Prima Ballerina!

Julia loved her recital today!  She has been taking ballet this semester with her friend Addie and it's been great.  There isn't much she enjoys more than being with a bunch of little girls...the dancing is just a bonus.  Wish I had a camera Friday night for the rehearsal.  Beforehand, her teacher put on the Frozen soundtrack and the parents watched a room full of little pink ballerinas dancing and singing their hearts out to "Let it Go."  So adorable.

I love that her teacher emphasizes character and also that the recital is not a big overdramatic expensive long production.  It was very sweet and the only tense part was trying to get there on time and then me forgetting her shoes!  Here are some pictures from today and I'll try to get movies up soon.

"Smiling" (??) for her pre-recital picture.  You may be able to see her sparkly lip gloss I let her wear, which she was so excited about.

 I know I'm biased, but she is just beautiful!

 Addie and Julia

 Dancing with "my other ballerinas", as Julia calls them, before the show.

 Julia's class dance

 Julia moping over to the other side after one of the little girls "told me to move in a mean way".  I think she was on the wrong side and didn't like being told so one bit.

 Her "solo".  It took forever for her to get across the floor and she looked at her feet the whole time, but hey- she did it!

 Flowers from Nanny and Pa.  She loved them and then told me she was giving them to me and then decided we would share.  She is very sensitive to people getting left out!

 Group pictures at the end.  Somebody's sleepy.

 Miss Cooperative herself.  The teacher gave her the cooperative award, no matter the grumpy face Julia was making as she received it:)

Almost Summer Fun!

We've had lots of fun outings lately and sure are enjoying nice weather, friends, and lots of daylight.  Still 3 more weeks of school, but feels like summer!

1) Tornado warning retreat to the basement turned into a costume dance party

 (Elsa's power to "froze" v. Iron Man's machine gun)

 2) Baseball game- Daddy and Gray time

 3) Picnic with my girls

 4) Baseball game birthday party.  Both boys loved playing in the game in their own ways...Joshua in his "must hit a home run" serious way and Gray in his silly, giggly, "I'm going to be a professional baseball player when I grow up" way.  And Julia LOVED hanging out with one of her best buds, the birthday boy's little sister.  They even held the bat together and made a hit.  But mostly laughed and danced and talked and held hands.

 5) Cookout with folks from church.  Some old friends and some new...with about 20 kids.  Julia did her typical frown at the adults and smile and grab the hand of the little girl closest to her age.  There was a 5 year old and 3 year old and she had the best time hanging out with them.  She is a total social butterfly as long as she's with little girls.  All our kids were so, so happy to be hanging out with a big group of children and I'm really glad we went.

 6) Memorial Day cookout at Nanny and Pa's.  Always great to be with family!!

 Audrey cracking us up as usual...and being sweet to hang out with Julia.

You're worth so much more...

So based on a friend from college's recommendation (Jeannie- Brooke Moody), I bought this kids' cd and we've been listening to it this week.  There is one song about how God cares for the flowers and the birds so we shouldn't worry b/c we're worth so much more to him and he'll take care of us too.  This song was running through my head all day long yesterday and was very encouraging as different worries/complaints/desires came to mind.  As I'm weeding the garden, I keep hearing the song and remembering what Jesus said about sparrows.  Good message to ponder.  Flash forward to 11 pm.  

I had just fallen asleep when I hear Matt and Gray come home from a baseball game.  I wake up to Gray's excited voice that there's a bird in the house and then it comes flying over my head as I cower in fear.  (Really.)  It is a little sparrow.

"Don't you worry about a thing....you don't have petals and wings...you're worth so much more to the God who made everything," goes through my head as I crouch behind the covers.  "Hmm", I think. "God is trying to tell me something?  He has this little birdie in the palm of his hand, caring for it, and he'll care for me too?"

We cannot get this bird out for what seems like an eternity.  We open all the windows and take out the screens.  Matt finds the bird in a corner of my closet and then he jumps back scaring me to death as it flies at his head up to another hideout.  (Meanwhile I'm hiding myself...over in a corner with a full length mirror as my shield.  If you've seen The Office, I'm picturing Meredith and Dwight with the bat incident.)

Finally Matt captures the bird in his jacket.  It's the middle of the night, he's been taking out the contents of my closet, trying to sweet talk the bird, dodging the bird, dealing with his wimp of a wife and so when he finally catches it, he just dumps it out the window, with the highest priority of keeping it from flying back in.

Well the bird did not fly back in.  In went splat on the pavement.  Bye, bye birdie.  We were slightly stunned by this whole incident and I lay awake for quite awhile, coming down from my fear adrenaline I suppose.  My biggest thoughts were, "What it the world would I do if Matt wasn't here?" and "I am so glad we skipped that bird exhibit at the DC zoo where apparently they are so friendly that they land on your head."  and "Hmm, maybe that message I thought was from God wasn't what I imagined it was...because that little birdie went splat."

I can still hear that song in my head.  I guess regardless I can be glad I'm worth more than that bird!

