Well, they say that in every pregnancy you want to do something drastic and so far I suppose that's been proven somewhat true. In Evye's I got my hair cut off to my shoulders. It was ok but not the look for me, thus I'm back to long hair of my own. During somebody's (maybe Garrison's and Grant's???) I cut Evye's off. That was her one big birthday wish that year. So, with this pregnancy I'm a little obsessed with Aubrey's. Her personality just doesn't quite seem to fit the long haired, flowing, fairy princess look. And taking into account just exactly how very many times she's cut her own hair, 5 to be exact now, the layers in it are all different lengths and no matter just how many times it's "trimmed" it just stays stringy. If I leave it down with only 2 small ponytails and the remainder hanging down her back it's breathtaking....even for a 4 yr old. She has gorgeous hair. But, reality has hit and with summer here it's just too hot for that. It sticks to her neck, her face, her back and, most of all, somehow a portion of every meal is washed out of her hair at the end of each day.
(Aubrey being Aubrey) So, today despite Brad's opposition, I took them into town and just did a walk-in at the Wal Mart salon. These are the days I actually do love Wal Mart. No appointment, no schedule to meet. Just walk-in, plop her in the chair and for 8.95 she got her hair washed, cut and blow dried....which she thought was the best thing in the world. I think I knew how long her hair was but it didn't really sadden me until I saw the long tresses of golden red hair falling to the floor. But I have to say it was very much worth it in the end. She is soooooooo very proud of it and she acts like she is 2 yrs older than she was when first walking in to have it done. It definitely mentally gave her a much needed boost of maturity. Instead of being so sullen and skeptical looking of anyone that touched her she came out of her shell and talked and chatted with her designated hairdresser. They discussed the wild animals on the cape she wore, what all we saw at the zoo....including the long lasting mental impression of the "stinky" zebras, the round brush, the blow dryer and how great her hair was looking and how very short it was becoming. Despite the fact that Evye went in with a very sad heart since she was not getting her hair cut and ended up sobbing brokenheartedly by the time it was all finished, it was a fun experience for us all.......well, if you count Evye out. Evye has in her head for some reason that this has taken she and Aubrey's twinship away. Maybe it's due to all of the extra attention the boys get or maybe it's just due to wanting to be able to identify the sisterly bond that she and Aubrey have so she has deemed it "twins", or maybe it's just the fun they have when dressing the same.......but, whatever it is in her head, was somehow taken away from them today due to Aubrey's hair being cut. So, in the most practical way I could, without giving in to her outburst of melodrama but still wanting to meet the emotional need that was truly needing to be tended to, I consoled her on the way out and said that we could come back in for a girly day and have her hair cut too. Garrison, who was quite taken and amused by Evye's fit of sobbing, then said he wanted his hair cut too so he could be a twin.
So, I guess the moral we discovered in all of today's lessons is that in order to be a multiple you have to have your hair cut the same. Sooooooooooo................would that make the boys quadruplets?????
And Aubrey was so great about it. In an overly tender and sensitive little mothering mood she tended to Evye's every need. She comforted her all the way home, shared the front seat....which is unheard of for any of them!!!!.......while we waited on Mother, kept her arm around her and shepherded her everywhere once home and brought Evye every little item she could think of to make her feel better. It was so so sweet to watch them all pitch in to try and comfort the sad one. But, I suppose tomorrow I will have pics of Evye's new cut to post.
