Lydia's Graduation Party

Our friends, Tommy and Tricia, watched their oldest daughter graduate from high school last weekend.  As a mother, I cannot imagine what that would be like.  Watching them let go has made me so thankful that I still have some time...

Tricia asked me if I would be willing to help decorate for Lydia's graduation party.  She told me that she wanted to use the school colors of black, red, and gold, and that she wanted a candy buffet.  Other than that, she was pretty open.

I kept things pretty simple with black and red balloons, tissue poms, and the candy buffet.  I also did a wishing tree where people could write down their wishes for Lydia.

My favorite decoration was the centerpiece for the food table.  I made graduation cap pops with Ghiradelli chocolates, mini Reese's peanut butter cups, and some melted chocolate to hold everything together.

AND my the most exciting part about planning for this party is that I got my birthday present two days before the party...

Are you ready?

Are you sure?

Keep scrolling down...

I got a Silhouette!!!  If you're not crafty, you probably don't care or even know what I'm talking about.  But if you are, you're probably pretty jealous.  I understand.  I'm jealous of me, too.  :-)

When I had owned my new toy for less than twelve hours, I had already made this banner:

The Silhouette came with the pennant shape, so I just had to type out the letters, send everything to the machine, and glue it all together!  I spent less than an hour on the whole thing!  I also made the little graduation cap for the card box and the word "cards" to go on it.  Easy peasy.

Congratulations to all 2011 graduates, and happy birthday to me!  :-)  I see lots of fun projects in my future...

Cora's Dedication

On May 22nd, we had Cora dedicated at our church.  It was a very significant event for us as a family, and I have put off writing about it because I haven't been sure I would be able to express adequately what it meant to us.  And, if I'm honest, I'm afraid of silence.  I used to get lots of comments on this blog after I was featured on other blogs, but things have gotten pretty quiet lately.  It's probably because I was featured as a craft / decorating blog, and posts about my kids don't really interest those who don't know me.  I totally get that.  However, I can't cater just to those who don't know me.  One of my main reasons for blogging is to keep a record of our lives for my children, and I want them to know how incredibly important Cora's dedication was to us.

So, despite my fears that people won't care, I have to stay true to my heart and my kids and write about something that matters to us...

We are thankful to go to a small church.  We are not mega-church people at all.  We want a church where we can know people and have everyone know us - where we can build lots of meaningful relationships.  We just want to be driven by Jesus and not distracted by numbers.  One of the benefits of having a small church is that it can be really personal.  And that's exactly what Cora's dedication was.

In the past, our church has done mass dedications the way most churches do.  However, they weren't really personal or meaningful.  We didn't dedicate Cora as an infant because it didn't seem important to to stand up front and have her look cute for two minutes without giving any real thought to the reason we were there.

One day, our children's ministry director - and my good friend - Hope, shared with me that her kids' dedications were some of the most significant days of her life.  I simply couldn't understand that.  Brennan's dedication had been nice, but I would hardly count it as that significant.

As I talked with Hope about how I wish dedications at our church were more meaningful, she started plotting and scheming to make them just that.  And before I knew it, she announced that the church was going to try something new: dedicating only one child in a given month.

The new method would require "homework" for the parents which included writing a letter to the child about who they wished the child would become.  The point was not just to talk about worldly success, but to talk about our deepest prayers and aspirations for our child.

Writing this letter was the most significant part of Cora's dedication.  It gave us an opportunity to be thoughtful about parenting and how we defined "success" in Cora's life.  It was a chance to be intentional.

After we had finished our homework, Hope came to our house and videotaped us talking about Cora, and reading our letters.  We probably shot 45 minutes of unedited video, which she is going to burn to CD for us to give to Cora someday.  I cannot imagine what that would mean to me, to have something like that from my parents.  It makes me cry and gives me goosebumps to think about it.

In the end, the video was pared down to about 3.5 minutes, which were shared with the congregation.  Then we were called up front, Hope read some scripture, and our pastor, Jay, prayed for Cora.  It was very, very sweet.

If you'd like to watch the video that was shared with the church, you can view it here.

The dedication is just a chance to acknowledge that our children belong to Jesus.  We want nothing more in this whole world than for our kids to know, love, and serve God.  It's really that simple.  We are thankful to Hope and our church for an opportunity to proclaim that in a way that will hopefully impact others and leave a legacy for our kids.

Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,

the fruit of the womb a reward.

Like arrows in the hand of a warrior

are the children of one's youth.

Blessed is the man

who fills his quiver with them!

He shall not be put to shame

when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

—Psalm 127:3-5

Crazy Days of... May?

May was a wonderful month for our family, but I'm glad it's over.  It was nonstop busy, and I'm exhausted.

Jim's mom visited for the first two weeks of the month, and my mom visited for the other two weeks.  During their combined visits we celebrated Mother's Day, Jim's birthday, Brennan's graduation, Cora's dedication, my birthday, and Memorial Day.  Jim and I started coordinating a new FPU class halfway through the month, and I helped plan a friend's daughter's graduation party. I also spent some time organizing and prepping crafts for next week's Vacation Bible School, and I threw out my back at the beginning of the month, which meant lots of delays and trips to a chiropractor.

It was all crazy and fun (except the part about my back), but I am ready for a slow, lazy summer.  I want to take lots of trips to the pool, plan play dates with friends, drink lemonade, buy flowers for my front porch, watch TV with Brennan while Cora naps, visit the library, and read some fluffy fiction instead of all of the useful instructional books that are currently on my nightstand.

Several of the events from May deserve a post of all their own, so I will hopefully start playing catch-up over the next few days.  In the mean time, here is a random picture that doesn't fit anywhere else.  The picture below was taken at a tea at Belmont Mansion with my mom and her friend Michelle.  It was a very yummy tea with the best cucumber sandwiches, scones, and petit fors.  Mmmm...

And now I'm going to curl up under a blanket and do absolutely nothing.  Maybe I will dry my hair in the next hour, but I don't have huge aspirations beyond that.  Today is a day of recovery, and tomorrow probably will be too.  Look out summer, here I come...

Brennan is a Graduate!

Our little boy is certainly growing up.  This past Friday, he graduated from preschool.  I can't believe his preschool days are behind us now.  It's so surreal!

The kids did a cute presentation with songs and then each child was called by name to receive a medal.

Even though we got there on time, I had to deliver Brennan to his classroom and take him to the bathroom, and by the time I got to the sanctuary, all of the seats in the main part were taken.  We ended up so far back in a little annex that I couldn't get decent photos.  This one below is the best I could do when Brennan received his medal:

Seriously a bummer.  :-(  I wanted to cry.  I know I wasn't entitled to good seats just because I'm a mom, but I was sad anyway.  I so treasure good photos.

This is a picture of Cora clapping when the kids were receiving their medals.  Jim stood in the very back with Cora so she could get down and run around.

As the kids were exiting the auditorium, Brennan was the absolute last kid to leave.  (He was on the top row in the last class to leave.)  He didn't like all of the noise and chaos, but you can tell he isn't totally miserable.

I didn't get a picture of Brennan coming in at the beginning because it was too crowded, and I was too busy trying not to cry.  I didn't plan to cry at all, but the kids came in to "A, You're Adorable," which is a song that I sang to Brennan constantly when he was a baby.  I just couldn't believe they picked that song!

After the ceremony, I got a picture of Brennan with his teacher, Ms. Carla.  He is happy that he hasn't had to say good-bye yet.  She is going to be one of the teachers at his summer camp in a few weeks.

Congratulations to my little graduate!  Now it's time to get ready for the big leagues!

Strawberry Picking

Yesterday my mother-in-law and I took the kids to a farm about an hour northeast of here so we could go strawberry picking.  

There is nothing quite like finding perfect, red, ripe strawberries, ready for picking...

Oh, wait.  Yes, there is. 

These were the most delicious, warm, unbeLIEVable strawberries ever!

It was HOT and we couldn't stop Cora from eating every single strawberry she laid her hands on.  After picking a few buckets and sweating a few buckets, Brennan was over the heat.

But when we got home and he ate some cooled strawberries after dinner, he changed his tune.  I had to cut him off after he ate two whole bowls of them!

I'd love to freeze and enjoy them all year, but I know that will never happen.  We bought 15 pounds of strawberries, and even if I freeze a bunch, I'll bet they'll be gone by the end of June.  

Simple pleasures are the best.

Mother's Day Wisdom

Sunday was a sweet Mother's Day.  I was served breakfast in bed (Brennan's idea and Daddy's effort), I was given a bunch of precious homemade treasures, and I got to go out to dinner with my two favorite little people and adoring husband.  I felt loved.