Mother's Day-Mudder's Day-Muh's Day...depending on who you ask

Wanted to share some pictures from our day.  Didn't take any till this afternoon, so no classic "Mom and kids before church" shots, but that's alright.  We had a great breakfast this morning courtesy of Matt and the kids gave me some of their creations from school.

Actually I never got Gray's because he doesn't know where it is, but upon seeing the piggy bank Joshua made for me, he was very intent on making one for me too.  I had to do most of it, but it's the thought that counts!  Joshua's teacher amazed me in that his gift to me was a notebook of self-portraits, one from each month since he's been in school.  That's planning ahead!  Matt got me a new glasses case from 10,000 Villages and I also got a new purse from there last night.

We went to church and I enjoyed holding babies in the nursery.  I'm far enough removed from the baby stage that I like snuggling little ones again, but am also relieved to be able to give them back to their parents!  It was nice to also see a friend at church who moved last year but was back visiting family.

After church we gathered with Matt's family at Stacy's for a delicious lunch with an incredible (and a bit too big) piece of rich chocolate cake for dessert.  Loved it.

This afternoon we had flag football.  The first hour is practice and Julia and I sit on a blanket and pass the time.  She LOVES umbrellas, watching the cheerleaders, and singing/dancing in the field.

 The boys before the game...ready to play!!

 Coach Matt planning the plays.

 Gray as the center.  He had a good run that propelled the team towards a big touchdown!

 Joshua as quarterback...This throw was caught and run in for the touchdown.

 Joshua as center.  Gray playing with his mouthpiece.

 Both boys as the rushers.  They intimidated the quarterback and Joshua had a game-saving flag pull in the last play of the game.

 Pep talk from Coach Matt.  This was our most exciting game to date.  Think there are 4 more left.

Sound bites

(Upon finding a chewed up piece of gum in her closet)
Julia, indignantly:  Someone chewed up this gum and spit it out in my closet!!  That is just gross!!.... (quietly) Oh, that must have been me.  I guess I forgot.

Julia, playing with her baby:  1, 2, 3,.......twenty-eight, twenty-nine, twenty-thirty!  Ready or not, here I come!

A twenty minute argument with Gray in which he insisted that he knows as much as me.  One of his strongest reasons for his position was that he already decided he would think that so he shouldn't change his mind.  The most stubborn child I have ever known.

After the above argument, which ended with Gray being sent to his room for being really rude, Julia said, "Mama, Night-Night still loves Gray, she just wishes he didn't do that."  My thoughts, exactly, Night-Night.

The sounds of disgustedness after smelling the plastic eggs Joshua brought down from his room...that had real eggs inside them, which we dyed almost a month ago. And then Gray says, "Uh, Mama?  I don't know where my egg is.  I think it's in my treasures."  More lovely smells to be found!

Me:  Remember you need to brush your teeth after those gummy fish oils so you don't get a cavity.
Gray:  But I want silver teeth.
Me:  No, you don't want that.  A lot of times with cavities you have to get a shot in your mouth.
Gray:  Oh.  Well can you paint my teeth silver and gold?

The sounds of all three kids having a roaring competition.  Yikes my ears!

After a fight between Joshua and Gray,
Me:  Okay you both need to apologize.
Gray, exasperatedly:  Why do I have to apologize?!  I never do anything wrong!
Well, at least he's not hiding how he really feels.

Then, after Joshua apologized,
Me:  Okay, go ahead Gray.
Gray:  Dear God, Thank you for our food and...oh wait.
Sometimes that boy is just completely in his own world!

Week in Review

Well we've slowly gotten back to normal after the big DC trip.  It was a bit of a change to go back to just us after 4 straight days of being a party of 14!  Most of us came home to normal life- school, tutoring, housework, gardening, etc.  But Matt got to come back to "summer" break and he is thoroughly enjoying having a little freedom.  He finished semester 1 with flying colors and will have to gear up for semester 2 mid-May.  I think the highlight of his break has been kicking booty on the basketball court with Randy last weekend.

We enjoyed one out of the ordinary event on Saturday, as we went to see a local private school's production of Shrek the Musical.  The kids loved it!  Anyone in a skirt was Julia's favorite and they all kept talking about wanting to go back.  Joshua really wanted to get autographs of the characters, but only if I did it for him.

I've been setting out some pepper and tomato plants, cutting the last of the spinach, and watching new flowers bloom.

The irises were transplanted from our old house and before that from Cindy and Barnette's old house and waaay before that from Cindy's grandmother's house in Ohio.

These babies sure know how to take over the place.  I planted a few scraggly ones from Cindy's front yard last year and voila!  There are more than I can count now.

Yesterday Gray and Julia had a check-up.  Both are doing just fine-- average weight, a little short, high BMI (especially Julia, which is hilarious to me since she's tiny).  Julia was very excited about her appointment and was cooperative (though slow and shy) as her vision and hearing were checked.  Joshua watched on the sidelines and talked my ear off and kept giggling at how cute Julia was.  He loves her to pieces and kept trying to kiss her when she was getting a break from the tests.  Of course all the happiness came to an end when the shots were given.  Gray was fine, but Julia got one that really hurts and she was beside herself.  She has brought up the ordeal about every hour since then and keeps reminding me that I should tell the doctor never to give her a shot that hurts again.

