The Joys of Autumn

Yes, it's that time.  It's time for my annual post to celebrate the joys of fall.   Even though it is a little past the official start of fall, it is just now really starting to feel like fall.  There are pumpkins on our porch, candy corn in the kitchen, and leaves lying in the grass.  I made an apple pie yesterday. Oh, and the weather has cooled off too.  I am not sure why I like fall so much.  There are so many wonderful things about fall that it must be the combination of them that makes it such a perfect season.

Fall is a welcome break from the heat of the summer.  As much as I love open toed shoes, dawning boots on a cold, rainy day is so comforting.  It is also nice to just stay inside and snuggle with my puppies.

I enjoy apples, pumpkin, and all of the other edible treats we've come to associated with fall.  Last weekend we had chili and this weekend we made an apple pie. The colors of fall are also vibrant and fun.  Decorating with them makes me ridiculously happy. It makes me smile to see the wreath on our front door or the sunflowers in my kitchen. Ahh, the simple things. 

 

I also love that our summers of constant travel give way to quiet weekends at home with the family.  This weekend, Billy got out the millions of legos he owns (stacked in tubs to the left of him in this picture) for the kids to play with.  I think daddy did more playing than the kids though. 
 

Once the cool weather settles in, we also tend to spend more time with friends and extended family that we don't see at one of the lakes during the summer.  Just yesterday, we went to Litchfield to hang out with Lana's side of the family.  We had lots of yummy food, and the kids got to ride Daisy the mule.

 

Another great aspect of the season is that, because we're home on the weekends, we are able to go to church regularly again.  That is something I've been craving, and I am so thankful to have a church to go to where we are learning to live out the love of Christ. It is so easy to get caught up in all of the worldly things that surround us, and it seems like every summer I become more susceptible to those things.  So, I pray that this fall, along with all of the simple joys the season brings, that it brings the joy of spiritual revival for me and our family.  God's blessings are all around us, so let's celebrate them with praise! 

All About Audrey

Last weekend, Audrey and I went to Chicago with my mom to visit my future sister-in-law (Laurenn) and her mother (Laura).  While we were there, we found her flower girl dress for Uncle Brian and Laurenn's wedding and did some shopping.  The dress we settled on meets Laurenn's requirements (thicker straps and a big bow on the back) as well as Audrey's (it twirls well). The highlight of the trip for her was when Laura went into her storage room and got out an old McDonald's drive through play set from when Laurenn and her brother were kids.  Audrey thought it was the coolest thing, and I am pretty sure she would have played with it for hours if we'd let her. 

It was a very busy weekend, but Audrey was an awesome trooper.  With more than 10 hours of driving in one weekend, she didn't complain about being in the car and only asked a couple of times how much longer we had to go to our next destination.  Both Friday and Saturday, we were sitting down to order dinner at her normal bed time, but she didn't complain.  She waited patiently and didn't have any melt-downs.  The closest she came to a melt-down was actually Sunday morning when she first got up, but she quickly collected herself and pulled it together. 

On that note, I want to say that Audrey is adapting to school better and better each week.  She started a check-in system where her teacher fills out a sheet after every subject, and at the end of the day, if she meets a certain percentage of smiley faces, she gets to spend time with her fifth grade buddy.  She has really enjoyed that and gets so excited when she gets all smileys.  She has gotten to a point where she seems a little disappointed if she gets any frowny faces, but we try to encourage her either way.

At home, we designed our own little incentive plan to help her stay on track too.  We created a mountain out of cardboard, paper and cotton balls and printed a picture of Elsa from Frozen.  When Audrey listens the first time, Elsa moves up the mountain, and if she doesn't, Elsa moves back down.  When Elsa gets to the top of the mountain (5 steps), Audrey gets to choose a reward.  They are small things, like a piece of parade candy or playing a game on the kindle, but it works.  She does an awesome job of getting herself ready in the morning and cleaning up after dinner now, because she knows that will get her "Elsa steps," as she calls them.  I am excited that it is working, and I hope these good behaviors become habits to a point that Elsa and her mountain become a play-toy instead of an incentive chart. 

As far as actual schoolwork goes, Audrey is doing awesome.  Every day, she is learning new sight words and showings us new words and sentences she can write.  Just tonight, she saw the word "lake" on my shirt and told me it only had one letter different from the word "like."  So, we sounded it out with the "a" and she learned a new word.  She also loves going to the library and checking out books.  As much as she loves books, I have a feeling she'll be reading in no time.  It is so strange to think of her being able to read; Billy and I are going to have to find code words instead of spelling something out when we don't want her to know what we're talking about!

