(And All My) Work Be Praise

We spent our first two weeks of "official preschool" learning about creation, among other things.  It makes me laugh a little, to hear what exactly Levi remembers and how he phrases things -- depending on the day, he's often quoting the Beginner's Bible  we use most of the time, but occasionally phrases from the "big Bible" (as he calls it) come out, too (like God "rolling back the waters"). "In the beginning, darkness was everywhere. It was. The light turned on. Actually, God turned it on." Tell me about the waters. "He separated the waters . . . below, and the sky . . . what's in the sky? Some clouds." Then what happened? "Some dry grass . . . burst forth . [It comes out "bur-for." He loves that part.] He made some plants, too. And some apples." What happened on day four? [checking the wall where our craft projects are hung] "He made the stars and the moon and the sun and the white pa...

Yesterday  I knew I was forgetting something we did during our long morning at home, and I finally remembered last night: we had a dance party!  Searching for some fun music to brighten the mood, I came across a "kids' dance party" CD I'd used in some music class years ago.  I thought it was, you know, a kids'  music CD, but it turns out it was real dance music, redone rather poorly "for kids."   Always one to go with the flow, I seized the opportunity to (attempt to) teach Levi how to: Limbo!  (Can you get under the yard stick if I hold it this low?)  This was brought to an abrupt halt when Owen grabbed the yard stick and suddenly became a dangerous and unpredictable little man, Cheerio-matted feet and all. Conga!  (One, two, three, kick!  No, not stamp the ground, kick  . . . ) Cha-cha Slide!  (Which one is your left foot?  Oh, good heavens, Mommy should not be hopping when this much with child . . . ) Freeze dance! ...

On Sunday morning, while at my parents' house, Levi woke up with a horrible cough.  We thought it might have just been from having the windows open at night, as I often wake up hoarse and/or stuffy with open windows as well. On Monday morning, back at home with the windows shut and the air conditioner on [don't judge me; I'm 29 weeks pregnant and it's 85 degrees here!], Levi woke up still coughing and with an extremely drippy nose.  After he threw up during breakfast [that happens when he gets a cold; I get particularly nauseous when my sinuses are draining, too], I nixed our usual library storytime plans and hunkered inside to wipe his nose repeatedly. Tuesday was worse.  By Wednesday morning, Owen had the same cough that Levi had had on Sunday.  Levi showed a bit of improvement Wednesday evening, so I cancelled the just-in-case doctor's appointment I'd scheduled for this morning, but even still, I knew we had to stay put today. It's rare that we stay...

We unofficially started preschool this week! I don't know why I say "unofficially."  We really did: I chose a curriculum, planned lessons for the week, did crafts, and ate themed snacks.  That pretty much covers the preschool basics, right?  I think it's just that I'm afraid to declare that I have begun : I'm not always great at sticking with things, and what if my enthusiasm and productivity only last a few weeks? There's no real need to have begun, of course.  Levi is just barely over two and a half.  For the past few months, though, I've been feeling quite strongly that I need to do something  relatively scheduled in the fall, and since I'll have a newborn over the summer, I've wanted to decide what that "something" is going to be now instead of later.  As I looked into preschool ideas and found myself drawn to the same curriculum over and over, I started wondering, "why wait?"  And now I'm glad I didn't, beca...

I'm only 31 months into motherhood, 32 months into home-ownership, and 50 months into marriage, so I'll be the first to admit that I still have a lot to learn, a lot of experience (and subsequent wisdom) to garner. I'm starting to feel, though, like I've been at this long enough to have developed some ideas on how to make life run more smoothly. Please don't misread this: it's not a list of habits I've perfected, of ways I've become a domestic goddess. I fail more often than I succeed. But I thought I'd share anyway, in case any of it could be useful! Rule #1: Never be empty-handed.   Since Owen became mobile eight months ago, I can no longer count on anything being where I put it last.  I find tupperware in the den, puzzle pieces in the kitchen, toy cars in bathroom drawers, and anything small enough to be carried up the stairs in my bedroom. As a means of fighting this trend, I've taken to scanning any room I'm in quickly before I leave i...

Last night I had the privilege of attending the senior voice recital of a friend who is graduating this spring as a music education major.  It was a lovely recital (and a pleasant opportunity to get out of the house without children!), and I was glad to be able to support her, along with several others from our church family. It was funny, though, walking into that little recital hall: I was immediately hit with an overwhelming sense of belonging; though I went to an entirely different university, simply being in the space caused me to breathe out, " yes! This is what I do! "  I watched the accompanist (for that is what I did) diligently and thought snide comments to myself about the page turner's mistakes and reminisced about the half-dozen or more recitals I played myself, even as I reluctantly acknowledged to myself that not a single formal gown still hanging in my closet would ever fit my post-baby body. And then I looked around at the people I knew, all of them f...