Tending the Home Fires

Little Miss Two-Year-Old!!

2011-11-03T08:53:00.000-05:00

Yes, she's two. Yes, she's adorable. Yes, she has some serious attitude and says the cutest things. Yes, we love her to pieces!!

(Thank you Grandma Sue for the great sweater!!)

Clementine is Two!

2011-10-22T07:12:00.002-05:00

Birth

One Year Old

Two Years Old

She's not a baby anymore! We love you, sweet 2-year-old Clementine.

wordless wednesday

2011-09-21T04:31:00.002-05:00

2011-2012 Homeschool Curriculum

2011-09-08T09:33:00.004-05:00

I thought I'd share what we're doing for homeschool this year, as Moses is starting kindergarten and Judah is doing some preschool stuff. Moses is 5 years 3 months and Judah is 3 1/2 exactly. Clementine is 23 months and I'm sure she'll be joining in some of the hands-on stuff!

I have a lot of Grace's curriculum left over (wasn't it just yesterday that she and I were doing kindergarten at home together!?) so I'm using a lot of that for Moses, but as I am now realizing, not all curriculum used for a prior child is a good fit for subsequent children! The great phonics/grammar program I used with Grace isn't going to work for Moses until at least next year. (I think I actually started it with Grace when she was 6, so that's perfect. Now that I think about it, how DID Grace learn to read anyway?? I think she just kind of picked it up!)

Because we're following the Charlotte Mason method, our kindergarten/preschool days will be of a more relaxed approach. The basic principles that Charlotte Mason emphasized included short lessons, lots of nature/outside time, reading lots of "living" books, and training in good habits, so that's what we're planning to do! The habits I hope to instill in these little ones this year will hopefully carry them on to be studious, industrious, lifelong learners in the future.

A couple of great resources that have helped me plan the year include The Early Years: A Charlotte Mason Preschool Handbook and this Early Years Guide from the Simply Charlotte Mason website. Here's a summary of the early years focus:

Habits, outside play, read-alouds, and Bible are most important. If you concentrate only on them, you’ll be doing just fine. Reading, copywork, and math come next as the child is ready. (Some may not be ready until they are older than five; that’s OK!) Handicrafts, art, music, and poetry are simply add-ons that will enrich your child’s atmosphere and help him feel at home with those aspects of Charlotte Mason education when he starts “school work.”

So here's the basic rundown of our school year/curriculum:

Moses (5 years)

Outdoors: Lots of free play and nature walks

Habits: Habit Training

Read Alouds: From Five in a Row, and “go-along” books

Beginning Reading: "Explode the Code” books A, B & C

Copywork: Writing on lined paper, holding pencil correctly, copywork from FIAR books

Math: Saxon Math K

Science: Projects to go along with FIAR books

Handicrafts: Projects to go along with FIAR books

Art: Displaying large prints, and games with small postcard prints from Dover Publishing

Music: Play works of great composers in background while working

Bible: Circle Time and Fighter Verses with Mama, Bible Study with Papa

(The main way that we're organizing our Five in a Row studies is through the use of lapbooks. I get all the free resources from Homeschool Share. Here's what we'd do during our week of reading "The Story About Ping" and studying China and ducks. I'll try to post pictures of ours once we've completed some.)

Judah (3.5 yrs)

Outdoors: Lots of free play and nature walks (Same as Moses)

Habits: Habit Training (Same as Moses)

Read Alouds: From Five in a Row, and “go-along” books (Same as Moses)

Beginning Reading: Learn letter names and sounds while Moses does reading lessons

Copywork: Trace upper-case letters with finger in sand, rice, or air,

dry erase markers on placemat, etc.

Math: Learning along with Moses Saxon Math K

Science: Projects to go along with FIAR books (Same as Moses)

Handicrafts: Projects to go along with FIAR books (Same as Moses)

Art: (Same as Moses)

Music: Play works of great composers in background while working (Same as Moses)

Bible: Circle Time and Fighter Verses with Mama, Bible Study with Papa (Same as Moses)

I'm excited to try homeschooling 2 kids at the same time! I've only ever taught one child before, so I'm not sure how it will go to have 3 little ones all together, and 2 of them "doing school". But I'm sure we're in for a lot of fun. =]

Another Reupholstering Project!

2011-09-07T05:52:00.002-05:00

Remember my first reupholstery project? Since it's still holding up so well, I found the confidence to tackle another similar project. My sister-in-law Mary had this gorgeous number at her garage sale for $3. (She actually gave it to me for free =]) It was very musty and dusty, but I knew it had potential.

We started with some sort of velvety brocade fabric and bronzy-gold metal legs

Of course I started out by removing the nails to discard the old fabric

I discovered this even lovelier fabric under the first!

And lo and behold, a THIRD fabric beneath that!

