No Harm Done

Weeellll...

2011-08-07T22:20:00.004-05:00

Hi there. How are you? Long time no see.

Yes, I know it's been since April. But there's been a lot going on, and not very much of it was fun.

However, today - well - today I have reason to post.

C. was in a play this week. The Missoula Children's Theater came through town to put on their production of "Cinderella." For those not familiar with MCT, they hold open auditions on Monday, then cast 50-60 children for the parts in the show. They rehearse 4 hours every day. On Saturday, they have a dress rehearsal and two performances.

Colson auditioned on Monday and was cast as the King. We were pretty surprised, as most of the named cast members were in middle or high school. Standing next to the 17 year old actor who played Prince Charming, Colson is not quite half as tall as him. I think that was the effect they were going for, though.

Here are the videos of Colson's appearances. I'll try to set the stage for each one. Turn up your speakers, though, and set the video to full screen.

1. This first clip shows his entrance. At the beginning of the clip, the beggars are asking for money from the lords and ladies of the town who are arriving at the ball. They turn around and watch the Town Criers enter and announce the arrival of the king.

I love that when he first walks out, the audience's reaction is "Awwww," because he's so tiny and - really- his costume is mostly hat. And the robe is clearly meant for a taller child. But then he starts his thing, and they laugh.

If you can't quite hear what he's saying, he's pointing to people in the audience and saying "How're you doing?" a la Joey Tribbiani of "Friends."

2. In this second clip, the Town Criers announce the King entering the ball. He makes the same sort of entrance, and announces "Food's on the table. Hope you can dance!" Watch for the little impromptu gesture he makes as he walks offstage...

Yep. Your eyes did not deceive you. My baby did the "Call me" sign to a girl in the audience.

3.

In the third clip, Cinderella runs away from Prince Charming. Colson enters with the glass slipper. "Perhaps this will help, son. She's forgotten her shoe."

4. This final clip is the longest, but I think it's the best. It begins with the Town Criers entering to try the shoes on the stepsisters.

Keep watching through the song. You can't see Colson (one of the tallest kids kneels down directly between Colson and the camera). But if you listen carefully, he sings the second solo in the second verse.

"I think it's rather sweet."

Keep watching 'till the end of the clip. Colson's best part is at the very end. :)

And So the 2012 Campaign Season Begins ...

2011-04-01T12:29:00.001-05:00

"DEATH COMES UNEXPECTEDLY!!!"

2011-02-15T11:49:00.003-06:00

Brogan has decided he wants to write an encouraging letter to our pastor.

In it, he explains, "You are the complete opposite of the minister in 'Pollyanna.' "

I think he'll be encouraged, no?

Dear [State] Welcoming Committee,

2011-02-07T22:57:00.004-06:00

Thank you so much for having your representative contact us personally to review our application to move to your state.

Unfortunately, your representative neglected to leave his name or contact number, and we are unable to return his call.

Would you be so good to have him contact us via e-mail, so that we may discuss his recent call?

Thank you.

Romeo and Juliet

2010-12-14T16:35:00.002-06:00

Braden and his partner, L., have been working on a "humorous duo" for a speech competition this spring.

Last night they performed it for the first time to a small audience at our speech and debate club.

It's still very much a work in progress, but I am enjoying their progress thus far!

*NOTE: In this speech/debate league, duo partners are not allowed to touch or look directly at each other.

Someone Smart Thought of This

2010-12-13T12:35:00.000-06:00

This made me laugh!

Perhaps with a bit more coffee in me I'll attempt to sing along.

A Thanksgiving Tradition

2010-11-24T18:52:00.002-06:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

"The Talk"

2010-11-17T11:17:00.002-06:00

Wow. There's a lot of wisdom in here. I wish this video had been around when the boys were little.

Talking to Your Kids About Star Wars.

Seriously, though, I second the advice to watch the movies in the order they were originally released. To paraphrase Sheldon on "Big Bang Theory": "I prefer to be disappointed in the order that George Lucas intended."

2010-11-08T17:54:00.002-06:00

Brogan came upon me as I was searching for knitting patterns on Ravelry.

Brogan: What are you looking for?

Me: Patterns for fingerless gloves.

Brogan: Fingerless gloves? Why?

Me: Because when Braden practices piano in the wintertime his hands get cold. But he needs to feel the keys with his fingers. So I thought a pair of fingerless gloves would do the trick.

Brogan: That sounds kind of dumb, Mom.

Me: What! Why? If your hands were cold while you practiced piano wouldn't YOU want a pair of fingerless gloves?

Brogan: No. I'd just deal with it. Just be a man and deal with it!

Portland for Pedestrians

2010-10-28T02:12:00.002-05:00

Mom, my sister, and I spent Sunday in Portland. We rode the light-rail into downtown, then got off and walked.

And walked some more.

And then we walked some more.

We walked around Lloyd Center, the SW Harrison area, and then up to the Pearl District, where my sister used to live.

This is a fun city to walk in, and there is certainly a lot happening here. It'll be great fun next spring and summer to take the boys around town and explore.

The following photo is for Colson. Colson, THIS is a pigeon. There are a lot of them here. I didn't see any eating hot dogs, but that's probably not for lack of trying.

We hopped on the streetcar quite a bit. I had a picture of me actually hopping onto the streetcar, but it disappeared from the post. I'll have to try to find it later. But below is a picture of the car.

Here we were looking to see when the next car is coming. At this point in the day it was still mostly sunny, but about 20 minutes later it was grey and rainy.

After touring what felt like much of downtown, we stopped for a quick dinner and then caught a movie at Pioneer Place. (Looking for a good movie? Go see "Social Network.")

The next time I can get to the computer I'll post more pictures from the day, and some from our new hometown. Hopefully later tonight.

Guess Where I Am?

2010-10-24T16:01:00.002-05:00

Well, I'll take pity on you and tell you. Because that's the sort of big-hearted person I am.

These pictures are taken at Cascade Locks, about 30 minutes east of Portland. We stopped here to take pictures. As it turned out, my parents were INSIDE the restaurant eating lunch when we stopped. M. and I didn't know this, though untill we called them later.

The Columbia River.

Here's the bridge across to the Washinghton side. It's raining a bit and is hard to see some of the mountains. But the colors are beautiful.

There'll be more to come!

First Grade Open House

2010-10-20T23:17:00.003-05:00

Hello! Welcome to our first grade "Open House!" Come on in!

Colson is our first grade student this year, and is making excellent progress, having benefited from listening in on what his brothers have been due for the past few years. Colson has surprised us all by being remarkably academic, characteristic he's kept well-hidden under his gregarious, hammy personality.

READING
For reading we are using both "Phonics Pathways" and the "Pathway Readers" series. I have used "Phonics Pathways" to teach all three boys how to read. When a child gets about halfway through the book, I add in the "Pathway Reader" primer book. The Pathway Readers are basal readers used in Amish schools, and are filled with sweet stories. I'm enjoying reading them again with Colson. Colson is mid-way through the second-grade readers and says that reading is his favorite subject.

MATH
For math we're using the "Singapore Math" series. Again, it's something that all three boys have used. (When you find something that works, why change?) Colson is finishing up the 2nd grade math book and will be starting the third grade book sometime in November. The hardest part about this is that there's so much more writing in 2nd and 3rd grade math, and as a first grader he's just not ready/able to write that much. So we do a lot of the textbook portion orally, and just leave him the workbook portions to write out.

LANGUAGE ARTS
For spelling Colson's working his way through "Spelling Workout A." For grammar we're using "First Language Lessons" by Jessie Wise. I discovered FLL with Brogan, and am enjoying it again with Colson. It covers 1st and 2nd grade grammar, and I love the gentle approach it takes with students. The first grade lessons are almost all done orally, with writing increasing in the second grade. SO far Colson has memorized three poems and can tell you the definition of a noun and the difference between common and proper nouns. If reading is his favorite subject, grammar just might be his second favorite.

BIBLE
Colson and I are using "Leading Little Ones to God," another book I've used with all three boys.

HISTORY
We are studying the Middle Ages with "Story of the World: Volume 2." I think this is my third time through this book. It's a wonderful world history book for younger students.

That's our Open House. We're looking forward to a great year!

2010-10-14T09:53:00.002-05:00

According to my kids, "you totally need this, Mom!!"

Apparently, it "has YOU written all over it! Get this, Mom!"

I have no idea what they're talking about.

Duets

2010-09-21T21:19:00.001-05:00

Brogan has been working on this song (Sword Dance) for a couple of weeks now.

Today Braden sat down and played the teacher's part of the duet with him.

Braden on Homecoming Dances

2010-09-19T21:14:00.004-05:00

Braden: "I need to learn how to dance."

Me: "What? Why? you know how to dance. We've been working on it."

Braden: "Mom, I pretty much only know two dances. I'm not allowed to slow-dance with anyone I'm not related to. So unless they play a lot of polka at the Homecoming Dance, I'm in trouble."

The Roller Coaster

2010-09-16T10:29:00.002-05:00

I like the roller coaster. But sometimes I'd like to see what the merry-go-round is like. Just for a little while.....

The Best Meal I Ever Had

2010-08-01T23:46:00.002-05:00

I saw this video on another blog tonight, and could. not. stop. laughing.

Tears streaming down my face.

My sides aching from laughter.

Maybe it's just because it's late and I am very, very sleepy. I don't know.

All I can say is, I loved this prank and it's just the sort of thing my college roomie D. and I would have done, assuming we were genius enough to think of it.

A Car Crash, A Collapsing Building, and a Big Finale Blowout.

2010-07-22T13:01:00.002-05:00

All three appear to be present in Braden's first attempt at playing "Tarantella" by Pieczonka at the proper speed (170 beats per minute).

He started out well ... and then I forgot to turn the page. (Whoops!)

As we listened to the video afterward, some of the chords he missed sound like something one might hear if car crashes and building demolishings had soundtracks. He completely lost the beat at the end, and ended with a spectacularly bad final chord.

Still, he enjoyed attempting the breakneck speed so much that he wanted me to put it on the blog for family and friends to see. He laughed a lot, and hasn't let it discourage him. He plans to try again when his fingers stop smoking.

I promise to post a video of this piece when he has it up to speed and catastrophe-free.

Our First Meet of the Summer

2010-07-16T13:47:00.003-05:00

This week we attended our first swim meet of the summer. It was just like any other meet, really, with two notable exceptions:

1) We were racing to beat the impending severe storm. The day was miserable: hot, humid, dew point in the 80's, and a heat index of 110. There was no shade to be found at the pool, and we parents were so thankful to see clouds on the horizon. But then the clouds turned dark and ugly, and we knew we were in trouble.

We made it almost all the way through the meet. Brogan was on the blocks to swim the 100 IM when thunder rumbled overhead. They swam the heat anyway (I know!) but ended after the kids got out.

Brogan won that event. Probably because he was worried he'd get hit by lightning if he didn't get out of the pool ASAP. Thunderstorms= great motivation!

( Brogan - the lower "above water" swimmer- swimming the breaststroke in the 100 IM)

2) The second noteworthy aspect of this meet involved Colson. After 5 years of watching his brothers swim, this summer he finally got his chance to join the team. This was his very first meet ev-ah. He was excited to finally be participating. And he knew that every time he got would be a "best time."

Colson was only able to swim one event before we got rained out. Here he is "taking his mark" for the "8 and under" 25 freestyle.

He actually dove off the starting block! I wasn't able to get a picture, because the starter was in the way. Colson taught himself to dive by watching his brothers. It never occurred to him that it might be hard or a little intimidating to dive off the high starting blocks. Everyone else does it, so he thought he should too.

I was holding my breath as he got to the deep end of the pool. He was swimming so slowly that I was worried he might just stall and go under. But he kept moving forward and finished with a "best time" of 44 seconds. (Dad, you will have nothing to worry about when you're racing Colson. Hee! Hee!)

Here's his finish of the race.

After he got out of the pool, I asked him how he felt.

His one-word answer: "Awesome!!!!"

