No Bullies Allowed Here

Maliana ~

I'll start the week with a story about why I could not be more proud of you in this moment. The week began with more time outside, riding your motorcycle around the block with Daddy and I, siren full blast (I'm sure the neighbors loved that), and when you'd put the bike into high gear, your little helmeted head would jerk back as you yelled, "Yeeeeaaaahhhh!" at the top of your lungs as you raced ahead on the sidewalk. Priceless.

But that has only a little bit to do with my gratitude. What happened that knocked my socks off and made me sit back and quietly swell with pride involved an exchange between you and some of the neighbor kids. It went like this. Basically, there is a child in the neighborhood (every neighborhood has at least one) who is, to sum it up in one word, a bully. She bosses other kids around, does not share, talks back to adults, screams at the slightest thing that does not go her way, and is disrespectful most of the time. This particular night was no different as she bounded over to where you were playing with the other kids, bringing a bucket of her toys (make up, brushes, etc). Our neighbors, Brooklyn and Brayson, were outside with you and so all of you kids took her stuff over and started going through her bucket together (because you always welcome 'the bully' into your playgroup no matter how she has treated you the last time...that's just the kind of kid you are). Everything was okay at first, but then the fly in the ointment came when she pointed her finger and screamed at Brayson, not allowing him to play with or even touch her toys because he was a boy, and being generally just plain mean. The other mom and I were about to intervene when we noticed something wonderful happen. You put your arm around Brayson, looked right at this bully, and said, "He is my friend!"...then Brooklyn did the exact same thing on the other side of her little brother. More words (a little less intelligible) were exchanged between you kids, and when things didn't get any better, us moms did eventually have to step in and "take care of business". But not before you, Brooklyn, and Brayson had united against this bully and continued to hold onto each other, stroking each others' backs, and comforting each other. My heart swelled in that moment as I witnessed another example of what an amazing little person you are turning into. I worry (as every mom does) about how you will be treated among your peers, hoping and praying that you will be a leader and not a follower, and that you will have the strength to not only stand up for yourself but the strength to stand up for those who can't stand up for themselves. On this night, I got a glimpse of the future. And it's good.

Later in the week, we found ourselves on the way home from school with Daddy's jeep and realized...it was SUNROOF WEATHER!

Then decided to stay cool and had our very first indoor drive-in movie. You loved it! And as a friend said, "Thank goodness she is in the car alone!" Ha ha.

And another night, you, Brooklyn, and Brayson watered the garden.

Just as we began wrapping up the work/school week, and the temperatures reached a record breaking 100+ degrees (hotcha!), I picked you up at school and surprised you with the news we were heading straight over to take Sam and Erin out with us for frozen yogurt at Spoon Me. Then after Joe and Tina got home, we all headed to their pool for a quick dip. And just in time too. It hit the spot and cooled us off only minutes before we all melted into the pavement. After much squealing and splashing, we  felt rejuvenated and enjoyed dinner and more time well spent with our "other family". Between a full day at school, the frozen yogurt, the pool, and playing with Sam and Erin, the excitement completely wore you out. You drifted to sleep before we even got home and I slipped you into bed without even a sigh from your exhausted little body. There's nothing better than impromptu summer fun to give a kick start to the weekend.

I was afraid we'd have to peel Erin off the walls after
eating that heaping bowl of sugar!
(note to self: not necessarily a wise idea to allow a 6 year old
to concoct her own sundae with unlimited toppings, ha.)

Friday Lao Lao picked you up from school and met me at home with a randomly purchased bouquet of flowers which you said was "Flowers for Friday!" Then we headed out to watch the new movie Brave at the theatre and ate dinner at California Pizza Kitchen. Of course we couldn't come home without taking our traditional pictures in the photo booth together. So far, we have quite the collection of these fun pictures.

We headed to Young's Dairy Farm on Saturday while Daddy was golfing, Lao Lao came with us and we made it into an impromptu road trip. There was a ton of stuff for you to get into, you loved the barrel train ride, watching the goats and cows (learning all about udders), playing in the kids' corral, and of course, sampling a lot of their homemade ice cream.

On our way home, we hit Kroger and turned a boring grocery shopping trip into a lot of fun by sharing an Icee and playing "Watch out for the crocodiles!" by hopping on only the white tiled squares through the store. You and Lao Lao especially got into this game and I love that you have a grandma that gets into being silly as much as you do!

When bedtime rolled around, you looked at me and melted my heart.

Here is a sample of our conversation:

Me: I had fun with you today.
You: Me too...you know what Mom?
Me: What?
You: You're in my heart.
Me: You know what?
You: What?
Me: You're in my heart too!

I love you kid!

Young's Dairy Farm has a cow with high tops?

saying "Mooooo!"

I love that you have a grandma that is willing to get
in the corn tub with you

a little putting practice

barrel train with Mama

and another ride with Lao Lao

now ready for a solo flight

Sunday morning we just took it easy. It was a good day to relax and stay in to beat the unbearable heat we've had lately. You and I got up early and enjoyed a nice morning full of Legos while listening to and watching music videos on the laptop of some of your favorite songs like; Call Me Maybe, Party in the USA, Who Says, Bad Romance (ok, so Lady Gaga was a bit much for a Sunday morning), Breakthrough, and Never Grow Up. It felt great to spend this one on one time together, just in the moment with you. I admit, I probably don't really let myself relax during times like these like I should. But today I did. A small victory for me, but an important one. I enjoy going on adventures with you, but I remembered this morning to never underestimate how much you appreciate quiet times like these too. This appreciation was evidenced by your spontaneously climbing onto my back, sticking your face right next to mine, and giving me a big bear hug around the neck while we finished making a Lego Mater tow truck. I'll never get tired of those hugs. Ever.

We also decided to call Ggma to see how she was doing. You wanted to talk to her and when she said she hadn't seen you in a while and that you must be so big now, I heard you say, "I'm not that little anymore, I'm growing up!" You are so proud of how big you are getting. When you hung up you said, "I love you." I also will never get tired of hearing you say this either. I know that those three little words can be hard to say sometimes, but try to never shy away from them. They can make a world of difference to someone at the exact moment they really need it.

After a good solid nap, you woke up and we made strawberry shortcake together, inspired by my insisting we skip it at California Pizza Kitchen the other night and promising to make it with you once home instead. We did such a good job with our homemade version we decided we should sell it in a restaurant ourself, with you adding, "Yeah, just like at Easton!"

proud of your creation

And finally, on Sunday night we had another round of storms blow through Columbus. These storms had knocked out many people's electricity during their first round on Friday and have been pretty vicious. We missed a lot of the thunder and lightening last time since we were in a movie, however this time we got to hear the loud booms, see the lights flicker, and watch the trees sway. We got to see it all. You got a little nervous about the thunder in particular but we discovered a trick. We noticed it kind of sounded like drums and so we got out your bongos and had a contest to see who was louder, you or the thunder. It took the "scary" right out of that storm!

I love it when we can take the "scary" out of anything for you.

Love,

Mama