Cue the Cute

This is my cute husband, being cute, and singing a cute song with all the cute kids at the cute pre-school that I work at.

Be prepared. It's cute.

Life Long Love

                                        

This is the book we've been reading at bedtime lately. Isaac almost has it memorized. I think he has good taste in literature.

Because this was one of my favorites when I was close to his age. This was my book. My mom is not much of a sentimental hoarder. But she kept a set of books from a Dr. Seuss book club that she enrolled me in when I was a wee toddler. And now I get to share them with Isaac. I love that she wrote dates in some of the books. And I love that I have a little book lover in the making.

 Another book in our rotation is this one:

I distinctly remember reading it in Mrs. Littleton's first grade class. And here I am reading it to my kids. Isaac has this one memorized. We own it in both hardback and board book editions. Isaac has the hard back in his room for bedtime use, and Hope chases us around with the board book, hopping in our laps at every opportunity so that she can point out the animals on each page and make the sounds. Isaac sometimes will "read" it to Hope, which melts my heart.

There is a page where the text reads: "Children, children, what do you see?"

Isaac "reads" it this way, "Chrildren, chrildren, what do YOU see?"

It's stinkin adorable.

My teacher heart hopes and prays that I am raising literature lovers. My mommy heart is so so SO grateful that I had a mother and great teachers who valued literacy and provided opportunities for me to enjoy books and reading. It truly is a life long love of mine, and I hope it will be for my kiddos too.

Thank You for Taking Care of Mary

During bedtime prayers last night I took a moment and prayed, as I often do, for Isaac's future wife and Hope's future husband- the people they will marry. When I pray with the kids I try to model a conversation with God, and use simple language. I prayed that God would take care of them and protect them until the appointed time.

I didn't really think he was listening because he was fake snoring in order for Ryland and I to kiss him and "wake" him up. He's three- I'm wordy. Sometimes his attention span doesn't last through my prayers and daddy's too.

Then it was Isaac's turn to pray. We had to kiss him awake, of course. He deviated from his regular script.

He said, "Dear-a Jesus, thank you for taking care of Mary, I thank you so much for my mom, my dad, my Hopey, and thank you for loving me. Amen."

His daddy and I were a little confused. I asked him who Mary was. My assumption was Mary, the mother of Jesus- I thought maybe they had talked about her in pre-school.

He said, "a girl, I'm going to marry her and take care of her."

My heart simultaneously bursted and melted. He was listening! And it's stinking adorable that he prayed for his wife. I hope that continues, even if he doesn't fully understand yet.

Then he told me, "Momma, you can sleep in my bed." So sweet, my heart exploded.

Between his silliness and Hope's giggles- I'm a goner.

Even after weeks of cranky sickness, fits, messes, constant chaos, surgeries and just plain HARD moments- I get these sweet little reminders of the gift of my children, and the sweet hope I have for their futures.

I'm a little bit of an over-planning, over-protective, over-analyzing, over-everything momma. I struggle daily, okay hourly, with placing them in God's hands. But the beauty of grace is that they are in his hands whether I choose to place them there or not. I wish it was easier for me to let go and rest in that fact.

As for now- I hope my heart can withstand all the bursting, melting, and exploding that my children cause. I am so grateful for this sweet pre-school season of life. The days are long but the years go fast. May I be conscious and soak it in.

Worms

My kids are a little belly button obsessed this week. They always point them out whenever they are shirtless or bathing.

Today Isaac crawled up in my lap. He asked to see my belly button. If it were anyone else I would be telling a chump to put their dukes up, but for my baby boy, I obliged his weird, yet innocent request.

Bear in mind, my stomach has seen happier days. Flatter days. Days when it wasn't marred by the evidence of two very indulgent pregnancies.

Isaac pointed out my belly button and then touched one of my stretch marks and asked me what it was.

If I were answering honestly, I would have said something along the lines of him and his punk sister ruining my belly and preventing me from ever wearing a two piece again. But I didn't answer honestly.

I told him they were love marks from when he and Hope lived in my tummy as babies. Maybe it was kind of honest. Having those two is worth having a ruined body. I'd not trade a thing.

But Isaac promptly disagreed, telling me matter of factly, "No, I think they're worms."

What do you even say to that?

I just tickled him and laughed and silently vowed never to eat chocolate again.

That vow lasted about 10 minutes.

Judge if you must. But someone has to feed the worms......