Finally....Fresh Air

The kids must have had cabin fever today. After they finished their schoolwork, they begged to go outside. I tried to convince them that it was horribly windy and cold and they wouldn't stay outside very long. I told them they had to bundle up (that usually changes their mind pretty quickly!). All to no avail. So...I got out their hats and gloves and zipped up their coats and out they went to the backyard to play. And they actually stayed outside for quite a while, despite the freezing wind!

 It's hard telling what these two were playing. I'm sure it was some elaborate game Anna made up with 50 rules! :)

 They had the most fun chasing leaves when the wind kicked up!

 I knew there was a reason I didn't rake all those leaves up in the backyard this fall!!

 One...two...

 THREE!!!

 Can you tell the boys are fighting over the toy mower?

 Isaac held on for a bit...

 But big brother was a little too fast for him...

 Isaac just stopped and yelled, "HEY!! Dat MINE!!!"

 "DAT MINE!!!!!"

 Mama distracted him with throwing a handful of leaves again! :)

 He's not been getting quite enough sleep lately...GRUMPY!

 Ah ha! He finally got "his" mower!

 I have to brag on this special little girl. She has become so much more responsible and mature in the last few months. She asks many times throughout the day how she can help me. She's gotten a taste of baking and cooking on her own and constantly wants to be in the kitchen, doing it by herself. She's made cookies 100% by herself a couple of times (aside from taking the stoneware out of the oven). One day, she even basically made crockpot lasagna (with sauce from scratch) by herself!

 She will empty the dishwasher without being asked several times a day (we are testing a way to cut down our ridiculous city bills by not using the dishwasher). She works hard at her schoolwork and plans her days herself. She sets her alarm and gets up every morning completely on her own (that's a HUGE step on its own!), gets dressed and brushes her hair before I even see her! She told me her goal is to get all of her school done by 12:30. She does pretty good with that goal. Makes my life a lot easier! ha. She's also already finished all 15 books she got for Christmas! I taught her how to use the online card catalog at the library and find new books, so she's finding new ones to read. I love our library. They are so pleasant and accommodating! 

 She has done an excellent job keeping her room very clean since she got her "new" bed. This is a huge change from not long ago when her room was constantly a complete wreck...I found a stash of scraps of paper for crying out loud!!! She takes great pride in keeping things picked up and the lesson I've been trying to teach her for years (well, it feels like it) has FINALLY sunk in! I overheard her telling Jacob (who was pouting about having to clean his room), "If you only get out a couple of things at a time and put them away before you get another toy out, your room won't get so messy Jacob!" The angels were singing...well, they were in my head anyway! 

 Truly this is the rainbow after the storm. We've had a rough 18 months or so with her. It hasn't been easy for any of us. I honestly believe that Satan was battling hard for her. I led her in the "sinner's prayer" a little over 18 months ago, but didn't make a big deal about because I wasn't sure she was sincere...more like maybe she was just doing it because she knew it would make me happy. I was waiting to see some fruit from that decision. It really seemed like not long after that, all the trouble began with her. Makes me wonder what God has in store for this amazing girl!