Families were invited to come join their children for a reading lunch today! They do it a couple of times a year, and we always try to get there. At least Brady or I. Brady is HOME today, which is such a treat, so we decided to do out best to get everyone there.

It. Was. Not. Easy. Lol! Like we aaalmost just called it and just I went. Almost. But we powered through. While Rowan was going to the bathroom and getting dressed, Solly and I hid in the pantry and ate goldfish. He was SO into it, whispering and making faces and laughing with his mouth covered. Eventually, there was a knock on our door. “Housekeeping” called Brady. We were guilty of overstaying, so we checked out quickly and got on the road for the walk to school.

It was pretty cute.

Dekker was let out of class early when his teacher saw us waiting in the hall, so we all sat down and looked through his book of choice – Lego Harry Potter. Laela joined us shortly thereafter, bearing Pet the Cat and a lunch of her own. I snagged one of the little boys onto my lap, Brady held Wavy, and I read a book to the fam while the big kids ate. When we finished Pete the Cat, Laela ran into her classroom to switch it out for a new book, and brought scoop chairs for everyone 🙂 It was also pretty cute.

As the lunch hour went on, we managed to visit with a few teachers who were slowly doing laps around the school. Laela’s teacher came and asked Laela to introduce her to everyone, and was very complimentary of their names 🙂 We also saw one of Dekker’s teachers from last year and talked about the transition into the new year and new routine. She also mentioned she was at Waskesiu this last summer, so we related on that 🙂 SUCH a beautiful place!

Once books were read and lunches were gone, Laela invited us all to come see her class guinea pigs. We got a little tour of her classroom, and then onto Dekker’s for a little tour as well. But the bell was about to go for recess and our group was breaking down, so we gave hugs and said goodbye. The walk home began a little tearful but we made it!

Everyone is napping, except Brady and I, but we’re eating leftover pizza, which is almost as good as napping 😉 Was a lovely way to break up the day!

Today was the second day of preschool, but my first day to be the parent helper. I felt a little out of my element, as its been a little bit since Laela was in preschool and I was regularly helping out. This meant a whole new group of kids to learn, plus new songs, and working everyone into a system they might be new to. Some kids went to the younger preschool class last year, but at least Rowan for sure is a first timer. So he’s learning the order of operation.

Its a noticeably smaller group than Laela’s group, and its definitely boy-heavy. Very different from Laela’s year! But they’re super cute, and all at totally different levels. I truly enjoyed just sitting on the floor with them, building game boards of games we didn’t know how to play, and discussing what animals may or may not like to eat. It was so simple.

Rowan didn’t need me much at all! He played so well with others. I loved listening to him speak to his friends, include them in his games, and work to remember their names so he could call them by the right name. He cleaned up without fuss and followed directions pretty well. The only time he gets upset, of all times, is at music. And here’s the thing. I think he gets upset because he knows Laela never really participated in the songs at preschool! She was quite reserved through her year at preschool, and she was always happy there, but never sang or did actions or danced along. So once the songs started today, Rowan hid behind me, stuck his face into my buttcrack and started whining that he was shy. The novelty of that wore off quick. I told him he was welcome to stand beside me and hold my hand, but he couldn’t be behind me, whining into my butt. I literally had to pull him out beside me while he whined in his baby voice, “I syyy! I syyy!” The thing is HE’S NOT! He wasn’t crying or actually upset. I even saw a smirk once. He was just messing around in kind of an inappropriate way. I hope he gives in and just joins everyone soon. He LOVES singing and dancing! He’s missing out!

Once the vast majority of the morning was done, we got the kids all ready and hauled them outside for a few minutes of play. The kids ran and played happily until eventually moms started collecting their offspring and packing them up to take them home. I ducked out with Rowan too once all had been cleared. As I climbed into my van, one of the preschool kids shouted at me that he really liked my van, lol I told him I liked it, too 🙂

Cute kids. Its gonna be a cute year, and many cute years to come.

Yesterday was a hard day for me, but as I so often say, my people are SOLID people, and I didn’t have to be alone at all. My mom came and spent the morning, as we had previously planned, so I could take Rowan to his first day of preschool, just the two of us. (Thank you for all the love on that post, friends. It was a really cute milestone day.) We ran a quick errand together with Solly and Waverly, and then I went to pick Ro back up. We finished out the morning while the kids ate lunch, and then Cher joined us with a bunch of leftover pizza for our own lunch! 

