That moment….

when you hear your very words coming from your eight year old daughter's mouth.

Yesterday, while shopping online for new tennis shoes. I pointed to a pair that I liked. My ever present, over the shoulder looking daughter,  said, "Eighty-nine dollars for a pair of shoes? That's just absolutely ridiculous! You can find some cheaper than that, that's just a waste of money."

Those were her exact words and I know exactly who she's heard say them!

I don't know whether to be very proud, or afraid…very afraid,  to know she's listening that closely to me?

Bentonville Civil War Re-enactment April 19

To celebrate the 150 year anniversary of the end of the Civil War there was a big reenactment at the Bentonville Battleground.

It was a great look into life during this time. The kids were enthralled and learned many facts about the war.

The reenactors took their jobs very seriously.

Even the ladies

and their children

they actually spent 2 nights in these tents

this lady, I suppose, was the local "Molly Pitcher"

Before the battle they met in the middle of the field for  a "coin toss", as my comedic husband said.

General Sherman worked the crowd

The union soldiers dug tunnels to hide behind

Once the battle began, I spotted this "spy" lurking behind the confederate troops

Then the battle began. John and I both figured out really quickly that we wouldn't have wanted to carry the flag into battle. The flagbearer would fall and you could bet that whoever picked it up would be next to get hit.

Carrying the wounded

There was a lull in the battle and the confederates made a surprise attack from behind the union troops. The crowd applauded and roared their approval.

Someone had to play the part of a deserter.

General Johnston…

It was neat to watch them march and hear the fife and drum.

We toured the house which was used as a field hospital. I can't imagine what it would be like to have your house taken over and wounded soldiers brought in.

Afterwards, Abbey chose a parasol and Elijah wanted a rifle.

All that "soldiering" plumb tuckered out my boy!

But when we got home, he was refreshed and stood guard (on his own, not at our suggestion), by our door.

 The day was very insightful and a great glimpse into our past.

Changes

I don't like change! I like the constant of knowing what's going to happen and when. I like being able to think I have a handle on the situation.  Change disrupts all these feelings! Change with kids is inevitable, and inevitably it makes me sad. It means they are growing up, getting closer to flying out of my nest and in the air on their own. Boo change!!

We have had two distinct changes in the appearance of my youngest two. The first was something that I couldn't control and was  normal rite of passage.

Elijah lost his first tooth!

Before it came out, but was bleeding as it got ready. Look at those sweet baby teeth.

Through my parenting years, I've discovered there are two types of baby tooth losers. Those who, upon discovering a "loosey" will constantly be seen with their fist in their mouths wiggling away. A little blood? Phooey! No reason for concern. They've waged war on that little baby tooth and they won't stop until it's out. John, Anna, Daniel and Abbey fall into this category. Then there are the likes of my first and last kids, Beth and Elijah. They nurse those baby teeth. Barely wiggling them and eating all around their mouth in order to avoid biting on the loose tooth. If they see the slightest bit of blood, they panic, thinking they may be in need of a transfusion. These types walk around with the tooth dangling by a thread. Most of the time, they require assistance before the tooth is out, especially the first one.

Elijah has had the loose tooth for quite a while. The top picture showed it a day or so before it came out. I was the one who gave the tooth its final yank. I had won Elijah's trust. He would let me wiggle, as long as I would stop the minute he yelled, "Stop!" The final time, he yelled and I showed him the tooth! He was so excited that it was out.

He's lost another one close on the heels of the first one. Both times the "tooth fairy", who is unlike any other family's tooth fairy, came and brought Elijah $2 per tooth. (You have to be part of our family to be in on our tooth fairy secret, but a clue is that our tooth fairy is often in need of a shave)

So now it's off to the land of "teeth and ears", (which is how fellow teachers used describe little ones when their big teeth came in), for Elijah. And mama mourns….

Abbey has made a big change in her appearance. She got her long, beautiful hair cut! She had been clamoring for a style change for a while. I really didn't want her to cut her long tresses. I even offered to allow her to color part of her hair, if she wouldn't cut it. She wouldn't hear it, she was bound and determined to have her locks chopped. I've made the choice not to make hair a battle. I will have bigger fish to fry! They can do whatever with their hair, it will grow back. So we made a date with our personal cosmetologist, Anna.

Before

During

After

She's still beautiful, but I really miss her lovely hair. I could do so much with it. Now we are severely limited in our style choices. But, she loves it!  She now looks like a preteen instead of a little girl. (I think that was what she desired, and definitely what I did not).

So, change is happening and I don't like it. But, I saw a quote the other day. "If we didn't have change, we wouldn't have any butterflies!" So, I guess I need to embrace the change around me, and rejoice as  my caterpillars as they turn into butterflies.

Madame President??

Last night as I was putting Abbey in bed, she seriously said, "I think I'm ready to drive a car now." My first thought was, "I know I am not and society is not in any way ready for you to drive a car."

I have no idea where this statement originated. I guess she figures if one can successfully drive a car using a little remote control like thingy over highways and racetracks on a television, then one is fully ready to take on a real car??

Anyway, I told her that it was against the law, that in our state one had to be 15 years old to drive a car.  Not to be deterred, she then said, "Well, one day I'm going to be the President and then I'll make a law saying that 8 year olds can drive."

I know full well, that the way the law reads right now, Abbey could never be President of the US, because she was born in China. But, I did not see the need in telling her that. Who knows? Laws change all the time. Though not very likely, one day she could be addressed as "Madame President"! If so, I'm warning you, you better watch out for 8 year old drivers!

Me and my "the sky's the limit" girl!

Easter 2015

A few days before Easter the kids and I went to a friends house for an Easter Egg hunt.
The night before we created these cute little bunny cars.

Abbey goes up high

Elijah goes down low.

The whole party gang.

Abbey won the special egg and got a gift card. Later that night I got an e mail from one of the moms. She just wanted to let me know that she was really glad that Abbey got the egg. She had watched as Abbey spotted an egg at the same time as one of her little boys. Abbey backed off and let the little boy get it. She also told me that one of her sons said that Elijah gave him one of his eggs, because her boy was having a difficult time finding eggs. What a proud mama I was!


We decided to spend Easter at the beach this year. The weather was gorgeous…chilly but gorgeous. On Saturday, Daniel came and surfed. The kids and I got a kick out of watching him.

 We saw a few falls

Then…

Success! Which he celebrated with a flip at the end.

We walked on the beach and enjoyed the sunset.

The pool was quite chilly, but that didn't stop my two.

I'm not sure what is going on in this picture. It looks like Elijah is really relaxed or either upset about something.

Abbey and Elijah met Colton. Colton and his family have moved into the house across the street from us. He and Elijah have become fast friends. He can often be heard exclaiming, "Elijah is my 'BFF'!" Colton is a trip! He can be found up by 7am talking to Abbey and Elijah through the window of our house, while John and I are still asleep. It's neat for them to have friends at our home away from home.

We also got together with another set of friends that weekend. Jody and her girls came over to swim in the pool and have an Easter egg hunt.

We walked to the park down the street and they played for a while. Then Abbey went and spent the night with Lily. We took Elijah to enjoy a slushie, from Sunset Slushie, which is down from our house.

My hubby enjoying his "happy place"

It was a full vacation. Full of fun, food and friends!