6 awesome weeks!

This summer has been one to remember. It was at times one of the busiest and hardest summers. I had become so used to Josh being in school for the afternoons that I had a hard time adjusting to entertaining two rowdy boys for an entire day, and I had never really appreciated how much Tim takes on when doing the morning shift so that I can get some much needed sleep in time. Being away from Tim was difficult to get used to for all three of us. BUT... what a good time we had! Watching these two grow over the last few months has been so much fun! Kaleb's personality has really started to set and firm, he's funny, he's all for the attention, he's charming and he's so compassionate and sweet. His talking is such a sweet pleasure to hear, though at times I wish he would stop for just a minute so that I can have some quiet. :) In fact, one day the two boys were in the car and Kaleb was chattering away in the back seat and finally Josh turned to him and yelled "Kaper! Stop talking!".

Josh, what an improvement he's made this summer! A number of times now he's come up with four and five word sentences!! He's expressing his thoughts, desires and feelings in words much more often. It's been so exciting to hear him speaking louder and in sentence form. No, he's not there yet. We have a road to go with him, but it's given me such hope. There is no doubt in my mind that God has heard my prayers, your prayers and is slowly healing Josh. Now, with school on the horizon I have big hopes for bigger gains and strides. The more Kaper talks, the bigger his sentences, the more Josh pushes ahead. His thoughts are now starting to come through and just last night he expressed a complex thought about trust. He prays now too, though not always in words I can understand, but fervently, with some english thrown in so that you can get a peak at what he's thankful for. One night he was thankful for the beach, for swimming and his brother, another night he was thankful for Spiderman and his bike... in fact when he prays I get a glimpse into his mind in a way that I can't during the day. My favorite time of day has become listening to Josh say his goodnight prayers. There is no doubt that he knows who he's talking to and that he's a friend who doesn't care if Josh can talk properly.

The boys did a lot of playing with another little boy this summer, just three months younger than Josh. Watching him play with this little boy allowed me the chance to see him interact with kids his age and where I was once terrified that he wouldn't fit in at school I now have no fears. He immediately took the lead with his new friend, showing him where to drive the trucks, showing him how to put his head under water while swimming, and when needed telling the child "NO" that's Kaper's truck! (Funny how if he had been the one to steal the truck he wouldn't have cared if it was Kapers or not!)

Kaleb, when anyone is hurt has learned to go over to them right away and gently touch their owie and ask if the are okay. If he has hurt them, wronged them he says in a very small little voice 'my sorry Josh' or 'my sorry Mummy' at which point all you can possibly do is pick him up and love him just that little bit more.

I mentioned that at the start of our extended cottage time I was going to be putting my camera down, counting on only my iphone for pictures if I really needed to take one, and my big one saved for special days out (like our day at Santa's village). I was so blessed by the experience. To see the boys through my own eyes, through my own heart and not through the lens has been so filled with blessings! Joining in the moments, rather than trying to capture them started as a discipline, every so often I thought... I need my camera!! However, within a week of not using it I was finding myself in the sand with them, building castles in the sand, playing on the swings and racing up the back road with them. I don't have a picture of the first time Josh rode his bike... but I somehow can't find a reason to care. I was beside him, and when he looks back and remembers that moment it will not be a memory where I am standing along side him with camera in hand but rather he will remember that I was the one beside him, teaching him to do it.

There are a million stories I could share with you, some of which could very well make it into this Blog over the course of time, but for now... I will say only this. I have been blessed this summer! This is my last year of having the boys home (Kaleb has two morning a week at nursery school and Josh starts JK for the morings) part time. Next year both boys will be in JK full time and I will be desperately looking back on these days and missing them. So, here's to living the moment!

I hope you all had a wonderful summer! I am glad to be back to the Blogging world and will be back to posting more frequently! Thanks for your patience!

L