Kindergarten Heartbreaker

Lulu's embarrassed, but secretly loving the adoration, face!

Lulu was cracking me up a few minutes ago. She was telling me about a boy at school who is in love with her! She assures me, however, that she does NOT love him back!! She said "Mom, this boy in my class follows me all around and calls me kind of adult names that I do not think are very appropriate!" (You should hear the conversation in her little voice!) My mind racing, I asked her what kind of names she was talking about? I am thinking to myself, is some Kindergartner calling my kid sexy or something?! (We say that is an "adult" word in our house.) She refused to spill the beans, so I asked her "Lulu, does he call you Sweetheart?" She nodded emphatically and then said "Gross Mom! I can't even talk about it!" Laughing I said "Does he call you Sugar and Snookums and Pumpkin Noodle?" She made a face and said "Stop Mom, he calls me all those names and I try to run away from him because I do NOT even like him!" I told her she doesn't have to like him, but not to break his heart and remember to be nice. She looked at me and threw her hand on her hip and said "Well Mom, it's just that I am a little picky, okay?!" This child cracks me up!

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Every Sunday on the way home from church Lauryn begs me to let her out of the van at the front of the neighborhood so she can run home. I just love that kid!!

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Lulu woke up early all on her own this morning because she wanted to make her Momma breakfast in bed! I swear I have the best kids in the world!! I just love that Little Woman!!

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I love this picture so much! Luey kickin' it with her buddies, Buddy Max and Lincoln, on the curb watching videos! Three, little, blondie heads huddled together!

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I pretty much carry a water bottle with me all the time. Water is one of my favorite things to drink. So when my friend Jaime bought me this cool water bottle for my birthday I was so excited! We were unloading out of the car tonight after going out to dinner as a family and Lauryn grabbed my water bottle for me. Justin asked her what she had and she replied in her little voice...

 "Oh, dis is Mom's weed jar." 

Confused, he said "Huh?" 

"Ha weed jar. It's ha weed jar, Dad."

Even more confused Justin asked her to enunciate a little more.

"Ha 'wheat' jar, Dad!"

Justin heaved a sigh of relief knowing his wife doesn't have a secret habit hitting the Mary Jane. But we're still confused as to why she thinks it's a wheat jar? The only thing we could think of was that the yellow design on it looks like wheat stalks?! Weird and yet totally hilarious! Hopefully, she doesn't tell her teachers at school her mom has a "weed jar"!

It reminded me of the time my old boss, Dr. Taylor, told me his son told his granddad that his dad had "cocaine" locked up in a cabinet in the basement and that he wasn't allowed to go near it. What was really locked up and off-limits was tanks of propane!

I tell ya, kids say the darndest things!

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Brynna and Lauryn waiting for Miss Kathleen to take them to another day of learning!

On Monday and Wednesday mornings, my friend Kathleen takes the girls to school for me so that I can spend some time with Devyn getting her up and going with her day. The other days of the week, I take Kat's kids to school with us. It works out so nicely and makes me grateful that the village I have helping me in my journey raising children is such a good one!

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Lulu told me that she wanted to use the Sonicare tonight to brush her teeth. She explained that because she is now a big girl who is in Kindergarten, she therefore needs a big girl toothbrush. I just love that kid!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 209

 

Standing in the kitchen, slicing cucumbers fresh from my sweet neighbor's garden, enjoying the citrus smell soaking into my skin as I squeezed juice from lemons and being strangely reminded of dyeing Easter eggs as I measured vinegar. Dashes of salt, pinches of sugar. Relaxing as the sounds of Ben Howard's "Old Pine" filtered through the computer speakers, transporting me to another place. Anticipating the summery char on the grilled chicken and refreshing cucumber salad for dinner. Enjoying the idea that all of my family, after a long month of fragmented togetherness, were all under one roof. Lulu wandered into the kitchen and I picked her up and we slow danced as I told her how I was so sure that God had made her just right.

I live for these moments.

Just minutes later cacophony broke out in the living room and the moment passed. Everyone was sent to their rooms for some "alone time". As I came back downstairs from making sure everyone made it to their rooms without killing each other, I took in what was before me. The house that I had spent four and a half hours cleaning the day before had been completely destroyed. After I recovered from the initial annoyance of my peace and hard work being disturbed, I mentally shrugged it off and decided to not let it negate the goodness I had just experienced. 