And then speaking of sibling kindness, today Garrison was upset so the nearest target he had was poor Garrett. Garrett has come to expect it from Grant, the rough bully-ish kid when he's mad, but not from Garrison. So, it hurt his little feelings immensely. He laid out on the floor and just had to cry it out. I wasn't at a point that I could get to him and I knew he wasn't hurt so I just let him cry since I couldn't get to either the offender or the offended. Evye, hearing Garrett's wails, came running from wherever she was outside and immediately picked him up and crooned to him, asking what happened. I said briefly that Garrison pushed so being the little mother she is she immediately made Garrison apologise to Garrett and then had him give Garrett a "sorry"kiss on his head. It was like watching a little tiny version of me in action....only with a little more mercy. Once she rectified the situation between the two and hugged on Garrett enough so that he felt justifiably comforted and became preoccupied with the newest foreign choking hazard on the floor she skipped back out to play and disappeared into the neverland from which she came. It was pretty comical to watch.........but also very much an awakener and comfort to me of what exactly we are accomplishing and seeing lived out in the lives of the children. "I have no greater joy than to know that my children walk in truth." I was up late one night......well, one of the many nights.....and I wrote down what all I wanted to see evident in the lives of the children. Some of the many things that made the top of the list are
- an insatiable desire to show the love and mercy of the Lord to other's...be it family, friends or strangers
- a tender heart
- a servant's heart
- a wise and discerning inner spirit
- a truthful heart
- a truly kind heart...and I mean "kind" as in the definition of the dictionary, like a compassion for other's that is so rare and hard to find in children now
- a sensitivity and love for the family they each have been blessed with
The list could obviously go on for days but these were some at the top. To see each of them come to that in their own ways and watching it be translated in each of their own different personalities is amazing to me. I guess it's just so amazing to me that they could turn out to be such entirely decent people with a true hunger and desire for God's word despite all of Brad's and my many flaws. I don't think I've ever been more painfully aware of my own flaws than I have become in parenting. But, on the other side of that, is that I have become so much more aware of my stronger points also.
One of them being organization! I'm so entirely proud and have to do some bragging about it. But I have devised a plan that I was entirely skeptical of to begin with but after a few weeks of it am beginning to become convinced that it is indeed working well. I came up with a chore chart and each one of them have schedules. This allowed me much needed time to work on getting the boys really going well in the toilet before Gavin arrives. They were very much ready but I was just too lazy to do it and really liked the convenience of not having to deal with it. But, it's becoming an expensive luxury with the very near and real reality of having 4 in diapers. So, due to the success of the plan, they are now very good at making it to the pot and so far have only had 1 accident each. I don't trust them enough just yet to venture out in public with them in underwear so we rely on pull-ups for outings, though it's just the real deal underwear at home.
Anyway, chasing bunnies here. So, I have organized it enough now so that Grayson is fully in charge of the kitchen after each meal. He unloads the dishwasher, rinses everything off and reloads it with the new ones and starts the dishwasher going again. He cleans the sink out and wipes down the cabinets. Evye cleans off the table, wipes it down and polishes it, wipes down the highchairs and disinfects them, and vacuums up the mess of each meal. Aubrey sets the table and helps clean it off and unload the dishwasher, so she kind of floats between the two and whoever needs her help the most...which she thrives on being needed so that was great for everyone. Garrison and Grant pick up toys while everybody else works on the bigger stuff. Grayson and Evye both fold each load as it comes out of the dryer and all 5 help put it all up. Garrison and Grant can put up their own stuff, Aubrey puts up her's and Evye's, Grayson puts up his and mine and Brad's and Evye puts up all towels and rags. Evye polishes furniture and vacuums the house while Grayson "Windex's" fingerprints off doors and windows once a day. And once awake in the mornings Evye makes up her bed and Brad's and mine and Grayson is responsible for his, the boys' and Aubrey's. It's amazing. Despite the amount of work it sounds like it works like a dream and their attitudes and willingness to help are making great strides everyday. Grayson can now do the laundry and has started to take over that end on his own without even being asked. And they have learned that when they work together well and quickly they have tons of time to play and know they won't be called in every 20 minutes for a chore needing to be done. If they go down their list and get it done then they know they are free for quite awhile. And the biggest joy for me is that the house is presentable now at all times for any surprise visitors that stop by......which there tend to be tons of around here.......and nothing's left piling up. And Grayson and Evye both have started to begin to take over feeding Garrett. Evye can put diapers on the boys for naptime and bedtime and she can completely dress them in the mornings. I usually do all of that but on mornings when time is of the essence and we are trying to get out the door it flows really well. It's pretty fun to watch too. Tonight at dinner the praise and comments from onlookers were unending. Nights like that are so entirely gratifying. But I know that the change I see in them is also apparent to others too.
I've come to the conclusion that watching your children grow up is kind of like a science experiment you didn't exactly think would work and then when it does it's absolutely amazing.
Well, ok maybe not exactly like that.....but it's definitely got some similarities to it.
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