The three of us ate lunch once the kids were down, and visited a little before my mom had to head on her way. She was away last weekend and had some catching up to do 🙂 Cher hung out for the afternoon and through the kids coming home from school. Now I’ve said before, that stretch between school getting out, and supper, is the hardest stretch around here. Not the hour before bedtime. The hour(ish) between school and supper. SO difficult. So on a day where I already wasn’t feeling very strong, I was in quite a bit of dread pertaining to that stretch of time. Not to mention, Brady’s day had become a huge mess and he was feeling SO unproductive. He had a goal to finish by the end of the day and it just was not going to happen by his usual cutoff time. So as I said. Dread. Bad attitudes. All me. 

I decided to give them a supper I know they love. A supper that is a total mom fail, but actually isn’t, because its a HUGE kid win. Peanut butter and jam sandwiches. With veggies and a couple of other things, but, pb&j was the star. I had decided to start supper at 4:30, and as you can imagine, got them settled and eating significantly earlier than necessary. Supper was over shortly after 5:00, and I realized we had a FULL two hours of time to nip at each other and get on each other’s nerves. 

So Cher lent a hand and helped me get everyone shoed, water bottled, and out the door. We spent the rest of their evening at the playground. And guys, it was just so awesome. They were SO happy. 

Very shortly after we got there, Brady made it home. He got my text that we were at the playground and made his way over to join us. 

It was such a peaceful evening. The kids played happily. There was no fighting. They even made friends with a little girl who was there with her parents. They mentioned that she was their only child, and when she saw all of our kids on the playground, she had run towards them, saying “My friends!” Our kids took her in immediately, which just thrilled my heart. They would run up the slides, and she couldn’t quite keep up. At one point, Dekker hooked his foot on some bars at the top of the slide, and hung his body down, his arm outstretched, and he encouraged her to keep coming, that he’d help her! I could’ve cried. He was SO sweet. In the end, she did make it up to him and grab his hand, but his foot slipped and they both rode down the slide, haha! No one got hurt or squished, he was in total control 🙂 A big smile plastered on his face the entire time. I love seeing that side of him. He is SO good with kids. 

My favourite was when the kids hit the saucer swings. They went a couple of times, but the best one was when Rowan and the new little girl wanted to ride together, and Dekker was going to swing it for them. Dekker LOVES the saucer swings, and can make them go super high. I kind of started to suggest he be a bit more careful because of our new friend, and he nodded right away and said he knew, and he would. And he did! He rocked the swing, and Rowan and the little girl were full of smiles. He had his arm around her, holding onto the edge and keeping her steady. Hair was everywhere, blowing like crazy in the wind. He was trying to brush it from his face, and then reached over and tried to get her hair out of her eyes, too. Man, it was SO cute! 

I could tell at one point, the little girls parents were going over to collect her. It was right when I called to the kids that they had ten more minutes to play before we were going to go. The little family looked at each other and it seemed they decided to stay a little longer 😉 So they ran from the swings to the play structure and back again. They ran the merry go round in circles and slid and slid and slid. It was just so awesome to see everyone so happy. 

When the time came, so did the beginnings of some rain, so we made our way home. The kids happily played all the way home, as though everything were completely normal with the world. 

And I admit, I was puffed with pride. I am SO grateful for my children, being exactly who they are! Thank you, Lord, for training my kids to be so loving and accepting and approachable! All glory to God!

We’re there, folks! Kid #3 is off to school! Preschool counts as school, right? Sure does to me! He was really excited 🙂

I pep-talked him as we drove and reminded him that he needed to listen to his teacher and share with his friends and all that good stuff. He completely understood, and couldn’t get in there fast enough!

He had a hang-up moment when it came time to put on his indoor shoes. He did NOT want to wear shoes inside. I explained to him that it helps against stubbed or stepped on toes, and that sometimes he might even play in the gym, where he’d for sure need shoes. He was still pretty hesitant, but as kids started coming in and playing, he realized he needed shoes before he could make any next move. So he put them on and remembered that he really likes his indoor shoes. Win! He hung his name up on the wall and off he went.

Two hours later, he was ready for pickup! He was happy, full of stories, and even had a campfire craft to show off. It was a definite win. He loves his teacher, which helps a lot with those first-timer nerves.

Is it just me or does he look way older, all of a sudden?

