It’s just me and the kiddos for the next forty days. Daddy left for Fort Jackson today. He’s doing a practicum there for the rest of the summer, and we are sure going to miss him.

We love you, Daddy!

Elijah got a haircut the other day, and Owen decided he needed one, too. Daddy had already suggested I cut his cute, blond curls off, so I decided to go ahead and let Owen get his first haircut.

Mike the Barber let Owen check out the clippers before he put them to his head.

Owen was very calm. Elijah freaked out for his first few haircuts.

This picture is my favorite.

It kind of hurts my heart to see how much bigger and older he looks with his new haircut. No straggly blond curls around his neck and ears anymore.

I hope it grows out curly again.

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.

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.

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!

I just got back from eight fun-filled days in Springfield, Missouri. Woohoo, right? Seriously. The kids and I went to visit Amy and her kids for a week or so. The ten hour trip there was uneventful. The kids were great. They’re awesome travelers. We made it there by one thirty central time. We left at five a.m., and we only had to stop three times.

Most of our days were pretty low key, but we had tons of fun being together. It’s always interesting to see how our kids are going to react to each other. In the past, Jeremiah and Kyra have played together more than any of them. This time, however, Jeremiah and Elijah decided to be best buddies. They spent the whole time locking the girls out of their “Elijah and Jeremiah Club”. It was nice to see them actually getting along with each other. They slept in Jer’s top bunk most every night, and were usually still awake talking when the rest of us went to bed.

The girls didn’t get along quite as well, but they did have their moments of playing well together.

On, I think, the second day we were there, we went grocery shopping and to Target. Why am I telling you this? Because it was fun, and we have pictures.

That’s a cartload of babies, huh?

Our friend, Aimee met us at Target, and then we went home and made quesadillas.

Aimee and Amy cooking and talking. I don’t remember what they were talking about, but I love the look on Aimee’s face.

Our friend, Joy, came over, too. The kids all love Joy, but I think Kyra is especially enamored with her.

We sat around the kitchen table talking till after midnight. It was really nice. I wish I lived closer. I could get used to hanging out with friends.

Amy had class on Monday morning and all day Tuesday, and her kids had school all week. So, a lot of my time was spent taking and picking up kids from school, cleaning up their messes, and fixing a bajillion cups of chocolate milk. Five kids go through a lot of milk. I was really happy to actually get to be of practical help to Amy…watching Sarah and taking her to school when the babysitter unexpectedly couldn’t, etc. Living so far away, I can never do the kind of things that best friends do. I wish I could be helpful more often.

We had a donut party one day, but other than this one photo…I’m going to make a new post later with all our donut pics and video. They’re really cute.

We were supposed to leave on Friday morning, but we hit a little hangup. The night before, on the way to Bible study, my tire was low. We aired it up, and were going to check it in the morning. So, Friday morning, I was gonna leave at six, but I ended up sleeping later and getting up at six. I went outside in the freezing cold to check my tire, and it looked like it could be a tad low but not much. So, I got ready, packed up our stuff, and went to load the van. When I went out there, at about nine, the tire was completely flat. I had to call a tow service to come change my tire for me, and then we took it to the tire store to get it fixed. It had a nail in it. It was the grace of God, though, that I slept later, and we weren’t on the road when the tire went flat. That would have really rained on my parade. Especially if it blew out on me.

These are some pictures from our wait at the tire shop. They’re fun.

Hugging my boy.

Biting my boy.

My bitten boy.

Our beautiful girls, waiting patiently.

After we go the tire fixed, we went out for pizza for lunch, and decided it was too late to head to Tennessee, so we were staying another night. We then picked Jeremiah up from school, went to Honey Heaven (a honey store that had a hive of real bees that we looked at and honey sticks that we ate), and went to the Army Surplus store. We were looking for an old school Army pt jacket. Chris lost his, and I wanted one. Amy had one that used to be Joel’s that I was coveting. Anyway, while we were there, we had fun trying on silly hats.

I think we’ll all agree on who was the cutest.

After the crazy Army Surplus fun, we went to get Andy’s Frozen Custard. Apparently, it’s a must if you’re in Springfield. It was delicious. After that, we ordered sushi. I wasn’t the only one who tried sushi for the first time.

Sushi is good. I think it’s my new favorite. Seriously. I had it for dinner last night, and then ate it for breakfast at four thirty this morning, and then I had some more on the drive home since my amazing friend packed me a little cooler of it. She really does make my life better…breakfast burritos and sushi are enough to warrant a lifelong friendship, no?

I so enjoyed my trip. It’s always good to be with my friend. To go to church and worship with her, to sing along to the song playing while we wait to pick up a kid from school, to eat sushi in her living room floor…no matter what we’re doing, it’s fun. I treasure each moment that I get to spend with Amy and her kids.

She made me laugh right before she took the picture.

Craziness. We have so much fun together.

I don’t look so great in this photo, but Amy looks so pretty I had to post it.

I love my friend. I miss her already.

Here’s to hoping that our next visit is just as awesome as this one was.

While I have often joked this past semester about how my kids are so neglected that they have to take care of themselves, I’m actually kind of proud of their level of self-sufficiency. They get their own snacks. Kyra (who’s five and a half) can pour them all drinks, only needing me to snap shut the lids of their sippy cups. Elijah (who’s approaching four years old) can make his own peanut butter and honey sandwiches. Owen (who’s one and a half), carries a stool around with him to reach the cereal bars on the counter, and brings them to me to open. Yeah, most moms would just do those things for them, but sometimes I’m busy. I appreciate that they can meet some of their own needs, or that they can help take care of each other.

Putting that self-sufficiency into practice, for lunch this afternoon, they wanted some chicken noodle soup. So, they got their bowls out, their spoons, and got the can of soup. I popped the lid off of it, and poured it into their bowls for them. I helped Kyra microwave them, and then I fixed a bowl of salad for myself. After they finished their soup, they both decided they wanted salad. They got a stool, got their own plates, got their own salad, and put their own dressing on it all by themselves. Kyra had to help Elijah get the lid off the dressing, though.

After they had brought their plates to the table and were eating their salads, I said, “You guys do such a good job taking care of yourselves. You don’t even need a Mommy.”

Kyra looked at me with such a sweet look that I knew she was fixing to tell me how they need me for things like love and affection, as well. Instead, she raised one eyebrow and said, “Mommy. We need you to clean the kitchen and the bathroom, too.”

Oh, well. Good to know I’m needed.

As I was getting out of the shower, I heard Owen rattling silverware in the kitchen like he is prone to do when no one is watching. Then, I heard Kyra and Elijah coming upstairs. When they got to the top of the stairs, I heard one of them say, “Mama, what are you cooking?”

I thought, They think Owen rattling silverware is me cooking lunch for them.

Right about then, they rounded the corner into the kitchen, and I heard two little kids bust into uncontrollable laughter. They giggled and giggled, and then Elijah said, “Mama is OWEN!”

For the next five minutes, they recreated the event. They must have thought it was really funny.