A Countdown

If you go back
1 college degree...

2 vehicles...

3 children...

4 states...

5 houses...

6 years...

You come to the day we got this little addition to our family:



Thankfully, he didn't spring from anyone's loins that size. We just didn't get a digital camera until he was about two. But he was just as cute when he started out, trust me!

Much like Titch's little seed, he grew and grew and grew. Our Wednesday hiking days became immensely more enjoyable once he acquiesced to carrying his own water...


He's been our anchor, reminding us that they're just little guys, that everybody needs extra hugs, that it's okay to be small. That everybody needs their comforting things kept near.


John is the one who can find beauty anywhere. He shares it readily, and heads out to find more.


He tends to play the straight man to his big brother's antics...


... but not always.


He "gets" the good stuff, like family -


both young,


and old (er - older!)


And while it doesn't come as a shock that our "JohnBaby" has grown into such a great young man,


and a wonderful big brother,


It's very touching to see just what a wonderful young man he has become.


Happy Birthday, My Sweet and Wonderful Boy! I love you, and am thankful Dad and I get to have you in our lives. You are truly a joy and a delight to our hearts!

Love,
Mom

On Having a Poop Blog

WHEN did my blog go from a homeschooling blog to a daily poop report? I am so, so sorry for that. In an effort to redeem myself from the incessant potty training updates, I'd like to share a little educational blogging for a bit. (Ok, one more update before I stop: WHY can a child stay 100% dry, 24/7, even waking dry from naps and bedtimes and STILL refuse to use the darned thing for solids?!? WHYYYYYYY?)

Alright, now for a little redemption. The other children are doing productive, educational things. Mainly without me, as I'm sequestered in the hallway, running herd on Smidge.

James is working his way through Gamma, namely because I make him. For fun, though, he is playing with fractions. Adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing. In his head. For fun. And he's not only accurate, but he's fast. I should be happy that my only role in his mathematical education at this point is to make certain he has the facts themselves down pat so that this will continue to be easy and fun for him. It does give me a little leeway with the hallway time. But we may have to hire a tutor named Heinrich to come and live with us in a few years. He's also *drum roll, please* SWIMMING! The last time we went, he put on a life jacket and took off swimming. He swam way the heck out there, where I'd have to find someone to catch the baby before I could divest myself of binding clothes in order to go rescue him if something should happen. Nothing happened, of course, but a mother's mind works overtime in the Alfred Hitchcock corridor while her mouth is shouting, "Way to GO! Look at you GO!! YAY!! YOU! ARE! AWESOME!"

John's writing is wonderful, and he is reading all the word problems in his math sets. He's also significantly more interested in Latin since we've picked it up again. It's clicking. This is the year of the click for him. Thank God, because he's turning six and six is not my best year for remaining calm and encouraging. Anyhow, we've been reviewing all the Prima Latina prayers this month. And he's good. He's having a lot of fun learning his things, his way. I didn't think he'd do so well with the "which subject would you like to do first" approach, but he does. And he picks math first, then Latin, and then - who'd have guessed, Bible. He's also showing a concerted interest in drawing. Perhaps it's time to invest in some quality materials and start working toward offering him something a little more meaty in that area? Nothing replaces the fun, self-directed delight of free time, but sometimes it's nice to have a few more tools in the mental toolbox.

The board games are getting a workout. As is my inner dialogue, which goes something like this:

"This time is short-lived. This time will pass SO quickly. Oh, kill me now, it's Connect Four! This time is short-lived and precious."

Chess is turning out to be quite fun, though, and it's something the older two boys and I enjoy tremendously. Sadly, chess is Smidge's new "Seek and Destroy" mission - it seems to have replaced read-alouds in his "this causes me pain and so I must prevent its mere presence in our home" approach to life. So we only play while he's napping. There are many sheets of paper lying about the house with mid-game schematics drawn hurriedly on them. (The boys start sketching while I lure Smidge back down the hall to the bathroom. It's not a potty thing, it's just a stalling tactic so they can get the notes down.)

We are about 2/3 done with Huckleberry Finn - we're enjoying it, but the slow pace of the dialogue pretty much puts us all to sleep mid-afternoon. One chapter at a time is a painful way to read through Mark Twain, and I don't think we'll revisit any of his work until the boys are a bit older. Perhaps as a read-aside, where we each read the book at a set pace and discuss it, rather than as a read-aloud? Is that cowardly of me? I hope not, but if so, I'm good with that. Suggestions for what to read next? Some good, meaty, delightful summer read-alouds would be most appreciated!

I'm reading The Cat of Bubastes, by Henty; Godless by Coulter; Moby Dick by somebody who abridged it (it was in the basement and I was desperate); Pilgrim's Progress (this caused the desperation that sent me into the basement for Melville's abridged story); The Power of a Praying Parent by O'Martian (re-read, never hurts to get a refresher); and working on my own independent math studies (why, oh why, doesn't Steve write a Calculus book?). In all, not a bad line-up. I do wish I had a little more brain candy on the nightstand at the moment, but it just doesn't seem to be the season for that.

And Miss Emily is doing a one-armed Army crawl now! She'd probably make better headway if the comforter cover offered more traction instead of bunching up beneath her, but that doesn't seem to be a deterrent. She decides to go somewhere (generally to get something) and she is off - like a very determined, single-minded herd of turtles. Just imagine what she will do when we have flooring we can actually set her down on! Wow, the world is hers to conquer!

But now, it's time to tend to the home and the hubby and the things that need tending before turning in. Kiss those babies!

Dy

On Doing Physical Labor in 94 degree heat with no a/c

See "On Cleaning Plywood Floors".

On Cleaning Plywood Floors

Don't.

Just. Don't.

Gram's Through The Operation!!

YAY!

Aunt B called not too long ago to let us know that Gram is out of surgery. It took a little longer than expected, but they expect her to be just fine. She'll be in recovery for a bit and then on up to a room - a regular room, rather than ICU, which is encouraging.

