For Love of Our Daughter

To the young man who seems to have captured the attention of our daughter, and maybe a small portion of her heart~

Looking at our beautiful daughter objectively, (*smile*) this should come as no surprise to us. It was wholly inevitable, and yet, it still has caught us completely off-guard.

Before we begin, let me make something very clear to you.  Let there be no mistake here.
We already like you.

You have recognized the beauty and the joy that is our daughter, and you have responded. She has touched you in some way , and we think you have impeccable taste.

Let me speak now to some specifics.

I've been watching this all unfold.  And you have been so patient and persistent in your pursuit, it's admirable.

I would pick my daughter up from school, and she'd flop into the passenger seat rolling her eyes and throwing up her hands at your latest antics and jokes, recounting your absurdity, shaking her head and laughing.  Her emphatic "so annoying!" becoming heard less and less after your name, and her eyes lighting up more and more as the weeks went by.

I watched you.  You drifted around the periphery of her life, weaving to and fro to find your place, eventually planting yourself firmly by her side.  Cracking jokes, making her laugh, listening intently.  A true gentleman, you waited patiently for the day she would suddenly, and quite surprisingly, realize that she wanted you by her side.

Know that you are both very young.  And even though we are impressed by the maturity each of you has exhibited thus far, we do have some reservations.

Our wish for you both is that this time in your lives be filled with joy and laughter.   That your time together be an abundance of true friendship and fun.  Above all, that you both handle the other with gentleness. That your hearts remain whole and unblemished if and when this season comes to a close.

And that, in ten years, you are able to look back on this time with sweet remembrance... and no regrets.

:)

Guess Whose First Communion We Celebrated Today?

Oh, wait... here's a more proper one...

And, since we must include other members of the family....

And, of course, the sisters....

Some of whom clearly cannot wait until it is their turn....

It was a lovely, grace-filled day!!

:)

New Beginnings

First, the awesome news...

My dear friend Lisa has just given birth to a little girl ~Brigid Clare~ her 8th child! I have written many times about my amazing friend. She is such an example for me. Her family has welcomed us as surrogate members... (her parents are so loving and hospitable!). While Lisa has been instrumental in helping me deal with my own infertility by placing her babies in my arms when I walk through her door and sharing the cute anecdotes of my little goddaughter.

I am so blessed to have this beautiful family in my life.


Now, an explanation of Monday's post.
:P

After receiving a phone call from a friend, panicked that we were moving or something horrible had happened, I realized that I needed to explain my enigmatic ponderings. However, due to privacy issues, I could not do so until today.

The jist of it all is that we have decided to pull Little Boo and Little Love out of their Montessori school and do their schooling at home. I suppose that seems like no big deal to most people, but it is kind of a big deal in our case.

Their Montessori teacher has been a part of our lives for a long time. We met her and her husband before they were married, and when she started her own school, we signed the girls up. Little Boo has been a part of their family, going to be tutored and playing with their young son all through the summer months. She and her teacher have a special bond, one that has been beneficial to my fiesty girl, since it has taught her a gentleness and compassion that is difficult to impart when dealing with rough and tumble older brothers. I am hopeful that we can continue to foster that unique relationship somehow.

Both girls are eager to come home. We are happy to have them. They have received an awesome foundation, one that is sooo helpful when it comes to home schooling little ones. Concentration, respect for others' work, diligence, and joy in learning... these are awesome stepping stones for a life of learning. I am so grateful that all of my children were able to have this experience. I am so blessed that it was in an atmosphere of Faith and Love.

Now we begin a new chapter. I am back to full time home schooling. I am excited and eager to begin. But there is still a lot of planning and prep work to do.

I'm not even going to think about next year. Nope. That's a whole other ball of wax and I won't go down that road of dizzy discussion just yet. I'm just focusing on the here and now.

And right now I have two more little minds to fill with beautiful things and challenge with truth and water with joy.

:)

Filed Under: I Don't Really WANT To Know....

And this is why...





















And yes, we are just now taking our Christmas tree down. We like to procrastinate prolong this joyous season!

:P

What Goes Around...

Little Dear came downstairs this morning sporting a pair of shorts, a long sleeve shirt, and her newly-purchased boots. (similar to these...)


~I know my mother is laughing out loud right now~


:)

Stressed Much?

Little Boo: It's good that Auntie Erin and Auntie Sephora got their babies' out.

Little Dear: Yeah. (sighing and rolling her eyes) We don't have to deal with that anymore!