Summer Fun

2010-07-11T20:08:00.005-05:00

We've been busy this summer!

Brogan and Colson tried their hands at rappelling. Both got several feet off the ground, but making it up into the treetops was a long, hard climb for small people.

The boys learned how to use knotted ropes to inch their way upward.

There were lots of rest breaks. Little arms get tired!

We also spent time swimming at a lake with family.

And finally, for Braden. Look who we spotted in the parade today!

Happy Fourth of July!

2010-07-04T08:25:00.000-05:00

Wedding Weekend Photopalooza!

2010-07-01T21:57:00.005-05:00

Well, we're back!

We've been off visiting family for the past week, as M.'s youngest brother got married last weekend.

Brother D. found himself a wonderful girl. We're all very happy for them!

I was able to spend a lot of time helping set things up for the wedding. One of my favorite moments was when the groom had his mother pin his boutonniere onto his jacket.....

... and then all four groomsmen lined up behind them so she could also pin theirs.

The bride was beautiful, and so calm and composed all day. No "Bridezilla" moments were witnessed by anyone.

They planned a low-key, simple wedding by the river. It was hot out, but thankfully the groom's side had a shade tree! Woo-hoo!

Between the ceremony and the party, we had time for a family picture. Look at how tall the boys are getting!

The following picture could have been taken at pretty much any point in the afternoon or evening. Colson spent a LOT of time around the bride, essentially following her around the facility. It was handy, in that whenever we lost him we just had to find the bride and Colson was sure to be nearby. He gave her lots of hugs and when I told him to give her some space he said, "But Mom, she's just so beauuuuuuutiful!"

During the ceremony his constant presence worked in his favor. Just before the wedding party was to begin their walk down the aisle, the decorator discovered a small basket of flower petals that hadn't been sprinkled along the aisle. She handed it to Colson and told him to scatter them as he walked up front. He sort of walked and tossed them in front of him, but was proud to be the spontaneous "flower boy" for the wedding.

Our family loves the dances at receptions. Colson, especially, loves to dance. Brogan will do the "Chicken Dance," and I can usually coax him out onto the floor for a slower number. Braden's getting much more comfortable dancing, even attempting a polka once or twice!

I think Braden danced more than I did, actually.

It was almost Colson's night. He came this close to catching the garter. Colson is in the front of the group of gentlemen, and is wearing a white shirt and khaki pants below. You can see that both hands are reaching up to catch the white garter that is clearly an inch or two from his tiny hands.

But, alas, it was not to be.

The tall gentleman directly behind him swooped in and snatched it away at the last microsecond.

That's OK, though. I'm not quite ready for Colson to get married. And hopefully that tall gentleman's girlfriend will be able to use his victory to her advantage.

A Powerful Never-Coming of Age Story

2010-06-10T12:12:00.001-05:00

OK, this has some language in it. Viewer - consider yourself cautioned.

But if you can make it past the language, it's terrific!

Wax On, F*ck Off with Ralph Macchio from Ralph Macchio

2010-06-08T19:14:00.000-05:00

Huh. Who'd Have Seen That Coming?

2010-06-05T23:34:00.002-05:00

This video is dedicated to all those team policy debate judges who didn't see Braden's reformation of the invasive species policy in the United States as necessary.

Boy’s Tragic Death Could Have Happened To Any Family With 20-Foot Pet Python

I know you all wish you could go back now and give his team the win.

Werner Herzog Reads "Curious George"

2010-06-04T13:04:00.000-05:00

Colson and I read through "Curious George" on Tuesday. Afterward, we discovered this delightful little parody video.

I think I thought it more delightful than Colson did, but we both enjoyed it.

It's Tornado Season Again!

2010-06-03T12:30:00.003-05:00

We spent Tuesday afternoon and early evening in the basement when the tornado sirens went off.

Thankfully we spent the weekend cleaning and de-cluttering the basement, so it was quite comfy! Our weathercasters and storm chasers aren't as much fun as the ones we watched in Kansas, but they got the job done.

I occasionally ran upstairs to peek out the windows at the storm. The clouds were a scary, unnatural purply-blue color - never a good sign.

By the end of the evening three tornados had touched down in our area. We also saw an awful lot of lightning, quarter- to golf ball-sized hail, and high winds. At one point it was raining and blowing so hard you had a difficult time seeing the other side of the street.

In the interest of public safety, I am going to re-post our "Tornado Safety" guidelines. You may wish to click on the picture for easier reading.

You're welcome!

Summer School is in Session!

2010-06-02T11:58:00.004-05:00

We do school year-round at our house. This is for two reasons:

1. Over the years I've found that too much idle time for boys leads to much unpleasantness. We don't live in the country, so there's not a lot of outdoor work to be done on a daily basis. And we live in a neighborhood where 90% of the children are either toddlers or in day-long child care all summer. I need to have something structured for the boys to do.

During the normal school year and in June, we take lots of days off of school when the weather is nice so that we can do special things: hikes, field trips, picnics, park days, etc. We spend a lot of time at the pool as well. This summer all 3 boys will be on swim team.

In the late summer, when the weather is miserable and you just want to hide inside all afternoon, we do. And we do school then.

2. Our family has moved a lot. A LOT. Since 2001 we have lived in 6 cities and 9 homes. That's a lot of disruption. Schooling during the summer gives us flexibility to take time off to pack, unpack, and explore a new city.

This summer I've also given the boys Summer Reading Lists. They're actually fairly excited about them, and Colson is tearing through his. For those interested, here are the lists I've come up with for the boys. I may need to add more to Colson's.....

Braden's Summer Reading List (Rising 9th grader)

Mr. Midshipman Hornblower
The Scarlet Pimpernel
The Dragon and the Raven
The Eagle of the Ninth
The Secret Garden
The Black Stallion
The Hunt for Red October
According to Plan (by Graeme Goldworthy. This is a Biblical theology book.)
Liberty and Tyranny (by Mark Levin. This was one Braden wanted to read.)
All Creatures Great and Small
Johnny Tremain

Brogan's Summer Reading List (Rising 4th grader)

Key to the Treasure
Baby Island
Boxcar Children
Little House in the Big Woods
Little House on the Prairie
Encyclopedia Brown, 100 p.
Homer Price, 149 p.
Mr. Popper’s Penguins, 139 p.
Crabby Cat Caper
Creepy Sleep Over
Green gravy
Midnight Mystery
Misty of Chincoteague
Paul Bunyan
Stuart Little

Colson's Summer Reading List (Rising 1st grader)

I Can Read Books
• Morris Goes to School (Level 1)
• Frog and Toad (5 book series, Level 2)
• Mouse Tales (Level 2)-
Each Peach Pear and Plum, 32 p.
Drummer Hoff, 32 p.
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, 20 p.
Doctor DeSoto, 32 p.
Corduroy, 28 p.
Circus Caps for Sale
Curious George, 36 p.
Harry the Dirty Dog, 32 p.
Bread and Jam for Frances, 32 p. (5 book series)
The Little Engine that Could, 37 p.
Floss, 32 p.
Ox-cart Man, 40 p.
Blueberries for Sal, 32 p.
The Magic Fish, 32 p.
Gregory’s Shadow, 32 p.
Maybelle The Cable Car, 42 p.
Madeline, 46 p. (6 book series)
Seaman’s Journal: On the Trail with Lewis and Clark
Poems to Read to the Very Young, by Josette Frank

2010-05-30T11:34:00.003-05:00

It seems like I've been posting about Braden an awful lot lately, but goodness- he's growing up so quickly. Every time I turn around I'm surprised by something.

Recently the boys and I were picking up our swagger waggon from the mechanic in the Big City. The Big City is a huge college town, and as we stood in line Braden and I were chatting with a college girl behind us.

She was carrying college textbooks, and so I'd asked her about her major, what other classes she had, etc.

Toward the end of the conversation she turned to Braden, who was wearing the University's sweatshirt, and said, "So how about you? What's your major?"

Puzzled, he hesitated and looked at me. I answered for him, "He's in 8th grade."

"Oh! " She briefly looked surprised and then turned the conversation to other things.

As we walked to our car, Braden asked "Why did she ask me what my major was?"

"She thought you were in college," I answered.

"Wow! This haircut really does make me look older!" he said, walking a little bit taller to the car.

Because We're All About Education Here...

2010-05-21T20:23:00.000-05:00

Finally Comic Sans Gets Some Respect!

2010-05-20T17:05:00.001-05:00

See more funny videos and funny pictures at CollegeHumor.

2010-05-11T10:33:00.002-05:00

This morning, Braden was playing "Hero" (Mariah Carey) on the piano.

I commented on how that song is so slow and dreamy it makes me want to take a nap.

He rolled his eyes and said, "Maybe you feel that way, Mom. But someday I'll win a girl's heart with these romantic songs, and THEN you'll change your tune."

Great Expectations

2010-05-08T12:43:00.004-05:00

A couple of years ago I was asked to give the devotion at a baby shower for a woman in our church. I couldn't really think of anything significant to say about babies, and ended up speaking about how our expectations of motherhood often fall short of reality.

Here is the text, and a copy of a picture I held up for everyone to read. Try to imagine me reading this out loud, while simultaneously trying not to pass out and attempting to hide my shaking hands.

Happy Mother's Day!

Great Expectations
No one’s ever asked me to do a devotional before, so - as a disclaimer, and in the interest of full disclosure - I need to make the following things clear:

1. Know that you are listening to a mother who has given her oldest son a reverse Mohawk while trying to cut his hair.

2. A mother who’s taped a feminine hygiene product over a child’s scraped arm because she couldn’t find a band-aid large enough.

3. A mother who, failing to get the attention of the lifeguard on duty, jumped fully-clothed into a YMCA pool to save her 2 year old whom she thought was drowning.

I’m sure you’re beginning to understand why no one’s ever asked me to give a devotional before.

Also, know that all of my children are under 13, and so much of my parenting perspective revolves around younger children. But I’ve always appreciated hearing from mothers who are a few steps ahead on the journey.

God’s View of Motherhood
Throughout the Bible, God exalts motherhood: Sarah, Rachel, Jochebed, Deborah, Ruth, Elizabeth and Mary. Scripture makes it clear that motherhood is a great and wonderful thing.

Over and over the Bible communicates that children are a blessing and a gift:
Psa 127:3-4 Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one's youth.

Genesis 4:1, Eve "conceived and bore Cain and said, ‘I have gotten a man from the Lord.’" At the very beginning, Eve knew who was the source of her children. They are gifts from God.

Children," says the Old Testament, "are a heritage from the Lord."

Expectations of Parenthood
We have in our heads, consciously or unconsciously, our own images and expectations of motherhood. We may remember our mothers and plan what we will do similarly or differently from them. We may spend the months of pregnancy planning the nursery, closely observing friends and family members with children, and imagining what our lives will be like when this new life is added.

But no matter how much you read beforehand or plan ahead, you still find yourself home from the hospital with a little one who is completely dependent upon you, thinking, “Now what do I do?” or “Will I ever sleep again?”

Beforehand, you think you’re prepared. You think you have an idea of what parenthood is like. But your imaginings usually have little in common with reality. At times like that, and there will be many of them, a sense of humor will be your greatest asset.

We’ve been working on Brogan’s first grade reading and writing skills this year. I’ve been anxious for him to begin writing sentences. Real sentences. Not sentences that I’ve dictated to him, but ones that he’s generated himself.

I remember when my sister and brother were in this stage, and they wrote cute little notes to Mom like “I luv yoo,” with all of the phonetic misspellings expected. Things of that nature. It was sweet and adorable. I was eagerly awaiting that with Brogan.

A couple of weeks ago, that moment finally arrived, and Brogan was so proud of his first sentence that he had to show it to me:

Now, if Brogan had been my first child, I’m sure I would’ve felt a twinge of disappointment and letdown with this reality that didn’t quite meet my expectations. But at this point in my parenting journey, I just thought, “At least it’s spelled correctly.”

