Encroaching Obligations

For years, I've guarded our time at home. It's our downtime, our quiet time, our sanctuary from the ever-pressing Busy Life. This is where we delve into the ideas we have, share our questions, and explore new things. When the boys had baseball practice on Thursdays, we had piano lessons, bought groceries, and ran errands on Thursdays. Granted, it made Thursdays a little hellish, but it kept the rest of the week free and flexible. When we dropped baseball, I moved things around a bit to free up the ends of the week, but kept that same mindset: one day a week is all I'm willing to give to outside activities and demands. That felt so good. It felt so good that I clung to the idea long after I'd allowed it to die.

Recently, I've felt as if we're just bowled over by a lack of time. But we only leave the house two days a week! (Errand day and church.) How can that be? How can we not have enough time? And I pressed to make us more efficient, more focused, more diligent. Let's get to bed earlier, get up earlier. More focus, less distraction. Let's go, move, DO! Hop on one foot with our tongues on our noses while we feed the animals.

OK, that last one, not so much. But for all the good it would have done, we might as well have tried it. I sat down tonight to make our menu for the next two weeks, and thought about how I often get caught without a *good* plan on the rare occasion we have somewhere to be. So, I thought to myself, let's jot down in the menu where we have to go on those days and see if that helps remind me to plan quick meals, or crockpot meals, or whatever creative endeavor needs to happen on those days.

What the what, Batman!?

We have piano/guitar/groceries/errands one day, Scouts another day, Cub Scouts another day, community activities another day, church on Sundays. Roundtables and committee meetings. Add in the monthly Scout outing (which takes a full weekend), the regular Pack events (an additional night a month, plus prep time), Forge meetings, homeschool social activities, work, and the time required for the Projects That Must Be Done and...

We're never home. We're never still. Not for any appreciable length of time. There is no downtime. There is no quiet time. We've allowed the demands of time to be made on our every little corner of the day. And I never saw it. I never realized that this obligation, or that activity, or those events had effectively robbed us entirely of the buffer I'd thought we guarded so carefully. And the funny thing is that if you'd asked me about each thing, individually, I'd have defended each item as being Beneficial and Worthwhile. Taken as a whole, though, I'm not convinced. Our lives have not been significantly richer the past six months. They've not been more enjoyable (although we are not miserable by any means). They've just been... Busy.

And I've continued to try to pack our home life, our studies, our projects, and our downtime into what little space is left. No wonder it's felt like we're swimming with only one arm against an undertow.

So, something's got to give. I'm not sure what, or how. That's going to take some family time and discussion. It may be that we decide to keep it all and pare down the home goals, but I doubt it. I think we need to rebuild the buffer and rethink our priorities. Or, at least, I do. This one's all on me.

It's good to know, though. Meal planning for this week was a snap, at least! And hopefully by next week, we'll have a clearer idea of the path forward.

And I'm reminded of the phrase, "Live Intentionally". I know better than to let life happen to us, than to relinquish my post at the lookout, or neglect my duties at the helm. (Reminds me of another adage: "Be vigilant, for nothing one achieves lasts forever". *aherm* Yes. Well.) We must be diligent in our choices, and make each decision as if it is taken at the expense of all the other choices, because it is. Let it be worth the trade, so that we do not look back over our lives with more "If only..." than there has to be. (The natural learning curve of Life somewhat necessarily mandating that there will always be some, at least.) And so, we will live intentionally,

and kiss those babies.

Dy

A New Plan, A Better Plan

If I only post every four weeks, I can re-tread that Hair Day post and get a lot of miles out of it, can't I? But that defeats the point of blogging, and I doubt very much the children would appreciate the digital version of their family album being a list of Mom's weird appointments.

OK. Fine.

I was busy wallowing in October. Every blessed under-80-degree-but-not-below-40 moment of it. It was spectacular. Coffee on the balcony in the mornings (until the acorns began falling - then I had to bring it back in because the welts were unseemly, and so was the swearing), windows wide open and that delicious combination of sweatshirts, shorts, and flip flops that I just can't convince myself to try any other time of year.

The boys Scout Troop finally went backpacking in October. I got to go, since Zorak isn't much on the backpacking thing. It's hard to feel like you're taking one for the team when you're as giddy over going as your spouse is over not having to go. We spent two nights in the Sipsey Wilderness, camped creekside, slept under the magnificent pine and hardwood canopy... didn't loose anybody or have to build a travois! You just can't ask for a better backpacking trip than that.

We built the stairs to the balcony in October. They are exquisite. And now, they're partially stained, to match the partially stained balcony. As soon as the treads weather up a bit, it will look like it was all intentional. (One might suggest we just stain the decking and treads, but we missed the window and there are leaves... so many leaves. We'll have three days in March where the leaves aren't falling and the pollen hasn't descended on everything yet. Maybe then.)

