Taking Care of Daddy

Tonight, as many evenings, Ben took a little snooze in the living room while Molly and I watched some TV. All of a sudden Molly jumped down from my lap, walked across the room to retrieve her blanket and stuffed duck, and placed them on her Daddy:

It was such a sweet and spontaneous display of love, and gave my heart and face a huge smile.

My Bed

I love my bed. I don't have a reason that I love it other than it is mine. I lie on it and know that this is where I belong. Today I took a nap, which I very rarely do. Even more rare, I didn't set an alarm or make myself get up in a certain amount of time. I slept until I was ready to wake up... well really I slept until Molly woke up from her nap and woke me in the process, but I needed to get up. I slept HARD, and woke up feeling sluggish and warm and wonderful.

This evening after the girls went to bed I came into my room and had planned just to sit for a few minutes. I have since only gotten up to grab the laptop so I could write this post from the comfort of my sweet and wonderful bed. It was the perfect place to be today, and as the occasions to sit and relax on my bed are few and far between, I take full advantage of these opportunities and savor them for the wonderful moments they are.

Adventures in Babysitting

Tonight we had a new babysitter come and watch the girls. She is an older dancer at the girls' studio, and one of their favorite people. Up until now when we have had teenagers watch the girls they have tended to be juniors and seniors in high school, and two of them come and babysit together. I haven't done this on purpose, but it seems to work out nicely. Tonight was just Macy, who is only 14 and was taking on all three girls by herself. I didn't think anything would go badly, but was a little nervous that my girls would overwhelm their sitter with their energy and enthusiasm (to put it mildly).

Macy proved to be more than up to the challenge. She came over with a bag full of goodies and was more than ready to play. I received a text just after 8pm that Molly was in bed asleep, and when we came home we found a massive amount of glow sticks connected and formed into shapes on the floor. Apparently Ava and Jocie had gotten to create with them while Molly was being put to bed. Ben and I had a great time going out, and it was the icing on the cake to come home to sleeping and happy children. We have found ourselves another great babysitter, and I can't wait to have a reason to use her again.

Go With the Flow

It is no secret to anyone who knows me that I am a planner. I like to know what is happening, with whom, and when with plenty of time to plan ahead the smoothest way for our crazy days to unfold. I can handle last minute changes, but not graciously. Today was such a day: this evening Ava's elementary school had their annual Cougar Crawl. I had asked Ava at the beginning of the week if she was interested in going; once she realized it conflicted with dance she stated very firmly that she did not want to miss dance class so she wouldn't go to the Crawl. This morning, I asked her one last time to make sure she had not changed her mind, and again she confirmed that she would rather go to dance than to the Cougar Crawl.

Then she came out of school at the end of the day with THAT look - a part sheepish, part pleading, part overexcited look as she asked me if she could come back for Cougar Crawl after all. Was it a big deal? No. But to grant her request required me to drop her off at dance, race home so as to pass the car off to Ben who had needed to gather Ava's clothes for this event (since she of course didn't wear sneakers or a t-shirt to school that day), then have Ben run back out to get Ava while I got the younger two ready to walk over to the school. My inner planner was not happy. There were several ways that could have all gone smoother, and I hate scrambling at the last minute.

Ultimately, of course, everything came together and we all had a great time at Cougar Crawl. The kids did their walk around the neighborhood and then ate, played, and danced the rest of the night away on the school's playground. I was glad Ava made the choice not to miss out on this once-a-year event. And for as much as I had wanted this to be a lesson in suffering the consequences of your choices, I am glad I didn't give in to my planning-side and just went with the fun of our last minute evening.

