Afternoon Park Stops

Some nights while we were still staying in Stafford, Danny had to work really late, but Victoria had practice after school. On those days, we made long park stops! We really like Yowell Meadow Park.  The trails offered some shade on those, still summer, afternoons.

These kids are all so special and unique. Christian was a leader and an example of bravery these first few weeks. He surely had some hard days (Middle schoolers aren't always confident enough to reach out to people who are new or alone), but he put on a brave face and was a good example for his younger siblings and big sister too. Talking about things later, he told me about his conscious decision not to complain about things because he knew probably everyone was having a hard enough time already and he didn't want to make it worse for anyone. That was very mature and very selfless of him.

Victoria (not in these pictures, but at practice) honestly makes friends very easily. It is probably not as quickly as she would like, but I guarentee she is making friends. She is smiley, friendly, kind and socially mature. She had a few rough moments though (Day 3 was really bad. From a mom who likes to say "We can do hard things," it merited ice cream. Code word- auditorium. Is that enough of a description to help us remember when we read this years later? I hope so. I think it was a what not to do/ how not to treat others lesson). When others are mean, I hope we will learn that we want to be nice.

Not related to the move, but following the trend of sharing the kids' special traits, Grant has always been a "good noticer!" He especially loves noticing things outside. He notices small things, like details in these flowers, shapes in clouds, or pieces of  trash that are not where they should be. It is a cool talent to be so keen on details.

Katherine has the gift of contentedness. She is happy most of the time and doesn't often let things bother her. Generally, she accepts things as they are and finds a reason to like them. "It's fine," "Well at least...(something on the bright side)," "I'm ok," and "I will try" are common phrases that I hear her say.