My Patchy

My baby is almost two.
After having 4 kids, I can finally say that I will never have another. After each prior child, I never felt certain whether or not it would be my last. But we know now, without a doubt, Patch is the last.
I love being a mom, and I have great kids. I remember how I found out I was pregnant with each one of them. I remember the circumstances in which Tucker and I came up with their names. I remember all of the details of each of my pregnancies as if they have just occurred. I can retell my labor and delivery stories over and over and over again. Although, I often didn't feel well, being pregnant and having my babies has been among the most fulfilling things I have ever done.
That book is closed. No more pregnancy tests stashed in the back of the bathroom closet. I can pack up the mountains of pregnancy and baby name books we have acquired in the 10 years it took us to create our family. I will never again have use for those itsy-bitsy onesies, that look so tiny until your baby is born and then are just swimming on him.
I was watching Patch today. He really is phasing out of babyhood. He wants so much to be big like his siblings, it seems he is intentionally speeding up the maturing process! He talks as if he is the authority, and I really need to remind myself that he is only a baby! But baby no more. My little guy is growing up. And as he grows up, so must I. I am no longer that "young mom" who is just starting her family. That phase of MY life is over. Did I subconsciously enjoy that phase so much that I kept it going by procreating? Geez, I hope not!!
Regardless of how old my baby is he will ALWAYS be my baby. (As all of my children will be) Though the realization of him growing up is bittersweet, I am equally as excited to see what is in store for him. His future is limitless, and I believe he has the personality that will seize every moment.
I just don't even know how to end this. Excited for the possibilities that await my littlest one, or melancholy over the end of an era? (gulp) I just really don't know. I think maybe it just doesn't have to end...

Ch-Ch-Ch Changes

This will go down in history as the summer we changed everything. Well, hopefully not everything, but we are doing a whole lot of home improvements. In addition to the kitchen remodel, we have hired a landscaping company to clear out and grade the backyard. It was a collection of massive over growth, and it will be so nice when there will be such room for the kids to run around!! To get the job done, the landscaper has brought in 2 giant, tractory-looking machines. I'm not sure what they are, but the kids sure were excited to see that they had been left behind after the workers called it a day. All 4 kids enjoyed hopping up inside for photo-ops. (Although, I'm quite sure that was not why they were left!!)

A Quick Brag

Yesterday Tucker was outside doing yard work while I ran errands. He decided it would be a good idea to encourage the kids to help and maybe earn a little extra money. The task at hand was to dig up Monkey Grass from the back yard, separate it, and plant it around our front natural area. Quite an arduous task, indeed. About 2 hours into the morning I receive a call on my cell phone from Elizabeth saying Daddy has cut his hand and it is bleeding very bad. So when I got home I cleaned and bandaged Tucker's wounded paw, and put him on yard work restriction. He had wanted to go back out and finish, but we both felt like his wound, which wasn't too pretty, would do much better to rest.
Here comes the brag...
Emily and Elizabeth spent the next 2 1/2 hours finishing the job. They weren't told to keep going after Daddy came in, they just did. Not only did they do the lion's share of the work, but they did a really good job. Everything was spaced beautifully and planted very well. When they were finished, they were beaming with pride. They were rewarded with dinner at the Olive Garden as well as being able to choose a new game from the used game store.
I say it ALL the time, and I know people are tired of hearing me say it, but my kids are awesome. They are really nice and thoughtful people. I am so thankful for them. Not just because they are my kids and "you have to say that about your kids," but because I am grateful for being able to know the people who they are becoming. It is because of them that I aspire to be a better person. There is a whole lot of hope for this world when you see such remarkable young people.

Falling in Love... All Over Again

I teach preschool. It wasn't what I had anticipated for my life but it is just the way things have worked out. I can't really imagine doing anything else. These kids become my kids, and I truly somehow, fall in love with each and every one.
I have a tough age group by preschool standards. The dreaded "Terrible Twos." There are days when I really do go home wanting to pull my hair out, but for the most part, my days are filled with little miracles. I have always felt that during the 2-3 year, kids change and develop so rapidly. I am able to witness these babies turning into "real people." I really count myself fortunate. It really is something to watch.
Every year I fall in love. Sometimes especially with a special one or few, and sometimes with the entire lot, but I always end the year feeling like there will never be kids I could love as much as those little ones who will now be leaving me. Every year it happens. I feel so torn as my little friends grow up and leave me for greener pastures, but so very proud of all that they have done in the past year.
This year has been a challenging one. I went from a relatively small group of "older twos" last year, to a large group of late birthdays. It was really an adjustment. But the triumphs were there, and the miracles were there, and so was the love.
I started back to teach summer school today. The majority of my class from this past year will be with me as well as some new friends. One child who I have had all year long, came back after just one week away a completely different person. Suddenly she grew up. It was truly a blessing to have been able to see that. They are only little for such a very short time, I am so grateful to be a small part of their lives. Truly.
I have such a heavy heart when I think of these kids who I have bonded with for a year, being under someone else's watchful eye in the fall. In many ways, they feel like MY kids, and I don't want to let them go. But I know that I am just a brief stop in their long journey, and I am so excited for them to continue on.
So, in a couple months, a new school year will usher in a whole new class. And inevitably I will start the year homesick for those who have moved on. But so it goes. And in the end, I'm sure I will do as I always do, and fall in love all over again.