After I had removed THREE layers of fabric, I decided there were too many nail holes in the original piece of wood and had my dad cut a new one for me. It's nice and thick and sturdy.

Here's where I wing it. I don't have any foam on hand so I used foam-backed carpet.

Handy dandy staple gun

Be sure to have a helper to hold your staples

Wrap batting over the foam (or carpet) and staple underneath

Here's what it looks like from the top

Position your fabric where you want it. I got this gorgeous piece of decorator-weight fabric at Walmart, of all places. I didn't even know Walmart sells fabric. I hadn't even been inside a Walmart for like 5 years or something. But this was a score. $3.50 for a yard.

Staple underneath

Have your helper get her cute pudgy hand in the picture

Here it is done. Doesn't have to be pretty on the underside.

Here's the finished top!


Then I had Richard remove the legs from the old top

He used his handy dandy sander thing to remove a couple spots of rust

I could have done this whole part myself but Richard likes to have an excuse to use his tools

Have your other helper hold the spray paint

Here it is primed

Yeah, it's for cars. But you use what's on hand, right?

Next comes the black paint

Then measuring to fit the top. This is where it would have been nice if I had kept the fabric closer to the edge.

It was a pain to drill through the fabric and batting, but Richard did a great job and got the legs all even and stuff.

Finished product in our living room!

I love how it turned out, and how it looks with the other red accents in the living room.

It's even comfy to use, too.

Summer Recap Two - August Version

2011-09-02T11:09:00.000-05:00

Here's our August fun!

Richard's brother and sister-in-law and their twin girls came to visit! The cousins are the same age as Clementine, and it was super fun to have them over! Of course everyone packed into the pool. =]

Grace was big sister/cousin extraordinaire, and kept all the Littles happy with bubbles

Look at those three adorable little girls! (And one sweet big girl. And a handsome boy.)

I made some wool diaper covers for Clementine out of recycled sweaters. Got a little fancy on this one.

Off to catch butterflies in a new wool soaker!

These three are just hilarious. You'll have no idea what they're talking about here unless you've ever played a computer game called Zoombinis. But it captures just how much of a little parrot Clementine is!

We spent even more time in the pool and backyard!

Clementine figured out how to push herself on the swing.

We went to church and the boys helped their little sister in a very adorable way.

BIG NEWS!! We were surprised to have this little one discovered lodging in Mama's tummy! We're expecting him or her to appear in early April 2012.

I *love* this little clip of someone that doesn't really resemble a baby yet, but definitely has a beating heart!!

We had a bonfire in our fire pit and enjoyed S'mores!

Richard fanning the flames... our wood was a little damp

Clementine took charge of the marshmallows

Judah had the chocolate

Finger-lickin' good!

Not the greatest picture but don't these two look like twins in it? I usually don't see the resemblance so strongly.

Grace and I attempted to make roasted apples in the coals. Charred apples would be understating what we ended up with.

The sisters hung out by the fire

Moses pushed Judah on the swing while waiting for another S'more

Contemplating the fire

We haven't done the State Fair since Moses was a newborn. It's just not quite our thing. (The amount of money dropped to go, the crowds, the sick tummies from eating too much fried food on a stick...) But we DID go to this Threshing Show in a more rural town northwest of us. Free to get in (thanks to a friend with an extra family voucher), a few greasy food stands but not too much, much smaller crowds, and still a lot of fun things to see and do!

This wagon is worth it's weight in gold.

Going to see the steam-powered saw mill!

This thing was powering the saw mill

They had a pioneer area where the kids got to try their hand at pioneer games and chores

Grace was really good at the hoop rolling!

Doing laundry the old-fashioned way!

Grace was quite good at it! We'll be fine if we ever have to live like pioneers.

A really cool decked-out chuck wagon.

Grinding wheat into flour

Judah took this very seriously, of course.

Pumping water

"Here Papa, wash your hands!"

We watched the steam-powered rock crusher for a while but the kids liked climbing the rock pile better.

This was their favorite - riding the miniature steam train!

This was a really fun day and I think we'll go again in the years to come!

A couple miscellaneous pictures:

I completed one of the several hundred home decorating projects I'd like to do. These pretties went into our bedroom. I got the huge embroidery/quilting hoops at Goodwill for 99¢ each and used them to frame some pretty Amy Butler fabric. I can't wait to paint our walls next!!

Moses got a tattoo and he's really tough and cool

Three little cuties with scruffy hair!!

What can I say about this girl??

She's adorable.

More playing in the backyard:

Grace was teaching the boys the art of swordplay (her words)

They killed Grace

"Sissy, are you okay?"

After a long day playing outside, it's nice to take a break and read a book with Papa.

Summer Recap One - July Version

2011-09-02T09:30:00.002-05:00

Wow, 1 post in July...one post in August. It's been busy and blogging has taken a very backseat! But I do want to recap some of the fun we've had this summer!

