Gas 'n Go, Dine 'n Dash... Book 'n Bolt?

The Friends of the Library sale ended today. Zorak and I were going to tag team, going one at a time, but I got there and was surprised by the layout and the lack of a "throng of bodies", so I thought I'd give him a call and say, "Hey, if Smidge is up, throw shoes on the boys, and I'll come get ya!"

I already had a pile of books, and there was no way I was putting those babies back (FIVE Rosemary Sutcliff books!), but if Smidge was still asleep, then I could shop a little more. Attempting to be thoughtful (not using my cell phone inside), I approached a gentleman by the table, explained that I needed to make a call and could I leave my bag there for just a few moments. Well, evidently I have quite a nefarious look to me. He pursed his lips, raised one eyebrow, looked over my bag, then me, then the bag again. Finally, he sighed and said (in that warning tone you use when you know you're allowing your child to do something that he's using as a ruse to do something else), " Alright."

At first, I was pretty offended. I mean, I could've just started beep-beep-beeping away on my cell phone there in the building. *???* But then, on my way out the door, I was visited by an image that left me laughing far too hard to care:

...a group of five women in denim jumpers and turtlenecks (it was chilly today), walk into the book sale. They act nonchalant, gathering scads of books, and head for the tally table. Then one distracts the library helpers and the other four bolt for the door, flinging themselves and their ill-gotten gain into the open side door of a waiting mini-van. Limbs akimbo they tumble as the door shuts, soft rock blaring from the windows, the van burns rubber pulling away from the sale, and amidst the din, the fifth lady quietly slips out the back door.

Dine 'n Dash is for the young, the uninitiated. Real delinquent joy happens in a well-orchestrated Book 'n Bolt!

Anyway, Smidge was up when I called, so I grabbed the guys and we had a wonderful time. We spent $17 ($8 of that was my pile from the first stop), brought home a vast and wonderful array of books (to fill the shelves we haven't yet built), and enjoyed the afternoon tremendously.

So ends our first ever Friends of the Library sale! Happy reading!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Another CWS Friday

I love it when Zorak is home, and we can share the adventures and steps the boys take. Every day has them, although not all are grand or obvious. You have to really be parenting to catch them. They are worth the effort.

Today was lovely: stories, jerked beef, and tremendous castles dominated our morning. I finished a book while putting Jacob down for a nap. Zorak and the boys built the Tower of Babel on the coffee table.

John delighted in showing me how the little Lego people fell from the top.

James happily announced that they'd done it by all working together.

In the afternoon, I slipped out for a luxurious hour and a half to myself, perusing the library shelves for unfound treasures, and then I paid some unsuspecting soul to trim this unwieldly mane that emanates from my head.

Zorak regaled the boys with stories and adventures while I was gone. They set up a target in the backyard and sighted in their bb gun. When I returned, they showed me how well they all did (each shot was circled and labled according to shooter), each boy glowing with the joy of success, and the thrill of adventure. They are so proud of how well they followed the rules, and each repeated all the safety rules to me. Jacob had his own little observation bench set up, far behind the action, where he cheered each brother on. It was good Zorak/larvae bonding time.

Tonight the boys are treating me to supper. They're fixing salmon cakes and a salad. James just came running in, leaping with joy and giggling from his toes, "Mama! Mama! I got to break the raw egg into the bowl!" This has been quite a week for him- yesterday he got to place the order at Taco Bell, and both he and John trekked to the bathroom all by themselves. They're both feeling quite successful at this whole "growing up" thing. It's the little steps, the small rites of passage, that they recognize and savor. For the boys, these moments are filled with unadulterated joy. For Zorak and I, they are pleasing, beautiful, and bittersweet.

Life is like that, really- pleasing, beautiful and bittersweet. It's up to us to decide in what measure.

I'm off to enjoy my guys! Kiss those babies, and have a wonderful Friday night!
Dy

Some Days Are Just Plain "Good"

It's a Prepositional Play Day! The boys played most of the day- during math, through reading, and over breakfast. They just had an awful lot of happy childhood going today. It was great.

John built a huge lego fortress, complete with crayon cannonades and an attacking force across the coffee table. He was quite taken into the whole project when announced, "The Pirate Lilliputians are battling the mice!" Huh?!? Did you just say "pirate lilliputians"? "Yep. See, it's a small castle. Only big enough for Lilliputians. And the mice are running the crane over here, see?" I didn't catch much after that, I was laughing too hard. But it was a very cool day.

