Daily Hankes Mischief

 

(My twin sister & her soon to be husband)

Fathers day week/weekend we spent some time in the beautiful mountains of Blue Ridge, Georgia with my in-laws. We don't vacation much, but when we do we appreciate every bit of it! I got to wake up every morning and sit on the back porch with a hot cup of coffee, listening to the birds sing, breathing in the crisp mountain air, and watching the kids play. We hiked to a gorgeous (and freezing) waterfall, spent an afternoon in town looking in all the old shops and having lunch at a new place, had smores in the backyard of our cabin, shot BB guns, tubed down the river while Silas slept on me the whole time, made crafts, played games after the kids went to bed, and best of all spent a lot of time laughing with family. It's always a good time with the Hankes'.

It is the first day of June, and today was one of those "everyone decided they were going to grow up on me" days. And I'm not even exaggerating-- literally both of my children reached another milestone! First and foremost, Ryen graduated kindergarten with flying colors and an excellent report card. I just keep asking myself, "can this really be happening? Is this day really here?" I swear life seems to slip right through my hands sometimes. How on earth have I been a mother for almost 6 years, when I feel like my baby, who is now a first grader, was a chunky little newborn making gaga eyes at me just yesterday? I was able to go to his class this morning, where his baby brother and I watched him receive an award for having the brightest ideas in his class. I watched and listened as his teacher read the children their very last book of the school year, and I'm almost certain it was probably the quietest her group of "kids" had been all year. Almost as if they knew, summer will be fun, but their first teacher will be missed and one to remember! I also got a great idea from a dear, sweet friend of mine to fill up a couple balloons and get ribbon to decorate the backseat of my car with, as a nice fun surprise for Ryen to jump into after finishing his last day.

As for my other wild boy, at two and a half years of life he has finally discovered his legs are long enough to climb out of the crib with. His dad and I thought maybe it was a one time thing, but after putting him down for a nap this afternoon and him following not too far behind me as I left the room on THREE different occasions, I knew it was time. The transition has started for naps so far, because for some reason it only seems to be during daytime nap times, and not at bedtime. After a few attempts, he got the hint and stayed in the big boy bed by himself quietly, and within five minutes, passed out. Hoping tomorrow is just as easy.

My husband and I found this day to be so joyous, mixed with many emotions-- mainly for me because, as much as I enjoy my children growing and learning and becoming such amazing human beings, I just cannot stand how fast time seems to go. And every year I swear it just goes faster. I know how much I am going to miss all of this. I know the days will come all too soon, when I will be saying, "remember when our kids were in kindergarten" and it kind of saddens my soul. I want the time to slow down for just a moment, but because I know it won't, I am learning to live in the moments, hug my kids tighter, stop looking down and look up. Be more present with them, more patient, and love them more and more.

I want to grow old knowing I am the reason they grew into beautiful, sweet souls. I want them to always know that their father and I have more love for them than they will ever, EVER know! I will always pray that my kids remain original, and grow up making the right choices, being eager to learn and grow in the Lord. And that they will never forget how proud we are of them. Here's to another year, more milestones, and much more growing together as a family.

Now if I could only raise my cat up in the right ways, so that he would quit pushing every object off of my kitchen counters, bathroom sink, and bedroom dresser, I think I could have this parenting thing down pat.