Pre-K Kiddo

This week the Peanut started pre-k. Three days a week he goes to school with his 3 buddies who live on our street. None of them are in the same class, but just the knowledge that they are all there together has bonded them even more. :)

He was SOOO ready to start. So excited....so fun. Really proud of his Toy Story lunch box.

He was confident, walking right in to his class and introducing himself to his teacher.

He sat down in his chair and started to dot-paint over his name, smiling and saying hi (somewhat shyly) to the kids sitting next to him. Patiently smiling for all the pictures I was taking.

Looking like a serious student as he watched what the other kids were doing. ;)

And then he (very sweetly) told me it was time for me to go. ;) Yes, he did. I needed that though...otherwise I might have stayed and watched until the teachers made me leave. Awkward. ;) So I left...with minimal tears. That's kind of a big deal for this mom who just dropped her youngest baby off at his first day of preschool. A first for him. A last for me.

And here's the after school pic. :)
"School was great, Mom. I LOVE school!"

I look at him and am amazed by how much he has changed so quickly. Gone is the tiny one who used to hide behind my legs when meeting someone new. In fact, that's exactly what he did back in January when we went to visit the school that he so confidently walked into this week. That little guy has been replaced by an older version who is much more sure of himself, will talk to anybody (I have to watch him even more carefully because of that), and loves to be the center of attention. He's funny and thoughtful, tough and cuddly, sweet and confident.

I think it's going to be a good year. :)

And I'm just going to enjoy it as slowly as possible, because next year he will be starting kindergarten while his oldest brother will be starting middle school, which just might put me over the edge. ;)

Love and Like

Last week we were sitting in the family room, enjoying a picnic dinner of Domino's pizza. It had been a long Sunday...Sunday school, church, and then a Sunday school teacher training after. 40 minute drive there and back. We were tired. Tired, but happy, and as I looked around the room at the 4 guys God has so graciously (and undeservedly) blessed me with, something hit me hard.

I really, REALLY like these people.
You know...we say "I love you" all the time. In the morning before we leave each other, for work, school, etc. At night when Brian and I are tucking the boys into bed. And lots of times in between. What can I say? It's a love fest in our house. ;) So much so, that I'm afraid sometimes that the word "love" is so overused in our house that it will somehow, over time,
lose it's meaning.

Love is typically instant, at least for me.
I fell in love pretty quickly with B. The second I saw him, I knew he was special.
Within the first 3ish months of our relationship, I knew he was the one.

And of course, when learning about each of our 5 pregnancies, the love was instant then as well. Just the knowledge that there was a little person growing inside me....there's nothing better than that.
That love only increased the second I laid eyes on each of our boys when they were born. And the love is the same for the two we lost...the two who I know are waiting for us, that we'll see again someday. I never understood that saying about how your heart is walking around in those little bodies until I became a mom. It's amazing.

But to say "I like you." That's different. It's not a guarantee that we're going to like everybody. You can love someone without actually liking them. And that's okay....we're all different, and we're called to love our neighbors, our friends, our family. But like? That's sometimes harder.

Today Hud came in our bedroom where I was watching "The Proposal" for probably the 100th time (it's one of my favorites), hugged me, and said "I like you Mom. A lot." And my heart swelled to much bigger than it's usual full self. :) Somehow saying "I like you" seemed to mean just as much as "I love you."

As these three get older, and taking them places is becoming less of a responsibility and more of a completely fun, easy experience....I see how much fun we have together. How each of their personalities are so completely different, and how they somehow complement each other. And I find myself getting excited with each new phase we enter with them, instead of focusing on having to let go of the phases we're leaving behind.

We're silly.

We willingly sit outside in the cold to work from home so that we can attempt to have a successful garage sale. ;)

We drive big tractors (actually...I've never done that. But Harrison helps my Dad a lot, and he's great at it.) ;)

And we ride the merry-go-round really fast and scream loud as we spin super fast around and around. And around.

Do we get on each others' nerves? Sometimes.
Are there days when we just need some alone time? Yes.
Is it always rainbows and puppies around here? Absolutely not.

But it's also home. It's us. It's mostly fun and crazy, with a mix of order and stability. A safe place where each of us gets to be us, without having to explain why. Where we love each other, and like each other too, and are trying to be the same way with the other people in our world.