The boys wrote out their own personal timelines today and began their "family histories". James interviewed me (me being the only one present at the moment). He was tickled to learn that his grandfather was a "Jr.", and somewhat unsettled that his grandmother didn't have a middle name (no, not even an initial). My favorite part, though, was navigating the question, "What is your favorite memory?" I pondered my childhood memories, digging for a truly impressive one, when he said, "No, not just childhood. Your favorite of all time!" Oh, well, that's a toughie to pick just one... "I know!" He said, "You have three! No. Wait! You have four!" Oh yeah? Do you know what they are? "Yes," he said. "The day you married Dad, and when you had me, John and Jacob." Yeah, you're right. Those are four of my favorite memories. I'm glad he knows that, though.

They both wanted to do math "where Jacob can't reach," so they worked at the dining room table while I made a loaf of bread. The new schedule has been sadly neglected due to all the upheaval (in the form of trips to the courthouse, calls with the realtors, going out of town- that sort of thing can really mess with even the best-laid schedule.) They don't seem terribly scarred over it, though, which is handy.

We read and read and read. This has been a good week for reading. When I needed to make supper, James took over the reading of Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. It's difficult to understand him through his laughter, but it's such a joy have that in our home. Good stuff.

****

Bible Study was tonight. I do like the small groups. The comaraderie is nice. The boys were well-behaved. (Did I tell y'all about talking with the hosts? Things are working out beautifully!) The older two have a blast with the other children and Smidge floats from room to room, looking very busy, but not making much distance with those stubby little legs of his. He lost his cookie to one little girl tonight and came crying to me... one painfully slow step at a time. By the time he got to me, he'd forgotten entirely that he was upset, and everyone else had a good chuckle out of watching the whole process. Snuggles and a beso and he was off again, no worse for the wear!

Zorak made it through Bible study tonight without writhing in pain or spewing foam all over their carpet (real live threats he made on the way there). We both nearly lost it in a fit of supressed laughter, though, upon reading Psalm 1:1. I wasn't quite prepared for the translation in my Bible. You see, I'm accustomed to reading Psalm 1 in King James Version, "Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful." But my current Bible (NIV) says at the last line, "or sit in the seat of mockers." It's the "seat of mockers" bit that got us started. The tagline in our house is, "Are you mocking me?" (The appropriate response to this query is, of course, "Duh," or possibly, "Ya think?") Zorak got it under control better than I did. I had to go get coffee to regain my composure. But in all, it was a very nice evening.

****

On a completely unrelated note, may I add that WAITING IS NOT MY STRONG SUIT! (Although, by now, you'd think I'd be much better at it. But no. I'm not. Shocker, I know.) Thank you for listening.

****

But now, the boys are snuggled in and dreaming peacefully, the kitchen is tidied, the wash is done. It's time to curl up and finish The Reverse of the Medal (which is, for those in the know, absolutely killing me! But it's soooo good!) and then Zorak and I are going to read more of Rand's Atlas Shrugged. (Yes, again with reading books in the wrong order. This was all they had available. It's good so far, although I am ashamed to admit I never read this earlier. *sheepish grin*)

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Well, that was interesting! :-)

Zorak had to go back out of town this week for work. If they hadn't been able to get down to bid'ness (sorry, just had to say it like that) yesterday (Monday), the next day for the project would have been Friday. SO, since Lady Luck has not been present for much of this project, the boys and I tagged along, blatantly hoping for a really worthless Monday and a lovely week on the seaside (you know, in a town that actually wants tourists) with Zorak.

*snort* That so didn't work. Monday's weather was fine and fair (as evidenced out the hotel windows). The work was completed without a hitch.

Well, that's okay, we can head out early Tuesday morning, spend the morning down at the beach and then head home, Zorak and I conversing with one another in relatively uninterrupted sentences, while three exhausted, happy children snoozed in the backseat!

*snort* That also so didn't work. Not just a severe storm warning (as evidenced by The Nothing that moved overhead at a frightening pace), but there were actual tornado reports! Um, we're scrappin' the beach trip, boys, and headin' North!

Ah, well, let's stop and get a bite to eat in one of the little towns just north of here and... (you see where this is going, right?)

