Virtual Life Catching up with Real...

... life, that is.

So, things around the Nut-House have been rather....uh...... nutty lately.

A few weeks ago, our realtor-friend called and asked if he could show our house to one of his clients.

Are we officially trying to sell our home?

Um, no.

But we are always up for insanity change, and so we agreed. (but it's never that easy, is it? Oh no, lets leave out the fact that I found out about this "showing" while at a friend's home 30 min away. I had approximately 40 min to clean once I got home, and when I opened the door, the house looked like some huge tornadic activity had occurred... just my children, that's all. ergh.)

Of course, they loved our home. And, though nothing is in writing, it seems our house is the house for them.

Huh?

Ooooookay, I think.

That's....
actually....
great!

I mean, we've tried to sell our house a few times before, and nothing. Nada. Zilch. In this housing market, it's good to sell your house so quickly. In fact, it's pretty much unheard-of.

And, so, I am very grateful. And still praying like crazy that it comes through. (saying the St. Joseph Novena prayer 9 times a day for 9 days does count for 9 novenas, right? thought so.)

But then what? We have been perusing the real estate web sites and have found nothing. Nada. Zilch.

Lovely.

And our realtor-friend is just as thrilled. Took us a year to find our current house. He just looooooves finding a home for us. Poor man.

:)

So, pray, my holy friends. Pray that this deal goes through. Pray that we find the perfect home for us. It doesn't have to be right away. We may just have to spend some time in beautiful Colorado with my folks, homeschooling to the backdrop of mountain vistas... (rough life, I know)

Pray for my peace of mind. God is definitely in control. I never would have seen this coming. He has a plan, and I'm trying not to freak out too much...

Thanks!

You asked for it...

Because of the lackluster participation in my previous post, y'all will now be forced to listen to BNL every time you click on my blog.

Every. Single. Time.

Mwhahahahaha.

Oh.

Unless you turn your sound down first.

(darn)

Anyway, I promise to force only the tame stuff down your throats. You can't dance while reading blogs, now, can you?

:)

Sorry, I can't help it....

But.

Mah goodness. Who ever thought being a nerdy rock star could look so good?

Except, of course, if it were DH. But he's not nerdy, or a rock star.... hmmmm.

Anyhoo... I just Love the way his wedding ring is so visible. A true family man.

:)

(Btw. That's Steven Page of Barenaked Ladies... yes, the one that smiled at me. Too bad he's so darn liberal.)



eta: As Elaine pointed out in the comments, Yes, I do believe he is pouring that glass of wine just. for. me.

:)

The Loveliness of the Seashore

I grew up by the ocean. Summertime for me meant early morning trips to Jones Beach, the crisp air blowing off the ocean contrasting with the heat on my face from the bright sun and the burning on my feet from the hot sand.

The sound of the waves crashing would mingle in harmony with the cry of the seagulls. I loved the beach in the morning. At 8am, there would be no one there but us.

And being an only child at the time, I had free reign over the pails and shovels. I would work quietly and diligently, creating my castles, and searching for treasures to use for decoration.

My parents have many stories about me from those beach days: The time I almost got swept away by an errant wave. (*lesson learned, NEVER stand with your back to the ocean) The time they lost me because I had followed the tracks of a dune buggy along the length of the shore. I would trudge along, head down, intently squishing the hard tracks of sand with my feet. I can still feel the sand crunching between my toes.

And now, residing here in North Texas, my family is hopelessly land-locked. We have available to us many man-made lakes and chlorinated pools. Sun and water will always be a favorite in our family. A perfect combination, meant to be ~since Time began.

But.

Whenever we get the chance, whether it be the warm Atlantic, or the mighty Pacific, we head to the ocean. To hear the gulls and feel the sun and savor the sand.

And listen to the laughter of our children above all...

:)

Happy 7th, My Darling Daughter!

Excuse us as we do all things girlie today....
















Isn't it amazing... look how grown up she is!
















:)

Upon noticing...

...the extra attention showered on a feverish Little Boo:

Little Love: (quite indignantly) Hey, I have a beaver too!




















:)

So, should I change my name?

Your Hippie Chick Name Is:

Timber

Hippie Chick Name Generator

Your Rapper Name Is...

L.A. Boogie

What's Your Rapper Name?