Thank you.

Dy

Almost made it!

Cold cereal for breakfast, baths on Saturday night, clothes hung bedside and ready to go - the little things that can help get you to church on time, without taking the Lord's name in vain on the way. The morning went smoothly, and we nearly made it out of the house on time. However, Smidge decided to keep his streak going just as we buckled him into the carseat, so back into the house for yet another round of: Where do we poop? In the potty! Yes, that's right! So... what's up, then? And then, since we didn't go anywhere Saturday, I forgot to put gas in the Suburban on Saturday. Ah, yes, that would help, wouldn't it? So we had to stop on the way in. We missed Sunday School, but made it for church, and I'm so glad we did!

We had a guest speaker for the sermon - a guy who is 1 1/2 years into seminary. His name is Jonathan Kuiper, and he's the son of Bernhard Kuiper, author of When Bad Things Happen To Good Prophecies. He goes a bit against the PCA grain, in that he's an eloquent, humorous and witty public speaker. Nothing against the pastors of our church, and we've actually got two phenomenal pastors here at this one. We've just found that a style of engaging public speaking doesn't seem to be the "norm" in this denomination, and it's stunningly refreshing when we stumble upon a pastor who has that skill! (Yep, parishioners dig pastors with SKILLS!) Anyhow, back to the subject at hand - we enjoyed the sermon tremendously. There was also a baptism - one of our pastors had the honor of baptizing his eighth grandchild today. That was so nice, and heightened our anticipation of getting the paperwork finished and the Inquisition held so that we can have Miss Emily baptized.

Zorak wanted sushi, so it was off for lunch after church. Swung by the Crunchy Market for more bread (and wf ginger snaps!) Then, to a movie. We saw Cars, and it was much better than we anticipated. Yes, it did have a clear Doc Hollywood echo to it, but without all the angry anti-hunter nonsense, which made it doubly enjoyable for us. In spite of its G rating, there was still a little unnecessary innuendo, but I guess the folks in Hollywood (even at Pixar) don't know how to move a plot without a love interest, and cannot for the life of them figure out how to have a love interest without a little blue humor. That's sad for them, really, as the biggest grown-up laughs in the audience came, not from the bawdy humor, but from the references that were simply geared to our era. In all, though, it was worth coughing up a kidney to take the entire family to a movie. And not a bad way to get out of the heat.

Some friends are in town this week, and we hope to see them while they're here. We worked on the house a bit more this evening, watched Robots again (what was I saying about unnecessary innuendo? Yes, I know.) and read. We enjoyed a late-night snack with Smidge and James. (James and Zorak ate sardines. Smidge and I sat far, far away and ate crackers and cheese.)

I'm feeling more energized about the house, now that it's more organized. We'll see how the new plan holds up to daily lessons, experiments, and general living! ;-)

Gram heads in tomorrow for her surgery. Please keep her in your prayers. I talked to her today, and aside from not being terribly thrilled with the pre-surgery diet, she's in good spirits and looks forward to getting better soon.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

We Have No Tails!

We worked 'em off today!

Zorak got the new vent for the HVAC cut into the bathroom floor. We wrestled for quite a while with the exact placement of it. Not too close to the toilet, as it'll get peed in. Not too close to the sink, as that'll guarantee the register fins get stomped on, after water is poured down the hole. And NOT, as the Genius who built the place decided, between the tub and the toilet. (WHAT was he thinking?!?) We measured, estimated, gauged, wrangled, and finally decided on "the sweet spot": far enough from the sink not to be in the way, far enough from the toilet to avoid incoming trajectory. Zorak was just finishing the detail work around the new hole when John came in and... still managed to hit the darned thing. GAH!! What IS it with these boys? It's not a "guy thing" - they just aren't even trying! Do I need to get some kind of singing, blinking apparatus that will go off and shower the child in sparkly confetti and chocolate if the stream doesn't veer onto (or past) the rim? Would that work? Anyway, the register is now in.

Zorak took the ductwork apart to clean, but has decided to ask Aweseom HVAC Guy about getting a professional to do it. They've been sitting, unused, for an awfully long time, and while the ductwork itself is in good condition, it was exposed to The Cricket Queen and her Court for a very long time. And the mice. And the mold/mildew/other growing stuff. And what have you. Yuck. This is yet another learning curve for us - ventilation maintenance, cleaning, and repair - and we'd just rather not blow all that stuff up into each room if we can help it. So, if it turns out a professional guy has some cleaning stuff we aren't privvy to, then it'll be worth it to pay him to do it.

While Zorak battled the few things left to do before Awesome HVAC Guy comes to set the equipment and take fabrication measurements, I tried very hard to tame the savage beast that is the aftermath of the closet room foray. Winter clothes, art supplies, two years' worth of toilet paper (we forgot we already had some in there, so we bought more and... threw it in there). It's a veritable rainbow of crap, and it's been squatting in the hallway, the bathroom, and our room all week. That's the kind of stuff that'll make a gal twitchy in a hurry!

The two boxes of Very Cool Clothing that I inherited while on vacation have now been absorbed into the nooks and crannies of our bedroom. Zorak's missing summer clothes re-emerged today, as well. (They were in the box of extra coat hangers, and dresses-I-can't-wear-while-nursing - why didn't I think to look in there earlier? *D'oh!*)

The bathroom, which suffered a direct hit when I engaged the closet room last week, has been excavated and is now back to its previous pristine and comfortable status. James walked in as I was putting on the finishing touches (ie. wiping down the toilet again) and said, "Oh, wow! I'd forgotten how pretty our bathroom is!" Yeah, me, too. It also feels considerably larger, now, what with the boxes and the packs of supplies and the random miscellaneous stuff culled, sorted, and dealt with. (Three children worth of superfluous homebirth supplies makes for a rather doom 'n gloom box of emergency supplies when all piled together. But I'm keeping them until hell freezes over, just in case.)