Preparing children for God
Our priority as mothers is to be evangelists in our homes. We need to teach our children God’s law, show them their need for a Savior, and then point them to Jesus as the only one who can save them. We need to teach them the Gospel clearly and pray for God to regenerate their hearts.

When we’re new parents, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and pressured about this calling as mothers. But remember that when God chose Moses and David, He chose shepherds, men who had been prepared for the tough assignment of leading God’s people by leading sheep. God has lent us His children for a short time, so that we may train them for Him. "The job of a mother," as someone has said, "is giving saints to God."

Mothering Changes ME
The most surprising thing about motherhood is how it changes us. I think we never realize how selfish we really are until we have children. Motherhood also changes our perspective of God and His discipline.

When we discipline our children it upsets them and hurts us, but we are training children for God’s kingdom. But training requires discipline.

I’m going to read a short passage from Hebrews 12:
" 'MY SON, DO NOT REGARD LIGHTLY THE DISCIPLINE OF THE LORD, NOR FAINT WHEN YOU ARE REPROVED BY HIM;

"FOR THOSE WHOM THE LORD LOVES HE DISCIPLINES, AND HE SCOURGES EVERY SON WHOM HE RECEIVES.'

"It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom {his} father does not discipline?

"But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

"Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?

"For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He {disciplines us} for {our} good, so that we may share His holiness.

"All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterward it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. "

Any father who truly loves and delights in his child will discipline him, reprove him, and correct him. Knowing that our discipline comes from a God who loves us and delights in us, should change our response and enable us to feel secure in His love and sovereignty.

In Hebrews 12, God shows us how valuable His discipline is. I want my children to value discipline as well. Recently, during a trip to WalMart, I had opportunity to bless my children with discipline.

We had run errands in town. The boys behaved very nicely until we got to WalMart. Something about WalMart brings out their inner rascals, and I spent much of the time working on behavior issues instead of getting the shopping done.

Near the end of our trip, I saw Colson sitting in the cart with his head bowed, eyes closed, and hands folded. "How precious," I sighed to myself.

When Colson finished praying, he very seriously said, "I was praying that God would make you a nice mommy."

Hopefully Colson was right, and that God is changing me into a nicer mommy. This world is the proving ground for Heaven. While here, God shapes us and changes us through interactions with people and experiences. We have a God-given responsibility to train our children for the Lord, and we are growing along with our children. All the time we’re working, He’s changing us. Through the process of raising children we are blessed with images and insight in the Lord that we wouldn’t have otherwise.

SWAGGER WAGON

2010-05-07T12:27:00.000-05:00

Perhaps I Should Focus More on the Classics...

2010-05-01T20:44:00.009-05:00

OK. For this post, we're going to need a little music to set the mood.

Please click on the video below to start it. You don't need to *watch* the video. In fact, there really isn't anything to watch. It's just a picture. So you can scroll down and continue reading. It's the music that's important, not the video.

Have you got the music playing? Yes? Then we'll continue.

There's almost always music playing in our house. Well, music and Rush Limbaugh, but, still - there's an awful lot of music. Primarily show tunes.

One of my favorite memories is of shopping at WalMart with Braden when he was not quite two. He was in the seat of the shopping cart singing "Willkommen, bienvenue, welcome! Fremde, etranger, stranger" from Cabaret.

Recently, I've started playing more and more classical music with the occasional Gregorian chant CD thrown in. This week I've been playing a lot of Mozart.

My Mozart CD is mostly happy music. I really like happy music.

Anyway, this afternoon I had the radio on and was listening to their 70's and 80's mix, when the song you're listening to came on the radio.

At this point, one of the boys walked into the room. This boy - who shall remain nameless, but who is definitely old enough to have known better - hesitates as he walks past the radio.

He listens to the song for a moment, turns to me and says, "Wow! Is this song from Mozart?...........Mom? Why are you laughing? ...........Mom?"

... And After

2010-04-23T18:30:00.001-05:00

Here is the "new" Braden!

New glasses. New haircut. No braces.

And look! He has ears!

Braden has been planning this day for at least a month.

He managed to keep all of the changes a secret from everyone, hoping for huge dramatic reactions. So far, only M. and I have reacted dramatically.

At debate today, Braden mentioned that he'd gotten his braces off. His teacher said something along the lines of, "Oh? You wore braces?"

Tomorrow he'll see his friends, and will likely see much more drama than he got today, I think.

Here is Brogan's new look!

Brogan begins "Phase 1" of treatment, and thus far only has braces on his top teeth. He'll wear a wire there for a couple of months and then move on to head gear. Yay!

He's a bit worried about head gear, thinking he'll look like the young Willy Wonka in "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory." But many wonderful adults who have survived headgear have been quick to reassure him that it's not so bad.

I think the braces make him look older and more mature. Don't you?

Before....

2010-04-23T08:06:00.001-05:00

It's a pretty big day!!

Here is Braden before.....

And here is Brogan before...

Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together!

2010-04-14T22:01:00.002-05:00

Remember this?

In August of 2007, I joined with two ladies from church to form a vocal trio. We were each terrified of singing alone, but found that we loved singing together.

More than that, we loved practicing together. We loved talking with each other. Well, I did, anyway. I probably shouldn't presume that they loved it, too. They may well have quietly been wishing I would stop talking.

One year later, my family moved several hours away. Before we left, the trio got together and recorded a CD, with the help of our church family. It was never our original intent to make a recording, but we'd worked so hard over the year to learn the songs and we wanted some sort of "proof" that we had done it.

Our year was such a blessing to me, and I have thanked God many times that He brought us together. In fact, when I look back at my life in that city, the hours I spent with these women are among my most special memories.

The past two years apart have been filled with changes. My family moved several hours away. S. survived a massive stroke in the fall of 2008. I am so thankful that God spared her life, and that she hasn't quit fighting to regain lost ground.

In May I get to return to the fair city and sing with my friends again. I honestly never thought we would be able to do this. The distance apart was too far. S. wasn't certain if she would be able to overcome her health obstacles. None of us attend the same church anymore. But no obstacle is too great for God.

Even to sit in the same room with these two women is a pleasure that I didn't think I would be able to enjoy again. But to be able to sing with them again is a joy and a blessing for which I am very grateful.

Thank you so much, Lord, for these two women you've placed in my life. And thank you for the opportunity to see them and enjoy their company again!

Modern Intellectuals

2010-04-07T12:06:00.000-05:00

The Longest Book Review You May Ever Read

2010-04-05T01:06:00.006-05:00

I almost didn’t make it past page 5

This was not a good sign.

After setting the table for lunch, I slipped outside to check the mail, and I was delighted to find the complimentary copy of Matt Mikalatos’ new book “Imaginary Jesus” awaiting me.

Tyndale House Publishers provided me with a complimentary copy of his book. They had sent me an e-mail a week ago, advising me that my complimentary copy was on its way.

(There. That should satisfy the Federal Trade Commission. Did I mention I was given a complimentary copy?)

As the boys ate their lunch, I eagerly ripped open the envelope and sat down at the table to begin reading. I began with “Chapter Zero,” being careful to avoid reading the plot synopsis on the back cover. I knew both Matt and Tyndale House Publishers were expecting me to review the book, and I didn’t want to influence my first reading of the book with a plot summary or reader testimonials.

I have been reading forms of Matt’s writing for over seven years. Matt married a college friend, and both were missionaries overseas. We loved reading the Mikalatos prayer letters, as they were always well-written and creative. When the Mikalatos family returned and settled in the States, I began following Matt’s blog and Facebook posts. I could tell that his book was written in the same fun, whimsical style as his blog postings and letters.

I thought his idea of writing a fictional message-story with himself as the main character was pretty gutsy. The book opens with Matt in a vegan café in Portland, OR, hiding his Bible under his notebook so no one will see it, and griping about having to eat vegan chili without the tortilla chips he ordered. Seated with Matt at his table is Jesus.

Now, I’ve read books in which Jesus features as a character: “Ben Hur” and “The Robe” are the first two that jump to mind. But the Jesus seated in the café with Matt is not what I’m used to seeing in literature. He’s wearing the robe and sandals in which you always imagine Jesus. But his behavior and his words are not what I would ever imagine coming from my Savior: amused by things that are not amusing when you really think about them; mocking and avoiding one of his children.

Careful to avoid any stray peanut butter sandwich crumbs, I set down Matt Mikalatos’ new book in frustration. As much as I wanted to read it, I wasn’t sure I could take 225 pages of a book where Jesus was treated so flippantly and irreverently, and for what purpose? To be hip? To be “relatable?” To appeal to some particular demographic? Could I stomach reading this?

“Don’t give up so quickly,” said a voice to my right.

I glanced up to find an elderly gentleman, wearing robes and dusty sandals, sitting at my table.

“Apostle Matthew, why are you here?” I asked him. “I just saw you a couple of months ago. We paid our taxes this year. Believe me, everything is filed and in order.”

Matthew waved my question aside with the back of his hand. “No, no. You’re fine on that front. I came about the book. I can tell you’re concerned about reading it, and I came to help.”

I cocked my eyebrow at him. “The book? You came about the book? Have you read it already?”

“No, but I think I can help allay some of your fears about it, “ Matthew said. “Think about what you know of Matt Mikalatos. Have you ever read something blatantly blasphemous from him?”

“Noooo, “ I replied slowly. “Though he usually just writes funny observations from his life.”

“Have you ever known him to write or speak about Jesus in a disrespectful manner?” pressed Matthew.

“No,” I answer with certainty. “I’ve seen other authors do that, but never Matt. That seems unlike him.”

“Then give him the benefit of the doubt. Give the book more than five pages before you put it down. Look, do you see the cover? The title is ‘Imaginary Jesus.’ Don’t you think that’s a bit of a clue about what’s going on in the story?” said Matthew.

I frowned. “Do you mean that the Jesus he’s having lunch with isn’t actually Jesus? That he’s a representation of something else? That’s…odd. That doesn’t even make any sense.”

“Hillary, you are sitting at your table having a conversation with the Apostle Matthew. Does that seem at all odd to you?” asked Matthew.

“Well, no. It’s not like you’re the real Matthew. You’re imaginary – ooooohhhhhh,” I left the sentence hanging as I finally understood. “You’re saying that this isn’t the real Jesus. It’s a Jesus-like figure that Matt created.”

“Exactly, “ smiled Matthew, as he patted me on the head. “Now, give the rest of the book a chance. Let him tell his story and see where he goes with it.”

Matthew pushed his chair back from the table, and made his way to the front door. “And, Hillary, it isn’t easy writing a book. I wasn’t an author. I didn’t study literature. I was a tax collector, and the Lord used me to write for Him. Matt was, well, a lot of things before he wrote this book. Writing isn’t an easy process.”

He closed the door softly behind him and left me to think about his words, as I picked up the book.

*****************************************************************
I’m glad that I followed Imaginary Matthew’s advice and continued on with the book.

As Apostle Matthew implied, the Jesus that appears in the early pages of the book is NOT the real Jesus. He is a Jesus that Matt Mikalatos created out of his own imagination, and one with which Matt is very comfortable. He never points out Matt’s sin. He’s like Matt in pretty much every way, except maybe in track and field. The Imaginary Jesus is definitely a faster runner than Matt.

Throughout the book many, many forms of an Imaginary Jesus appear: Legalist Jesus, Magic 8 Ball Jesus, Perpetually Angry Jesus, and Peacenik Jesus are just a few. Each new Imaginary Jesus appears to have been created out of a small aspect of Jesus’ personality as revealed in Scripture. In other words, in each form of Imaginary Jesus there was a wee bit of truth. Sometimes we take the bits of the Jesus in Scripture that we are the most comfortable with, and fashion that into an Imaginary Jesus who is simultaneously Jesus…and yet very, very NOT. It is often much easier for us to deal with a Jesus of our own (or someone else’s) making, than the Jesus revealed in the Bible.

This was an excellent point made by Mr. Mikalatos, and I thought the way he weaved it throughout his story was fantastic. With each new Jesus I definitely was forced to square it with what I knew from the Bible.

