Go Fly a Kite

Wasn't it gorgeous today here in Michigan! Tony was in such a great mood he tuned up the girl's bikes. I think my girls grew! Emerson looked mammoth on her barbie bike and Julia was so tall and lanky on her bike it was comical. Looks like I know what we are getting them for Easter surprises! I also took Benedict outside for fresh air! He loved sitting in his wagon watching the kids ride around on their bikes... Then Tony got this grand idea to go buy some kites and fly them around. It was such fun watching them fly around! Sadly Julia's kite got tangled in our neighbor's tree. Oh well it was time for dinner anyways.

Lent Readings

Every night before bed Julia and I have been doing a Lent devotional. Last night we read the story of the prodigal son. It was interesting to hear her viewpoint as a child and my own viewpoint as a mother. It enlightened me how I have changed...once like her I had the childlike viewpoint from the side of the son, now as a parent I can relate to the father greeting his prodigal son. Compassion and forgiveness are powerful qualities to share. It is easy to share them with your own family but not always easy with others. My mother's church has an online website and last night I came across their site in search of blogs for her. They had their purpose and vision statement and then they listed the bible verse 1 Timothy 4:12: Let no one have contempt for your youth, but set an example for those who believe, in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purity.
It stuck out at me as I realized that was what Julia and I were discussing in our Lent readings. Setting an example of love and compassion. She mentioned how she enjoyed certain people's company but did not always like the choices they made. I reminded her we are to love the sinner but avoid the sin. Love does not mean looking the other way or pretending you don't see the sin, it is a firm but loving stand against wrong while embracing and praying for the broken spirit. We had a great moment last night in our talk about duties towards others...

All 4 One

Well today was 4h and boy did those kids get some stuff accomplished! We finally came up with a club logo: all 4 one
And they designed a club flag which we will work on next month. They democratically chose a shirt color( let me tell you 16 kids that was hard!)
And we also decided on upcoming themes for our meetings...though summer seems far away for some the fair is just around the corner for these kids! We are going to practice our showmanship of rabbits and critters and learn how to be interviewed by judges. I just found out most families camp the whole week at the fair which any one that knows me can laugh and say " I'd like to see the day she camps!" well I am considering it as it seems all the families do this to be close to animals and events that run all week into the weekend! Julia really is getting excited about the fair and this 4h group and although it is not my cup of tea I am watching her prosper into quite the 4h-er! Can you sense my pride just a teensy bit?!?

Get Well Grandpa John

Please keep Grandpa John Connell in your prayers! He was in hospital and is doing better but scheduled to have surgery on Monday! We love you Grandpa! Julia, Emerson, Blaise and Benedict!
Get well soon!

Night at the Dentist

Well Tony and I discovered a new way to get a cleaning in. We tag teamed our appointments last night. After a Little Flower meeting I managed to squeeze in grocery shopping and dinner. I bathed the little ones and they went to the dentist office in their pjs! They all had fun with that one. We met Tony there and he and I both got a cleaning in! I love our dentist as he is most understanding when our clan arrives. It went well and I have to say we decided to make the next appointment at night as well!

Hunters Bag

Julia finished up her studies of the Civil War. We had so much fun we decided to travel back in time and learn about the American Revolution. Her first assignment was to make a replica of a hunters bag. Boys of a certain age were given one by their mothers when they were old enough to hunt and provide for their family. It was a precursor for fighting in the revolution as well. If mother gave you a hunters bag be prepared to defend your political views. Julia certainly has no war to fight and Tony has never touched a firearm so she decided to put her bag to use by keeping her cell phone and camera in it. These are her weapons of choice! I want to add she had to make the pattern out of newspaper and hand sew the entire bag. She could only choose brown felt, chamois, or leather as that is what they used back then. She has decided to make a pink one for Emerson and a tie-dye one for herself in future.

Eight is Great!