That's just the way life is.

If we never had those moments where we had to mentally, physically, emotionally or spiritually push through, we would never fully understand or appreciate the good that does come into our lives. I had a moment of gratitude for those experiences I have had in my life. Ones that lifted and strengthened me and also the ones that have crushed my heart and soul. Because they have all given me perspective, which I have decided is one of life's most precious gifts.

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I just love this face and I just love this kid!

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Today we went to the school store to buy Lauryn her new school uniforms! She was so excited! I can hardly believe she is going to be a Kindergartner!!

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 Let's be honest, there is nothing sweeter, but babies are so much work! I loved when my girls were little, but am also loving their new phases of independence. However, today at church I was able to take turns holding each of the Markham twins, Charlotte and Lydia, while their momma helped fill in as our music leader in Primary. It was so fun soaking in sweet babyness! But was even more fun was watching Lauryn LOVING playing with them and being so sweet with the little bright-eyed beauties! It reminded me that she'll never have that phase where she remembers having a baby in the house, now that Devyn is a fully functioning partner in crime. I guess we will just have to sneak in more Charlotte and Lydia time when we can to get our fix!

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My kids could be responsible for clearing whole rainforests with their paper use. But I must admit, I do love all the pictures they draw and love notes they write! I wish I could keep them all!

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Brynna and Lauryn haven't always had the rosiest past together. Out of all our kids, it seemed like most of the tiffs that erupted, were between these two. So it has been really heartwarming to watch them develop a real friendship this summer. They beg every night to "have a sleepover" and it just made my heart squeeze tonight to see that they have turned a corner in their relationship with each other.

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I adore this girl, who is FIVE years old today!! I can hardly believe how time has flown, how much Lauryn has grown up, what a crack-up she is and how her spunk keeps me on my toes. She is truly a one in a million kid and I am so grateful she is mine! I can't imagine life without her smile in it and I am so very thankful that on this day she came into this world and into our family. The Young Crew would not be complete without our Luey Belle!!

Project 365 {2013} - Day 162

I was pretty impressed with the giraffe Lauryn drew for me tonight as we were doodling together!

Devy & Lu

I love what good little buddies Devyn and Lauryn are becoming. Lulu just got in trouble for lying to me about eating her lunch and was sent to the corner for time out. Devy, who hadn't done anything wrong, hung her head and followed her sister to the corner. I told her to shoo, that Luey needed to do her time alone. But every time I turned around they were sitting there giggling together. Finally I said "Both of you need to go take a nap." To which they happily complied and scooted up the stairs together. I am not kidding myself. I am quite sure when I go check on them they will not be sleeping. But the fact they were eager to go take a nap, if it meant being together, pulled on my heartstrings.

Bath Buddies

 Lauryn and Devyn being bath buddies!

Monday, Mondays....I started working one or two days a week back at Dr. Taylor's office about a month ago. I started with Dr. Taylor, who is a pediatric dentist who also does orthodontics, when Justin and I first moved to Georgia back in 2000. When Maryn was born in 2003, as much as I loved everyone there, I quit to stay at home with her. Now nine years and three more babies later I am back! It's been a nice, little outlet for me and keeps my brain cells firing. But waking up at 5:00 a.m. and not getting home until about 6:45 p.m. on Mondays makes for a long day.

So I was grateful to be able to come home and give my Littles their bath before bed tonight and watch them play. It's so strange, it doesn't seem like that long ago that it was Maryn and Brynna singing and playing in the tub. Now they can run their long-legged selves to the shower and do their own thing. But my Littles, they still love a good hair-washing from Momma and relished giggling as they saw how ticked off they could get me with their splashing. I am ready to freeze these two. Because if the passage of time with their sisters has taught me anything, it's that these little, squeezable years fly by way too quickly.

Wacky Wednesday

I know I am a little late to the game, but Lauryn had 'Wacky Wednesday' last week at this time and I must say, she certainly was looking quite wacky! Love that kid! She is too fun!