Puddle Jumping & The Windows of Heaven

Why is it when a child sees a puddle she must jump?

It’s has been rainy week in Philadelphia--that awesome East Coast rain that comes in sheets rather than drops and will soak you through in less than a minute. Our fancy schmancy West Coast rain coats have proven to be insufficient, the rain covers for the strollers have been brought out of storage, and the umbrella has become a prize possession. One morning after I returned from retrieving the car so wet I had to dry off with a towel and then change my clothes, I began the process of shuttling the girls across the street. I was trying to be so careful to cover them with the umbrella so they would stay dry. Half way across Kate saw a puddle and immediately did a two footed jump into the middle of it! Here I had spent all morning with my various water repellant devices trying to avoid getting wet and her first response was to jump right in and have some fun. That is an attitude worth of emulation.

Joshua had a big week. Fall Semester officially started. On the campaign promise of getting the thermostat turned up in the classrooms, he was elected to be the Leadership Representative for his cohort, a group of about 70 students with whom he will have most of his classes. He also flew to Austin, TX to participate in an Energy Team Competition, which was a great opportunity and learning experience for a first year. Not a bad beginning for the first week of school, unless of course you are his wife. ☺

Actually, we have had a great week too. With a ward Labor Day picnic (Honestly, was Labor Day really this week? It seems like three months have passed since then.), play group at the park, a mommy school planning meeting, a Wharton Kids’ Club party, a trip to the Please Touch Museum, and stake conference we didn’t have too much time to be lonely.

Jane at the Please Touch Museum

Perhaps the highlight of this week though was that I found a new friend! On the fly one night a group of moms from the ward decided we would meet at a park the next morning. I rode my bike there pulling the girls in the chariot, which was so fun! On a side note, I have to thank Josh for that. He returned in the middle of the night after a full day of class and then a meeting with his team to prepare for the energy competition and instead of flopping into bed, as I am sure he felt like doing, he put the attachments on my mountain bike so that I could use the chariot the next day. And, I didn’t even ask him to! I just hinted, which as all women know, NEVER WORKS! So, anyway, we went to a park. Kate and her friend, McKenna, went over to the baby playground for a minute so I went over to keep an eye on them and let Jane play at the same time. Amidst kissing skinned knees and helping Jane avoid going head first down the slide I notice a girl sitting nearby who had two little boys. Most of the people at the playground in the middle of the day are nannies but this looked like a mommy. I started up a conversation with her. I learned that she had recently moved to Philly. Her husband was in graduate school. Her boys were almost exactly the same age as my girls. The transition to life in Philly had not been the easiest for her so far. And, she was from Utah! She and her husband moved here without knowing much about the city. They ended up in a beautiful row home in a rougher part of town. They are in a branch where their boys are the only children in nursery. I was able to take her over and introduce her to all the ladies from my ward, who were wonderful and welcoming. We swept her up into our Mommy School group, I took her to the Please Touch Museum, and she watched my girls so I could go to stake conference. She said it was an answer to prayer and I feel the same way.

Kate and McKenna~ Beautiful Fly Friends

Let’s talk tender mercies here for a minute because they have been coming down on me this week almost as heavily as the rain.

1. The First Counselor in my bishopric sent me an email. He couldn’t sleep one night and came across by blog. If you recall my letter from last week, this was plain and simply an answer to prayer.
2. We just happened to go to a playground we have never been to before and Emilee just happened to go there with her boys at the same time.
3. Kate is in the stage where she won’t take a nap even if she needs it. Wharton has a Kids’ Club for all the families with children. Their last activity was a pizza party at the park. Josh was in a test, so I walked there alone with the girls. Kate fell asleep in the stroller and when I woke her up when we got there she just cried & cried. We ended up having to leave. This week there was another activity. I tried everything to get Kate to take a nap that day to no avail. I knew it was going to end the same way. She was so tired as I packed her up to go. But, I was able to keep her awake on the way there by telling her stories and then she was darling at the party! She danced around with her butterfly wings made out of balloons and had a grand time.
4. Emilee sent me a thank you email after going to the museum that said, “I would love to watch your girls sometime. And Jane and I...we would get along great.” That line meant the world to me. Emilee had seen Jane cry earlier that day when I left the room and then we had talked about it at the museum. You all know that Jane has issues with being out of sight of mom and dad. That has been a big worry for me since we moved here. Just having a friend willing to take her in spite of that was such a boost.
5. I was able to leave the girls with Emilee and go to stake conference. It was a wonderful meeting. A little nourishment by the good word of God does wonders to rejuvenate you.
6. JANE DIDN’T CRY when I left her with Emilee. I was so worried about it. I packed the diaper bag with all of her favorite things and even stopped at Trader Joe’s to pick up some cookies that she loves hoping they might distract her. I sent Emilee a text during the rest hymn to see if she had had enough and she said Jane was just playing with the other kids and hadn’t cried at all. That is nothing short of a miracle.
7. I came home last night around 10:00. There was no parking to be had. The girls both fell asleep on the way home. I had groceries in the car and it started to rain. I stopped by my house, ran the groceries in and brought the stroller out. Then I said a prayer and went to hunt up a parking spot. We found one just around the block that hadn’t been there two minutes before. The girls stayed asleep while I transfered them to the stroller, walked home, got them in their jammies, and put them in bed.

Not the best picture, but you can see the excitement!

I really feel like I have been blessed this week. My husband was given great opportunities. My girls were great while I was on my own. My prayers have been answered. I have really felt the Lord watching out for me.

This is getting long, but I have to include a girl update. Jane has had two teeth on top and two on bottom for a long time. Last week one more pushed its way through. Today I looked in her mouth and all of her teeth are coming through at the same time, molars included. Poor thing. She is in such a fun stage. She babbles constantly and occasionally throws out a recognizable word. About once a day she will go off by herself and play with the doll house or the tea set. She wants to be just like Kate so she tries to run and jump but she usually ends up tangled in a heap on the ground. She spent a whole morning this week pushing my flour bin around the kitchen and then climbing up on top of it to show me what a big girls she was. She has a smile and a laugh that will melt your heart.

Kate’s favorite new pastime is to type on the computer. Josh taught her how to open the word processor using the mouse. Then she figured out on her own how to change to color of text. Every day when I come in there is something written on the computer. For example, here is what I found today when I came to write my letter:

mommomkatedadjanetreedog

One morning this week when we went out our front door Kate said, “Why don’t we have a field? I want to go to Grandma’s so we can play on the field.” I guess we better go looking for some green space.

I think that is about enough jabber from me for now. Whether it be literal or figurative, go jump in a puddle this week! It may do us all good to see the world through the eyes of a three-year-old now and again.