G-bear's wisdom

"You know what I figured out, M?"

"What?"

"I figured out that the faster you do something you really don't want to do, the sooner you can do what you want."

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"You don't really know what you are best at until you try it."

Songs by Moo

This girl sometimes just blows my mind.  She has such a keen sense of beauty, and she seeks it, finds it, holds it, and creates it.  Here are a couple of songs she has written in the last few days.  After writing them out like this, it is striking to me how much of her sense of beauty and goodness is expressed in the word "light."  She clearly has a sense for light that is externally and internally beautiful.  I hope to learn the melody with them, and maybe we can get a video someday soon.  Also, I haven't asked her the name of her songs, so their titles are subject to change.

The world

Make this world a wonderful place.
Make it blossom and bloom.
Make the stars filled up with light.
Make it so the stars show that I will be there soon.


The world is twinkling.
The world is bright.
The world is filling up with light.


The seed


A little little seed upon the ground
Will it grow?
Will it sprout?
Will the seed turn into light?
Will it bring a wonderful life?
Will it turn into a bloom?
Will it shine with light?
Will it open up a blossom?

2 puppies + 1 toddler

These puppies  (our's and my parents') are adorable, yes?

So is the toddler involved, by the way.  However, this combo has the potential to be very stressful.  You see (in case you haven't recently owned one), puppies love to and need to romp.  And romping can be scary for kids, because it often involves some growls and teeth and rolling around.

Well, I'm here to tell you that our little Boo is not phased by it.  In fact, he desperately wants to be in the middle of it!  We have tried numerous times to prevent this, or to bring it to a halt, but the thing is, he loves it, and truly the puppies are careful not to hurt him.

We will have to keep an eye on them (all three, since the toddler needs reminders to be gentle, and that the puppies are not soccer balls) as they grow bigger and stronger.  For now, they're all having a lot of fun.

This toddler and our puppy have gotten into the habit of napping together, and I can't stop taking pictures of it.  Oh, the sweetness!

G-Bear-isms

Yesterday, she was pretending that she was "God's daughter, and was just released to go discover the world for the very first time."  She was wildly running and dancing all over the place, being as dramatic as ever, and singing the song in her head.  The line we heard was, "I've never seen. . . . so much green."  She periodically adds vibrato to her singing voice these days.  Oh, the drama!

Often she has difficulty including Boo in her play, because she is just certain that he will "mess. it. up!!!"  Today, I had had enough of that, and told her that she absolutely must be inclusive if she wanted to play out in the backyard with all of us.  After going back and forth, trying all sorts of compromises, she finally said, "OK, Mama, I will try to be reflexible."  OK, deal.

As a demonstration of the fierceness of her love, I wanted to show you the picture she drew for her Aunt Wendy this morning. I didn't get a picture of it, though, so I will just tell you what she asked me to write on it.  "Wendy, you are my life!"  Then she wanted me to draw music notes and write "Wendy's here to stay" so that she would know it's from the song in Peter Pan.

I took pictures of her outfits today, because even though it's nothing unusual around here, some may find it impressive that she dressed in three of these elaborate outfits before 8:30 a.m.  Each outfit also came with a detailed, long-winded explanation and dramatic demonstration.  Oh, and little Boo was trying to join in on the fun with his froggie boots!

Reconnecting

One of the thrills of coming back to a place we've lived is reconnecting with friends.  We have missed them very much over the past few years.  I think for G-bear, it's mostly like making new friends, although she remembers some visits, and she connects fast.  Moo remembers more, and some of the friends she has reconnected with, she has known since she was a baby.  It's also thrilling to meet new people.  We have this wonderful mix of new and old, familiar and fresh.  Already, we have been relaxing with friends much more often than we ever did in Georgia.  It seems to take less effort here.  Last weekend, we spent nearly the whole weekend visiting with a string of friends, and I realized, this is exactly what we have been craving.

Stella

We welcome to our home and our family. . . Stella!!!!  We have long-awaited her arrival, wondered who she would be, and have finally found her and brought her home.  She is a very sweet puppy.  We know that there are some challenges ahead, and we are okay with that.  Right now, we are enjoying how cuddly and loving and patient she is.  (and no, she doesn't sleep in our bed, in case that picture made you wonder.  that was naptime!).

Grandparents

We had a wonderful week with Grandparents in town!  These grandparents came all the way from Kansas, and spent the whole time adoring our kids and catching up with us.  What a treat for all of us.  We appreciate you making the trip, Grandpa Ned and Grammie Cammie!

Children's Museum

I love children's museums.  It is always refreshing to go into a place where every corner is designed for the children.  It is safe and friendly and fun greets you everywhere you turn.  We ventured to the local children's museum, and it was great fun.  We had Mark along with us, as well as Grammie Cammie and Grandpa Ned, so it was easy to keep track of everyone, which made it much more relaxing!

Blueberries

We love 'em.  We love my Aunt Pam's song, we love to eat them in all forms, we love to pick them, we just love them!

This place is a place we discovered before moving to Georgia, and it was even more wonderful at this stage.  The blueberry bushes make a wonderfully enchanted space for the kids.  The owners are very friendly and encourage the kids to "stuff their faces" with the berries.  The berries are not sprayed, so they can eat them safely.  The owners have even started a food stand for snacks, with blueberry donuts, muffins, crumble, and even blueberry-smoked sausage, egg, and cheese sandwiches!  What a wonderful morning to meet friends, explore, and fill our tummies!!!

Cousins

One wonderful thing about summertime: reconnecting with cousins.  This summer, the kids got to spend some time with both first and second cousins.  Soon, we'll see some more second cousins, so I will update the pictures after that!