On Your Very Day

Oh, Baby Girl. 

I blinked and now you're 6. How is that possible? I am not sure. And I am also not sure how it's possible that I love you even more than ever this year. But I do. You, Baby, are just one of my favorite people to be around. Don't get me wrong, you're exhausting. But I simply adore you. 

You still wake up early. Like 5:00 early. No matter what time you go to sleep. It really doesn't matter. I am told at some point you will sleep in and I will have to wake you up. I don't want to rush a single moment with you, but I would be okay if you started sleeping a little later in the morning. 

One of the funniest things about you is your lack of pain tolerance. I can't explain it. Even the idea of a skinned knee can prevent you from participating fully. But that's okay. I love to watch you play soccer, you're a fierce little fighter when you want to be. You would ride your bike for hours if we'd take you out to do so. You like to be on the go. You have really missed Target this past year. (My wallet has not missed taking you to Target, however.) 

You are a little math whiz and I love it. I mean, I fully expected you to be a reader like your brother and me, but since you're right on track, I can adjust my expectations and just celebrate how much you adore numbers so much more than words. I am pretty confident you're rocking kindergarten. 

You are a little artist and I love your creations. Your penmanship is so lovely already. I just feel like I am gushing over you and every single thing you do is my favorite. For the most part... that's true. You are my best girl and I love you forever. 

It's weird how much I miss you during the day. It's completely different than when your brother started kindergarten. I just fretted when he was gone. I am not worried about you at all when you're gone, but I just desperately miss your sweet self. When you climb into the car at the end of the day and I can kiss your cheeks again I feel actual relief. You have the most kissable cheeks on the planet and I just love to smooch them! Especially since you are so not a snuggler. (And that's okay!) 

I am sad that you missed out on the end of preschool. But I will never for one minute be sad I got to hang out with you extra. I have always loved you, for every minute of your existence. I tell you that besides Jesus, I love you the most. But man, this year you just got especially likable. 

You are a good friend and you come alive being around people. Ever the extrovert. You're generally polite and kind. You love to play games. You love Barbies and Trolls and Frozen. (Just not when I sing "Let Me Kiss Your Cheeks!" to the tune of "Just Sing.") You sing loud and proud even if you don't know the words and hearing you belt out songs about how much you love Jesus makes my heart beam. 

You don't like to clean up. You have decided to be a food complainer. (Not actually super picky, just loudly complaining about most meals.) You are not patient. At all. But at least you know that. You push me to be a better person daily. You're just the biggest gift to me. And it's your birthday. 

I love you Baby Girl. I am so glad I am your mom. Happy Happy Birthday Baby! 

Mom

A little before school present action because her brother couldn't wait one minute more to give her what he picked out. 

Friendship!

 Oh man. In the past 24 hours or so I have been reminded of the power of strong friendship. Check in with your friends everyone. Even the ones who seem great. If they're your friend and important to you, send them a little text and let them know you're thinking about them. 

Then this morning I got this awesome email from Walking With Purpose. 

No matter how you feel about the pandemic, checking in with friends is important. You never know who is feeling isolated. 

All The Things

 So this week has had it's ups and downs certainly. One day it was 77 and sunny. Today, it's 54 and sunny. Sounds about right for October doesn't it? 

One thing to be so thankful for is that 2020 really showed up with the beautiful colored trees. We had that cold snap and then it warmed up again, which gave us just gorgeous leaves. I am not often impressed by the trees by us, but you know what? They are nice. 

M loves to look at the leaves too, which is also my favorite. Let's see what else this week has brought to us? 

Each kid got a dollar in the mail from Grandpa!

This little lady really wanted a hula hoop. And my parents thought she should have one. She's pretty good at it actually. 

This guy didn't necessarily want a hula hoop, but he got one anyway. He is still practicing to get the motions down just right. 

We also got Booed! Do they do this in your town around Halloween? This fun bag full of Halloween goodies appeared and now we are going to pass the love on.  

And that brings us to another weekend. It's not supposed to be very nice, unfortunately, but we will certainly make the best of it. October is speeding past faster than I could have anticipated. 

One of the little boys from M's preschool class passed away this week. He has been battling brain cancer for 3 years. And we are all devastated but put our faith in him resting safely with Jesus. 

I started up a Bible study with some friends this week. And I am excited about that. Our parish has also formed Emmaus groups, a program developed at Franciscan. It's small discipleship quads to dig deep over the next year in keeping hope in Christ alive and having a chance for faith community connection. 

Because man do we need Jesus more than ever right now don't we? I am excited to journey with some great women to live my faith as well as I can!

So that's what's going on around these parts. 

Halloween Birthday Party

We could never have imagined when we planned a party that it would be 80 degrees in October! But it was. So while it was definitely a little bit hot and muggy that was okay. (Better than the alternative definitely, though we could have done without the bugs. Minute Pirate Bugs are the worst!) 

To recap: M and her friend both have October birthdays turning 6. We threw a joint party with a Halloween theme to embrace the season. 