What do you think?

:)



(aka L.A. Boogie)

Removing the slivers from our feet...

The slivers from all of the eggshells we've been stepping on lately, that is.

Action Man has completed his week of intense therapy for his dyslexia. And what a week it has been.

DH would drop him off every morning at 8:30am and the kids and I would pick him up at 3pm. In between those two times, Action Man would be one-on-one with his teacher, learning how to:

~anchor his minds' eye.

~control his energy dial

~form letters properly by doing all of them in clay first, then writing them. Perfectly. On the first try.

~learn certain vocabulary words that have meant nothing to him, like cause and effect, before and after, consequence and responsibility... by creating pictures out of clay, forming the word itself out of clay, then spelling it forwards and backwards. And remembering it all. The definition and the spelling. Perfectly.

~these vocab words are done to help the dyslexic child "see" how their actions affect others. This has been hard for Action Man, but the concept has been introduced, and we have already noticed some progress in this area.

But it has taken it's toll.

On him, and us.

By Tuesday afternoon, the little man was so exhausted, he had a bit of a meltdown. I knew he was tired, and so I just talked him through it, as patiently and rationally as I could. It took all of my strength to combat the irritation, anger, and frustration that was welling up in me. Especially after his statements that his newly-taught methods "don't work" and his teacher is "wrong" etc. (after all that money? I thought... they better work!)

Wednesday evening, he started down the same path. I looked him in the eye and told him to cut the crap. (sometimes I am such a sympathetic, nurturing mother, don'tyathink?) I told him we had already discussed all of his concerns the night before, and that I was going out with a friend and he needed to get in bed.

Thursday afternoon was the choking incident at our friend's pool. Lovely, eh? To be fair, the little friend was being rather nasty, and Action Man will only take so much before he lashes out. But, obviously, choking his friend was a bit of an overreaction. Hence the phone call that evening. (and he was hauled out of the pool and we went home, pronto.)

Friday morning, I drove him to his teacher and stayed to receive some training myself. You see, this is not just a one week crash course, but an extensive on-going re-training of his mind. Obviously, this takes time, and his teacher doesn't need to be there for all of it, but she sets the ground work so that the rest can be accomplished. I learned how to do his "koosh ball" exercise, and his vocabulary "trigger" words... the words he needs to look up and create and spell in clay. He has 219 of these words to do. On top of that, she will take him for two more days in September to do the Math part of it.

Did I mention it was intense?

But, it is worth it.

As soon as we came home Friday morning, Little Love was all over me and wanted to go outside and have me hold her hand... etc. But DH and I needed to chat, so I turned to Action Man and asked if he could hold Little Love's hand and take her outside. He said; "Oh, sure." And did. Very lovingly. And lately, he's been able to play with the girls and not get angry unnecessarily. In fact, there are many times when someone says something and I glance at him, certain that he will flare up in indignation... only to see him calmly sitting, energy dial on the proper setting, enjoying the banter.

Picking the slivers out, yes. But slowly.

We still have a long way to go.

:)

Reconciliation...

... between two boys, (friends since the age of one) now at the mature age of 9:
(names excluded to protect the not-so-innocent)


Dude#1: Hey, Dude #2, sorry for what happened today.

Dude #2: That's ok.

Dude #1: But, wait, Dude #2... sorry I choked you.

Dude #2: That's ok!

Dude #1: Um, I don't really know what to say. But... how about we make a bow and arrow?

Dude #2: Oh, yeah!

Dude #1: OK, listen. You make the arrowhead, and I'll make the bow...

(Mama leaves, heartened that their unique friendship may actually survive this storm)

:)

My Homeschool

Well, there's been a bit of excitement around the Nut House these past few days.

And I almost had to change my "about me" blurb, because it seemed that "me" was about to be drastically changed.


But, never fear. Common sense and logical thinking prevailed, as it usually does when DH is at the helm and I'm running around deck like a chicken with my head cut off.

OK, enough metaphors.

In short, I was offered a teaching job at the school I eventually want my kids to go to. It included a very sweet tuition deal for all of my children, plus a small salary.*

And my world got turned upside-down and inside-out in a matter of minutes.

Why? You may ask. Aren't you a HOMEschooler? As in, you teach your children at home, and all schools are the devil?

