Saturday, November 29, 2008
Exposaroonie
Now voting is open at Exposaroonie, if you are inclined to check out (and vote for!) my photo. Thanks, friends!
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Beach Trip 2008
Last weekend we all piled in to a house my Dad and his wife rented - us, my sister & her family and my Dad & Georgia. We had such a wonderfully relaxing time! Lynette asked me what all we did and I was hard-pressed to come up with any specific answer. LOL "Umm . . . went down to the beach a couple times . . . hung out and talked . . . uhh yeah, that's about it . . . "
Canaan and Caris enjoying the sand
It really wasn't super warm out but the kids didn't mind
I love seeing my Dad play with my kids. He has an honorary doctorate in play.
Malachi and Graham weren't afraid to get in the COLD water. My Dad said next year we should rent wetsuits.
We walked a loooong way down the beach, and the whole way back
It all looks like good fun here but Alif was doing the usual heckling . . .
All my boys . . . how blessed I am!!
So pretty here, at the top of the beach access
My kids seriously love their cousin Christian
Canaan and Caris enjoying the sand 
It really wasn't super warm out but the kids didn't mind
I love seeing my Dad play with my kids. He has an honorary doctorate in play.
Malachi and Graham weren't afraid to get in the COLD water. My Dad said next year we should rent wetsuits.
We walked a loooong way down the beach, and the whole way back my Dad held Canaan's hand and let him walk in the waves
It all looks like good fun here but Alif was doing the usual heckling . . . 
All my boys . . . how blessed I am!!
So pretty here, at the top of the beach access
My kids seriously love their cousin ChristianOh - and I uploaded oooooone more picture, over at Exposaroonie. Wanna go vote for me?
Thursday, November 20, 2008
It hit me
Here are things that have hit me the past few days:
* I have let so many little things slide in my internet stupor. As I worked on deep-cleaning the dining room today, I found two patches that needed to be sewn onto Malachi's Awana shirt. He works hard for that stuff - it should be sewn on the week he earns them. I sewed them on today.
* Canaan does not babble any more. Did you have that with your kids, when you just woke up one day and realized that they didn't babble any more? So weird. I told Alif and he found this a lot less remarkable than I did. I think he basically said, "oh." LOL Anyway, Canaan's vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds, and a lot of what he says is not recognizable to anyone but us, but it definitely means something.
* A cold. I'm so thankful it's not a throwing-up sick or anything, and I do feel a lot better today than yesterday, but still - I'll be glad when it's over. Canaan has it too.
*This didn't really hit me per se, but I received a packet of information from Tourette Syndrome Association and it had a provider list of medical professionals who diagnose/treat TS. There was only one listed for my city so I called and made an appointment with him. It's in January, so a ways off but at least we're on the books. I asked Graham before I made the appointment and he said he'd like to go. I asked what he would like the doctor to do and he said, "make the tics stop." Not sure it will be that simple but we'll see.
*Caris is officially a reader. She can sound out simple words, and she read me her first book today - the Bob book "Sam". You know - Sam sat on Mat. That sort of thing. I am so proud of her.
*Another non-themed note: Graham told me today that if we're not going anywhere it makes our day boring. LOL
* I have let so many little things slide in my internet stupor. As I worked on deep-cleaning the dining room today, I found two patches that needed to be sewn onto Malachi's Awana shirt. He works hard for that stuff - it should be sewn on the week he earns them. I sewed them on today.
* Canaan does not babble any more. Did you have that with your kids, when you just woke up one day and realized that they didn't babble any more? So weird. I told Alif and he found this a lot less remarkable than I did. I think he basically said, "oh." LOL Anyway, Canaan's vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds, and a lot of what he says is not recognizable to anyone but us, but it definitely means something.
* A cold. I'm so thankful it's not a throwing-up sick or anything, and I do feel a lot better today than yesterday, but still - I'll be glad when it's over. Canaan has it too.