Audrey also likes her music class a lot too, and is learning tons of new songs that she likes to sing for us.  She also likes art and tries to make it at home all of the time using all of the markers, scissors, tape and glue you would expect a 5-year-old to use.  Audrey is learning more and more numbers as well, and can do some simple addition, but it is clear that math is not her favorite subject.  She would rather write letters and try to spell new words than write numbers and try to count things. 

Outside of school, Audrey is still the same Audrey.  She loves her brother, and she loves to "help" him.  She will often tell him what he should and shouldn't do, and he doesn't really listen.  One morning in the car, she was lecturing him about good behavior and how if he makes good choices then he will get rewards, but if he makes poor choices he will have to go to bed early.  I had to step-in and remind Audrey that she is not his parent, and that she should leave the lectures to me.  We try to teach her that she can help him the most by setting a good example and making good choices herself.  I was really glad she sits behind me in the car, because I didn't have to worry about her seeing me smile. 

Audrey still loves to sing and perform.  She especially likes to make up her own songs.  When we were driving in the car last weekend, she sang many random made-up songs, including one about fuzz from her socks getting stuck in her toes.  She also says a lot of hilarious things, and I wish I could remember all of them.  I always laugh in the moment and try to repeat what she said so I'll remember it, but I inevitably forget.  Anyone that remembers some of her one-liners, feel free to comment and share! 

Oh My Bubby

I haven't done posts to just talk about my children in a while, so I decided I would do one for each of them.  I already had a title in mind for Barrett's, so I will start there.

Barrett is full of personality.  He is generally smiling, laughing, and being mischievous.  I can already tell that he is going to be a kid that wears his heart on his sleeve.  You never have to wonder what he is thinking.  That also means that when he is mad, he is really mad, and when he is upset, you'd think the world was ending.  Part of that may be the fact that he is two, but I think part of it is just who he is.  Some people have told me that is because he is a Gemini.  I guess that means they have a "split personality;"  in Barrett's case, he is either all happy or all unhappy.  There isn't really an in-between unless he is sleeping.

That brings me to another of Barrett's little quirks.  Barrett is usually a solid sleeper, but he is an early riser.  In the mornings, I'll hear the "swish, swish" of his diaper has he runs into our room.  Well, unless he is running for his sister's room.  He loves to bother his sister when she is sleeping.  The other night, he actually went to her room, crawled into bed with her, and slept there with her until morning.  He does generally love to be around his sister though, and he copies almost everything she does (if only that worked for potty training!). 

A month ago, Barrett got his real big boy bed.  It is a boat bed from Pottery Barn, and he refers to it as "my boat."  When I say "boat bed," he corrects me with just "my boat."  The first day he had it, he got the play broom out of Audrey's room and was swabbing the deck of his boat.  I guess he picked that up from watching his papas clean their boats. 

The past few weeks, Barrett has really started to talk more.  Usually, that is really great, because I can understand what he is saying and can help fulfill his requests.  Sometime though, the way he says things is still unique to him.  This morning he wanted "ju-ju-cay" for breakfast.  Now, I know how he says juice, yogurt, jelly, biscuit, and many other words that could somehow translate to that.  I finally resorted to pulling things out of the fridge and cabinet; when I pulled out the pancake mix he excitedly started repeating "ju-ju-cay."  I am not sure how you get that out of "pancake," but at least I figured it out!

As I think about it, most of Barrett's words are food related, and I think that is because he loves to eat.  Audrey was always a good eater, but he out-eats her much of the time.  He has started getting a little bit pickier, but I am hoping this is just a phase.  He also loves music.  He often goes into the office and tries to play the piano; by "play" I don't mean bang on it either.  He presses the keys softly and sings to himself as he does it.  He also loves to march around the house with his play drum or the recorder.  When the house is quiet, he will go into the living room, turn on the radio, and start dancing like a maniac.  I am starting to think we need to get him into some sort of music lessons pretty soon!

I guess I will close this post by mentioning Barrett's hair.  I was trying to figure out a haircut for him that wouldn't stick straight up where he has a cowlick.  So, I took him in and asked for advice from the stylist, and next thing I know he had a buzz cut.  It is definitely easier to manage, but I am not sure how well it fits my bubby.  It definitely makes him look older, so maybe that is why I don't like it!