Tender heart

Beckham is the most tenderhearted kids I know. He is always thinking of others and their feelings. Somehow Ainsley caught a bug and was sick this weekend. Beckham was so worried about his sister and just wanted her better. He even made her a card to help her feel better. It is so heart warming to see how compassionate he is. On Sunday he and I went to church while Ainsley and dad stayed home. As we were walking into his class he said - I wish sissy was here. Church is more fun when she is with me. he made sure his Sunday school class prayed for her.

He kept asking me when she was going to be better so he could play with her. And today when we drove to school he said, I'm sad sissy isn't coming. I love the fact that he loves and cares for his little sister. Don't get me wrong he has his moments with her but it's nice to know deep down inside he really cares for her.

What's red, white & 8 feet tall

Lil' Red of course!! Friday I was at Tuesday Morning trying to find some cheap games for the kids (connect four, operation, battle ship - which by the way are harder to find then you would think) and in the clearance section I saw a box that had a bunch of college mascots on it. Out of curiosity I picked it up to see what it was and it was a University of Nebraska blow up yard decoration. My first thought was - mom would love this! My second thought - I could never buy that for her because I always make fun of people that fill their yard with that kind of stuff. Then I thought - but she would love it. She is such a huge Corn Husker fan - she loves everything Nebraska. My next thought - my dad would kill me if I got this for her. So what did I do? I called Monte and got his opinion. We came to the conclusion it was such a great deal. It was 75% off the original price. I figured if mom didn't want it we could return it. So I put it in my cart and proceeded to check out. While checking out I thought - should I really be getting this and feeding her Husker obsession? I thought, I can show it to her and let her decide. If it's too much my feelings wouldn't be hurt. (If mom is reading this she is probably thinking - is there such a thing as too much Nebraska? Dad is probably thinking - there is definitely a thing as too much Nebraska especially when it is 8 feet tall! When we took it out of the box and blew it up we were amazed at how tall 8 feet is!! When I bought it I didn't realize it would blow up to 8 feet. The only way it will end up in their yard is over my dad's dead body but since their great room has such high ceilings maybe mom could put it there on game days. Megan and dad I know I shouldn't encourage her. Even if they don't ever use it it was worth getting a good laugh when we blew it up and saw how big it was. And seeing dad's reaction! Priceless! He wouldn't even touch the box or carry it to the car because he wanted nothing to do with it.

My parents visit was short. They stopped in on their way back from the Navy vs. Duke football game. We had lunch and cake for my dad's birthday. The kids did a great job on his cake. Beckham came up with how we should decorate it all by himself. He thought it should have army men, a jet and American flags since Poppy was in the Navy. He wanted to put his helicopter on it but couldn't find it so we had to settle for the jet. Beckham was funny when we were decorating it he said "mom, Poppy isn't going to take my toys is he? How about he gets the flags and I keep the toys." We had a fun making and decorating the cake for such a special dad and poppy.

First Week of School

Summer's over and it's back to routine. Which by the way we are all welcoming. Summer was great but the last two weeks of summer the kids and I have needed some routine back in our lives. Both kids officially started school this week. Beckham is in a transitional Kindergarten class and goes 5 mornings a week and Ainsley is in the 3 yr old program that goes 3 times a week.

I think this is going to be a great year for both of them. Ainsley is going to love the social aspect of being around more kids her age and will continue to grow academically (she already knows almost all her letters). Beckham's class is going to be just what he needs. We didn't think he was ready for kindergarten and the preschool he has been going to started a transitional Kindergarten for kids that aren't quite ready for school yet. He only has 7 kids in his class including him and there are 2 teachers so the kids get lots of attention. The only issue we are going to have with school is Ainsley gets upset on Tuesdays and Thursdays when she doesn't go. She wants to go everyday which is a great problem to have.

They both LOVE school and their teachers. Beckham even asked me today why a kid in his class cries for his mom every morning. I told him - well, maybe he misses his mom. And his response was - I don't miss you. I was a little sad at that response but happy in a way that he likes school so much he doesn't mind I'm gone. It also shows me that he is becoming more independent and is growing up.

Lastly for the first week of school we made a pencil cake to celebrate the start of school.

