A letter to my kids

Dear William and Evie,

There you are. You are off again for another day of school. You are starting to really get settled into this routine of craziness that has become our lives. You are taking responsibility for the tasks that must get done, complying with endless requests for your time and attention as you grow into this pulled-in-every-direction lifestyle that has become the American way.

Here I am. Worrying about you as usual. There are times I wish we could go back to when you were very small and I could control everything in the world around you. I could shelter you from unkind words, protect you from people with unkind hearts, and shield you from the slings and arrows of an all-too-often unkind world.

But you are handling it like pros. You are learning so quickly that life is a road of give-and-take. That there are difficulties to be negotiated and rewards to be discovered, both often in the most unlikely of places. While I miss that you no longer fit so snuggly on my lap or shoulder, I am overwhelmed that your little arms still secure around my neck. And I can't help but smile through bittersweet tears when I am the audience for your efforts to earn just a little more independence from your childhood...a small whisper in my ear, "can I stay up a little bit later now because I am second-grader?" 15 minutes, we agree; a hands-on-hips declaration, "I'm big enough to do it myselth (so cute that you don't say it 'myselF')." So you are, I concede.

I'm learning quickly to choose my battles wisely with you. In the end, you will only be this young and this small for today. So go out into the world in your mismatched outfit because it has both of the colors of the day, eat nothing but bread for snack, and remember that at the end of the day it doesn't matter what you wore or what you ate, but rather who you were that day that matters. And you, my children, are wonderful.

Love,
Mom

Which way is up?

When school ended in the spring, I was convinced that we would all have a nice, relaxing summer, that everything would slow down, we could catch up on all those things we hadn't gotten to yet, we would enjoy the warm weather, and be a little more carefree. What followed seemed the CRAZIEST summer we've ever had. I remember thinking halfway through it all that rather than things slowing down, it was busier than the school year ever was.

So when this new school year was on the horizon, I thought "GREAT!" Things will finally slow down, get back into a routine, and we can sit back and enjoy our quiet evenings together, and catch up on all those things we hadn't gotten to yet (sensing a theme?). Wrong again. We are never home. Most nights, I find myself trying to be in at least 2 places at once. Activities are prioritized so we are constantly having to skip something, leave early from something, or arrive late to something. I feel like this craziness is never going to end. But I also think I might thrive on it. I think Evie does to. She thoroughly enjoys being constantly on the go and stays right on top of everything that needs to be done. It's like a test...can we remember it all AND get it all done in the allotted time? It's like being on a game show--Amazing Race, Home Edition.

I feel sorry for William though. He would so much rather be at home or playing outside. He's probably beginning to think that the only thing we need a home for is homework, bathing, and sleeping. But he handles it like a trooper. Just grabs his new GameBoy and is ready to go.

So yesterday, our only day "off" for basically the entire month of September, we took a day and did...NOTHING! I did a little cleaning (not as much as I should have, but remember, it was our day off :) and got some Stampin' Up stuff taken care of; William played games and watched movies and pretended to be a super hero; Evie did crafty stuff and tormented the cats. It was nice, but now...I regret it. I regret that I didn't get more done while we were at home, I regret that we didn't run some errands that could have gotten out of the way, I regret that we didn't call up family or friends to see if they wanted to visit with us since we never see anyone any more. But the kids don't regret it, so we all must have needed it. It was our night of rest before heading off on our next leg of the Amazing Race. On your marks, get set, go...