Angel and Maddie had been tucked into bed and I was reading to Jubilee on the couch. Angelina approached and whispered, “I dropped my blankie.”
*silence*
Unsure of what she really meant, I asked, “Um.. where is it?”
She continued in her whisper, “It’s on Maddie, and I don’t want to wake her up.”
So I head back to the bedroom with her and sure enough, her blankie is lying on top of a sleeping Maddie.
Today at Mountain School, Maddie painted for sixty minutes with the exception of a five minute diversion at the creek.
After she finished her first water color painting and wrote her name on it, Teacher Jeanne said, “Maddie, now would you like to go put it in the creek and see what the water does to the paint?”
Maddie’s eyes grew wide. She looked at me, I think looking for approval. I smiled and nodded at her, trying to widen my eyes as large as hers. Then she darted off toward the creek.
Wanting to avert the inevitable, I quickly chased after her, saying, “Maddie, do you want your galoshes?” Then she changed course toward where her galoshes lay, all the while chanting, “Galoshes! Galoshes! Galoshes!”
After she was all suited up, we climbed down the embankment to the creek. She swiped the surface of the water with her paper and giggled with glee. She looked at it, swiped the water again, and then looked at it once more.
Then she threw the painting on the ground and jumped into the creek!
Today I learned the hard way that you literally should not judge a book by its cover.
At the library, Jubilee checked out a picture book called “The Lemonade Club.” I didn’t give the book my usual once-over before allowing her to check it out.
On the way home, she engrossed herself into the book. Typical.
When we arrived home, her eyes were watery. I thought it was because I had just finished discussing how Daddy would not get home before dinner time. Also, we were going to go have lunch with him, but David and I decided against it.
“The book is very sad,” she said. Then she burst into uncontrollable tears. She showed me the book. It’s about a young girl who is diagnosed with leukemia!*
Every child is different. I expect most if not all children to be affected by this book’s moving story. Jubilee is not just sensitive. Her heart is extremely tender toward those who are hurting. She cried for a long, long time.
We went inside the house. We looked through the book together. She explained what happened on the different pages. I clarified parts she didn’t understand. She continued to cry. I cried with her.
My beautiful Jubilee may not be able to handle movies, tv shows, songs, or books like other children her age, but I wouldn’t trade her tender heart for anyone else’s. God didn’t just give her this tender heart. He fashioned her heart like His own.
*******
As Jesus approached Jerusalem and saw the city, He wept over it and said, “If you, even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace. Luke 19:41-42
One of our prayers for Jubilee: You will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings. – Isaiah 58:12
*The Lemonade Club is nevertheless an excellent book. Please read it with your child.
Angel asks me to open a Play-Doh cannister.
It take some effort for me to pry off the top.
“Mom,” Angel instructs, “use your muscles.”
Maddie likes to hold any object (e.g. business card, french fry) and pretend it’s a digital camera.
Maddie: Say Cheese!
You smile for her.
Maddie: Click!
She shows you her “camera.”
Maddie: Wanna see?
“Wanna see?” cracks me up every time. Children no longer need to imitate the whirring sound of the film rolling up, put the film into an envelope, and bring it to the imaginary photo developer. Okay, I jest; children probably never did this. But don’t you love pretend digital cameras?
Angelina says to me (David),
“Daddy, listen…
Daddy Daddy bo baddy
Banana fana fo faddy.”
And she giggled gleefully. She knew full well that faddy sounds like fatty. 
Maddie: Dear God, thank you for fairies, rainbows, and princesses. Amen.
She also prayed something about a world with no boys and all girls, but it wasn’t understandable. Fairies, rainbows, and princesses? Crystal clear.
I don’t mean to brag, but…oh who am I kidding? Of course I’m going to brag that my daughter wrote this poem. There are only a couple words which she asked for help in how to rhyme. The rest of it she wrote on her own. I am simply amazed, not only at her creativity, but at the joy she profused when she shared it with me.
“In The Morning”
By Jubilee Close
Sung to the tune of “Hush Little Baby”
When you wake up in the morn
Mama’s going to give you for breakfast corn.
And if that corn spills on the floor
Mama’s going to give you a nice pet boar.
And if that boar messes up everywhere
Mama’s going to buy you a teddy bear.
And if that teddy bear gets broke
Mama’s going to give your back a big stroke.
And if that stroke was way too hard
Mama’s going to give you your favorite card.
And if that card is very old
Mama’s going to get you a sandwich with mold.
And if that mold falls off of it
Mama’s going to get you a jar with a pit.
(“pit” means a hole)
And if that pit seals back together
Mama’s going to buy you a game called “Miss Weather.”
And if “Miss Weather” spills all her pieces
Mama’s going to buy you a bag of Reece’s.
And if those Reece’s are eaten all up
Mama’s going to buy you a nice pet pup.
Me: Maddie, how many pairs of underwear do you have on?
Maddie: Only 3. First I had only two, then I found one more.
I asked Angel and Maddie to transfer the clothes from the washer to the dryer. LOTS of talking and giggling. At some point, I checked in on them and found each of them holding a yard stick with clothes on the edge of each stick. (I removed the yard sticks.) There was plenty more talking and giggling. Eventually they returned from the laundry room and began playing elsewhere. It wasn’t until several minutes later that I realized they had not only transferred the laundry, but they had also closed the door and turned on the dryer!
I’m still pondering whether I should be proud of their being proactive or remind myself that my laiseez-faire teaching could end up with far worse results!