The Volvo died in October, and we spent most of the month with only one car. That part? Not such a great time. But it could have been worse. There was never any need to call in reinforcements for a trip to the ER. Zorak took it to the auto hobby shop, where George The Car Magician pulled a rabbit out from under the hood and *poof*, it started again. (Not an actual rabbit, but it might as well have been. We still have no idea how he fixed it.)

We felled a gigantic tree that died this year. Nature makes some impressive noises. We gave thanks, split the wood, saved a stump to use for knife throwing, and gave a target stump to Pastor's boys. I'm sure Pastor's wife was thrilled. (She's so patient with us.) The boys dug it, though.

We took the steel wool and stove black to the wood stove. If you've never cleaned up a cast iron stove using that stuff, you've got to try it. I felt like a cross between Ma Ingalls and Ron Popeil.

Then we careened wildly into November, voted, prepped for the kitchen window project, started rehabbing my old pickup, and tonight enjoyed the first fire of the year.

Not bad. Not bad, at all.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

It's Hair Day!

How banal. And yet, it's all I've got. But it's enough.

Susan of the Magnificent Shears is my hero. She handles Jacob's crazy, multi-textured, vari-directional hair like it's the most natural thing in the world. I love to watch her work. I love that she doesn't get halfway around his head and look suddenly lost, as if she'd just woken up and isn't sure how she got there. From start to finish, she's on it, and she owns it, and he walks out of there looking (and feeling) like he's off to his next Jr. GQ shoot. Every time. She is amazing.

I'm still thisclose to asking for a pixie cut. Which I shall then dye peroxide blonde, so that we can find the ticks easily. Obviously, Zorak's trying hard not to make eye contact or say anything that might drive me over the edge while I'm mid-panic. But the Scouts are going backpacking next weekend, and I just don't know that I want to tackle another episode with this much hair. So I'll talk to Susan the Magnificent. She'll be able to talk me down and do something with it. I wonder how bad an idea it is to backpack on Xanax?

Then we're off to buy more garlic, some duct tape, a bottle of Skin-So-Soft, a pair of good tweezers, and more Tea Tree Oil.

*twitch*

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

A Day Out

The Birmingham Zoo hosted its annual Tiger Cub Safari today. We'd not been before, and we realized that none of the younger three have ever been to a zoo, and the older two don't remember being to one, so we decided to go and make a day of it. Zorak decided to put off home projects for the day and come along, and I'm so glad he did. We really, thoroughly enjoyed the day.

The weather was a bit chilly, but the day itself was gorgeous. After working hard the past week, we were all ready to get a little goofy and have some fun.

The kids are really the best. I love traveling with them. They not only pose willingly for goofy shots, but suggest some fun ones, too.

Of course, by the time we got home, everyone was bushed, so the kids hit the hay and Z and I got some time to sit and watch a movie, make plans, and drink coffee. It was like ending the day with a fun little mini-date. I'm glad we went for it, and look forward to maybe making it a tradition to have a day out, just doing something fun together, every couple of months.

I wonder if we'll be ready to get back to work tomorrow, or if we'll want to lounge around, thinking up new places to go?

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Sweater Weather!

It never got above 60 in the house today! I had all the windows open and made everyone put on sweaters when they complained about the cold. It was glorious. (The odds that it'll be warm enough to cook outside at Christmas are pretty high, so I have to grab it while I can. I may not be able to get away with wearing a sweater again until our mid-January cold snap, and by then, the windows will be sealed up tight.) Jacob asked for soup, so I'll put some bones in the crockpot to simmer overnight and we'll enjoy a lovely stock for soup tomorrow! He knows how to get in on the excitement, that one does.

We got in a great mix of academics and general grunt work this week. ("Great" being a purely subjective term. But they read and talked a lot, and we stayed on target with school. Plus, the basement looks magnificent, the Suburban is full of donations and things to go to friends, and the trash haul is going to be massive this week -- so if you're grading with a Mom Rubric, it was Great!)

And, you know how I mentioned that the boys had a blast on their ride? They've talked about it, shared stories from it, gushed about the things they loved, planned for the next one, brainstormed some amazing route ideas -- all on their own. All week long, they've been at it. I've received texts from parents telling me what fun their sons had, too. But at the meeting this week, when the SM asked for feedback from the boys, it was like they were all surprised there was a quiz and they didn't know what to say. So the only feedback he got was, "The hamburgers were good." :sigh: Really? Well, so much for breaking the inertia. I don't know how much support we'll be able to maintain for completing the badge as a group. I have asked some trusted friends what that is (that weird Beavis-ization of the man children that occurs the minute they walk into the Scout meeting - because it happens more often than not), and several of them swear it's normal for this age, and that they do get over it. I don't care so much about the normal part, but so help me, if they don't get over it soon I'm going to start drinking before we get to the meetings. And in the meantime, if any boy wants to ride, we'll ride. That's just how we roll. Er, ride. Whatever.

