Baby Brotherhood

Synonyms for brotherhood: comradeship, fellowship, fraternity, kinship, alliance, union



It's a precious time in my life when I get to watch these two big babies become brothers and friends. Sure they fight over toys, but mainly they stay close to each other and play well together. Ridge plays the role of adoring, protective, older brother, and Lark is in the acceptance phase of being a baby. Meaning, he takes what life gives him, and thankfully he has a caution to him (because experience has taught him that sometimes following the big kids means he gets hurt).

My prayer for them this morning was that they would enjoy playing together and become close friends and playmates. I can't wait to watch this! Siblings are the greatest show on Earth. 

Happy 8th, Burl!

Burl turned 8 and we did 8,000 things to celebrate. 

Family came over, friends came over, we did something as a family, and we took the birthday boy out for a dinner with mom and dad only (my personal favorite). He chose Chili's. A few months ago, he got a coupon for a free kids meal (pizza + fries) and we learned that they provide tablets and games at the table. It was the "best restaurant ever." 

He was non-stop talking and questioning and loved the attention. We walked to ice cream after that. On the way we passed downtown condos and saw an old man in his bedroom on the ground floor and he was totally naked. We saw his bottom crack, and for an 8 year old-that's better than ice cream! 

I had some great ideas for some minute-to-win-it style games, so I made his friends do those. It was so much fun and we all laughed. 

To top off the 8 year old goofiness, I labeled all the cups with potty words instead of names. The 2nd graders highly approved. 

We love our Burl and sometimes I feel bad for him because he's the first child and somewhat our trial run when it comes to parenting. He absorbs it well and receives our apologies with love. I hope that I can be as gracious. 

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Before & After: Fern's Room

Fern got a room makeover! We sent her away to the grandparents' for a sleepover while we painted and redecorated her room. John and I finally upgraded to a great king size bed, so Fern got our queen bed (which is in good condition). We used the opportunity to repaint her room (from beige-something to WHITE!) and we let her pick out some new bedding. Here's the before: 

The layout is similar. We started by purging her toys. She chose to put the American Girl dolls in the attic and keep the Barbies. We traded out the chair for a more current looking chair that I got from a neighbor for $10.

Originally she wanted a yellow room, but yellow comforters are hard to come by. I found some options for her, but the navy, coral, and aqua quilt caught her eye and we went with those colors. I was hesitant at first, but the dark colors look good in the all white room. 

We removed the open wall shelves and moved her dresser in their place. 

For now, she has a side chair until I can find a good nightstand. 

Jenny's painting is still a hit! 

Since Christmas, Fern has been downstairs in her ow space. That girl loves some private room time. She journals, practices yoga moves, plays, and sits on her bed. The not-typical things that six year old girls do...

To keep the room clear of clutter, we put most of her little toys on a shelf in the closet. The Barbie house is all that's left out. 

It was fun to try to create something for her from her style. I love her jumbled up style and I am happy to give her a place to be her girly self. 

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Ode To Barefoot Days

Today I drove 40 minutes to take Burl to a birthday party. He's plenty old enough to drop off and leave, but the commute didn't make sense for me to do it. He kept telling me that it was ok to drop him off and leave. I finally asked, "is it more fun when I'm not there?"

He was kind but honest in his reply, "Kinda yes and kinda no. You're not there to tell me 'stop Burl'." I get it. We can all remember what it was like to be out from under our parents. It wasn't like we wanted to do bad things, and it's not like Burl wants to do bad things (mostly). It was and is the freedom to be a little more child-like and uninhibited with their play without the watchful eye of a parent. 

(in need of more girls!)

A couple of Saturdays ago it was very warm and the kids had the best day ever. It was the kind of day where they ran from yard-to-yard, climbed trees, and were barefoot with friends. They had the kind of day that was a true gift-better than new underwear or scotch tape in their Christmas stockings. 

The end of the day was perfect too. We collected some neighbors and friends for dinner and made simple tacos with bags of chips. I made cookies as other people cleared the table and the adults ate too much cookie dough while we stood in the kitchen. After hours and hours outside, I found Ridge in the dark among the flashlights. He was lying on his stomach in the grass about to fall asleep. We finished the day off with a little Swiss Family Robinson in the den while the parents talked just a little bit longer...

My dreams are still coming true. 

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Baby Trampoline Time

When the cat's away, the mice will play and when the big kids are at school, the littles have run of the trampoline. 

They absolutely love having it to themselves because they're not getting catapulted to the clouds by the big kids' gnarly skills. 

What I see here is more evidence of their brotherhood forming. It didn't take long for these boys to be "all boy" together. They've been wrestling for months now, and the trampoline adds another layer of fun.

Their little faces are so fun. A little concerned, a little rowdy, a little mischievous, a lot happy. 

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Valentine's Day 2018

Last Valentine's Day Lark was 12 days old and I can't remember if we did anything special at all to celebrate. Typically, I like to do something small. Special drinks at lunch, a small gift (the kids still talk about the great year when I bought them carabiners and rope), a candlelight dinner, etc. With the barn door closed on making and nursing babies, I felt excited to celebrate the special day this year. 

We gifted the kids bubble bath (mainly for the babies) and a beta fish (mainly for the big kids). The fish has been a big hit! The day after the we gave them the fish, they all had to eat breakfast with it. More on pet life later...

The Saturday following Valentine's Day, we picked up on a tradition that the kids have been begging for: sushi and egg rolls. We did it once before and they talk about it frequently. They were so little back then! The deal is that girls make egg rolls and boys make sushi. The kitchen is full of voices, movement, music, and parental patience. It's a pitiful show of skills, but the pride is still there. Sometimes the best flavors are hard work earned and enjoyed!

It was another fun year celebrating our family's love for one another. Maybe by the time that they're teenagers, we will be like professionals. For now, enthusiasm outweighs appearance and happiness erases fighting. We thank Jesus for this family regularly.

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Big Firsts At The Farm

 Ever since the tree burning (and his CapriSun binge), Ridge has had a daily habit of asking to go to my dad's farm. Since the kids were off of school for Presidents' Day and the weather was unseasonably good, we made it happen.

My dad called it his favorite visit yet. We had some monumental firsts that comes with (almost) big kids. 

1. They roamed into the cow field by themselves and ran wild and free! Usually, they stay close to the house and venture into the field only when they're on some type of vehicle. We've never told them they couldn't, but they weren't old enough to feel comfortable with it, I guess. 

2. Burl drove the 4-wheeler by himself. End of story. Day made. Life complete. And I'm just referring to my dad. Burl was happy too. He handled the responsibility with utmost care. My favorite part was at the end of the day as we were leaving. My dad pulled Burl aside, hugged him, and told Burl how proud he was. My dad told him that he knew he could trust Burl. Touch and words are so powerful, even for guys. As shaping as the 4-wheeler ride was, there aren't many things that top a man freely giving a boy pride and trust. 

3. Water creations. The picture below might be one of my all time favorite poignant pictures of my kids. Burl in his boy gear, Fern in her girl gear, Ridge soaked. They spent some time in the overflow creek building dams and bridges. Always a hit with my kids. 

We onc again had a great time and look forward to our next visit and new freedoms. 

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Ridge & Lark Kisses

They spend a lot of time together, and I find their brotherly relationship entertaining. They wrestle, they laugh, they fight, and they love each other. This time, I got a picture of Ridge tickling Lark's face with kisses. We were all laughing.