talking Bo

Always feel like adding a picture to each post, even though this has nothing to do with my anecdote... Naomi and Eva with our hair stylist, Kim. They have wanted Kim to cut their hair for years, and she finally decided she would cut for kids too! They were thrilled with the whole experience, and Eva even rehearsed her instructions regarding her cut till they sounded very grown-up. (This happened about a month ago- I'm a little behind.)

OK- so anecdote for the memory book- Eva and Bo. Jason has decided that Bo chews too many things, and that instead of continuing to by him stuffed animals at Goodwill ($1.25 and he LOVES them) he should have rawhides exclusively. These are a lot "neater" than the stuffies, but Bo Bo is quite missing his soft victims. So the other day I walked into the living room to see Eva standing guard in the coat closet, holding a plush puppy high above her head. She was speaking to Bo, who was negotiating with whining and sad eyes, in a low, loud serious voice much like what an Indian would sound like in a old movie. She told him, "ME. NO. TAKE. STUFFIES... BIG. MAN. TAKE. STUFFIES... ME. NOT. INVOLVED."

He must have understood.

dozens of pictures and a few jokes

Since the kids don't go to school, I try to do some "official-ish" shots of them individually each year- usually on their birthdays. This year Grammy wanted some framables, so we had a few (painfully goofy) photo sessions. The results are as follows, with some funnies thrown in. The human face is so interesting- the possibilities for expression are endless!

Eva was all dressed up to go to the space needle with Auntie Sarena and Anika. She was so joyful and excited, I think that helped in making the pictures turn out so lovely.

Love, love love that one. (above)

Eva decided yesterday that Bo needed to be more helpful, and she was going to train him to be a guide dog. After a 1/2 hour session of cutting and coloring, a paper vest was produced with the label "Guide Dog" and a graphic of a person in a wheelchair. She called the pup-o-sixty-pounds into the living room, and proceeded to attempt to cape him- twenty minutes of wrestling resulting in failure later, she walked into the kitchen muttering something like... "He's never gonna be a guide dog, that...." -rumpled paper dragging behind. Bo trotting in a little later, looking quite carefree, and still unemployed.

Nomes- a total goofball at heart. :)

This was where she wanted to sit for her photos, but the sun was too bright to turn towards me...

We don't like to waste things in our family, and the kids are always good about re-purposing... Yesterday Naomi was touching a watermelon I was about to slice for her, and she asked me quite sincerely, "Mom, can I hollow this out and use it as my bicycle helmet?"

Bubs isn't fond of photo sessions- we had to tell some pretty gross jokes to keep him around and smiling for these. The "truest" smile is the last, where he's snuggling his beloved Bo-dog.

We were in the car the other day and Bubby said, "Mom, I was thinking, and I thought of a question... Why don't Grammy and Gramps have any kids?!"

(He did figure this out correctly on his own- thankfully.)

The next question was- "Why on earth do we get mail on rainy days?"

And then today, when we got the mail together, he said- "Yay!!"

"What do you mean, 'yay'," I said, "It's just junk!"

"I know! I mean 'Yay', I can burn it!"

turning nine- Eva's bithday

(Let's pretend I'm writing this on) May 1st! Eva's Happy Ninth Birthday. This year was a no-party birthday, :) but a great day for Eva. She was thrilled to have a piano lesson on her birthday, and her teacher, Miss Heather, surprised her by remembering her birthday and setting the "Happy Birthday" music on the piano for her to play. Friends and family called or visited, and she had her friend Hannah over to spend the night. They were so thoughtful to Naomi and Josiah, and included them in playing outside and then, when it got dark, in their Wii play inside. Eva enjoyed her Butterscotch Cake (her request) and a visit from Grammy and Gramps. It is a joy and a blessing to watch her grow and change each year.


Nine phrases that begin to describe Eva as she is now, at age nine...

enthusiastic about all her passions...
ambitious about her future (currently planning to be president)...
inquisitive about the world around her, and the world of human interactions...
thoughtful towards others, young and old...
knowledgeable about a variety of subjects, including babies, gardening, fishing, and much more...
capable of carrying out tasks large and small...
intense in nearly all pursuits...
dramatic when demonstrating her feelings or storytelling, one of her favorite pastimes...
joyful in life's craziest moments, laughing gleefully at anything completely silly, which reassures me that she is still nine and not nineteen. :)

to do...

Tonight I went to the white board to take a peek at my to-do list- just to see all the things I didn't do today- and I found yet another item... Written in what looked suspiciously like the printing of an 8 year old was the final bullet: "-take a break mommy!!" Underlined, too. And then, "I love my mommy." Thanks, Eva! What a thoughtful daughter you are.

Well this makes two posts in a row that are somewhat about how my kids love me- how self-serving!- but really it's about their loving personalities and how they are (mostly!:) ) thinking outside themselves- and it's always a joy to see.

soccer this year

Eva's last soccer game of the season was Saturday; her team, Goal Rush, finished off a great season with a win over the Green Geckos. She really enjoyed playing this year, and really improved her skills. Scoring a goal with a left-footed kick was a highlight. Her team was able to really understand how to work together by the end of the season, and the girls were getting very good at passing and looking around the whole field. Amazing progress since the "swarming" days of U-6 soccer! It was fun to watch them all advance.

Beyond learning new soccer skills, Eva learned a few lessons from just spending time with new people...

1. If someone asks you to pull their finger, and you comply, the result may be unpleasant. (This actually happened.)

2. Many girls her age are wild about a singer who puts on a wig and pretends to be someone else- "Mom who IS this Hannah Montana? What does everyone like about her?"

3. Learning that all team members are going to get a potentially embarrassing nickname by next practice can be extremely nerve wracking... Eva was quite relieved when hers turned out to be just Eve.

All in all she had a great time- enjoyed her coaches and their lessons, and had fun with great group of girls. Thanks to all the family who made it out to watch her games, too- she enjoyed her big fan club!

Josiah helped himself to the half-time oranges.

Naomi and Josiah didn't mind coming along as they made friends with the other younger siblings of Eva's teammates. They paid no mind whatsoever to the soccer team, and instead filled the hours with picking blackberries, making "eggs" out of mud, climbing up on a huge rock and keeping others off of it, chasing each other with sticks, and so on. One of my favorite routines of game day was when the game was over, all the children had been gathered and we were walking to the van, Naomi would suddenly ask Eva, "Oh, what happened with your game? It's over? Did you win?" "Yes, and I scored a goal," Eva would reply... Naomi would gasp in surprise... "Yay! Wow Eva!" And squeeze her hard around the middle.

global costumes and a tooth update

Tonight was "International Costume Night" at Awana. The girls were thrilled to dress up; Eva went as a Guatemalan peasant, and Naomi went as Anne of Green Gables (from Prince Edward Island, Canada, of course). I told Eva how striking she looked when she was serious, and she had a hard time maintaining the straight face but managed to do it for a few pictures! The smile is certainly very lovely too.

Anne, not Marilyn! Oops. Cute, Nomsi!

If you are wondering why Josiah is not in these pictures, the reasons are twofold, and related. One, he is really not at all a costume person. Drawing attention to himself outside the home = bad. Two, he is officially now a Cubbies drop-out. He's not going any more. He's staying home, and that's that.

By the way, if you didn't notice in these pictures, the frighteningly dangling tooth did fall out over the weekend. Naomi got a little cavalier about twisting it to horrify people, like this...

and next thing you know, it was gone.

What a relief.