seven

Approximately 5 years ago is when I started pleading with the Lord to help me keep Buster alive. You could say he is a boy who knows how to find trouble, but the truth is I think trouble knows how to find him. I knew I was going to need a few extra-watchful angels for this boy.

I haven't been let down. Last week my Buster turned 7! With both arms and both legs in-tact! It was a day of celebration.

It began with presents and a breakfast out with Dad. He spent the morning helping Spouse with a Boy Scout service project and then he got home just in time to get ready for his birthday party.




A party it was - a bike rally! The children arrived and spent some time decorating their bikes with balloons, streamers and glittery garland. Then we rode over to a neighborhood basketball court for some relay races, obstacle courses and slow-races (have you ever tried to win a race by going the slowest, in a straight line, on a bike? It's hard!).

We were quite a festive scene biking back to the park for ice cream sundaes and presents. I wish I would have gotten a picture of the pack of bikes parked with all their balloons and decorations - it was a happy sight!

The last activity was a bicycle treasure hunt. The clues were hidden all around the neighborhood - the loop was about a mile - and then they discovered their treasure, bike horns! Sorry parents; they were so fun, even if they are obnoxiously loud.





Later Buster enjoyed his birthday cinnamon rolls and his final birthday wish: watching Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

Many of you know Buster and know what a happy, cheerful child he is. He is affectionate and earnest and creative. His death defying events are slowing pace and I'm almost tempted to stop praying for help to keep him alive. Almost. Next year at this time if he hasn't fallen in a canal or gotten lost or driven a go cart down a mountain I think I will begin to relax.

carrots

Hello friends! Sorry for the long blogging break. I am alive and we are well. There's lots to catch up on. But for now I'm dying to tell you about our carrots.

Carrots! We have hundreds of them! They are sweet and crunchy and just perfect.

Last September I spread some manure over our garden plot and a few days later #3 dumped a couple packages of carrot seeds around. We watered fairly regularly for a couple of months and then got lazy. Friends, these carrots have not been watered since November! We did have a few days of rain in early December, so I'm sure that is what saved them.

I kept expecting to see the tops wilt and die but they just kept growing and growing.

And here they are: orange, lovely, delicious carrots.


I know there are true gardeners out there who are shrugging their shoulders thinking so what? I'm pretty new at this growing-a-garden thing and every time I eat something that grew next to my house I am totally amazed. In fact, I don't know if I'll ever stop being amazed that you can put a tiny little speck into the ground and it becomes something nourishing and delicious.





If you're interested, this is how I served up about a pound of our carrots.

Cook carrots in boiling salt water for a few minutes until tender. Drain and set aside.

In same saucepan over med heat add 1-2 Tbs butter, 1-2 Tbs brown sugar and a dash of salt, stirring until well combined. Add carrots and allow to glaze over heat for a couple of minutes. Sprinkle with dill.



ps I just noticed that my photo on the sidebar has been mysteriously changed. Spouse? You sneak!

Tidings of Great Joy

Every year at Christmas I worry that my children will hear the racket of the world screaming of consumerism more than they'll hear the subtle stirrings of the spirit. I worry that they won't get it, what Christmas is really about.

But I have some reasons to hope:

1) In her yearly attempt to make sense of Santa #1 deduced, "There really is only one person who loves everyone in the world and who is really watching what we are all saying and doing. There is only one person who wants to give everyone a gift. Heavenly Father must be Santa!"

2) After I became impatient and expressed a few graceless and less than loving expressions, #2 approached me, and without a trace of self-righteousness, sincerely pleaded with me, "But mom, now is the time for good cheer and happiness and love!"

3) #3 asks to read "The Nativity Story" almost every night and is often re-enacting the narrative with toys or drawings she's made. Yesterday I asked her to do it one more time so I could capture it as she tells the story in her own words.




Merry Christmas!

We've got spirit! Yes, we do! The Christmas kind. Do you?

'Tis the season to be jolly because Baby, it's cold outside and I'm seriously dreaming of a white Christmas.

How Christmassy are you? Take my Christmas quiz to see if you are more of an Ebenezer Scrooge or a Clark Griswold.

Check your answers after each section then leave your final score in the comments. And no Googling, cheaters!


Christmas in the Movies

1. In “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” what does Lucy want for Christmas?

2. Where does “It’s a Wonderful Life,” take place?

3. What is the little boy’s name who stayed home in the movie Home Alone?

4. What was the most likely reason that the Grinch hated Christmas?

5. At the beginning of “It’s a Wonderful Life,” what book is Clarence reading?


1. real estate 2. Bedford Falls 3. Kevin 4. his heart was 2 sizes too small 5. Tom Sawyer


Christmas according to the Bible

1. After Joseph, Mary and Jesus left Bethlehem, they went to what country?

2. What is the translation of Emmanuel?

3. What is the name of the angel that appeared to Mary?

4. What was the name of the old prophetess who saw Jesus in the temple when he was presented to the Lord after his birth?

