Best summer ever so far

 It has been the most magical summer. The best parts have been just being home with Conley and Eloise and seeing them play play play together. They color together, build LEGOs together, make forts, write notes, make little books, play on the trampoline, play with the hose (Conley's always telling her to turn it off--I've already instilled in him a fear of wasting water, I guess), look at books, climb on the car. Eloise has been in to filling random stuff up with water for over a year. Making potions, I think. She adores little things, little trinkets. She's a bit of a collector, which sometimes sets off my cleanliness sensor and I get a little crazy. But I just shut her closet door and try to ignore it. 

Eloise has been really sweet to me this summer. During the schoolyear, when she was going to preschool every day (at least this last semester), she got crabby at me. She was bossy and cranky, threw fits. But this summer she has loved spending time with me. She'll come sit by me and want to spend time with me. She talks to me and just says the cutest things. She still doesn't say her Rs, so what she says is just so cute, and still sounds little. She adores reading, really enjoys riding her bike (since Joseph toughed it out and taught her by forcing her to balance on it while he ran next to her down the arroyo--all the while her screaming, "DAD! STOP ME!!!"). 

We've been checking out books along a theme this summer and reading them, then going on a field trip and doing a craft that relates to that theme. It's been fun and we've learned a lot. We went to the dinosaur museum for the dino week; zoo with a scavenger hunt for the animal week; and the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center for the Native American week. This week is Juneteenth/Black American history, which is my favorite. The kids have kept up with the daily schedule pretty well. A couple times a week we'll do workbooks or iPad games too. I just love spending time with them. Eloise likes to go out and is always pleasant when we do so, but we are mostly homebodies. When we go out, Conley gets bored and crabby within an hour or so and asks to go home. He's a super literal guy lately and super logical. I'm working really hard trying to get him to recognize his emotions, take deep breaths, etc. Typing this out reminds me that meditation would be a good things to institute. He's been loving drums and we've been loving it too. He plays every day and is getting better quickly. He pretends to play during primary and matches the rhythm pretty well. 

He's a sweetheart too--especially if he gets to spend the day at home. He loves being home and he loves being with me. It makes me smile to type that. It's true. The other day, I was walking home from dropping off the Prestwiches' car and carrying his booster seat. He met me a block from the house and took the booster seat from me, like a true gentleman. I didn't even ask him to. He almost always does what I ask him to do, especially if it has anything to do with manual labor. He loves figuring stuff out, building stuff, fixing problems, trouble shooting, helping. He never lets me walk alone to or from church. He catches up with me on his bike and stays within 10-15 feet the whole time, just chatting. He tells me funny jokes and about math problems he's figured out. He's starting to understand faith. Even though he doesn't know God is real yet, he says, he still sees the logic in praying and exercising faith in him. It's awesome. I'm grateful for that. I never want him to say or do anything (spiritual or otherwise) because he thinks it's expected of him, or like to make other people happy. I love his authentic heart. He's so much like Joseph that way. Just sweeter:). 

 

Eloise's softest cheeks

 Her cheeks are so soft and the perfect amount of squishy. She (and Conley does this too) just lets me kiss them (those cheeks). In Costco walking around, with her in the cart and her face close to mine, I just can't resist. I just kiss kiss kiss kiss kiss kiss kiss them and she lets me, almost like she doesn't notice. I love those cheeks. I love that sweet girl. 

Tonight Conley said through loud cry tears, "I'm mad at everyone but YOU!" He was mad because punk Joseph had just sprayed him with the hose. He was mad at Eloise because she had spilled some of the water in this big turquoise bucket, water Conley had collected during that last snow storm this week. I asked him what he wanted to do with it, and he said, "Clean it and give it back to New Mexico to help with the drought." Gosh he's so sweet.

Kelsey Cardon gave me a bunch of boxes to take home for him. She'd given him a set of screws and tools just for cardboard boxes for his birthday. I took them home and told him and for a few hours, he worked on those boxes in the garage. He loves working and creating. We read a page in the Heavenly Mother book about our Heavenly Parents being creators and it prompted the question: what have you created that you're proud of. He said, "I made a waterfall" (at school in the playground...he's spent this whole semester of recesses digging) "and the water I collected." He thought of those things first and foremost for some reason. He is so good at creating. He makes LEGO stuff and Connects stuff and does tons of art, those boxes, on and on. 

