Funny Girl & Sweet Boy

Dakota and I are driving down the road. She is prattling on, and I decide to distract her by initiating one of her favorite games (and thereby circumventing her desire to play "the copy game"), "Waiter and Customer."

Louren, "Ok Dakota, I'll be the customer, and you be the waiter."

Dakota, after a brief pause, and in her best fake french accent, "Hello madam. I am glad you are back today. But tell me, why are we driving around in your car, and where are we going?"

It was all I could do not to pull off the road from laughing so hard.

And when the story was related to Oma and William, she proudly proclaimed, "yep, I said that!"

***

I am packed for Oklahoma. I have showered. I am about to wake Will up so he can drive me to the church. I can do this. I can be away from my own kids for 1 week so that I can help chaperone teenagers at "church camp."

My mom will do a fabulous job here with them, I know this. But why do they have to get super snuggly and sweet right before I leave?

And why is this harder than leaving my kids to go to work in the morning? Jason is still so young, I hope that my absence is not too hard on him. He is rather easygoing, so he might not even miss my presence. Dakota is putting up a good front, pretending that she will cry every day, but I know that it is far more likely that she will bake cookies every day.

I know my kids will be fine. But I am suddenly filled with stomach butterflies of a sort not felt for many years.

Although I bet this is how I am going to feel in a few short weeks when Dakota begins Kindergarten.

*deep breaths. You can do this*