This morning was smoother than usual, I’m happy to say! And truthfully, I didn’t anticipate it would be. It kicked off with me jolting awake from a horrible nightmare where one of the kids and I were in real danger. I immediately sat up in order to wake myself up, but it was earlier than I’d normally get up. So I was a bit sleepy, but sleepy beats nightmares any day.

I got up on time and got the kids up for school. The big ones got dressed and they collectively set the table. It was pretty normal at that point. They prayed and started eating.

And somehow – I don’t know how – they finished WAY sooner than normal! Most pointedly, Laela finished WAY sooner than usual. She is such a slow eater, especially at breakfast. We’re in that boat where I have to basically nip her heels from beginning of breakfast until she’s out the door. That girl has nothing but time, except that she really doesn’t. I know it, and she knows it, but clearly I’m far more concerned than she is. But today, she was ON it. She was the first done breakfast. She asked to leave the table, put her dishes away, and went to brush up in the bathroom. I helped her with her hair, and she loaded her lunch into her backpack and had it in the entrance. At that point, she had a solid half hour before I’d send them out the door. What a relief! I told her what time she had left, and she lit right up, ran to the little linen closet, and came out with the broom.

“I just see a little mess,” she goes. Now I don’t know about your kids, but my kids are still pretty small, and brooms are hard to coordinate, so I don’t ask them to sweep really ever. If there’s a little mess, we have a hand broom, but she got the big broom, and made a few passes in the kitchen. She cleaned it all up with the dustpan and put everything away. And then she came out with our carpet sweeper. You know those super old fashioned non-electric “vacuums” that are just a stick and a vacuum head that picks stuff up by rolling? Well we have one, and its great for our living room carpet. Laela insisted she wanted to vacuum the carpet. So she did that, and then packed it up, and put it away.

Aaaaand onto the bedrooms! She pulled out our (kinda crappy but light and kid-friendly) vacuum from that same linen closet and confirmed that she could use it. I asked if she was suuure that she wanted to, and she nodded vigorously. So, of course I let her. I’m not going to argue with her when she wants to clean!

She vacuumed here and there in the bedrooms, lol! The whole operation was very much a “spot clean,” but any vacuuming she’s doing is more than I’m doing, clearly! She finished up what she wanted to do and coiled the cord back up nicely before putting it away and closing the closet up for the morning. She still had fifteen minutes to play! I told her again how much time she had and she was super thrilled.

Then she requested if she could always do some chores before she went to school. Um… yes. Yes you can. I can figure that out for you, my girl.

But first we have to figure out what made her actually eat breakfast at a good pace!

Suuuuuper proud of your beautiful work ethic this morning, Laela!

Here we are, friends! Today was the cut-off for our homemade gift exchange! We officially have our numbers! For an event that I didn’t think anyone would actually care about besides me, I am thrilled to say we have a group of 21 participants!! 😄 Twenty-one people who have agreed to the terms I put forth, and who are going to make a gift for someone this upcoming holiday season. Because we ALL agree that homemade gifts are some of the best gifts!

I thought it would be fun to share some homemade gift ideas on here. Whether you’re part of the gift exchange or not, giving a gift is always fun, and sometimes getting creative along the way makes it extra fun! Aaaaand, who says gifts are only for Christmas? They’re not. Like at all! Maybe next time you feel like giving a gift, one of these will come to mind 🙂

There seem to fall into a few categories in my head. Forgive me if I miss any! Add them in the comments, if you’d like!!

Food! There is such an awesome range in food gifts that come to mind. You could make something fresh that you know someone loves, or something that takes a bit of extra fuss than maybe someone is willing to make. What about frozen make-ahead meals? Cookie dough balls to freeze for cookies later on? What about your own spice mixes or marinades? Or those jarred mixes of cookies, cakes, or speciality hot chocolate? Oh, and candy!!! SO many food gifts!

My mind instantly moves to crafts with yarn. Maybe mostly my area of expertise, but not for everyone. It extends pretty far too, though. Knitting, crocheting, embroidery, cross stitch, etc. Sewing is pretty far out of my wheelhouse but I know many who can do that! You could go the route of clothing items to bags to linens to decor. I see a LOT of macrame these days! Maybe jewelry fits in here, too!

More decor! Painting! Drawing! Photography! And thats really just thinking about walls! What about frames? Or ceramics? What about upcycling something you already have?

