10 year anniversary

Today is my 10 year anniversary of PARENTING!

Happy birthday biggest girl child I have!

Biggest girl child who sleeps with her lights on everynight because she passes out while reading or writing EVERY SINGLE NIGHT

As mom it is mostly my job to remind them to clean their room and make sure they are on track

but as an observer, I adore her person very completely. She is such an honest person, she is such a caring heart and she has a mind of justice.
She might never be good at math, but she's great at so many other things, I do not let that one subject label her or set the marks for her abilities.

I don't know what she wants for breakfast, but she wants to have a beachy morning at her favorite park, so that's where we are headed today.

A few days ago we celebrated the other little miss who is now 8. EIGHT YEARS OF AGE!!

Which isn't such a shift, maybe because I filed her under 8 years old about six months ago lol, but it is such a marked difference from where she was a year ago. She wanted her favorite Burger King for breakfast and we spent the afternoon at the Science Center.

I've kept things small and very low key this year. Not so much in trying to avoid a party, but kind of avoiding a party while also taking a larger step towards a minimalist style of being.

Birthdays are marvelous and a wonderful thing, but they can be very simple and still be wonderful, and I want them to realize that not every year should they expect a big party with a giant cake and decorations and the whole works. That is not in mama's budget every year. That is not in mama's planner every year... I want them to know that a birthday isn't your chance to stroke your ego and make it a day 'ALL ABOUT YOU', but it is the opportunity for other's to appreciate that you are alive and that you are here and that you are a wonderful person.

My 'gifts' to the girl childrens this year are much more practical than not, but besides choosing the activity of their choice for their day of birth (and whatever meals) I also got them nice Bibles. We have our studies and we have a wide range of illustrated Children's Bibles we have been using. Lazy children will always default to the easiest version of things and when we are trying to discuss major figures in the bible... well it helps if they have their own reference points....
so after realizing the dire need for such, and with the timing of the birthday week ahead, I chose some very nice to touch, NIV easy-to-read versions and they are alike enough but also different enough.

And the girls love it.

I get more groans and whines when I ask them to read from the giant illustrated family bible guide book even though one page is a giant picture and the text is a smoother summary than whatever is about to followed up in the bigger version. Mal doesn't know how to differentiate and mostly is mad that I ask her to read anything so early in the morning before she's ready.

They are such blessings in my life.

This is a year like none that have ever been before.
The place I exist within is outside of any imagined life I set out or made as my goal.
I'm here, I know how I got here, it was an organic path carved from the steel and grit of the world with grace
but then again I don't know how I got here

when did I turn into this extra long haired woman who sets up Bible verse study pages next to the science and history pages in her children's homeschool binders while I get psyched up for the week ahead? When did I become Mama No Nonsense with her rules and her strict boundaries and her Wonder-Woman like whip of noticing when something is off?

How long did I really think I was going to be able to do anything before little boy found me?
Ha.
Point for Universe again because I had the expectation that I would atleast have some time to myself to type out something to clear out all the stuff in my head.
Constantly in my head filling up the backburner
and I love my life
Life is blessed
There's so much abundance
I sometimes don't have any room for anything else
Other than to keep up

And today is my 10 year anniversary of the best decision I ever made
to become Mom
Cause this is what I do best
I hope
I try
These little people are wonderful