Prayers, the Moon, Donuts and Mammals

Prayers

Ford joined Amelia and I at the table for breakfast after we had already started eating. He folded his hands and closed his eyes to pray. Amelia interrupted him and said, "we already prayed, Dad." I then explained to her that it's okay to pray by yourself, before you eat, before bed, when you want to pray for someone or something, even yourself...any time of the day. She then hopped down and laid down on the floor underneath the table. Thinking she's was goofing around and avoiding breakfast, I didn't hesitate and began to instruct her to get back up in her chair when I heard her whisper..."Dear God, please bless my wholllllle family. Amen." Then she hopped back up in her seat. Guess she wanted to try out praying when she was by herself.

Moon

Amelia" "Mom, maybe tonight, after dinner and my bath and pajamas, we can go out to look at the moon. And if it's a new moon...then no moon. And it's it's not a new moon...then moon."

Donuts

Amelia was munching on and enjoying a yummy cider donut from Uncle John's with us at the table. She was studying the donut when she asked, "Why is there a hole in my donut?" Ford responded, "that is a great question, Amelia, I wonder why too." Amelia says, "I think it's the done hole." Ford, "the what hole?" Amelia, "the done hole. Because when you eat all around it, and get to the hole, then it's done."

Mammals

After watching an episode of "Dinosaur Train," Amelia learned a little about what mammals are. I asked her later about it and she said, "mammals are small mice." I reminded her that mammals can be any animal that has fur. I asked her, "do you have fur?" She said, "No, but Dad does, so he's a mammal."

Our last Friday...

Today is Friday. School starts Monday...and doesn't end until 2025. I just had to do the math...Amelia will graduate high school in 2025. I have many mixed emotions about this very important Monday. So much of me wants to keep her home with me until kindergarten. To sleep in, snuggle, stay in our jammies until lunch time, play...just be little. Really little. The kind of little that I take for granted every day. The kind of little that I already wish I had more photos of, more video footage of...so I will never forget what she was like when she was little.

So she goes off to school, 3 mornings a week, starting Monday...to learn, explore, socialize, create, grow and get to know herself away from home, away from me.

But today is Friday. We slept in, just the two of us. We snuggled together, laughed and talked in my bed until we got hungry for breakfast. We stayed in our jammies until lunch. We packed a picnic. Stopped at the community center to sign up for her very first ballet class. Went to the park, ate our picnic lunch under a shade tree, and then played and played. We walked by the river, just the two of us. We pretended to fish with long sticks, catching sharks and yellow fish. We wrote our names in the sand by the river bank. We explored among the old trees and sat on their low branches and imagined who lived in their hollowed out knots. We played in the cool September air until we were tired. We stopped at the shoe store on the way home to try on ballet shoes. We went home and rested on the couch while we ate a snack, and talked and played until Ford came home. We finished our day together as a family. Doing our family thing. And then we kissed her little 3 year old face goodnight and tucked her in.

Our last Friday, not to be forgotten as we head into this bittersweet Monday with excitement, a few nerves, and really big hopes...

My school girl. My big girl. We're ready.