Here's July, briefly:

(Okay, this is technically the end of June, but I had to add it.)

Richard brought home a turtle he found at work.

One little boy thought it was wonderful.

July 4th weekend, we spent up north with my side of the family. Since our kids are getting bigger, there's not room for us to board with family members so we stayed in this fabulous lodge. It was a great weekend!!

The little goofballs, ready for the day

Richard and the boys went fishing with Grandpa Mike

Big catches!

Enjoying the pontoon ride

Coffee, anyone?

The proud fishermen!

We got a lot of use out of our little kiddy pool in July! It was HOT out! Sometimes the kids would get dressed in the morning and head right into the pool. I made an observation this year: I do a lot of laundry in the summer.

Richard brought the work truck home with a load of dirt and we did some landscaping out front, in order to resolve a wet basement problem we've been having! Good thing we have such strong helpers.

Ready to start digging dirt and raking rocks!

In the dirt pile....

Clementine wants to help too

They LOVE the work truck

Working together to maneuver the wheelbarrow

Grace had to leave us for a week of vacation with her dad. We missed her terribly.

This girl is sweetness itself.

Papa and Clementine enjoyed some quality time

We ate outside a lot, we played outside a lot, and we generally enjoyed our backyard to a great extent!

Clementine has learned to leave her hair decorations alone (mostly) and I had fun "doing" her hair. She seemed to appreciate it too!

We went to this great, FREE, wading pool/park in Minneapolis a couple times. Super fun!!

Ahhhh....

chooo!!

So that's what I have recorded in photographs for July! We've spent so much time enjoying our backyard, walks to the library and the park. We've done a lot of bike riding too, thanks to our new set of bikes! (See this post). Richard celebrated his last birthday in his 30's in July as well.

i miss you

2011-08-09T04:43:00.007-05:00

I miss this little boy today! I often wonder what he would look like if he were here with us, what he would be like, who he is. Every year on his birthday we set a place for him at the dinner table, just as a reminder that part of our family isn't here and to show that we feel his empty spot. Last year God gave me a brief image in my mind of a brown haired boy, five years old, sitting at the table with the rest of us. He was a quiet, sweet, thoughtful boy with a gentle smile and deep, knowing eyes. The image came totally unbidden to my mind, just a flash and it was gone. But I think God understands my longing to know more about Matthias than the 2 day old baby that I remember. It was very sweet and I treasure that image, whether or not it's exactly what Matthias would be like.

It's often odd to me, to watch our large, rambunctious brood playing together or wrestling on the floor or reading books with us, and remember that one of our children isn't here. Our kids are all so wonderful, and all so sweet, and all so different. I can't help but wonder what it would be like to have Matthias in the mix.

I believe his spirit is in Heaven now with Jesus, but I don't know much (I don't think anyone does) about what happens to baby spirits in Heaven. Does he grow? Can a spirit grow? Will his resurrected body be a baby still? Has he been cared for and mothered by heavenly beings? It's made me think about Heaven so much more than I would otherwise! But I'm settled knowing that Matthias is in perfect peace, fullness of joy, and without any sadness or pain. He's the happiest little heavenly spirit that he could possibly be. (Sweet boy! I'm so glad you are There, but I miss you so much!) I'm pretty sure he'll know me as his mother and I'll know him as my child when I see him again.

In the mean time, I remember the very, very brief time I had with him. I remember the pain and shock of letting him go. I am thankful for the healing God has brought in our lives. And I rest in the sure and steadfast Hope we have in Christ!

"Therefore you too have grief now;

but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice,

and no one will take your joy away from you."

John 16:22

Matthias' Story
Photo Montage of Matthias
My Journal Through Grief

happy birthday husband father

2011-07-11T11:23:00.004-05:00

I have to say happy birthday to Richard today. I'm glad he has no problem with me telling you that he's 39 today! That's one of the many things I love about him - he's not vain and he thinks getting old is cool. There's a lot more I love about him but I'll just list a couple:

2. Even thought he is pretty old, he still does fun stuff like this with his kids. And lots of other super fun stuff, like taking them fishing, working on their bikes, taking them to the park to fly kites, taking the boys on errands with him even though he'd get everything done more efficiently without them, playing in the sprinkler and pool with them, reading and watching movies, and of course lots of wrestling.

3. He loves his girls. He loves to be silly and sweet with them.

4. He loves me a lot. He still likes to be with me best, even after 7.5 years of marriage. He still thinks I'm beautiful, even after 4 babies/20 extra pounds/some gray hair/all the other *wonderful* changes that come between the ages of 24 and 31. He likes my cooking, he appreciates the work I do, he supports me in my mothering. He's totally, 100% committed to me, which I sometimes find pretty amazing.

4. He's pretty darn sexy.

5. He loves Jesus more than anything. That's really the best thing I can say about him and the basis for all the other good things.

