Two-gether

This morning my children were up early. Far too early for my taste. But I have been thinking about them and their relationship and how it has changed recently.

Brother is at school all day now, so sister is alone most of the day with me. Bored.

But something else has happened. They have started sharing a room. It started during the summer when Son asked to sleep in Daughter's room and we made a big bed on the floor for them to camp out in. But somehow, she ended up sleeping in Son's room every night. Every night I ask her where she wants to sleep and every night she answers, "I want sleep in Brudda's room." So every night I put them to bed together and put the lights out, with only some quiet music to keep them company. I warn them that if there is any funny business, they will be separated. Not once have I had to separate them. Daughter's room is all but abandoned. Son has no longer had a problem with nightmares and they both sleep peacefully all night.

They have become inseparable. They were singing together as they read books before lights out last night, the songs they listen to at bedtime..."Hot Potato" and "Hickory Dickory Dock." And Son asked if we could have Hot Potatoes for dinner tonight. They pounded their spoons at the breakfast table this morning in rhythm together. They fight, of course, it would be unnatural if they didn't, but they are best friends. They miss each other when they are away from each other. I just need the key to keeping their relationship this way when they hit the teenage years...with each other and with me. These precious times will seem so short when they are grown, already they have flown.

The downside? Son woke up at 5:30, and since Daughter was nearby, she was about 5 seconds behind. Is it bedtime yet?

5 years in pictures

Oh, how my life is different than 5 short years ago. This sweet boy came into my life and changed it forever at 6:13pm.

And just for your entertainment, here is a short picture essay of his life thus far:

This year is a big milestone for him and I wanted to make it special. I baked two kinds of muffins to bring to his Kindergarten class. Homemade from scratch, of course, is there any other way? Blueberry, and then Banana chocolate chip(my invention) were a big hit with the class.

Then our fantastic daddy took off of work a couple hours early to surprise Son! We took a special surprise birthday trip, since his party isn't until the weekend and we wanted to do something special for him on the right day. Our first Toros game since they have been back. It is, of course, a school night, so we only stayed for about half the game, but it is the experience that counts for them(I hope.)

Bubblegum and cheesecake-flavored ice cream(separately, not mixed) were the favorite treats of the night. It was a great opportunity to teach Son about good sportsmanship and how everybody strikes out, etc. I just prayed we wouldn't see any big-league temper tantrums(we didn't, thank goodness!)

And Daughter has a new love: Tuffy the Toro mascot. The whole time that was all she would talk about was Tuffy, if she saw him it was "I see him! There he is!" and if she didn't: "Where Tuffy go? Where is he?" And when we left she said over and over, "I had fun with Tuffy."

"Das' Tuffy!" check the pointing finger

PS:Son wanted nothing to do with Daughter's new boyfriend, Tuffy.

Proof

My daughter may, quite possibly, be the cutest thing ever to walk the earth. And here is today's proof:

I heard her count flawlessly from one to ten from around the corner, but there are only four magnets she was playing with. By the time I grabbed the camera and snuck back to video her, she was counting from four up and missing eight. Still cute as can be. And she's barely two, so cut her a break.

First Day of School

My sweet boy started Kindergarten this week. School for real this year.

There were many mom-tears on the school grounds as moms kissed their kids goodbye for a few long hours until school was over. Mine, surprisingly, did not flow. I managed a cool "See ya, Dude. Have a good day. Be good, I'll be back when school is over! Love ya!" No tears. Amazing for this mom who tears up at the smallest thing when her kids are involved. But maybe that is what he needed. Cool mom, reassuring him that it's no big deal to go to school and I will see him soon.

Daddy took the whole day off to be there to drop him off and pick him up from school. That is a pretty big deal in our family.

But, of course, we forgot to take our camera to the school, so these few cool shots L took before leaving are all we have of the first day of school. Oh, well, he looks soooo cool on his birthday skateboard. I suppose I can cheat and bring the camera to the school tomorrow.