Inescapable

When we visit family, there is something that is totally and completely inescapable -

Grandparents, loving, spoiling and a bit of teasing you!

 Great Grandpa Ryan was recovering in the hospital the day we took pictures. In October he will become one of the few triple digit fellows around! 100!

Great Grandpa Ludeking had gone to the boat with a friend when we stopped by and Kjetil was taking a much needed nap.

These kids are so incredibly lucky to have the grandparents that they do, that it tears me up to live 3 days away.  I know each of the 6 grandmas would like to have them around a bit more for cookies and milk and the grandpas have their stories and fishing to treat them to.  We cram in as much as we can, and truly their love is inescapable while we are visiting or when we are 3 days away.

Springs

If you can find a cool water spring in the heat of summer, life is all good!

 Spring at the fish hatchery

 Dunning's Spring

 At the top!  The water is cold! This spring is connected to ice cave.

 Peek a boo

Hope you are having an adventure packed summer and staying cool!

Fish

 Fishing at Grandpa's pond

 The tall grass tickled!

 The art of catching fish first requires the perfect worm

He was the first one to catch a fish this day!

 Another fish caught!

I caught the fence, thanks Grandma for unhooking it for me.

Sweetness waiting patiently, but was not successful this day.

We all had fun at:

 Feeding the trout

They made a big splash!

Three Monkeys

 He climbs

 And Climbs

 And Climbs!

 When he's not climbing, he is making a mess.

This is sunblock.  One may not realize how many and how small and deep golf bags are, until attempting to clean greasy sunblock out of each and every one.

Earlier this day, he squirted toothpaste all over the carpet.  

Life would be less messy and a whole lot more boring with out him!

Two Monkey

 She swings High

 She swings in circles

She is happy when she is busy swinging!

The summer of. . . .

Books!

CJ really got into the summer reading program this year.  Getting credit for reading to her siblings was exciting for her, and so was being an independent reader!  I got a few books that would support her in learning the short and long vowel sounds along with the constants and blends.  This week is the last week to get credit for her reading time and one big prize left to go!

Sweetness and Kjetil enjoy being quiet and reading to themselves.  Sweetness will "read" the story to Kjetil who sits captivated. Especially if it is a book about trains.  Both are often the students when they play school together while CJ teaches them and reads to them.  Tag readers are also popular at our house.

Even I was able to get some reading done. In fact, I read 5 books in the past seven weeks.   I mentioned a couple of them before.  Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen was an excellent book.  I will not put the movie on my list.

The last two books I read were non fiction.  They challenged me, encouraged me, and made me question.  All of those are good things.  When our concepts are pushed, and we look at things from a new perspective, we grow and that is important. One of the many wonderful things about reading!

Heaven is for Real by Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent.
Have a tissue box ready, it is a gripping emotional journey, even if by the fact that this book is written, you know the ending.  Well at least part of the ending.  I'll even give you a clue. Colton at age 4 ended up getting very sick. His life was threatened, more than once during this illness.  He survives, and in bits and pieces shares with his parents what happened during his first surgery.  Another spoiler, he got to meet Jesus, he really did, and a few other notables, but I'm not giving it all away!

The imagery that this little boy described in four year old terms is amazing. And supports descriptions found in the Bible. Also, and this leads to the next book, through his experience, any preconceived ideas one may have about heaven are challenged and we are shown that God has a really big plan, our ideas of time do not pertain to heaven, and God's unconditional love is just that and we are loved beyond our own imaginations!

So what was the last book? One that was sparking controversy before it was even released. Love Wins, by Rob Bell.  Before I read it, I had been digging into my Bible a little bit more, for various reasons. Something that really struck me was how Jesus at every opportunity to judge or condemn instead responded with grace, mercy, compassion and LOVE.  The book is written in a conversation type of style. Bell asks lots of questions and they require you to consider them. So this was not a quick read as I had expected it to be.  Many of the questions are ones that people have a hard time asking or have been told, not to ask.

However, look at Jesus' ministry, he responded most often to questions, with another question.  With the ideas and questions that Bell presented, I did not feel as if he was saying we must suddenly believe in the (sometimes) radical ideas he was presenting. Much more of a philosophical, what if, what about this or what about that approach.

It was encouraging to read a book that doesn't shy away from tough topics. And at the same time, Bell left these topics open ended, with questions so that each reader might look within themselves and pray with God and grow spiritually. To read this after reading Heaven is for Real, I found my self often thinking about what the little boy saw and what the Bible says about Heaven and what Bell has discussed about Heaven and Hell, reaffirmed to me that God is really big, God really does unconditionally love us and that sets us free.  Free to make our own choices, free to live in Hell -on earth or not, or to choose to live in Heaven -which can also be found on earth as well as someplace else.