And - hey, we have a rooster! Actually, two confirmed roosters, and it sounds like we may have three or more, which would be a bit of a glitch on the hatchery's part, considering we ordered the all-hen layer mix. But they're fun and loud and healthy. Thank God for healthy! Oy. And so beautiful! James started looking up info today on how to get into showing chickens. There's a 4-H club somewhere, I'm sure - not here, but nearby. Anyway, I'm leaving it up to him. If he wants to show chickens, and is willing to do the legwork to get started (and handle them), then we'll buy a chicken hauler (or... a what? Let's hope he figures out how best to transport chickens) and we'll give it a shot. Still no eggs, though. I really hope we didn't end up with 19 roosters...

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Happy October!

Not that there's anything particularly spectacular about October 1. It's a beautiful, wet, grey morning here, though. And that's happy-making. Plus there's coffee, which is always a reason to celebrate.

The Bigs had their overnight bike trip this weekend. They biked the Chief Ladiga Trail, from the Esom Hill Trailhead to Anniston, AL. 33 mi., broken up over two days. So, not a huge stretch as far as effort goes, but a beautiful change from the norm (which is riding their bikes from the camp site to the candy shop at Tannehill State Park once a year). The weather held out beautifully, and didn't start with the inundating rain until after they'd reached the end, loaded the bikes, and headed homewars. (I stared at the weather-in-motion radar map until my eyes bled, trying to will the storms to GO AROUND!! Don't think it worked, but that won't stop me from trying it again next time they head out, I'm sure.) They had a blast, overall, which we figured they would. And from what I've heard, the adults who went enjoyed it, too. (I'm so glad! It stinks to be the guy who planned The Nightmare Trip - those stories are hard to live down.)

It's good to have them home again. Although I'm sure when they get up and see the next two weeks' planner pages all filled in and ready to go, they may not be as excited as I am!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Too Pretty To Stay Inside!

This is it. This is the good stuff. This is windows-wide-open, feet-up-on-the-porch-rail, run-until-you-drop-just-because-you-can weather. This is the weather where you can drink coffee and not feel the need to justify it, or face the wiggly eyebrows of others as they glance between your steaming mug and the thermometer outside. This is the weather that makes me want to read interesting books, write thoughtful letters, and spend idle days in the woods with good company.  This. is. good.

The boys went hiking last weekend with their Troop. Awesome boys. Awesome Scout leaders. Everything you could want in Scouting. They had a great time. We saw some of the most beautiful flora, and... interesting fauna.

Could have done with a little less of the latter, to be honest. But you take Nature as she is, and, well, sometimes she's a little creepy. We've all been there. I don't judge.


I won't regale you with the tick story. Just trust me when I say I was thisclose to agreeing to up and move in the middle of the night. I hear the Arctic is nice this time of year... Also, two thousand mg of garlic daily is *not* enough to keep seed ticks off of you. Nor is DEET. Nor is any possible combination of the two. And those bastards can *bite*. Wow. (I'm sorry. That sounded judgey. OK, maybe I will judge. You bite my kids, you get no love. That's just how it goes.)

We haven't ridden or hiked much this week, what with the open wounds on our feet and ankles. (The toes! Every toe is covered! Ew!) Mostly we've just hobbled about in flip-flops with our pants rolled up, a cotton ball in one hand and a bottle of Calahist in the other. Got a lot of reading done, though, which was great. Again with the balcony love. (Seriously, if you have the opportunity to have a balcony, grab it, folks. If I'd known how much we would use ours, we might have put it in before we did the kitchen cabinets. Love!)

But today, the call of "highs in the 70's" lured us back out onto the trail...

It really is just too pretty to stay inside.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Boarding School & Birthdays

JakeRabbit is nine today. He's so very excited. His presents are wrapped, taunting him from a corner of the dining room. We'll have steak and creamed kale for dinner (his pick). I'll pester him with his birth story a bit. My favorite part of that story is that the first sounds he heard were his big brothers shouting, "Welcome to the world, Baby Jacob!" That, and the green chile burritos Aunt B brought us. Those were pretty fantastic, too.

The bigs and I rode yesterday. We got in ten miles, and they felt more grueling than I'd expected. Part of that was that we followed the river upstream, which meant we gradually, but consistently rode uphill. (Note: get a topo map soon!) To highlight the fact, I'd messed up the front deraileur on my bike when I fell last week but we only checked the rear gears before heading out yesterday. Turns out, if you're heading uphill, you'll miss having those bottom seven gears! We ride again today, but I'm ready with ALL the gears!

The boys' Troop had an Eagle Court of Honor last night. The previous Courts of Honor this Troop has had have been very laid back, informal, almost second-thought affairs. This was our first Eagle Court, and it was impressive. The boys all did very well with their speaking parts. The newly minted Eagle just beamed.

And in a completely unrelated vein, do you know why Boarding Schools always look lovely, even with all those children? Staff. They have full staff for every department, including landscaping and kitchen. I'm tempted to see if we can take in some boarders and get on that. Until I can sell Zorak on that plan, though, we tag each other in for different aspects of it and hope for the best. I stayed home yesterday morning to work on the house, while Zorak manned the popcorn booth with Jacob for Cub Scouts. Funny how moving all the airsoft gear to a shelf in the boys' closet gave us back our foyer. (How is it that stuff will fit on a 2'x4' shelf, but it took up an entire 4'x15' room?)

