Soccer, biking, and missing Papa

Our soccer season is under way. Both Emma and Rachael had their second games last weekend. They both won but the games were more competitive. The games didn't overlap so they were able to see each other play. We are a portable cheering section. Megan and Bridget tend to play quite a bit in the dirt or grass and enjoy eating snacks. High scoring games are also fun as they like to cheer and clap. Emma's games are played near a playground so they like that too. It is a fun way to spend a Saturday morning. This weekend we had very strong rain so the games were canceled.


One Friday night we took the girls and their bikes up to the school parking lot so they could bike around. Each of the girls has moved up to a bigger size bike. We gave Emma a new bike for her birthday and it looks so much bigger. Rachael is now using a bike with hand brakes so that took a little getting used to. Megan had a growth spurt this summer so she is now using the size up and it fits her much better. Jim put the training wheels on for her. She hasn't asked to take them off but I think next spring it will be time.


We have also given the girls a little more freedom on their bikes at home. Emma is now allowed to ride in the neighborhood on the roads. She enjoys the extra freedom and position that this gives her. I waffle between the feeling of "go experience the world" and "don't get hit by a car". Parenting is such a balance. Rachael has also earned the privilege to ride on the streets as well but has a much more limited territory. She became very timid when we started biking again recently, and has fear about hills and falling off her bike. It is only a matter of time till she switches to Kamikaze. Megan longs to ride on the road but for now is doing circles in the driveway. Bridget loves watching the girls bike and climbs on and off the tricycles, but her legs aren't long enough to pedal.



Megan and Bridget love going to Ms. Lacey's house. Bridget is napping now and talks about the other children and has lots to say that I don't understand. It all sounds exciting and positive though. They come home with projects and handmade drawings each day and stories of new friends. Megan is less enthusiastic about Pre-School and says most mornings that she doesn't want to go. She loves the projects and class time but she has made a few negative comments about free-play time. I don't think that she is comfortable with the other kids yet.



This past weekend Jim went to Deep Creek Lake for his annual Poker Weekend. Rachael and Megan were very sad that he was going. Jim said that he and the guys could still hear the girls wailing as they turned the corner. The girls calmed down a little later and settled into bedtime stories. Poor Rachael though struggled all weekend and she expressed it as anger. Saturday was a very rainy day so we spent it playing in the basement. Rachael and Emma asked to make clothes for their toys, so I got out the sewing machine. We worked on creating patterns and then cut out the material and sewed them together. Rachael designed a blue gown with red trim for Speckles and Emma made a pair of shorts for her doll complete with floral embroidery. Meanwhile Megan used glue and paper to make her own computer.


St. Micheal and the Holy Korean Martyrs' feasts are in September so we we celebrated the 3 Kurek boys at the annual Feast day party on Saturday. It was a packed house but lots of fun. Bridget is still the baby of the family and stuck with me most of the evening. A few times she ventured up the stairs to the bedrooms where the kids were playing. She stood and watched for a few moments and then crawled back down the steps. Twenty big kids in a small space with lots of toys was rather intimidating. As of Tuesday Bridget will no longer be the baby of the family. Becky is due to be induced and we pray for a safe delivery.


Sunday was Jim's homecoming and none to soon. The girls were missing him. Megan doesn't have a good sense of time and despite explanations of when Papa was coming home, she kept thinking that she heard him in the house. Even Bridget woke up Sunday asking for him. Jim has a big presence in our girls' lives and hearts. Rachael was up and down emotionally all day and at one point packed to run away. Of all the things I said to her it was "You can't go, Papa will be home in 30 minutes." that convinced her to unpack. The lure of making cookies for his arrival helped too. The world was good again when he got back. That evening he was out front helping Rachael find her confidence on her bike. From the living room I could hear her shout "I can do it!" It is so true, with a little support I believe she can do anything.