Overheard

Me [picking up yet another book to read to Grace]: Books are her love language.

Jason Slade: If I had a blog, I would definitely put that on it!

Well, it's true...And you can click here and here if you don't believe me. If I don't read to Grace a sufficient number of books each day, she behaves as though she's feeling neglected. Somedays "sufficient" is hovering somewhere around 300 books, it seems. It helps having one more reader in the house now (Josiah--he read to her for nearly an hour one day this week), but she still prefers Mom. I'm apparently the only one who will read all the words all the correct way and not deviate from the story. ;)

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Grace [flipping through a photo album...from when Robert was a baby, of course]: There's a baby sleeping! [giggles] They always do that.

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Jason Slade [calling me in to see Grace sleeping]: Grace looks so content--you'd think she was in a pink Barbie car.

I don't think I could have guessed even a year ago that he would be saying things like that.

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Me: Get the umbrella out of the bathroom!

And I never imagined I would be saying things like that, either...or things like "It's beside the monkey on the table." Or dreaming about Josiah filling his old shoes with mud.

He's still a "hellfire and brimstone" kind of guy

Josiah was sitting in the pews on his first night of Vacation Bible School at Robert's friend's church this week. During the worship rally, the leader asked the kids "Why do we worship God?"

Josiah's hand shot up and he was called on.

He loudly answers, "So we won't go to hell."

The leader paused for a moment and stepped back. Then, with more composure than I think I could have mustered, she said, "Ummmm...I'm gonna say 'yes' and 'no.'" And she quickly moved onto the next child with a raised hand.

This is the same child who has announced to complete strangers things like, "Halloween is the devil's birthday" and "No, we don't celebrate Halloween. We don't love the devil."

For the record, we have never, ever even suggested such a thing. Josiah quite easily makes things up as he goes along and doesn't hesitate to spice up reality with his wild imagination. Also, he was four years old at the time these conversations took place. He was a little milder at the age of three, when he would merely lecture other children in stores about not kicking their brothers because "Jesus wants us to be nice to each other, and being nice to each other makes Him very happy." You still had to listen closely, though, because at any moment he could--and did--slip into the "hellfire and brimstone" talk that he apparently still does to this day.

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Jason Slade told me about a conversation Robert and Josiah had where Josiah asked what Robert's first car would be. Josiah said that his first car would be a monster truck.

To which Jason Slade said to me, "How appropriate. And he would have a bumper sticker that said, 'Turn or burn.'"

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But back to VBS...The kids all enjoyed VBS last week. Friday was the family night and each class performed something.

Grace willingly went up front with her class so she could "sing for me." (That's how I pitched it, since she didn't want to leave my side once her classtime was over!) The 3 to 5 year olds sang a simple song and shook their jingle bell instruments...and they actually sang! The teacher put the microphone in front of a few of the kids to let them sing into it, and Grace had absolutely no hesitation when it was her turn.

Next were the 1st and 2nd graders (Josiah is the one in yellow). Josiah had a speaking part in a little skit his class performed. Maybe they figured with lines, they'd be safe. ;)

And look! Robert with a microphone!

He says he was forced into a speaking part, and I believe him. ;) That's not something he would have volunteered to do. (That's his friend in the red shirt who invited us to VBS.)

Robert did very well with his speaking part. Way to go, Robert!

You Capture: Feel

This week’s theme of the You Capture blog carnival hosted by Beth over at I Should Be Folding Laundry is Feel.

I’m sharing photos from our trek up Stone Mountain (aka "Snowy Mountain" to our little Dora the Explorer fan) last Saturday. We felt a whole myriad of emotions that day, including anticipation, awe, fatigue, and a sense of accomplishment (or relief?!) as we climbed back into our truck to drive home.

This was immediately after Grace said those dreaded words, "Mommy, I want you to pick me up." We had already been walking for a while; the guys continued walking up without us. I carried her about 10 feet to some shade, gave her some water, and then she was recharged and ready to go again. She never asked to be carried after that.

