Season Finale

Just like all good t.v. shows have a finale, so must my summer vacation.  Two weeks of relaxation left, then back to school.  I came crashing back to reality today when I signed the kids up for daycare.  Kyle and I have been going back and forth for a few weeks now...was he going to work at home and we would put Aidan in 3x week preschool?  Should we put the kids in a home daycare, which is half the price of a center?  Could Kyle possibly work half-days?

We got our answer this morning when Kyle met with his boss.  When I go back to school, Kyle is going to work mornings at the office and afternoons at home.  That still left the question of daycare, so I visited an in-home daycare not far from our house.  I left under-whelmed.  There were 11 kids running around a smallish house, one that sat in front of a video game the entire 30 minutes I was there, and clutter everywhere.  I'm all about saving money, but I knew instantly that this environment would not suit Aidan's constant need for intellectual stimulation.  After calling Kyle, we both agreed that the kids will go back to KinderCare half time.  They get preschool in the morning, then will come home for naps.   More expensive, but I am 100% confident that they like being there and will be learning academic and social skills.  Whew, I'm glad that's taken care of.

To cap off our summer, the kids and I are headed back down to IL this coming weekend.  We'll visit with my mom's side of the family on Sunday, and I have a reading workshop in Madison on Monday.  If my sister hasn't had her baby by Aug 20, she's going to be induced that day.  Either way, we should get to meet Baby Boy Montgomery before coming back to MN. A great ending to a great summer!

Dear God

Aidan has had a lot of questions and comments about God lately.  He attended Sunday School last year, and we go to church (almost) every Sunday...not that he pays much attention, but he's picked up bits and pieces. Here are some examples:

While out on a walk in the neighborhood, we passed a tree stump that had been carved into some sort of sculpture.  I didn't even notice it, but Aidan was startled and said, "Mom, STOP! They've got JESUS(!) in their yard!!"  I had no idea what he was talking about and he started to get really upset with me that I couldn't see Jesus.  I finally understood that he thought the tree stump looked like Jesus. (I still don't see it.)

On a visit to our neighborhood playground, we found a lacrosse ball. (hard, white, rubber ball for those of you who have never seen one...like me, before we found it).  I told Aidan what it was and that we could bring it home.  As we were walking, he looks up and me and asks, "Did God drop this from the sky when he was dying?"  Um, what?  Instead of laughing, which I kind of wanted to do, I asked him what he meant.  "Well, Jesus died on the cross, and this is a "the cross" ball, so is it God's?"  After a discussion about LAcrosse and THE cross, he now understands that God did not magically drop it out of the sky. : )