It's a Little Dark

 to be climbing trees lady.

There you are.

Thankful

Abundantly



Math

Spontaneous by the ladies.

And mostly in mirror-speak.

This from their time spent playing office.

A Coke and a Smile

 This may  be their first ever Coke.

 Which made them break out into this.

A Coke and a (synchronized) smile.

Aunt Brian and Aunt Lori's for the Weekend

 French braids for the ladies.

Their heaven.

 And then off to the workbench.

 Noah with a cinnamon roll, of course happiness.

And throwing rocks in the river.

(or at us, by the looks of Ben.)

Perfection.

And apparently no pictures of Jacob?

Just Need a Name

Indie band album cover all ready.

Kid 4: Alida

 Alida my dear.

Christmas dress and Doritto covered fingers taking in the scene.

 When you got hung up on whether you would take this leap or not, Ben showed you the way.

But when you jumped girl, that was all you. 

It took my breath away--partially fear for you and partially awe.

 And then you skipped off like it was nothing.

You are fierce and fearless.  And yet, you are the most at peace child I have.  At home in the company of others or not, you seem to self-balance your chaotic life.  This will serve you well to be able to blend in when you need to and stand out when desired. 

I cannot wait to watch it all unfold.

Kid 3: Elaine

 Elaine

Always close.

 She knew she was supposed to play on the rocks in the water.

You could tell she knew, she just didn't really want to get wet, or fall in, or be very far away.

 So she found a spot close by with lots of opportunity to hold on in the back and in the front.

And space to pause and take a break before the next step.

We had a frank talk this morning that you don't get to smile and ignore.  You believe at the moment that the rules don't apply to you really.  Do you know that  you are the only one that comes home from school with notes from the teacher?  You like to talk too much I hear, and you are developing a bit of a tendency to ignore what's being asked of you. 

I like to think of it as my training for having teenagers.  And I like to think that you and I will teach each other a lot along the way.



Kid 2: Benjamin

 Ben--still eating his sister's lunch for her after I fussed that she had asked for a full sandwhich and not ate it.

He takes me seriously.  He loves to love.  And, yet he is all boy.

 He leads.

Here he stopped Alida and told her to wait while he took the big jump first.

When she got stuck there on that big rock, he came over and asked me how we were going to help her.

When I told him to teach her how, he turned and ran back.

 And he talked her through it.

And when the thunder rolled, and I told him it was time to go, he agreed and ran for the car.

You will charm son, and I will be one of them. 

Kid 1: Nicholas

 We five went to the park over the weekend.

Kid number 1, was off and on the rocks before the rest of us even arrived.

 Independent to a fault, he was always moving or out of picture range.

He assesses, he moves, he looks forward, and he takes in a place all in one motion it seems.

This was right before he dunked himself waist-high in the water.

He was delighted to have discovered how deep the water was. 

When Nicholas and I talk, we talk about how it is okay that we get frustrated with each other because we're so very different.  We talk about why I get so frustrated with his energy and his will because it seems to come at the price of taking in a whole picture or whole group at times.  We are opposite in this way--he goes swiftly, and I tend to hang back and watch. 

Nicholas is adventure, and yet he is capable of careful, focused attention when his heart is there.

He is willful, and I cannot wait to see where this life leads.

More Remakably Odd Eating Behavior

You can apparently buy for your birthday party--marshmallows on a stick, covered in icing, and laced with sprinkles.

And the cupcake cake, which places together cupcakes and then ices them over with frosting for the design like a cake, creates remarkable amounts of frosting on a cupcake.

My children universally turned down the marshmallows.

And then they all requested that the frosting be removed from their cupcakes.

?!

Don't get me wrong here, after they brushed their teeth, I found the bottom half of Nicholas's body sticking out from under his bed where he had his his pinata candy and was shoving as much as he could in his mouth before I arrived.

Sugar particular, I guess.

Boy Scout Campout

 Awe, chosen for the color guard.

 First official BB Gun range.  Also archery, leather printing, beadwork--all in one morning.  Whew.

 Camping out with Dad.

Oh, you apparently have to feed them on an institutional plate to get them to eat.

Battering it and putting it on a stick probably helps.