What about personalizing something for someone? I feel like, if you have one of those cricuts, or silhouettes, you’re golden to customize decor, or dinnerware, or maybe clothing. The world is your oyster!

Guys, there are SO many fun ideas out there. I haven’t even scratched the surface, I know, but I’m really excited for whats to come in this time of gift giving 🙂 Now that we have our final group, I’ll set up for the corny “get to know you” game tomorrow on the group Facebook page. Keep an eye out for it!

🎁

With all of this prematurely cold weather, yesterday’s warm weather caught us off guard. The kids were scratching at the door, so Brady took them for a bike ride. I hung back, as we were expecting company to arrive in the next little while. I have no idea what the rest of the season is going to look like, but if this is the last bike ride of the season, I’m SO thankful we have it on record.

I’m SO grateful for these children, and this husband.

I’m so proud of my three older ones who have aced their two-wheelers so smoothly, and I’m loving the two little ones, hanging out in the trailer, not fighting. These kids know whats up, and I’m so happy to see them happy.

Miss Baby Head over here has found her voice, and let me tell you. She LOVES to scream. Screaming is a HARD part of kids for me. I think some of it comes into play from Dekker being so fearful when he was younger. For one reason or another, he hated baths. Some of you who have been here for the long haul might remember this. Dekker was terrified of baths. We. Tried. Everything. And every single bath, he would scream like he was being skinned alive. It was unreal, and a HUGE source of anxiety for myself, and obviously for him. From there, he went on to have a brutally persistent yeast infection on his bum for the better part of a YEAR. Again, we tried everything. We were at the doctors constantly. It was SO difficult. If you’ve ever had a kid with yeast spots on their bum, you know how painful that is. Dekker survived a lot of pain in that stretch of time. But WOW did he scream. It was a really hard part of my beautiful first little baby boy, and I think it plays a role in my extra-low tolerance for screaming today.

As all babies do, Waverly has found her voice, and she is a big fan. And a loud fan. And while its cute and funny and important and communication and all that good stuff, I haaaaate it!! Gah! Stop screaming, baby!!

Now, when Wavy wakes up, she screams. She doesn’t even cry necessarily, but she screams! No tears, or even frustration necessarily. But SCREAMING!! Does anyone else feel this way with me? I know its just a stage, and at least she’s learning some basic words and communication skills that will soon make her “need” to scream a little less. Don’t tell me I’ll miss it when its gone. I will not. Not this stage. Nope nope nope.

Yesterday, I foolishly had a snack. Who did I think I was? It was just a handful of swiss cheese crackers. As you can imagine, the little Miss stood beside me and screamed blood murder. And like, you have to picture it. She just stood there, totally calm, clear face, screaming at the top of her lungs, as high as she could, staring at my crackers. Conveniently, I had the bottom of the bag in my little bowl, so I gave her the little shreds while I ate the bigger pieces.

But. Try and convince a one year old that the crackers are legitimately gone at the end. Talk to a wall. I said and signed “all done” and knew she’d be ticked for a minute there, but she just stood in front of me, stared at my face, and screamed looooong drawn out screams, over and over, as though I was lying to her. She was not convinced.

And she would not be convinced. There was only reprieve by her siblings entering the room and inviting her to join their game. She spent over an hour in the boys bedroom while they “built forts” (played with blankets) and built duplo. There was MUCH laughter and very few tears. She is SO happy to play with her siblings.

And I am SO happy when she’s not screaming!

I’m quite determined to enjoy winter this year rather than just suffer through it. Remind me of this when I kick and scream about it, ok? 😉

Trust me, I know its not winter yet. Its technically not even fall. Yet, its clear that the warm weather is gone. So I’m a little early on the subject but thats ok, too.

Already on my calendar, in the coming months, I have so many fun things to look forward to. Lots of visits with friends. Leading worship at church. Rowan starting preschool. Getting my hair redone. Taking family pictures. Finally renting a movie I’ve been aching to see since spring. Another coffeehouse gig. Kids club starting. A road trip with a friend. Halloween. The local Christmas marketplace. The gift exchange I’m organizing. A craft retreat. Another coffeehouse gig. The list goes on and on! And that list doesn’t include the non-calendar things like hot chocolate. Mukluks. Knitting and crocheting. Soup. Christmas shopping. Christmas lights and music. Warm air coming through the vents. Hot baths. Fleece kids jammies. Blankets.

All kinds of cozy reasons to love winter, right? I’m weirdly ready for it.