We are happy to have new cousins.... really.

;P

Shower of Photos.... Day 14

Fun Easter play outfits from Grandma!

:)


My lovely sister had a healthy baby boy early this morning. We are so excited to have a godson!

Turning the Tables

Sunday evening, Lil Sis had to borrow the car to take her boyfriend to the airport. (more on him later... he's an awesome guy, we all love him)

Upon hearing that Lil Sis and Saintly Man (what we call him) were going somewhere, Little Dear asked if she could come.

Lil Sis snorted and replied in the negative.

Which jogged my memory and I immediately shared with Lil Sis.

I told her that I distinctly remember that when leaving the reception of my own wedding, there was a certain 7 year old who happily bounced into our car announcing:

"I'm riding with Nutmeg and DH!"

Lil Sis' mouth dropped open and she covered her eyes. "I didn't know!" she wailed.

I just smiled.

:)

Fall in Texas...

... is not very colorful.




















So we make our own color.

(I especially like the striped ones on the bottom there.)


:)

A New Era...

...In the Nut House adventure.

Mind you, I am not actually going to sleep in this contraption. Not anytime soon, that is. But it's enough for the kids to anticipate that such an event may occur at some point in the future.

Like when they're teenagers and can do it on their own.
:)

In the meantime, it is Dad and the boys who get to break it in by going camping with their boy scout troop this weekend.

The girls and I will be staying home having our own snug camp-out in a very soft and fluffy king size bed, snacking on chocolate and watching looney tunes.

We really know how to rough it.

:)

And the Moral of the Story is...

...that the species of the kind pictured below, who aspire to the likes of the Great Houdini in their ability to escape the safe confines of their cute cages....



















Do not belong in the same household as this species, whose prowess as a hunter has been greatly exalted throughout the centuries. (although you couldn't tell that from the picture... nice hat, eh?)

















Yes, there was a massacre at the Nut-House this morning. The last of our beloved gerbils has been, er.... eliminated.

Ben the Cat has been banished for the morning and is on petting and purring terms with no one.

Sisters

Best of Friends...

Worst of Enemies...

Bedtime Buddies...

:)

Because God Does Have A Sense of Humor After All

DH being temporarily unavailable yesterday meant that I got to take the kids to the vigil mass by myself. (Yes, he was going to be temporarily unavailable today, too...)

Grimacing, (because I am all about extra penance) I geared the kids up mentally for this wondrous act of suffering feast day celebration.

I combed hair, inspected outfits, made some minor changes, glanced in the mirror, and off we went. Before leaving, I secured some mass-help from a friend who has 6 of her own kids, and figured we could use the divide-and-conquer strategy if either one of us had meltdown in the pew.

Um. of course, I meant if either one of our children had a meltdown in the pew.

Of course.

Anyhoo... being a bit uptight, I arrived 15 minutes early and got a prime spot near the back of the church, on the right hand side. And then watched in horror as my saving grace made her way to the opposite side of church with her 6 kiddos.

Huh, I thought. What is up with that?

Well, I soon found out, in the form of Mr. Quaint and Hard of Hearing usher, who asked most politely if my family and I would take up the gifts, and then pretended to be stone deaf when I tried to whisper my feeble excuse of "having the kids by myself" today....

Right.

We all get to go up and take the gifts together!

Of course. What a smashing idea.

With Sports Fan and Little Dear holding the candles, Action Man holding the wine jug, Little Boo holding the cruet and Little Love her blankie, I gripped the bowl of hosts and we trundled up the aisle.

Now, this is not my regular parish, and since this parish is not as vibrant as ours, the fact that there were children in attendance was quite a novelty. Sometimes that can be a good thing, sometimes not.

Thank goodness... in this case, it was. There were many oohs and ahhs and matronly smiles as we wound our way to the priest. There were a few sighs as we genuflected and then quite a few chuckles as Little Love grabbed my hand, turned me around, and proceeded to genuflect to me.

I know I was as red as a beet, but I was proud of my kids. These shy little ones were able to rise above their discomfort, and "help the priest" as I told them. They saw the need, and they delivered, and did so with grace.

What a simple witness.

:)

My "Twins"

Little Dear and Sports Fan are the same age for 3 more days. Hence the seeming "typo" on the side bar.

Who knew?

I have two 8 year olds!

Luckily, Little Dear isn't pressing her advantage. She is still basking in the novelty of her "new age".