Well, yes and no.

Yes, I teach my children at home. And I enroll them in the local rec classes and they will be playing on this certain school's soccer team this fall. So, no, all schools are not the devil.

In fact, our "plan" (ha ha) is to eventually have all of the children at this school. It is such a wonderful environment, with truly good Catholic families and caring teachers. As perfect as you can get, this side of heaven.

In our particular case, though, enrolling all of my kids at once and taking on an entire classroom myself, would amount to nothing less than sanity-suicide. In short, I think I would be stretching myself way too thin.

I felt a bit disappointed in my obvious lack of an adventurous spirit. I mean, to teach part time and have all of my kids at the same school! Wow! What a change.

But, it would have gotten really old. Really fast. Like, maybe right after we walk through the doors on the very first day and everyone has a meltdown and starts clinging to my legs...


Our transition to school will be much more gradual, God-willing. And it won't be this fall.

Whew.



*Those "in town" friends who read this, PLEASE keep this info private. Not meant to be spread around the community, thanks!*

New Photos...

... on our Flickr badge. Yesterday was the baptism of our second new godchild this year, Lucy Agnes. She is such a beautiful little angel!

And of course, I got to hold her during the after-party.

DH just smiled knowingly at me as he ushered our kiddos to the buffet table...

:)

Enjoy!

The Uniform

This is the outfit that Little Love requests to wear every. single. day.

In fact, it's the only outfit that will change her grumpy morning face into a smile, and her passive-resistant body into a bundle of energy and purpose.

Yes, she wears it all day.

Yes, she wears it to the store, library and pool. (with swimsuit underneath)

And yes, everyone thinks she is the cutest thing, just like I do.

:)

Boy vs. Wild

There is an awesome show on the Discovery Channel called Man vs. Wild. We discovered this show while staying at a Best Western in Ottawa, Kansas on our way home from Wisconsin.

The premise of the show is that the host, Bear Grylls, is dropped in some remote location (like the Australian Outback) with just a water bottle and a knife. He then tells you how to make it out alive.

All of my boys just love it. Yes, even (and maybe most especially) my DH.

As the oldest of 6, and having only one brother, I am just not used to all things boy. But, with my two oldest children being boys, I have been indoctrinated pretty quickly.

When they were little, I knew the name of every piece of machinery that crawled the earth. Unlike some of my mom friends who called every big yellow truck a "digger," I knew the difference between a front loader, a back-hoe loader and an excavator. I knew what a scraper and a grader were, and that big contraption? Clearly it was an asphalt distributer.

Now that the boys are 7 & 9, their interests are more personalized. It is not that they have completely lost interests in machines. It's just that the machines have become more compact, and maybe even a bit more dangerous. And they definitely have more to do with preservation and survival.

And, thanks to my DH and cool websites like Toy Arsenal, my boys are fully equipped. (Thank goodness it's DH and not me that has to deal with these things...)

And so, a peek into my boys' wonderful, danger-filled life:








God bless my wonderful little men...

May they be as unwavering in their defense of Truth!


Go visit Monica, the host of this raucous affair.

:)

Kindred Spirits at the Farm

When we were packing to go to the farm, I decided to bring my stove top espresso maker. I thought long and hard about it. I figured I would stick out in the mornings with my "froofy coffee" as DH calls it, but I also figured I'd need that extra kick in the mornings after late nights of chatting while sipping Joe's concoctions, or playing quarters... (ooooh, did I just say that?)

(A-hem)

And so, I received my share of ribbing, but was glad to hear that even "Farmer" indulges in lattes from time to time. And he will be able to use my "shipped from Italy" espresso that I brought for them to enjoy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The morning of my dinner night (we each took a turn making dinner for the crowd) I popped a BNL cd into the portable cd player we had brought for the trip, and started be-bopping around the kitchen prepping the short ribs. (Yes, I hiked up 30 stairs to the attic to get the player, then another 50 yards to the car to get the cd.... y'all know I'm a die hard fan by now) One of the Johnson sisters came in and groaned:
"Not you, too!"
"What?" I asked.
Turns out her husband is hooked on BNL. And when he got home from work that night, I asked him about it. His assessment was this:
"They're hilarious, and what's so great about them is that their humor is very intellectual."
Yes. Someone else gets it, too.