Oh! The dining room has curtains! We've had the curtains for a while, but didn't have a rod. Zorak picked up a rod the other day, and we hung it tonight. Oh, it looks so pretty. The change does make the dining table a bit more glaringly ugly, mmm, rustic, but that's okay. Once we refinish that, it'll be perfect. And in the meantime, the difference is stunning!

The boys have been on High Critter Alert this week, and boy have they earned their stripes! Yesterday, while I was putting Miss Emily down for a nap, Smidge stood at the foot of my bed and said, "Oh. Bug, ma. Bug." He was so calm and matter-of-fact about it that I figured it was a moth or a beetle. So I asked James to please kill it for me, since I couldn't get up just yet. He ran out of the room, returned with his bug catcher, and shortly presented me with - a wasp! DANG! Then today there was what I took for an earthworm in the hallway. I asked the boys if they wanted to look at it, and they arrived, bug catcher in hand, to apprehend what turned out to be a worm... with a whole lotta legs! Yes, it was a millipede. Lovely. They found an inch worm in the back yard and had a delightful time watching it, too. I'm glad they are so enthralled by nature, but did have to give a quick briefing on what to touch and what not to touch - and that if Mom has asked you to get something, but it looks like it might bite/sting/follow you home and eat you, double check before doing anything. Mom may not have been paying attention enough. *cringe* (And I quietly made a note to myself to pay more attention. *sigh*)

Everyone's been scrubbed and shined, clothes laid out for tomorrow. We were going to let Zorak sleep in for Father's Day - but there's that whole church thing. It's not like we can go to Sunday School, then come back to get him for church. The boys love having him there, so he said he'd go (yet another reason we celebrate him year-round!) and then in the afternoon, we're off to see Cars! (That was what the boys wanted to do for him - sounds like a win-win, doesn't it?) The only part of the puzzle that's missing is me getting some sleep! So, I'm off to kiss my babies and drift off to dreamland. Have a delightful day, whatever you do!

Dy

I like disgusting things!

That was the comment from my 7 year-old today as we left the ENT's office. As soon as it came out of his mouth, we both cracked up. He meant to say, "I like discussing things!" It just didn't quite come out that way. We giggled all the way to the car, and I have no idea what the folks in the office thought. It doesn't matter. We were enjoying one another.

The ENT visit went well. Miss Emily's ear canals are a bit twisty and curvy, but her hearing is A-OK. James was fascinated by all the audiology equipment. The audiologist was splendidly patient with his questions. Before we left, one of the assistants even showed him a CT scan of a sinus cavity. Talk about cool, eh? The ENT was also very cool, and handled James' scientific enthusiasm quite well. Even made a point to ask James to tell him when the time machine is ready for use. (James is convinced he can build one that will actually work.) Too sweet.

We picked up a few gifts for John's birthday. James and I had a blast at the toy store. We were like, well, like a couple of kids. There is some incredibly neat stuff available! The lady at the counter gave James a set of sample POGs before we left. *sigh* I do wish I knew more about them beforehand. The game itself is actually kinda fun, and we played a bit together this afternoon. It's the characters' names, and the images on the POGs themselves that make me a bit skeptical. I'll go searching for information tonight and come up with a final verdict.

Miss Emily waited patiently through the doctor's visit, the toy store. She Wal-Mart fairly well, and was a trooper at the Steak 'n Shake drive-thru (How could we pass up a milkshake on a day like today?) But when we stopped to pick up a movie for a family movie night, she decided she'd had enough of this junk. Can't blame her. I forgot that her little dress had a bow in the back and that couldn't have been comfortable on her, while she was in the carseat most of the day. Oops. Back to slip on britches and a t-shirt for that little girl! (I like her sense of style vs. comfort already - that's my girl!)

Zorak had taken the middle two down to the park this morning, then to the post office. They came home and hung out under the ceiling fans. When James, Miss Emily and I arrived home, he had lunch waiting for us (oh, so pampered! What joy!) - then he and Smidge napped for a bit, while the rest of us played games and chatted. As a side note, I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed the day with James - it was such fun to have both ears to lend him and have the energy to keep up with and absorb him. He's a funny, sweet, quirky, neat kid. But, I also missed having John and Smidge around during the day. It's interesting to see how each child contributes so much to the tapestry of daily living. This is what folks mean by "rich" - my life is incredibly rich.

ANYway, once everyone was up, we gave John an early birthday present. He's been begging to watch Pirates of the Carribean for, oh, at least two years now. This month, he asked if six would be "old enough to watch it". You could feel the yearning as it radiated from his big brown eyes. So today was the day. Big fanfare - popcorn, lollipops, and the clickers at hand (just in case - it's been a while since Zorak and I saw it, and our retention isn't 100%, as evidenced by the whole Temple of Doom fiasco). We paused the movie a few times to discuss it and answer questions. Our concerns over the whole "undead" thing seem to have been fairly unfounded - Smidge played in the kitchen most of the time, and the older two just thought the movie was a wild ride, from beginning to end.

Now everyone has been loved on and snuggled, tucked safely into bed. I'm going to go try to muscle in on some of the floor fan action in the living room and see if anything's on the TV (all two channels that we get, ha!) This is Father's Day weekend - do y'all have any plans? I should see if I can get Zorak to guest blog for it, since I don't have any real words of wisdom to share on this Hallmark Holiday.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Blew My One Cool Outift

Miss Emily had a newborn (infant, whatever) hearing exam today at ten. I woke the boys early, and we ran to the store to get whipping cream (forgot to ask Zorak to bring some when he came home yesterday - not an auspicious beginning to the day). We came back, threw bread pudding in the oven, got everybody showered, dressed, fed, and out the door in semi-record time. We arrived five minutes early to our appointment - high fives all around! WE ROCK!

The boys filed into the chairs while I signed us in, gave insurance information, and signed the Declaration of, er, some large stack of paperwork.

Then we sat. And sat. And sat.