5. How many wise men come to see the Savior?


1. Egypt 2. God with us 3. Gabriel 4. Anna 5. the Bible never says a number



Christmas in Literature

1. What is Scrooge’s first name?

2. How many ghosts visit Scrooge in the course of “A Christmas Carol”?

3. In “Little Women” who says, “Christmas won’t be Christmas without any presents” ?

4. In “The Best Christmas Pageant Ever,” Gladys Herdman pushed her way to the front of the angel choir and shouted these famous words: “Hey! __ __ __ ___ ___ ___!” (6 words)

5. Complete the line from “Twas the Night Before Christmas.” “More rapid than ____ his coursers they came and he ___ and shouted and called them by name.”


1. Ebenezer 2. 4 3. Jo March 4. Unto you a child is born! 5. eagles, whistled


Historical Christmas

1. What river did General Washington cross on December 25, 1776?

2. What Christmas treat is a round or oval candy filled with fruit preserves or cream and covered with chocolate?

3. In which country was eggnog created?

4. In which country did the custom of having and decorating a Christmas tree originate?

5. A copywriter for which major department store in 1939 wrote the first poem about Rudolph, the 9th reindeer?

1. The Delware 2. sugarplums 3. England 4. Germany 5. Montgomery Ward



20-25 correct - You are a serious lover of Christmas, welcome to the club! You are in the ranks with fellow Christmas die-hards, Cindy Lou Who, Ralphie Parker and Santa Claus himself.

10-20 correct - You love Christmas too!

5-10 correct - Don't be ashamed, some of these questions were hard!

>5 correct - Yikes, you're in trouble! Don't be surprised if you get kicked out of Who-ville for your Grinchy ways.

Giblert Days Fun Run

Two days post-Thanksgiving feasting, (and still feasting!) my body is begging for some exercise and to slow down on the butter. Maybe now is a good time to post about healthier days!


Last month I mentioned to my kids that it was time to register for the Gilbert Days Family Fun Run and asked if they would be interested in participating again this year. The answer was yes!

A week ago yesterday was the big day. All three ran their hearts out and crossed the finish line with big smiles and their chins up.




Here is the Buster, who shaved almost two minutes from his time last year. What a champ! I think next year I'll run the 5K with him and see if I can keep up!



Next in, #3. I ran along side her and expected any minute for her to need a walking break, but it never happened. She plowed through the whole mile barely breaking a sweat. And yes, she most definitely is running in a skirt. What else would you expect from her?



Poor #1 had to learn a lesson on pacing the hard way. She shot out of the starting line at a full sprint and kept sprinting until she was out of breath and needed to walk in order to recover. After that she kept up a nice even pace and came in about 15 seconds after #3. I was so proud of her for persevering and pushing it until the end!




I'm loving our Gilbert Days Family Fun Run tradition. As I tried to convince Spouse to run it with us, he aptly pointed out that we needed him not to run so there was someone on camera duty at the finish line. Hmm. Good point.

Familial visits!

A week ago I happily hosted my Texas-inhabiting sister, Jess, and her daughter for the weekend. They arrived just in time to help #1 blow out her birthday candles (more on that later).

Although we did walk over to the local bouncy-place and then to ice-cream, we mostly stayed close to home where the kids could ride bikes outside or throw pretend surprise birthday parties inside. Jess and I talked. And talked. And talked.

I think Jess and I could live right next door to each other for the rest of our lives and always have something interesting to talk about.

That's mostly because Jess is a thinking, compassionate soul who notices and analyzes the world and it's people. Plus she's a great listener and just when I think I shouldn't say any more because I've already hogged the conversation too much, she wants to know my opinion about something else.

Photographic evidence:



Saturday we overdressed for #2's football game. By the 2nd half we were all sweating! I thought I'd try to get a good picture of #1 and her cousin, but #3 felt left out and, as you see, I never got that good picture.



#2 LOVES his cousin. He told her so in his sincere, straightforward way.


Not only is she an amazing sister, Jess is also an amazing aunt. She was patient and loving with my children, even though she saw the dark side of them when it was way past their bed times or too early in the morning.







As I mentioned earlier there was a birthday last week.


Quick! Let's play Two Truths and a Lie!


#1 is nine.

#1 is nine.

I'm not getting older.




Happy Birthday to my beautiful, book reading, Lego building, cartoon drawing baby!

Evidence of sweetness

Life moves at a pretty brisk pace these days. Children included, we are all working hard and focused on what needs to be done.

It's all too easy to let time fly by me without pausing to enjoy the sweetness of this stage of our life.

Last week there were three moments that caused me to stop and smile and taste the sweetness.

1
Sitting with friends at the park #3 overheard me compliment my friend for always being so prepared. My praise included me telling her that she was "the best mom." A moment later, #3 put her face near my ear and whispered, "But I thought you were the best mom."



2
Way past the time I thought she had been asleep, #1 came bursting out of her room, ran into my room and jumped into bed next to me. She has never had an easy time expressing or admitting her feelings and it took her a while to explain that she had just read a sad part in her book (Dobby's death in Harry Potter, part 7) and just needed to be with someone while she felt so sad.



3
Our kids are very protective of their turns. When it was #2's turn to choose the song before evening family prayers, he generously (and unprompted) gave his turn over to his sister, #1 to let her pick.





These are tiny, almost insignificant moments. But added together, if I pay attention, they are the stuff that changes my job from a chore to blessing.