There were only two points of contention that I had with the book. I’ll discuss them briefly here, and try not to spoil anything.

Numero Uno
At one point in the book, Matt’s Imaginary Jesus makes several statements that are clearly contrary to what is in God’s Word. He does this in order to make himself more palatable to an unbeliever.

One example of such statements is this, “ …people get all hung up on that my death on the cross was all about substitutionary atonement. Like the only reason I died was to take away the sins of other people. Does that even make sense? How does my dying make other people’s sins go away? And what sort of loving father lets his son get killed? I mean, yeah, I had to die, but not because Dad was punishing me for something you did. It’s like, ‘Dad, Matt stole some cookies,’ and Dad comes down with the belt and I say, ‘No, no, hit me instead’ and God agrees to that? No way.”

When the unbeliever questions Imaginary Jesus about the above statement, he is told not to be so judgmental. Through the entire conversation, Matt sits silently. Nothing in the conversation set off any warning bells and told him that, “Gee, this Jesus is saying things that are directly contrary to Scripture. Maybe he’s not the real thing.”

In fact, it is not until Matt, Imaginary Jesus, and the unbeliever visit a cool, hip new church that Matt realizes that he has attached himself to another Imaginary Jesus. However, it wasn’t the aforementioned gross doctrinal errors that tipped Matt off. When the unbeliever pointed out to Matt the real Jesus surely wouldn’t be found in a racially homogenous church, THAT was what opened his eyes. I can’t imagine the point of this interaction was to imply that the real Jesus is only to be found in racially and generationally diverse churches?

Numero Dos
In the “big reveal” scene at the end of the book, Matt encounters the true Jesus Christ. I thought it was respectfully done but, the language used was very vague and much of what could have been an impactful scene was lost.

Were this a book solely for Christian believers, the use of vague language when discussing such topics as sin, Christ’s death on the cross, and repentance does a disservice to the believers. Vague language waters down the meaning of His sacrifice.

Were this a book solely for unbelievers, the vague language makes the gospel unclear and doesn’t lead any reader to any sort of action. I understand the need to be sensitive when writing for unbelievers, but why shy away from clarity?

Such phrases as “friend of Jesus” or “friend of God” do not give any productive clarity to non-Christians. Someone may see himself as a “friend of God” simply because he does not see himself as an active “enemy of God.” But the Bible says this is not true. (Romans 5:8-10) "but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life."

In another paragraph, Matt writes: “[Jesus] died so that I could …break out of those for my deeper desires, those amazing, wonderful, transcendent actions that I so badly wanted to do but couldn’t without his help. He died so I could live His life.”

But in our unsaved state there is nothing in us of any redeeming value. That which we do without Christ is still sin. All of our good works are sin, without Christ. To say that we have these deep desires to do good works, but cannot do them without Christ is only half true. We cannot do anything of kingdom value without Him. But without Him, we don’t even want to. It’s not that Christ enables me to do things, it is Him living in me.

The Gospel is powerful. There are important concepts that can be explained clearly, but not when using vague language in an effort not to scare people off.

I understand that Mr. Mikalatos is trying to present the Gospel without using such offensive words as sin, repentance, forgiveness, etc., but the end result is, I fear, confusion and no sense of direction for an unbelieving reader.

Near the end of the book, Matt does write that the Bible is the place where he met Jesus and hears Him speak clearly. I am glad that it is in the book, though I wish that this point was made a bit more strongly.

Allow Me To Sum Up
I enjoyed reading “Imaginary Jesus.” It was a fun, light-hearted, quick read. Don’t think that “light-hearted” means “fluffy and without substance.” Despite the breezy style of writing, the author gives the reader a lot to think about. There were several times when I had to put the book down and meditate over the previous chapter. Matt Mikalatos is a gifted writer, and I look forward to reading more from him.

The premise of the book is fantastic! I loved the notion of us creating an Imaginary Jesus for our own comfort. It was not something I’d ever thought of before, but I certainly see how often and how easily it is done! I can absolutely imagine myself discussing this issue with my children as they grow spiritually.

I would not recommend it as a book for unbelievers, due to the clarity issues I mentioned above.

However, I would have no problem recommending this book to other believers. I can think of more than a few who might receive this book as gifts this year! “Imaginary Jesus” is definitely a book that will make you think.

My Post of Reckoning

2010-04-02T20:42:00.004-05:00

I want to thank everyone who read yesterday’s post about Colson joining a Latin dance troupe. Some of you sent me e-mails, some commented here, and others commented on Facebook. But all of your words were read and appreciated.

Now, there’s no easy way to say this, so I’m just going to say it straight-out. It’ll be like ripping off a Band-Aid, but without the hair loss.

Ready?

Scroll down and check the date of that post.

Go ahead. I’ll wait. Go on!

OK, are you back? Then I will proceed.

Yesterday was April 1 and each year, in honor of the holiday, I write an April Fool’s Day blog entry.

This year’s entry was memorable for two reasons:

1. For the first time no family member of mine actually believed the entry. That is a first!

2. My "Internet Buddy" (who shall not be named here) did not fall for it! This is also a first. I can usually count on her to fall hook, line, and sinker. Every. single. year. Way to go Internet Buddy! You're on to my wily ways. I see I shall have to be especially tricksy in order to fool you next year!

And to those of you who got the joke early on: Thank you for not spoiling it for others!

For those who would like to read past entries, here they are. Click on the colored hyperlinks to read:

2008 – In Which I Get My Groove On. (My Foray into Pole Dancing.)
(Read the April 2nd reveal here.)

2007- In Which Hillary Supports Hillary (a.k.a. “Hillary Squared”)
(Read the April 2nd reveal here.)

2006- In Which I Confess My Secret Love of Gangsta’ Rap
(Read the April 2nd Reveal Here)

Further Explanation on the Exhaustion

2010-04-01T00:25:00.003-05:00

We’re all feeling more human after lounging around the house this past weekend. It took several days of sleeping in and napping, and, on the whole, I think we’ve recovered nicely.

This has been a very busy year for all of us, and we’re gearing up for a flurry of activity in April and May. I’m considering hiring another woman to be me on a part-time basis so that I can keep up.

I haven’t really written about our added activity too much because some of M.’s co-workers occasionally read this blog, and it kind of embarrassed him. So we’ve kept it quiet, and have not even hinted at it to close friends and family. But it’s getting to the point where it won’t be easy to hide any more, and – doggone it- I’m very proud and want everyone to know!

So, I’m sorry M. Maybe you can distract those co-workers with something shiny for a while.

Colson has always been a dancer. Always. Here he is at age three, dancing at a family wedding.

I have video from when he is a toddler, dancing to a Milli Vanilli song I had playing. Odds are, if there’s music somewhere, Colson will be moving to it.

In our Christmas letter to friends and family (the letter which I’ve only just now realized that I forgot to post on this blog), I mentioned how Colson, after months of asking Daddy for permission, finally began taking tap dancing lessons. Once a week he braves a sea of girls in pink with princess dreams in order to learn how to dance. He’s not terribly good at it yet. I think it’s because there are so many steps and balance issues. Or maybe it’s because he spends so much time listening to the taps on his shoes that he forgets what he’s doing. It’s not terribly manly, and that bothers M.

But the source of our exhaustion started last spring, actually.

Last May we drove to the big city for their Cinco de Mayo celebration. We’d never taken the boys to anything like that before, and since Braden was learning Spanish we thought it would be fun.

After exploring some of the vendors we bought some food and settled on the grass in front of a bandshell to listen to a band play salsa/merengue music while we ate. At one point the musicians asked for children to volunteer to come up on the stage and be “helpers.”

Colson waved his hands wildly, which, as every child knows, is the absolute best way to get someone’s attention, and he went up onstage to learn how to salsa.

Salsa is a tough dance to learn. It’s got a sort of syncopated rhythm that is hard to latch onto. Anyone who ever danced with me when I lived in Costa Rica will tell you that I never got the hang of it.

The children onstage looked like puppies chasing their tails! Just. So. Cute! I wish I had thought to bring my camera, because those kids were all adorable!

But Colson was actually very good. He didn’t have all the movements quite correct, but he picked up the rhythm, and shimmied his little hips as his arms did some sort of odd, serpentine motion that (I think) was meant to help him keep his balance. He was having such a great time, and was in his own little world as he “shook it all out” on that stage.

As the song was winding down, the band members had noticed him, and began playing a little faster to see if he could keep up. He did! At the very end, Colson simply collapsed in laughter.

After the show, one of the musicians came over to talk to M. about Colson. It came out in the conversation that the musicians play for a local Latin dance group that is always looking for boys to participate. Apparently they had many girls dancing but it was hard to convince the boys to give it a try.

Well, we attended a couple of the classes in the big city. It turns out that Colson has kind of a natural talent for Latin dance. He picks it up quickly, and feels the Latin rhythms almost intuitively. We decided to commit to this dance group. This meant a 45 minute drive each way, two times a week. What was I thinking?

Late last summer Colson and his partner began competing in some local ballroom competitions. (Poor M!)

Not many – just two. But it meant buying costumes, which was troublesome on a couple of levels.

1. Can someone please make dance costumes for boys that are remotely manly? Please?

2. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find flared-leg Latin dance pants for a size 6 boy? In the Midwest? Augh! I cannot count the number of dance stores we called or visited, nor can I begin to estimate the number and variation of facial expressions on salespeople as I carefully explained what we were looking for. Once we finally located a pair of size six black elastic fabric boys Latin dance pants online, I told Colson that he could never grow, as there was no guarantee that I could find another pair of these pants in a larger size.

This fall Colson and his partner joined the dance troupe that performs locally. It’s very low-key, but also exciting for a six year old. He loves performing, and gets a kick out of all the attention. He and his partner are the only children in the group, so they get a lot of people talking to them after each performance.

Nearly all of the musicians and dancers are Hispanic, so Colson is learning a lot of Spanish, as well. One of the first phrases he learned was the classic, “Where is the bathroom?” But he can also say such phrases as “Pardon me. May I please borrow your sombrero?”, “My, but you’re a pretty little senorita!”, and “Just a soda, please. I’m underage.”

This June, the group has the opportunity to perform their folkloric dances in Mexico, at the Auditorio Municipal in Ciudad Juarez.

We’re all planning to go. It’s adding some motivation to our homeschool Spanish lessons. Colson is preparing for the Customs agents by learning how to say “I am carrying neither firearms nor fruit” and ‘I have nothing to declare.”

Just this weekend we learned that our troupe is scheduled to perform in Brazil at the 2011 Carnaval in Rio de Janeiro! I can hardly wait! I’m planning for us all to go. M. is against it, but I’m working on him.

How on earth am I going to find a samba costume in Omaha?

Hello From Exhaustion Central!

2010-03-28T17:47:00.007-05:00

This week has been a perfect storm of fun and activity!

Grandma and Grandpa came from up north to visit for 4 days. Their visit coincided with Braden's first "real" debate tournament.

On Monday we relaxed around the house and enjoyed each other.

Tuesday and Thursday Braden and at least one parent drove an hour to the big city for the tournament. On Wednesday we ALL made the long trip. We left the house at 6:00 am each day, and arrived home between 9:00 and 11 pm, depending upon the day.

Each day was spent in one of the following ways:

1. Consuming coffee and reading.

2. Playing board or card games.

3. Watching teenagers argue.

M. loved judging debate and speech rounds. Loved it. As in, if there was a way for him to do this professionally, he would.

I was the one who originally signed up to judge, but M. took over. Which was fine with me. I really liked being able to chat with moms, and knit, and watch the occasional debate round.

Below is Braden and his partner. The round hadn't started yet; they were preparing.

Debaters are required to wear "professional attire" and all the young men wore suits. Everyone was so handsome!

116 students came to the tournament to debate. Each team participated in 6 rounds - four on day one and 2 on day two. The rounds get progressively harder or easier depending upon how you are doing.