Beckham and Ainsley's first day of school together

The pencil cake we made

Tired

This summer Beckham got to the age where he doesn't need a nap everyday. There are some days that by the time 6:00 rolls around he is exhausted and both of us wished he had taken a nap. Unfortunately Ainsley is already starting to drop her nap too. I blame her dropping her naps on the paci fairy. She was always a great napper until she gave her paci to the paci fairy. When she doesn't nap I wish the paci fairy would bring it back so she would nap and I could get some stuff done. I guess I was lucky Beckham lasted this long with naps. Don't these kids realize naps are the best. When they're older they'll be wishing for naps.

Even if they don't take naps the kids have "quiet time" for an hour everyday. It's time for them to play and relax in their room so I can get things done around the house. On numerous occasions I have gone in to tell them quiet time is over and when I open the door they'll be asleep with toys in their hands. They must fall asleep in the middle of playing. The other day Beckham had put all his toys and animals (Ainsley's too) on his train table. When I walked in I saw him asleep ON the train table laying on all the toys. From the look of his room he had been playing hard. I think he played with every toy or at least he moved every piece from it's original place of origin.

When we were at my parents house Monte went to check on Ainsley and she was asleep on top of a bunch of puzzle pieces. To top it off she was naked. I guess she had gone to the bathroom and didn't put her underwear on. We got a picture but for privacy reason's I won't post it. I did get a picture of Beckham asleep on the train table. It just goes to show you that if they are tired they will sleep anywhere.

Great Imagination

Beckham has the best imagination. I have come to the conclusion that he doesn't need any toys. He has always been happy with playing with everyday objects and turning them into what ever his little mind can think of. Monte got an office chair for Father's Day and Beckham turned the box into a rocket. It has all the buttons, rocket boosters, door and more. He has literally played in his rocket almost everyday since making it in June. The other week we went to my parents lake house and he found an old moving box and turned it into a boat ferry. If you went into his room you might think we were moving since he has two big boxes (his rocket and his ferry). The other week he was busy playing in his room and came down stairs asking for water. Water? What do you need water for was my response. For my garden mom - come see. So I went to his room and he opened his "secret hiding place" in his bed and showed me his garden. He has drawn pictures of flowers and vegetables and put them in rows to make a garden. He took care of his garden by watering it with pretend water for a week before turning his secret hiding place into something else. I love his imagination and think that from now on we'll just give the boy boxes because he truly plays with them more than toys. Here's a picture of his garden - it doesn't do it justice. It was really cute and imaginative. Each paper has a flower or vegetable and the ones leaning agaist the wall and side were the ones that had already grown.

Scripture

I am quickly learning the importance of memorizing and quoting scripture aloud. I have always known it was important but never really did it. I used my poor memory as my excuse for not doing it. We'll I've been trying to work memorizing scripture and have enlisted Beckham to help. I wish I had his memory. I can say a verse a few times and he typically remembers it the rest of the week when we say it.

I've tried to tell him it's important to know scripture so when you are in a situation where you need guidance or peace you can recall it and feel better. Well, the other morning we had a big thunder storm roll through our neighborhood (which is rare because it never rains here). Beckham came in and woke me up and said, "mom, the thunder was scaring me so I said - 'The Lord is with me' and I wasn't scared anymore." How awesome is that!! Not only is he remembering scripture and the stuff we talk about but he is using it and living it. I just pray he continues to grow in his faith and dependence on God.

Fun in the Kitchen

The kids and I had a lot of fun yesterday making Silly Sam (or Spikey Sam). I think he looks cool and am proud of him. The weather has been really hot here so we decided to stay inside and have a craft day. After going to the store to get supplies we made Sam and a few other crafts. Watching the kids made me remember how hard it is to wait and be patient when you are 5 and 3 (actually it still is). Once the batter was made they wanted to decorate it right away. I had to explain that it needed to cook first. When the kitchen timer finally went off they were so excited to decorate it only to be met with disappointing news that they had to wait even longer for it to cool. Luckily it was lunch and nap time. Time goes by faster when your asleep. After nap time you would have thought it was Christmas Ainsley popped out of bed (which is unusual because she tends to take a little while to get going after a nap) and asked "is it cold now - can we decorate the cake?" The kids did a nice job and were very good about not eating the Hershey kisses. They both only ate one the whole time decorating. When I was that age I don't think many of the Hershey kisses would have made it onto the cake. Anyways, it was a fun day in the kitchen.