Out of the Mouths of Babes...

Come the most fascinating and confusing thoughts. Sometimes it leaves you wondering about the existential world and messages from beyond.

Nora has had a couple of these in recent months. (For my PP sisters, I told you about the first two a while back)

We were driving in the car to preschool and she says, 'Mommy.? I don't want you to die. ok?'

HUH!?

This completely got to my anxiety levels as I believe that kiddos are more open spiritually to the other side. (My older sister asked about a dead relative she had never met in the weeks before she died.) Had to talk to the therapist about this one and how it weaves into my fear of dying while my children are young. I know I'm not in control of my time here, but it's a selfish human wish that I cling to.

We were snuggling one night and Nora says, 'I will miss my room mommy. When, when there's a fire and my pretty pictures go away.'...She was talking about the watercolor mural I did above her bed.

Once again OMG! Having a fire in the house, especially on the childrens end is one of my biggest fears

And now this.....

Sweetpea, did you have a bad dream last night? You yelled in your sleep, mommy came in and held you for a while.

''Yeah, I was far far away mommy. And I yelled help help. You said my name, Nora Paige Willman. I did not want to go. There was a thing, like white and glowy up there.''

The deeply spiritual side of me interprets this as her seeing a glimpse of heaven and maybe an angel speaking to her. I am strangely calmed by this dream of hers. It does not frighten me to think that there are angels watching over my child.

Growing up...A mommy's heartache.

Mommyhood moves too fast at times. You turn around and it seems like it's just been a moment since you heard them first cry.

And the cry turns to sweet babbles.

We call Trent our little Pterodactyl because he's always screeched at the top of his lungs. Most likely in an effort to be heard over his sister, chatty one that she is.

The good news is.....Trent can TALK!

Trent can say 'Dee dee'...which means daddy! Of course, its always daddy first. He is a tried and true mamma's boy so I'm not too worried about where his loyalty lies.

He also says 'Boo'. Nora is constantly playing the 'boo game' with him so it's really no surprise.

Along with his newest trick of waving comes 'haaaaaaa!'...We are taking this to mean 'hi' in Trent-speak.

We get lots of waves and 'haaaaa' as he cruises around the coffee table these days.

Where did my baby go?! He still looks like a baby with his pudgy thighs, scarce hairline and sucking on his left pointer finger. Have I ever mentioned that he does that? There must be sugar in the left pointer finger, it is the favored one.

To add more ache to mommy's heart, I found two 'byes' under Nora's bed today. One was an old Avent style cut all the way down. The other, a Nuby butterfly half destroyed. Ironically, it has been a little over a year since the 'byes' were taken away. I kept them and lovingly placed the two in a drawer to remember how little she once was.

The Do's and Don'ts of Vacation.

DO invited the grandparents to come with. This has many advantages that go beyond traveling baby sitters.

DON'T let the women do all the packing and then get frustrated when supplies are not as accessible as you like.

DO take a lot of reading, even if you're too busy looking at the ocean to crack the spine.

DON'T forget if you travel on Sunday, in the middle of no where Georgia, you may be hard pressed to find a restaurant open. God bless the blue laws that still exist in po-dunk America.

DO suck up your fear of heights to climb up and down 178 steps of a lighthouse with your kids. Nothing compares to the preschooler shrieking at the sight of expansive ocean. OR, her explanation that the lighthouse tells the ships, ''STOP, go that way, don't hit the beach!''

DON'T get too frustrated with service at dinner, except in extreme situations. You are ON vacation. Relax.

DO take your entire medicine cabinet in case a viral monster takes down half your crew.

DON'T set an alarm.

DO take a trolley tour of the town if possible.

DON'T worry about splitting up to do different things for a while. The stories at dinner are awesome.

DO take video of your kid saying ''Herrrmit Craaaabs!'' at random strangers to record their reaction.

DON'T fold your husbands flip flops inside a beach chair...you will forget them.

DO say a thankful prayer when your children behave like angels despite crazy schedules and late nights.

DON'T forget the coffee. Preschoolers get exceptionally excited about the beach, go to bed ridiculously late and wake up at 7am screaming for their bathing suit.

DO convince your kiddo to curl up for story time with Poppy. I only wish I'd snapped a picture.

DON'T ever forget how it was to travel with small kids, you'll need this learned patience later in life for your own grandkids.

DO bring most food from home. These towns know they have a captive audience, you will be overcharged for every miscellaneous food item.

DON'T go on a diet before the trip, this will only lead to frustration when faced with tasty beach restaurant food.

DO stay up late to take a long walk.

DON'T forget to people watch, that's some good, free entertainment.

DO find an authentic ice cream parlor and treat yourself.

DON'T mind that your infant is eating piles of sand, consider it a good fiber source.

DO have those long conversations you'll remember later.

DON'T do too much in one day, remember quality not quantity of memories.