Genevieve is turning 9!

As many of you may know...Genevieve is a very...proper child.  I do not mean proper in the sense of sitting up straight or sipping tea pinky up, but more the definition of "correct".   In a sense, it makes parenting her easier; she doesn't lie, because either a thing IS or it isn't, and only what IS makes sense.   She also always follows safety rules, she always buckles up and wouldn't dare cross the street without looking both ways.   On the other hand, it makes parenting her a bit of a challenge...because both of her parents would be considered anything but proper.

Earlier this year she confessed she heard a "bad word", and she needed to tell me because her conscious couldn't hold it to herself.  She also pointed out when she heard me say a bad word...(mother of the year right here, but in my defense I was panicked thinking the dog was going to kill the mailman and it just slipped out).    On another occasion she was out with her aunt and Nana and when I was tucking her in that night asking if she had the best time, she said "well...mostly...except they broke a lot of laws and that made me uncomfortable".      BROKE A LOT OF LAWS?!   They jaywalked (looking both ways of course) but there was a crosswalk down a ways, AND....they drove from one parking lot to the one next to it without their seat belts on.

While this child strongly desires things to be black and white, and her dad and I have tried to point out how often life can be gray....she has taken that correct way of doing things and grown in responsibility SO much this year.   She takes more initiative to do things, she is more confident in the things she does.  She steps up to help others (sometimes slightly bossy but from a place of trying to help!)  and is over coming so many fears and anxieties that we had seen her struggle with before.   Small things, but this week I asked her to go put something back in the store for me, and she did it, when last year she wouldn't have felt comfortable stepping out of sight from me in a strange place on her own. 

She is uniquely herself.  I mean, I believe we are all unique...but she is the ONLY 8 year old I have known to ask for a juicer for Christmas.    She invited all her neighborhood friends over to make juice for them after trying a couple different recipes and wanted to share what she had learned.  They VERY politely declined any more after trying a sip....so she and her brother got to share what she had made. 

She is growing in her reading and has much to her fathers delight become an avid fan of fantasy books.   I tried influencing her with lots of fictions I have loved or historical fictions, but magic, mythical beasts, supernatural powers and realms beyond our world captivate her and we have found her up before the sun with the little lamp above her bed on so she can read until the rest of us wake up. 

She has always loved outdoor adventures, and since Tyler and I always strongly encourage this, it only makes sense to see her love for the sun grow as well.   We experienced the beach for the first time this summer and Genevieve LOVED the waves, she body surfed, she loved jumping over and through waves, rolling in the sand, and everything about the beach, who knew this Kansas girl could be such a beach lover?

She loves her friends, as most kids do, but between you and me, I think her best friend is actually Charlotte.  She has started to get the dog to sleep with her a lot of nights, and claims she sleeps better with her company.  Whenever we are out she is polite to people but as soon as she sees a dog, she squeals and asks to meet their "puppers", but I mean, obviously I understand. 

It's crazy watching your child grow and become more and more their own person.  We hope she continues to be the funny, unique, kind person she is but not matter who she becomes, she is everything to us.  

Ezekiel turns 6

This year flew by, but then again, Ezekiel in general flies by...until he comes to a complete halt to cuddle.   He likes to live in the extremes.

Beginning this blog I asked Tyler (like I always do), "So have any input for me from the year for me to input to the birthday blog?"  His response: "He's crazy".   But that's the same every year, he has seemed crazy to us from the beginning, but in the most entertaining ways (most of the time).

  He loves spending time outside, and we love him spending time outside (wild things belong in the wild).  The boy loves trees, he asks to go to certain parks by describing his favorite trees at that park.  "Can we go to the park with the really big sideways tree?  Can we go to the park with the tree that I climbed with Papa Danny?  Can we go to the park with the tree by the pond?"

