August Metamorphosis

Our last month of summer went by in the blink of an eye it seems.  Will is back to work and we had fun visiting him before the students returned from vacation.  The biology teacher at Will's work has quite the collection of animals, reptiles and amphibians and seeing them was the highlight of our visit.

We scrambled to finish up our summer bucket list and spent a couple of evenings swimming in our aunt and uncle's pool while soaking up the extra love and attention from them with yummy eats and story time cuddles.

We tried to get in as many play dates as possible before everyone headed back to school...

And we celebrated Grandma Hines', Auntie Cate's and a cousin's birthday as well as enjoyed a weekend visit from my old college roommate.

We enjoyed the finale of our library's summer reading program with friends…

And I even played the part of Cinderella when crossing a newly paved road.  This was not my smartest move, as the asphalt was still hot.  With nap time pressure looming and my kids getting crankier by the minute, I wasn't about to let fresh blacktop between our friends house and my car ruin my schedule.  We marched across and when I realized we were sinking into the road I decided to keep moving at all costs, despite leaving a flip flop stuck in the tar behind me, for fear of my kids getting stuck.  I think the kids were okay because they were light, but I didn't fare as well with Violet in a carrier on my chest.  Thankfully, my friend was lighter on her feet and went back to retrieve my sandal.  My charming hero!  Especially since finding sandals to fit my Flintstone feet is no easy feat.  Thankfully I didn't burn my foot and the tar eventually came off.

We tried taking walks every day, with our favorite destinations being the cemetery and the creek by our house.

We spent many afternoons playing on the porch, eating snacks and reading books.  Here the girls are below with a tea party they set up all on their own.  I thought it was beautiful!

Charlie enjoyed our time on the porch this past month as well.  One evening after Lucy and Emma were in bed, Will and I went out on the porch to enjoy the cool breeze and fading light.  While I was rocking Violet to sleep on the porch swing, Charlie jumped up onto Will's laptop and then nuzzled his way into Will's arms until he was positioned exactly like I had Violet in my arms.  Charlie gazed loving up at Will while Will shut his laptop and wondered aloud whose cat this was anyways.  Will has a hard time admitting the bond he and Charlie have, but I think it is obvious that they love each other.

Lucy has gathered quite the collection of frogs this past month, and they are living in an aquarium on our front porch.  We have tried various methods to keep the frogs safe from Charlie.  He is absolutely fascinated by the frogs and is usually lounging next to them or on top of the aquarium with his tail slowly wagging back and forth.  The girls have converted their water table to a frog pond, and have even let it fill up with rain water since tap water is toxic to frogs.  In the top left hand picture I borrowed one of Lucy's frogs to see if it could help tackle the fruit fly problem in my kitchen.  It barely made a dent and instead was intent upon climbing the kitchen window screen.

Lucy's interest in frogs has played nicely into our first official month of home schooling Lucy for Kindergarten.  After some serious thought, Will and I have decided that we do not agree with the mandatory full day kindergarten in our school district.  I have spent the last year heavily researching our options and have devised a curriculum to keep Lucy on track and hopefully create a seamless entry into first grade next year.  So far we are really enjoying our learning time at home.  Our first science unit is frogs, and Lucy hardly even realizes she is "learning".  We have also enjoyed more Kiwi Crate projects...

And in honor of our year of school at home, I have splurged on a bunch of highly acclaimed learning games and books.  Kindergarten is such a fun age for learning and I feel so privileged to be able to share in it with Lucy.

Emma is learning right alongside Lucy, and instead of doing a separate preschool program with her I am just modifying Lucy's lessons to suit Emma.  In order for me to have time to learn with them, I have involved the girls in more of the chores.  Lucy is very efficient at egg gathering, feeding the chickens, and helping me with Violet.  Emma loves helping and is very enthusiastic about pitching in when it is on her terms.  They both have been helping me fold diapers which is a huge help!

I can't forget to mention how helpful they are in the garden as well.  Dresses make the perfect basket and they both have been great at letting Will and I know when our produce is ready to be harvested.

Emma and Lucy love playing Barbies, Legos and house together and are starting to play more than fight.  

The fighting is still inevitable it seems though, and as soon as I hear a certain crazy giggle come from Emma I know that it is the beginning of the end and schtuff is about to go down.  I have been trying to stay out of their fighting, as hard as it is when it sounds like physical aggression is taking place however I've noticed that when I do pretend I have no idea that they are fighting that they almost always work it out, without ever saying a word about it to me.  I even overheard Emma say the other day, "Lucy I promise not to hit you anymore.  Can I please play with you again?"  A non-forced apology is so refreshing for me to hear!

Lucy lost her first tooth this past month and claims that she has two more loose teeth that are soon to follow.  I will take her at her word.  As much as I am fine petting frogs, handling bees and scraping chicken poop off of shoes I cannot handle loose teeth.  They give me the chills and frankly, gross me out.  I tried hiding my personal issues with teeth from Lucy but when she said, "Look mom, you can see the bottom of my tooth!" when it was still dangling in her mouth I couldn't suppress my feelings any longer.  I then had to reassure her that she doesn't gross me out but her tooth does and to please go show daddy the next time she feels the need to show and tell.  

We finally got Lucy and Emma's Five Year and Three Year pictures taken, rolled into the same portrait session as Violet's Four Month pictures.

I can still hardly believe that I have been blessed with three girls and that I am the mother of four kids!  Lucy wore a purple amethyst pinned to her dress in honor of Luke for the photos.  It is hard for us that we will never have a complete family picture on earth.

After a particularly emotional week this past month with the passing of my cousin, we came home from church and found a large glass fish bowl filled with milkweed on our picnic table - a gift from our neighbor.  Upon closer inspection we saw two newly hatched monarch butterflies as well as three chrysalis still waiting to hatch.  We peeled back the plastic wrap punched with holes and the monarchs climbed onto our fingers.  Time stood still.  After a moment or two of fanning their wings they flew away.  It was a breath taking, beautiful experience for us and exactly what I needed to have my faith in God's Plan restored.  Despite how sad and difficult things are on earth, I was reminded that God is the creator of all things beautiful and someday our earthly pain will be turned into joy.  After the two butterflies flew away, we brought the fish bowl into the house and over the next couple of days watched the remaining three chrysalis hatch.  I was taken aback by the miracle of it all, from the gorgeous gold band on the turquoise cocoon to the way those beautiful, fragile wings emerged from such a tiny space.

I may never understand the painful things that happen on earth, but it is my hope that I will continue to find the beauty despite the pain and help my kids to understand that with faith, we will eventually experience the metamorphosis of sadness and pain into peace and joy.