Praying Preschool-Style

This afternoon I was driving Jocelyn and Molly home from school, asking them about their days. It was much of the normal: Jocie was proud that she didn't get any time outs and shared about her adventures on the playground. Molly had fun on the playground today too, and ate rectangle crackers for snack. I asked her if she could tell me the prayer they've learned to say before they eat snack. Suddenly I hear from the back seat: "Bring it down, bring it down, bring it down!" I looked in my rearview mirror to find Molly slowly lowering her praying hands from over her head to just under her chin. She then closed her eyes and said, "God is great, God is good, and we thank him for our food. AMEN!" She even made the sign of the cross at the end, which is not something they do in school as it is a Presbyterian school. I was so proud of how well she already knows this simple yet powerful prayer. Since I was driving I couldn't get a video at the time, but hopefully I can make one soon so everyone can share in the sweetness of my littlest preschooler's praying.

Medicine (flavor) Magic

We are trying a new medicine regimen for Molly's periodic fevers. It's basically Zantac, an antihistamine/antacid that for whatever reason has been shown in studies to lesson the severity of fever episodes or even possibly make them go away entirely. The only problem is that Molly has to take almost 4mL of this liquid a day, and it tastes NASTY. Last night I just put a single drop on my tongue, and I have no idea how she's been willingly ingesting this medicine for the past few days.

The good news is now pharmacies can flavor just about any medicine with just about any flavor you can think of. I called the pharmacist this morning to ask if I could bring our medicine back in to have flavor added, and she agreed. I can't imagine it will make it taste THAT much better, but any improvement is something. More than anything I am thankful for a child who takes her medicine like a champ, especially since it looks as though she'll be requiring medication quite a bit. But I'm also thankful for the advances in medicine, even as minor as adding flavor to make a medicine taste better. It's often these little things that we take for granted but make life just that little bit easier, and that is truly something to be grateful for.

Coffee Talk

This morning I met a few friends at Panera. We began this tradition of sorts when school started a month ago, and it is a time I have already begun to look forward to each week. It's a wonderful group of women with whom I share a lot in common, and yet we're all very different as well. The conversations contain just the right mix of griping and laughing, of gossiping and celebrating the good things in our lives. I've felt guilty the last two weeks that I've "wasted" one of my two kid-free mornings just sitting around talking to my friends rather than doing something more productive. But these gabfests are good for my soul, and I am thankful for the chance to spend any time with these ladies that I possibly can.

Welcome Home, Ben

Ben had another of his Navy reserve drill weekends this past weekend. No different from usual, he came home briefly after work on Friday to grab some dinner and his gear, left before the kids headed to bed, and didn't get home last night until after everyone was already asleep. Add to that his leaving the house this morning before anyone was awake, and as of this afternoon the girls had not seen their Daddy in three full days.

When Ben finally did come home, he got quite the welcome. Jocelyn was best - she saw her Daddy and screamed "DADDY!!!" and bolted to hug him like it had been years and not days since they'd last seen each other. All three girls had fun catching their dad up on the weekend's events as well as today's happenings at school. Then when the kids went to bed Ben and I got to sit and catch up for about 30 minutes before he left for jiu jitsu class. It wasn't the longest talk, but it's more than we've been able to do face-to-face for a few days and therefore was really great. Most weekends Ben is gone we all miss him but manage to get along just fine. I don't know why but this weekend was a little harder than usual. The silver lining to that was when Ben did finally return home we were even happier than normal to see him. Absence does indeed make the heart grow fonder, and we girls are all sure excited to have our guy back home where he belongs.

Proud Little Sister

This morning at church the girls were pretty well-behaved, but as is typical of most outings involving children the longer time lapsed the more antsy the kids became. Just after coming back from communion Molly was acting especially squirmy. I looked at her and said, "Do you want to get to see Miss Katy? Then you have to sit and behave." (Miss Katy is our friend who sings in the choir, and if the girls behave during church they get the reward of standing with Katy during the final song at the end of Mass.) It seemed that I was not completely clear in my wording, because before I knew what happening Molly had darted over to stand with Miss Katy right then and there. Fortunately it was not a problem and Molly behaved herself the extra few minutes she was an honorary part of the choir.

What was especially endearing was when the final song did begin and Ava and Jocie went to join Molly, Molly was gleaming with excitement. She had one big sister on either side of her, and she linked up her arms with each of theirs. When they were linked up Molly gave Ava and Jocelyn's arms a big squeeze and just beamed with joy. I can't take any credit for it at all, but it makes me so happy as a mom to see such outpourings of love among my children. They have such a close and special bond, and I hope that they will always take such pleasure in sharing everyday life with one another.

