My post from this morning was kind of sad, no? Pitiful in parts, even. However, today was not all bad. It kind of progressively got better. You see, God gave me these three kiddos, and they are lots of fun. Also, their mommy is a tomboy, and she likes to play outside. Also, she’s not above making her four year old work for his wagon rides.

At the end of our evening playing outside, where I assure you the children all got their fair share of wagon rides, I took a ride down the hill in the wagon…then another and another. I rode all the kids down, too, which they loved. We had so much fun.

I got lots of cute pictures, too. I’ll post them soon. I’m having trouble figuring out how to re-size them in the new wordpress. I’ll figure that out, and then astound you with sunshiney cuteness.

Hello, everyone. I thought I’d write an update post…for all of you who want to know what’s going on with the Harmon family.

Things are going well, actually. We’re all doing pretty good. The kids and I are sick right now, which is why I’m writing this blog post instead of being at church right now. We had a very warm couple of days, followed by a few really, really cold days, and it has wreaked havoc with us. We all have sinus infections, I think. It started with Owen, then I got it, and now Elijah and Kyra are starting to feel bad. I’m going to try to get us all in to the doctor tomorrow. I actually ran into our doctor at Kroger yesterday, and, despite my horrible coughing fit in his presence, he didn’t offer to write any prescriptions in the produce section. The Lord is good, though. When a few sinus infections are your worst complaints, I think you’re doing good.

Chris, as usual, is unaffected by our sickness. He almost never gets sick. He is, however, very, very busy. He is always either working, or doing schoolwork. He ended up taking four classes this semester. I was very thankful that he didn’t take five like last semester. I’d tell you what classes he’s taking, but I don’t actually remember. If you’re interested, though, I could ask him. I’m very, very proud of my man for how hard he is working to simultaneously support our family and prepare for the call that God has placed on his life. He is a very interesting man to talk to these days. Beyond his schoolwork, he’s been studying different subjects on his own, and it makes for some interesting conversations. I appreciate his studious nature. It makes me a smarter person.

I am only taking the two classes this semester. I’m doing well in them. I’m not having as much fun this semester since I’m not actually going to classes. I really enjoy getting out of the house, meeting new people, and experiencing the social side of school. Taking a full load of classes like I did the first two regular semesters (I only took two classes in the summer) was more than I thought I could responsibly handle this semester. Last semester was really hard, and I felt like I needed to cut down this time around. So, school is not as demanding on my time right now as it was in the fall. I would appreciate your prayers as I try to decide about which classes and how many I should take in the next couple of semesters. It’s always a delicate balance concerning school and family.

Kyra is doing very well in school. She’s learning to read and write, and is doing quite well. She has actually already finished kindergarten, and she has been working on first grade work for a few weeks now. She likes school, but she sometimes procrastinates a lot. She’s very dramatic, and there are often tears involved in her schoolwork. She gets easily overwhelmed by a difficult looking task. Her confidence is growing as she moves along in school, though. I’ve noticed her, in the last week or two, reading things around the house. I think that’s awesome. Next school year, the school she is going to will no longer be open, so I will be homeschooling her. It’s a daunting task, but a friend of mine, who is the main supervisor at her school, is going to help me get set up and going. Kyra will continue doing the same curriculum that she does now, so that will make it easier for me. I went through the same curriculum when I went to school, so I am very familiar with it. Her homeschooling is yet another thing that I will have to take into consideration when I decide about my own classes in the fall.

Elijah is doing awesome. He is changing a lot lately. He’s not quite so contrary as he used to be. He has always been a very sweet, tenderhearted little boy, but he has also always shown a very gruff side to people outside our family. He’s getting better at this. He loves Sunday school and Awana, and is doing really well with interacting in his classes. He learns and says his Bible verses, and is doing really well with participation. I’m proud of the changes I’ve seen in him. He is awfully quiet, but he takes everything in. He randomly tells me he loves me all day long. He hugs all over Kyra and Owen, and often helps his little brother do things. He’s the first one to volunteer to help me do things. He is fixing to have a birthday later this month…the 25th. I can’t believe he’s turning four!

Owen keeps us in stitches most of the time. He’s hilarious. He’s very, very funny, and, oh, so cute. He’s learning to talk, and his vocabulary is starting to pick up. Unfortunately, he has, for some reason, started saying a very naughty word for pretty much everything. I don’t know why he decided to put those particular sounds together, but it’s quite distressing. So, if you hear my baby boy cursing, please know that he did not overhear it anywhere. It’s just an unfortunate practicing of sounds. <sigh> I try. I really try. Besides his potty mouth, he’s quite the personality. He loves to make us laugh. If you laugh one time at something, he is sure to repeat it. His brother and sister think he is totally awesome, and they always let him in on their fun. I love watching the three of them play together. I couldn’t be more blessed with kids that get along together. Owen is also a very, very affectionate little boy. He spends half his time in my lap. He still plays with my hair constantly. He has started going to people, arms outstretched, and says, “Hug.” It’s adorable.