*This didn't really hit me per se, but I received a packet of information from Tourette Syndrome Association and it had a provider list of medical professionals who diagnose/treat TS. There was only one listed for my city so I called and made an appointment with him. It's in January, so a ways off but at least we're on the books. I asked Graham before I made the appointment and he said he'd like to go. I asked what he would like the doctor to do and he said, "make the tics stop." Not sure it will be that simple but we'll see.
*Caris is officially a reader. She can sound out simple words, and she read me her first book today - the Bob book "Sam". You know - Sam sat on Mat. That sort of thing. I am so proud of her.
*Another non-themed note: Graham told me today that if we're not going anywhere it makes our day boring. LOL
Monday, November 17, 2008
Cleaning House - God's Way
I had a bit of a parenting crisis last night. When I put the boys to bed, I had them tidy up their room. As they did so, I noticed a tiny little saw, like the kind meant for pumpkin carving. I knew that had not been in there the day before when we crazy-cleaned their room, so I asked about it. They lied.
I don't know about you, but when my kids lie, all bets are off. It's the one thing that sends me completely over the edge, and for good reason - God has a lot to say about liars, and none of it is flattering.
I went over the edge. I really did. I kept asking them and kept taking things and privileges away every time they lied, so half an hour later the little that was left in their room after Saturday's purge was gone and they were to sleep on the floor with a blanket and a pillow. My stomach hurts just thinking back on it.
I came out to the living room and e-mailed my Mom. She came quickly to the rescue, talking me down from my ledge and insisting that I get my boys off the floor and deal with the problem, then put them to bed in their nice, cozy beds. It was hard to swallow my pride - I was afraid of looking like a wishy-washy Mom - but God took care of it. The guilty boy confessed close to midnight and we all went to bed and had a good sleep.
This morning we returned the stolen item to the store and the security office there gave my son a very good talking-to. God had all the details covered.
My Mom said something last night, in the middle of the mayhem, that was straight from the Lord. She said that it sounds like God is doing some house cleaning. She reminded me of a problem we had a couple weeks ago - Caris & I had just cleaned out her room and she was suddenly really scared at night and couldn't sleep. I joked with my Mom that maybe she just wasn't used to her room looking so nice. Later that night, though, Alif said that when he went in to get Canaan in the middle of the night, he felt uneasy in their room, like something wasn't right in there. I prayed over the room several days in a row and there haven't been any problems since.
Then my computer broke, and my online time was and still is far, far less than it was before. And now this with my boys.
God knows what he's doing. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, He says, and that's true. How wonderful a feeling it is, though, to know that He cares so desperately about the details of our lives. That he's not content to let me raise my kids under the oppression of an internet addiction. That they mean far too much to Him to let them slide under the radar with misbehaviors that could blossom into a lifetime of pain.
I am so thankful that He never gives up on me.
I don't know about you, but when my kids lie, all bets are off. It's the one thing that sends me completely over the edge, and for good reason - God has a lot to say about liars, and none of it is flattering.
I went over the edge. I really did. I kept asking them and kept taking things and privileges away every time they lied, so half an hour later the little that was left in their room after Saturday's purge was gone and they were to sleep on the floor with a blanket and a pillow. My stomach hurts just thinking back on it.
I came out to the living room and e-mailed my Mom. She came quickly to the rescue, talking me down from my ledge and insisting that I get my boys off the floor and deal with the problem, then put them to bed in their nice, cozy beds. It was hard to swallow my pride - I was afraid of looking like a wishy-washy Mom - but God took care of it. The guilty boy confessed close to midnight and we all went to bed and had a good sleep.
This morning we returned the stolen item to the store and the security office there gave my son a very good talking-to. God had all the details covered.
My Mom said something last night, in the middle of the mayhem, that was straight from the Lord. She said that it sounds like God is doing some house cleaning. She reminded me of a problem we had a couple weeks ago - Caris & I had just cleaned out her room and she was suddenly really scared at night and couldn't sleep. I joked with my Mom that maybe she just wasn't used to her room looking so nice. Later that night, though, Alif said that when he went in to get Canaan in the middle of the night, he felt uneasy in their room, like something wasn't right in there. I prayed over the room several days in a row and there haven't been any problems since.