Football-lovin' Gals

Today was a long and draining day. I thought on more than one occasion that if we lived closer to either Ben's or my parents, today would have been one of those days when I just dropped the kids on the grandparents' doorstep and ran away. Molly and Jocelyn seemed to have looked in each other's direction when they woke up and decided, "I'm going to make every second of your day a living hell." We spent the evening with friends which helped break up the day, but as we drove home I was more than ready to just throw the kids in their pj's and put them to bed.

When we got home, however, Ava asked if after they put their pajamas on we could all watch a little football together. As much as I was looking forward to some alone time, I couldn't say no to such a request. So I turned on the A&M/SMU game and my three daughters and I watched the second quarter together. I spent much of my time explaining rules and plays to Ava, who seems to be happy to learn more about the sport. We unfortunately learned that while it SHOULD be a given that a touchdown earns a team seven points, if you root for the Aggies chances are you'll lose a few of those extra kick points. In one breath Ava was saying she'd never want to play football because she wouldn't like "people trying to smash her head into the ground;" in the next she was asking if girls who play football wear makeup when they play. Jocelyn gets more intense watching the replays in slow motion, wincing and oohing at this tackle or that throw. Molly just watches every play saying "Come on, come on, gogogo!!" I know the last few Saturdays my blessing moment has involved football. That's because it still makes me so happy to finally be sharing this sport that I am so passionate about with my girls. I don't know that my children will ever love football as much as I do, but hopefully these evenings of watching games together will create memories that we will all appreciate and cherish.

snuggled up and watching the game 

Not the best lighting but some pretty great smiles

The Same Page

The new year in our dance world has gotten off to a bit of a rocky start. Ava has entered her fourth year in the studio's company, and as such has added more required classes as well as a number of recommended classes. Long story short, after a lot of discussion Ben and I decided to cut Ava back on a few classes. She is taking the same number of classes as last year, whereas most of the other girls in her group have added at least one if not two or three more classes to their schedules. (As it stands Ava is currently registered in five classes - way more than I ever took even as I got older.) While we of course believe we made the best decision for our daughter and family, we have gotten some resistance and guilt that Ava is not putting in the time that her other teammates are. Once again this evening I had a discussion that upon leaving made me feel bad and unsure that I was doing the right thing.

So for the first time, I asked Ava for her input. Until now I hadn't asked her opinion so as not to let her think she rules the roost and gets to choose what she wants to do. But tonight I asked her several questions, and I was blown away by her answers. First was if she still enjoyed dancing. Her immediate response: "Oh yes, Mommy. I feel this is what I was born to do." After suppressing my gag reflex, I restated what I've told her already, that her daddy and I had decided she should drop a few classes so as not to be so committed to dance that she had no time for anything else. However, this time I asked how she felt about not taking those classes. She said she was okay with it, that it didn't really bother her. Finally, I asked her what she enjoyed about dancing. She said she likes the technique - of learning new moves and steps so that she can show others what a beautiful dancer she can be. She loves performing, but she loves the process of learning to dance even more. That is what Ben and I are working so hard to get her because that's what we want for her too. Knowing that our family unit is all on the same page and feeling the same way about this made all of the bad feelings from the earlier conversation go away. No one else has to understand or agree with our choices. At the end of the day we do what is best for our family. That is what is important, and I was blessed to get a much-needed reminder of that from my 6-year-old tonight.

A Backwards Day

This morning Jocelyn woke up feeling better than yesterday but still not fully recovered, so I kept her home from school one more day. The difference today was that Molly did have class. So whereas usually Molly has to watch Jocelyn go to school on her own, today Jocelyn stayed with me while Molly went to school all on her own. It was a little change up in the routine that the girls rather enjoyed. Molly got a kick out of being the one and only Seward in preschool today; Jocelyn was okay with relaxing one more day in hopes of being back to 100% tomorrow. It rarely happens that the kids' roles change around; it's fun for me to see how they react to these backwards days.

