The Day Before

Cooper and Bryan spent most of Tuesday traveling to Utah. I think the best part of that long day was getting to hug family once they arrived.

Up, Up, and Away

We rolled out of bed extra early (those of us not heading to seminary or an airplane) to say our goodbyes and get hugs before Bryan and Cooper left.

Answering the Call

Tomorrow is the day that Cooper flies to Utah to go into the MTC.

For the last week our great room has been a disaster while he's worked on packing.

This looks like the mess was contained.

But if you look in the background of this one, during our farewell dinner of Cooper's favorite foods, the chaos is a little more obvious.

Cooper is currently finishing the packing. The chaos will be put away. And then he'll be off, learning how to me a missionary.

We're so excited for him.

What Does the Fox Say?

Art Club applications were due this week at the middle school. Everyone had to submit a piece of art to get in. Sophie stayed up much later than was wise and created this beautiful fall scene with oil pastels. The fox is my favorite part.

Examine Your Feelings

This morning while getting ready for school, the following conversation took place.

Topher: Mom (said with a big sigh), I'm feeling obnoxious.

Me: Oh?

Topher: Yeah.

Me: You're feeling obnoxious?

Topher: (another sigh) Yeah.

Me: What does that word mean?

Topher: I don't know, that's just how I'm feeling.

Fear Not

On Sunday these three sang a beautiful version of How Firm a Foundation called Fear Not. I wished I'd recorded it. Cooper found the song and was the one that convinced his sisters to join him. I took this picture while they practiced before church. I'm so glad they got to sing this before Cooper leaves.

Peter: Week 11

The Badge

His tags finally came! He was already official, but now he looks the part.

In the Quiet, Misty Morning

We finished our fourth week of school today. I celebrated by waking up with a horrible headache, possibly due to starting each day at 6:00 in the morning, pushing myself to keep working until bedtime, and then going to sleep somewhere around midnight.

I do not recommend this schedule.

Bryan handled all the morning work of getting the kids to school while I laid in bed in my dark room with my hand over my eyes, trying to get the pain to go away.

And then I slept for most of the morning.

The purpose of this post is not to complain, though I've definitely done that. My goal in writing about my early mornings and late nights is to say, yes, it's hard and I'm exhausted. But I really like having a little bit of time with each kid before school. I sit and talk with Phoebe while she waits for her ride to seminary. I sit in the car and talk with Sophie while we wait for the bus. I have nearly an hour of one-on-one time with Topher after Sophie leaves and before he catches his bus.

We have mornings that are rushed and chaotic and contentious. And we have peaceful, calm mornings. Which we get depends largely on how late the kids (even the grown-up kids) were up the night before.

Yesterday morning I was waiting for Sophie to be ready to leave when I looked out at our backyard. This picture doesn't do justice to how beautiful these trees were. It is autumn, but none of these leaves have turned orange yet. That's all early morning sunlight turning the green to gold. It was so lovely that I stepped outside into the chilly morning and took this picture. I would have missed that if I hadn't been up earlier than I wanted to be. And I would miss the time I'm getting with each kid. I think that's even better than watching the sunrise on the trees.

Peter: Week 10