I know this is not the most fascinating or entertaining post, but it’s mostly for those family members who live far away and like to know what we’re up to. We’re doing good. Life is good. Really, really good.

 I took these pictures a couple of weeks ago. Was going to blog about being a college student slash mommy. It took me so long to get to it, I forgot what I was going to write. So, instead, here’s some pictures.

This is where I spend  half my time…at the kitchen table, the laptop in front of me, and my books (which you can’t see in the photo..trust me, they’re there) open on the table.

See, this is what I was looking at. Textbook, study notes, and my index card of handwritten notes I was allowed to take with me to my Western Civ Exam. 

This is the baby who interrupts my understanding of Social Darwinism. 

I would rather socialize with a huggy baby boy than study socialism any day. 

This is the shaggy-headed little boy who needed help putting his mittens on. I don’t know why. He wanted to hug me before he left. As you can see, Owen took issue with that.  

This is the thoughtful little girl who sits across the table doing her own projects.

So, tell me, Friend…is it any surprise to you that I got a B instead of an A on that exam?

Priorities…I guess that’s my point.

During dinner a week or so ago, we were discussing what the kids learned at Awana with them. Kyra told us that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, and the conversation that followed went like this:

Me: “Do you know what sin is?”

Elijah: “Sin is bad.”

Kyra, taking a deep breath for the wordy answer she was immediately preparing in her five year old little girl mind: “Weeelll, sins can be lots of things. I learned in Awana that the devil makes us think bad thoughts. (She taps the side of her head for emphasis.) He makes us think of bad things, and we have to decide what we are going to do. We could do the bad things that our thoughts say to do and that is sin, or we could do good things instead and make Jesus happy.”

Me: “Yeah..that’s right.”

Elijah, looking up from his food, fork in hand, and in his monotone cookie monster voice says: “God can’t sin.”

Me: “That’s right, Elijah. Do you know why God can’t sin?”

Kyra, interrupting Elijah to make her thoughts known, went into a big, long thing about why she thought God can’t sin. When she finished, Elijah looked up with an expressionless, innocent face, and says: “God can’t sin, because God is holy.”

At that, Chris jerked his head up, and grinned at his boy. The look on Chris’ face said, “Hooah! That’s my boy.”

Me, very impressed: “That’s right, Elijah!”

He may not be able to count to ten yet, and he may not have any interest in learning the correct use of proper pronouns, however, he does know one thing, and that is…God is holy.

How can the same toddler that just got flipped over his big brother’s back and off the couch, landing hard on his face, get up without crying, shake his head no when I ask if he’s okay, and then laugh and get up and climb back up on the couch by his big brother then turn around, stick his paci in his mouth, and come play with his mama’s hair? He’s a funny little boy. I think he’s a very tough and masculine boy who’s very in touch with his sensitive side.

Last night, after Awana, we had come home, and were all in our bed talking with each other. I asked Elijah what he learned about in Cubbies, and this is the conversation that followed.

Elijah: “We learned about God.”

Me, knowing what his lesson was about: “Did you learn about Jesus?”

Elijah: “Jesus IS God.”

Me: “I know. What did Jesus do in your story?”

Elijah: “He went to His father’s house.”

Me: “Was His Father’s house in Heaven?”

Elijah: “Yeah.”

Me: “Who is Jesus’ father?”

Elijah: “I don’t know.”

Me: “God is Jesus’ father.”

Elijah nodded and then it was as if we could see the light bulb go off over his head.

Elijah: “Waaaait a minute. (Speaking slowly and thoughtfully.) If Jesus is God, how can God be Jesus’ father?”

Me: “Chris…”

Chris: “Well, Elijah, God is three people. He is God the Father, He is Jesus, and He is the Holy Spirit, and all of those three people are one Person.”

Elijah: “Oh!” Big grin. “Okay.”

And, that, my friends, is how our three year old was introduced to the Trinity.

Check out that tear.

…but I’ve seen Amy cuddling up to another man.

Owen and Jer sharing a chair while they enjoyed their Krispy Kremes.

Sweet Sarah

“Me love donuts.” (Said in a deadpan Cookie Monster voice, of course.)

The anticipation!