Customer Service Success!

Today was a very long day. Not bad, just LONG - filled with taking care of an ailing Jocelyn, who I am sad to say is not quite the easy patient Molly is. Then there were several other minor stresses and nonsense that made me welcome sitting and relaxing at the end of the day.

Until I started trying to place on online order with Old Navy. I had a really good coupon that of course expired tonight, and the website wouldn't accept it. I called the customer service line and got to wait on hold for at least 10 minutes to even talk to a human being. I was not hopeful for a positive outcome...

... until it all turned around. The individual I spoke to had no problem taking my order himself, getting me my free shipping and using my coupon so I got 7 shirts for $45. (I love me a good deal!) When my order was complete, I was then transferred to the credit card department, where I not only finally found out why I haven't been able to access our account online for years but was able to fix the problem once and for all in another 5 or 10 minutes. In a time when phone customer service encounters can be nothing short of sheer torture, this easy and productive interaction put a bright spot on an otherwise dull day.

Love Note

This evening was back to school night at Ava's elementary school. It was nice and rather simple - a few minutes in the gym listening to information about the administration and PTA, then off to Ava's classroom to meet her teacher and get more specific information about her class. We walked into the classroom and sat at Ava's seat. On the desk in front of us was a stack of papers, the top one being this note Ava had written us:

It was so sweet and fun to receive this little love note from our oldest child who is growing up faster than we can begin to believe. It was a special reminder of how much I love who she is now and who she is growing up to be.

Love and Support

This morning I was driving away from having dropped off Jocelyn at preschool when I received a text from Ben. The text read: "Just so you know, I'm okay." I was rather confused - why would I think otherwise? Then I began hearing as the horrific events unfolded at the Navy Yard, in which a gunman opened fire which killed at least 12 people and injuring several others. Of course, the texts, Facebook messages, and phone calls started pouring in. Preemptively, I put my Facebook page that Ben was not on the Navy Yard and therefore out of harm's way.

Over the course of the day, I was moved yet again by just how much my family and I are loved. No less than 75 people "liked" my status update saying Ben was safe, and probably 20 more wrote notes of relief that expressed gladness of knowing Ben is safe and sending prayers to the families who were not so lucky. My friend Sara met me at Target shortly after I had heard from Ben. Not knowing if I knew what had happened yet, she wanted to be sure I was not alone and wanted to be my "buffer" if I needed a friend. It is incredibly humbling to know that so many people care about my family and I so very much.

I in turn was able to be of support to a friend of ours. Her husband does not work at the Navy Yard but had the misfortune of being there today to rehearse for a retirement ceremony. He was not in the building where the shootings occurred but was on lockdown for most of the day, and then had to spend almost as much time debriefing. So I did the only thing I could: I invited Lynda and her two sons over for dinner. It was not fancy by any stretch - we had hot dogs and macaroni and cheese, and my house was a total mess (hadn't gotten much cleaning done thanks to watching the live news coverage). But for a fellow young mom, I was able to provide distraction for her and her boys, as well as some added adult presence when her usual relief couldn't make it home.

If I think about it too much, I could easily become paralyzed with fear. But I instead focus on the many people who I know support me, and the small but important ways that I can help others. That is what makes life worth living, and what I am grateful for most on hard days like today.

A Beautiful Day

Today was one of the most glorious days weather-wise. There was a bit of a chill in the air but the sun was shining, making the day nothing less than picturesque. We had a picnic for Ava's dance company around midday, and the weather made the event nothing less than spectacular. We came home around 4pm, and Ava and Jocelyn didn't even come into the house but rather ran straight out to play with their neighbor friends. It was a glimpse of fall that has been very welcomed, and I cannot wait to enjoy many more beautiful fall days in the weeks to come.