The hazy Atlanta skyline:



Fearless...In the next picture, she was starting to go up as I took the pictures of the skyline. She told me, "I don't need to hold the handrail, Mommy." (She did hold my hand and I held onto the handrail.)


Shortly after we climbed the handrail portion, we met back up with the guys as they were on their way down. Robert shared his water with Grace. The guys had refilled their water bottles at a water fountain at the top of the mountain.



The guys continued their way down, and Grace wanted to continue climbing with me but she was very thirsty and I knew we'd run out of water again. This was as far as Grace and I made it. I took some more pictures as Grace sat and drank her water.

If we had had a greater supply of water with us, I think she could have kept on climbing. Without the water, though, there was a good chance I'd be carrying her the whole way down...not an option!

We started back down, and I had to tell Grace repeatedly to slow down on the handrail part. She giggled at me.

Grace stopped to admire the granite on these steps and really wanted to take a pocket full of rocks home. (Ummm...no.)

Once we reached the bottom, both Josiah and Grace said they would climb it again! The rest of us were tired and hungry. :)

I just had to include this one. It has nothing to do with the theme at all (except maybe disgust); it is merely a telephone pole covered with gum. Ewww! Grace calls it a gum tree. ;) She agreed that we just had to take a picture of it.

Later Saturday afternoon, Josiah met with his baseball team one last time. Each of the boys received a certificate. They had a great time, but I think we were all happy that the season was over!

This is an area we drive through on the way to and from the ballpark. It makes me feel peaceful.

Updated to add these...

Oh, how could I forget? Chocolatey bliss!

These are absolutely delightful! They are Nestle Treasures: 50% cacao...dark chocolate truffle...with crunchy cacao bits! And they were $.99 for a bag at our Bell's Discount Grocery Store!

And the feeling of joy with yet another visit from the Tooth Fairy, leaving a Bugs Bunny kind of look...which he demonstrated to me early one morning after shaking me awake.

Check out I Should Be Folding Laundry for more You Capture participants.

Click here to see my previous You Capture photos.

"Mom, I'm Bored!"

I didn't personally participate in this themed Works For Me Wednesday, but wanted to pass along the link for this week's post at We Are That Family.

Check it out for all sorts of ideas on boredom busters!

Wordless Wednesday: Sunsets

Visit 5 Minutes for Mom or Wordless Wednesday for more Wordless Wednesday participants.

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Click here to see my previous Wordless Wednesday posts.

Maybe his friends called him "Chuck"

Here is my 12 year old, completing a history assignment at our kitchen table last week.



Here's what he was actually doing:



The book on top of his history book is, of course, a Peanuts book.

There was a whole elaborate process going on...First, he began writing "Charles" when inspiration struck and he instead wrote "Chuck." Next, he began drawing Charlie Brown but decided to get a book to copy from, so he ran back to Josiah's room to get one.

Oh, if only he cared so much about details when it came to penmanship... ;)

Overheard: The Dog Edition

I've said before that Grace doesn't merely listen to books; she devotes some serious time to memorizing them and listens closely enough to know immediately if you are paraphrasing the words. (Right, Jason?) In fact, if I sit down at any moment during the day, even if I'm in the middle of doing something, Grace will usually appear within seconds with a book in her hand.

Seriously. I have been in the middle of changing the vacuum cleaner bag when she appeared with a stack of 5 books for me to read to her.

So, it should come as no surprise that these things have been overheard recently while Josiah was reading aloud from Henry and Mudge books.

Josiah: Henry had no brothers and no... [pauses]

Grace [whispering, as though she's prompting him]: Sistas.

Josiah: ...Sisters.

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Josiah: He ran upstairs. He ran... [pauses]

Grace [whispering]: Down.

Josiah: ...Back down.

Well, at least we know he's not just guessing the words!

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Josiah [waking late at night because he was thirsty, and talking as though he's in the middle of a conversation with his Daddy]: ...And a big dog is better at hide-and-seek, 'cause a big dog can just get up on something high up and see where you are.

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Grace [looking in the window of a pet store after lunch today]: Awww! Dat puppy is sad! He wants me.