In the end, Braden and his partner went 3-3. Not bad for their first year! Teams are ranked by their win/loss records, and also earn individual "speaker points" each round. Often times the "speaker points" are used as tie-breakers. They were right on the bubble and nearly broke to octafinals. There were a few other teams with 3-3 records that broke to octafinals because they had higher speaker points than Braden and his partner. This was encouraging, and got both boys excited about debating next year.

When not spending time at the debate tournament, there was a whole lotta' RockBand going on. The boys have formed a band called "Easily Distracted."

Colson surpised everyone this week by showing us he could play on the "Easy" level, and knew how to do the fingerings.

I just think this photo is adorable. Look how tiny he appears when holding a guitar!

We had a wonderful time last week, but I'm planning on sleeping in all week, just to catch up on my zzzzzzzzzzz's!

The Men in This House Would Agree With the Baby

2010-03-21T12:31:00.002-05:00

Heard at My House

2010-03-20T12:52:00.001-05:00

Braden: "Revenge is a dish best served cold. But even a cold dish needs preparation. Mwahahaha!"

How "Star Trek" Should Have Ended.

2010-03-17T23:31:00.001-05:00

2010-03-16T22:00:00.002-05:00

Colson wanted to post video of what he's learning in tap class so his grandmothers could see.

This first video is of the basic positions he's learned and something called the "Teddy Bear Dance."

The second video is of the line dance his class is learning. Every time they learn a new "step" it gets added to the dance, so it's not finished yet. But this is what he knows so far.

I wanted to turn on some music, like they do in his class. But he was very particular about dancing in silence. Colson worried you wouldn't be able to hear his taps if the music was too loud.

It's Yearbook Time!

2010-03-04T17:12:00.004-06:00

Braden's homeschool group is readying the yearbook for 2009-2010. All the students in the high school class have been asked to submit photos from their extracurricular activities.

Here are a few of Braden's submissions:

Carrying the Olympic torch in the relay for the Vancouver games!

Supporting a friend in his time of need.

Debate

Out on the town with his pal, Jack. "Set up a perimeter!!"

(Har! Har! Har! Those two and their inside jokes...)

Crashing the White House State Dinner.

(Sorry 'bout that, Desiree. I hope you find a new job soon!)

We're Going to the Division Championship!!

At this summer's "Beer Summit"

On the red carpet at the Golden Globes.

50 Impressions in 50 Seconds

2010-02-28T09:30:00.000-06:00

H/T "The Anchoress"

It Gets Me Every Time

2010-02-26T12:22:00.002-06:00

We've been watching a lot of Olympics here over the past two weeks. As if the athletes and their often inspirational stories weren't enough, this commercial gets me every time.

Every. time. I. see. it.

I don't think it would have affected me like this when the boys were little. When they were small, I was so much a part of everything they did. But as they are getting older I can watch them beginning to spread their wings; taking their first steps on the road away from M. and me. I understand that even though they will eventually be taller than me and on their own. But they will always be children in my heart and in my head.

I am in touch with several of my former 4th grade students. All of them have grown up, and many are parents themselves. I tease them all that they are all still 10 years old when I think of them. They can send me all the pictures of themselves and their beautiful families, they can tell me about their careers and their travels around the world, but it doesn't change a thing. They are still small.

I see my oldest playing piano for senior citizens at a local care center, and I remember when he played his first notes on the keyboard. I see my middle son swim at a meet and remember when he and I blew bubbles in a "Mommy and Me" class. I see my youngest show off his sweet moves on a wedding reception dance floor, and I remember him taking his first wobbly steps.

I think life as a parent is a series of small separations. Our children are always moving away from us, into the lives that God has planned for them. However, no matter how big my children get - when they are grandparents themselves - I'll probably still see them as preschoolers. No matter what they do, my heart will be right there next to them. Watching them. Worrying over them. Holding my breath.

Thank you Lord, for the privilege of parenting. Thank you that, at least in one way, our children will never grow up.

It Was Like A Nightmare!

2010-02-25T12:00:00.003-06:00

It was horrible.

It was so awful that M. didn’t even believe me when I told him what happened.

I just……

I mean, I can’t……

I wish I were a more talented writer. Maybe then I could explain to you the sheer horror that descended upon our house this week. Monday, specifically.

A day that shall live in familial infamy.

(shudder)

Monday evening the boys and I worked at organizing the basement. Braden and I assembled some bookshelves, then dusted them and loaded them with books. Brogan and Colson cleaned up legos on the floor and organized their toys. Together the boys organized all of our movies and repacked the shelves where they are kept.

Sounds horrible, right?

I wish. That’s not even close to the horrible part.

Once the stacks of books were off the floor, and the boxes and bookshelf-wrapping were taken out to the garage, I could see that I needed to vacuum.

So the boys helped me move couches and I vacuumed under them. The DVD shelves and the TV cabinet was now dusty after the reorganization, and I attacked that.

As I got ready to vacuum around the TV, I saw some small legos that the boys had missed when picking up. They were sort of mixed in and under the cords and surge protector by the TV cabinet. I grabbed the legos to put away, and also picked up a piece of cellophane and a twisty-tie thing that I assumed were left-over from unwrapping video games or toys from Christmas.

I know. I’m taking a long time to get to the horrible part, aren’t I?

Hang in there.

I’m setting the stage.

I’m talking it through. It’s like therapy.

I set the legos off to the side for the boys to put away.

The twisty-tie thing didn’t look right, though. It felt solid and textured like a twisty-tie, but it was in an odd shape – sort of like a shaky hockey stick; not the elliptical shape you usually see when you cut them off of the toys.

Also, it was black, but with sort of a cool, teeny-tiny pattern. Not the silvery-gray you see with the twisty-ties.

So I set to look at it more closely.

Now, keep in mind, this all took place over a few seconds. It sounds longer, because you’re reading it. But it really was just a few seconds.

I turned the twisty-tie around to examine it further, and that’s when I saw it.

The head.

It had a head!

I dropped that thing as if it were on fire and suddenly found myself across the room, grabbing Braden’s arm.

“Tell me that’s plastic!” I shouted at him.

Braden was working on something else, and had no idea what I was talking about. He looked at his mother with her crazy eyes and said calmly, “.....What??”

I waved wildly in the general direction of the thing-that-was-not-a-twisty-tie and said again,” TELL ME THAT IS PLASTIC!!! TELL ME THAT IS A PLASTIC SNAKE!”

The littles ran over to get a better look, but not too closely! Wouldn't want to risk getting bit, now, right?

Braden looked at the object in all its hideousness and slowly, while trying to suppress his laughter, said, “Well….I think…”

“TELL ME IT’S PLASTIC AND THAT THERE IS NOT A SNAKE IN MY HOUSE!”

“OK,” he said. “ It’s plastic.”

“Really?”

“No. It’s real. But it’s dead,” he told me.

As if that would make me feel any better.

Braden carried the serpent out of the house while I paced upstairs trying to get the heebie-jeebies out.

(Cheerfully disposing of uninvited, deceased reptiles = a wonderful blessing a teenage boy can give his mother.)

I touched a snake. With my bare hands. I looked the snake in its beady eyes. A snake in my HOUSE!

shudder

I want my mommy.

2010-02-23T16:00:00.000-06:00

A couple of days ago I posted an Old Spice commercial that we spotted during the Olympics and immediately loved.

Since then, we've watched it several times. Occasionally you will hear me one of us quoting a line from the commercial.

Yesterday, on the way home from a class in the big city, Colson recited the commercial. The entire thing!

He's only ever seen it with me. Maybe 15 times total. None of the rest of us have it memorized, yet he managed to remember the entire commercial!

We got home and I simply had to tape it! He's a bit hard to understand, as he's smiling and for some reason he cannot smile and enunciate simultaneously.

Sharp Dressed Men

2010-02-22T17:02:00.002-06:00

Such handsome and rather intimidating young men we saw at church yesterday.

Braden is the agent on the right. He looks deceptively short in that photo, but he grew nearly 4 inches this summer and is pushing 5'10".

(I realize that 5'10" isn't exactly gigantic, but I'm still not used to looking up at him. )

Okay, boys. Let's get a more relaxed photo. Why don't you smile for the camera?

Hm. I see I will need to be more clear with my directions: "Please smile like normal people."

That's better!

Look At Your Man.

2010-02-19T13:25:00.002-06:00

We loved this commercial here.We've watched it over and over just to marvel at how they managed to create it.

Did you know that it was all done in one shot? The only CGI used was the diamonds falling/Old Spice appearing out of his hand. Everything else was shot live, in one take.

Well, it took them 3 days to get the one take they could use. But the whole commercial is done in one shot.

Brilliant!

I'm on a horse!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

2010-02-14T17:04:00.001-06:00

Somehow I Don't See This Catching On.

2010-02-05T19:27:00.003-06:00

After watching one of the last games of the Vikings football season, Prince was inspired to write a new fight song for his favorite team.

Presumably he thought this fight song would help propel the team and its fans to the Superbowl. But, somehow, I don't see this catching on.

Heard at My House

2010-01-18T22:01:00.003-06:00

Tonight, Colson ran to me, sobbing.

Colson (in tears): Mooooooom! Brogan called me "outdated!"

2010-01-14T22:28:00.002-06:00

The only thing I wish I could change about this video is that I think there are a lot of Republicans whose faces should be in this video.

It shouldn't be an open letter only to Democrats. "Open Letter to Politicians" would have been a better title.

Politicians from both parties have had a hand in this.

Merry Christmas!!!

2009-12-25T11:00:00.000-06:00

Virtual Christmas Recital: Updated!

2009-12-22T21:16:00.010-06:00

Every year, before our church's Christmas program, children from the congregation play Christmas or classical pieces for the parents, while the children are in their classrooms getting ready for the program.

Brogan played "Silent Night."

Braden was assigned the task of going last. He was told to plan 10 minutes worth of Christmas songs because sometimes the children take a bit longer to get ready.

Just before he made his way to the piano, he was told to play only one of his three prepared songs. He picked "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" because he'd played it last year and knew it the best.

Afterward, he was asked to play his other two songs after the program, as children were making their way back to the classrooms. He did, but everyone was leaving and there was so much talking that you can't really hear the piano on the video tape. So I asked Braden to play those songs again at home. Scroll down to see them.

Colson sang with his kindergarten class. That's him on the far right. ( That's how we do it in our house: Start 'em out on the far right wing, never on the left.) He the one waving, giving me the "thumbs-up" between songs, and generally mugging for the crowd. He's so shy.

UPDATE: Here are Braden's pieces he played at the conclusion of the Christmas program.

The Holly and the Ivy/ O Christmas Tree

Joy to the World.

Overheard at My House

2009-12-22T21:01:00.003-06:00

Today, as we ran errands, Colson picked up a kindergarten reader that we'd left in the car (one of those Dick and Jane- type readers) and began reading aloud to himself.

Colson (Reading aloud):
Rachel said, "Andrew, will you come and play with me?
I want to play with you.
I have a little table.
We can play together with the little table.
Do you want to play with the little table?"

Andrew said, "Yes, Rachel.
I will play with you.
I would like to play with the little table.
Together we can play with the little table."

(Pause)

Colson (talking to himself): Wow. It's like she's got some kind of mind control!

Another Climate Protest

2009-12-21T16:48:00.001-06:00

Hundreds gather to protest global warming.

HT Melissa

I Needed This Today.

2009-12-20T08:34:00.001-06:00

Thank you, Foil Hat!

2009-12-18T21:08:00.001-06:00

Yeah. Latin was rough this week. 'Nuff said.

Baby, It's Cold Outside!

2009-12-15T21:18:00.004-06:00

Brrr!

Last week a blizzard swept through the midwest. After two days of snow and one long night of high winds, we found ourselves buried under a little over one foot of snow.

The kids couldn't wait to play in it. Braden, however, knew that he would be spending a lot of time shoveling. And he did. He spent a couple of hours and got half the driveway done before M. came home from work. He went out again later to re-shovel the front of the driveway where the snowplow had buried it again.

When M. came home, he helped Braden shovel the other half and the walks. Our neighbor took pity on them and came over with his snowblower to help. They were VERY thankful!