Anyway, we're off to celebrate and enjoy the day!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Doing.

Doing things.

The boys' Troop rode last Monday. The plan was 3.5 miles, but they were nowhere ready to stop at that point, so what do you do? You point down the trail and say, "Go for it." And they did. They'd have happily ridden farther and longer, but this was a test run, to see how their bikes were after their repair/maintenance meeting. One boy's bike still necessitated getting off to change gears manually. (Um, obviously, we'll work on that.) John's bike dorked up right after the start and he rode the whole thing in seventh gear. He wasn't thrilled about that, but he muscled through and got it done. All things considered, it went amazingly well, and the boys were fantastic! We'd hoped to ride again tomorrow, but the general consensus is that "severe thunderstorms" aren't conducive to safe riding. So. I don't know. We'll see when they can go again. They're building up to a big ride later in the year, and if this crew can keep their great attitudes, keep improving the condition of their bikes, and keep learning as they go, I think it's going to be One Fantastic Adventure.

We hit the annual Civil War re-enactment on Saturday. Two years running. I'd like to say we're getting the hang of staying abreast of things, but it was actually a lady from the homeschool support group who posted the dates. Bless her, and the many other people who take the time to say, "Hey! There's something going on this weekend!" If it weren't for them, we'd be hermits. Not intentionally, but that's how it would pan out. Anyway, we went with friends, the weather was significantly better than last year, and EmBaby got her pickled eggs. (She was hoping for pickled quail eggs, but settled happily for regular old eggs when no quail eggs were to be found.)

Meanwhile, Zorak and I rode this morning. We figured we'd get out and put four or five miles behind us. We ended up going 13 miles, roughly broken down to three small hills, two huge hills, six tiny dogs, four big dogs, almost an hour of gorgeous scenery and hard work, and one wipeout there at the end (that would be me, Grace - I'm keeping the title, thank you - and the Dermaplast). It was great! Except for the dogs. I could do without being faced down by brazen growlers who take their stand in the middle of the trail when there is no other avenue available to me. :-\ On the upside, I'm pretty sure my cardio levels ramped up a time or two!

Today we also worked on the Shack a bit -- window trim and cleaning. Not so much for the exciting words, there. Wood putty, delightful as it may be, doesn't lend itself to poetic interpretation without a good deal of hyperbole.

And now, we have rain. What a beautiful way to end the day!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Day Camp, Day Two

Day One went fairly well. Had the usual struggles that I run into when dealing with the Type A Scout Lady (and she had the usual struggles that she runs into when dealing with me - we complete each other. *snort*) But we were not Late, which is virtually ground-shifting.

James and John both said they were pleasantly surprised. I guess they thought it would be a little rough (or weird), but they had a good time working with the younger kids. Jacob, of course, thought it was TheBestCampEver. (Every camp should be, right?) That almost makes having to shift gears and pack lunches worth while.

(On a side note - packing lunches? Whole different ball game. I thought I'd be creative and fun, so I started out looking for lunchbox ideas, but the sites I found all seem to have been written by well-rested parents with one tiny child who doesn't eat much. That's not the lunch I was looking for. The pictures were adorable, though! I guess there's a reason nobody blogs pictures of the lunches you have to pack for adolescent pantry locusts.)

We're picking up a friend's son this afternoon, so they offered to pick up ours on the way in this morning. We have truly fantastic friends. :-) And it would have been perfect, had this not been Trash Day, and had we not snuggled in a little deeper and slept until 6:20. Ugh. Just as I started to call, "Come and eat," I had to change that to, "Oh, look, he's here. Um... :tosses bacon into a bowl: Here, this is for you three to share. Pretend this is normal, okay?"

So they are at camp. The Littlest Littles are still blissfully asleep. There are so many chores left to do this morning. We just can't get moving that quickly, that early. (But first, coffee!)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Camp

Last night, we trekked up to the Scout Camp for Family Night. Basically, it's just a chance to take forgotten items up to the Troop, make sure the Bad Idea Fairy didn't stow away in the footlockers, and see for your own self that your child hasn't spontaneously ignited or started dropping appendages in the woods. But it's fun. And it keeps the Littles from imploding by dividing the week into manageable segments. (It dawned on me last night - er, more accurately, Jacob pointed out - that in two years, all three of the bigger boys will be going to the same camp. I might have hyperventilated a little on the inside, at that.)

John showed us his metal working projects - wrought iron dutch oven lid lifters, and a lantern hanger (which, he pointed out, can double as a back scratcher!) There is some serious joy for that child in working with his hands. He *gets* that materials have ways, and he loves ferreting those ways out, finding the right path to follow to coax a piece of iron, or wood, into the shape he needs to emerge from it.  He was a bit disappointed that they won't let the boys make swords (thank you, BSA guidelines! Good call), but perked right up at the thought that we could build a forge on the property. Turned out that he didn't get into the woodworking course, but he's enjoying Space Exploration and they're launching rockets today that they've been working on this week.

