Elisa the 6 year old

So my sweet Leesi is six years old. (She has been for about 6 months now… but I just haven't written about it!)

My 6-year-old 

Sweet smile

This is her first-ever selfie :-)

Elisa is my big helper. She loves to help me cook. She loves to play "the cleaning game" to help me clean. She sets the table (at least partly) most nights. And I can count on her to play with Nora and help take care of her in other ways. 

Nora, of course, adores Leesi. They have a very sweet relationship. Leesi still thinks it cute and fun that Nora copies her, and loves it when their clothes match in some way.

Elisa really likes school. She is in half-day Kindergarten. She goes to a bi-lingual school, and Leesi loves learning Spanish. She is an expert reader. I think her Kindergarten tests from a few months back said she was reading at a first grade level, but I don't tell her any of that. We just emphasize the joy of reading, and try to encourage working hard and doing our best at learning. Right now she is really into a series of fairy books. And last month we read Farmer Boy and some of the other Little House books. They are still a little above her reading level, so we read them to her. But it is fun to be into chapter books now. 

She is best buds with Jonathan. When Leesi gets out of school they often reunite with a huge bear hug! It's very sweet. They color, ride bikes, play cars, or come up with secret schemes together in the afternoon. A few weeks ago after running through the sprinkler one warm (but not hot) afternoon, they discovered the dryer vent and huddled under it for awhile. Then they decided to "roast" some banana pops (frozen sliced bananas on toothpicks) that they had made earlier in the day. They called the vent the "air fire." Jonathan informed me afterwards that he didn't like the roasted bananas too much because "they got all squishy and gooey." It's so fun to watch them come up with and carry out their own ideas.

Yum! Nothing like a "roasted" banana!  

Though she is still a little shy, she does quite well at talking to other people now. I think school has helped a lot with that. I also think that watching Jonathan talk to anyone with an ear (or two) has helped. She doesn't want to get left out! 

Leesi is a bit of a planner. She likes finding projects in her magazines and then doing them. She is hesitant to try new things, whether it be a new food or a new experience. She loves being silly and laughs easily. She is very physically affectionate and snuggly. 

She still loves clothes and has very strong opinions about what she likes. Somehow at the beginning of Kindergarten she decided that she only likes wearing dark colored pants, and no jeans. So most days she either wears black, dark blue, or jean leggings along with various skirts, dresses, and shirts.

Elisa Marie, I am so glad to be your Mommy. I love spending time with you and watching you learn and grow every day. I love you!

Jonathan and the Hot Wheel Ramp

Jonathan is obsessed with Hot Wheel ramps right now.

"Where is your favorite place to go?" I asked him today.
"To the place where the mailman lives." He answered.
"The Post Office?"
"Yep."
"What do you like about going to the post office?"
"Because then the mail man might bring out a Hot Wheel ramp for me."

Once he got a Hot Wheel ramp in the mail for his birthday (from Uncle John and Aunt Kristine), and he's never forgotten it. He still holds out hope every time a package comes that it just might be another Hot Wheel ramp.

We have questions on little slips of paper in a jar that we pull out and answer at dinner time each night. Jonathan's answers usually center on Hot Wheel ramps:

Q: "What was the best part of your day?"
A: "Bible Study because I played with a Hot Wheel ramp there (insert a long description of what the ramp looked like and how it worked here)."

Q: "What is the nicest thing a friend has ever done for you?"
A: "Well, the nicest thing you have done for me (cuz you're my friend, Mommy) is give me money. Because then I can save up the money to buy another Hot Wheel ramp."

Q: "If you could have one wish, what would you wish for?"
A: "A Hot Wheel ramp! (Insert description of what it would look like here.)"

And then there was what he told me to write in Grandma's birthday card. Totally cracked me up.

Some thoughts on Moving

We have been in Eugene/Springfield for six months now.

"Welcome to Eugene - Ideal Home and Recreation Area" the welcome sign brags. I know that someday it will be home… but right now the sign mocks me, reminds me that it is not home yet.