Then my computer broke, and my online time was and still is far, far less than it was before. And now this with my boys.
God knows what he's doing. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, He says, and that's true. How wonderful a feeling it is, though, to know that He cares so desperately about the details of our lives. That he's not content to let me raise my kids under the oppression of an internet addiction. That they mean far too much to Him to let them slide under the radar with misbehaviors that could blossom into a lifetime of pain.
I am so thankful that He never gives up on me.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
I don't know whether to cry or cry harder
Graham had soccer practice this morning and Alif took both the big boys, so I decided to tackle their disgusting room. I planned to throw and give away a lot and I just wanted to do this without them in there complaining about it. Caris was my big helper and in return I told her she could have any change we found on their floor. LOL
Their room was awful. Seriously, I don't know how it gets so outrageously bad without my noticing. Here is a partial list of contraband items I found in their room after cleaning literally all day long.
Pens from Alif's desk
Wood filler
Crayons - tons of them.
A $50 compass (the kind that you use to draw circles)
A racy game from my bedroom (don't worry, we'd never played it - but geez.)
Candy wrappers
Electronics that we were missing
Now we're on Sunday . . .
You get the idea. It was such a long day. I am glad to have cleared out their room but guess what? I am literally sore from all that cleaning. I told Alif that if that isn't a sign that I need more exercise I don't know what is.
Their room was awful. Seriously, I don't know how it gets so outrageously bad without my noticing. Here is a partial list of contraband items I found in their room after cleaning literally all day long.
Pens from Alif's desk
Wood filler
Crayons - tons of them.
A $50 compass (the kind that you use to draw circles)
A racy game from my bedroom (don't worry, we'd never played it - but geez.)
Candy wrappers
Electronics that we were missing
Now we're on Sunday . . .
You get the idea. It was such a long day. I am glad to have cleared out their room but guess what? I am literally sore from all that cleaning. I told Alif that if that isn't a sign that I need more exercise I don't know what is.
Soccer and Sleep
Malachi likes soccer. A lot. Well, he likes playing soccer. He doesn't like, sit around watching the spanish station and shouting, "GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL" or anything.
He's played AYSO since he was 5 and for the last year or two he's been asking if he could play club. We have not looked into this at all. We figured that he's still really young and we are not of the mind that we need to have our kids in the best sports at young ages so they can get scholarships and blahblahblah. We like them to play sports, they like to play them, but we are not all about being consumed by our kids' schedules.
This year he was asked to play on a club team that needed players. We were so tempted but declined since it would have made our already-hectic schedule even busier. It would also have meant possible conflicts with the AYSO team he was already on, and that never seems like a fair situation to us.
Well, then an opportunity came up for him to play on this club team just for one weekend, in one tournament. We went to practices, got him the socks & shorts he needed . . . and very last-minute, the coach called to tell us that something went wrong with Malachi's registration and he was so sorry but Malachi can't play.
Wah!!
Malachi took it like a man and didn't even complain, but he was definitely disappointed, as were we. We reminded him that there's a reason these things happen, and maybe God is protecting him from something that we couldn't know about.
Nonetheless, Alif's going to spend some special time with Malachi today. Hooray for sweet daddies.
And in happy news, Canaan slept 10 hours last night. Hooray for sleep!
He's played AYSO since he was 5 and for the last year or two he's been asking if he could play club. We have not looked into this at all. We figured that he's still really young and we are not of the mind that we need to have our kids in the best sports at young ages so they can get scholarships and blahblahblah. We like them to play sports, they like to play them, but we are not all about being consumed by our kids' schedules.
This year he was asked to play on a club team that needed players. We were so tempted but declined since it would have made our already-hectic schedule even busier. It would also have meant possible conflicts with the AYSO team he was already on, and that never seems like a fair situation to us.
