School Started, Bode Continues to Play Baseball, Mia Continues to do Theater, Great Trip to Montana, and Mia Turns 11, Among Other Things

The awkward, nervous smiles of the first day of school. Oh how I don't miss those.

 1st day lunchroom selfie:

 My heart stops every time a ball comes flying at that tiny little head.

 Apparently, little boys get pretty obnoxious when they are attempting to show-off in front of "big girls." Clearly, the big girls couldn't care less about these two little stud-muffins.

 Montana is for cousins!

 Picking fresh raspberries (and blackberries, and eggplant, and broccoli, and peppers) for an afternoon snack.

 Meeting the colts:

 If a dog won't look at the camera, just grab his face and squeeze:

 Beautiful Montana:

 Fishing with Uncle Breezy:

 Mia feeding chipmunks (aka glorified rodents) out of her hands:

 They caught our dinner:

 Sweet friends and family

 Mia has now graduated to whiteboard monitor when planning Disney trips (if you know my husband, this is a very big honor):

 Bode is in it for the cheeseburgers:

 Mia's 11th birthday at cheesecake factory:

 Having dinner with tweens always ends up taking a weird turn:

 I'm the mom that terrifies Mia's friends:

 (I'm also the mom that chaperones every minute of a slumber party, including sleeping with the girls - there will be no funny business at my house. At some point this will mortify Mia. I do not care.

 Mia's sweet besties:

 Only the best of friends are willing to get up for early service after a slumber party. There is so much morning breath, frizzy hair, and love represented in this picture:

I can't think of anything catchy/snarky/thought provoking to say to end this post. 

So, this is the end.

Bode Turns Eight, Celebrates in Most Typical, Average Way Possible

Bode had his third basketball party in a row. I'm telling' ya, you've got to get yourself one of these little boys, it's the easiest thing ever.

 Score keepers:

 There were so many kids that we had enough to have a little round robin tournament.

 And, this was serious basketball, not some silly pick-up game. We had 10-year-old refs with real whistles, for goodness sake. 

 An Air Jordan cake seemed like a natural choice.

 And finally, family dinner in the back room of Johnnies. 

 It doesn't get any simpler than this. 

I let my kid go in public dressed like an idiot and I don't even care. 

I have been pleasantly surprised at how much I am enjoying this stage. It's stinky and exhausting, but also so very entertaining. 

Little boys are the best.

Elisha and the Seven Sneezes

This girl is a maniac for projects. 

When it came time for her to complete her 5th grade portfolio in Journey Land (our amazing elementary program at church), she was all over it.

I would have taken a picture of her and her Dad working on her video but that would have made the slightest bit of noise, which was completely unacceptable. Bode and I weren't allowed to speak (or move) for a week.

Once, a friend called to see if Mia could come over to play and she and Andy both exclaimed, "This is prime lighting time, we don't go anywhere during prime lighting time. You know that!" After being reprimanded I shirked back to my bedroom where I had been relegated to during "prime lighting time."

Finally, after hours of building a lego set, recording and re-recording audio (Andy: Mia, the inflection in your voice is, frankly, pretty flat. Try again.), and over 1,400 pictures, I present Mia's first stop-motion video:

Elisha and the Seven Sneezes

The above pictures are all Mia cares about - her friends and random children loved it. This girl will probably never be rich (She is an artist after all. We are counting on Bode to take care of us financially.), but I am sure that whatever she decides to do with her life will be complicated, very detailed, difficult, and bring joy to everyone who experiences it.

The difference between a pre-teen girl and a little boy eating lunch:

We've entered a new phase of life. It's apparent in every detail of every day. 

Case in point, lunch this afternoon:

Stuff is gettin' real over here, ya'll. I predict that Bode will deserve every bit of retaliation he receives. I also predict that stomaching the sound of Mia's exasperated shrieks will never get easier.

One of these things is not like the others...

I had two goals this summer: Get Bode to read and get Mia to exercise. 

 There's always next year...

Theater weekend number 952

Mia's latest show, Seussical the Musical, was so, so fun. She performed three shows in a row on Saturday, and she and I had so much fun hanging out in between.

This show is great for little ones, like cousins:

Jewel Box is a really cool round theater. There isn't a bad seat in the house.

Jewel Box is also where Uncle Lucas performed his very first play. These two are like the same person.

If I have time to kill during a show I immediately seek out coffee and food. Mia seeks out books. We aren't the same person. 

She's way more talented and focused than I ever was at her age. I'm glad most of my genes seem to be recessive.