2nd grade

I want to warn you that I fully intend to show pictures of Elisabeth as a much smaller Elisabeth every time she starts a new grade. I find it makes me sad and that's what I want to be--sad.

I mean, she's in 2nd grade now, for goodness' sakes! Plus, I'm her mother and this is my blog. I get to do whatever the stink I want!

I'm defensive, I know. I apologize. I don't mean to take it out on you. But, she's going to be 8 this year. It's all slipping through my fingers faster than I'd like.

This is Elisabeth at 20 months old. She was very into stickers. And talking. Good lord, that child could talk. Sometimes, I would tell her that she needed to practice whispering just to give my brain a break. It never worked. I took a lot of headache medicine. But, her curls? Oh, her curls. And those eyes. I love her eyes.

When she was 4, I had never met a child who asked "Why?" so much. I kid you not. Ask anyone who was around her, I don't think they've talked to a child who can top her.
One thing that hasn't changed about Elisabeth is....well, she's still so Elisabeth.
Even if she is this big now. Even if she picks her own outfits out and wakes up with an alarm and can walk home from school solo.
She's still inquisitive and fun. She's still odd and zany. She's still our Ebeth.
And don't worry, because next year, Julia starts preschool. I'll have two sets of sad "When were they ever this small? sob.sob.sob." pictures for you to look at. Are you so excited?

A visit to the fair.

While Evan was gone for his training in Virginia (the state), the girls and I made a trip to the El Paso County Fair! Evan's not really a fair kind of guy, so he wasn't sad about missing this trip with us. We met Rachel and her kids, Rachel's mom, and a few of Rachel's siblings and nieces and nephews.

This is Elisabeth petting a dairy cow. Elisabeth was to wear a hat and drink lots of water. You see, she was sick and vomit-y the day before and was crying her eyes out that if she was sick she'd miss the fair. So, when she woke up in the morning and felt ok, I decided to chance her vomiting on fair grounds and we ventured out anyway. It's called stellar parenting, folks.
Julia is in love with baby cows. She was overwhelmed when she actually got to meet and touch one.

Here's part of the crew we took to the fair!
Henry and a piglet.
I seriously love her in this dress.
Standing in line to milk the dairy cow.
Elisabeth was a pro.
Julia didn't want to touch the cow's utters, so I helped.
Julia really liked this goat. I found its eyes creepy.
Look! A Pekin goose!!!
We let the kids ride some rides. Elisabeth loves ferris wheels, so it's what she wanted to ride first.
Julia was all about the cars. She didn't even know the kid she was riding with, but she didn't care.


It was a GORGEOUS Colorado day. As usual.
For a while, Rachel and I realized we were the only grown-ups with all 10 kids. Go ahead and count them. Aged 10 to 2. :)
Elisabeth brought some money and purchased a cowgirl hat.

Playing in the corn pen.


This was a cake made by a kid. I was way impressed.
Julia's favorite cake, of course.

Julia really wanted to squeeze this bunny's tail. I didn't blame her. In fact, I did. It was fluffy.
We had left over tickets so the girls rode the elephant ride together.

I love Elisabeth. She's such a good big sister.
Then we rode this twirly ride.


And someone didn't love it very much.
Elisabeth never puked and we had a fabulous time! Elisabeth is on the lookout for more fairs we can go to. :)

My thoughts right now.

I do so enjoy coffee in the morning.

Evan comes home in 3 days! He took the book Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter, which I told him he would like and should read while all by his lonesome. He texted me this morning and said he stayed up too late reading. I can not even begin to tell you how much more attractive I find that man after he told me that.
My house is kind of messy. I hate cleaning. I wish I liked it, but I just don't. I avoid it until it's necessary to do it, and then I pout the entire time I'm cleaning. But, I do like cooking, so I feel that should negate the cleaning hatred. In case you're keeping score of how I'm doing as a home maker.
I'm trying to eliminate foods with dyes in my house. I think it's really affecting Julia's tummy. And after reading an article about why some countries in Europe are making food companies put warning labels on foods with dyes in them, I'm thinking it's a good thing I'm trying to get rid of them. What I would love to do, is to totally go natural and only buy foods that are freshly made and not manufactured. But, that's kind of expensive. So, I'm doing the best I can. I also feel like when I say this to people they think I'm trying to be trendy. Which is silly. Why does trying to feed my family healthy foods make me trendy? Cause I also need to be eating healthier. And if you know me at all, I am not really trendy. More dorky.
I like thunderstorms. So does my grass.
If I could get paid to read, I'd take the job in a heartbeat. Then when Evan says that I'm ignoring him for my book, I'd say, "Sh! I'm working!". Another plus? I'd get the books for free!