6. He is an amazing provider and protector for our family. I know no matter what happens, he'll take care of us and he'll never leave us.

7. He's insanely funny and we totally get each other's humor and he makes me laugh all the time. I asked him what it's like to be so funny and he said it's a gift and a burden. See what I mean?

8. He knows how to fix pretty much anything, and what to do about any problem, and he's really handy. That's a pretty good feature in a guy.

9. When one of our kids does or says something super funny, he always glances and me so we can share a look that says, "these kids are insanely cute and amazing and we made them together and I'm so glad this is our life."

10. He changes diapers, even the most offensively foul poopy ones. No problem.

11. He's cool, without trying to be.

A Little Babywearing Love

2011-06-30T10:50:00.001-05:00

Kozy Carriers from Karla Jean Davis on Vimeo.

I love this little video and how it captures the joy of babywearing.

June Happenings

2011-06-26T15:08:00.001-05:00

Some of the things that have been going on here in the last month:

* Richard scored some great FREE bikes for every member of our family! These are high-quality bikes that just need a couple new tires and some minor tuning - it's really quite fantastic. In one of those weird quirks of life, both Richard and I had our bikes (and my bike trailer) stolen just before we got married, and we haven't owned bikes since then. Family bike rides were a highlight of my life growing up - lots of wonderful memories - and I'm SO excited to be able to finally make some of those memories with our kids. To top it off, I found a mint Schwinn bike trailer at a garage sale for $75, so we're basically set. (If we do a longer trip, Moses will have to ride in the trailer with Judah and we'll need a seat for Clementine, but for short rides he can handle riding by himself.) We are so pumped!!

Moses has been practicing with training wheels for a while and he's really good.

Judah just started on his bike and he's still learning.

This was actually the only bike we bought - $8 at a garage sale!

The bicycle bell is an important feature.

* Grace finished the school year at RiverTree with an AMAZING Shakespeare Festival. The 3rd-7th graders performed "Much Ado About Nothing" and the younger kids sang and recited sonnets. It was amazing. It was brilliant. Did I say it was amazing? Grace played the part of Don Pedro, a Prince of Aragon. (If you've seen the movie, which is great, her character is played by Denzel Washington. =]) Several of the girls had to play male roles and they did fantastic. I was so proud of how Grace got into character and really sold the part. She didn't merely recite her lines, she became Don Pedro. It was just an all-around wonderful play! I mean, some of these kids were THIRD graders, memorizing line upon line of Shakespearean English, and the oldest kids were only 13, memorizing up to 90 lines! There were touching scenes, inspiring speeches, hilarious banter, subtle humor... wow. It was just a great finale to the school year.

Getting her beard and sideburns applied.

I present His Grace, Don Pedro of Aragon!

The small play-goers, ready for the performance.

The girls in Grace's class, all of whom performed with incredible skill!

* Clementine is 20 months old. That means she's the same age Moses and Judah were when the next new baby joined the family! But there's no new baby and so Clemmers gets to keep being Mama's baby. This is definitely a change for us - it's a little strange and sad not to have a new baby here - but it's also wonderful! I really, really love my sweet little girl being able to stay my little girl. Here's what Clementine is up to, 4 months before she turns two:

She's a little spitfire! It must come from having 2 older brothers, but she can hold her own physically. She's not scared to get into the mix with her wild and rowdy brothers, nor to engage in a little hair-pulling or pinching, unfortunately. :-/ She can be sweet, but she can be pugnacious too!

She's a Mama's Girl still! She's definitely the baby of the house, and (although she can be feisty and independent) she loves to cuddle with Mama, be worn in the sling when I'm making dinner, and be rocked and nursed to sleep. She has Papa wrapped around her little finger too. =]

Clementine loves to be where her sibs are, doing what they're doing. When she's not in the mood for a cuddle with Mama, she's content just to toddle around after her brothers. Especially now that it's [finally!] nice out, I won't hear from her for hours and hours! Playing in the sandbox with Judah, being pushed oh so gently on the swing by Moses, playing Orphanage under Grace's direction, or just running around in the back yard is enough to make her perfectly content.

She's talking up a storm! My last child said not a word until he was 2, and then it was another 6-8 months before he was coherent. So having a little girl who started saying words at around a year and now has a good 300+ word vocabulary is a bit... strange! She's putting together sentences of 3+ words and adding to her vocabulary every day. It's incredible the words she knows! A couple that have surprised me in the last few weeks:

-dragonfly -yogurtstrawberries (a favorite breakfast) -popsicle -ship (when she made something out of Duplos) -dolphin -Lightsaber (no surprise, really!) -Monkey Baby (her name for one of her dolls)

Pretending to be a puppy!