And I needed to feel loved.

I hurt my back last Thursday, and it has been terrible.  I haven't been myself at all.  I have had to feel all kinds of unpleasant things.  Besides feeling incredible pain, I feel helpless, worthless, and dependent.  Those things are just as uncomfortable for me as sleeping on the floor.

Being hurt makes me really look at myself honestly. Some of what I see is good, and some of it isn't.  Although my desire to serve my family and friends is a good thing, my stubbornness is not always my best trait.  And I'm discovering that my not wanting to ask for help is because I don't always feel secure enough in my relationships to believe that people really want to help me.  Of course, I've been on the other side of things, and I know that when I offer to help people, I mean it.  When I'm the one who needs help, I worry:  Am I asking too much?  Am I being needy?  Am I being selfish? 

Brennan is good at teaching me things.  He tells me when he needs a hug.  He tells me when I have hurt his feelings.  He trusts me to love him unconditionally.  When he asks for a hug, he can be pretty confident that he will get one and it will be given with love.  He doesn't have any baggage that tells him to do everything for himself. 

Kids are so good like that.  I learn a lot from my kids.

In fact, Brennan teaches me all kinds of things I didn't know about myself.  Like almost everything in this list below:

Actually, he got four questions right.  Any guesses on which ones?

19 Months and 5 Years Old

I haven't really written any updates on my kiddos in a while, and since part of the reason I keep this blog is to keep a record of our family life, I want to do it before the moment has passed us by.

Brennan

Brennan is growing like a weed.  I just bought him a whole new wardrobe for spring and summer, and this is the first time I have purchased separate play clothes and school / church clothes.  He is not an extreme rough and tumble boy, but he is still a boy who enjoys exploring outside, and I can't bear to see all of his clothes get ruined before we start kindergarten.

Brennan's reading skills have gotten even better, and it appears he is now reading independently on a second grade level.  He is also showing more and more interest in writing.  Every day he is making signs to label doors, walls, and even boxes.  He writes and illustrates books and occupies himself for hours at a time, just writing and illustrating.

Preschool graduation is coming up, and I am amazed that we are about to enter a new chapter for our "baby."  He is definitely ready.  Preschool has been a wonderful experience (after three programs, I finally found one that I really love), but Brennan has been bored and frustrated, asking why he has to keep learning things he already knows.  He is most definitely his daddy's son with an unquenchable thirst for knowledge.

We recently read through the Jesus Storybook Bible (a must read for little kids and even adults!), and we have been talking more about God's plan for salvation.  We are looking for intentional opportunities to teach Brennan about our great God.  It's a daily process of living for Christ and modeling that to our kids, and it is a huge responsibility and honor.

Cora

Cora is so sweet and kind-hearted, giving hugs, kisses, and lots of affection.  When I lay her down in her bed at night or at nap time, she lays in her crib on her back with her little hand in the air, opening and closing her fist saying, "Bye-bye, Mommy.  Night-night.  Bye-bye.  Bye-bye, Mommy.  Luffyou.  Night-night."  Sometimes I just want to scoop her back up and never let go.

After we ruled out a milk allergy and got some fat into Cora several months ago, she went up to the 25th percentile in weight, which is where she is currently.  She is still very, very tall (over the 95th percentile in height), so she wears 18 month clothes which hang down on her waist and yet still fit because she is so long.  We just recently moved to size 4 diapers, which was a big achievement.  :-)

Cora has hit a stage where every word that comes out of her mouth strikes me as cute and funny.  Her favorite expressions right now are, "HereyougoMommy" as she hands me things, "DaddyHome?" every time she hears the garage door (or the air conditioning, which sounds like the garage door), and "Messy!" which is what she tells me every time she eats.  She loves to bounce while saying, "Dancin'! Dancin'!" Her speech is absolutely amazing, and Brennan often asks me after school if Cora learned any new words that day.  Last night she discovered a hairball on the play room floor, and we could hear her in there saying, "Look! Nasty! Nasty!" :-)

Cora's favorite thing to do is dress up.  She is always putting on someone's shoes, boots, hats, sunglasses, etc.  We have started a bin of accessories for her, and her motto is "more is better."

My children are such a tremendous gift.  It's true what they say: "The days are so long, but the years are so short."

These are such happy, blessed years.