Grandma's visit

I figure that its better late than never!
Especially when it comes to blogging, so....
About a month ago, Brian's mom (aka "Grandma") came out for a visit.

So we all went to the airport to pick her up. Micaiah and Anna were so excited to find out why we came to this strange place with people carrying and pulling bags. (side note: for some reason Anna is convinced that she is going to live in China one day so going to the airport opened up a lot of conversation and questions)

Grandma visited for four days and we took her around town and did a lot of fun stuff.
One of the days, we spent at the Liberty Memorial and
the National World War I Museum.

And Anna was so excited to take Grandma to eat at Fritz's.
Its a train themed fast food joint that has electric powered trains that deliver your food to your table. You have to see it to believe it. Its very cool. We took Grandpa (my dad) and Grandma Ruth to eat at the Crown Center location the last time they came out for a visit.
This time we took Grandma to the newest/closest one in Shawnee, right down the street.

We had a great time hanging out with Grandma. Thanks for visiting. We love you!!!

Starting the year off right

Well, where to start?

The past few weeks have been busy indeed!

Wow--just thinking about it all reminds me of how blessed I am!

How amazing is the grace of God.

This summer, I started a new tradition called "Mama and Anna dates." Once a month, we plan a time and pick something fun to do together--just the two of us. She always looks forward to our dates and it has become an important part of our relationship. It has also been an opportunity to prepare and encourage her for the years to come. We've had some really great times and I know we're both glad that we started this new tradition.

Right now for many, its the start of a new season, a new chapter.
Its the start of a new academic year!

I am very excited!!! This year is going to be great. Anna is really looking forward to homeschooling. Of course, mostly its because she really enjoys playing with her brother and she really wants to learn to read.

When we sat down to start our homeschooling session this morning, Anna said to me with a big smile on her face, "I really like my teacher."
She looked at me and I asked her, "Well, who is your teacher?"
She giggled and responded, "You are Mama!!!! You are my teacher and I will learn from you."

In the moment when she said that, my heart was filled with such peace and delight.
I looked at her smiling up at me.
This is just a glimpse of the joy of motherhood.

Check out Angie's blog post about homeschooling.
Hope you all had a refreshing summer...and a great start to the academic year.

My Two Little Monkeys

My Two Little Monkeys
(a poem for my kids)

My two little monkeys like to wiggle and giggle, climb and swing.
They are very good at all those things.

What, you ask, do you feed your monkeys?
I tell you, they eat everything even veggies!

These two little monkeys make a lot of noise
And know how to get out all the toys.

And when it comes to dolls and dresses,
You'll find the other one is naked while making messes.

When its naptime, I know to look
For at least one of them reading a book.

There's one that likes to lead in everything
With the other following under her wing.

The two of them love to play together
Which makes it great that they're brother and sister.

Their favorite thing right now to do
Is play with Thomas the choo-choo.

Its quite a sight to see them play
With Papa at the end of the day.

My two little monkeys, as you can see
Are the cutest little climbers--to me!

~With Love, Mama Rich