The Spirit of Aggieland in Annandale

Today was a very up and down day for me, and it all revolved around Aggie football. We played Alabama this afternoon in a game that I have been looking forward to since college football finished up in January. I fed off of all the hype - redemption for the Tide who had suffered their only loss to the Aggies last year or validation for the Aggies that last year was not in fact a fluke. I don't want to focus too much on the game itself, but I will say that I think both teams got what they came for. We ran out of time, losing by a touchdown, but we never gave up and proved that while we may not beat the reigning national champions every year we will certainly compete and play at their level. Alabama of course got their win and therefore revenge, at least until they meet again next fall.

What I came away with at the end of the day had less to do with football and more to do with my daughters. Ava and Jocelyn did what they do at every opportunity, heading outside to play just after 9am and only coming in to eat once or twice for a minute or two before being dragged into the house just before 8pm. There were moments throughout the afternoon that I felt a bit guilty. I could hear the kids playing outside having a great time, and I saw a few parents outside chatting from time to time. I felt a pull to go outside so as not to miss out on the fun my kids were having, but couldn't bear to pull myself away from my television set. I even took a picture during a commercial break:

I went outside when the game was over, but of course by then everyone had gone inside for the day. I went to collect my children from one of the neighbors' houses and was saying how bad I felt that I had missed out on everything. She made a great point: the kids would not have cared at all if I had been outside. I could have caught up with some of my neighbors, yes, but there was no reason to think my children would have had more or less fun with me being out there with them. I certainly try to keep my football obsession under control, but it's nice to know that my children are old enough and independent enough to have a nice day all on their own.

The other side and really highlight of my day was getting to bond over some A&M football with Molly. She came in and out but spent most of the game in the living room with Ben and I. She was yelling "go go go go go!" all the time and putting her thumbs up and shouting "Gig 'em!" the entire time. She thought it was HILARIOUS when Ben and I would get really excited about a big play. I had such a fun time rooting for my favorite team in the world with two of my favorite people. It was still a special day regardless of the final score. These games do not have a direct impact on my life (although sometimes I have to remind myself of that), but these memories will stay with me, and I truly cherish them.

Giggly Girlies

For whatever reason, today my daughters were even more energetic and laughter-filled than usual. In general this is of course something to celebrate and be thankful for. However, like most things, sometimes too much of a good thing does not seem so good, and there were a few moments when I wished my girls would calm (and quiet) down a bit.

Example of the day: It was our first official dance day of the fall. This year the plan is to take not only our friend Jaelyn but another schoolmate Sophia to the dance studio on Fridays with us. I already knew it was going to be an exciting trip as I tried to herd these five girls from the playground at the school back to our car. Sure enough, there was chatter, games, and LOTS of loud squealing the entire car ride. I did make one or two requests to watch the volume, but in general I just let these loud girls be loud girls. I mean, I didn't really want to listen to all that craziness, but at least they were happy sounds. They weren't getting into trouble or breaking any rules. I took the moment to embrace the noise of these five girls letting loose and having fun after a long week. This was their time; mine would come with the peace and quiet that follows bedtime.

Sweet Tea Sweetness

This evening I watched Ava's friend Jackson while his parents attended his school's back-to-school night. Jackson is a great kid and my girls love getting so spend time with him. As a sort of payment or thank you, the Yezefskis brought Chick-Fil-A with them to provide dinner for everyone. This included a sweet tea for me. Sara had tried to text me and ask what I wanted to drink, but my phone hates me so I never received it. It made me feel special that she remembered what I like to drink and brought this treat just for me. I couldn't drink it tonight because I would never be able to fall asleep, but I put it in the fridge and now have a wonderful treat to look forward to in the morning.

Life Lessons and Family Fun

This afternoon my Aunt Cindy came to visit on her way to a business trip. We had a great time hosting her for the evening, and as an added bonus the day provided opportunity to teach my girls a few life lessons.

