A song and a memory verse to start her year off right!

After being with me all summer, I wasn't sure how Turner was going to handle my return to school. We had been through some situations and anxieties that caused us to end our "mommies morning out" preschool program after 4 days, so Turner had literally been with me every day, almost all summer. I had no clue how that would play into her return to daycare.

It didn't take me long to see that she was going to be just fine.  The first morning I went to wake her up, she asked where we were going.  (She started to figure out that me having put on makeup and having rollers in my hair meant we were going somewhere this summer...)  When I told her I had to go to work, and she was going to Mrs. Rhonda's, Turner threw her hands up in the air and shouted with excitement!  The next day I got the same question and her answer was slightly different; she just smiled and threw her hands up in the air and said, "AGAIN?!"  Like in a, "YES, I can't believe I get to go back there again today!"  We've done that for 19 school days now and every day the reaction is the same.  What a blessing.

There are so many things that Rhonda does for her "babies" and I know that we all believe that she cares for them as if they were her own flesh and blood.  I never, ever, worry about Turner during the day.  One of my favorite things about Mrs. Rhonda's house is the individualized attention that Turner receives - when Rhonda realized Turner could developmentally handle some puzzles and letter recognition games she helped her work through them at her house, then sent us home with the bag full of games and puzzles for the summer.  She knows that Turner loves to learn, always looks for ways to continually promote Turner's academic growth.

But, maybe one of my favorite moments happened on Thursday, Aug 19th.  When I picked Turner up, Rhonda told Turner to sing me the song she had learned that week, and Turner sang the "Red Song" for me almost perfectly.  "I can spell red, R - E - D.  I can spell red, look and see.  First comes R, then comes E, and on the end I put a D.  I can spell red, R - E - D, I can spell red, look and see."  Of course I cheered and clapped and bragged.  But the best moment came next....Rhonda said, "Turner, now say your memory verse for the week."  I didn't know they were learning a memory verse?  And my sweet baby says with great conviction, "I am fearfully, and wonderfully made. Psalm 139:14." 

Y'all.  Seriously.  I am not an emotional person, but so many emotions flooded me at that moment. A gratefulness for the passion Rhonda has for teaching her "babies" so much more than letters, numbers, and shapes.  She teaches them to love the Lord, and to hide His word in their hearts.  She demonstrates what it means to do everything to the glory of God.  I also felt a tad of shame...if my almost 3 year old can memorize a Bible verse in a week, how much more could and should I be memorizing and hiding in my heart weekly?  I felt so much pride in my sweet girl and her little high pitched voice speaking of what Mark and I already knew - that God carefully created and knitted her together in my womb and gave her as a gift to us.

Rhonda made Turner a badge to celebrate her memorization of memory verse #1 and she was so proud of it she wanted to wear it home.  I asked Turner if she'd let me film her singing her new song and reciting her verse and she agreed.  There may or may not have been Oreos promised to her if she would oblige my request.  Here's the result.  Not sure why she acts like she's squeezing her air supply at the end of the song...that's just typical Turner. Drama queen.





They were supposed to focus on one verse a month, but Turner got this one so quickly she has already received verse #2 - Psalm 28:8.  The Lord is mighty indeed!