"It's just really special...."

Layla and I took a stroll down the driveway and out to the mailbox today. On the way back we stopped to sit on the dock for a bit and look through the mail. To Layla's surprise, she had a card! She has no special occasion coming up, so the anticipation grew as to who sent it and why. She ripped it open and handed it to me to read. It was from a special adult in Layla's life who reads our blog and this is what it said...

Layla,
I want to thank you for being so brave at your tumbling performance even though you were afraid. We're going to face that many times in our lives and we will have to do it afraid. We always know Jesus is with us so we're never alone. You showed me a very valuable lesson. I am proud of you. You may be a little girl, but you are very wise.

Layla had a sweet smile on her face and an expression I have never seen. Then, she buried her face in my shoulder. I asked, "What do you think?" She pulled back and said, in a small, quiet voice, "It's just really special mom. I just love it so much." The joy was so intense on her face, I thought she was going to cry. I now know what Layla's expression is when she's overwhelmed with joy, not just happiness.

A Man of Few Words

Cooper David is a man full of stories, but very few words. He knows what he's telling us, but we don't always understand. Tonight, however, those few words were crystal clear and so sweet.

Cooper loves to pray together. When we sit down for supper or tuck him into bed, he reaches for our hand and says, "pway" (pray). Tonight at supper, with Daddy gone, Cooper reached one hand to Layla and one to me and said, "Mom, I do pway." He took Dave's role and led our prayer. His sweet little words?

"Sheshus hop Daddy." (Jesus help Daddy).

The Musterer

Saturday marked Layla's last day of tumbling. Yippeeeee! We love our gym in Winterset and the owners are fantastic! However, I'm ready to start checking things off our schedule and enjoy a summer of NO organized activities.

There are so many things I love about Layla. One of them is her bravery. Not blind bravery, like brother, who will do anything, no matter what the injury may be. Her bravery is something she has to muster. When she started tumbling this year, she was moved up two age levels (trust me, it had more to do with her maturity than ability) She felt afraid of being with the older girls. But I was proud of her the first day she went and even more proud when she didn't let another girl's mean comments make her want to quit.

On our final day of tumbling, when the gym was packed and it was time for her performance, she was afraid. She hung close to me, put her head down and sobbed for several minutes. Eventually, she looked at me and said she didn't want to miss this chance because she was afraid. Again, she mustered. And she had a great time!!!

Why Not?

This is how Layla dressed for grocery shopping Friday morning. It all matches and appears normal until you get to the footwear. This is what she wanted to wear and, really, it makes sense when she explained her decision to me. You see, these are both her favorite shoes so why not wear one of each?

Florida

We are home. We made it through all of the airports, airplane rides, long car rides, etc. without too much of an issue. However, we are all exhausted today!

We spent a lot of time swimming, one day at the beach and most days at the pool. We opted not to do Disney this year. We took Layla for a day last year and, although she did great, she was ready to leave by mid afternoon. We had to wait in a 30 minute lines for 5 minute rides and saw toddlers everywhere having meltdowns. It was hot and sweaty and the crowds were maddening. Dave and I looked at each other and knew, we would not go back until the kids were older! Probably more for our sake than theirs!

But, we still got to see parts of Disney, just not the theme parks. We went to the Wilderness Lodge and saw the wild animals and also went to the Beach and Yacht Club where we got to take a boat ride in the harbor and ride a 4 person bike around the boardwalk. We also went to downtown Disney where the stores are amazing!

The highlight of the trip was definitely Sea World. We waited to go until Sunday and Monday, so the last week of spring breakers were gone. We did not wait in any lines, Layla and Cooper could ride all the kids rides and Layla most adult rides. We saw amazing shows and exhibits and the kids were captivated. Plus, we got discounted tickets that allowed us a free second visit within 7 days. It was glorious! The highlights for me were......

Layla rode one roller coaster 9 times. And, it wasn't until the 5th time that I realized she was challenging herself to keep her hands in the air the whole time and not hold on. She nailed it on the 5th time. Cooper loved it all and really enjoyed petting and feeding the dolphins. The best part, however, is when we went to see the walruses in the underground tank. Those suckers are so huge! And when one of the walruses came nose to nose with Cooper through the glass, Cooper said, "woo" and took 2 steps back. That's the first time I've ever seen him back down from any person, animal, thing or noise!

Ode to the FIt Flop

We head home from Florida tomorrow afternoon. It has been so fun! I will blog all about later in the week. But for now, I must take a moment to thank God for the invention of the Fit Flop. I am old and haven't been able to wear cheapo flip flops for years and have really struggled on and off with Plantar Fasciitis. As I felt it coming on again several weeks ago, I finally broke down and bought myself a pair of Fit Flops. So many people in my life have them and swear by them. And I am here to do the same. We walked Sea World for 7 hours yesterday and 6 hours today and, I am not exaggerating, my feet feel like I haven't stood on them all day. Thank you, inventor of the Fit Flop!

I know, I know, they aren't Jimmy Choo's, but they are sooooo worth it!!!

Happy Easter

For the first time in 2 years, I have an Easter picture of Layla and Cooper together. Happy Easter!

The Kellens all came to our house Saturday to celebrate Cooper and cousin Sam's birthdays and Easter. What a great day of food, family and fun.

And I made my second birthday cake!