Hamming it up with Papa

Clementine's just pretty darn fun and cute. She has a bedtime routine where she tells everyone goodnight, "Nigh-nigh Papa, Nigh-nigh Sissy, Nigh-nigh Mo Mo, Nigh-nigh Doodah!" She'll beckon to you with her little hand, whispering, "Here! Here!" when she wants you to come see something. She'll [usually] apologize sweetly when she's clobbered you over the head with a toy. When she's being reprimanded for something she'll wrinkle up her nose and smile and laugh beguilingly, which is VERY naughty and VERY cute.

*Moses turned 5 years old! It's always insane how fast your children grow. I'll never forget hearing him cry and holding him in my arms for the first time, how sweet that was after all the pain of losing Matthias and all the waiting for Moses to arrive. That first year of his life was so incredible, almost magical. I remember feeling in awe most of the time, that we finally had another child in our home and that he was as adorable and funny and sweet as he was. Five years and 2 more children later, it all feels a little more normal, but I do feel amazed at how big Moses has gotten and I LOVE watching him grow into a young man. He's really, really fun, and really, really cute, and smart and charismatic and full of wonderful things that delight a mother's heart.

Presents!!

The birthday card with the light-up Lightsaber and Star Wars theme music was worth the $8.

It's a fishing pole... and it's Star Wars.

I can't get over his shaggy, curly hair. Could Not Be Cuter.

Seeing your friend's toys is almost as interesting as getting toys yourself!


Birthday Friends

* Judah Buddy hasn't had any big adventures or events happen this month, but in typical middle-child fashion, he's had a lot of fun doing what the other kids are doing.

He went to Grace's play and seemed to like it.
He had great fun at Moses' birthday party, although the SHARING of the toys might be an ongoing issue...

He's been Clementine's buddy out-of-doors as well as in. Sometimes they fight, but Clementine dishes it out as much as she takes it, so I have to instruct both of them in greater gentleness. But when they're getting along, Judah is very brotherly-protective and sweet to his little sister.

He went fishing with Papa and Moses! What little boy doesn't love fishing?

He learned how to ride a 2-wheeler with training wheels!

He's not at all squeamish about collecting all kinds of bugs, unlike any of the other kids. He especially likes "Junior Bugs" (June bugs) and "Boxer Brief Bugs" (Box Elder bugs). But he'll collect all kinds of worms, centipedes, spiders and various creepy crawlies. I think he's a budding naturalist.

This means fun.

GRUBBY!

He loves to show me how fast he can run and how strong he is. He's still so baby-faced and stocky and short-legged! I LOVE how cute he looks when he runs.

If you're not that good on a bike yet, it's faster to run.

He NEEDS to nap basically every day. But many days he has trouble obeying and laying quietly until he falls asleep. This is tough for both of us, but despite what seems like crazy naughtiness on his part, I've found that usually what he needs is not discipline but for me to rock him to sleep. I hadn't done that in many months, but apparently he still needs it, and I love the chance to cuddle my active, big boy for a little while.

Judah still needs lots of cuddles from Mama even though he tends to have a pretty stoic demeanor. He definitely challenges me the most out of all my kids but I think that's a good thing. It makes me really have to seek God for wisdom to parent him. He doesn't allow me to be nonchalant in my mothering, or lazy or careless. I can be that way with my other kids some of the time and get away with it, but not with Judah. With Judah I have to really pay attention and really be mindful of how I'm speaking to him, how I'm acting, what I say, etc. And most days I have to dig really deep to figure out how to deal with the situations that arise with Judah. One minute you think he hasn't even heard you because he's staring at you totally deadpan, and the next he's an angry, sad, weeping, yelling mess. But like I said, when I'm tempted to think of Judah as my "difficult child", I immediately cross that out from my mind and think of him as the child who's most challenging me to be a better mother. He's just not easy to figure out. There is SO much feeling IN him (but he tends to keep it in) and there's SO much going on in his mind (but again, he doesn't communicate a lot of it) and he just needs a very sensitive, mindful, wise mother. That's a good thing to have to learn to be.


He's showing me how the brakes work

So that's kinda what's going on here. Richard's doing some work around the house, mostly yard/landscaping sorts of things, I've been fitting in a little bit of sewing and crafting (about 1% of the ideas and projects I'd LIKE to do!), and once all the kids are in bed, we like to sit on our deck and just feel thankful for our wonderful home and family.

It won't make you feel any younger, but an occasional hogpile with your kids is a good thing.

This is the start of a scrappy quilt for Grace. Stay tuned. It'll probably be done sometime before she leaves for college.

I love looking out the kitchen window and seeing this.

Moses for Five Years!

2011-06-22T12:10:00.000-05:00

In honor of Moses' FIFTH birthday on Saturday, I made this Birthday Photo Montage! I think it really captures Moses - his bright and cheerful personality, his charisma, his goofiness, his sweetness - and how the adorable chubby baby grew into an adorable but maturing five-year-old boy.