Returning to the Bible, over and over God gives us another chance. Jesus indicates that redemption is always an option.  While it is nice to put things into our (small) frame of reference, God has a much bigger picture, and that is exciting. I want to be a part of that bigger picture, and from what the Bible tells me, Love Wins!

Can it really be?

Can today really be today?

The past seven weeks have flown by!  It has been jam packed with adventures and I still have hundreds, yes hundreds of pictures to sort through, but those will wait.

Because today is here!

And today, really yesterday, marks lots of changes for our household!

We have torn apart and re configured the kids' rooms and the living room.

Yesterday's projects

We have set out a week's worth of outfits, shopped, and prepared snacks. Oh the snacks, my mind goes numb thinking about snacks 2-3 times a day per child!

A new, early morning routine. The demand for a return to a consistent bed time.

Beginning today, I no longer have a little girl shadowing me around everywhere, constantly narrating the day, asking never ending, impossible to answer questions and directly underfoot "because she wants to learn everything I know so she can be a good mommy."  Really, when I ask for 6 inches of space, that is the guilt laden answer she gives me.

Today marks independence between Sweetness and her little adoring brother. Who will he fight with? Who will dress him up in pretty pink dresses? When will my helper and stove top cleaner be my sidekick have time to do those things with me?

Today is the first day of school!

The first day of First Grade, which means "all day" around here. She starts at 7:45 and because she is insisting on walking with the neighborhood kids, leaving the house at 7:00AM. A little early bird anyways, to day she got up at 5:15AM on her own, I think tomorrow may be a different story, but we shall see. She will also walk home, which means currently while it is still well over 100 degrees. Due to the heat, for now, on Mondays and Wednesdays she will get a ride with a friend of hers and I'll pick her up about 2:45.  She has a wonderful teacher and we are all excited to see what is in store for her this year.

Sweetness is starting preschool.  She will go four days a week, 11:30-2:30 which is why CJ is walking home from school most days, since I haven't figured out how to physically be in two different places at the same time yet.  However, with that cool 3-D copier out there, we may be getting close for mommies to do this.  She has the same teacher CJ did and I know she will have a marvelous time and blossom right before my eyes.

*sniff-sniff*

I'm okay, really.

Here are some positives.
1.  I know they are equipped for this new phase each are entering. 
2.  I get some special one on one time with the little guy.
3.  In theory, the house could stay a bit more picked up with 2 less people here full time.
4.  I might get to eat lunch again.
5.  Schedules and routines are wonderful things.

I am sure there are others, but I got to 5, it's been a big day around here, give me a break!

CJ is continuing with Gymnastics, five hours a week. I would say it is too much for a little girl, however, here is the amazing thing. On Mondays, when she is there going strong for 3 hours (they take a snack break -that I send, oh the snacks are everywhere!) she comes home filled, happy, exuberant, and can't wait to return. On Wednesdays when she is there for only 2 hours she comes home, happy, and still bouncing off the walls with tons of energy, but not the same excitement, not the same contentment.  Based on this unscientific observation, if the pocketbook permitted and there was a way, I would put her in gymnastics 5 days a week for 3hrs a day, even if it meant more snacks to prepare.  Not because of super high dreams for her, but so that her soul may be filled, her passion fed, selfishly -so that the agreeable, go getting six year old is who I deal with the rest of the night.  We will keep it to twice a week and piano lessons on Tuesdays after school.  That leaves time for family, homework, and balance in her life.

Sweetness is on the edge. She is ready to be a "big" girl, yet struggles with wanting to be little with the perks of getting carried in from the car, or mom putting her shoes on.  She has such patience with her brother, teaching him how to say new words, watching out for him, and helping him get into things he can't reach.  She has shown that reading is not too far away for her, and don't let her quiet ways fool you, she is quick, with her wit and problem solving.  She is enjoying gymnastics and at this point will continue with it.  Every week she looks forward to church and Sunday School and is eager to begin her own piano lessons. Not quite yet.  This weekend she moved up to a bigger bike, as her long legs were too long for her bike any more.

Sigh, where did the time go?  What about the boredom of summer, did we miss it?

During the summer Kjetil transitioned to a big boy bed.  He is doing great with potty training. He does not have the same interest in it as the girls did, so it is taking a bit longer, but he is preferring underwear to diapers and getting his timing down better. YAHOO!! He would like to give up nap time, and I suspect that if I took away the pacifier, the naps would be gone as well.  Therefore, he get to keep that a bit longer.  He will charm you with his dimples. Maintains his obsessions with trains, monkeys, trains, dirt, trains, construction sights, and trains.

Saying goodbye and have fun

I have lots of adventures to share. I also have lots of pictures to sort through.  I have 2 more monkeys to write about, so that will come first.  I hope CJ gets a lot of time and paper to write about her summer vacation, I know I will need that just to make a list (*post) or two or three!