little stairsteps

I love this image I captured of the children on Mother's Day. We were down at the American Tobacco District for dinner. They all lined up (in order) to peer over the railing at the water fountain.

Jack of all Trades

Josiah is wayyyy into his legos lately! He likes to build elaborate, original structures out of his various lego sets. Today, as he was trying to walk downstairs with two such creations in his hands, I reminded him to watch his step. He replied, with the confidence and vocabulary of a much older child, "It's okay, mom. I'm a trained professional."

my heart

I had a sweet early valentine from my little boy...

On Sunday morning, as we were walking down the hall at church, he said to me,

"I love you so much, Mama. I love you so much that sometimes my heart just CRACKS, you know? You crack my heart, Mommy."

Oh, Josiah, you crack my heart, too.

Two Girls in the Woods

Renée and Celeste have discovered a world beyond the backyard, beyond even the woods behind the backyard...a rocky creek bridged by fallen tress, railroad tracks overgrown with time, a steep ravine with ferns for footholds. I am so honored that they shared this magical, secret place with me!

I have heard of a book, Last Child in the Woods, that is about the disconnect between today's children and nature. The premise is that our kids are too busy with homework, extracurricular activities, and video games to venture into the great outdoors. I remember how many hours I spent with my brother and friends playing in the woods when we were children - the mystery and freedom and joy of being in a place that was just for us.

I am very happy for my little explorers!

Josiah took a trip...

to Krzyzewskiville!! Two excited boys went to see Duke play Miami (OH) last night. Chris won the tickets in a raffle at work. Josiah watched the game with interest and asked a LOT of questions, according to his Dad.

As I was putting him to bed last night, I asked if he was going to have dreams about basketball. He said, "YES! I'm going to dream about South Aiken!"

They are right up there with Duke, after all.

Four Boy

Another birthday for my little boy! He is getting so tall and looking very skinny. (I am sure to hear about that at the next doctor's appointment.) Josiah spent a fun day at home with the family celebrating his fourth birthday. We gave him some bathtub crayons and his first set of legos. Those things are really tiny!! It is a set that will build three small construction vehicles, so it has just the right amount of steering wheels, rubber tires, and digging attachments to make for lots of good creative play. He asked for a Hot Wheels cake, so I did my homemade best with a Mimi's Chocolate Cake. Four Boy was pleased, and that's all that matters!

Halloween

We were all able to go out trick-or-treating together, since Mimi and Grandaddy stayed home to hand out the candy! Josiah was Dash from the Incredibles, Renée and Celeste dressed up as princesses, and Eliana was a sweet little Minnie Mouse. The weather was nice and cool, and Red Cedar proved to be just the right length of street to cover in a hour. We have a pretty nice stash of "school candy" now that ought to last until Christmas!