rule breakers

We had a wonderful evening breaking all the rules. We chucked our bedtime schedule and instead, sat on the porch waiting for the storm to roll in. The breeze was cool and refreshing and the sky filled with gray clouds. The kids caught lightening bugs before the rain began to fall. Then they squealed with delight as it began to pour. Simon grabbed the umbrella but they both got nice and wet jumping in puddles and running up and down the sidewalk. It's summer. It's nice to throw caution to the wind.

rain check

The kids are really into "checking the weather" right now. For Ella, I think it might be an excuse to get on my computer. She'll ask several times a day, "Mom, can I check the weather?" Then she'll click my bookmark (weather.com) and see if there are storm clouds or a bright sun and what the high temperature will be. As soon as she does this, Simon asks if he can check the weather. Then he opens the front door and stands on the front porch. I guess he's more of a "hands on" kind of guy.

citygarden

We love Fridays around here. Friday is what we call "Family Day" since it's Bryan's day off and we keep it pretty sacred to spend quality time enjoying each other. We had a great time today at Citygarden. Mainly, we played in the wading pool where there are amazing stepping stones and a waterfall. There were short visits to the fountains that shoot up out of the ground, but the pool is by far the kids favorite part of the park. I wanted to spend some time shooting artsy pictures of the kids among the sculpture installations, but no one else seemed to want to make time for art. That's ok though. It was still a great time. Ella made friends with another little girl named Ella and Simon looked so forlorn as she left him on the sidelines. That was a little sad, but Bryan dipped in and played with Simon even though he didn't have swim trunks. We ended the visit by splurging on the most amazing drumsticks I've ever eaten! Parked near the garden was a 1950s era firetruck that had been converted into an ice cream truck. And that wasn't even the coolest part...all their products were homemade–freshly squeezed lemonade, homemade ice cream which you could eat in a cup or in an ice cream sandwich. The drumsticks were the best though...they were dipped in chocolate and covered in salty roasted almonds! Wish I coulda had one!!! Fortunately, the kids were generous enough to share their spoils. Good kids and good, clean fun.

trip around the world

The kids went up to the building while Daddy was making a short video for the Jubilee website. Here is the tomfoolery that occurred on the visit:

Ella & Simon's Trip Around the World from bryanmowrey@gmail.com on Vimeo.

elijah and anna

Elijah and Anna had a special date night and saw a show at the Fox. I felt like such a mom taking their photo, like it was their prom or something. I had to post a photo since Elijah doesn't get much coverage here on my blog (he's not really our kid...but he IS part of our family.) They are just too lovely. We all adore them. Anna is seriously one of the kids' absolute favorite people in this world.

They're pretty adorable, right?

water works

Summer has begun. We had our first trip to the Tower Grove fountains. We'll probably go there at least once a week until summer is over. I just love St. Louis and all the wonderful parks!

Also, we visited some friends who live on a lake and had so much fun doing all kinds of water activities. The kids swam, fed fish, had a boat ride and they even reeled in a little blue gill! Ella said she wanted to spend the night for 100 days, but we forgot to pack a bag. :)

charmed

Those big baby blues! Oh that girl just charms me!

She's grabbing her feet now and chewing her toes. She seems like she's doing things so much earlier than her older siblings did. Either that, or the time is passing much more quickly this time around!

These are some seriously yummy cheeks.

And these last too are just too darned cute. I know I'm partial to her, but seriously...she's a charmer.

germ warfare

Today I asked Simon to take a bathroom break. I never quite know if he will be immediately compliant at this request or if it's going to take some convincing. I always expect some push back as he is just plain too busy to stop what he's doing to take care of potty issues. He's definitely not into preventative potty breaks and would rather go when he really means business. Today, however, he obeyed right away, but upon finishing up, he came out of the bathroom showing me both hands.

Simon: "Mommy, I didn't wash my hands." (Nose scrunched.)
Me: "Why not, buddy?"
Simon: "Tuz I don't have germs."
Me: "Yeah you do Simo. You just used the bathroom."
Simon: (Looking at hands) "But I don't see any germs."
Me: "Germs are invisible buddy. It's kind of like magic. You need to go back in and wash them off."
Simon: "Otay."

We heard the water running as he washed his hands. Then he called out, "Mommy! My germs are in the drain!"

letting go

I find the lesson of letting go a difficult one. Really hard. In the whole Meyers Briggs personality test thingy, I'm an ISFJ, or a "Protector/Supporter." I am constantly fighting the urge to protect my kids to a fault. I think I do a decent job of encouraging them in their strengths, supporting and correcting them in their weaknesses and teaching them about serving and engaging others. (I said decent, not perfect!) But when there is a situation where another kid treats them with contempt, ignores or teases them, something grabs a hold of my heart and squeezes with all it's might. And my inner dialogue goes wild...."where do I step in and protect? Is this just part of growing up? Have I made my kids so soft they're going to get ripped apart in the 'real world?'"