The day after the storm, this was the view out my front door.

Because of the winds, the snow was almost two feet deep on the porch. In some parts of the yard (mostly against the house) we saw drifts of nearly 4 feet.

Colson went out to play and took every precaution against the cold. (It was -2 F.)

Colson had fun getting the mail. It's not usually this challenging!

Brogan worked very hard at building a snow fort.

This picture really shows the effects of the wind. We're on the edge of the neighborhood, so we really felt the wind. In some parts of the yard the snow barely covered the grass. In others (especially up against the house) the snow drifted up very high. In most places, though, it's about a foot deep.

It's been a great time to hunker inside and do school! Our area schools were closed for 3 days. We kept up with our schoolwork, however, and it wasn't until Day 3 that the boys figured out that public school children weren't at school. (insert evil laugh here)

I'm Just Sayin'...

2009-12-06T15:16:00.002-06:00

Cross It Off the "Bucket List"

2009-11-28T21:14:00.007-06:00

Well, at least now I can say I've done it.

I never thought I would.

I always thought people who spent the Thanksgiving holiday in such a manner were, well, lame.

But this year M.'s mother and I decided to do it.

And now, on the other side of the (relatively minor) adventure we can sink into our chairs, take a deep breath, and exhale "Well.....we did it."

We braved the crowds, the serious uber-shoppers, and the freezing weather to shop on Black Friday.

Neither of us had ever gotten up early to shop on Black Friday, but this year Grandma S. had a specific purchase to make: Uncle D. wanted one of the 31.5" flat screen tvs that Target had on sale, but he had to work. So Grandma S. and I poured over the ads on Thursday night mapping out a plan and writing lists.

We set our alarms for 4:00 am and were out the door by 4:15. Target opened at 5:00 am, and we wanted a good spot in line. This is what greeted us when we pulled in to the parking lot.

The line stretched around to the back of the building, and we were along the side and while not near the front of the line, we were definitely not near the back. It was quite cold, and all of us sort of danced around in line trying to stay warm. (I felt badly for the high school exchange student from Spain who showed up in jeans and a hoodie.)

Here's Grandma S. and an unsuspecting bystander (in the orange hat).

The bystander told us that many stores were offering their Black Friday items online and with free shipping. "I feel sorry for everyone lined up over at Best Buy, " she said. "Their online Black Friday sales started at 3:00 am. I sat at my computer and made my purchase without having to deal with lines and the cold."

We made a mental note to read up about the online sales next year.

Once the line started moving, we got in the store very quickly. There were police at the door, hust in case. But the pretty much just ensured that the people who waited in their warm cars instead of the line of shivering shoppers couldn't cut into the line.

Once inside, we were in a hurry! Uncle D.'s TV was a priority. We hustled to the electronic section, where Grandma S. went in search of the TV, and I hit the counter for a Tom Tom for Grandpa.

Hint: If you are in a crowd of people, all trying to get the clerk's attention so he can hand you a product that's behind the counter, call his name. You can be among a group of shoppers all calling, "Sir? Sir? Excuse me? Could you?" and you will never be heard. But all it took for me was to say, "Chad? Can you hand me a Tom Tom, please?" and he looked right at me and handed me the item.

Success!

After procuring the Tom Tom I quickly located Grandma S., who still had not found the TV. I asked a man who had a TV in his cart where they were.

His answer: "In the women's department, near the dressing rooms."

Really, Target?

REALLY?!

We raced over there, but were too late. All the TV's were gone. We we very disappointed, because we could have gotten one had we gone to the WOMEN'S DEPARTMENT first.

Maybe it's just us, but it never occurred to us to check women's wear for a television.

Next year we're calling ahead.

Disappointed, but having not lost heart, Gradma S. and I continued working through our list. S he waited in line, and I raced around the store getting the other items we'd decided upon the night before. Our strategy was a sound one, and we were rewarded with only a 40 minute wait in line. By the time we were near the front, the line snaked Disneyland-style around the entire store!

Our line:

This was what checkout looked like:

Target's doors opened at 5:00am, and we were out of the store by 6:00 am.

By the time we arrived home at 2:30 pm, we had been to 5 individuals stores and spent 2-3 hours at the mall.

We arrived home exhausted, but it was a fun day! I think that if we do this again another year we'll do better on the planning end.

And we'll know to check the women's department for the electronic items we want!

2009-11-24T08:36:00.002-06:00

My Thanksgiving Day baby turns nine this week.

Nine.

Next year he'll be in double-digits.

To quote Brogan, "Where have the years gone?"

Here's a look back:

Brogan's Birthday

Happy Birthday, Brogan! We love you and we thank God for giving you to us!

The Dreaded "Blue Screen of Death."

2009-11-17T10:04:00.002-06:00

Last week we awoke to our computer displaying the dreaded "Blue Screen of Death." (left)

We didn't lose too many things, thankfully, as M. backs up the computer fairly regularly.

What we *did* lose we can work to re-create. But when it comes to schoolwork, we've been handed a boatload of chaos. I use a computer program to create the boys' assignment sheets, and had the next two weeks' worth of work all planned out.

Braden is at a crucial point in the debate season and lost *everything.* He was supposed to participate in his first debate round yesterday, and we'd lost all of his evidence and his entire case! Providentially, he'd sent a draft of his case to a friend to look over. The friend was able to e-mail it back. But all his other work has been lost.

Hopefully the computer techs who are in possession of our dead computer can resurrect it. The BSOD was apparently caused by one of the weekly Microsoft Windows automatic updates. (Thank you, Microsoft!)

I'm very tempted to buy a Mac next.

Welcome to Mornings at My House.

2009-10-26T06:06:00.000-05:00

I am a morning person. Especially when I've gotten a good night's sleep.

Well, pretty much only when I've gotten a good night's sleep.

I find that I am the most productive in the mornings, and love the quiet in the house before the boys are up.

The boys sleep 11-12 hours every night. (In bed at 8:00-9:00, and up at 7:30.) To me, that seems like an adequate amount of sleep for growing boys. Yet no matter how much they sleep, they never "pop" out of bed, excited to start the day. They're not grumpy, exactly, but they are definitely not cheerful until they've been up awhile.

This video makes me laugh, and (I think) accurately depicts the emotions/attitudes of our weekday mornings.

The boys aren't old enough to drink Folger's, and I am still in search of a healthy alternative.

Have a Happy Morning!!!

Happy Anniversary!

2009-10-23T23:48:00.005-05:00

17 years ago today M. and I were married.

He was 23 and I was one day short of turning 21.

Those are perfectly acceptable ages for considering marriage, but 21 and 23 seem so young now!

Since 1992 we've had 3 boys, lived in 7 cities and in 12 different residences, bought 5 houses, sold 4 houses, and spent countless hours in the car between all these places.

We have shared both joy and heartbreak, but through everything we have seen God's faithfulness and His lovingkindness. I am so thankful He brought us together in California all those years ago.

Happy 17th Anniversary, M!!

(NB- At the end, the video says "15 years," because I made it 2 years ago. I have no way to change it, and I think my next project will be to update this video.)

2009-10-22T11:06:00.000-05:00

This performance by "King's Firecrackers" at a Navy basketball game is fantastic. I've never seen anything like this!

The boys and I watched open-mouthed through the whole thing.

I loved the shots of the crowd; all these big tough Navy guys on their feet cheering!

Hot Tub!!

2009-10-06T17:27:00.001-05:00

See this?

We spent four and a half days on this houseboat in Spetember. We sailed up and down the Mississippi River near M.'s parents' house. This past winter M.'s parents celebrated their 40th anniversary.

Last fall they decided to celebrate by renting a giant houseboat for nearly a week and invite all their kids and grandkids to sail with them. It was an anniversary/Christmas present rolled into one.

We piled 14 people on that boat

We sailed upriver, parked on a sandbar that looked friendly, and spent the night. The next day we'd do the same. It was a wonderful, relaxing vacation!

Of all the things to do on the houseboat and the sandbar, this was by far one of the favorite hangout spots:

The hot tub was a hit! Especially since we sailed at the end of the summer, so the weather wasn't scorching hot. In fact, the river water was pretty cold. But the hot tub was the place to be.

This top picture was taken before breakfast, I think. It was foggy until about 10 am each morning. The kids would get into the hot tub the first thing every morning.

After lunch they'd re-visit the hot tub.

And in the afternoon, hey! Why not get into the hot tub?

I had a hard time not thinking about Eddie Murphy and his "James Brown Celebrity Hot Tub" sketch from Saturday Night Live in the 1980's.

Does anyone remember that besides me? I kept trying to explain it to people, but no one seemed to remember it.

James Brown's Celebrity Hot Tub

Yeeeeoooooowwwww!

Too hot inna' hot tub!

It's much more fun to watch it, than to listen to me try to explain it.

Hey, Brogan!!

How's the hot tub?

Open House- Grade Eight

2009-10-05T23:14:00.000-05:00

Eighth grade.

Hoo boy!

This one's a doozy! Each year seems to get more and more challenging. So far, though, we're enjoying 8th grade a lot!

Math - Last year, we began Algebra 1 using Saxon Math. After a rough first semester, we indulged in a brief flirtation with Singapore's New Elementary Mathematics, but decided to return to Saxon after a couple of months. While we're happy with the return to Saxon Math, the departure cost us a few months and Braden ended up not finishing the book last year. So this year the plan is to review and then finish the text, and follow up with Algebra 2.

Science - Braden's using Apologia's "Exploring Creation With Biology." He completes the reading and daily lessons on his own, and then twice a month meets with a group of high schoolers to complete the labs and take the exams. A biology professor at the local college conducts labs on campus. I'm so thankful she's willing to do the labs with them, and the kids can benefit from her knowledge and use the lab's equipment. This past week they examined pond scum under the microscopes.

Latin - This is, what, our 4th year of Latin? And Braden's second year with Henle Latin 1. The Henle book is designed to be sompleted in 2 years, so this will be our last year in book 1.

Grammar - We're continuing on with Rod and Staff grammar. I can't say enough good things about this curriculum: thorough, methodical, a solid grammar foundation.

History - Braden's studying history from Napoleon through Theodore Roosevelt using the "Tapestry of Grace" history curriculum. I'll be honest - he doesn't love it. It's an awful lot of reading, and it reminds me of the volume of reading I had to do for my Western Civ. class in college. But he's learning a lot. By the time we have our discussion on Friday over the week's material, he knows it. It's odd having conversations with a young man forming his own ideas about historical events. It was just a couple of years ago our discussions were mostly simple recall. But I'm enjoying the back-and-forth.

Speech/Debate - Braden has joined a speech/debate club in the big city. This is his first year and has a love/hate relationship with the classes. He can tell that he will love it once he knows what he's doing. But there's such a lot to learn, that simply learning how everything works takes a lot of work. He's willing to do it, though, with the knowledge that next year will be a lot more fun!

Spanish- We're finishing book 1 of "So You Really Want To Learn Spanish" from Galore Park. He's at the point where we can have short converstions in Spanish now. They're not really grammatically correct, but he's feeling more comfortable generating simple thoughts and sentences in Spanish.

Open House- Grade Three

2009-10-04T23:12:00.001-05:00

I was feeling guilty about waiting a month to post the next installment of our homeschool's Open House. But then I remembered that last year's Open House didn't get posted until the END of the school year. So I'm already ahead of where I was last year.

Poof!

My perfectionism-induced guilt is gone!

Today is Brogan's turn. He's in the third grade this year and has noticed an increase in the amount of work he's expected to do. I can tell he starts to feel burdened, until Braden shows him all the work for 8th grade and - poof! Brogan's weariness disappears!

Reading- This is by far Brogan's favorite subject. We're reading through the basal series published by Pathway Publishers. The Pathway Readers series is used in Amish schools, and is a sweet and gentle book series. The readers focus on Amish families, and include many family-centered stories as well as poems and stories about nature. In his spare time, Brogan devours Garfield and Calvin and Hobbes comic books, and books in the "Magic Tree House" series.