Eight Months old Today!
I know time is flying by when I am telling complete strangers that Benedict is six months old and the kids are correcting me telling them he is almost eight months! Somewhere I lost some time! So here are the updates: he has tried every veggie and fruit he is allowed too and loves them! He still has to avoid the cereals due to tummy troubles but does well on dry bagel and toast...he is clapping, crawling, standing up against an edge or rail, and getting into hilarious predicaments. He has said ma ma so many times I am officially declaring it his first word and Bu Bu is pretty close to bye bye so I accept it as well! He loves to put anything and everything in his mouth which really freaks me out and at times I find I have this desire to rinse his mouth out with bleach... Which I don't so please no emails about travesty of bleach! He is jovial and curious but still walks on serious side at times. Many have called him a mommas boy but I recall people saying that about Blaise, who asks me a million times a day, when is daddy coming home. My sister in law gave me a fabulous tip about foam and his car seat so our travels are much easier and no crying so far! He seems happier riding along and babbling away to his sidekicks! One of his most favorite past times is playing in water! He is my super splashed... I mean face first blow bubbles throw up the water and laugh hysterically super splasher. This is a first for me as the others were content in the tub but not maniacs like this guy. I have considered a life jacket for him at times he is trying to climb out of his tub and go head first into the two inches of water I have put in for him. I explained to Blaise we are practicing conservation of water as he wonders why he has so little water in his side of the tub now. Alright enough gushing, eight is truly great so far and every day is a new discovery!

Laundry

Tuesday is always strip the beds and wash all the towels and linens... I have done this every Tuesday since I have been married... It seemed a lot easier years ago... My little helper likes to sit in laundry basket while I fluff and fold. It takes me all day but by tonight it will all be put away and beds will be ready to go...that is five beds in case you lost count! So that is my Tuesday!

Crown of Thorns

One of our Lent activities is to make a dough crown of thorns. Each child made their own crown and inserted as many toothpicks as they could. The toothpicks symbolize their sins and the idea is to remove a toothpick everytime they do a good deed or sacrifice, thus taking away some of Jesus' suffering. By having a tangible object it hopefully inspires them to have an empty crown by Easter!

Appreciation

All my little chicks and Rooster are back home and life seems to be back to normal. A few observations I made were how excited the girls were to
see me, how refreshed they seemed, and how relaxed Tony was. In fact he was so relaxed he had to watch the game yesterday after his tiring adventure of shopping, swimming, movie watching and continental breakfasting! Poor thing!
Blaise was ecstatic to have his "Bonnie" back and he and Emerson immediately went into his room where the two little gangsters concocted mischief for future days. Julia turned up hours later after making sure I didn't remove, touch, investigate or redecorate any object in her room! When we all met for dinner there was much chatter about the events of the past two days...I realized I truly missed the noise, the chaos and even the extra laundry and mess... I know someday they will be all gone out of the house and it will just be Tony and I. Time goes by fast this I know so I appreciate these moments where my family is all together chattering and laughing...even big daddy rooster was missed for his bellowing and prancing around and noise! Back to normal! Thank Goodness!

Cookie Jar

When I was pregnant with my first I had this vision of Suzy homemaker! I didn't sew, couldn't cook, but it didn't matter I pictured my calling as one in an apron cooking and cleaning with a smile and having a hot meal ready when husband came home! Ha ha I laugh now at that...one thing I have accomplished is finally getting a cookie jar! I can thank my mom for that. She gave me her flour jar that she wasn't using and it is perfect. I just got it yesterday so today before the girls get home Blaise and I have been busy making cookies to fill it. A cookie jar with four kids is a must have in my mind. I may not be the ultimate Suzy homemaker but I am sure trying.

The Visit

I had wanted to go buy some make up today... It is something I desperately needed to do. Something was telling me I needed to go see my grandma. I was happy to make the last minute plans with my parents and we went together. Once again I have realized everything happens for a reason. Sometimes I find myself complaining about petty things.... Dirty dishes, messy floors, someone leaving a light on.. Oh poor me! I get tired and frustrated and downright grumpy... Today my grandmother taught me a life lesson. Here I thought I was doing the good deed of visiting her when she ended up teaching me a thing or two!
My grandmother had a fall a few weeks ago and I was shocked at how swollen her hand was and how painful it appeared and yet not a whine or complaint...she complimented my mother on her outfit and kept doting on the boys. I looked around her place and realized she did not have fancy art work up but a mish mash of framed pictures of her family. She also pulled out coloring pages that my kids had mailed her to display them so as not to hurt their feelings. Funny, I thought I was going to perform this monumental act of visiting her and somehow she taught me more today than I expected. When we left my mom said she always stops at end of hallway and waves goodbye to her, we all stopped and waved and I looked down and saw a very content woman happy to have had her family visit.