Did I watch Frozen II in order to find out how Anna's hair looked on the journey so I could try to replicate it? Yes, I did. And I think it turned out okay. I will get more appropriate ponytail holders for Halloween. 

Preparty Birthday Girls! And here are the big brother Party Helpers!

We started with a Great Pumpkin sticker sheet as everyone arrived. Had a scavenger hunt. A mummy race. 

Took a break for a snack of Halloween goldfish, ghost string cheese, peeled cuties with celery stems so they looked like pumpkins, pumpkin bottled water, and ghostie juices. 

We did a craft, played musical chairs, a pinata, bingo, and had cookies to celebrate the birthday girls. We didn't dare do a cake or cupcakes because we didn't want to get the kid's costumes dirty. 

This gorgeous space is my friend's YARD! Can you even stand it?! So perfect for the weekend. And hosting. And I really just love it too much. 

Because our girls are truly blessed, we asked for donations of food for those who have less. (Instead of gifts.) Look how generous our friends are! I am so grateful for a wonderful community and friends. 

We are so happy we could celebrate our girls well and have just a lot of fun!! 

What's Going On?

 Well, last week went fast! 

And I don't have a whole lot to show for it. 

Life was really normal this past week and that's great. It's a good deal.  It's been so nice to get back to life that other than masks, feels pretty much like before. 

It's been cold here lately but it's going to warm up again this week. I am glad. 

In kid news, M filled up her punch card at school and she got to choose a treasure from the treasure box. It was a BIG deal. And I am so happy for her and her squishy unicorn. 

C is the star of the week this week. I honestly didn't really get a lot of information on what we were supposed to send in today. But he filled the guessing jar with a lot of penguins and brought in some pictures and some things that he likes. (A walrus, Wheel of Fortune Wii game box, Garfield Book, and goggles because he likes to swim.) 

We finished painting the garage yesterday. Well... I finished everything I am going to help with. My friend ran out of paint so she needs to get some more to finish the trim. We used every last drop but the spots that still need paint aren't a big deal. (Because it's the inside of a garage. So... it's doesn't actually matter.)

Another friend of mine and I are co-hosting a Halloween/Birthday party for our girls. They both have October birthdays and would invite the same kids to their party anyway. Plus, no matter how we swing it, Halloween will look different. So we are having a little party. I made these goodie bags for all the kids. Just mini tote bags that were personalized with puffy paint. 

And that's basically what's going on here. 

I Painted A Garage Wall

 Hello Friends! Happy Tuesday! (And National Coffee Day I hear.) 

Have I mentioned that one of the pandemic changes brought into my life is a taste for coffee? I never had one before. But here I am. A coffee drinker. Still not every day, but I have a coffee maker on my counter! 

Anyway, we had a good weekend. Saturday was the funeral for Husband's friend. Husband was a pallbearer and it was honestly just the most beautiful funeral. I think it speaks to the testament of this man's life that he had a celebrant and 3 concelebrating priests. 

His widow spoke towards the end (she was also the lector!!) and said the most beautiful words. They are just so faithful as a family. I am summarizing here but it was something like: "If you are inclined to question God's love because he took K at such a young age, you need only to look at his Facebook page. Reading the tributes of his students and friends, and seeing the good he was able to do with his life, that was only because of God's love and K's ability to pour that love out into others the way Jesus wanted him to. I know that K is exactly where God wants him." 

We had a fabulous friend bring the kids to M's soccer game and then back to her house during that time. 

Sunday I went over to my friend's house. We were just going to sit in her garage and chat. (It was raining so we needed a roof.) And she mentioned that she was going to paint her garage and bought the paint in April but still hadn't gotten around to it. So I said, well heck, I've got some time before dinner, let's paint at least one wall. So we did. 

We ripped out a board with hooks on it, we painted that wall behind me and the little bit she's doing in this picture. Next weekend we are going to move all the stuff from the other side of the garage over and paint the rest. 

It was nice to feel like I helped a friend. In everything lately, I feel like while I can talk to people, and deliver meals to those who have shoulder surgery and new babies, I don't feel like I have really helped anyone. So it was refreshing to do that. 

And now our week has started back up. Yay! Have a good one! 

Are You Listening?

 Hey Friends! It's Wednesday! Which is crazy, this week is speeding by already. 

Anyway, my question for you is are you listening to Abiding Together? 

It's funny really, since podcasts are basically old school radio shows. (The more things change, the more they stay the same right?) And pretty much everyone I know in real life listens to this already. But it's so beautiful and nearly every episode they say something that either takes my breath away or is something I really needed to hear. 

This week's episode was especially great! 

Abidiing Together is a place for women (though I know plenty of men you listen from time to time) to find rest, encouragement and connection with Jesus and friends. At the end of each episode they ask people to tell a friend. So, friends, if you aren't already listening to Abiding Together, give it a try. 

I listen on my Alexa. But you can even listen online if that's easier for you. 

If you like it, there are a lot of back episodes you can go and listen to! Give it a try!