i love...

...how my garden fresh cucumbers ooze juicy freshness right after i cut them.
...how alaythia calls her sneezes 'bless yous'.
...how sophia snuggles in at bed time, sucking her thumb and gently rubbing my arm as we sway and sing.
...that even at 5 isaiah will still climb up on my lap for a snuggle.
...how hard my husband works at what he's doing.
...the crisp morning air that has come to louisville.

surprise visit

she called on wednesday night at 8:30. we talked about the plans of the next day. what i had to do, that she had the day off work. she casually asked, if i thought i could get to the airport at 2:45.

my body was numb. i was reeling and trying to figure it out. and just like that we found out grandma was coming for the weekend. a desire and treat we dared not even ever dream about. not when you live this far away.

so on the way to school i explained to the kids that grandma was coming later that day. they too were shocked. usually it's a major count down when someone is coming to see us. isaiah kept saying, 'today?! today?!'

it was a great trip. the zoo, a neighborhood garage sale, dates and good food. (i think we said it was the most successful garage sales ever, and that's saying a lot since my mom has decades under her belt).


she cleaned my house, did my laundry, gave my husband and i time for a date. it was like she lived here. it was that normal.

thanks grandma for coming to be with us. you know we all love when you are with us.

this picture was taken by someone else at the zoo,
because i chickened out at the last minute and wouldn't go
into the laurakeet landing area.
we took a picture of their screen.
grandma kept her cool and didn't scream, which would have scared the kids...
but she wanted to!

the first 40 years...

we're settling into our new routine and new life. home schooling is going well, we're still tweaking to fit our life and i feel like everyday it gets better. isaiah is loving his kindergarten class and is making new friends. the girls and i are enjoying our 'girl time' and the little break it brings to have the boys at school a couple days a week.

i think part of my anxiety and emotion regarding all that has been going on, was the anticipation of the change in life. and it was true that we were catapulted into a new phase. just like that we are dealing with 'school age' things.

friends who lie, girls who are mean, new vocabulary and a new level of attitude. in general it is safe to say all three of them have matured leaps and bounds in the past few weeks.

i find myself praying fervently for isaiah as he's at school. that he will be a leader, not a follower. that he will have fun, but will also work hard. that he would be the one who is not mean, and doesn't get pushed around, but protects those who are weak and is not afraid to stand up for what he knows is right. it's a whole new world for him...and me! i find myself remembering conversations my parents had with me, things they said, i hear myself repeating them verbatim to him.

alaythia has a bully in her life. the last few times she's come home from church related activities she tells us about what went on. i know how mean girls can be. it was not easy to watch and listen to my daughter repeat these things to me. i fought every mother-bear urge coursing through my veins, took a deep breath and told her the truth of who she is. and reminded her who she will be.

sophia...well i've affectionately started calling her my tasmanian devil. just yesterday during school, i turned to find her gnawing on a piece of chalk she had pulled from the chalkboard. she's into everything and really fast. all of my whispering in her ear about not becoming a 'crazy' has not worked!

and just like that things have changed. that is the thing about parenting, its never constant, just when you get comfortable, you move to the next phase. a friend gave me a magnet for my birthday a few years ago it said, 'don't worry, the first 40 years of parenting are the hardest.' i laughed when i read it, but i'm starting to think it's the truth!

i make no promises

i did it.

have you seen me?

i swore i never would, it turned into pride that i wasn't.

but i just joined facebook.

here are my reasons.

i don't have time to talk much on the phone. i really don't have time to even email much anymore. and i have people all over the country. and that circle just keeps widening.

i do have the blog, and you keep up with my life. but i can't keep up with yours.

and so i did it.

i don't know how to use it, i don't understand it. but if you can find me...i would love to be your friend. (i can't believe i just said that!)

ID 2

well, it's official. i'm a home schooling mom. remember the classical school isaiah is at is a hybrid. so isaiah has his teacher at school two days a week and she send lesson plans home for me to teach 3 days a week. the anxiety of him going to school subsided yesterday afternoon, but as the evening approached i realized today was going to be an even bigger day. at least for me.
but instructional day 2 (ID 2) was a success. we had a fantastic time.


alaythia was SO into doing school also. i had several worksheets for her to do, but she mostly just wanted to join in with us. and she did. isaiah worked hard. he did what i asked and did it well. i'm sure every day won't be like today, but i was so thankful for today. for his hard work and his strong mind.


it was a great day together. and i'm thankful to be doing it. not be thinking about it, wondering how it will go, but to actually be doing it. and i'm thankful to get to be there to teach them, to watch for myself as they work hard and have fun.