Camp

The church where we go to Awana has little camps instead of VBS.  Kate was going to go to sewing camp, and Luke, Ally, and Anna were going to go to  Lego camp.

Ally was really nervous about going.  I asked her what she was concerned about, and she said, "What if I'm the only red?"

"What?" I asked, not understanding.  "The only red what?"

"Head," she replied.

Camping issues

Sometimes I lose perspective of how young my kids really are.  It's become more apparent during this camping trip.

Yesterday morning we woke up after our first night in the tent and Ally said, "I have leafs in my bottom."

I asked her, "Leaves?  In your bottom?"

I had her show me, and I ended up cleaning not just leaves, but sand and small twigs, out of her bottom.  I realized that when she'd peed during the night, she hadn't realized she was supposed to crouch, but she'd sat down on the forest floor, just like she would have a toilet.  I'm trying not to think of how much urine must be on her skin and pajama pants.

Then this afternoon, we were leaving the bathroom by the nature center.  Kate reported there was pee on the floor.  I cleaned it up, and upon investigation, I got Luke to tell me that, "Anna wanted to know how it worked.  She thought I had to squeeze it, so I showed her."  Then frustrated, he added, "Why would I squeeze it!?"

I need a knife

I was cleaning up the house and the kids were playing outside when Luke came in and yelled upstairs to me, "Mommy!"

"Yeah?"

"I need a knife."

"A knife?  What do you need a knife for?"

"To carve this."

I came downstairs and saw he was holding a birch log from the woodpile.

"Oh," I said, "that's a fun idea, but I don't think it's safe for you to carve that with a knife."

He didn't miss a beat before suggesting an alternative, "A fork?"

I told him to draw a picture of what he was envisioning, and he drew this.

Later I helped him carve his cards.

He swept up all the sawdust into a sandwich bag and said, "I think I'm going to be rich."

Resisting an obvious smile, I asked him more about it.  He said he was going to sell the saw dust.  When I asked what people would use it for, he told me people could use it if they were making a pretend barn, they could pretend it was hay and he listed a few other ideas.  He asked me to list it on Kidscycle, so I asked him how much I should ask for it.  He thought for a while and then said definitively, "Two dollars."

Would you rather?

We were sitting around the campsite and the kids started playing "Would you Rather?"

Kate asked Anna, who still hates candy, "Would you rather have to eat 100 peices of licorice or 100 Laffy Taffies?"

Kate and Anna teased me by asking if I'd rather have to eat a food with 5 different food dyes or eat just a cup of plain sugar.

When it was Ally's turn, she asked, "Would you rather have a huge mustache that went all the way to the floor like this or would you rather have no house and no food..."

We all looked at her, and she continued, "...and be blind."

Our expressions must have made her second guess the severity of her second option, so she continued, "...but you'd have a dog helper."

This kid

Today is Kate's half-birthday.

I'm making her the traditional half cake, but as far as the smallish gift we usually give them...

From our "Mommy & Kate" notebook

Honestly.  She sometimes makes my heart feel like it will explode.

Garden time!

We finally got the garden planted last weekend.

Luke and his school friends are obsessed with Plant Vs. Zombies books, so he told us all the vegetables we'd need to plant to keep ourselves safe in case of a zombie attack.

Then the four of them planted a few rows.

After that, Luke and Anna weren't too much help.

We've divided the family into those who like to work, and those who like to relax.  My helpers are Kate and Ally, although Ally got a bit obsessed with her new pet worms and didn't do all that much.

Kate worked hard the whole time.

Now we just have to hope some things grow.

Spirit of Stormonth

Each year our school chooses two fourth graders, through a process of teacher votes, who have exemplified excellence in character and academics throughout their six years at Stormonth to receive the Spirit of Stormonth Award.  This year Kate was chosen!

We learned of it before hand, so I mentioned it to Lila's mom (Kate's first grade teacher) because I wanted to check if she minded if I let a friend watch Lila during the ceremony.  Kate's first grade teacher was ecstatic at the news.  Near tears, she exclaimed, "I'm so glad!  I wrote a whole note on the voting form why it had to be her!"

Kate's third grade teacher surprised her afterwards with flowers and a card filled with such a kind message that it made me cry.

Kate's current teacher spoke about her at the ceremony and told a story of how when the class was recently learning about the judicial branch, she asked the students what kind of characteristics they'd like to see in a judge they had to stand before.  She said the students in the class immediately pointed to Kate, "A judge should be like Kate."

It was a day of celebration and tears.  Dave and I are overwhelmed with feelings of pride in her and gratitude that we've been blessed with such an amazing little girl to raise.

Kate, with her flowers from her beloved 3rd grade teacher, in front of her very successful Little Library

When we saw Anna after the assembly, she ran up and said, "I'm so proud of Kate!"

Ally, however, was not excited.  She was angry that she didn't get an award.

My two redheads have quite different personalities!

Here's the plaque Kate gets her name on.

Lila

I'll be saying goodbye to Lila in a couple days.  She'll get to spend the summer home with her mom, and next year, so I can devote more time to my family than I could do with the demands of a toddler and so she can have more consistency to her schedule, she'll be going to a daycare.

Gosh, I'm going to miss this baby.  I haven't let myself think about it too much, but today I'm a little weepy.  She's grown into a social little six-month-old, full of smiles and rolls in her thighs that are just right for nibbling.

Every time she gets my attention and flashes me her gummy grin, I smile back and then the lump in my throat returns and my eyes well up.  It doesn't help that our last week with Lila coincides with PMS and an emotional end of the school year.

The kids are so sad about saying goodbye to her, too.  I think they kept thinking I'd change my mind and we'd have her again next year.  As it's settling in, they're mad at me and sad.

Darn baby.

At Kate's Ukulele concert

Morning bottle time

Giving Ally a turn with Lila, too.

My favorite thing Lila does when shopping... that foot.
She'll stick it up there every time she's in a cart.
When I comment on it, she thinks she's hilarious!