Lyrical Performance

There were grown men weeping in the audience at the sheer preciousness of our tinies. They were so stinkin' cute. After several false music starts, they managed a performance with grace and poise. I am so proud of our Sparkles.


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Rehearsal (Lorax)

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The Milestones of Incredible Braun

I'm always amazed at how Clare's weight matches her height. It's been consistent most of her life. Today she weighs 50.5# and she's now 50 1/2" tall.
Crazy.
Last week Clare started public kindergarten. It's a huge deal. She's had to enter into a new school completely on her own with little notice about who her teacher is. She is thrilled to be one of Mrs. Harvey's hula bears, a position I requested based on her many years of skilled teaching and the most loving and firm boundaries I have ever witnessed. Her classroom is kind and positive and hums with order...just like Clare. She is in the right place, there is no doubt about that.
Two weeks ago she started a real ballet class. No more baby dance for her. She has a gorgeous polish instructor who is well over six feet tall. She is delightful. I'm so glad that Clare has her grace and beauty to soak up. That's a really great thing for a future (giant) superstar to be a part of. ;)
Last month, she started getting an allowance. There was a day when daddy was traveling that she made breakfast, lunch and dinner for the family. She also folded two loads of laundry and learned to mop the floor. At the end of the day she kindly advocated for herself and let me know she thought it was time she got her own money, as she was working hard to earn it. So after making a plan with daddy about what to save and where, she is off and running with $5 a week. She deserves every penny. Now when we leave the house to go somewhere, she brings her purse with her wallet in case she sees something she wants to buy. Today she made her first purchase. Her own diary.


She paid, waited for her change, and carefully stowed her receipt. She is so pleased with her purchase. We're still working on the lock; that's been frustrating. And we had to have a long talk about the difference between privacy and secrets (because our family doesn't keep secrets). But after all that, she is diligently filling it in page by page.
Writing so much about herself and her life sparked a pain in her that she's been struggling with for a while. She misses her other. Mac left for St. Louis on Friday and it's slowly been dawning that she's moving for real. Yesterday it smacked her like a wall and she cried with the heartbreak of it for hours. Her first grief. I felt so honored to sit in that space with her and help her hold her tender heart with care, making a space for her to learn this incredibly important process.
I cannot believe how far we've come this summer. September, I'm glad you're here.

Community Service

In this house, if your behavior is hideous enough to suck the air out of the room, you get to do something to rebalance it.

Today is laundry day and Ella is feeling pretty bossy, slightly sassy and a tad destructive.



So today she learned to fold napkins. Too bad she can't cook dinner yet. ;)

Swimming, for real.

Ella can dive for rings!

And jump off the diving board. Wowza, she's brave.

Two days ago she could scarcely make it to the steps if you pushed her. Today, she swam the length of the steps on the surface and learned side-breathing. Mr. Ian is doing a great job with her.

Clare can already swim on her own, but she is working hard on newer, better skills. Today she was in the lap lane working on strokes and kicks. She's also working on her dives with Miss Emily.

They'll follow up these two week lessons with a three week swim and gym camp at Crenshaws. I'm so excited for them. I've always loved swimming, so I'm glad they do, too.

bELLArina

Doesn't get much better than this.



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Soaking it in

We are loving this summer. For the first time, we are truly big enough for adventure. We live without naps, walk far, carry our own packs. We can read, cross streets properly and explore without much mischief. So we are thick into experiencing all that we can of this thing you people call summer...cause really, it's our first one. :)
Today we visited the Austin Nature and Science Center. We weren't new there, so we played hard with no reservations. We took some of our favorite friends with us for reinforcement.




Some of our nearest and dearest.



Here's Big Dude looking for frogs.



Here they are as explorers digging dinosaur bones...



Adventurers feeding fish...



Climbers working together on their balance...



and strengthening their muscles...



feeding their growing bodies...



and simply loving each other.
What a great day. Thanks, Mags. We adore you.