Math - Brogan is working through the 3A and 3B books in Singapore Math.

Grammar- This is Brogan's first year with a formal grammar program. The curriculum we used for 1st and 2nd grades is mostly oral. This year we're using the grammar textbook put out by Rod and Staff publishers. Rod and Staff's grammar program is thorough and methodical. In the third grade book they have simple, concise lessons and just enough written work for students to practice without going into handwriting overload.

Latin- Brogan's excited about beginning Latin this year. We're using Latina Christiana 1, by Memoria Press. This program is also simple and methodical, and involves quite a bit of memorization. Thankfully, Brogan's good at memorizing, and seems to enjoy practicing with flash cards.

Spelling- We didn't quite finish Spelling Workout B last year, so we're finishing it up this year, and will continue on with Spelling Workout C.

History- Last year's experiment with Tapestry of Grace was a huge success! This year we're using Year 3 of Tapestry of Grace, which covers history from Napoleon through Theodore Roosevelt.

Penmanship- One word: cursive. Brogan's been begging to learn cursive, and I promised him that third grade would be the year it happens. We're using "Handwriting Without Tears" for our cursive practice. I'm thinking we'll need to read Beverly Cleary's "Muggie Maggie" just for fun.

That's our third grade schedule!

Coming soon: 8th grade!

Twins

2009-10-02T23:16:00.004-05:00

Colson and Braden have an interesting relationship.

They currently share a room and are nearly 8 years apart in age. They alternate between enjoying and irritating each other occasionally, but, on the whole, I think they get along pretty well. ( Especially when I hear what some siblings have to say about each other! )

Here are my matching boys in too-short pants:

That photo reminds me of this one:

"From the moment you sat down I thought I was looking into a mirror!!!!! "

Anyway.

Sharing a room has forced them to make some compromises. For example, Colson also likes to talk at bedtime.

A lot.

Braden does not.

Braden has learned that if Colson is still and quiet for more than 10 minutes he will fall asleep. So he has encouraged Colson to listen to books on tape at bedtime. This means that Braden also has to listen to stories like "The Mouse and the Motorcycle" or music tapes like "The Wiggles" until Colson falls asleep.

I think he thinks it's worth it, though. :)

Braden turned fourteen last week. This is a picture of Braden looking through a birthday "coupon book" that Colson made for him. In this book are coupons for Colson to make Braden's bed or put away his laundry. The usual sorts of birthday coupons.

If you click on the picture to see a larger version, you will be able to read the most valuable coupon in the book. That would be the coupon good for "One FREE night of Silence."

It's like gold, baby!

Remember, Remember the Eleventh of September

2009-09-11T08:00:00.002-05:00

Eight years.

Has it really been eight years?

No matter how much time goes by, the horror one feels when watching the video is nearly just as fresh now as it was then.

Today we will be praying for the families of the victims in New York, Pennsylvania, and Washington D.C., as well as for the brave men and women fighting this evil.

Watch and remember.

Kindergarten Open House

2009-09-09T22:55:00.002-05:00

It's Open House time for friends and family of the " ______ Classical Academy. "

(On good days we're the "______ Classical Academy." On the tough days I refer to our school as the "________ Juvenile Correctional Facility" or the " ________ Home for Wayward Boys.")

We've nearly finished our first week of school, and today is our kindergartner's time to shine. Colson officially begins school this year, though he's been tagging along with his older brothers for most of his life.

And, yes, your eyes do not deceive you - Colson is missing a couple of teeth. As always, there is a story that accompanies their disappearance, but that is a blog for another day.

Here is the lineup for Colson's school year:

Math- Colson began Singapore Math's Primary Math 1A last spring, and this fall he's finishing up 1A and moving into 1 B. Math is one of his favorite subjects, I think because there are workbooks involved. Workbooks seem to make everything more important.

Music- Colson is over halfway through the primer level book of Faber's Piano Adventures. He's excited because once he finished this level, he can have a "real" piano teacher. (As opposed to just having me be his teacher.)

Penmanship- Colson loves to write. Give him a list of words, and he will happily copy them. This year we're beginning Handwriting Without Tears and will work on improving his speed and fluency in printing.

Reading- Colson is working through "Phonics Pathways." (This is the same book I used to teach Braden and Brogan to read. Fantastic book. Thank you, Delores Hiskes, for writing this thorough teaching tool! ) Colson is almost ready to begin reading stories from the Pathway Readers basal series. These two resources have helped to create other voracious readers in our home, and I'm confident Colson will be joining them this year.

Coming soon: Third and Eighth Grades!!

Botanical Gardens

2009-09-06T22:59:00.000-05:00

Last month we visited the botanical gardens at a large university several hours away. We chose the hottest day of the summer to do so, I think.

The gardens had sort of a dinosaur theme, which the boys loved. Brogan looks terrified of the T-Rex skull, don't you think?

The garden staff buried giant bones in the children's garden. Children could play archaeologist and find the bones buried in gravel beds. Brogan and Colson had a great time digging up bones, and then then re-burying them for the next family.

Grandpa had the right idea: Just wait in the shade until the kids were ready to move on!

Brogan and Grandma played on the stone seating.

It was hot. Not only was it hot; it was HOT. Upper 90's and high humidity hot. We happily lingered in any shade we could find.

I love this picture because every person in it is looking in a completely different direction!

Summer's Last Gasp

2009-08-28T22:46:00.002-05:00

If I hadn't turned the pages of the calendar myself I would never have guessed that summer had passed. We've had such a mild season here!

We kept waiting for the really hot weather to arrive so we could go to the outdoor pool, but it never came. We finally went last week (when it was only 80 degrees. Brr!) just so we could say that we'd gone this summer.

At last we had one hot day (before a cold front moved in). Out came the slip-N-slide for some backyard fun!

We don't start school here until September 8th. We'll hang on to summer fun as long as we can!

Yes They Can!!

2009-08-25T16:34:00.001-05:00

Overheard At My House

2009-08-24T13:12:00.002-05:00

Braden (while watching a tender moment on "Burn Notice") :

"Yeah. That was sweet. Now please go shoot somebody."

It Was Like A Nightmare!

2009-08-22T21:27:00.002-05:00

While driving home tonight the boys and I spotted a small plane slowly circling over fields near the highway. We wondered if it was a lost pilot, circling while waiting for the local airport to help him get where he was going.

But as we drove closer, we reconsidered and thought the plane might doing something else. The pilot was flying pretty low, and then would swoop up and turn some more, then dive lower again. Some of his dives were so steep they had us holding our breath, waiting to see if he would come out of them.

Finally, we were as close to the plane as we would get. But as we looked to our left we saw it dip down, and begin flying straight. toward. us.

As he flew closer and closer, I began to laugh nervously. It was not unlike this scene from a famous movie:

OK, it was slightly unlike that scene.

I was driving in a minivan with three children, and not standing on a dirt road. Cary Grant was not there.

However, it was sunny and there were plenty of nearby cornfields in which we could hide, but I wasn't willing to drive into them at 65 mph.

The plane flew over the top of us, and once on the other side he began to climb for another pass. Thankfully we were speeding away and the plane's next downward swoop was behind us.

The plane crash scene from "The English Patient" came to mind.

I cannot stand "The English Patient." I saw it. I hated it. I wanted my money back. I still rant about that 2 hour and 42 minute waste of celluloid.

I was annoyed when it came to mind. I would much rather have been thinking of Cary Grant!

To Sum Up...

2009-08-21T22:00:00.004-05:00

You know, I think this lack of a camera cord is good for me. I've had fun combing through older pictures in search of something to post.

I was talking with my mom this afternoon, who had assumed that I'd not posted much this summer because we were so busy. That wasn't really the case, though.

It is true, that we were occasionally busy this summer, but mostly I didn't post because I didn't think we'd done anything "blog-worthy." It's hard for me to post unless something interesting happens.

So going through older photos has been fun! Here's some of what I'd missed:

M. turned 40 in June. The boys wanted to have 40 candles on his cake. Colson's counting to make sure they're all there.

Here's the cloud after M. blew out the candles. Look at all that smoke!

In May we went to the zoo with some cousins who were visiting. We arrived just in time to follow a zoo keeper around as he fed the animals. The polar bear was swimming, and the keeper threw his food (one item at a time) into the water so the bear could swim and dive for it.

If there is a statue, odds are one of the boys will want to sit on it.

The sun bear climbed up into a tree in order to be closer to the keeper. To the right you can see the keeper throwing the produce to him, and the bear is just catching it in his mouth.

Here is one of the cousins. Or maybe he's a cousin once removed? I'm not sure. He's one of the children of M.'s cousin. We toured the desert dome at the zoo, and I got him to pose with one of the lizard statues there. He was a sweetie, and I loved that he was happy to pose for pictures.

Brogan. Looking so grown up and .... cool.

Earlier this spring Brogan informed us that he likes coffee. He convinced Grandma to make him a cup of coffee while he read the Sunday morning comics.

Hmph.

2009-08-16T22:12:00.005-05:00

Well, I'd love to post some pictures about what we did last week. But, sadly, I cannot.

You see someone, most likely one of the someones who are shorter than me, has been chewing on the ends of my camera cord.

CHEWING!

As if I don't feed them enough!

As if I don't ~~lecture~~ remind them to take care of their teeth!

Am I raising puppies?

Do I need to specifically state "Do not chew on (insert multiple non-chewable household items here)" for them to understand that this is not to be done?

So, until I have the time to drive into the big city and hit Best Buy, I'll have to make do with old photos.

We recently took M.'s parent's into town to explore. We found this wonderful little alley between buildings that has been converted into a covered patio. It was cool and artsy and delightful.

This part of town has brick streets and lots of outdoor eateries. We saw restaurants featuring all sorts of international food, and my mother-in-law and I decided that next time we come back we'll be prepared to eat. Maybe we can manage to eat one course per restaurant. That way we can cover 3-4 restaurants in a day!

The boys liked the brick planters. On the corner behind us were both a street musician and a painter. The boys had never seen artists on the street like that, so we spent a little time talking to them and listened to some music.

We toured a very old train station that has been turned into a museum. The architecture was stunning. We felt very small in the main station.

Underground were retired train cars from various eras. Some of the cars had been used to carry very important people, and were set up to show how people traveled from those times.

We spent a long time looking over displays.

Upstairs, in the station, several statues played vignettes reflecting typical conversations that might have been overheard during the heyday of the station. Here a soldier says goodbye to his sweetheart before heading off to war. Some were funny, but many were sobering.

We also ran into these folks, but they didn't have much to say.

"Mom! Want some fake money?!?!"

Colson and Brogan played at the bank in the money exhibit.

The boys learned about the cycle of money, from the mint to their piggy banks.

He's Home!

2009-08-13T23:12:00.002-05:00

For the past two weeks he's been off having adventures. But now he's back under our roof.

We've all missed him.

For Braden

2009-08-04T23:05:00.001-05:00

An old favorite!

Land Shark

End Of The Swim Season

2009-08-02T21:13:00.009-05:00

Wow. It's done. The whirlwind that was the summer swim season is over.

The final meet was a doozy. Nine area swim teams converged on one small-town pool, and took over for a whole day. We stayed at the pool for nearly 10 hours before our events were finished. Other families stayed longer. Thankfully the weather was cooperative - we had sunny skies and temps in the 70s. It was a long, exhausting, but beautiful day.

Braden, Brogan and I arrived at the pool at 7:30 a.m. Our team had the first warm-ups, so we had to be there 90 minutes before the meet started. Grandma and Grandpa came for the weekend, and they drove up with M. at 9:00 am.

It was a little chilly at 7:30 am. But that didn't stop the kids from getting in the pool. Here, Brogan is practicing his starts. Look at that dive! Look at his hand position as he goes into his streamline!

Look at those ribs! I need to get him a sandwich. Or a steak. or something.

It's hard for me to get pictures of the boys swimming. 90% of the time they are underwater when I click the shutter, or they are completely obscured by splash. But here is one of Brogan swimming the butterfly leg of his 100 Meter Individual Medley.