James - He Who Prefers To Stay Indoors If At All Possible - has a full week of Camping, Wilderness Survival, Emergency Preparedness, and Climbing. And he's having a ball. His favorite program this week is the climbing course. He said both the hardest part, and his favorite part (Wha--???) is leaning out over the edge for rappelling. Even with a broken thumb. (More internal hyperventilation. If they ever discover that Mom's "wow, that's fascinating!" face is actually her, "oh, dear heaven, please stop telling me this!" face, it's all over. I'll have to find a new way to cope.) To finish his Camping Merit Badge, we'll have to get out and go camping several times. I'm ridiculously excited about that, as I love camping, but it's easy to punt it to the back of the queue with everything else that needs doing. Now, we'll have an excuse!

EmBaby ran in the woods (oh, the poison oak!) with the boys playing capture the flag, then sat by the campfire soaking up all the Happy. She wants to camp with the boys. And stay there. She offered to sleep between the cots and pointed out hopefully that they could each share a little mosquito netting... come to think of it, she may be more excited about the upcoming camping trips than I am!

The Littles fell prey to the Sandman one at a time as we made our way back down the mountain. Zorak looked over at me and said, "I'm not going to handle the empty nest well, at all. Just a heads up." I nodded, understanding. And yet, they're all such neat people. It's hard to be sad about seeing wee babes grow into amazing youth when I think about the panoramic view that lies ahead for them. I will probably be a teary, snotty mess as they leave, but right now, I'm just so proud of them, and enjoy the people they are. I'm glad to have them in my life, and excited to see where life will take them. There will be great joy in being along for that journey, too, however it may look. But I'm keeping tissues in the pantry, just the same.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Scheduling Mishap

I'd hoped to send a care package yesterday to the boys at camp. (I'm not GOOD at it, like a friend of mine is - hers are themed and full of awesomeness. Mine are invariably thrown together at the last minute, and vaguely reflective of the fact that their mother can't quite get it together. Still, I like to think they don't mind so much... I do pull up shy of sending socks and underwear, at least. Although I did include waterproof bandages for James' broken thumb.)

However, with the whomping total six hours of sleep the Littles obtained from Thursday through Sunday, we were bound to have a halt on the assembly line at some point. Jase went down Sunday around five, slept til ten, got up for a bite and went back down until eleven Monday morning. Jacob and Em seemed fine. Weird, but I'd thought that was it, and began congratulating myself on producing superhuman robot children. Ah, no. (Which is good, because that whole concept is a little scary. But I was looking for a silver lining and, well, that's all I had.) EmBaby hung in there long enough to get in a day at the water park before coming unraveled on a cellular level. And when she went, she went quietly and deeply. Snuggled in Monday night at 8, and slept straight through until well after noon yesterday.

So we stayed home and did laundry. And checked on her occasionally. But even for us, there's only so much laundry to be done. By about eleven, we were just having fun with it. Here's how you can use a mirror to see if someone is breathing. Listen to her back. You can hear her heartbeat. Cool, huh? Want another cupcake? If we gave her weird dreams, she never mentioned it. She did pop out of bed a little before one, fully rejuvenated and ready to take on the world again!

We got the box put together, then missed the post office by about four minutes. But it's ready! It's together! (I'll take it up there and leave it in the office so they'll get it with regular mail call. It's just not the same if your Mother hands it to you at camp.)

Do you send care packages? What do you like to put in them? I'm always looking for ideas! Not that I'll get on them ahead of time, but every little bit helps. I've got three more coming up the line!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

It was!

It was absolutely crazy. And magnificent.

Friday's airsoft gathering went well. We had about nine boys, all properly attired with safety gear and low-end guns. (Minor Injuries Only, for the win!) We moms stayed on the balcony, figuring the 16' height would keep us out of firing range. It did. That's where we kept the food, too. It was a blessedly normal, witty, engaged group of women. I'm fairly sure I was the loose peg in the wall, and that's okay. Gives me an opportunity to work on my Don't Be Weird Around The Nice People routine. We'll see if it worked. The boys, at least, I know had fun, because they only came inside when thirst drove them in, and there were small, polite, but clear protestations when it was time to go. They all agreed they'd like to do more things together. Mission accomplished. (I told Zorak that night that I really loved all the boys - they were just the right kind of weird - sweet, quirky, fun kids.)

That evening, our friend, Daniel, arrived with his wife and son. He's been stateside, studying Chemistry, for several years. His wife and son joined him in the fall, so this was the first time we were fortunate enough to meet them. And she's pregnant with Baby #2!! I didn't know (Zorak may have known, and thought he told me, but there's a lot he thinks he's told me and didn't) -- so there was a lot of happy squealing. And I cannot tell you how hard it was for me not to just fondle her and swaddle her up and wallow in her adorable, beautiful pregnantness. But *aherm* I restrained. Also, watching her stand up from the table, I realized she may look "just adorable" to me, but she's probably larger than she's ever been, hot, off-balance, uncomfortable, and none of the joints are connected properly at this point. It really does look better than it feels. James made her sage water, and we kept her fed, and tried to pamper her as much as possible (she's quick, though - like lighting - up and helping any chance she gets!) Their son disappeared with the littles, the tiny herd making random appearances to dance, sing, or just make a lap around the living area.