:)

One More Time...

OK, I've been tagged for yet another meme!

I'm happy to do it, don't get me wrong. But then I'm declaring a moratorium on memes for this blogger for awhile.

Capisci?

Good.

:)

8 Things About Me and DH... A Meme.


1. We met in college, our freshman year. I was 19, and had spent one year at a different *shudder* school. (I am thoroughly ready to believe it is better now... but when I was there, it was awful. period.) He was 20 and had spent the two years after high school making money as a furniture delivery guy for a warehouse store.

2. He is from Vancouver, Canada. I am from upstate NY. Odds were against us on the "meeting each other" spectrum of life. Isn't God wonderful?

3. I am ashamed to say that when he introduced himself as being from British Columbia, I thought he was from England. Good old public school Geography! The summer after I met him, I worked in a children's boutique and brushed up on my Canadian geography. (thanks to an early Leap Frog "computer") By the end of the summer, I was able to name all Provinces and Territories and capitals...

4. We mutually pursued each other. He has said that if I had played "hard to get" he may have given up. Luckily, I'm just not that way... I may be shy, but I can't be fake.

5. We hung out together on campus a lot. We hung out together off campus a lot. But we were not exclusive about it. Rare were the moments we were alone. And that was fine. I'd say it was actually good for us. We welcomed others into our friendship, and were known as a "funky couple" what with our do-rags and different way of dressing... (someone told me this my junior year... don't know how true it is)

6. He was my best friend in college, and still is to this day. Being of one heart and mind is very important to me, and the fact that we graduated from the same college helps tremendously. Most of the time, he knows where I am coming from intellectually, and in many of our decisions as parents, it makes all the difference.

7. We are both melancholic. Does that make us downers? Not at all. It means we like the same things: sports, music, books, date nights, concerts, kiddos, a good glass of pinot, etc. Our idea of a "good time" can be low key, (movie at home) or high energy (trip to Austin to see BNL) and we both have a great time.

8. DH once said I have aged like a good wine... which I took as a compliment. I feel the same about him. We look so very young in our wedding photo! We are seasoned parents and friends. I can't imagine anything better.


I'm not tagging anyone else with this one. But, please, if you want to do this, consider yourself tagged, and let me know!

:)

Shhhhh... Don't Look Now, But...

I think we may have one tomato this summer!
















YAY!

My Name....

What Nutmeg Means

N is for Nutty U is for Upbeat T is for Tasty M is for Mysterious E is for Exquisite G is for Grungy

What Does Your Name Mean?

Very Bizarre... How about you?

:)

h/t Matilda

Memed again...

...this time by Mrs. Bear.

A Picture of Now, Between Past and Future.

1.a. Describe your outfit.

White sweatpant/capris, dark olive tank top, brown Old Navy flip flops.

b. What associations does the main color invoke?

I guess the main color would be the dark olive. I have always loved this color. It matches my eyes almost perfectly. And while not all shades of green work for me, this is one shade that does.

c. Is there a memory associated with this outfit (or part of it)?

Not really. All the pieces are new to me this summer...

2.a. Are you listening to music?

Um. Yes. The Backyardigans is on Noggin, and 3 of my kids are watching it. They are currently singing "A Message" done to the tune of Ella Fitzgerald's "A Tisket A Tasket"...

b. Was this intentional?

The show, yes. Not the song. Truth be told, I can only take Backyardigans in small doses.

c. What does the music make you remember?

It reminds me of Ella's voice and jazz in general, which I happen to really enjoy. Maybe I need to break out some of those CD's.

3.a. Describe the objects within arms' reach.

Oh boy, this should be interesting. Computer paraphernalia, the May issue of Magnificat, a Spiderman action figure, a baggie of screws, a Handel CD, our phone, a pocket knife, bug spray....

b. Choose one object and tell where you acquired it.

The Spiderman action figure was bought for Sports Fan using his gift card. I was convinced he would end up suffering from buyer's regret, since he had originally wanted to purchase a pirate sword. He spent the whole day telling me how happy he was with his choice.

c. On the whole, are the objects new (memory blanks) or old (memory filled)?

I'd say new. Since most of the computer stuff is new as well...

4.a. What room are you in?