Conley's dinosaur birthday party and Eloise's thoughts on homelessness

 They're really just too much. They make my life so good and so rich and so full. I just can't imagine life without them. I'm having so much fun and fulfillment being a mom. I love what I learn from being their mom, like that Eloise has a soft heart and doesn't like if I get truly frustrated with her. Conley loves snuggling and absorbs things so quickly when he's listening. 

Russia invaded Ukraine a week and a half ago and it's been heartbreaking to watch. I've told the kids about it a bit. His prayer the other night was this: "Please bless that Russia will stop being so fierce and that Ukraine will get to stay its own country." Eloise mentioned Putin and that he would stop or something like that. 

Today we had a birthday party for Conley. It was so fun. I planned the activities with him and they were all a huge success. We put little dinosaurs in baking soda paste that hardened into eggs, and then squirted vinegar on them. And then the kids dug up bigger dinosaurs. And they excavated a T-Rex skeleton that I got from Target. Then they designed the most amazing LEGO dinosaurs without directions! It was impressive what they came up with: moving arms, legs, jaws, wings. I loved it and was super impressed. Then we had cake and ice cream and they just jumped on the tramp. Conley loved it so much. I love making him happy.

I read to him tonight. We give him melatonin nowadays, and it helps him so much. It's so cute when he gets sleepy. I've been reading him a book called Fudge by Judy Blume. Joseph had a good idea to start reading the Bible with him so he bought a kids Bible. It's gnarly and the art is crazy looking but Conley loves it. He insists on reading two stories every night. Joseph also started a journal with him, so we wrote in that tonight and he dictated all about the presents he got and the excavation kit. 

I told him earlier today, "You are my favorite. Did you know that?" And he stopped and hugged my legs (we were walking to the kitchen) and said, "No." And I said, "Yep. You're my favorite." And he just looked at me and smiled. It was so sweet for some reason. Tonight, I said, "Do you remember what I told you are earlier today?" He smiled mischievously and said, "Birthday boy." I tickled him and he giggled.

He was so sweet to Eloise the whole party. I just love how he lets her play with him and his 8 friends/cousins that came today. It's just amazing. And this morning he cried when she didn't want to play a game with him that he wanted to play. He loves playing with her. They play really well together, for the most part.

We did Come Follow Me tonight, which we don't do that often these days. It was nice. Afterward, Eloise was like, "I know something about the Bible. There were guys with bandages all over and they were sick and they couldn't even go to their houses. But then they were walking and saw Jesus and his disciples and Jesus healed them all! And they were able to go back to their houses." I asked if they said thank you, and she said, "Only one!" We talked about that. Then Conley said a prayer, and in it, he blessed the people who don't have houses "that they would have a really good time." I know he means that they will be OK and be able to have a happy life. When he finished the prayer, Eloise said, "I worry about the people standing on the highway." We see a lot of homeless people these days. I said something about that there are resources for them like homeless shelters, but that it's hard to get long-term housing because it's so expensive. And she said, "Yeah and they walk all over and they are so tired." It was so, so, so sweet. She was feeling it for them. And Joseph was so sweet about it, too. He said, "Yes and it's hard to get a job when you don't have an address." Anyway, it was a special moment for us, all mourning together for them. I just felt so touched that she (and Conley) notice.

Eloise is a delight. She's been a beautiful, bright, delicious delight every day of her life. Her language is amazing right now: amazingly cute. She can't say her Rs, so words like church, shirt, river, on and on, are just too much. She has big feelings but can be comforted with love and snuggle. She reminds me to be calm and patient and gentle, because why wouldn't I be? I feel like she and Conley both do that: they make it so clear to me what they are feeling and that they are thinking and feeling and intentional beings, and that impatience or fierceness are just a waste and also harmful. I love feeling how they feel and seeing the world through their eyes.