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Tending and Tending

2011-06-18T05:22:00.002-05:00

Do you read a wonderful blog called SouleMama? It's written by a dear mama named Amanda Soule who's written two of my favorite books, Handmade Home and The Creative Family. (These books are really, really worth owning, even if you don't picture yourself as a super creative person.) SouleMama just had a baby. Some other dear mamas are guest blogging for her, and this post by Tara Thayer just pierced me. Such a perfectly-worded insight into mothering....

i began as the mother of babes.

and i mean that, for i was born then, too.
all of the me that had begun,
the wonderings and wanderings of my first three decades,
melted away in the faces of those new babies
and i was born anew.

i spent the next decade tending.
and tending, i did well. it was my thing, apparently.

i grew into it, and i loved every minute.
well,
you know that to be a gentle lie.
there were quite a few minutes of awful. of anguish, even.
and so much comedy, uncertainty, dishevelment.
you know.

but now...
some of my babes are almost grown.
do not kid yourself about how quickly that happens.
do not kid yourself and do not miss a second wishing those
wonderfully intense, delicious early years away.

for it happens even as you are watching them.
they grow.

and as much as you need to lose yourself to care for those newborn babes, those littles-
when they have grown to your size almost-when their feet may be as big!-
it is then that you need to find yourself again.
you need to grow.

for then, as they come upon ten; at twelve maybe...fourteen certainly;
then you must find yourself in order to know how to guide them. you must be the you
that you want to be,
so that the you they are growing up against and alongside, is the you that you want them to know.

for here's the thing:

in the end,
what you want for them most of all is to leave you.
to leave your house to become who they will be.
and when they are gone
who do you want to be left with?

my wish is that my own answer
is the me that was born out of mothering them.
and the man that's loved me all along the way.

~ ~ ~ ~

{this moment}

2011-06-17T16:07:00.002-05:00

{this moment} – A Friday ritual from Soule Mama, one of my favorite bloggers. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you’re inspired to do the same, leave a link to your “moment” in the comments for all to find and see.

The Snake Man

2011-06-16T12:17:00.010-05:00

Toy snake? Yes, please.

Moses will be 5 at the end of this month! Five just seems so.... old. He's really big. He's really grown-up. He's completely left the world of babyhood and toddlerhood forever. When did this happen, someone please tell me! It's just not right. Well, it's amazingly fun to watch him mature and become a fascinating little boy, but it's hard to see it happen so quickly...

Anyhoo, I wanted to share with you this kid's amazing, voracious obsession with SNAKES. Yes, he is a snake fiend. I remember many years ago when Mo was just a baby, I was watching some preschool kids in nursery at Grace's Musik Garden class, and there was a 4 year old boy there who knew everything about construction equipment. I was just blown away watching him point to pictures in his book and say, "That's a skid loader, that's an excavator, that's a backdumperscraperbulloaderhoe...." or whatever. It was crazy, he couldn't read but he knew all 50 or so pieces of equipment in his book - he just rattled them off, no problem. I thought this kids was some sort of prodigy or something!

Now I realize that it's more likely he just had a fascination with construction equipment and had a book about it and had parents who were willing to read that book to him 10 or 12 times a day. Every day.

I know this, because that's what's happened with Moses and Snakes. First I brought out a stack of books I had gotten at a sale and had packed away for a while. In the said stack of books was one about snakes. Moses snatched it up and was super keen on it. Thus started the interest. Then for Christmas he got the Mother of All Snake Books from his super-cool Great-Grandparents.

Then the obsession really started. First thing EVERY MORNING, Moses could be seen stretched out on his tummy, paging through The Snake Book. We read it non-stop every day for weeks and weeks. Pretty soon he could identify 20+ snakes on sight.

"That's a Reticulated Python, that's a Green Anaconda, that's a Burmese Python, that's a Western Diamondback Rattlesnake, that's a Black Mamba, that's a King Cobra...." and on and on. AND, he could tell you pretty much any random fact you might want to know about snakes. Did you know that some snakes lay eggs and some give birth to live babies? Did you know that Sea Snakes have the most potent venom, the King Cobra is the largest venomous snake, and the Indian Cobra is responsible for the most fatalities? Did you know that the Milk Snake looks just like the Coral Snake, but one is poisonous and one is harmless?


Which is Milk, which is Coral??

(In case you're ever confronted with a snake of red, black and yellow bands, and want to know if it's the poisonous Coral Snake or the harmless Milk Snake, please remember this rhyme: "Red on yellow, you're a dead fellow. Red on black, you're alright Jack." You're welcome.)

The poor book was tattered within a couple months, and has since undergone major reconstructive surgery in order to reattach covers and mend torn pages. Thankfully half a dozen more snake books have been added to the originals, giving us endless snake-reading possibilities.

Here's some of our favorites, in case you have a snake-lover in your home:

Snake by Chris Mattison (The Mother of all Snake Books)

Verdi by Janell Cannon (Wonderful storybook for the whole family)

Snakes by Seymour Simon (This one has AMAZING photos!)