We had a little cookout for them Saturday. It started out as a little cookout. We ended up with 30-some-odd people, and I'm not particularly clear where the line goes from a small gathering to a large crowd. It was a delightful outcome, regardless! The weather cooperated nicely, and we were able to spread out onto the balcony, the upper meadow, and the front yard. Naturally, we didn't get a single photo.  However, I didn't fret about the cleanliness of the house, or about putting people to work when they arrived. So this was probably the most enjoyable gathering we've had - internally, at any rate. No stress, no worries, just a really great time with some really fantastic people. More than once, I found myself standing at the edge of a cluster of people, just smiling and giving quiet thanks for having these folks in our lives. We are so rich.

The Bigs left for Scout Camp early Sunday morning. They'd packed at some point over the weekend. (Mostly at The Last Minute, and I've already got a list of things to bring to them on Family Day.) We got them headed off and then the rest of us went to church. From church, we hit Sam's for dry goods and travel food (because it's one glamorous outing after another when you have pantry locusts!), then took a lovely stroll along the river before heading home. Daniel and his family pulled out around five, and that felt too soon for them to leave. We hope they'll return again and again. Our door is always open.

And then, it was quiet. SO quiet. Jase promptly passed out. Zorak played video games with Jacob. EmBaby worked in her little MineCraft world James had set up for her before he left. I sat down with a few books and drifted in and out of sleep.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Hot!

The HOT has started. Yesterday was 95 (officially - our thermometers registered higher, but if I'm going to complain, and I am, then I'll at least try to keep it to the official numbers). It wasn't the heat so much as the air - the air was thick, tangible, suffocatingly present. It never moved, other than to wrap itself around us. An in-your-face air, from which there was nowhere to turn for a break. Wow! And it's only May! Thankfully, the water park opened this weekend.

The last two weeks have been great. We got to meet a long-time invisible friend and two of her awesome kids. The visit wasn't nearly long enough (but the beach beckoned, and we can't beat the beach - if we could have pulled it off, we'd have stowed away and gone with them). At the end of the visit, though, we all felt as though we'd gained new Friends. Real ones - the kind you can feed, and who will feed you - the kind you're comfortable stopping in to visit, the kind who will be in your life for years to come. I'm so glad she came!

We've been busy with projects and repairs - coops, trailers, windows, and culling. We got some semblance of a garden in. It's late, as usual. Last year, we let it go and didn't have one. By September, we sure missed the okra and cucumbers. (That's all we seem able to grow successfully.) So this year, we figured it's better to be late than to blow it off entirely. We'll see if we still agree, come August.

The boys are prepped, stoked, and ready for Scout Camp. They had their physicals last week, coming away with admonitions to wear the ankle brace at camp (or it's useless), keep your epi pen ON you (or it's useless), and many other things it's nice to have reinforced from someone who isn't just saying that because she's your Mom.

Jacob bridged up into Webelos. He's looking forward eagerly to Day Camp and Webelos Resident Camp. Today he finishes his course of antibiotics. Three weeks, and he never missed a dose. I'm proud of him. (And us. This was a definite team effort, and even if he or I had forgotten ever, the day was filled with, "Did you take your medicine" reminders from all angles. He felt loved. Probably a little annoyed after three weeks of it, but still, loved.) He took cookies to the doc when the boys went in for their physicals.

We've only lost two chickens from this last batch. One was operator error. There were many tears and reminders that these are unpredictable little critters and that's why we have to be super cautious in how we handle them. One was random - who knows what happened. The difference in a healthy brood is fantastic - they're so flappy and active! It even catches Zorak and I off guard to see them alighting atop the boxes, or doing the Benny Hill races when a fly or a moth gets into the box. (This one, below, Jacob told me, "I call him Jasper Fforde. I don't know why.")

The first batch of chickens (all four of them) are now feathered out and living in the barn coop. They're a bit runty, so James built them a little shetland-sized roost. So far, though, they seem content. It's nice to hear quiet burbling noises coming from the coop while we tend the garden. We've returned the silky chickens we were sitting - the chicken tractor Zorak built works like a charm, and the chickens settled right in for the two weeks that we had them. The kids already miss the daily egg finds!

Mokka is still here - Buddy's buddy - she's a sweet, dainty little thing, and Buddy loves having someone to wrestle with. (Especially since the kids don't seem to appreciate the fine art of dog wrestling with a 70# dog.) I'd have taken a picture from inside the yard, but neither of them cares to pose when they could PLAY (think of the Rottweiler from Over the Hedge), and there's no taking pictures when you're in the yard to PLAY!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Oh, wow.

There were farmers at the market! We scored collards and onions, berries and jam. The kids were oh, so happy. One of the farmers asked John if he's still cooking, and John told him he's planning on making a French Onion Soup with these onions. The farmer threw in extras. *love* He made it last night - we made ten cups of French Onion Soup, and there wasn't anything left! Em ate three servings. It was so good.

Jacob's new hair is much easier to pick through. He likes it, and said his head feels pounds lighter. He's been very good about remembering his probiotics, which is nice. Unfortunately, he's also having weird reactions to other things. He had a rash the size of a silver dollar pop up on his neck Wednesday, at the site of a sting or bite or something he'd gotten Sunday. I freaked out a little, but a friend reminded me that strong or unusual reactions to things are typical, and to mark the boundaries and watch it. It's shrinking. Just a rash. Kids get rashes. They're fine. Mommies get Irish cream in their coffee at the end of the day. They're fine. It's all good.

The Pack had its planning meeting Tuesday night, and it looks like we'll have a great year ahead. The Troop needs to have a planning meeting sometime soon. The boys went over to help their SPL clean out and organize the trailer yesterday. All the boys worked hard and brought some great ideas to the table. It was an encouraging day.

Today, however, we're being kicked outside to work. It's a day without rain in the forecast, and that means we have to beat back the foliage while we can.

So, to work!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

You May Be Right

I've got Billy Joel songs stuck in my head. It's been a crazy day. But Good Crazy - anything that conjures up songs from the 80's can't be all bad.

Kids got a lot of school work done. If they did this every day, we could have school three days a week and still be ahead. Then James got to enjoy some Skype time with his buddies. John and Jacob took to the woods (while I stayed inside and tried not to twitch).

We started the Atelier Art program today. It seems good, but I think I may have underestimated the kids' knowledge and abilities. So we modified. This lesson was on lines - specifically, they were asked to draw a turtle and decorate its shell with various line patterns. (This is Level 2, the 5-8yo level - I'd grabbed it for Em, who loves to draw, and Jase, who needs an outlet - but all the kids joined in, because they're cool like that.) So we covered lines, then I turned the kids loose with the guideline that they aren't tied to the turtle, but to draw something and be aware of how they use lines for various features of the art (shading, contour, texture, flow, etc.). When they finished, we put their pieces in the 8x10 frames we'd hung in the hallway last week. The finished product is quite fun, and it's nice to have art in the hall. Plus, they enjoy being able to display their work in a meaningful way. The goal is to have them complete one piece a week for display in the rotating hall gallery.

We slipped out this afternoon to see about getting some nicely fitting t-shirts for Scouts. The 50/50 blend, unisex, chokingly-high crew neck style is not only uncomfortable, but unattractive. As much time as I spend at Scout functions, I'd love to have a shirt I don't hate wearing. Hopefully, we can score some from our regular guy. He's a good printer, and does a beautiful job - plus he's all set up with the approved Troop/Pack graphics. He just needs to narrow down an available style for us. Yay!

Jacob goes to be shorn in the morning. He's bummed about losing his hair after he's upheld his end of the bargain (gotta keep it clean and well-kept if you want it long), but he's on board with his usual sunny attitude. I appreciate that kid more than words can say.

And so, to bed!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

FUN! (Then, not so much.) Then FUN!

So it turns out boys love airsoft. (Yeah, total newsflash, there.) They had a magnificent time, their only complaint being that it was too short. We hope to reciprocate sometime soon, and host an event, here.

That was Friday... Saturday, we, um... I think I cleaned the house. Watched the chicks. Fed all the people, over and over again. Zorak started teaching the bigs how to weld. Good stuff.

Saturday night, we hit the Von Braun Astronomical Society's open lecture night with the families from our Den. That was a blast. The kids found constellations, identified planets, and got to see Saturn through the 16" telescope at the observatory. We adults visited and tried to keep small ones from tipping over the ledge at the top.

The big kids were... so fantastic. I overheard several of them (mine, and others') being so polite and thoughtful. Had to fight the urge to wrap them in bear hugs and swing them around. I refrained. Not only would that have been potentially awkward, but there was the risk of then actively knocking a small one over the ledge, thus undoing all our efforts of the previous hour. Still, fist bumps and atta-boys flowed heavily.

Sunday brought fevers. And rain. But it was the fevers that kept us home. Low grade, just enough to make folks irritable, but not enough to make them glad for the bedrest. By about noon, I was ready to shout, "Get BETTER, or get WORSE, for the love of sanity, People!" But then I got sick and went to bed. So. Glad I didn't yell. *aherm*

Excited to see what this week holds! We may have three new Scouts join our Troop - all of them neat boys, and we'd love to have them. I'm keeping my fingers crossed on that one. And the never-ending Chicken Tractor should be done this week. Soon. I hope. (Zorak is building it for a friend, as a thank you gift. It's pretty awesome, but it's all new territory, so it's taken a while. And there was a week on the road in the middle of it. Anyway, he's got the cool features working, and I think he's down to the mundane bits, now - roofing and wire. I'll see if I can steal some photos when it's finished.)