The first lesson was about setting priorities. Today was supposed to be Ava and Jocelyn's first dance class of the new year. While Jocie doesn't fully comprehend that she even missed out on anything today, Ava was pretty upset. This morning Ava wanted me to do her hair so it would be ready for class in the afternoon. When I said we would be missing class today, she got the big puppy dog eyes that filled with tears and said, "But MOM, I've been waiting since 8 o'clock last night for the first day of dance class!!" I felt really guilty for letting my child down so. But I stood firm and explained that while I rarely make her miss dance, sometimes there are occasions that are more important. Family, especially family we don't see often, will take precedence over after school activities any day. It took Ava a while to be okay with my decision, but in the end she admitted that she had fun getting to spend time with my aunt and that she understood why she needed to miss dance this one time.

Then as we were waiting to pick Aunt Cindy up from the arrivals area of the airport, Ava noticed that the flags were flying at half-mast and asked me why they weren't "all the way to the top." So I explained as best I could to my almost-seven-year-old about what happened on September 11, 2001. It was the first such conversation I've had with Ava, in which I was delicately finding the balance between making her aware of serious and scary aspects of life without causing her to feel paralyzing fear. I was most touched by her two questions after my explanation: were there any children who died, and did any other children become orphans that day. She made the discussion relatable to herself with a wisdom and understanding I have not seen in her before. I am never happy to have reason to have such conversations with my children, but at the same time I appreciate and welcome these difficult talks as a way to teach my kids about the dark side of life and how not to take for granted the blessings we all have.

Finally it was just time to kick back and have fun with Aunt Cindy! It was so nice for me to get to catch up with my aunt and hear about one cousin's wedding and get caught up on the lives of the rest of the family. Jocelyn of course took all of five minutes to warm up and in no time was giving Cindy random bear hugs and trying to drag her all over the house. The time seemed to fly, and before we knew it we were loading up to take her to her hotel for the evening. It was a short but lovely visit. After Aunt Cindy had gotten out of the car but before she had gotten her luggage out of the trunk, Jocelyn said to me, "Mommy, I hope we get to see her again soon!" It's been five years between the last two visits, and I too hope it's not nearly that long until we get together again.

... and Then There Were None

Today was the third and final first day of school for the Seward girls this year. Molly went for her first day of preschool. She surprised me with her subdued excitement. She was not bouncing up and down and loudly excited like her older sisters tend to be. She was excited for sure, but at the same time very quiet and calm. We took Jocelyn to her room first and then walked down to Molly's classroom. I squatted down, gave her a hug and a kiss, and told her to go inside. She very calmly walked in and found a toy to play with. I stood there for a few seconds to make eye contact with the teacher and then headed out.

When I picked her up two hours later (they have a shortened schedule this first week), she ran to me with a big smile and gave me a hug. When she pulled away, she looked at me like something wasn't right or she had forgotten something. Then the lightbulb went on... and she ran back to give her teacher a hug. Especially for my youngest child who isn't always a big hugger, that was a huge indication to me that she already loves her teacher and class. While we killed an hour waiting to pick Jocie up Molly talked nonstop about her day - who her teachers are, what she did inside and out on the playground, what she had for snack. I learned it all. The one thing she kept saying was, "I can't wait to see my new teacher again!" I love that she finally has a class to call her very own, and I am so excited that she, like her sisters, has such a love for school.

backpack on, ready to go!

last sister-first-day-of-school pic

... of course we have to have the silly pose, too

School Days

Today was Jocelyn's first day of school for the year. She was SO very excited to see her friends, both old and new, and get to be in the same classroom that Ava was in two years ago. I think she enjoys the familiarity of having the same teacher Ava did, while being excited to get to have her own experience in there this year. The funniest thing: as a back-to-school project Jocie had to say what she was excited to get to do this year. Her answer was to do homework! I can't wait to remind her in the years to come how she once wanted nothing more than to get to have homework.

Jocelyn's first day of school picture

the sisters - two out of three school-bound!

