The funny things kids say

It is amazing how K's personality is growing each day. Sometimes she says the most adult things! She is also picking up on our mannerisms and how we treat her. Example: this morning I found that the cat had gotten sick on the carpet. I proceeded to get the relevant cleaning supplies and clean it up. Not only did K enjoy being a spectator during this exercise, leaning against my leg saying "I want to see," but she also was quite the cheerleader. She kept saying, "good job cleaning Mommy." It was one of those moments you couldn't help but laugh through. "Good job" seems to be a common praise coming from her these days - usually associated with an action you wouldn't normally think about or notice.

K LOVES the Kids Club at church. We go to church on Thursday mornings so that I can do some volunteer work. While I am volunteering she hangs out with the kids of other volunteers in the provided childcare rooms. As soon as we round the curve and she can see where we turn into the church property, she yells from the backseat, "Kids Club, Yay!!!" It really is cute. When we leave the building afterward she runs to the car saying, "my car!" These have become the normal reactions to our Thursday adventure. This morning she added a dialogue with herself as we drove out of the parking lot. It went something like this: "Thank you lady, see you soon. See you soon Kids Club." I could hardly contain a giggle. She is just so darned cute!

She has also started modeling our comforting behavior with her stuffed animals. She will pick one up, cradle it in her arms, stroke it and say, "it's alright, I've got you." She really is a caring child. She kisses our "boo boos" and pats us on the arm in a comforting way. It is truly amazing how they grow and develop - I feel blessed to be on the ride!

K playing kickball with the family

Playing in the sand at the beach, still not a fan of the waves though!

Whew...too much time on the road.

Wow, we have tried to cram an aweful lot of travel into a short couple of weeks. Amazingly, K did quite well with all of the time in the car. We can all recite the words to Finding Nemo from memory at this point and the car is in need of a serious bath, but we had a great time!

K learned to play kickball with cousins, aunts, uncles, great aunts/uncles, second cousins, etc. We had four generations together for a wonderful day Labor Day weekend. We met some distant relatives and the entire family was introduced to a newly-adopted little girl from China.

That short trip was followed by a 12-hour drive to the coast for a week of relaxation. K LOVED the sand, but wasn't a fan of the ocean. The waves coming in scared her a bit. We did have a breakthrough in the pool - she had a blast! It was a great trip and we got to spend some quality time together and with our friends.

A few days later we took off for a short trip to visit friends in St. Louis. Six more hours in the car each way, but it was definitely worth it! It was great to meet my friend's daughter and for her to meet K. Two years is way too long to go between visits to close friends!

Finally we're home for a few weeks! Sometimes I feel like I need a vacation after our vacations just to rest up. For now I think a nap will do...hopefully K will sleep well this afternoon!