FORTY-FIVE MINUTES later, the receptionist called Miss Emily to the front to tell us they have our appointment down for *tomorrow*, not today. At ten. I have the paperwork from the referring office that says it was, in fact, for today, but since the main ENT is the one we're supposed to see, and he is in surgery today, it was a moot point. Somebody goofed, no biggie, really.

"But," said the chipper receptionist, "we have all the paperwork done and can just come right on in tomorrow!"

Um... Yay?

And how does the outfit come into this? Well, I have only one outfit that says,

"I am a totally together woman who showers daily, accessorizes, and manages all of this - renovating, homeschooling, parenting, and wifely duties - quite well, thank you."

ONE. I wear it to official appearances, such as doctor's visits and things at Zorak's workplace, in order to counterbalance the things the boys may add to discussions. (see yesterday's post)

I wear it because it's the one I want to be seen in if I must appear on the evening news in less-than-flattering coverage. (Much better than being photographed in Zorak's clothes and my militant boots... or worse yet, sweats and no bra with large leaky splotches on the paint-slathered t-shirt.) And now, they've seen it already! And it's not like the appointment was rescheduled for next week, when it could just be coincidence that I arrive in the same outfit. ARGH.

To make matters worse, this doctor is married to one of the wonderful ladies I've met here recently. They also homeschool, which is a huge plus. But she's really together. She's not "from here", but she can totally pull of that Metropolitan Southern Belle thing with wonderful flair. AND she has four children. It's not like she set the bar low, so us mere mortals can hurdle it. Gah!

I even bathed the baby today! She didn't smell of soured milk (which, in this heat and humidity, it sours pretty quickly, so hush). She was all pink and had a clean neck! And now I'm going to have to do this all over again? Pffttt.

At least if I bathe her again, maybe she'll be so stunningly cute that nobody will notice the stained t-shirt or the men's size designation on my jeans tomorrow?

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Kinda Quiet

Well, after the hullabaloo last night, today was rather uneventful. Nice, really. Since I got more sleep in one night than I normally do in a week, I was up 'n at 'em early this morning, and that momentum just carried through the day. The kitchen received a stuff-overhaul (we SO need to get that pantry ordered!) The dining room got cleared out. The living room got a good scouring. We had a nice, hot breakfast, enjoyed our lessons, played a little chess, played outside, and just enjoyed one another's company.

The big event today: we all followed Smidge to the bathroom every few minutes to cheer him on. I'm pretty sure that James would be perfectly happy to go the whole day tomorrow without having to come look at urine. Yes, pretty sure. Yet he'll come, and he'll high-five, and he'll give big hugs. Why? Because he's a cool kid. Even when we interrupt his precious reading time, he manages to muster a smile before he hits the bathroom door. I owe that kid, big time! Smidge was dry all day, save for one accident early on - for some reason, he refuses to believe you can put solids in the little potty - go figure. But otherwise, dry all day, even after naptime! YAY SMIDGE! Naturally, there is a high-fructose corn syrup-based incentive going on. He may end up diabetic, but by golly, he'll be wearing big-boy pants when he gives himself those injections!

Tonight, Zorak laid the cement blocks down where the HVAC was, and will be once again. This time, however, the hole will resemble - or at least hit an order of magnitude of - the unit that goes through the hole. What a concept! Lookin' good down there, too. He's made a lot of strides in the basement. He used all the extraneous lumber to build shelving - it's not "pretty", but it's wonderfully stable and fully functional. It is amazing how much stuff one rack can absorb!

John is reading everything he can get his hands on. Yet, if you ask him if he can read, he says, "No." WHAT?!? Ok, whatever works for ya, kiddo. However, when you put each child's idiosyncracies together, it gets awkward in public. James tells people "We don't go to school." (Yes, period - not "we homeschool", not "we're educated at home", heck, not even a nod toward education with "we study a lot on our own". Nope, he's gone back to saying simply, "we don't go to school".) John follows up with, "and I can't read" and that's about when Smidge starts laughing and yells, "I FARTED!" No wonder the best days are the days we stay home, no?

But it was good. Miss Emily rolled all over the boys' room today while I read aloud, Smidge ran trains over my head, and the older two played chess. We had a great discussion about moving at your own pace, being able to master any task they take on, and having the ability to enjoy branching out as we encounter things they will enjoy. When we finished the read-aloud, they both took their math books back out and did a second page for the day.

I'd requested a catalog from Greek 'n Stuff so that I could talk with Zorak about ordering "Hey Andrew..." for this summer. I shouldn't have looked. Can anybody compare Latin for Children with Latin's Not So Tough? Pretty please? I'd sold myself on LfC, particularly for James. But this looks like fun. (Truth be told, I want to take it and avoid Henle, but I won't. Whatever I order will be for the boys, and I will be a grown up about it and get my own program.) In the meantime, we're plugging along with PL review and enjoying the process itself.

And I hear the baby girl, so it's time to call it a night.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Aaaaand.... she's OUT!

Cold, that is. By nine o'clock last night.

I only wish it was a pleasant evening that included a cooling bath, a foot rub, a few chapters in Heart of Darkness, and some maybe a little teacher in-service. But, no.

It was a migraine. So, my early evening included grilling kabobs outside, having a whomper of a time trying to narrow my vision enough to actually grasp the kabobs with the tongs. (The dog was hoping against hope that I'd fail.) An evening of moving very s-l-o-w-l-y in the hope that nobody would spot me and rip my brains apart by actually speaking to me. Especially not the small one with his nasally little, "Maaa! MaaAAA!" (Where did he get that accent? Ugh.)

I nearly exploded as I pureed the tomatillo soup. Rather than deal with the hubbub of having the boys set the table, I set it myself in *relative* quiet, called everyone to come eat, then grabbed the baby and headed for the cool darkness of our room to nurse and pray for death. Death did not come (retrospectively, I'm glad for that), but I did, at one point, leave a confused and screaming infant when I bolted from the bed and dashed to the bathroom to sacrifice to the gods for a while. I would rather puke from illness than from pain, any day. That is truly miserable.