In between races there was snacking, gazing into space, and lots of snuggling and reading.

Brogan took 4th place in his age group in the 100 Meter Individual Medley!

I drew circles over the faces of the other boys in the photo because I didn't have permission to post their pictures. I know there's a way to pixelate their faces, but it will take me too long tonight to find it. The black circles make them look kind of sinister, don't they? That's a shame. They really are very nice boys.

Braden qualified for the finals in the 50 Meter Backstroke. Here's his race. (Sorry about my running commentary.) Braden's in Lane 4.

50 Meter Back Final

He took second! This is his first time on the podium.

Brogan qualified for the 25 Meter Breaststroke finals. I don't have a good video of his finals race, as there were timers between Brogan and my camera. But here is his prelim race. He's in Lane 1, the one closest to the wall.

25 Meter Breaststroke

Brogan took 5th!

(Those white circles look friendlier, don't they? I'll stick with white, I think. )

So now we have a month off before practices start up again. It's nice not to have to schedule our mornings around practices, but I'm looking forward to having a way for them to burn off a bunch of energy again!

Welcome to VBS Fight Club.

2009-07-30T22:43:00.005-05:00

The first rule of VBS Fight Club is: you do not talk about VBS Fight Club.

The second rule of VBS Fight Club is: you DO NOT talk about VBS Fight Club!

I picked up Brogan from Vacation Bible School on Tuesday night, and learned that he and another boy had been fighting. The game time leader didn't see what started it, but did break up the fight.

Brogan, true to the rules of VBS Fight Club, wasn't talking.

He did acknowledge that he'd been fighting, but refused to say what led up to it.

Once home, Brogan waited in his room for M. to come home while I e-mailed a friend, saying, "I must be the only mother in the world whose child got into a fistfight at VBS!"

"Nah, " she replied. "There's the other kid's mom, too."

When M. finally arrived home, I greeted him with the news. He went into Brogan's room to work his "Father Knows Best" magic.

As M. closed the door behind him, I heard him say to Brogan, "So...... Did you win?"

Epilogue:
We eventually got a partial story out of Brogan. He and the other boy had been roughhousing and it got out of hand. The boys did make up, and played together (without incident) at the park the next day. Happy ending!

*Hat tip to Darin for the title.

Waterboarding My Son

2009-07-28T09:45:00.002-05:00

I think the actual term is "wakeboarding." But we've had a hard time remembering that. Waterboarding seems easier to say, doesn't it?

Anyway, Brogan had an opportunity to wakeboard for the first time this week. He saw an ad for a clinic and thought it sounded "little bit scary, but still fun."

Yesterday we met the instructors at the lake and they took the kids out on the boat for some practice.

Colson stayed on the shore with me and played in the sand.

When it was Brogan's turn to get in the water, the boat was pretty far out. I set my camera to the highest resolution, zoomed in, and hoped that I'd be able to see something when I edited the pictures on the computer. The photos are pretty grainy, but you can see enough to tell what's going on.

Here, Brogan's in the water behind the boat. They're explaining to him how to stay tucked until he's on top of the water, and then stand up.

Then they pulled him up so he could practice that while the boat was stationary.

And he's up!

Here's a video of his best attempt. He was able to stay up for several seconds before falling over backward. The video is pretty small, but if you watch it in the full screen version you get a much better view.

He's very excited to try again next summer!

"This Is The Life!"

2009-07-13T22:24:00.003-05:00

Those were Braden's words to us when he called tonight.

"Mom, this is the life! I wake up at 6:30, stuff myself at the dining hall for breakfast, then head to the pool. I'm in the pool for three hours, and then I drag myself back to the dining hall to eat. After lunch we rest and recharge, then we go back to the pool and swim for another three hours. Then I drag myself to the dining hall and stuff myself before going back to the dorm to rest. After rest time it's free time until it's time for bed! I could do this every day!"

We could tell from his voice that he was exhausted, but very, very happy. He's learning a lot, both in the pool and in the classroom sessions.

Midway through the conversation I heard a knock on his dorm room door. When he answered, I heard a voice say, "Braden, there's a party on the 10th floor."

Braden said, "What does that mean?"

The voice hesitated, clearly not expecting to be asked any specifics, and finally said, "Ah, we guys are just upstairs watching tv and eating junk food."

After Braden told the voice that he'd be upstairs soon, he came back to the phone and said, "Eating, swimming, going to class, hanging out: If this is what college is like, I'm there!"

It's good to have goals, I suppose. At least he's thinking about college. Party on, dude!

It's 10:00pm. Do You Know Where Your Son Is?

2009-07-12T22:36:00.004-05:00

Why, yes.

Yes, I do.

He's here. At the top of this ominous-looking building in a city far away.

We dropped Braden off today at an area university for a week-long swim camp. This isn't his first time away from home, but it's his first time away from home and in the hands of complete strangers. I am so impressed that he wanted to go to this swim camp, even though he didn't know anybody there. I was not so brave when I was 13!

Here he is unpacking in his dorm room.

His room is so much bigger and nicer than our dorm rooms. (And we let him know it!) It has the standard bed and desk and, well, a shelving system for clothes that's supposed to be a closet. But it also has a refrigerator. A refrigerator! Can you believe it!? We never had such a luxury in a dorm. Even if Auntie D. and I could have afforded a refrigerator, there was no room for one.

We arrived at about the same time as his roommate's family. They were very nice, and their son seems like a very nice young man. I think the boys will get along well. I am so thankful God provided someone friendly and kind. He also laughed at all my jokes, so he earned bonus cool points in my book!

We all small-talked for a few minutes, but the boys were pretty quiet. It was obvious that they were not going to talk to each other while the parents were in the room. So we decided to go explore the campus a bit and let the boys get acquainted.

The campus was huge and filled with students who are attending all sorts of camps: basketball camp, cheerleading camp, band camp, drill team camp. I'm sure there were more. On our walk we passed a sunny brick wall and I convinced Brogan and Colson to pose for me.

Such good sports!

After our walk we went to the store to stock up the boys' dorm fridge. They will be in the pool for up to 5 hours a day this week. I've learned that teen boys eat a lot. Add swimming two hours a day to that, and their food intake seems to double.

Braden eats an astounding amount of food every day: morning snack before his 6:30 am practice, breakfast afterward, another morning snack, "elevenses," lunch, seconds, afternoon snack, dinner. It's crazy. He's 5'7" and just last month hit 100 lbs on the scale. He's got a figure a supermodel would envy.

Anyway, both dads insisted that the dining hall food would be more than enough for the boys, but honestly, it made us mothers feel better just knowing that they had food in their room. And shopping for them gave us something motherly to be doing. Thanks to the efforts of both mothers those boys have a fridge full of food and a whole week to enjoy it!

Here is the pool where Braden will be living. We stayed and watched part of the first practice, and I was impressed with how organized the coaching staff was.

I know he will have a great week. I know he will grow both as an athlete and as a young man. I know this will be a week he will always remember.

However, the house is so quiet without him here. It's strange, tucking two children into bed at night instead of three. He is missed.

Tonight he telephoned before he went to bed. "I didn't think you were going to call home this week, " I said.

"I know. But I knew you'd want me to," he said.

He was right.

2009-07-03T00:02:00.002-05:00

We're here. We're just exhausted.

It's been a busy couple of weeks! Between unpacking, swim practice and meets, and Braden's lifeguard class (daily) I don't know whether I'm coming or going!

The good news is that technically, everything is unpacked at home. The main floor is unpacked, put away, and looks like a"real" house.

Well, a real house with nothing on the walls and nothing decorative set up.

But it's organized, and everything has a home. Yay!

We spent last weekend unpacking every. single. box. in the basement. Everything in the basement has been opened, sorted, and stacked into piles.

M. and Braden loaded the van and made 3 trips to Goodwill to unload donations. We made a giant, scary-looking pile of trash, paper, and empty boxes for the garbage man to pick up.

This weekend, we'll continue the process of finding homes for the stuff in the basement. We have company coming at the end of the month, and it's nice motivation to finish the job rather than procrastinate.

It's nice to see progress every day. But, I'll tell you, I'm tired. It's a good kind of tired, though. The kind of tired that comes after a long day of hard work, as opposed to the tired from eating junk and sitting in front of the computer taking Facebook quizzes until after midnight.

Not that I know what that's like.

I'm just sayin'.

Anyway, today was spent running errands, making plans, and driving children to and fro. I was so tired I worried they'd find me passed out in the window treatment section of Home Depot.

On a separate topic, I want to say thank you to all of you who sent cards, photos, e-mails, or made phone calls to M. for his birthday. He enjoyed hearing from all of you. you really helped make his 40th special.

Thank you!

Halfway to Dead

2009-06-23T18:01:00.008-05:00

Not really.

When I turned 20 years old, someone told me, "Hey! That's halfway to 40. And 40's halfway to dead."

That stuck with us, so it's something M. and I always say.

Today is M.'s 40th birthday, and in honor of this momentous occasion, I present to you:

Marc's 40th from Hillary H on Vimeo.

Look! It's a Bird! It's a Plane!

2009-06-20T20:06:00.002-05:00

It's ......

(Feel free to click away after the music video ends. Unless you're interested in learning more about Jib Jab's e-cards.)

Happy Fath- Wait. What?!

2009-06-14T21:28:00.004-05:00

This morning started off in a hurry, as M. and I slept in a bit and then had to dash to make it to church for the early service.

The boys and I, excited to celebrate Father's Day with M., bought and wrapped a gift for him. We called out "Happy Father's Day" to him at random moments of the morning, and teased him with his wrapped present on the counter. "You can't open it until after church! But it's greeeaaat! You'll looovvveee it!" You know the teasing I'm talking about.

We enjoyed doughnuts and cold milk for breakfast, and tried to guess where he'd want to go for Father's Day lunch.

M. took our excitement rather good naturedly, though he was somewhat subdued. I assumed it was because he's sort of an understated guy and it's hard to get him excited about some things. Sometimes I feel like Chester the terrier (from the Looney Tunes cartoons) bouncing around Spike the bulldog.

Anyway, we were all happy and excited for M. until we got to church, and it was mentioned that Father's Day was coming up next weekend....

Huh?

Next weekend?

I looked across the row at M., and watched a grin spread slowly across his face.

Whoops!

It's Hammer Time!

2009-06-12T19:23:00.002-05:00

Real life can be a musical!

This time it's a Hammer Pants dance mob in California. To promote MC Hammer's new show, I hear.

What??? How did he get a show???

I know, right?

I so want to do this! If anyone's organizing a dance mob in my area, count me in!

Hit-Or-Miss

2009-06-05T19:46:00.005-05:00

The time has come.
The time is now.
1900 House,
We're leaving you now.

Yes, after 11 long months we are finally moving away from the 1900 House. I'll post more next week, but for now you must be content with pictures and sketchy posting, dear readers.

Posting may be slim next week, as we'll be shuttling our belongings to the new digs, and our cable provider won't be out to set up the internet until Thursday. (How will I cope!!!!)

You can still reach us via e-mail, or by leaving comments here, as I plan to check in at the library.

Have a great week!

Hacked From the President's Blackberry

2009-06-03T23:05:00.002-05:00

Well, not really.

Apparently it's a new book put out by a comedy team. The supposedly hacked text messages from the BOTUS are kind of amusing. This one made me laugh:

Poor Hillary.

It's That Time of Year!

2009-05-27T12:26:00.000-05:00

Time for VBS!!!

Every year we encourage people to pre-register their children so that they can be assigned to groups and we know how to plan for them. Yet every year it seemed there would only be a handful of people who would pre-register, and massive lines on the first morning of VBS would frustrate everyone.

So last year I rounded up a couple of friends and their children, and we made a video to encourage as many people as possible to pre-register. The video was a hit, and it worked amazingly well!

This year they're using it again. Even though we don't attend the church anymore, it's my hope that the video will encourage you to pre-register your children at whatever VBS you attend!