Compassion

I've said before that Mr. Mister is gifted with an incredibly compassionate heart for people who are hurting.  Here are two recent examples:

1.  Daddy and I were both really sick last night...hardly able to move, which makes it really difficult to be a parent to a baby and a toddler.  (Don't you think it should be illegal for both parents to be sick at the same time?!).  Mr. Mister rubbed our backs, brought us toys, offered us water, and even brushed my hair out of my face as I laid on the couch.  He talked to us in the sweetest little voice and genuinely wanted to make us feel better.   Thankfully, he spent the day today at Grandma and Nonno's so hopefully he stays healthy!

2.  The other day on the way to the zoo, we were waiting at a red light downtown when Mr. Mister all of a sudden said, "Mom, what's she doing?"  I followed his pointing finger to see a woman sitting on the opposite corner of the intersection, holding a sign that I couldn't read from where we were stopped.  Oh man, here we go.  The beginning of hard life lessons.  Here was our conversation:

Me: She's probably asking for help with money or food because she doesn't have much.
Mr.: And no one is helping her?
Me: (my heart sinking)  No, I guess not.  It doesn't look like anyone is helping her, does it?
Mr.: No.

A minute passed in silence and then he said, "But we have a lot of food.  We could share ours with her."

It was the most genuine compassion and to him it was just logical that that would be the solution.  Is that what childlike faith looks like?

The Woods

Being in the woods is very life-giving for my husband and it brings him even more joy to be in the woods with his boys. Here are some fun pics of them from this weekend.

First ride in the backpack.  He looks like a pro.

Double duty - very impressive!

When you gotta go, you gotta go.

Joy.

Labor Day

This past weekend we trekked out to a state park with some friends.  The weather was beautiful and we enjoyed some hiking, swimming, grilling, and hanging out outside.  It took a lot of planning and packing, but it was worth all of the work to get there.

Still smiling (and still friends) after sharing a two bedroom cabin for three days.
That would be 6 adults, 2 toddlers, and 2 babies.

Mr. Newton and his future girlfriend.
 (Daddy wore that jacket when he was little!)

Mothering boys lesson #1 -

Even when the car is packed with necessities, the football helmet is still a priority.

Mothering boys lesson #2 - 

Playing football is not a prerequisite for wearing the football helmet.

The crew hiking. Lots of backpacks and baby carriers involved.

This is how most of our hikes ended.
Three year old legs get pretty tired after a lot of walking through the woods.

Freedom!

The ability to use this wonderful piece of baby equipment means freedom for both of us. Mr. Newton gets to stand, explore, and play while I get some hands free time to do things like make dinner. It is a big step for us!

Best Friends

Future Runner

Mr. Mister got some new shoes from Grandma and Papa for his birthday.  He calls them his running shoes and he just loves wearing them. The other morning when I was headed out for a run, he quickly put his shoes on and wanted to come with me. We ran a little bit together before I headed out and it made me excited for when he really can go running with us!

In the meantime, running in his pajamas up and down our back parking lot is sufficient. And really cute, too.

Monarch Butterfly

One of the coolest presents Mr. Mister got for his birthday was a monarch caterpillar in a jar. Our friends gave us directions on how to take care of it and we got to watch it munch milkweed leaves, turn into a light green chrysalis with gold markings, turn black and transparent, and then come out as a monarch butterfly. It was such an exciting process and Mr. Mister learned a lot.  I wish I took pictures of each step.

We released it yesterday. We prepped Mr. Mister for the fact that it would fly away.  He thought he would get to hold it on his finger first (like at the butterfly show), but when it came out of the jar, it just flew away.

This resulted in some tears and a minute of devastation until we could distract him by showing him how the butterfly landed in our tree. 

By, Mr. butterfly!  Have fun on your trip down south!
Saludanos a Mexico!