In the end, we made it. Zorak got his work done. The boys and I read a ton of books in the hotel room. They played the piano in the lobby. We watched a little (whisper it with me now) cable TV. We had no encounters with tornados. We thoroughly enjoyed our food when we finally found a restaurant! And the boys, while nowhere near "quiet", enjoyed talking back and forth, making a gazillion observations, asking questions mankind has yet to answer, and nodding off in shifts (lest Zorak and I get lonely without their verbal presence).

Yes, in the end, it was a very nice family trip! And it's good to be back.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

Who Knew?

Zorak knows WAY more about Men At Work (the band, not some random gathering of male union workers) than I thought possible.

He says, "Of course. This is the 80's. Big stuff."

Oh. Of course.

I love that man!

Dy

It's Alive!

Zorak (My Hero!) revived the long-dead carpet cleaner. And boy, HOWDY! I've steamed the living room (twice) and the dining room (twice) and the bottom 2/3 of the stairs (then I started to get a little scared about hauling the thing onto the stairs, or tempting gravity by putting it at the top... with a toddler in the house). The carpet is still nowhere near "white", as it were, but it's relatively clean and the parts that are not clean-looking are actually just very clean stains. I'm ok with that, as it's a huge improvement from the previous condition of the house. I tell you, the carpet had begun to actually absorb light!

Great day making up songs to go along with the stories we read. Read one book in Pig Latin. Yes, aloud. I know.

Wonderful Neighbors had given us a hunk of venison a while back, so today we thawed it, cut it into steaks and ate until we were about to pop. Then I took one more bite (it's just a thin mint...) ugh. Should not have done that, but I hate to see good meat go to waste.

Oh, and anybody know why the WTM boards are down? Zorak responded yesterday to a post on the History of Weaponry, and when he tried to post it- the whole board was gone! (I told him he broke it, but he thinks I'm making that up. Moi?)

I am too tired to blog anymore. We head out for an adventure tomorrow, and the house must be spotless before we go. In that tone, I am going to bed!

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

New Adventures

Smidge had his first solo outing today. The Wonderful Neighbors came over for an afternoon of crafting and Ancient Greece. When all the Daddies were home and it was time for the Wonderful Neighbors to head back to their place, Smidge was absolutely distraught. He stepped to the threshold, waving and crying. Then he put one tenative toe over the line and waited for the "engh" noise Mommy makes (it means "no", and works on children and dogs). I decided I'd like to see what he was going to do, so I didn't stop him.

Well, the little happy explorer just took off after Wonderful Neighbor, his little stubby legs going for all they were worth to catch up with her. She laughed and asked if he was coming for a visit. Smidge said, "Yep," smiled, and waved to me over his shoulder as he scampered down the sidewalk! Wonderful Neighbor said she'd bring him back in a few minutes and asked if she could give him a snack.

I honestly expected that at some point that he'd realize we weren't coming with him and he'd come back, but no. He toddled all the way to the WN's house and straight in for chips and some juice. When she brought him back a few minutes later, he was happy as a clam. She said he played with the girls and ate a bit. She asked him if he was ready to go home and he said no, so she let him play a little more. In a few minutes she asked if he'd like to go home and he said yes and headed straight for the door.

Reason #386 why we love our Wonderful Neighbors.

And Jacob is growing up so quickly. He is happy, friendly, loving, obedient, and cheerful. We are so blessed.

Kiss those babies~ they won't be babies forever!
~Dy

What? Do More!?!

Sometimes we are asked to do more than we are doing now, or ever have done before.

That's not always fun.
Or easy.
Sometimes it is.
And that's nice.
But it can still be scary.

The question I beg, though, is how do you rise to the challenge?

This isn't about taking on more than you can handle or schedule. This isn't about trying to be everything to everyone. This is about reaching deeper inside yourself and finding the strength to do far more than you thought possible, when you are truly called upon to do just that. It's something that would benefit society greatly if more of us would do it on a regular basis.

Running is an often-used analogy for this concept. Sarah knows the feeling of running those extra few miles, reaching deeper than the burn in your lungs and coming out with an accomplishment well-earned. She has done that with her children, as well, burrowing deeper and harder to uncover just the thing her children will need, no matter how exhausting it is, or how often she wants to run screaming from the room. She keeps digging.

My wonderful friend, Melissa, has plumbed the depths of her heart, strength and humor to keep her home running smoothly while her husband is often gone, working hard. If you'd asked her fifteen years ago, "could you do it?" She'd have probably looked at you wonky and snorted before she said, "No way!" But here she is today, rich in humor, hope, strength and love, pulling it off. And yes, again with the desire to run screaming from the house on occasion. But that's not the point.