As Frozen-fever continues in our house, Julia has been playing Frozen with whoever will cooperate--her little friends, her dolls, and Daddy.  Here she is demonstrating what Elsa "doos when she frozes Prince Hans".  She also frozes us if we let her:)  And she commented this morning, "Fine!  When I'm 18 I'm going to make my real name change to Elsa."  Well, then.

She has been very into spelling things lately (usually that means she tells you one letter of a word).  And she's also had multiple dramatic meltdowns because her dress "isn't even beautiful" or her hair is not the way Rhapsody's hair is.  Is there any way she's getting all that out of her system at 4 and we won't have to deal with it when she's 13?

Gray has been on a seriously sweet kick lately.  Sure, he's always up to his old antics, but he's been finding lots of time to show his love.  I got out of the car the other day and found this on the wall by the garage:

Then today he added this note to our thankful window:

And followed by making this heart for me, which says, "if you don't want this give it to me.":

DC or bust

Well here we are on our 3rd day of the big DC trip and I thought I'd try to record some memories while we have a little downtime.  It's been a good time so far and we have one more half day and then will head home.

What my tired brain can remember so far...

-Walking, walking, and more walking.  Some walks were the whole crew of 14, some just our family of 5.  Some walks were a little tense/cranky, some were happy, some were exhausting, some were beautiful.  Boy did we walk.  Miles and miles.  Everyone on high alert for one of the kids to run in the street.  The boys pushing each other around.  The girls happily chatting. Sometimes I walked with Joshua and he'd talk my ear off and tell me his plans to get sodas into the fridge in his room or get stronger by running more.  Sometimes I'd walk with Gray and he'd complain or argue or tell me "I thought you said..." (something silly always).  Sometimes I'd walk with Julia and she'd cheep-cheep and tell me she is a baby chick.

-The Capitol.  We went to the capitol building our first day here.  We had no idea what we were doing, it took us forever to get there, and the kids were a bit tired and felt like swimming at the hotel would be more fun.  But we got through a movie and tour and it was our first taste of DC on this trip.

-Seeing the monuments.  Kim had assigned all the kids a monument to report to the group on, so in front of the Lincoln Memorial, they all gave their reports, some a little more involved (with props and enthusiasm) than others....uh, Lydia.  Then we walked up to see Lincoln, went around to the Korean War memorial, then over to the WWII memorial, which was my favorite.  It had a big fountain in the middle of a circle of columns with all the states and territories engraved on them.  We walked around there awhile and then searched for "Kilroy was here." which we found thanks to the internet.  Then we walked towards the Smithsonian and got lunch from food trucks, which we ate sitting in the grass.  This was probably the most enjoyable part so far for everyone.

-The metro.  Or the "natro", as Julia sometimes called it.  The kids loved this.  Joshua and Gray liked following where we were on the map.  Joshua and Jackson liked having 'who can stand up the longest without holding the pole' contests.  They all liked seeing the planes take off as we passed the airport.  It took us forever to figure out loading our cards (we became buddies with the lady that works at the station near our hotel) and which line to get on, etc., but overall a cool way to travel.

-Things getting dropped.  Toothbrushes in the toilet.  Lydia's camera about 10 times, usually on hard floor.  Somehow it survived.  Gray's car down the crack in the elevator, never to be seen again.  Lydia's camera in the door of the elevator as it closed, but was recovered just in time.  Julia's night-night on the floor of the restaurant by the metro station, which we didn't realize until we were walking down the street and she asked for it...it was still there.  Don't know how we managed to hold onto that ragged thing this whole trip!

-Arlington National Cemetery.  So many white tombstones!  And another looong walk, but a beautiful morning.  We watched the changing of the guard and the kids were actually quiet and solemn.

-The hotel restaurant.  We always made a scene in the quiet little restaurant downstairs, but the ladies were so nice and friendly and seemed to enjoy us being there, crazy kids and all.

 Below is Julia growling at the bears.  She did a lot of roaring and growling at animals!

-The zoo.  This was a fun outing too.  Everyone had their favorites.  The tiger was definitely Matt's--a mama and two playful cubs.  I loved the big hairy ape that went across a rope 45 feet in the air above us with nothing below to catch him.  Gray liked the sea animals- otters, sea lions, and seals.  Other favs were the panda cub up in the tree, a komodo dragon and the lions.

-The hotel rooms.  The kids thought the hotel setup was awesome.  Little boys and Andrew in a room of their own.  They had their own responsibilities (security guard, remote, etc.) and argued about who was 2nd in command after Andrew.  Little girls and Sophie in a room of their own.  They danced and sang Frozen songs together, helped each other get ready in the morning, snuggled up on the same bed and played Eye Spy.  Julia was in heaven.  The hotel pool was also a huge highlight for them.

Well, that about covers it.  We're doing one more museum tomorrow and then back to reality.  We have all slept soundly but I have a feeling Tuesday morning the kids may be a little shell-shocked and cranky.