Zorak is appreciated regularly around here, but last night the man earned his service stripes. He rescued the abandoned infant, coordinated the eating-o-the-supper, navigated the bedtime routine, and kept the general noise level to a dull roar while I laid in bed, doing my best impression of a demonic possession. It's nice to know somebody is reassurring the children that Mommy will be fine, when Mommy just can't muster that much strength. He even put Miss Emily down for the evening. God bless him.

This morning, life is beautiful. Much of that has to do with the fact that it's back in focus, less jarring, and more navigable, I'm sure. If we had plans to go anywhere, they've been scrapped - Zorak noticed on his way to work this morning that I'd left the door wide open on the Suburban yesterday afternoon when we got home. (In my defense, the headache had started on the drive home, three of four children were asleep as we pulled in, and there were the groceries to unload - I was a little distracted. *sheepish grin*) So I think we'll hang out, read books, maybe mow a little more grass (that lawn is the landscape equivalent of an all-day sucker!) and play ball. Sort of an impromptu day, but not so bad. If it doesn't get too hot, we'll try doing lessons on the picnic table out back.

And I need another cup of coffee!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Well, it *looked* hot...

It got pretty warm this morning, so I closed up the windows in an attempt to keep the house relatively cool. It got so hot inside that the playdoh lost its structural integrity. It was playgruel. That's just gross. The dog had food and water, two loads of wash had already been hung, so we didn't venture outside at all. We just lingered on flat surfaces and wilted.

Then Zorak came home. And the breeze that followed him in was *~*~*heavenly*~*~*. What the--? When did it get so nice outside? I bolted out the door and sure enough, the air was cool and breezy. Well, you don't have to tell me twice! I switched out the wash, threw open the windows and stuck fans in most of them, then interrupted a rather intense game of MouseTrap to inform the boys that it is beautiful outside and I don't know when this will happen again, so go, go, GO! We then we spent the evening on the porch. That was really weird. But I'm thankful for the reprieve.

Tomorrow, we're ditching lessons to go run errands and play with friends. The boys did math, Latin, and reading on Saturday and Sunday this past week, in addition to our regularly scheduled work week, so we can afford to call a spare. What a great option that is to have!

Hey, does anybody know where one can still purchase training underpants? They are cut like regular little kid undies, but are thicker and more absorbent. (So the mess clings to the clothing, which is a far sight better than trailing it about the house.) I tried three different Wal-Marts and one Target, but they only carry regular undies in Very Small Sizes and those Pull-Ups. I bought the Pull-Ups, but they're a tad too absorbent to really engage the give-a-sh*t gear in a toddler.

Wow, and the dog has figured out how to open the front door if it's not deadbolted. (He just let himself in.) That would explain a lot... We also need to reinforce our fencing. He's found the neighbors, and the neighbors are not happy. I wouldn't be, either, if a 50-pound, snarling, ridgebacked moose came traipsing onto my property. So, that's a priority to be added to the top of the list. Lovely way to meet the neighbors. We should have invited them over before now, but they're related to the people who built the place and... yeah, it's just awkward all the way around. Maybe after we've had the place bush-hogged again and we've fixed the fencing, we'll slip over and invite them for coffee and a look at Balto's rabies tag?

OK, well, I am going to try to get a couple of hours of sleep without Miss Emily's company (she is wrecking havoc on my neck, and I can't move my head far at all - I look like I'm recovering from a particularly rough bout of spinal meningitis at the moment).

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Rollin', rollin', rollin'...

RAWHIDE!!

Of course, at the moment, I'm singing the Billy Crystal version, not the original. Weee-dawgies, am I sore! However, it's the excruciating pain of accomplishment, and so I will only whimper mildly and promise not to use swear words.

The Closet Room is now just about empty and ready for finishing. Who knew we had so much crap er, treasured material? That room had become the pat answer to the age old question, "Hey, what do you want me to do with this *insert random homeless item*?" From what I found today, it seems the answer is, "Just put it in the closet room and we'll figure it out later." Ah, well, who knew "later" meant "June 11th"? Now you know. And if you've been putting anything off until later, well, you missed it. And now you're behind the curve, so you'd best get on it, okay? Okay.

Did the thorough once-over on the boys' room: reorganized the bookshelf, culled the clothing, sorted/culled the toys, vacuumed, rearranged the closet, boxed and unboxed a number of boxy-like things, cleaned the ceiling fan. It looks much better now, and is just about ready for pictures. We're going to have to move Smidge and Miss Emily out of there soon, though - that poor room can't quite handle all the things and energy of three and a half children.

Zorak worked in the basement, worked on the icon shelf, changed the oil in the pick up, and hung the bow rack. Busy man, he. The soon-to-be-linen-closet is now sheetrocked and taped. The mud is drying and he'll put the second coat on tomorrow after work. It already looks scads better. I can't wait til we can put our linens in there and get them out of the hallway, the bathroom counter, the dresser tops. Yeah. That'll be nice.

Oh, and I'm SO excited! Zorak said he'd take the children for a few hours sometime before the HVAC guy comes back to set the units so that I can CLEAN! Yippee! I love teaching the boys how to do the daily things, but I must admit it's a quirky little thrill for me to clean when there are no children helping, no hubby meandering about, no toddlers coming in behind me to undo the work I've just done. And if I work quickly, I can usually get in half an hour to sit in a clean, quiet home with a good book and just enjoy looking up every couple of pages at the beautiful space around me. That's better than therapy and alcohol! *happy sigh* I love that man.