What we call "The Front Room" or our second living room.

b. To what extent is it yours?

Well, we're 6 years in on our 30 year mortgage... :)

c. What kind of memories will you have in the future of this room?

Since we hope to sell in the next year (need! more! space!) hopefully the future will be elsewhere. The memories I hold now are of much playing, rough housing, tent-making, and "walking" newborns 'til the wee hours....

5. What were you doing before starting this post, and what would you like to do next?

I had started dinner and was waiting for the chicken to brown. Since then, we've had dinner and dessert and cleaned up from both. Next, I'd like the nanny to put the kids to bed (HA) and DH and I to have an early evening cocktail and chat.


OK, I'll tag Matilda, Karen, Elizabeth, and Margaret.

Have Fun!

:)

Living With Dyslexia

Remember this post way back here? The one where I begged your help with Math and a 9 year old boy's aversion to the subject?

Remember my comment wherein I flippantly said that maybe Action Man needs to be tested?

Yes, well.

We tested him shortly thereafter and found out that yes-in-deedy Action Man is "dyslexic."

The term is in quotations because his learning disability is not just the switching of letters and numbers. His "gift" is more complicated than that. And by using the word "gift" I am most definitely not being flippant. He does have a gift, and up 'til now it's been amazing. But right now it's driving us (and him) straight to the looney bin. And I can't wait to get him the help he needs.

It turns out that Action Man is a picture thinker. He has this amazing ability to see something (or part of something) and immediately intuit what it is. His mind's eye looks at it from all angles, takes it apart, puts it together, and identifies it, all in a matter of a split second. This has worked great for him, until he encountered two-dimensional objects. If he can't recognize it, his mind flips it around and the end result is confusion and frustration.

And so he becomes disoriented. If he is made to sit still during this, he feels sick to his stomach. (hence the stomach aches during math) Since we homeschool, he ends up moving around quite a bit, distracting himself to avoid the work, the cause of his confusion. He cannot learn his math facts because the relationship between the blocks he is building to solve the problem and the numbers themselves, eludes him completely. He simply cannot see the relationship between the two because the numbers (to him) are never the same.

Furthermore, he is a picture thinker, right? These numbers mean nothing because he cannot associate them with a picture.

This "picture thinking" gift also gives him an amazing imagination.

The pros of this are obvious.

The cons can be excruciatingly painful. When he is bored or confused, he easily slips into another world. And when I try to pull him out, he can barely focus on me. He is so often wrapped up in his own thoughts, that his sense of reality becomes distorted. And this is what has affected the whole family.

No, he is not a danger or extreme threat to others. He just doesn't have an accurate sense of other's feelings or rights. He also doesn't have a proper notion of himself in relation to others around him. For example, up until just recently, we have had to prep him when we are having guests... that he is not to *jump* on them... that they are not coming for his benefit alone.

And this behavioral problem has been the most embarrassing to deal with for us, the parents. Sometimes the things he says and does makes me want to sink into the floor. Other times I have pulled him aside with a "What the heck were you thinking?!?"

But, now I know. I have read these two books. And it all makes perfect sense. All of it.

Action Man is not lazy. He is not inconsiderate. He is not easily distracted. He is a picture-thinker that cannot assimilate into the verbal-thinker's world without some help. July 16th-20th Action Man will go see a woman who is certified in the Davis Method to help him understand letters, words and numbers. To help him "see" them and reproduce them properly. He will be able to "orient" himself and therefore view the world around him as it should be. He will be able to sit still and concentrate on the task at hand.

And I will be on cloud nine.

:)

Conversation: Little Boo Style

As we were resting on my bed this evening, Little Boo rolled over and patted my stomach...

Little Boo: Maybe next time you have a baby in your tummy and grow fat and get it out, you can name her Rainbow.

Mama: Rainbow?

Little Boo: Oh! I have the bestest name. How about Sunny? Or Flower? Or Rose...

Mama: What if it's a boy?

Little Boo: I dunno... Dump Truck?

:)

And Now This...

Elizabeth over at Real Learning has decided to bestow this honor of being a Rockin' Blogger on lil' ol' me.

Wow, eh?

