....and so it goes

Tuesday was Layla's first day of Kindergarten and today was Cooper's first day of 3 year old preschool. Holding Layla back last year was a great decision. She made the cut-off to start Kindergarten by 19 days, but she would not have been ready for a full day of school. This year she is ready and really loves it. However, she is thoroughly exhausted! She said yesterday she wanted to sleep during nap time, but she was afraid she'd sleep through music class. Today, she wanted to sleep, but her friend Sam was missing his mom and was scared. Layla told him just to go to sleep and she would stay awake to keep an eye on things. Here's to hoping tomorrow she sleeps!

Cooper is an interesting little soul. Yes, he's very active but his personality is very steady. He can split his head open and you will barely get a cry out of him. He doesn't like to slow down for band aids and he doesn't look back when I throw him into new situations. He just goes. He may not talk to anyone, but he goes. He has an ACTIVE imagination and has plenty of playmates in his head. So, when I dropped him off this morning he was fine. He even remembered a song, the shape of the day and cut wonderful lines on his cutting project. A good first day.

She's 6

The little girl I love the most turns 6 today. She amazes me. She is wise, her faith runs deep, she's intuitive and loyal. And she will always be my little girl...always.

The Party

Although Layla's birthday is tomorrow, we had family over on Saturday for her big 6th birthday party. Our kid's birthday parties still consist of just family. I know that Layla and Cooper will want to someday make the transition into parties with their friends. But for now, I'm going to savor the time that they find such great friendships with their cousins. We decided to have a candy themed party this year and the big hit was the candy buffet table that the kids got to feast on (I'm sure their parents loved the bucket full of candy each one got to take home)! Here's what it looked like before the party...and what Layla looked like the afternoon after the party...sugar crash.

Last Day of Summer

Today was our last day of summer. Yes, I am sad! I like having my kids with me. Even when they fight like crazies, I would rather be with them than without them. Although I feel sad about not having Layla with me everyday, I'm really excited for her to start this chapter of her life. She's ready.
To celebrate our last day of freedom, we went to the zoo. Here's what I love about the Des Moines zoo....you can see it all within 2 hours! We had a great day!

A Horse Tale

Layla has wanted a horse forever...as most little country girls do. Since she was a toddler, she inhales deeply around horses and says, "I love that smell!" Last week, our sweet neighbor had Layla over to ride a horse for the first time. Layla did not hesitate at all, she got up on the horse by herself and off she rode...and galloped. I was shocked at the fact that she didn't have to muster her bravery, there was no fear, which isn't typical of Layla.

The child has been praying for her own horse and Dave and I have continued to say no. A few weeks ago, someone we knew asked us if we were interested in their horse. Still, even though we knew the horse and knew he would be good with kids, the answer was no. Then, they said it would be free to our home. Good grief! Dave and I decided that God was answering that little girl's prayers in a way we couldn't say no.

Dave secretly brought Buddy home Friday night. Saturday morning, I told Layla she needed to go outside and water the mums. And there, tied up by the mums, was Buddy. She was shocked that one of the neighbor's horses was tied up to one of our trees. It didn't register with her at all that horse was hers.

Needless to say, Saturday was a good day for Layla. She got her horse and had a birthday party with her family. She and her cousins got to ride Buddy, play on the new playground, jump in the jump house and run around like crazy people for hours.

When Layla said good night to buddy, she whispered to him, "We will never be apart and I will love you forever."

A Passion for History

Layla loves history and always has. She is so curious about how people used to live and how things were invented. When we go to the library, Layla is drawn to books about these things. Last week, she picked a book about the evolution of trash handling. Yes, as in garbage.

It's no surprise we have read every Laura Ingalls Wilder book (including picture books, first readers and chapter books) and every book written about Laura Ingalls Wilder. Layla's favorite TV show?....Little House on the Prairie. Even Cooper will watch it, he loves that Pa is always working and sweating.

Today we went to Living History Farms. Cooper was fully expecting to see the Ingalls family. He kept asking, "Where the Ingalls?" After he got past that expectation, he loved it. They both did. And for me, it was full of great memories. We went often as kids and I especially loved going with my grandparents because it brought out great stories and memories they shared with us.

When we were walking out he said, "Mom, thanks you take me here." It was a successful day.

The Final Stretch

Layla will start kindergarten next Tuesday and Cooper will start his first year of preschool. Wow. I'm just not sure what to say about that. Yes, it makes me sad that these years have gone so fast! But, at the same time, I have loved seeing them grow, change, and mature. I'm excited to see them both charter new territories and be nudged out of their comfort zones a little. And although painful (far more for me than them), I know they learn to rely on God even more when they're uncomfortable in life. Don't we all?

One of the hardest transitions for me will be moving from part time school to full time school. Seriously! I'm not ready for Layla to be away from us so many hours in a day, I'm not ready to start commuting everyday again and I'm definitely not ready to be so darn scheduled!

It has been a great summer! The kids and I have traveled, traveled, traveled and had some wonderful adventures together. Now, to see how many more we can squeeze in before school starts on the 23rd!

The Prayers of a 5 Year Old

There is nothing sweeter than the prayers of children at bedtime. Really and truly, when I hear Layla and Cooper pray, on their knees, in the darkness of their rooms, I feel a little guilty that I was so ready to put them to bed and be done with the day!

Layla prays with the words of a 5 year old, but the heart of a wise woman. Tonight's prayers included this..

"Jesus, we love the guys who fight for us. We know some make it home and some don't. We're sorry for the ones who don't, but know you are holding their families right now, right in your hands. America is a good country. Not everyone is happy all the time, but that is how life is. It's still a good country. We know you love all nations and made all nations. Help us to love all nations too. And thank you for John Wayne."

And John Wayne was mentioned because we went here today. We drive by his birth home almost every time we're in Winterset and Layla has always wanted to go. I promised her we would go this summer. And since summer is almost over...

Happy Boy

We aren't really a NASCAR family. We've been to a few big races across the country with AgriGold and Dave likes to take naps on Sunday afternoons with a race on TV (he calls it NAPCAR). And that's about the extent of it. But, I'm always up for taking the kids on any new adventure. So, when AgriGold sponsored a few cars at Newton this weekend and hosted a hospitality tent, the kids and were in. We were able to go down by the garages and pits during practice and Cooper was in heaven.

That boy loved every minute of it and even got to ride in the tractor that took us down to the infield. Layla thought the outing was pretty cool too....loud....but cool. I think Cooper's favorite part was at the beginning of the race when he heard, "Gentleman, start your engines!" and all the engines started. He had been waiting for that all day. "Just like my Cars movie," he said. He also asked my if any of the trucks in the infield during the race would talk. I think there was a little confusion between the movie and reality. But, that's the life of a 3 year old.

Must See

If you haven't made the Indianola Balloon Festival part of your summer tradition, you must! Here are some of our favorite pix from this year. And the one with the two kids, one posing like she's in the middle of an 80's robot dance and the other who looks like he's trying to get on the cover of Abercromie's catalog, I don't know who they belong to.

If You Were My Baby

Tonight, Cooper and I lay in his bed, waiting for Layla to finish brushing her teeth and join us for bedtime prayers. She took awhile! As we lay there, Cooper touched my cheek and said, "(If) you my baby, I take care of you Mommy."

"You would?"

"Yes and I (would) love you a long time."

"Will you still love me a long time, even if I'm not your baby, just your mommy?"

"Yes, because I love you the most."

Not even possible, buddy.