Sports Fan, on the other hand, is chomping at the bit, anxious to be on his own again in the age department. He seriously dislikes being the same age as his younger sister, and growls whenever it is mentioned.

I felt much the same way, 8 1/2 years ago, standing in the bathroom with him on my hip, (at the strapping age of 3 months) bawling at the sight of those two little pink lines.

How things change...

Fast forward to 8 years, and I can now see and appreciate this crossroads in which two opposite worlds of boy-stuff and girl-stuff entwine. This junction has helped to form the melting pot that is the personality of our home. It has become more frequent that I look up from my chores to see that all 5 of my children are playing out the same scenario, together. We have Indians who need tea, cowboys who hang laundry, and ranchers who bake. Princesses have been known to pick up rifles and beat back intruders, while maids shoot bows and arrows at those pesky robbers. Sometimes the girls are captured, while other times it is the boys who are the willing prisoners.

At the center of all of this hullabaloo are my "twins", the gentle Sports Fan and the exuberant Little Dear... directing battles, tending wounds, and yelling out orders. Little Dear arranges the tea while Sports Fan guards the fort. And then later on it is Sports Fan who gets Little Love the ice pack while Little Dear leads the charge.

The beauty of "Irish Twins"... I'm so grateful God has given me the chance to experience it.

:)

My Ears are Ringing

Yeah.

Kind of regretting this particular purchase for Little Boo's birthday. That along with the whistle she bought herself at the bookstore, it's been an advil-every-eight-hours kind of weekend.

Luckily, she also received some quieter playthings, including a very cute furry gerbil... Chewie II, having been through the heartbreak of losing Chewie I to an untimely death.

No, we were not able to find one of these.

But a wooden jewelry box seemed to be a suitable substitution.

She's so beautiful, my Little Boo.

May she never lose her spirit.










:)

Sneak Peek

As this publishes, we are seriously chowing down at the reception.


So here is a quick preview of those girlie-girl dresses.

















And this is the bridesmaid dress. The model is my younger sister, who is the blonde-haired, blue-eyed version of me. She and Little Dear have the same smile!


















My little beauties! Better pics when we return, promise.




















:)

Wishing....

I could write a coherent review of this cd.

It's not that we don't own it. Even though it came out the day before yesterday, we did carve out a special gas-guzzling trip manage to stop at our local music store and pick up a copy.

You know by now that we are rabid fans.

:)

I'd love to do a review for y'all. It's just that I can't find the darn cd.

I know it's here in the house.

I hear it blasting from all rooms at various yet slightly inconvenient times.

I hear my 10 year old singing the sometimes silly yet extremely clever lyrics as he be-bops around the house, cd jacket in hand.

I hear it.

And yet I can't get my hands on it.

Guess that's the best kind of review for a kids cd, eh?

:)

Crossing Cultures

Little Dear to Love and Boo this morning as they set out their "picnic" in my bedroom:

Little Boo! I said we were playing "COLLEGE!"
Now, where is my tea cup?



And later on, Little Dear races past me wearing a bandana and clutching three large cups in her hand:

I'm coming with the beer, Mateys!


And I'll remain forever optimistic that these two cultures won't, in the distant future, be melded into one.....
:)

Poetry Friday

In keeping with my exhortation from Wednesday...

Infant of mine,
What will you see,
As I wash your skin and change your clothes?
Eyes that are focused on the next task or eyes filled with the wonder of you?

Toddler of mine,
What will you see,
As my head bends over yours and we brush your teeth?
Will you see a mouth turned down, a brow furrowed with thought,
Or a quick smile, just for you?

Little boys of mine,
What will you hear?
Words that seep with tiredness and frustration,
Or encouragement that you really can be the good boys
You want to be?

Daughters of mine,
What will you learn?
That mothering is a chore, a burden, a list,
Or a fulfilling, joyful job, worthy of your life’s attention?

Strapping sons of mine,
What will you observe?
A woman eager to control, to keep you under her thumb,
Or a mentor eager to disciple by example, a helping hand?

Husband of mine,
What will you find?
A spirit that is hard to please, a distant soul,
Or warm arms to welcome you as you walk in the door?

Courtesy of Lisbet, who in turn got it from Holly.

Have a LOVE-ly weekend!

:)

When you hear the words....

... "Jetted Tub"

You think of this:





















But when you have 5 small children, the reality is more like this:




















The further tragedy being that while your children have been obviously enjoying the soothing jets, you haven't even stepped foot in it yet!

:)