Yes. I didn't realize she knew I existed, either. I have always loved reading Elizabeth Foss articles on Catholic Exchange, and even have a hard copy of one of her contributions to the Arlington Catholic Herald, sent to me by a friend many moons ago.

I'm a huge fan.

:)

And so now I get to bestow this award on 5 other rockin' bloggers.

#1 on my list is Margaret in Minnesota, of course! Never mind the fact that she works out to BNL, and has a tatoo... She started her blog almost a year ago and is the most popular mama I know. And for good reason, she's just wonderful.

Next up is Alicia over at Studeo. We "knew of" each other in college, and through the blog-o-sphere, we have reconnected, culminating with her quick visit to the farm while we were there. (wait, I haven't blogged about that? Well, she has, here.) And since we agree on everything... no kidding, everything.... and I'm "rockin" therefore, Q.E.D. :)

Moving on to Elaine at A Wink and a Smile. She found me ages ago, prompting me to get a vox account, just so I could comment on her blog... and now here she is, over at blogger. She is a kindred spirit and awesome mom to her 5 minnies.

Red Cardigan is the proud CEO of M.I.S.C.R.E.A.N.T.S. and therefore, a woman after my own heart. She is quite a prolific poster, super intelligent, and has been known to deftly take my bumbling opinions and spell them out clearly and concisely.

Simcha at I Have to Sit Down is new to the blogging world, and apparently taking it by storm. Even Mark Shea has endorsed her! She is a Catholic Mama of 7, and writes with sarcastic humor about the crazy world we live in. She also happens to be the sister of a good friend of mine.

Go enjoy these folks and congratulate them!

:)

Perspective

Larger than life
throws you
take a deep breath

feel your mortality

rain and tears
clear the air
sharpens the eyes

sharpens your view

life and not
pain and love
joy in both

beauty in all

Meeting in Minnesota

I know many of you already heard this story and got to see the pictures, but I'm telling you, I have the scoop.


I thought that would get your attention.

:)

Yes, the indelible Margaret was late. After waiting over an hour the thought suddenly crossed my mind that maybe she had chickened out. (yeah, it took me that long to think that.... quite the mastermind I am) And since I had no cell phone reception, I couldn't call her and find out.

But seriously, I was starting to get worried that something had happened. Those Minnesota country roads were a tad bit confusing and the road into the State Park itself wasn't very clearly marked.

5 minutes after all these thoughts went through my head, two sprightly young men crossed the bridge and headed towards us. Such polite little men! I inquired as to their names and they shook hands with me most cordially before tearing off into the river with my boys.
















And then, finally, here comes the lovely Margaret and her three princesses. For those of you who don't know this, Margaret's pictures do NOT do her justice. She is absolutely gorgeous, no kidding. And she is cheerful and fun. Even amidst 2 yr-old tantrums, (subject will remain nameless to protect identity and preserve dignity) she smiles and jokes with the complete strangers passing by.

She is sanguine, through and through. That fact we firmly established.

I, on the other hand, am a pure melancholic. We got that one nailed down pretty well, too. You see, after being in the heat and the slime and handling tadpoles and sandy little girls, I was craving a shower and a latte. My beautiful hostess provided the latter, ice-cold and perfect. And we moved away from the crowds and slime to have a cool picnic in the shade, and a rousing game of sword-fighting croquet.... (ahem)

Here are the pictures, my fav's anyway:

























































What a lovely day!!

:)

Farm Vignette #2

This conversation was overheard by Cecilia, Liam's Mama.

Liam: You say "Shut What?!?" And I'll say "SHUT UP!!"

Little Love: Shut What?!?

Liam: SHUT UP!!

(both start laughing uproariously)

Little Love (screaming): SHUT WHAAATT?!?

Liam (also screaming): SHUT UP!!!!

(lather. rinse. repeat, until the laughter increases so much that it's almost impossible for them to choke out another sequence...)

Cecilia and Nutmeg: Lovely.

:)

The Farmer

The Johnson Farm consists of:

~The Patriarch, known to all affectionately as just "Barney".

~4 sisters, 3 of whom are married. And so there are 3 brother-in-laws and a gaggle of children.

~1 brother, called simply, "Farmer" by my Little Boo. He is unmarried, and quite a catch for whomever may be interested... ;)

"Farmer" had a little contest going the entire time we were there. His mission was to get a smile out of Little Boo.