I know this is all part of being a mom. I know this is a tension I will deal with till they have kids of their own. They WILL get their feelings hurt. They WILL be rejected. Life can be so cruel, but darnit, if my own heart isn't cruel in being so desperately in love with them! God help me not to break when their hearts get broken...help me to let go. And entrust them to You.

bitten

It may not be June 21st yet, but I believe summer is here. Know why? Because my eldest daughter woke me up at 3 a.m. in tears because her mosquito bites itched. She needed a band aid. And some anti itch spray. And ultimately, some Benadryl. Both kids are covered in the pesky bites, thus beginning the season of the itch.

random thoughts

Tonight's bedtime conversation with Simon was a jumble of random thoughts. I was entertained just lying beside him, listening to him rattle off whatever popped into his mind. I have to admit, I don't often do that as he is more of the active, physical one and Ella is the talker. But Simon is changing and becoming more verbally expressive as he gets older. He went on and on about how he didn't like running in the sprinkler because it makes his hands cold and he didn't want to get his hands dirty either. And somehow, every thought ended up coming back to the movie, "James and the Giant Peach" which he and Ella watched at Aunt Jessica's over the weekend and it left quite an impression. I think it might have been a little scary. But the most notable point of the conversation was when we talked about getting bigger...

Simon: I don't want to get big.

Me: Why not?

Simon: I want to stay little.

Me: But why Simon? Don't you want to grow up and be big like Daddy?

Simon: I don't want my legs to be brote! (broken)

I think he believed that the strain of getting that much bigger might be too much for his bones to handle. Once I explained that if he ate all his healthy food, everything would all grow at the same time and would be strong, he decided he wanted to get bigger after all.

a big holy moment

In the car ride on the way home from Trader Joe's this week (I swear, the best conversations happen in the car!) Ella expressed to me some confusion she had about the Holy Spirit. Heavy duty for a five year old, eh? I prayed that God would give me the wisdom and words to communicate His love to her without adding any further confusion and I asked her if she would like me to explain to her more about the Holy Spirit. She agreed and I went on to explain something like this:

After Jesus died and came back to life, he told his followers that someone even better than he would come to them. That was the Holy Spirit. Because when Jesus was a man on earth, he couldn't be with everyone who wanted and needed him at the same time. And when the Holy Spirit came, he could be with everyone who asked for Him all at the same time. So that was even better. People who want to know God more can know him through the Holy Spirit being with them.

Then I went on to explain the Pentecost in a very simplified way. Basically I told her that when the Holy Spirit came down to the disciples, they experienced things like joy and courage and even did some crazy things like speaking in other languages that they didn't understand. But more than anything, I explained to her that having the Holy Spirit meant feeling the closeness of God and His love in a real way in our hearts. She then said, "Mom, I don't have that." to which I replied, "First we have to tell Jesus we want to follow him and obey him and then he promises to give us his Holy Spirit to know him more and to lead us. Do you want to pray and ask Jesus?" With a smile, she said, "Yes." I relayed to her a basic prayer that she could pray, but when she closed her eyes and tried to repeat it, it was too much information to remember. She opened her eyes and I could tell she felt insecure. I said, "Ella, don't worry about getting all the words right. It's ok...just close your eyes and say whatever comes into your heart." And this was a moment that I will never forget. We were sitting at a red light and I watched her in the rear view mirror. She closed her eyes and opened her little hands and prayed something like this: "Jesus, I believe in you and I trust you. I want to obey you. Will you be with me and give me the Holy Spirit so I can know you better?" Then she opened her eyes and her lip started to quiver and she said, "I think I'm gonna cry!" But it was a happy cry. I reached back and squeezed her little leg and told her how happy I was for her. Then I prayed for her.

Afterward, I explained to her that when she feels God's love and has peace and safety in her heart, that God's Holy Spirit is with her.

I know that Ella is young and immature and that this experience will take some real walking out. But I can't deny the sincerity of it in her young heart. I remember myself as a little girl having desires for God in the same way, and I knew enough of His character and love to recognize him as a young adult when I was truly ready to surrender my life to Him. For Ella, I will continue to pray that her heart stays soft to receive Him in all her years!

collage

Today was our first real, non-vacation day since Ella has been out of school. So we were back to our normal long afternoons together while Simon napped. She helped me clean bathrooms and hung out with me while I fed the baby. But then we had a good chunk of time doing some art projects at the kitchen table while Josie slept. We decided to make a collage and I helped Ella pick out pieces to cut and helped her with some of the more detailed trimming. She ultimately created this though:

Pretty crazy, right? The shiny globs are mounds of glitter glue that she decorated with after we assembled our collage. She enjoyed this new project so much. As we worked together she said, "Mom. This is SO FUN. I could do this ALL DAY!"