er cake; she loves baking and was super excited to do it all herself. I like being all creative, and had asked her if she wanted me to put any fancy decorations or designs on it. Nope- more than anything, she just wanted a black cake. We went shopping for black food coloring, and bought some black and white candles. I made her favorite frosting, and she set out to making it black. It looked almost metallic when she finished- it was rather beautiful! One of Olivia's friends' parents showed up, and they chilled with us while the kids finished they're cake. They've been around us a few times before, and we're all getting to know each other pretty well. When the mom saw the black cake (among other behaviors), she observed,
"You're kids are weird." I laughed. She gasped as she realized what she had said. "I mean, they're weird in a good way. They're... unique." Lady, nice cover, but you have no idea. That's the thing-and why I'm so NOT offended by the statement- my kids are weird. Very weird. They have pretended that they are wolves/dogs/kitties for so long that a concerned relative suggested therapy. As a result of the bear crawl ("puppy run") being their preferred mode of transportation since they could walk, they can fall to their hands and take off in a smooth transition, to the point where people do triple takes (I discourage this in public, but sometimes you just can't stifle your inner puppy.) When I'm done paying for my gas at a gas station, I walk outside and people are looking around in bewilderment for the howling emitting from my vehicle. Oh, that's just my kids; don't worry, they're wolves. Both of the girls have notebooks full of wolves attacking and eating animals. I'm not disturbed by this. Pred
ator/prey life cycles are how animals survive in the wild, and my kids know it. They ask for books instead of toys, and would rather read than watch tv. If I threaten to take a book away, behavior is instantly improved, and they love re-telling the stories and describing the characters. Yes, they're nerds. However, the word "nerd" in our house is a compliment. I've been a nerd for a long time, and see absolutely nothing wrong it. The girls are proud of their titles. Olivia has been diligently saving up her money. Birthday money, Christmas money, the money she got from helping an old lady cut twine strings... all saved. Today, she finally purchased her big ticket item: a Nook. What ten year old child saves up over $100 and spends it on another way to read? Also, as we were getting ready for bed last night at my mom's, Olivia pulls out some Edgar Allen Poe as her "before bed" read. How nerdtastic is that? I read Poe in eighth grade because it was assigned to me, and I didn't quite "get" him until it was explained in class. When I asked Olivia what class she was reading this book for, she just tilted her head and looked at me funny. "I checked it out from the library." Oh. Of course. Every day, I have to allot her some time on the computer, because she is very busy writing books. She has four going right now, and constantly discusses her plots and characters. She mulls over details and dialogue, and will easily spend an hour on the phone collaborating with a friend over a joint effort. As much as she loves books and learning, she will drop it all in a heartbeat for her baby brother. If Shael so much as sneezes, Olivia is immediately by his side, asking him what he needs. He'll smile sweetly at her, and she melts. That baby has his big sister trained like you would not believe. He can get her to do anything, and he can't even talk yet.
On to Gen... right before Christmas, Genevieve started rounding up trinkets from her toy box. She asked, "Mama, can I give these away?" I said that she certainly could (every parent LOVES getting rid of stuff, amIright??). She responded by saying, "Oh, good. I want to make sure I have one present for each kid in my class. They might not get many presents." That is so Genevieve. She just wants to give, and spread love, and make people smile. She comes home crying if she sees her friends play on opposing teams for a sport. Don't get me wrong- she is super tough, and won't utter a complaint if both her ears are infected- but it breaks her heart into a million pieces to think someone could be sad. For her, just knowing that someone out there somewhere is too poor for Christmas... she has to do something about that. No one SHE knows is going to go without, that's for sure. What also makes this so amazing-apart from the fact that she is a six year old child- is that Shawn and I don't do much for gifts. We make Christmas about Jesus. It's his birthday, and we want to celebrate that by showing love to each other. The way we show love is by making things, and spending time together. Last year, the girls got hats and mittens that I crocheted. I made them each a sock monkey. They each got a little mini sewing kit so they could sew clothes for their sock monkeys. They got socks and were allowed to draw funny faces on them and to sew their new buttons on them. That was our Christmas. So, give me a moment while my heart bursts with pride, as Genevieve chooses 16 toys of her own to give to her classmates, knowing full well she won't be getting any from us for Christmas. I know that this is "weird". I thank God for it. I thank Him for her amazing little servant's heart. I can't wait to see what she does with it. This was written by Genevieve's teacher on her report card: "Gen has really got an interesting sense of humor. She never fails to bring a smile to my face with her comments. She's a joy to have in the class. :) " Beautiful.
What strange, delightful, wonderful, weird children I have. I want to freeze time and keep them this amazing forever, but I am so curious as to what their futures hold for them. Every day they say and do so many things that shock, inspire, and humble me. I'm positive that the good Lord is looking down on these girls and saying, "Wow, I really outdid myself this time."
