Jesse

I'm not sure what the secret is to raising siblings who enjoy spending time together, but I do know, my parents got it right. I think I can speak for the three of us when I say that my siblings and I, genuinely enjoy our time together, and we genuinely miss each other when we are apart. Several  months ago, my sister moved to Texas. We are very excited for her and this new chapter in life, but we sure do miss her. And now, my brother is back at The Ohio State University, so here I am, wishing that we could be together for each and every Sunday dinner. 

It is expensive to fly to Texas. Especially for me to fly with two children who also require plane tickets, so I thought it would be Christmas before I'd see my sister again. I was elated to find out that she was flying home for a quick visit. And Isabella, well, I'm sure the pictures speak for themselves. She loves Jesse. They hardly separated from each other during her day and a half visit. The night we had to say good-bye, and the following day, there were many tears as I tried my best to console Isabella and assure her that soon we would get to see Jesse again. 

After Jesse moved to Texas, we started using Facetime, so that Isabella could practice reading aloud to Jesse. Isabella was very excited to read her latest story to her while snuggled together on the couch.

We went to the annual Art Show, where we discovered some very spoiled canines. I think people forgot that dogs were made to walk, they even have two extra legs, making them especially good at walking.

For real, this just isn't right. These aren't the only two dogs we saw being pushed/pulled around.

The following day was low-key. Jesse was back on a plane, and Isabella was sadder than ever. We are looking forward to Christmas and the chance to spend extra time with my sister.

This year I've learned that sunflowers may quite possibly be the happiest and saddest flowers all at the same time. Sure, they are bright yellow and turn their heads to welcome the sun, but they can't quite keep their heads up and then they become melancholy sunflowers. I'm ripping them out this week because they're depressing me. Now the chickens get to enjoy them.

This is a big week for us. Isaac will begin preschool on Thursday and some of Isabella's extra-curricular activities begin this week too. We are also celebrating the first few eggs from our chickens, and Walter has expanded their run because he thought they "looked bored".

The Red Fox by Isabella

I had an epiphany this morning--Use my sister to my advantage. In a nice way, of course. Sometimes it can be very hard to motivate Isabella to do her school work. We are currently bribing her with ice-cream (if she gets five stickers in a row for cooperative behavior, she gets ice-cream)--it works, don't judge, or you'll find yourself doing the same thing one day.

Before my sister moved to Texas, she told Isabella to call her and read her a story. Isabella was excited about this idea, which was great because she never wants to read aloud, and let's just admit, practice makes perfect. This business of Isabella being excited to read aloud over the phone, is perfect. What is even more perfect, is the fact that this morning she told me she wanted to write a story to send in the mail to Jesse. Yes, the wheels are turning...addition facts over the phone; telling time; reading; vocabulary words...the list goes on and on.

As written by Isabella (she did ask how to spell 'illustrated', so I gave her that one):

The red fox
Illustrated by Isabella
mad by Isabella

wus upon utim
Threr was a red
fox The red fox
wunid too play but
Threr wus no buty
Too play with so
The red fox wet
on a woc Then
The red fox wet
Too tak a nap
Then hee woc
up eThen The
red fox fowd
his famully
The Eed

Growing Pains: Learning to Say Goodbye

I think it's fair enough to say that I can announce to the blogging world that my sister has moved to Texas. She arrived in Dallas yesterday, and let me tell you, there are some heavy hearts in this house. 

Thursday evening we enjoyed a family dinner before saying goodbye to Jesse. I've been preparing Isabella, and in turn, myself: "Mama, I just don't want Jesse to go." "I know, I don't want her to go either, but we have to be excited for her because this is a really good opportunity for her." And so it went, Thursday evening, on a teary ride back home. 

I snuggled with Isabella in bed that night, and told her it was okay to be sad. I thought about how Isabella has reached an age where loss and distance are real. She is learning to say goodbye (with the anticipation of a visit to Texas, of course), and also learning that situations change regardless of whether we want them to, or not. Isaac doesn't understand, but in Isabella's mind, she's losing the one who paints her nails, lets her cuddle in her lap, listens to her endless chit chat, and most importantly, the one who wears fancy clothes and always looks like a princess. She always looks forward to seeing Jesse (and so do I, she is my sister after all) and now it will be several months before we have a chance to see her again. 

Isabella awoke the next morning and said, "tears were falling down my face all night long." Later she came inside and told me she was "just trying to catch a sparrow to be her friend so that she would stop thinking about Jesse." It's so hard to watch her grasp these seasons of change. I have found that as I hold my child's hand in these situations (the death of my grandfather, and my sister's move) it becomes hard for me to process my own grief and sadness. When you have kids, there isn't time to stop, there's barely time to write this post with minimal interruptions. I haven't decided if that's a good thing or not. Maybe it just means everything is bottled up and one day I'll explode (picture self exploding--I feel it's entirely possible). 

Okay, moving on before all of my readers enter a completely depressed state of mind. 

I promise, we are excited for you, Jess! Texas is just so far away! 

And now, some (happy) pictures from an evening spent outside...

Take charge, little man. 

Oh my, how she is changing. 

Those two are inseparable. I'm pretty sure Isaac could manage any situation as long as Isabella is along acting as his personal assistant.