Today was really. stinking. hot. Thankfully, we did have water. Good stuff, all around. I brought out all of the family games we've purchased over the years (and spent good time and energy avoiding). But now, they're out. They are accessible. Smidge went nuts and I just melted when he asked, "Mama, play game with you?" So James, Smidge and I played a few games of dominoes before supper. Smidge "helped". James was very patient. John played a dinosaur memory game. He and Smidge built domino designs to knock down. It was, aside from the sweat pouring off our chins, quite idyllic. The chess set James got for his birthday last year was in the unearthed box, so it came out, as well. We'll add that to our afternoon relaxation time and see if we can develop any skill.

Zorak and I stood in the basement tonight, looking at all that still needs to be done and he said, "See that drain pipe over there? That's where we started." And I knew exactly what he meant. There is much still to be done, but it's nothing compared to what we have done already, and it's a good, good feeling. Standing arm-in-arm in a damp, disheveled basement, staring at pipes may not be everybody's idea of romance, but it did the trick this afternoon. How could I not be totally in love with a man who would do all this for his family?

And on that note, I am going to take a much-needed shower, check on the babies, and hit the hay. Have a splendid week!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

The Kids Must Think We Hate Them

Here's what the day looked like, from their perspective:

Hey, kids! It's Saturday and Mom and Dad are unconscious! How long can you go without eating actual food?

And then, once they'd been fed and dressed;

You know what, kids? It's over 100 degrees today! Let's go from hot, un-air-conditioned antique shop to hot, un-air-conditioned antique shop... for hours!

Not that things looked any more promising at home...

The monster in the basement has taken Daddy! You won't see him today! That swearing and crying? No, no, he'll be fine... just fine...

We returned from the shopping trip without a dresser for Miss Emily, who is going to think we don't like her if, when she's old enough to remember this, she is still getting her clothes out of the boxes they were shipped in.

Well, now that you are thoroughly sweaty and probably dehydrated, why don't you go play in the dirt for a bit before supper? Yeah, that sounds like fun, doesn't it? Hup, hup, it's not getting any cooler out there!

You can wash your hands when you get --- Oh, no, strike that! We don't have any water. Ha ha. Silly children! No crying, now, go play while Mommy prepares something unidentifiable for supper.

**later, at supper**

Yes, it's cold. It's a salady... thing. Isn't it lovely to eat a cold supper on a hot, hot day? What do you care what's in it? It has protein. And it's probably good for you. No, we still don't have any water. Yes, that is something we take for granted, isn't it? No, you can't drink from the toilet. That's for company and emergencies, Honey.

Zorak and I were up late Friday night, working on the house. We're getting old and have developed a partial paralysis that kicks in shortly after the sun comes up. It's exacerbated by late night exertion. The kids held out pretty well on the food. I do believe they grazed from the counter, although there wasn't anything edible left out on the counter...

I did give them the pre-emptory antique-shop warning before venturing forth on the shopping trip. They did phenomenally well, actually, and received goodies, hugs, and plenty of compliments from all the shop owners. Well, all but that one that hates children, no matter how well behaved and polite they are. I think the boys decided the shops were worth it just to sit in the air-conditioned Suburban between stops.

While I ran the boys through the gauntlet, Zorak moved the water heater. He re-configured the pipes, and made a new manifold (the plastic PEX manifolds we purchased in December have not held up well to the ever-changing ecosystem of the basement, and for some reason unknown to all but the corporate moles who've bought stock in the company in order to force a hostile takeover in the future, Zurn refuses to make their brass manifolds available for purchase - so, fine, we'll just make some, then! Thhhbbttttt!!!)

This probably wouldn't have been much of an inconvenience (relatively speaking - he had it worse than we did, I'm sure) if he'd started before noon. But when you don't start major reconfiguring until noon, then there is no water for... drinking, cooking, bathing, merely washing your hands... until, oh, around midnight. And that can be a little rough when you have children, and it's in the triple digits both inside and outside the house.

Miss Emily probably had it the hardest. She was hot and miserable all day. And, being miserable, she relied heavily on her instinct that tells her being held will make her feel better. We call that *painful irony*. Sometimes instinct misses the mark by a hair or two, doesn't it?

So it was a long day for everyone involved. But, in the end, we are that much closer to having a/c, the children did comment on how much we take for granted (like cold water, specifically), how much they appreciate all we have (again with the cold water), nobody got lost... or ran off. We'll have a nice, long drive in the cool air of the vehicle tomorrow. After everyone's been bathed and fed, of course.

;-)

Some days it's all you can do to say, "Yay, it's over! We made it!" this was one of those days. I think I'll go whisper positive things in the children's ears before I head to bed.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Updates:

Gram: Things look as well as we could have hoped! YAY! She'll go home tomorrow, then go back for surgery on Wednesday. She's full of wit, and sick of being there, so I know being home for a few days will be so very much better for her body and spirits. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

Home: The Icon Closet has found a new identity (think super heroes) - it's going to be Linen Closet! It may seem a strange transformation, but if Coat Closet can become Utility Room, then this should be a snap. It does mean there will be no bejeweled Buddha squatting at the door to greet visitors, but at least we won't have towels and wash cloths stacked on the counter in the bathroom. HVAC progress is being made. WAH-HOO. Zorak bought one of those return registers for the main system - it's stunning what a difference that makes when placed over the gaping Omen Hole at the end of the hall. It was waiting to swallow Smidge one day, we just know it, and now we don't have to keep myriad things stacked against it as a barrier. Funny how something can go from frightening to walk past to not only intentional but somewhat decorative with just a little do-dad.

School: We lost James' math book today. Could not find it, although we looked and looked. We eventually gave up and he broke out another math book just so he'd have something to do. Well, I found it tonight while fixing supper. It was right there, next to the frozen broccoli... When I told him I'd found his book, and where, he said, "OH! Of course!" ??? Turns out he'd spilled something on it yesterday and put it in the freezer for safe keeping until we could tend to it. He'd seen me do that with books I've left on the porch during monsoons...

Everything else is going well. John's confidence in his reading skills is blossoming. Both boys are doing so well with lessons, and they seem to enjoy all they are capable of doing. Success is a tasty reward when it's earned through hard work and initiative. (That's a lesson I hope they carry with them for life - if they learn nothing else this year, they've learned that. This is good stuff.)

