Spring, so far

A friend recently asked me if I had given up social media for Lent.  Haha - woops!  No, I had not, but I can understand why she wondered.  Once spring arrived, we hit the ground running and didn't look back, I guess!  So, here are few updates and some of the pictures I didn't get around to sharing, previously:

Lydia is constantly surprising me not only with her requests to do things by herself, but also by the success she often has in these endeavors.  She asks to help me with the dishes, standing on her stool to hand them to me from the sink as I load the dishwasher.  Her several-word, descriptive sentences often use the word "like" or "buuuut," with a flip of her hand or bat of her eyes.  She has nearly mastered counting to ten, thanks to countless games of hide-and-seek, and points out every "L for Lydia!" she sees.  One of her favorite activities is to empty her Lego container and transfer all the pieces back into it with a spoon and/or a plastic mug.  She entered the garden this season as if no time had passed since last fall - ready and willing to pull every weed she saw.

She's joined her brother (very willingly) on the "fluffy" (a.k.a. steamer) bandwagon.  Our "downtown adventure" routine is to get them at a café in an old trolley (that the kids call a "street car") before riding the real street car).

A rare Sunday photo shoot was feasible when we all went to church together (rather than me going in a few hours earlier for rehearsal and first service).

Her request to make chocolate chip muffins was granted.

So proud to be using Great-Grandma Marceil's Foley fork. ♥

"Tan I do it by myself dis time?"

She didn't have to choose between pink frosting or sprinkles this time - there was one that had both!

Jacob continues to take us on a parenting roller coaster - a recent quote, "This has been the worst day ever, except for the fun parts."  If we're sticking with the theme park analogy, however, he provides lots of cotton candy along the way.  He is kind and thoughtful, and often sends guests out the door with something of his own (usually a piece of candy from his stash).  He is thrilled that Lydia is more and more able to play with him and even has her own ideas, sometimes.  There are the usual sibling spats, of course, but over all, he loves her so, so much and is such a cheerleader for her.  School is not always his favorite thing, but he's excelling in many subjects and on track in others, even though this technically wasn't even going to be an "official" kindergarten year.  When I tested him at the beginning of this semester, he was reading at a Level J (second grade), and he's breezing through his kindergarten math book.  While handwriting still isn't his strong suit, he has worked through all upper and lower case letters much more willingly than I anticipated (we just started the handwriting curriculum this semester).  He was asking about the garden even before it was time to plant and has been a willing and enthusiastic helper, which is so refreshing and endearing to me.

He calls me his "sweetheart," these days. ♥

This was the first sentence he's written.  The prompt was "write any sentence you want."
☺

He's putting some hand-me-down cleats and shin guards to good use thanks to a few weeks of "Bitty Soccer" through a local Parks & Rec.  It's a non-competitive program for preschoolers, and it's been really fun!  At the end of the first week's practice, he came off the field saying, "This is the best day of my life!" (despite the cold, very windy conditions).

This is how he ended what started as a seed-gathering hike with our weekly homeschool group.  All but one of the twelve kiddos ended up in the creek (with permission).
I grew up attending a once-a-week gifted class that took fairly regular "field trips" to walk to a nearby creek bed to look for fossils, creatures, etc., but mostly play in the mud and water. I don't know that it was necessarily an approved field trip and the time and certainly wouldn't be today, I'm guessing.  I don't have many strong childhood memories, but these were definitely core one.  So, as much as the mess and potential for all sorts of things to happen makes me cringe (working on this - ha), I'm very thankful for these opportunities and the moms and kiddos who make them possible and extra-special.

Jacob finished his first year in the Awana Sparks program and was so thrilled by the awards ceremony.  He was just as proud of himself for finishing his book as we were of him for doing so.

He finished memorizing and reciting all his verses well ahead of the curve, which allowed him to move into some extra credit work, earning him even more "bucks" to spend at the Awana store.  This was obviously very exciting.  ;)

I was talking with a friend recently about the sweet/nearly-perfect/endearing/wonderful moments of parenthood (particularly moments between siblings), and that while I think it sounds sort-of lofty and fantastical at times, sometimes the best word I can used to describe these moments is "magical."  So, here are some magical moments between siblings:

L was not as excited as J to be in "the big Chiefs chair."

He's been waiting so long for her to go down tandem slides with him.

He insisted this was a "swing built for two."

Jacob sometimes does "movie time rest time" for the rest time he has during Lydia's nap time.  On this day, he asked if we could do a "movie time lunch time," so Lydia would get to watch, too.  This was an easy "yes" for me, and they were so excited about it!  (For those wondering, they/Jacob chose Robin Hood.)

She was so excited to get to "go to Awana," and he was so glad to have her there.

Not pictured: many instances when they are sitting in the big chair together and Jacob is reading to Lydia.  (Sometimes Lydia "reads" to him, too!)

Our weeks often include playdates - some planned in advance and some spontaneous.  We're so thankful for friends, young and old!  During a recent visit, one of these friends drew an unprompted portrait of herself with Jacob, her sister, and Lydia (including meticulous details from everyone's outfits and accessories), so of course, we recreated it in real life!

This parenting journey is so many things, but above all, it is beautiful.  Though not every moment is easy and some days are harder than others, I am continually thankful that this is my job.  I am also so thankful to have such a wonderful partner in it - he is such a great dad and often knows what this mama needs before she does.  

As always, thanks for reading,

Kensy

Favorites of the day:

This tiny vase regularly being filled with tiny-hand-picked flowers.

I have a souped-up smoothie for breakfast, most mornings.  So, I fully enjoy opportunities to have brunch.  (That's an already-half-eaten pineapple Danish - yum!)

Getting my colors done - for FREE!
This is something I'd been curious about, but wasn't planning to ever pay to do for myself.  Then, a dear friend alerted me to the House of Colour's need for models for training in KC, and you'd better believe I jumped right on that!  I got a spot, asked another dear friend to watch the kids, and was able to take advantage of this awesome deal!  (Since it was free, I didn't walk away with pictures or some of the other typical offerings, but luckily, my consultant posted this before and after to her Instagram!  For those unfamiliar (as I was a couple days ago), you're assigned one of four seasons on their color wheel, based on your natural skin undertones and what colors best compliment and highlight your features.  I'm a winter, which was both surprising and not, and is great news, because it means I'm "allowed" to continue to wear black leggings and silver hoops as staple items!  Phew!  ;)