Mall Rats

A stop at the Mall before checking in to hotel! Free Pretzel day, shopping and a turn in the hurricane! Off to swim, a movie and sleep!

Weather Permitting

I kept telling the girls they may not make it ALL the way to Petoskey. There were weather reports of huge snowfall that Grandma informed us of. Tony made the call last night that they would change plans. I assumed it was going to be fine. Every kid loves a hotel with movie theater, pool, and bowling alley! Well I was wrong...Julia was devastated. She had hopes of saying her prayers with grandma, going to church with them and trying some Molasses cookies. I reminded her it was a daddy daughter weekend but she reminded me she sees dad every night but misses grandma and grandpa a lot. I know once they get to the hotel she will have fun but last night her little spirit was crushed by the weather.

Daddy Daughter weekend

Normally this time of year the girls go to a daddy daughter dance with Tony. They get all dolled up and have a night on the town...this year they wanted to change it up a bit and go away for the weekend. They both were insistent that they go together to Grandma's house. Tony was ecstatic at idea of road trip and so weather permitting they are heading north to sled, shop, and visit!
I have plans of my own with the boys. Blaise has talked me into going out to eat and he also wants to go shopping! For him it means legos or matchbox cars! I also heard a mention of watching a movie together and eating popcorn! Before all the fun everyone was in badly need of a haircut and then we pack and prepare..

Bagel Boy

One of the great things about connecting with other mommies with children of the same age is the swapping of ideas. My sister in law lives in Chicago and has a little guy one month older than Benedict. Recently we have been chatting about food options for our babies as their palettes mature! I had recently given Benedict a frozen whole wheat organic bagel to teethe upon as his third tooth is causing him grief...she gave me the great idea of waffles as well and I have that on my list to get. I mentioned to her avocado and her guy, ohh he so cutely gobbled it up! Last night we gave the baby homemade squash, mashed pears and mashed whole wheat pasta...he liked it all! It is always nice to swap ideas with mommies and I appreciate all the advice. She sent me an adorable picture of Steven gobbling up black beans...as a vegan you know that was my favorite picture! I am going to try that next week with Benedict!
Although as I forewarned her...
"beans beans the musical fruit..."
Sorry I had to add that one!

Hangman

Math Club was today and the kids did the neatest thing compliments of the mother whose home we were at! She set up two different boards and the kids used math terms and played hang man. Once they guessed the correct term they were presented with a definition and bonus challenge problem. Both teams had fun but I think I appreciated watching them work together. I noticed areas of weakness that I can supplement at home and I noticed that math was fun today! I actually heard Julia laugh during math! Math club is at our house next week and I feel challenged now to make it fun and stimulating!

Handwritten with Love

Benedict's Godmother is a couponer like myself. She used to live in Dearborn and her neighbor was an elderly lady that cared for her daughter with Down Syndrome. One of the things her daughter could do was cut coupons out of all the daily papers. She did it with joy and purpose. All of these coupons have benefited many of us moms. Recently my friend told me that the two ladies were feeling lonely and would love a note from the kids. Last week we sat down painted pictures and wrote letters to them. The kids expected nothing in return and I didn't even know if we would hear from them. Imagine our surprise when she sent them a handwritten note with stickers and dollars for all three kids! They were humbled by the gesture and felt touched that someone who was experiencing loneliness would reach out and make them feel good. The girls are happy to keep up a pen pal with this dear old woman and her daughter. They expect nothing in return except a new friendship. My faith in human kindness is once again restored!

Leap Day

Today is a leap day! This day only happens like once every four years?!?
Well the kids were invited to a leap year party. I am wondering what type of games one does on leap day? Leap frog maybe?!?
They were also instructed to dress backwards, crazy or mismatched. This should be very interesting I suspect. Benedict decided to wear his leap frog pjs today in honor of this special odd day! How does one salute another today? Happy Leap
Leaping Lizards!
Leaps to You!
Ladies leapin'
Well I'm not sure but have a great day!

Mustard Seed

Here is my seed for the day:
When you know you are doing the will of God, that alone is enough to sustain your happiness. When you don't have that all possessions in the world cannot sustain happiness in the depths of your heart. -mustard seed