Poems: The boys love poetry. Nobody's told them it's drugery, and so they devour it with gusto and savor every morsel. Tonight we revisited one of our favorites: Now We Are Six. The boys can finish most of the poems themselves, which is so funny to me because I don't know them that well (and I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who reads them aloud around here). I started to read "Sneezles", when John informed me that I'd broached some unspoken protocol. You must read "Busy" first, and THEN "Sneezles". Ohhhh. I'm glad to know that, aren't you?

I'm a little melancholy at the moment over the fact that the boys are growing so old, so quickly. Gone are the cherubic cheeks, the swaggering gait of the toddlers. Their fears and dreams are different now than when they were two and four. Bigger, both. And new to me. It's intimidating to watch them grow and grow in such vigorous leaps. John will be six this month, and yet, in my mind, he's four. Forever four. But no. Six. One day six will seem so little. Six will be an age for remembering. Right now, though, it feels so big. So momentous. I've said it before, but it bears repeating: they will never again be as small as they are today. We have to savor every curious, stubborn, creative, exasperating moment of it because there are no second servings.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Family is Special

Family doesn't always mean blood relatives. Sometimes, yes, but sometimes there are bonds much tighter than DNA. Regardless of where we're blessed to find these bonds, we need not lose sight of them amidst all the hullabaloo and details of the Things That Don't Matter.

Today, the children and I spent a lot of time working together, working on manners and obedience. It didn't go smoothly, but it did go well. The day ended catching fireflies and laughing, sharing a story over gooey pieces of a WF version of Texas Sheet Cake we'd made this morning (came out more like brownies - but who's complaining, right?) We spent a little time today caught up on the little things, but pulled out of that nose dive in time to salvage the day and enjoy one another.

And then... Aunt B called to let us know that Gram has some health concerns. I won't go into too much detail, as I want to be certain to respect Gram's privacy and don't know how much the family would want shared. But you know, as I've blogged before, she's a special woman who has gifted this world with an incredible family, and I'd like to ask your prayers.

When you're in your mid-90's, things are bound to get a little wonky from time to time. And doctors tend to think it's all just elderly frailty. I am so, so thankful Aunt B knows her Mom isn't frail, even by AARP standards, and that she's such an awesome advocate for Gram. Thanks to her insistence that someone LISTEN, things will go better for Gram.

In the meantime, your prayers would be much appreciated. She's so special to so many people. Please remember her, her family, and her physicians over the next few days. Thank you so much.

Kiss those babies, and Grams!
~Dy

Academics and Such

Well, we are back in full swing, and it's going quite nicely. Tonight, John asked to read to me - which, of course, melted my heart! The boys are retaining so much and exploring so very much. I can't keep up! This does, however, fall under the "Gee, I wish this was the worst of my problems" category. This, I can deal with.

The critters that keep emerging? Not so much. We bug bombed before we left. Came home to a glorious dearth of crickets (of all kinds), and yet... there are new bugs now. Oy! What have we done?!? Well, it'll give us something to do, right?

We aren't really making any changes as we transition from last year to next year. (Notice we haven't really had a "this year", which may account for some of that...)

* John will move into Alpha. James will move on to Delta. That's it for math.
* We'll keep plugging along with Latin, although we might add in Greek this year, just for fun. We were planning to start it next year (um, next next year...) in earnest, but as well as they like foreign language, I'd hate to waste this time and opportunity.
* History is Story of the World.
* Art will be Drawing With Children - although not until possibly fall, as I need to work through it a bit first, and that's just not happening in the immediate future.
* Science is nature journaling, reading, experiments with Dad and discussions at the dinner table. Maybe a little more reading. (That's just such an effective and enjoyable way to gather information!)
* For religion, we'll continue to read through the Bible, supplement the church studies, and work on the catechism at home.
* Then there's the whole reading/spelling/language arts/grammar/miscellaneous other things category. We tackle that in one shot: we read. It seems such a simple thing, yet it's a powerful way to go. It offers the boys the quality education we aim to offer them. Latin helps take care of grammar specifics, and the rest comes from reading quality literature - discussing quality literature - pulling copywork from quality literature.
* Music - if we can find an upright piano that wants to come live with us and can get along with the house, then we'll add music lessons to the mix.

Well, that was relatively painless. Or, it was once I got over the idea that I can't buy as much as I'd like to buy for school next year. *grin* I'd love to purchase the SOTW supplemental reading books because we can't get our hands on them through the library. I'd love to buy more of the unabridged, unadulterated classic children's literature so we don't have to wade through the junk they have in stock at BAM. I'd love to buy all of the GA Henty titles... just to have them! Ok, ok, my slip is showing, there. I mean, the boys will read them, eventually. But still - y'all know what I mean.

However, I was very, very good this year. We were starting to panic a bit about how to pay for the HVAC upfront when lo and behold, in came extra money. I thought about hiding it in my pocket and bolting to the library (so I could order from Amazon under the radar). I thought about flinging myself on the floor and sobbing about how few books we TRULY have (*snort* like that one would go over!) But I didn't. I showed Zorak and waited for him to offer to let me go on a book buying spree. He didn't, though (I knew he wouldn't, but had to at least hope) - he said, "Hey, shall we buy an air conditioner?" I've never been so conflicted in my life. I mean, I'm a wuss when it comes to summer heat and downright petty about southern humidity... but these are BOOKS, Man! BOOKS, I tell you! Yeah, yeah, whatever. We're getting the HVAC. (I'll be glad for that come August, but for now it's still a little bittersweet.)

Found the math book I'd begun studying last... erm, January. Felt a bit sheepish about not having made it very far. Then I realized, hey, we've been a little busy the past year! So, I forgave myself, and we've decided to start up on that again. Tonight was my first attempt at it. Math still isn't my strong suit, but it is a lot more fun than I used to think it was.