Still learning.

This week Elisabeth starts 2nd grade. And if you're wondering if I'm having a hard time with my first baby starting the 2nd grade, well, I'm not.

I'm in denial. It's a happy place for me. I shall be here until Wednesday when I drop her off at school.

She'll be 8 this year, you know. 8. Do you know how close that is to 10? And how close 10 is to 13? and how close 13 is to 16? and 16 to 18????? Well, it's close.

And I still feel lost at sea with her. I still feel like I'm grabbing at straws when trying to parent. Is that how it always is with the oldest one? Will I always be at a loss with each new phase?

We had a conversation about boyfriends the other day. Yep. Boyfriends. She wanted to know if she was old enough to have one. I have learned that, with Elisabeth, I should ask her to explain herself and her questions. There have been a couple of times when I've gone into a long, detailed rant about something when it wasn't what she was talking about at all. Of course, then I have a whole new set of questions to answer about what I'd been talking about.

Anyway, we talked about how it's okay to call someone your boyfriend. Then she asked when she could start dating. "13?" Um...no. How about never? I told her we'd talk about that when she was a little bit older.

We've also had a talk about not worrying about our bodies. She was worried about her tummy being too round. I almost cried on the spot. She's too little for that. Too little to already be hating parts of herself. It's things like this that make me want to keep her in our house. Forever.

But, I can't because she can't wait to grow up. She wants to be a teenager soooo badly. And I totally understand. I remember not being able to wait to drive and be places by myself. I wanted a job and my own money and to live by myself. I always tell people that Elisabeth will be moved out of our house at 18, but Julia'll live in our basement till she's 30.

Elisabeth's always been independent. She isn't scared of new people or places. But, she is starting to get self-conscious. She worries about how she's dressed. She wants to make sure her hair looks nice. She is a little more timid around new kids than she ever used to be. She's learning how friendship works in elementary school--that kids aren't always nice and they don't always have a reason for being mean. She's learning how to stand up for herself and I'm trying to give her as many tools as I can for uncomfortable situations with friends. I'm trying to remember what it was like to be in grade school. I'm trying to respect her new want for privacy and her need to find out who she is.

I can't keep her little. Evan struggles with this a lot. He misses the preschool Elisabeth. I do too. But, I see a lot of that preschool Elisabeth still in her. I still see that wonderment at learning new things. I still see that innocent delight at times. I'm also getting a glimpse of middle school mood swings, which wont' be too fun.
But, I like this grade school Elisabeth too. I like seeing her read chapter books to herself. I like her interest in wanting to have more responsibilities around the house (not cleaning, in case you were wondering). I like how she leaves us notes sometimes that she loves us. I like how I can tell her to take a shower or get dressed or to set the table and she doesn't need assistance because she's old enough to do it all.

She's still weird and quirky and I think she always will be. At least, I really, really hope so!

Oh, Julia.

Do you see this child?

Yes, this one. The one with the cute little ears?
Well, she has decided that this week would be a great week to give up naps. I don't know if you remember or not, but Evan is gone for two weeks...so, giving up naps right now is not great timing.
The thing is, though, is that Julia is exhausted. She's is passing out in the car after just 2 minutes. But, the minute I try to lay her down, she opens her eyes and starts bawling. And she's begging for bed at supper time, which is not cool. She'll go down around 7:45, but she's up at around 6. It's not enough sleep. She's getting bags under her pretty little baby eyes.
See? Look at her face here....she is beyond tired.
And I don't mind walking away from her after I've put her down and have her whine a little. She's two, she knows the nap time drill. But this isn't just whining, this is blood curdling cries and screams. That, I can not handle. And I totally blame Evan. I think that him not being home has made her clingy and that's led to not wanting to be left alone at nap time. Sigh.

So, today, I am trying again.
And I think it's possible. I think today is the day.
Right?
Come on, people, humor me. I need the positive energy.