My Little Boo may be made of steel, but she has a nougat center, filled with squishy sweetness. Although her will is strong and unyielding, she is incredibly shy, preferring to remain "one of the crowd" just blending in with the chaos.

Sounds familiar.

So Farmer had quite a challenge.

A quick word about Farmer. He is actually a carpenter, he pointed out to Little Boo one day. She just stared back at him, unwilling to change her initial pronouncement. And a more well-read carpenter I have never met. The conversations we had were filled with Wall Street Journal articles, opinions on authors I'd never even heard of, coupled with a vast knowledge of local architecture, it's history and future, and many many other topics in which I could offer no more than some well-intentioned burp.... At times I felt like a college student, listening to a professor.

Anyway, (back on topic now) Farmer had his work cut out for him with Little Boo. But he was persistent, and it paid off.

One night, I was trying to get the kids in bed (9:30pm seemed to be their new bedtime on the farm) and I was yelling down the stairs for Little Boo to come up.

She came up the stairs grinning and said: Farmer read me two stories!

And he was rewarded with a big smile.

:)
















ps. This photo of Farmer and me taken two years ago at our college reunion.

Farm Vignette #1

Sunday morning, after mass, our first full day on the Farm...


Mama: Do you want to go see the goats?

Little Love: Ghosts? Have blankets on their heads?

Mama: No, goats. Ma-a-a Ma-a-a. With horns, no blankets.

Little Love: Ghost?

(Giving up) Mama: Papa will take you to see the goats.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Much later Little Love returns, wailing: I didn't see the ghosts!!

:)

*And a few days later, after "feeding" the goats many flowers on a daily basis, Little Love is seen by herself in the barn yelling at said goats: Nasty Goats! You Stop It! Apparently the goats had tried to eat Little Boo's crocs...

Thank You

For all of the thoughts and prayers, and e-mails and phone calls. I appreciate them very much. It lifts the spirit and comforts the soul.

And helps the healing.


My grieving will be kept private, however, and my many questions about the whys and wherefores of this miscarriage will (hopefully) be answered in time with many discussions and mapping out of options and methods with my doctors. For right now, though, I'll be circling the wagons with my kiddos as we get through this together. They have also suffered a loss. Some are more aware of it than others, but we need to deal with it all together.

My friend Lisa delivered her precious princess this afternoon via c-section. Mom and baby are well. I am relieved and grateful.

In the meantime, I will be reminiscing about our truly marvelous time up north. There are many anecdotes I am eager to share, many joyful and fun-filled visits, and of course, oodles of pictures.

Thanks again, my dear friends. I truly am grateful for the many true friendships I have....

:)

A New Life... and An Angel in Heaven.

Two women woke up this morning, making ready for a visit to their ob/gyn.

One is 9 months pregnant, bursting with the new life that is ready to enter the world. Her 6 other children crowd around her to see her off, eager to see and hold their new baby sister... She is being held up in prayer today by so many, as she and her husband journey to the hospital.

Joy and love and hope.

The other woman is newly pregnant, and very nervous. Her 5 children have been told that it looks like the baby has died, and her trip to the ob this morning is to confirm this. The joy and hope that had surrounded her and her friends and family these past few weeks has given way to sorrow and fear, and then acceptance.

God's will in all things.

The first woman is my best friend, Lisa. We expect a phone call soon to tell us of the birth of their new daughter, our goddaughter. She has been in our prayers all day. I wish I could be there...

The second woman, as you might have guessed, is me. The "exciting news" I had wanted to share was of this unexpected joy of a new life. Unfortunately, God's will has been to postpone this new addition and we are devastated. Yesterday was the hardest, since by the afternoon it was obvious that this little one was not going to make it. Today I am better, more accepting and trusting, but it's still hard.

Pray for us.

And pray for my friend, Lisa. What hope and joy and love will surround that little one when she makes her appearance! I can't wait to see her and hold her.

What comfort.

It's all in the way you see it...

Me to DH as I slog my way through the (literally) hundreds of posts sitting on my bloglines: I know it looks like I'm not doing anything. But I'm actually letting my fingernail polish dry.


*More stories and news to come, promise. Y'all were so prolific while I was gone. It's going to take some time for me to get my bearings.