Well, then an opportunity came up for him to play on this club team just for one weekend, in one tournament. We went to practices, got him the socks & shorts he needed . . . and very last-minute, the coach called to tell us that something went wrong with Malachi's registration and he was so sorry but Malachi can't play.
Wah!!
Malachi took it like a man and didn't even complain, but he was definitely disappointed, as were we. We reminded him that there's a reason these things happen, and maybe God is protecting him from something that we couldn't know about.
Nonetheless, Alif's going to spend some special time with Malachi today. Hooray for sweet daddies.
And in happy news, Canaan slept 10 hours last night. Hooray for sleep!
Friday, November 14, 2008
Fall is speeding by
It doesn't seem so long ago that soccer was just starting, I couldn't believe a new year of AWANA was upon us, and fall just seemed a long way away. Despite the beautifully sunny weather, fall is seriously in full swing! Yesterday we had a potluck with a group of homeschooling friends. There were crafts and food and friends and it was delightful. I used to hang out with some of these ladies years ago and drifted away, and seeing them again and feeling comfortable yesterday was such a coming-home feeling. Here's Caris making a handprint turkey, complete with feathers and googly eyes.
We had inside out and backwards night at Awana. Last year I wore my pants inside out and backwards and felt strangely on display all night, so this year I just wore my shirt inside out and backwards and left my pants normal.
Soccer was interesting last Saturday. Our first game was in the morning and we were uncomfortably warm in our long sleeves. We went home in between games, and I figured it would be even warmer in the afternoon so we dressed in short sleeves. Wouldn't you know, it completely clouded over and we were all freezing? I had to raid my trunk for a long-sleeved shirt for Canaan, which was a size 12 months and definitely too small. LOL
We had inside out and backwards night at Awana. Last year I wore my pants inside out and backwards and felt strangely on display all night, so this year I just wore my shirt inside out and backwards and left my pants normal.
Soccer was interesting last Saturday. Our first game was in the morning and we were uncomfortably warm in our long sleeves. We went home in between games, and I figured it would be even warmer in the afternoon so we dressed in short sleeves. Wouldn't you know, it completely clouded over and we were all freezing? I had to raid my trunk for a long-sleeved shirt for Canaan, which was a size 12 months and definitely too small. LOL
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Winner & Loser
BAND OF BROTHERS is the winner of the little bandage dispenser. E-mail me your address at HisKids37@sbcglobal.net and I'll send it on out!
My computer is still on the blehhhhhhhhhhhhh. I'm using Alif's laptop usually once a day and it is crazy how much less that means I am on here - it's been a very, very good thing.
I thought soccer was over last weekend but Graham's team went to the playoffs and Malachi joined a club team. Good thing we enjoy soccer - but I was really looking forward to a break.
ttys!
My computer is still on the blehhhhhhhhhhhhh. I'm using Alif's laptop usually once a day and it is crazy how much less that means I am on here - it's been a very, very good thing.
I thought soccer was over last weekend but Graham's team went to the playoffs and Malachi joined a club team. Good thing we enjoy soccer - but I was really looking forward to a break.
ttys!
Tuesday, November 04, 2008
Bandages, anyone?
Do your kids think band-aids are really stickers? It doesn't matter how many boxes I buy, the kids can go through them in days if I don't hide them and/or keep an eagle eye on my stash. Then someone gets cut and oh, the tragedy, there aren't any band-aids! Ack! Anyway, newbaby.com sent me the most darling little band-aid dispenser. It would be perfect as a stocking stuffer, the diaper bag, the glove box, wherever you need a few bandages at your fingertips.
Leave a comment telling me what YOUR kids get into the most (or what your guilty pleasure was as a child!) and I'll enter you to win this cute little dispenser from newbaby.com - complete with a few bandages!
Leave a comment telling me what YOUR kids get into the most (or what your guilty pleasure was as a child!) and I'll enter you to win this cute little dispenser from newbaby.com - complete with a few bandages!
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