Life not-so-lately

I have (obviously) been terribly behind on blog posts - I keep not posting things on Instagram because I plan to make it a blog post instead, but those "posts" have accumulated...

So, in the name of efficiency, this is going to be one long post of "short posts" (a la a book of short stories).  This blog is very much a tool for posterity's sake, so while I do share it for those who are interested, I definitely don't expect anyone to be super invested or read it in its entirety, by any means.

As we put away our Christmas decorations on Epiphany, I reflected on the joy and magic and special-ness of this season with kiddos.  We took the week off school the week before Christmas (as well as a couple after) and immersed ourselves in the Christmas story.  After talking about all things Christmas in Sunday school, as well, Lydia requested we make a nativity, and Jacob was immediately on board.  I assisted with the structure, but the rest was all them.  They brought out all their stuffies to play various roles (note the Furby angel (thanks, Sonic)) and proceeded to truly adore their baby Jesus. 

What struck me most about this occurrence was how organic it was.  I played no part in initiating any of ideas; I simply granted a request to help with the heavy-lifting.  This was a role-play I certainly could have tried to orchestrate.  A reenactment I could have prescribed and directed.  By giving them space to play and imagine (even if that space was created due to me wanting to finish the breakfast dishes), however, they did it all on their own, and it was so precious.

I was feeling under the weather one day, so Jacob made and delivered a red-themed Lego creation with special flowers and love notes in the mailbox.  Lydia followed suit as best she could.  ♥

Work smarter, not harder.  Proud of this boy!

modeling their "skis"
(You gotta do what you gotta do for entertainment in the dead of winter...)

a snow "donut shop" complete with drive-thru window, thanks to Daddy

The first (and last, so far) time I've granted the "Can we nap together?" request.  They took forever to settle, Jacob was only pretending to sleep, and Lydia only did so for a sleep cycle.  Was sure a sweet idea, though.  (Lydia has since dropped naps, so we'll see if this ever happens again.)

The kids and I recently made our first trip all together to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art.  They did a great job practicing museum etiquette and were appropriately interested in several pieces and artifacts.  Mostly, however, Jacob wanted to see the huge "flowers" (a.k.a. shuttlecocks) that we always see outside on the lawn when driving by.  They asked for joint and individual pictures by each one...enjoy:

I grew up going to this museum on field trips and have vivid memories of the delicious smells and sounds of dining coming from the atrium. (We always took sack lunches to eat on the front steps.) So, I decided to fulfill a childhood dream and explore and partake in the museum restaurant (I packed lunches for the kids, not knowing what would be available for any of us. Was glad I did, as the PB&J kids meal option (which is what I packed for them) was $10.50...😬).  I felt so indulgent and irrationally fancy and excited about it - haha.  Totally worth it, though - delicious!

Photo courtesy of Jacob ♥

The steps we didn't eat on... 😉

That post ended up being less meaty than I originally thought - ha!  I guess the quantity of unfinished/unshared thoughts was more daunting than it needed to be.  All the same, thanks for reading and maintaining interest in our normal, everyday lives.  We have made it through winter and are so glad for all that spring will bring!

Gratefully,

Kensy

Favorites of the day:

weeding the garden and picking volunteer cilantro in January

cocoa-dusted truffles

our homeschool co-op

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!  ;)

Thanksgiving 2018

I know we're well into December, by now (how did that happen?!), but at least I'm getting this up before Christmas, right?  I considered just posting these pictures in a Facebook album, but like I've said before, I consider this blog a place to curate our life, and in case I get it printed someday (hoping that's a thing...?), I'm going to put them here.  Plus, I can give a little better commentary in this format.

So, before I get to Thanksgiving festivities, a little background:

Have I ever told you my mom grew up on a farm in the middle of Nebraska?  She did, and her brother and his wife and my grandpa still live there (Grandma is with Jesus)!  There are two separate houses on the property, as well as a barn, harvestore(s), lots of out buildings with equipment, corrals, etc., etc.  There are pastures surrounding and across the street (and train tracks) where the horses and cattle live.  There have been other animals on the farm over the years, as well, but a staple is the herd of barn cats that come from all directions every morning when my grandpa walks across the farm to feed them, singing, "Hello, my babies!" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkfU1JqmkHM) You know how I feel about cats, so you can imagine how I felt about having so many of them (and usually a litter or two of kittens) around at once any time we'd visit.

I grew up spending every-other Thanksgiving/Christmas on the farm, as well as a solid week each summer.  There was the occasional wedding/funeral/reunion trip, as well, but since it was six hours away, if we were going, we were going for several days.  I have more memories than space/time to share here, but this post about our most recent trip will allow me to share a few.

When we go to the farm, we're there to stay, which means the days are pretty much as follows:

wake up

eat breakfast

do the dishes

feed the cats

walk around the farm

eat lunch

do the dishes

take a nap (or work outside)

eat supper

do the dishes

play games

go to bed

Sometimes, there's a football game on.  Sometimes, we might run to town on an errand.  If it's Saturday night, we eat popcorn and make shakes.  But mostly, we spend quality time together, whether it's helping with a project, putting together a puzzle, or reminiscing through the coffee table photo album.  There's always food and laughter and memories made, and I think I can speak for everyone when I say it is so special to be able to begin sharing all this with the next generation.

Speaking of those babies...here they are pre-Thanksgiving meal:

You may recall a similar picture from several months ago...

These were my first Cricut HTV projects, and it was so fun to make them for our sweet babies!

My grandma (and her cousin) used to make these for our Thanksgiving place settings, so I made sure we had some again this year.
#traditiontradition

I think we probably have a picture of EVERY cousin as a toddler squatting down to pet the barn kitties.  Jacob was so excited to see them all!

Instead of sleeping off the turkey after our Thanksgiving meal, the guys went to "the hills" to help my cousins work cattle.  After the little boys woke up from nap, we mamas took them to see the operation, and they could've stayed alllll day! 

Those mama cows were constantly calling for their babies, and Jacob just kept smiling and laughing and saying, "Moo." in his tiny little voice.

Bryant can tell you way more about the process they helped with if you care to know.

Second cousins!

The "traditional" picture in (great)grandma's tub. ♥

"Stair-step" cousins (just missing one, so we included him "virtually")...

...and spouses (babies were in bed)!

The (little) boys loved walking around and seeing all the tractors/equipment. They just kept pointing and making their various tractor/truck noises.

The (big) boys spent an afternoon cutting down trees and smoking meat - living the dream, in their opinion!
*insert Home Improvement man sound here*

Snacktime with Grandma!

The kiddos got along and played together so well!

Great-Grandpa Jim ♥

That's all the pictures I have, so I'll leave it at that!  We're so thankful to have had good traveling weather, time to spend together (schedules are hard!),

Hoping you all had a lovely Thanksgiving gathering, as well, and are enjoying a blessed holiday season, thus far.

Thankfully,
Kensy

Favorites of the day:

the Relevant podcast

new friends

Jacob's love of watching/looking for snow