Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Donuts for Darlings


Summer birthdays mean not getting to bring treats to your classmates and postponed parties because everyone vacations on your big day. I realize these are First World problems, but when you're in the third grade, the struggle feels real.

Since today is exactly two months before this little dolly turns ten, it seemed the perfect time to break out the sugar-laden goodness and bring enough for the whole class. Em's teacher willingly agreed to let me come in this afternoon and celebrate my girl.


Sometimes the love I have for my children is just too big to contain. Sometimes the gratitude I have in my heart for motherhood is enough to bring me to my knees. Seeing Emerson's dimples deep with delight brought all of that today. This is the stuff of Fairy Tale childhoods and youthful dreams. But I'm pretty sure mine was the fullest heart in that classroom today. I dreamt of moments like this when motherhood was out of my reach. I knew I wanted to do things like this for children of my own, I just never could have imagined how much I'd love loving them.

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Best Pool Party Ever

So the lovelies are planning a party. This really isn't a newsflash, this is what we call Tuesday or any day around here. But this one is bigger than most since it's meant to celebrate the beginning of summer - the pinnacle of wonderful when you're a kid.

This is the first year that both girls' last day of school falls on the same day, so they plotted to plan the Best Pool Party Ever to celebrate.


They made invitations which included these little gems:

School's Done - Pool's fun!!!


School's out! No homework-yay!


School's out, it's Time to Play!!!!!!!!


As you can readily see, they love exclamation points a lot and seeing them on their little invites does make me so happy too. They are so looking forward to the party and have planned snacks to serve and created a little online potluck sign-up for others to bring things to share. They've each made a list of friends to invite, which for Ainsley includes her entire class in case (in her precious words) "Someone would see me handing out an invitation and feel sad-hearted that they weren't a part of it."

Friday, May 15, 2015

Summer's on the Way... Problem Solved!

Though I truly have savored the moments, I cannot help but be surprised (again) that another school year is coming to a close. I guess this one flew all the faster than those before since there was so much anticipation for it to begin. Such a momentous season when my Ainsley love headed off to Kindergarten.

We I had such fun with these pictures documenting the anticipation for the start of full-day everyday school.


We did eventually get some fun shots to document the season and I'm pretty sure bribery was involved.

Saturday, May 2, 2015

Color my World

When I walk into the kitchen and see this, I just cannot take it. I cannot take how precious my Ainsley is with a paintbrush in her hand, a free-bird in flight. Without any help, she set up her own make-shift studio, donned a beret she found in the dress-up box, and channeled her inner Picasso. Sure, I lost a few years from my life when I considered what might have become of my kitchen table, floor, and walls when I saw that she had helped herself to the paint supplies. But I'm happy to report that everything looks just as lived in and sticky as it did before she set to work.

Know what I really love the most? That she just sat down to paint and didn't doubt her ability to make something beautiful. She hasn't always done this. With an artistic older sister in view, she has been know to compare her work to her sister's and feel like she's not measuring up. What I carefully remind her, in those moments of self-doubt, is that Emerson is three years ahead of her. Comparing Kindergarten art to Third grade art isn't a fair contest. I remind her that Emie's had three years to learn new techniques and skills that she didn't have when she was in Kindergarten. I can teach this lesson without a blink, yet I'm guilty of the same unbalanced comparison in my own life.



Don't we all do this? We look at the success, the impact, the growth that someone is experiencing well into the process and compare it to our own meager first steps. It's as though we're in Kindergarten and feel dismayed that we haven't yet mastered pre-algebra and long-division like our Third grade neighbor. When we've missed a really important truth - we are in Kindergarten and we are rocking it.



We have everything we need to create something beautiful right where we are. Let's be sure that we do.