Here the homeless are all around, little tent cities set up everywhere. When we first got here, the tent cities were always moving: two days in a field, three days by the highway, a week by the courthouse. Now they have seemingly found stable spots for the cities.

We also have seemingly found a stable spot. Four years in Arkansas, three years in Portland (both times in jobs we knew couldn't be permanent), four months in the rental house, two months in our new house. I love our new house. I feel a little giddy at the thought of my kids growing up here. The thought of growth charts marked in pencil on a doorframe and the kids knowing every crack in the sidewalk. I am glad for the stability. I just wish the house was in Portland.

There's a niggling question: "Will I make friends here?"

I am beginning to find my way around pretty well. But sometimes I unexpectedly find myself lost. New streets jumble in my head, "Broadway that's the same as 7th, right? Oh wait, or is that in Portland?"

Suddenly the two and a half hour drive to my parents has a become a five hour drive. They are wondering when we are coming to visit and I find myself calculating if it's really worth it for just a weekend.

We've found some good new places. Sweet Life, where tons of drool-worthy pastries and desserts beckon from behind the glass case.  They always have a line. Townshend's, a trendy tea shop with over 80 kinds of loose tea (not to mention the bubble tea, kombucha, etc.) It feels like a hip coffee shop but when you leave, your clothes still smell good.

I want to find a new church and get plugged in there. And yet somehow when we do commit to a church it will feel like we have officially turned our backs on First Covenant (our Portland church). The thought of this makes me want to cry.

One morning I wake up with a fear that Ash Wednesday has passed by and I didn't realize it. Will our new church have an Ash Wednesday service? Will they have a Good Friday service?

Perhaps the bigger question is, "Will God reveal Himself to me here? Can I know God and seek God as well here as I did in Portland?"

Someone at the church we are visiting (for the fourth or fifth time) gives me a look because Jonathan is frog-hopping down the hallway. And I am reminded of how much I love First Covenant where people say things like, "I'm so thankful for how free the children are here." as the kids run from "the mouse man."

One week, at a different church, a young family invites us over for lunch. They also have some friends coming, another young couple. All of the men work in Higher Ed. in some way. We have fun conversation and feel a certain kinship with them. We think we might be friends if we went to that church, but secretly Greg and I know we can't go back there.

There are some potential friends around: another mom who brings her kids over for play dates, a couple  of Greg's coworkers who have come over for dinner, some of the moms at MOPs.

But still the question: "Will I really make friends here? Deep friends? Always and forever type friends?"

So we bought a house...

Well, when I wrote the post How God gave me something better than a house, little did I know that in less than two weeks Greg would be offered a new job, and in another month we would be moved to a new town (Eugene), and in less than six months we would have purchased our first house. But, here we are.

As I write this, I'm sitting in the living room of our house, looking out the window at people walking their dogs in the park across the street. Ah, love this view.

A great daydreaming window, and it's low to the ground. Even Nora can see out of it.

We have been officially in the house (as in sleeping here) going on three weeks now, although we got the keys to the house over a month ago. Since Christmas we have been busy working on the house.

Jonathan and Leesi both helped rip the wallpaper off.
Not all of it came off in nice big strips like this. Some of it came off in tiny shreds. 

Jonathan helping Grandpa with the nail gun. 

And working on the house. And working on the house. And working on the house. Oh, and moving and cleaning the other house and watching three kids. So there was a lot to do in just a little bit of time. It was pretty exciting and fun at certain times, overwhelming at others, and most of the time downright exhausting.

Greg had a week off in between Christmas and New Years. And my parents came down and stayed with us for a week and a half to help. (They were life-savers! We couldn't have done it without them; and lots of help from other people too: babysitting by Wanda, moving help from Uncle Rick and McKenzie, meals from Debbie, painting help from Sarah and Stead).

We decided to focus on the main living areas and leave the improvements on the rest of the house for another time.

