Early each week day morning these sweet faces rise out of their beds in our home. While they have sleepy eyes their smiling faces make our mornings bright. Nathan, Elissa and I are usually in the kitchen by the time Hunter’s alarm goes off. Nathan can predict based on Hunter’s footsteps coming down the stairs whether he is going to be tired and scowling or happy and smiling. He is twelve years old after all and would prefer to sleep until noon. I remember dragging at that age too. Actually I think I was scowling from age twelve through seventeen each morning. And who I am fooling? Most mornings until I have at least one cup of coffee I am definitely sleepy and sometimes scowling. If my morning routine goes according to “plan” my alarm now goes off 30 minutes earlier as I attempt to get into shape after a two plus year hiatus. The plan is not set in stone and is flexible but Nathan has made it difficult for me to have excuses to not exercise. More on that later.
E’s morning routine consists of getting up right around the time Nathan’s alarm goes off and hanging out in our bathroom with us while we both are getting ready. She tell us that it’s “still dahk outside”, tears a part our bathroom cupboards, runs water in the bathtub and then announces she is ready for “ohange juice and oatmeal” and she tells her daddy “go make mommy HOFFEE” (she knows her mommy well!). That Daddy is the best barista on the prairie and makes fresh ground, dark and heavy coffee just like I like it.
Anika would love to sleep until mid-morning but instead gets her diaper changed around 7AM and then plenty of cuddles and attention before we leave the house around 7:30AM. Most days she gets to stay in her jammies though and snoozes again while we go to Nana’s house or Lori’s daycare.
For the next six weeks, Anika (and our entire family) will be entertained by Elissa playing with her “hissmiss moosic” on her “peasant” (present) that Mama Jane gave her last weekend. My sister, mom and I found it at our local pharmacy. A huge, plastic snow globe that plays 11 different songs and shoots out snow while it plays. E goes through all the songs until she finds her favorite “dingle bells” and sings to Anika. It is a great morning wake up call for all of us. My dark and heavy coffee plus this snow globe and I am awake for the day. We are still in week one of the toy so it is still cute but there is not an off switch. By Christmas we will be ready to retire it until next year.
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