And Anders isn’t the only one getting all grown up around here!

That probably sounds a little strange if you didn’t read today’s first post (that started with “first off” and talked about Anders growing up so very much) . . . and I’m sure none of you did read it first as it is below this post. But, it was indeed typed first and will go into my blog book before this one, so . . . there you have it.

BUT, that was first off – about Anders, and this is SECOND, about Abe and Daisy:

Abe and Daisy.

Here is Abe (with brother):

And here is Daisy (with herself):

And nobody will really know what I mean – unless, you know, they do know what I mean . . . then I guess they would, but I have typed about things like this before, and they keep happening! What keeps happening? My kids keep . . . I don’t know . . . turning into who they are, and deciding what they want to be and do, and being good at what they are good at with out my having anything to do with it . . . or expecting it . . . or telling them to. And, to be honest, it is the greatest thing! I know I am responsible for much of how they develop and what they learn, but it is so fun to see that much of it will just be their own innate talents developing and their own decisions being put into action, and that, I am not 100% responsible for everything they turn out to be!

Take Abe. He is funny and makes me laugh often. The other day he said, “Mom, can I get a mullet?”

I responded that he couldn’t just “get” a mullet – he’d have to grow his hair super long and cut all but the back. Then, I added, “mullets are hideous.”

He raised his eyebrows and said, “Why do you think they are hideous? Would you have married dad if he had a mullet?”

“Yes, I would have still married dad if he had a mullet, but –“

Abe interrupted, “You don’t make any sense. You say mullets are hideous, but then you say you’d marry anyone with a mullet.”

“No,” I corrected, as he smirked, “not anyone with a mullet. Dad.”

Also, in his 5th grade class they have recently been writing persuasive papers. They go to the computer lab, are given a prompt and then have to type up their response. The two he did so far were on vending machines being filled with health food verses candy, and on school uniforms. You can likely guess which popular 5th grade opinions he battled for, but his papers really made me laugh. His teacher, when she gave them to me, went on and on about what an amazingly clear and great “voice” he had in his writing.

Here were a few funny parts:

“School uniforms are arguably the most uncomfortable clothing item in the world (89% of our world thinks they are the worst).”

“Next, people might scream or faint if they accidentally see a school uniform. . . . teachers . . . would have to close their eyes while they are teaching math, social studies, language and spelling which . . . would make things difficult . . .”

“”Lunch ladies could faint and spill food all over the floor because they loathe looking at school uniforms so much.”

“The uniforms are sort of like evil villains fighting the superheroes, bad guys are like uniforms and superheroes are like normal clothing . . .”

And a few from the vending machine paper:

“The battle of the vending machines, which side will you choose, the candy or the healthy food?”

“Face it, the majority of kids like junk food, if you don’t believe me offer a kid a choice between having a carrot or a candybar and see what happens.”

“If you were the champion of a contest so you completely blew everyone away with how awesome you were . . . would you prefer the prize be a vending machine filled to the brim with candy or healthier foods?”

“Also, if we eat candy we will have less chance of being massacred by an angry hoard of blood thirsty pirates (not true).”

Anyway, I just got quite a chuckle out of his fabricated 89%s and his (not true)s and his overall wit.

And Daisy. She is quite the writer in her own rite. While Abe does not enjoy writing fictional stories at all, Daisy is forever starting (and not finishing) elaborate mysteries. I can’t find one just now, but she has the greatest little conversations always going on. Also, I came upon a little notebook by her bedside a few weeks ago. Opening it, I noticed it had several consecutive dates written followed by a short quick entry of how she was blessed that day. I certainly never suggested it, maybe a church teacher did? I don’t know, but I love that she just started and has continued for over a month now to keep her little goal. They are just simple things, but I love that she is finding these simple blessings all by herself each day.

A few small examples:

“I was blessed today by having fun with my new recorder.”

“I was blessed today by getting new PJs.”

“I was blessed today by getting to have dad read to us.”

“I was blessed today by not getting very sick.”

“I was blessed today by getting to do a cool science project.”

“I was blessed today by having fun with my camera.”

“I was blessed today by losing a tooth.”

They are awfully sweet and cute, aren’t they.

So, that is that. Maybe one of the happiest things for me as a mother – seeing things my kids are good at or learn to do all on their own – it is like getting a glimpse of them more as a real separate and likeable individual than just a kid I love and think is great because they are my kid and I can’t help but think it.