We looked outside awhile ago and saw him climbing the tree....with a chair.  He was trying to balance his camp chair in the tree to sit in, and we let him.   We both stood at the window and watched, his coordination and determination was impressive.  Tyler said to me "well, we might finally have our first broken bone"....we didn't.   As crazy as he is, he also has impressive control. 

But beyond all the crazy, is the most kind and compassionate heart.  Don't get me wrong, the kid is ornery, but it blows my mind how kind he continues to be.   Anything he has, he is willing to share with his sister.  He spent his own money to buy a pack of gum, and anytime he got a piece, he let his sister have a piece.  Which may seem just kind of nice, and his sister is wonderful, but she rarely shares in return...but it doesn't matter, he continues to do so.   The other day at the store we walked by a little girl who asked her mom if she could have a stuffed animal she saw.  When the mom said "no", Zeke asked me if he could spend his money and buy the little girl the stuffed animal.  (I didn't let him, because I am also not as kind as he is). 

He has grown so much in his focus and determination to improve and learn.  He worked hard and has advanced to a blue belt in karate.  He is the youngest kid in the more advanced class...by a couple years.   But he holds his own, works hard and shows pride in his progress.   We are extremely proud watching his growth.  

 He seems to excel in logic and complex patterns.  The kid still can't quite tell me his letters but has completely gone through his logic workbook, learned games like chess and Azul and is grasping addition.  

He continues to be the laid back, generally joyful, coffee stealing, couch jumping, loud presence in our home.  We love him a lot and although I would love to see time slow down a bit, we continue to look forward to watching him grow and mature.  

Genevieve turns 8

Most years I begin Vi's birthday blog with a sense of disbelief.  Something along the lines of "I cannot believe she is THIS many years old!"   This is the first year where it just...makes sense, like, of COURSE she is 8.   She has always been smart, but there was a degree of maturity that happened this year that just helped me be a bit more prepared for her continued aging and growth.

 She is becoming more self aware of her emotions and her impact on others.  She has been processing things externally and I hear her laying in bed processing events that have happened during the day.  Most recently reassuring herself of who she is compared to what someone else said about her.  I had talked to her about it, but she said she still needed to "talk it out a bit to herself".   
I recently got her a journal as a place she can also process emotions and thoughts in response to life and she has already started pouring herself into it.   It's such a coming of age thing having to process life events and their impact and it just makes her seem older to me, but I am already proud of how she is trying to handle things.

She is extremely factual and literal.   It makes her painfully honest, and often comically so.  My cousin is going through a difficult time having to re-home one of her dogs.  Genevieve's response while trying to be empathetic, "well at least you have one dog"(reminds me of her dad). 
This year she also came in and told me "you look decent today mom".

We have noticed her eagerness for learning.  Not just academically, (I still have to threaten her sometimes to do school) but overall in her understanding of life and knowledge.  She wants to know how things work, why people respond in different ways to different situations; and she wants to know how she can try to do things on her own.    She is learning more complex games, reading more advanced books, pursuing knowledge on things that interest her.
 She wanted her own tools, when we gave her a small hammer/screw set, she promptly removed the door knob from her door (accidentally, just noticed the screw there and got to work). 

This year was also an overall difficult year for our family, and I've seen part of her maturity develop as we have worked through that together.  We had a couple big life changes in our lives that her acute and quizzical mind has not missed their significance. She experienced loss for the 2nd time in her life when we lost my aunt this year.   Most kids have this sense of invincibility, that Genevieve doesn't seem to have.  She is cautious, sincere and aware of the concept that people come and go in our lives.   It has made her love more fiercely and appreciate the people we have in our lives.   She randomly asks us how different people are doing, she thinks of others and shows awareness of when they are in need of affection.  She has asked some hard questions that have been difficult for us to answer when we WANT to assure her of certainty...and we cannot.   I was a bit nervous of her becoming fearful, but she seems to have become more graceful instead. 
 I am so proud of how she is navigating life, and so thankful for the many, many people who have helped shape her and influence her towards grace and love instead of fear.