Slinky, Scaly Snakes (DK Reader)


Moses' favorite: the Green Tree Python!

I personally have never been squeamish about snakes - in fact, I think they're pretty cool. Maybe if we lived somewhere where there were deadly snakes about I might feel differently, but I'm pretty okay with the Minnesota varieties. There's a long history in my family of snake-hunting, going all the way back to when my sibs and I were little tykes and my dad and uncles would take us out looking for snakes under piles of scrap lumber and in the fields. Now that tradition is being carried on to a new generation, as my dad and brothers are taking my kids snake-hunting when we're out in the country.

Well, Uncle Caleb has taken things a step farther in recently acquiring his own pet snake. Princess Buttercup is not some 12-inch-long Garter Snake in a little tank. Oh no, she is a long, heavy, gorgeous Ball Python. Every little boy's (and big boy's!) dream! It's hard to describe the delight when we got to meet Buttercup face-to-face.

I'm not sure how long snakes will be at the forefront of Moses' interest, but it's really fun to be able to take something he's naturally interested in and "run with it." Yes, he can identify 500 different snake species and he's a walking encyclopedia of snake trivia, but that doesn't mean he's a prodigy. His interest has simply been captured by a certain subject and we've fed that interest with plenty of good books and toys (okay and some You Tube videos as well!)

It's one of the most satisfying and enjoyable parts of parenting, to see where your kids' interest leads them and to enhance that interest in healthy ways. I was blessed to have parents who did that incredibly well and I'm so happy to be doing it for my kids now!

One of many snake drawing adorning our fridge

"MOSES DREW THIS FOR JUDAH, MAMA, SISSY, PAPA

RETICULATED PYTHON"

What subjects have your kids become keenly interested in, and how have you cultivated that interest?

Fun in the Rain

2011-05-20T12:28:00.000-05:00

Spring is finally here! Lately we've been learning about clouds and worms. Both are plentiful this time of year for observation.

Here's some fun in the rain:

Basic Mechanics

2011-05-13T15:52:00.000-05:00

I remember when I got my driver's license and my first beater car, my dad showed me how to change a flat tire. I was so pumped that when I actually got my first flat tire, I made the guy friend who was with me stand and watch while I changed it. I felt pretty self-sufficient, I can tell you.

Well it seems my boys will know about changing tires long before their first car. I always wondered how guys seemed to know so much about cars already by the time they were teenagers...well now I know! Richard finally decided it's safe to take off the snow tires on his car, and The Littles were watching with keen interest! Well, Clementine wasn't quite so interested, but she likes to be wherever her brothers are. Moses was very keen and asking Richard lots of questions. I can almost see him storing the information away in his hungry mind, to be pulled out again when some situation arises that requires his knowledge.

I'm so glad I have a husband around who welcomes his boys (and girls) into the garage while he's working, in order to teach them the things they need to know.

These are lug nuts, boys.

Holding tools

Moses took this job very seriously

Wow, Papa is strong!


It's very important, boys, that you DON'T LOSE THESE!

Mother's Day Present to Myself

2011-05-09T15:01:00.001-05:00

I love my kids' profiles. I love to stare at the way their foreheads slope out and then indent above their incredible little snub noses. I love Moses and Clementine's curls. I love Grace's graceful neck and Judah's little chin. I love the chubby, slurpy cheeks the three younger ones have. I think their little faces are just adorable. Sometimes they get weirded out because of how much I stare at them.

I've wanted to have their silhouettes done for a long time now, and I finally decided to do it for Mother's Day. I read this post from A Holy Experience and loved the silhouettes she had of her children! She even helpfully included a DIY link at the end of her post. How nice!

So I went over here to see how hard it would be to make my own silhouettes. Not hard. All you need is some pictures of your kids, an exacto knife and/or nail scissors, some cardstock and double-sided tape. Yay!

I followed her advise and took their pictures in front of the french door, then I messed with the contrast and sharpness on iPhoto in order to get nice sharp features. If I do this again I'll print out 5x7 or maybe 8x10 photos instead of 4x6. Some of the small details were hard to cut out.

Here's the pictures I used for my silhouettes. Clementine's was the hardest to get.

Cut through picture and cardstock.

Here's Sissy! I messed up on her back, but that's okay.

Here they all are. My index finger was killing me at the end because I had to press the knife in so hard to cut through the cardstock. But I like how they turned out!

Then I wanted to mount them on some pretty paper. It was hard to decide. I have lots of pretty paper.

I decided on a different paper for the boys and the girls. I like it!

Sorry about the glare in these pictures. How do you take a picture of something under glass and not get glare? Beats me.

Clementine, 18 months

Judah, 3 years

Moses, (almost) 5 years

Grace, 12 years

My Children!