I could go on, listing examples of women who, when asked to Do More for their homes, their families, their countries and their faiths, have taken that slow, scary deep breath... and done it. I'm so fortunate to be acquainted with a great many women who have willingly and wholeheartedly Done More.

Most of the time, Zorak doesn't ask me to do much more than our original agreement (love, honor, bleach the whites). Granted, the boundaries are somewhat fluid, shifting back and forth as circumstances necessitate, but for the most part I've always known what he needed and what I could do. Sometimes I've failed him when he needed the basics. Sometimes I've been able to Do More for him than even he expected. It's not easier to Do More, but it's much better for everyone that way.

I do feel that God, on the other hand, has often glanced at me sideways and whispered, "I need a little more from you, Dy." This comes in subtle ways, such as unemployment or illness or some other upheaval which I cannot control. It comes in obvious ways, such as the daily commitment to do the best by each of the boys, to lift them up and show them the world around them through the eyes of beauty.

I can't think of any specific way to identify when you're being asked to Do More, but if you'll listen and pay attention, then you will know. It's not what you think you can do, it's deeper. And so worth it.

So, all this to say, it's time to Do More here. I'm bracing for it. It'll be good, but I'm sure I'll keep a clear path to the door for when I hit that running-screaming stage. I'm in good company, and want to thank each of you ladies for Doing More, and for doing it with humor and grace and style. Thank you for setting that example and being an encouragement.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy

It all happens so quickly...

Evidently, it happens so quickly that I don't have time to type it in before the thing posts. That was weird. So, I'm reposting this and editing in the text that was meant to be there in the first place.

We heard back on the rodent-infested repo of our dreams, and we did not get it. Evidently somebody else wanted it v-e-r-y much. Now, before you offer your sympathies, let me explain that this is actually very good news. Yes, good news. See, I told you it all happens so quickly! Things have changed quite a bit, and all for the good. But first, a little background is probably in order.

Go ahead and get your cup. I'll wait.

Welcome back. :-)

OK, we've been here 15 months now. While "east of Texas" wasn't anywhere on our top 50 list when Zorak neared graduation in the Spring of '03, we landed here, about as far east as we could go without, well, without slipping into the Atlantic. It's been good, for the most part. There has been some culture shock, but we have been so blessed to meet the cream of the crop here and have enjoyed our friendships tremendously. Zorak's job is wonderful, and he loves his boss, his team, and his job. We have a phenomenal church home (red robes or not), and will soon have our tags for the Suburban paid off. Things are good.

But it's just... not... us.

The biggest issue is the housing market. Had we arrived a year earlier, we'd have been able to purchase a modest home for our brood without being house poor. But we didn't. And we have watched the prices continue to rise without showing any signs of ebbing. It is quite depressing for Zorak to know he spent four years with his nose to the grindstone, accumulating tremendous debt, so that he can uproot from family and support and still not be able to provide a permanent home for his family. This is not due to any lack on his part, but that doesn't lessen the blow. So, there's that.

Then there is just the lifestyle, the "us" of it all. We hunt, we hike. We love archery and elbow room. We have heated debates about the best action for a .260, and whether the ultimate sidearm is a pistol or a revolver. We both dream of the day we can hunt together again. We think a city with a population of 20,000 counts as "the big city", and it's too big for us. We prefer rodeos and live country music to steamed crab and rap. I'm not bashing any lifestyle, just saying that ours is, well, different.

So, Zorak has kept his name in the hat for positions in places that are more in-line with our lifestyle (and our budget!) Every couple of months, we've perused the realty sites for places like Huntsville, AL and Idaho Falls, ID... Ogden, UT and Amarillo, TX. Like Zorak said, "If I've worked this hard and still can't even afford a run-down double wide, it's time to leave!" He's right. And we've been actively looking to either break into the housing market here (which would have allowed us to keep from drowning in the ever-increasing rent and make some headway with our dreams), or find him a job elsewhere.

Well, we can't relocate the chickens before they hatch, but he's been contacted by a gentleman in Huntsville, who would like to interview him. We won't know more for another few weeks (2-3, at the earliest), but Zorak spoke with the gentleman today and it does look promising. I hope to be blogging from Alabama by this summer.

So, you see, it's a very good thing that we didn't win the bid on the house.

And it does all happen so quickly.

Kiss those babies!
~Dy