Gotta go see if the fevers from yesterday have lifted. We have work to do!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

That Was... Exhausting!

The Cub camp-in at the McWane Science Center, in Birmingham, was an absolute blast. My "brilliant" plan to let the kids sleep on the air mattress and take a cot for me to sleep on - alone - turned out to be not so brilliant. Jase thought I looked lonely, so he slept with me. Or, on me. Those cots are not built to sleep two. Everything else, though, went off nicely. The facilities were clean, orderly, and well-maintained. The staff was helpful. The IMAX was fun-fun-fun. The Science Beltloop program they offer is pretty fantastic!

 

The food is just a little below standard industrial food. And I probably wouldn't have minded an earlier-than-midnight lights-out, but the kids were nowhere near ready to stop moving, even then, so I understand. *yawn-stretch-yawn*

 

I didn't see much of our Cubs - they were officially The Big Kids on this outing, and they enjoyed the freedom to roam and explore on their own. We saw proof of their presence, though...

 

What I did see of Jacob, he looked thrilled, busy, and happy. And he did pose for a few obligatory shots here and there before taking off again for more exploring. 

 

Em moved too quickly to capture often in the low-light setting. Jase proved to be pretty pliable and willing, though. He was all over the idea of getting a shot of him being nipped on the head by a Pteranodon, for example.

 

We did learn quite a bit. Mostly, though, we just had fun. It was good for all the people. I'm so glad the poison didn't work. ;-)

Then we came home and slept -- for the rest of Sunday, all of Sunday night, and most of Monday morning! I'm still a little sleepy, truth be told. But yes, it was good.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

All Part of the Plan

This weekend is crazy-busy. The Bigs have a day trip for Scouts, in which they'll earn their Aviation Merit Badge. The Cubs have an overnight camp-in that includes siblings. We need to pour the slab for the balcony stairs. (A glider contest on the balcony earlier this week reinforced the need for people to not have to run through the school room, living room, foyer, out the door, off the porch, down the front yard into the lower drive, and back again, to retrieve gliders. I don't know that the children realized that, but *twitch* I did *twitch*.) And more, but I've lost the list.

As of last night, we weren't entirely sure how we'd pull it off. I don't know if it was bad salad or a virus, but... DANG. And really, although we're looking forward to all of it, we're such homebodies that it takes a lot of mental bolstering for either of us to get excited about leaving the house. At one point, we had this brief exchange:

Zorak: I think you poisoned me.

Me: I panicked. It was all I could think of.

Zorak: *pause* Probably the best plan, really. Pretty effective.

Thankfully, we were back in fine form by this morning. Zorak and the boys headed out to do their thing. The littles and I are packed and ready to go. We'll wave in passing, I'm sure. I hope the rest of the weekend is fairly obstacle-free, though.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Alice, and Wonderland

We took the morning off to see the Grissom High students put on a play. It was a lovely way to spend the morning. They performed Alice in Wonderland, and although it was a two-hour production, the kids did just fine. (We sat on the aisle, in case one of the unpredictable ones did something... unpredictable. They were fine, though - wholly engaged and delightful.) The older ones are already comfortable with theater etiquette, so they're enjoyable on many levels. (They're also a reminder that it's worth it to take the time when they're little, even if you have to sit by the aisle for a while. Someday, you won't have to. And you may get a bit sniffly about that when you glance over as the great big manboys, behaving without prompting, on either side of you.)

We stopped at Sonic for a little Something after. Sadly, both my breakfast protein and my GABA had given out about 30 minutes before we got there, so that part was not as easy as the rest of the morning had been. (Why must Sonic offer So. Many. Choices?!? Even if you narrow the options to "soda," or "slushie thing", the flavor options, alone, are enough to send the most mild-mannered of children into a choice-induced frenzy. Five children make it exponentially more... interesting.) We got out without incident, tears, or aggravation, though, and then home for some protein and water. Yay! Yay for Home!

The Bigs have both taken training to serve as Den Chiefs for the Cubs. I can't tell you how helpful that is - not just for running a Den or Pack, but also for helping your young men to realize they *are* The Big Kids, and that the little ones can/do/will look up to them. At our last Pack meeting, our Cubmaster invited them to come teach knots to the boys. They built frames for making the knots, so they could show the Cubs the knots in context (pitching a tent, tying down a load, ceremonial knots, cinching a sack, etc.). It was a good experience, and I'm glad they jumped in with both feet. They've been asked to meet with the Webelos next week, to go over Arrow of Light material. I think they're working on this knot to teach the Webelos. (The plan then is to turn the finished product into bookmarks for the boys' mothers for Valentine's Day. That'd be cool!)



And now, it's the weekend. We've been working on the little projects that have been whispering for our attention. It's the 15% of each project that got neglected in the first big push, as soon as it's "usable", or "for now," but we're veering out of the realm of Temporary, and into the kingdom of Wow, You People Really Live Like That? So, time to get cracking.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy