Changing Seasons

As I drive around the area to various practices & games, I see the leaves beginning to change. The beauty of our lush summer is giving way to the glorious fall in New York and makes me think of my children.
While I see some characteristics that are true to their ages, I get glimpses of the stages right around the corner.
Mykah, at 9, still shows that princess side that we all know and love, but is showing signs of being an athlete. Both are beautiful, as summer & fall, but distinctly different and equally awesome to watch. She seems to be the tree down the street that is half green and half red, stunning in it's indecisiveness. Mykah shows an equal balance of the child that she remains, but the young woman she is destined to become.
Max, at 3, is slowly showing signs of the little boy he is becoming and losing the traits that belong to toddlers. He reminds us of the pride that comes with accomplishing small goals and the frustration of not being able to successfully communicate all of our wants and needs. He makes us laugh every day-he is stubborn and loving and silly and dramatic and fills our hearts with joy.
Josh is 7 months already. He reminds us to stop and look around every chance we get. Beautiful things come in many forms through a baby's eyes and he inspires me to look again at things that I have taken for granted. He is a mover, that one! He shows signs of independence already. If he sees something he wants, he gets it and when he masters one task, he moves on to the next. He started scooting a couple of weeks ago (moving his arms forward, then dragging his body), but 2 days ago found out how much more effective crawling is, so he's already moved on. I know that in the blink of an eye, Josh will be Max's age and Max will be Mykah's age and so on. I wish I could inscribe these memories on the inside of my eyelids so when I blink I can remember. Since I can't, I blog. I share the memories so we can all remember together, so we can share smiles and tears and the bonds that remain between family and true friends forever.
Mykah is cheering for jr. tackle football this year and is also playing soccer for the first time. She will have to choose between the two next year, so she's pouring her heart & soul into both for now. She's even letting me play "dress up" with her when it comes to cheering, just in case this is the only chance I get to share a piece of my past! If it is, I'll cherish it, while eagerly looking forward to her finding her true self along the way.
The pictures of Max are from the game that Mykah cheered at. My friend, Diane, took them and they were such a wonderful surprise when I opened my email and they were there.
The pictures of Josh are from different days, but look at the light in his eyes as he discovers this world. How can you not smile?! His favorite things are the pantry and anything associated with Bodie. He's gonna get that dog one of these days. Until then he loves Bodie's bed, water & food dish, toys, etc. He'll pass by all of his cute, colorful toys to chew on a tennis ball that he saw Bodie playing with!



























This is actual video of the first time Josh crawled. I was showing Joe pix from Mykah's soccer game (soccer games are the same days as Cornell games) and he crawled a couple of "steps". Joe said to me "Hello, you're holding the camera...do something!" So I got a few "steps" then he went back to old reliable-scooting.


As Max says- "Ge what? I lu you!" Thanks for checking in. We love you all.