On the forever homefront, I got two acres mowed, we made arrangements to make progress on the HVAC installation (that sounds so much more impressive than, "we still don't have a/c," doesn't it?) More planning and sifting and scheming.

Oh ~ the dumpster people came today and removed the construction dumpster!! Wow, our driveway is HUGE! We'd forgotten. James noticed that the view of the meadow and barn from the picnic table is gorgeous - right after he realized we now have a view from there... :-) Funny kid.

There was no pilfering of paper products today! At this point, I'd just call it a successful day and go find the peanut butter cups. And so, I am off.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Where Do They Come Up WIth These Ideas?

So tonight the older two boys got an idea. They decided it would be... mmm, fun? a good idea? remotely reasonable? We don't know what they were thinking, but we know they weren't showing a whole lot of sense. Ingenuity, perhaps, but not sense.

At any rate, whatever they thought it would be, it was good enough for them. So while Pinky slipped inside to get the toilet paper, The Brain waited outside for the fun to begin. Unfortunately for their plan of World Domination, Pinky was caught by The Man on his way out the front door with the toilet paper. "I was, um, just putting it... back. Yeah, back." And off he trotted, back to the bathroom. While he was gone, The Brain came looking to see what the holdup was.

The Man was suspicious to begin with, but that little slip up caused the Conspiracy Alarm to flash.

Bars clanged shut over the windows.

Doors automatically sealed themselves.

A crocodile hatched in the moat, er, creek.

Break out the pinatas and party favors and let the interrogation begin!

This is why some people drink, you know. It's not the plot hatching, per se. It's not even the use of toilet paper (although we did determine the end goal and affirmed that it was not, in fact, good for their health, mental wellbeing, or freedom in general). It was the sneakiness that got to both Zorak and I.

Lately, these two have developed a real "us against them" mentality - ("them" being adults). Mostly it's originated with James, but John will pretty much do whatever James suggests. (Oh, to use those powers for good!) And we don't get it. We've bent over backward to really push the team mindset - family sticks together, we look out for one another. And we walk the walk, too. We don't hold double standards for adults than we do for the children. We don't pit them against each other. Heck, even tattling isn't allowed unless you're trying to prevent someone from getting hurt or in trouble! So where they've derived this mentality is a bit of a mystery to us. However, we're going to unearth it and destroy it at the roots before we have to scrap the first two youth models and start over. Man, and we just got the complete set, too!

Thankfully, the smaller ones seem to be unaware of the cultural battle taking place. But it won't be long. Smidge's mastery of our language is improving daily, and he's a smart one, he is. And the little one - she's just so cute! But can we get to their little minds before they become corrupted?

Alright, alright, yes, I'll get my tongue out of my cheek now. I'm just tired. And slightly exasperated. I suppose it's time for a little one-on-one, a little gentle tomato staking, a little extra emphasis on the integrity that it takes to live life well. They're little. They do stuff like this. Of course, we're totally making this up as we go. It sure sounds good on paper, though, doesn't it? Much better than, "What the hell did we do wrong?!?"

Today my little world decided that we all needed to pile on the couch and read together, watch a movie, and play in the yard. I tried to be productive. I did two loads of wash - but there was no wind, and by the end of the day, those two loads were still damp. I tried to mow the sports arenas around the house - but the mower ran out of gas and Zorak didn't lable the gas cans (one has chainsaw oil, and I'm ashamed to admit that I have no idea what that stuff looks like). I tried to paint, but the prepwork woke Miss Emily - er, rather, my stifled yelps from stubbing my shins were more likely the culprit on that one. So we baked and cooked and then sat around, enjoying one another. Not a bad day, really.

Ah, but now to figure out how best to handle the remaining adjustments we need to make. We do know some people who would probably let them stay for a week or two. The boys would be thrilled beyond measure to get to come home after that. Probably pretty well-behaved, too. he he. But then, I peeked in on them sleeping... I snugged the covers gently over their shoulders and completely melted at those precious, spontaneous smiles as I kissed their little cheeks. I thought of all the times they do make good choices, or ask for help in making their choices. This isn't so bad. One day it might even be funny. Maybe. So we'll keep them. And love them. This is part and parcel of the job.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

BabyFest!

So, Jess reminded me that I've been painfully remiss with photographs lately. We had fun sharing photos last night, and I thought I'd get off my tuckus and post some. Miss Emily has just grown and grown and grown! So today, in celebration of being able to raise her in the home she was born in (ok, the home in which she was born, but I'm not feeling terribly formal this morning, and have only had one cup of coffee), here's a gratuitous Baby Fest of Miss Emily!

General "Happy Baby" shot:


Big Snuggles from Granny:


Hanging out with Great Uncle Sandy:


Just love those cheeks:


So Happy:


Ready to ride:


And now the boys have found me and are doing laps around the computer, being dinosaurs. The fact that the computer is in a corner doesn't seem to be registering with them, so it seems break time is over.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

I checked the post office today...

Well, we had a lot of junk mail, many offers to refinance and get a home equity loan, a couple of utility bills, a few boxes (Jess, nothing in there was wet, even the bag itself was bone dry - I have no idea what they were talking about - weird).

But no certified letter.

So, I called Wonderful Realtor to ask her, "Is no news good news at this point?" I had no idea if they'd send an all-clear, or just let if fade into the abyss. She said she didn't think they'd bother with an all-clear notification, and with the deadline this far gone (it was the 19th of May) and no certified letter in our hot little hands by now, well...

THE FOREVER HOME IS OURS!!!!!!!!!

It's really, really ours! Yay! Yippee!! JOY OH JOY!

*~*~* happy dance *~*~*

*giggle*

Ahhhh....

Alrighty, then. I can drop that stiff upper lip and slump back on the couch now, eh? A friend summed it up well when she said she sure hoped we didn't have to drink that half-full glass. Yeah. Me, too. :-)

Now we can get down to business!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy