2015 was full of fun experiences...
In June, Hudson enjoyed a family road trip where we visited 3 Nat'l parks (Yellowstone, Glacier, and Banff/Lake Louise). He had a great time camping and seeing new sites regardless of some long hours in the car. He even found a big horn sheep toy in Yellowstone which quickly became the center of many campsite games throughout the rest of the trip. He saw a lot of wildlife in their natural habitat (Elk, Bear, Mtn goats, ground squirrels) which was educational. He also hiked a glacier in Montana that was covered with snow. This made things interesting in sneakers. He had fun playing in various swimming pools, walking a lot, and getting lots of mountain fresh air.

In July, Hudson got to take an Amtrak train ride with Gma and Mariah from Montana to Seattle. They got a sleeper compartment as it was an overnight trip. I think it's safe to say he had a GREAT time!

Later that month Hudson spent a week in Starfire Soccer camp with Chase Burreson. They got to play on the same practice field as the Sounders and even met a couple of the players during camp. He had a great time especially having a buddy with him!

In August, he got to spend some time at nana/papa's house. However, the visit was cut short due to massive forest fires that ran rampant through the Methow and Okanogan county. It was quite an adventure as they had to evacuate nana's house and load up the dogs to spend the night at nana Laurie's before heading back to Seattle.

September issued a new soccer season. Due to his age, Hudson was forced to move up to the U7 league playing with all boys (no co-ed) age 7+. The players were all new to Hudson except for Jayveer (a teammate from season's past). The coach was a first time coach and we really missed Skyler and his old team. However Hudson had a good season regardless. He easily made friends with the other players and continued to improve his soccer skills. Mommy got a great game video of Hudson dribbling around players, down the field and scoring a goal!!!

This year for Halloween Hudson was a ninja. We went to the MV Community Center's "Truck or Treat" where the boys got to explore all kinds of large utility trucks. Hudson participated in his first ever cake walk and actually won a cake! They also tried cotton candy for the first time!

Hudson continues to enjoy reading Geronimo Stilton books (off/on). Mommy read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe which he seemed to like initially but interest seemed to wane in the end. He really enjoys using his imagination to create. He makes fantastic structures with lego's and forts and is currently inspired to create clues for treasure hunts. He is getting more and more independent in his personality. We continue to see an analytical side to him and a curiosity for the reason behind things.

Hudson is a great person. He is kind and considerate. He is responsible and funny. He is sensitive and clever. We love you so much Hudson Gray!!!

7 years (48 lbs)

Hudson is turning 7 in one week!!

Mommy/Daddy will be in New England on his actual birthday so we celebrated it early. Hudson really wanted to go up in the Space Needle so we had a "day in the city" birthday weekend. We stayed @ Inge's condo in Ballard and had adventures through Seattle Center (Space Needle ride to the top), downtown Ballard, and the Ballard Locks. It was a packed weekend w great weather!

Hudson is on the home stretch of 1st grade and is now doing double digit addition/subtraction. He has recently taken huge strides in ENJOYING reading. He is obsessed with the Geronimo Stilton books and reads them constantly. He prefers reading over playing his Kindle which mommy/daddy particularly appreciate. His reading speed and comprehension has taken off which is great to see.

Hudson spent Jan/Feb taking swim lessons and is getting much more confident with his strokes in the water. We took the train to Portland for Spring Break and Hudson swam around in the Crystal Hotel soaking pool w/o issue. It's so nice to see the practiced skills paying off.

Hudson just wrapped up his Spring soccer season. He really improved this year. He was much more aggressive and confident getting into the middle of play. He was probably in the top 3 goal scorers!

Hudson's appearance is starting to change as he has lost two more teeth. His top middle teeth. Yes, he is now that kid with two front teeth missing. However, we practiced saying his "S's" yesterday and he doesn't sound funny. This last tooth was knocked out while playing @ Emly's dinner club yesterday. Fortunately Christy found the lost tooth in the grass! Needless to say, the tooth fairy made another visit to our house last night.

Hudson has a field trip to Point Defiance Zoo in two weeks. He's always jealous that Beckett gets to do little field trips/party's in his class so I'm sure this will be fun for him.

Spring Break was spent taking the train to Portland. The boys had a lot of fun experiencing a real train and what it's like to be inside one. We toured the viewing car, dining car, etc. They played their Kindles most of the time but it will be a good memory I'm sure.

Hudson has been learning about Australia and Marine Life. He is still required to do about 4 pages of homework a week in addition to a weekly spelling test (which he almost always gets 100% +3 for bonus words). I think we find out who his 2nd grade teacher is sometime in August.

Hudson continues to migrate toward that stage where he thinks he knows more than his parents. In general he asks a lot of questions and has an observatory nature. He is calculated and cautious. He is tender and gentle. He is stubborn and particular. He is a great boy and we love him to the moon!

6 1/2 years (45 lbs)

Hudson is now in 1st grade. His teacher is Mrs Loescher and he seems to like her although not as much as he liked his Kindergarten teacher(s) Mrs Belmondo and Mrs Boyle.
He has homework each week and in addition to improving his reading/writing skills, he is getting quick at solving single digit addition and subtraction math problems. He seems to be making friends both in school and on his bus. He keeps asking for a playdate with William who is actually not in Mrs Loescher's class nor on his bus. We met up with him and his brother once and need to again.

Hudson wrapped up Fall Soccer with daddy acting as asst coach again this year. While he is still most comfortable just on the outside of the immediate playing area he did have a few aggressive games where he was right on the ball and had several shots on goal. It was great having many of the same players from last season return to the team again this year. I think it helps the kids feel more comfortable and contributes to overall team collaboration and comraderie.

Hudson got a clean bill of health recently at his 6 year well child visit. He had no shots and actually doesn't need to go back until he's 8. Outside of a vision test which the nurse can administer at age 7 there's no reason to see the doctor again outside of getting an annual flu shot.

We just returned from the dentist and Hudson is cavity-free! He did really well at the dentist and even held still enough to get some good x-rays. He has five 6-year molars coming in and several teeth (top and bottom) emerging from his gum line. To date he's only lost one tooth on the bottom so I think in the next 6 months we'll be leaving gifts for the tooth fairy often. The dentist did say that there may be orthodontist work in our future which comes as no surprise especially to mommy.

Hudson got a Kindle for his birthday and loves playing with it. It's a great device for car rides, Beckett's soccer practice, and slow Saturday morning's waiting for mommy/daddy to wake up. Oftentimes he'll sit with Beckett in the recliner and just play it together. Very cute.

Hudson is becoming more and more independent and opinionated. He will often tell mommy/daddy, "no, that's not correct...". We seem to have an emerging "expert" on all things. He is strong willed and very particular. He appreciates order and rules and when others follow suit. He is a great helper both to mommy and daddy but also as a big brother to Beckett. While he can be frustrated by his brother he's also very kind and supportive of him.

He continues to be a sensitive soul. He is more emotional than Beckett and gets his feelings hurt more easily. He has a huge heart and cares deeply about things that are important to him. He is such a special person and it's such a pleasure to watch him grow and develop each and every year.

We love you Hudson Gray!