Jocelyn and her best buddy, Brennan

It was equally fun this evening to reconnect with a blast from the past. Paul was a freshman at Central Catholic when I was a senior, and one of the many drumline kiddos that I adopted as my own. Well he moved to the northern Virginia area in recent months, so tonight we had Paul and his girlfriend over for dinner. I seriously don't know if I've seen this kid in the last ten years, and without the power of Facebook we wouldn't be in touch at all. But it was great to meet back up after all this time to hear what he's been up to and have him meet my family. We've both grown up a lot, and it was fun to reconnect as adults with someone with whom I share so many schooltime memories of my own.

Day for the Dogs

After today our neighborhood pool closes until next summer. So we took the kids for one last afternoon of water fun. What was really cool was at 5pm when the pool officially closed to us... and opened to the neighborhood dogs. At the end of every pool season they let everyone bring their dogs to swim in the pool for about an hour. It was HILARIOUS. The kids were all mesmerized. They sat at the edge of the pool watching in wonder at all of these "puppies" taking a turn in their pool. Once or twice they even jumped into the baby pool to join in on the fun. (And were of course shortly ushered out by a "concerned" older dog owner.) It was one of the most entertaining hours we've had in a while. I see the doggie swim becoming a tradition for the Seward household.

watching the pups from the sidelines

they couldn't help themselves - they had to get a closer look

splashing around with the dogs

Molly took no notice that she was half the size of most of the dogs

when she was told the pool was for the dogs and not people, she decided the logical solution was to become a puppy herself ;)

Easy Like Saturday Morning

This morning was wonderful. I don't know when exactly Ava and Jocelyn woke up, but they went downstairs on their own, turned on the television, and occupied themselves for at least 30 minutes. Molly made her contribution by sleeping in until just after 7:30am. After the craziness of the first week of school I was TIRED and had slept very well last night. Getting to sleep even longer than expected this morning was the perfect way to start another lovely weekend.

A Neighborhood Stroll

This week we have walked to the elementary school for drop off and pick up as much as we could. The weather has been spectacular, so it's nice to take advantage of that and get some exercise and fresh air at the beginning and middle of our days. Typically Ava and Jocelyn walk while I push Molly in the umbrella stroller. This morning as we were heading back home from dropping off Ava, Jocelyn asked if she could take a turn pushing Molly. I said sure. She ended up pushing the stroller about 75% of the way home! I was very impressed that my daughter who could barely make the walk on her own this time last year was pushing a stroller so well such a long distance. Jocie then pushed Molly most of the way to and from the school this afternoon as well. She was very proud of herself for being such a big kid. I loved that she was being a sweet big sister and growing up before my very eyes.

Rising to the Occasion

Today we started with another of Molly's fever episodes. We dropped Ava off at school and then went to Target to pick up the steroid prescription to stop the fever. We came home, and I went to measure out the dosage... only to discover that instead of the 5mL dosage we were supposed to have the pharmacist had only given us 3mL. I called Molly's specialist to find out if this would be sufficient or if I had to make another trip to the pharmacy. A few minutes of discussion later, it was determined that I should give Molly what I had and see what happens - it SHOULD be enough (and it turns out it was) to kick the fever.

I tell this story because the last minute or so of my phone conversation I hear Molly yelling for me from the other room. "Mommy, come here quick! Mommy, do you hear me?? I talking to you!!!" When I had finally hung up, I walked from the kitchen to the living room while slightly scolding Molly for not being more patient. I then entered the living room to find Molly sitting on her potty chair. Pants and pull up pulled down all on her own, she says, "Mommy, I pooped in the potty! And I did not have an accident!!" Sure enough, my child who has made potty training a special form of torture managed to independently get herself to the potty, fever and all. I gave her a big high five and told her how proud I was and what a big girl she is.  It was a small achievement that at that moment felt like a big victory.

Then this evening our friend Katy once again came to watch the girls while Ben and I went out. I was a little nervous that we were leaving Katy with less than stellar kids tonight - Molly was super moody as a side effect of her medication, and Ava had a scrapbook page to create for school. When I came home I asked how the girls had been. Katy, who I know will be completely honest with me, said that all three girls were terrific. Each had a minor issue or moment of unhappiness, but overall they were respectful and kind. Having been gone all summer, Katy commented on Ava particularly and how much she has matured since the end of the spring. It's always interesting to hear other people's perspectives of my kids, who I see every day and therefore don't notice changes in as easily. It makes me smile to know that my kids are growing up in a way that makes Ben and I proud.

Wined and Dined

Tonight we had dinner at a friend's house. We have plenty of dinners with friends, both at our own house and at others' houses. Today it was a great treat because it's been a crazy past few days and it was so nice to sit down with ladies I genuinely enjoy. (Ben had some man-time and the girls played with their friends elsewhere.) We had ourselves a glass or two of wine and griped and laughed and RELAXED. With everything else going on it was nice to get a break from the mayhem of real life and just get to enjoy good food and great friendship. It was the perfect way to get over the hump day funks. It was so nice of our friends to open their home to us, and I was grateful for the opportunity to just let go and be stress-free for a short while.

First Day of School, Round 1

Today Ava started the first grade. It was a pretty standard first day: with all the excitement and anticipation we were ready to go with plenty of time - breakfast eaten, new outfit worn, lunch packed. I took the obligatory first day of school picture, although mine are not as cute or creative as some. We met up with the neighbors to walk to school together. I walked Ava into the cafeteria to wait with the other first graders and seemed to overstay my welcome as Ava would barely look at me as I tried to say good-bye to her. I kissed her and took my other two girls to start the walk back home.

Little Miss First Grader

A nice sister picture

Adia, Zain, and Ava ready to walk to school

What struck me today was not how the first day of school hit Ava or me, but how it affected Jocelyn and Molly. We were about 25 feet outside the cafeteria doors when Molly suddenly started sobbing violently, "I WANT MY SISTER!!" She was teary all the way home. Jocelyn did not express herself so plainly but was more subdued than usual most of the day. When we saw Ava come out of the school at the end of the day, Molly jumped out of the stroller and ran toward her biggest sister. They gave each other the biggest hug, and it completely melted my heart. My girls are all good friends and get along very well, but it's not often they show such obvious signs of affection. Today was a hard adjustment for my two little ones who have to wait another week before they start preschool. It was a good reminder however of the truth in the saying "Absence makes the heart grow fonder." Molly missed her big sister today, and appreciated their time together that much more when Ava came home.

Molly insisted on bringing her own backpack to Ava's first day of school

This does not do it justice, but here is Molly moping after we'd dropped Ava off

Sisters reunited

'Twas the Night Before School

Tomorrow Ava starts the first grade. Today, among a last day's worth of playing with neighbors and going to the pool, there was lots of little things done to prepare for the first day. Ben took Ava to get a new outfit for her first day. (I was a little nervous of what they might come home with, but we managed to come up with a decent outfit.) At dinner Ava read a paper inside a bag she received at open house the other day. The bag had contained a pencil, eraser, and fuzzy pom pom; the paper explained that the pencil was for writing many great stories, the eraser is because it's okay to make mistakes, and the fuzzy is to remember that all classmates should feel welcome and happy.

Tonight after Ava had gone to bed I found a paper that I was supposed to read to her before she went to bed. Of course I forgot amid the hullabaloo. I read it, and it talks all about the excitement and apprehension of starting a new school year. It was so cute and thoughtful. I feel so blessed that Ava goes to such an incredible school and already feel like this teacher is another exceptional one. I cannot wait to see what this year has in store for Ava. I think she will grow leaps and bounds, and it will be so much fun watching her continue to mature into the phenomenal human being I know she will be.

One Last Summer BBQ

This evening we had our last block party of the summer. A few of my neighbors and I had been talking, and it seemed like we should have one last BBQ as a farewell to summer and an opportunity to meet the new families who had moved in over the last month or so. So once again we rolled out the pits and set up chairs on our lawn so the adults could eat and chat. The kids did what they always do: play and run as much as possible, only stopping when forced to eat or rehydrate by their parents. The nice thing was that rather than all of the adults staying in their own homes cleaning or cooking or whatever, we all got to socialize with each other. It was a great way to start winding down the summer.