Wonders Never Cease

Charlie is the pickiest eater I have ever met. He hasn't always been that way, but he got the memo from the other kids when he was about three and a half, that he was suppose to give us a hard time at dinner and he has been impossible to feed since then. His favorite meal is "naked spaghetti." Yep that's right. No cheese, butter, sauce-nothing. Plain noodles. Such is the way all of his meals tend to be. Colorless, flavorless and nutrition less. I am an avid cook and the thought of him passing up some top notch dinners in favor of plain noodles really gets me.
Since the kitchen remodel is close at hand, I have been trying to use up all of the groceries in the refrigerator so nothing has to be thrown away. I came across a carton of tofu I had been meaning to stir-fry. I am the only one I know who really loves the stuff. As I opened the carton, Charlie was instantly intrigued by the cheese-like substance. He asked for a piece of uncooked tofu to try. (even a bit adventurous for the likes of me) He smiled and asked for another. Very odd. I gave him a few more pieces and told him I was going to cook the rest with carrots and broccoli in Terriyaki sauce. While I was stirring the wok, he kept picking chunks of tofu out!! This from a child who won't even eat macaroni and cheese. I finally gave him a plate stacked with tofu and he ate it all.
Just when you think you know a kid, they go on and do something like this. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined Charlie's love of tofu!!

Graduating

It was an important month in the life of two little Hearns. Charlie graduated from preschool and Emily graduated from elementary school. Both of them will be going to brand new schools next year.
I really am so blessed that the schools my kids have gone to have been so great. Wynnton Preschool is such a loving and friendly enviorment. It is the ultimate "safe place" for parents to leave their little ones those first years. Not only is it such a warm place, but the kids really do learn so much there. I guess my love for the preschool is what drew ME there. I tell my kids all the time that I'm never going to graduate from preschool.
Britt David is the best kept secret in this town. (although, in recent years the secret has begun getting out) We enrolled Emily there kinda on a whim. Tucker's cousin worked there and it seemed like a good school. We didn't do the due diligence many parents do when looking into kindergartens. Boy, were we lucky. It has that same nurturing and comforting feel that Wynnton has. We have never had a teacher we haven't absolutely loved. The administration is amazing and knows every ones names. It is a tough school, and the kids who go there have to work very hard, but they get used to it and it becomes just who they are. Emily was so fond of Britt David she cried the whole last week of school. Fortunately for her, we will have a kid there until she is about 20, so she should have plenty of opportunities to go back for visits!!
It both cases these schools have really prepared the kids for the next step in their lives. My kids love school and love learning and I can't help but believe it comes from such great school experiences. I can't imagine what it would have been like to have not have had such positive beginnings. I hear all the time about how people hate the schools their kids go to, and I just shudder. We really are so lucky.
But, off they go. Emily to middle school and Charlie to kindergarten. I can not believe how fast the time goes. I am so proud of babies. (and they will ALWAYS be my babies)

Staying Put

We bought our current home four years ago. It was the third house we had bought as a married couple, and we were determined for it to be our last. No one likes to move, but I am convinced no one detests it quite as much as my dear husband. I tease him that if he had his way we would still be living in the 950 square foot apartment where we lived at the start of our marriage.
We bought this house out of necessity. Our previous house, though adorable, was small, and the kids (3 of them at the time) seemed to be requiring more space. Tucker was especially hesitant to leave our prior house, because we had bought it from his grandfather who had lived there for over 40 years. So, I played the part of the mean, 'ol wife forcing him to move under duress.
We found this home in the north part of Columbus. It was huge by our standards. (about 3500 square feet) Enough bedrooms, bathrooms, a large playroom- it was hard to pass up. But since, nothing is seamless for us Hearns, there was a catch. The inside hadn't been updated since the 1970s. At all. It was hard to look past the mountains of work that would lay ahead, especially for Tucker who would be doing the lion's share. It really became a tug-of-war. In the end, he relented, although quite unhappily at first, and we bought the house.
The first two years were busy. We scraped wallpaper and painted. We replaced almost the entire house's flooring. A light fixture here, a kitchen appliance there, but slowly and surely the diamond was emerging from the rough.
I intend to stay in this house for the rest of my life, God willing. I can see growing old here with Tucker, and sitting on the front porch rocking in our chairs and shaking sticks at the neighborhood hooligans. It is that kind of house; the kind of house no one would want to leave. It is truly a home.
Early next week we are having the kitchen ripped out and completely replaced. We always said that we were going to do this one day, but I don't think either of us really believed we would. Even as we begun the process of talking with the contractor, I was sure that somehow we would weasel our way out. I am going to love my new kitchen. I designed it exactly the way I wanted. I am thrilled to pieces that we were able to do this. Although the perks of a brand-spankin' new kitchen excites me, I am even more excited for what this upgrade really means for our lives. It means we are steadfast. We are here to stay and to start spreading our roots. Hopefully it means that the moves are over and we have found our home base. The time, effort and financial commitment would never have been spent on a home we were just passing through. We are here to stay. Just as we take care of our children to make sure they grow up to be strong and healthy adults, so must we take care of our home so that it will always be able to fulfill our needs. This prospect is so comforting to me. I am settled. I am where I will stay.