In the kitchen we ripped out the wallpaper, tore up the flooring (which ended up being quite the job!), and took down the cabinet doors to be repainted. We found that the walls beneath the wallpaper were not in great shape. So we (by which I mean my dad) ended up skim coating the walls, and while he was at it he skim coated the paneling in the eat-in kitchen area so that it would look smooth like drywall too. We put in the new bamboo flooring, painted everywhere, and installed new baseboard. My mom was the super cupboard door painter. Last week I finally finished off the ones she didn't get to, and Greg installed them and a couple new light fixtures, so I figured it was time for some kitchen before and afters!

Eat-in area off of kitchen - before

Eat-in area - after

Kitchen - before (how could you forget?) 

Kitchen - after

Kitchen - after (from the other angle)

There is still a lot to do: many boxes still to unpack, a list of projects, and little finishing details everywhere you look, plus pictures and curtains to be made and hung. But all in all it is starting to feel like our home around here. And it's super fun to know that whatever we do with the space is up to us! We don't have to ask anyone before we paint, we can pick whatever colors we want, we can drill holes in any wall we choose. 

More pictures to come!

Can I help?

I am one of those people who like things to be a certain way. This is not to say that everything has to be my way, but if it's one of my things then it does. For instance, I am not overly bossy toward Greg in general, but when he's in the kitchen I will give him all kinds of unsolicited "advice" about how things are done best. (So helpful, right?)

I've noticed it with my kids too. An often asked question is, "Can I help?" Which you would think would make a mother's heart leap with joy, but usually makes mine sink. I can let them help in certain scenarios, but when it's one of my things, it's really hard to let go of how I want it done and let them participate with me in it.

Take, for instance, Jonathan's birthday party. Now, Jonathan's birthday party was a small affair. It was just us and my parents celebrating at home. The agenda was: eat pizza, eat cake, open gifts, and play pin the dirt on the dump truck/bulldozer. So, in the afternoon before party time I started drawing a dump truck and bulldozer and getting ready to color them in so that they would be ready for the game. The kids saw me and wanted to help… they wanted to color them. Now, mind you, I am doing this FOR Jonathan. It is HIS birthday, HIS party, and he wants to color the bulldozer. But I don't want to let him, because then it won't look as good. And of course, it looking good is more important than my son participating in getting ready for his party. Hmmm… So I let them paint the bulldozer and the dump truck. They loved it. It was really hard for me to let go, and even as they started painting I found myself giving "helpful" little tips. But it turned out to be one of their favorite parts of the day. And I was so glad I let them do it. And honestly, their pictures turned out kind of cute. In fact, I think Elisa's turned out better than if I had done it myself.

I've thought about this as it pertains to God and us. Have you ever thought about the fact that God lets us participate with Him in His work? He lets us work with Him on things that actually matter. He doesn't set things up for us to do just so that we can feel important. (Sometimes I do that with my kids… you know, make special jobs for them, that aren't really that important but will make them feel important). He's not threatened by our mistakes, He's big enough. We poorly represent Him and even misrepresent Him, and yet He's big enough for that too.

"The gushing pleasure of small children as they help their parents comes from the expansion of the child's little self through the immersion in the life of a larger self to which the child is lovingly abandoned." (Dallas Willard)

God's Kingdom (where what He wants done is done) is all around us. In each moment we are either working to further our own kingdom, or His Kingdom. And let me tell you, my own kingdom, when it comes right down to it, is a pretty pitiful little affair. It's all about my comfort, my happiness, my reputation. How much better it is to find myself part of something larger than me.

His Kingdom is here! Right now!
Can I help?

Nora at 15 months

Two things I had sort of forgotten about 15-month-olds:
1) They are so stinkin' cute!
2) They are so stinkin' messy!

Nora is 15 months old and she is on the go. All day, every day she is about her business, doing the serious work of babies: emptying the recycle bin, emptying the cupboards and drawers, pulling books off the bookshelf, drawing on the walls with markers.

But the cuteness makes up for the messes. Don't you think?

She can be quite outgoing. Tonight we went out to eat, and she made friends with the people in the booth directly across from us, both of the booths kitty-corner from us, and the booth on either side of us. Not an easy feat considering the tall booth backs. But she won them over with her smile, her wave, and in one case some vigorous head nodding.

