sweet lullaby

I overheard Ella singing a sweet song to God tonight. As I quietly approached her bedside as to not interrupt the sweet lullaby, I heard something like this:

You are real.
You are real.
And you will heal me.
You are big and you are strong.
You made the flowers
and you make me happy.
You are real and I love you.
When I go to heaven
I will be happy to stay with you.
You are my friend
and I love you.

There was such a sweetness in this short moment, that I had to be still and drink it in. I know that God's heart was touched by her worship of Him and my heart overflows because she recognizes His goodness toward her! I pray that she will grow to love him more every day. Ella, you are such a light to me!

pretty great summary + new talent

We've started a new bedtime routine that relies heavily on Daddy since I will be having a newborn in the coming months and won't be able to do as much for the kids before bed. The new routine involves cuddling up in our big bed while Daddy reads a story from the kids' big picture bible and then tucking the kids in for the night. This morning, Simon asked me "Want me readju Bye-boo (Bible), Mamma?" I, of course, agreed and we snuggled up in the bed. He opens the Bible, licks his finger to turn the page and reads, "Dod (God.)" Licks finger, turns page and reads, "More Dod." I giggle and he asks, "Funnnny boy, Mamma?" Licks finger, turns page, "More Dod."

Yup. That's the jist of it. I think he's got a pretty good grasp on the Bible's premise!

In addition, his prayers at dinnertime sound very much the same. He INSISTS on being the one to pray every night and his prayers go like this: "Dod? Jesus? Friends. Ella. Simon. Mom. Dad. Amen."

In further (less holy) news, Simon loves to crack us up with his perfectly timed eye-crossing.

for what ails you

Ella woke up pretty sick this morning...high fever, cough, stomach ache, headache...the whole shebang. I brought her into our bed to cuddle and take her temperature and as I stroked her hair, she croaked, "Mom, if you want to get me some flowers or something to make me feel better, that would be good." I said ok and exchanged a smile with her daddy. A few minutes later, she reiterated the idea in the same strained voice, "Mom, I NEED flowers to heal me."

Precious daughter.

jr. kindergartener

Ella attended her first official day of jr. kindergarten this week. I was somewhat nervous that she wouldn't love it as much as she anticipated. The day before, we had attended a short orientation to meet the teacher (Mrs. Behan) and the other students, and Ella spent the whole time in observation mode. She was very quiet and reserved and seemed pretty unsure of how to approach the new, unfamiliar faces. Especially the boys.

When I walked her to her class the following day for her first offiicial day in school, she acted very much the same. She moved rather slowly and seemed unsure of what the protocol was. Mrs. Behan was ready for parents to get moving so she could carry on with the normalcy of class (I wasn't the only parent lingering, savoring the moment...I was, however, the only one sporting a camera.) As I eased out of the classroom, Ella caught my eye, smiled brightly and waved. It was her way of letting me know she was going to be ok. So I left.

Simon and I picked her up 2-1/2 hours later and she seemed to have grown up! She was very proud of herself and proceeded to tell me all the little details of the things they did. They learned a nursery rhyme about the woman in the shoe who had so many children....you know the rest....and they sang songs and played music. But she said the boys were getting too loud with the instruments and they had to stop playing. Furthermore, she assured me that she "didn't do anything wrong the whole time!" but rather, listened when the teacher read (even though the boys were talking) and she raised her hand whenever she had a question. So funny. I can see she's the teacher's pet already!

This morning, she asked if she could go to school. I love that school is fun when you're five! Let's hope she finds the wonder in it for the next 13 years!

mall mayhem

We might have made a mistake tonight by venturing out to the mall after dinner. It might have just been a tad too late to undertake such a venture, especially to a mall that takes nearly 40 minutes to drive to. But I had a coupon for Children's Place and this particular mall has a Children's Place outlet and we needed some clothes for the kids since they have sprouted considerably since last season. So, we undertook the foolish task despite the late hour and the lack of energy that happens toward the end of the day.

The kids were excited to be out and about...it was a change of pace and they were full, FULL of energy. We split up so that Bryan could take them to the indoor playground while I tackled the shopping. By the time they met me back at the store, Bryan looked pretty worn out. Instead of wearing down, Simon seemed to pick up energy. I noticed this because he was hiding behind the racks of clothes and weaving in and out of displays like a running back. Unfortunately, the check out line was slower than molasses in January so keeping tabs on Simon was incredibly difficult. Bryan finally convinced him to join him to grab a drink from Starbucks, just so we had something else to keep him occupied while the line ceased to move.

Bryan and the kids headed to Starbucks and before he even finished uttering his Frappaccino order, Simon had reached into the cooler, pulled out a chocolate milk, unwrapped the straw and stuck it in the little hole in the box. As Simon began to gulp it down, Bryan told the barista, "I guess we'll take a chocolate milk too."

Poor Dad.

adorable adjectives

In the last twelve hours, I have heard Ella using the cutest adjectives. The first came after our ride home from our friends' house where she and the other kids watched a movie about Tinkerbell.

Ella: Momma, I love the Tinkerbell movie...it's so....MAGICAL!

The second notable quote was after rest time when she had been dressing up her animals.

Ella: Mom! I have to show you my dolls! I made my kangaroo and bunny so FASHIONABLE!

I am so curious where these little tidbits of learning originate!