She hadn't liked reading books at all. I was feeling a little panicky, because how can one of MY children not like reading? But she's turned a corner and all of a sudden will bring me books to read to her and object loudly when the book is closed. Her favorites right now are Goodnight Moon; Bedtime Peekaboo; and Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes. 

She packs away the food and is not picky at all. I can usually count on her to eat dinner even when the other kids are turning up their noses at it. Even so, she is still a bit of a peanut, small in both height and weight categories. She's still in her infant car seat (and hating it) while we wait for her to hit that 20 pound mark so she can move up to the next one.

She says a few words. Her first word was "uh-oh."
Now she also says:
Da-da,
Mama (though sometimes I'm not quite sure if she's just saying it or if she knows it refers to me),
head,
nose (this may explain why she likes Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes so much),
she also makes a few animal sounds (moo, meow, woof, and the cutest little roar ever).

She can navigate the few stairs we have around our house. But I wouldn't trust her by herself with a full flight of stairs. She walks (started right at a year) and is somewhat enamored with walking backwards, which I find quite funny at times. She is turning into a climber, which I do not find funny at all.

Right around 4:00 most days she gets extremely fussy (and hungry) and this makes getting dinner ready challenging. But I've gotten good at listening to crying kids, so I can deal with it. :-) Of course, she is probably the loudest of the three, because she has to be to have any chance of attention at all. Ah… the life of the third-born.

She is mostly happy, loves a good adventure, and tries to keep up with the big kids. As you can tell, we're pretty smitten with her.

Jonathan the four-year-old

Here, finally, are Jonathan's four year pictures. He is getting to be quite the big guy. I was just noticing the other day how long his legs seem. He is becoming more adult proportional and less toddler like. 

He is silly and fun-loving. When he gets in his head that something would be fun to do, he has to do it. For instance, in Disneyland he got it in his head that he needed to walk through every turnstile without using his hands to push the turnstile. Now the turnstiles come right up to his neck, so that meant that he would walk pushing the turnstile with his neck until it went around. And if someone pushed it for him (out of the kindness of their hearts, to make it easier for him)… oh man… he was not happy!

He still loves trains and cars and trucks and things that go. He watches to see how everything works. And he can tell you afterwards exactly how many wheels something had, or what color the track was, or if it had gears etc. The other day he told me all about bicycle chains and gears. Sometimes I think he understands how things work better than I do.

He is still great friends with Leesi. They play together so well, and love each other so much. It warms my heart to see it. He is amused by Nora and thinks she's cute and funny. But he doesn't like her interfering with what he is doing.  

He is starting to really get into coloring and writing. He holds his pencil with all different sorts of grips, so that makes it a little challenging for him to have the control he needs. But he still will ask me how to write words and then write all the letters down on his paper (not always in order… but they're all there.)

He talks to anyone and everyone and always has a long story to tell. Often with a preamble leading up to the actual information. "I have something to tell you. Do you know what it is? It is…."

He loves his stuffed doggie, Marshmallow or "Marshy." And often in the morning he will pull all his "comftable stuff" out of his bed: Marshy and several other stuffed animals, his quilt, pillow, and blankies; and then take it all to the couch for snuggle time and reading books. 

Jonathan, you are getting so big. I love seeing you grow and learn each day. Thanks for being such a fun boy.   

Happy Fall!

Halloween Time!

Just some Halloween pictures for the grandparents. This year the big kids both chose out and helped to make their Halloween costumes. Leesi made her own little butterfly antennae, and Jonathan and I worked long and hard on his train (Leesi helped too).  Nora was Tigger, but she just rode around in the stroller. She wasn't feeling well and had been quite needy and cranky all day. Poor baby, she not only had a fever, but also a nasty burn on her lip from the hot glue gun. And yes, I feel terrible about it. 

Jonathan had tons of fun helping paint his train. Leesi and I helped him with the blue, but then he did all the stripes and windows himself. I think it turned out pretty good.

The train was mostly orange and blue, Jonathan's favorite colors. It was number 33… not Thomas! Don't be confused by the Thomas hat. After all, Thomas doesn't have orange stripes!

Cute trick or treaters...

Playing in the Rain