I really do like how they turned out. I did get double prints of the original profile pictures (in case I messed up!) so I could do another set if I wanted to. I'd actually like to frame them in 5x7 frames so they aren't so cramped, but this is the only frame I had on hand. And it really needs to be painted another color. Yuk. But other than that, I love looking at these adorable little faces!! They change so fast... I'm glad to have captured the sweetness of Right Now.

Cousins!

2011-05-03T17:22:00.001-05:00

Boy, I just haven't had time to post anything other that a few pics here and there. No family updates, and certainly not any interesting or informative posts...so if you read this blog for anything more than pictures of your grandkids (Mom), I'm sorry you've been bored out of your gourd for the last couple months. But to stick with the theme, here's a bunch of pictures!!

My kids' cousins Jesse (21 months) and Sylvia (4.5 months) are such dears! Jesse and Clementine are only 10 weeks apart and are really starting to "discover" each other as playmates. It's pretty cute! And Jesse is learning a lot about WRESTLING from his two boy cousins as well. Sylvia is adorable and sweet, and Moses especially can't get enough of her! Moses loves babies. You might not think my sword-fighting, monster-killing, lightsabering Jedi would be a baby man, but he is.

So here's some pics of the cousins together:

This was Grace's horse when she was little.

I love Moses underneath...

This cracks me up!

Here's all the cousins together! I love Judah's smile in this one. And Mo's. And Grace's.

Judah!! Seriously cracks me up. Look how cute Jesse is.

Love Sylvia's smile!! And Moses holding her hand. Very sweet.

And there's Jesse's big cheesy grin. What a cute bunch of kids!

My mom reading books to Sylvia, Moses and Clementine

A Dozen Years with Grace

2011-04-17T21:18:00.001-05:00

Grace is a true beauty... externally and in her heart and soul. I am blessed beyond words to be her mother!

Newborn Grace - April 1999

1 year old


2 years

3 years

4 years

5 years

6 years

7 years

8 years

9 years

10 years

11 years

Twelve Years Old!!

I surely do love this girl...

A Restful Saturday Morning for Papa...

2011-04-10T20:38:00.000-05:00

At the bottom of the pile of puppies!

Good luck checking Facebook with these hooligans on you!

Judah wants to wrastle!

Ooh, knee to the face!

You're gonna get it now! Tickle time!

Clementine says, "I'm here for you, Papa."

Haymaker!

Oh! Low blow!

Now Moses is cutting your arm off!!

The boys admit defeat and Clementine gets Papa to herself.

Nice job, Papa - we got rid of those wild boys!

Spring

2011-04-08T11:44:00.000-05:00

It's been a long, long, long, long, long, long winter here. Did I mention it's been long? I know we've ranked in the top 5 snowiest winters of all time here! There have been SO many blizzards! Actually, the last little pile of snow melted from our yard yesterday. It's inched up to around 60° for a few days now and Moses has been begging me to fill up the kiddie pool! I understand, though. I'm so ready for spring to be here, for daily walks to the park with the kids, lots of playing in our big backyard, grilling on the deck, and not having to spend 20 minutes getting winter gear on every time we go somewhere!

Well here's some pictures of the kids enjoying this spring weather the last couple of days:


This is the Fun Tree - climbing holds, swings and trapeze rings!

Judah, busy with his own stuff.

Moses is swinging and shooting....

shooting and swinging...

Got 'im!

Now back there!

And over there!

I think I got 'em all.

Off to fight more bad guys...

C'mon, Judah!

What a cutie!

Digging through the toy chest, rediscovering all the fun summertime toys!

What's in here?

Judah's off to fight, play, discover....

Smile for Mama

Clementine gives Moses a friendly shove....

She's been wanting to play outside all winter!!

Get out the summer hats!

A little Huck Finn.

Shirtless in 58° weather! Moses always was my sweaty child

Watch that first step, it's a doozy!

Made it!

Hi Papa!

Judah loves his engineer hat!

Time to get out the gas pump!

Clementine discovered the popper thing...

"Ball!" How do I get those out??

This is fun!

Sisters

2011-04-01T17:44:00.000-05:00

Judah-Buddy is Three!

2011-03-04T15:55:00.103-06:00

Judah has changed and grown so much this past year. He just began talking at 2 years old. Now it's incredible how the kind of stuff he's saying. Although he still has some cute speech impediments (he doesn't say his hard "c" sound and says an "h" sound instead, so Clementine is "Hementine" and his favorite snake, the King Cobra, is a "Hing Hoba") he's very much intelligible. This fact alone has defused an incredible amount of the frustration he felt as a 2-year-old. Also he's just matured - he's learned to wait for things he wants, to share, to use words instead of hitting or biting, to verbalize his desires, to use manners, etc. (we're still working on all of these, of course, but the PROGRESS we've made in the last year is encouraging for this mama!! Actually, I wonder if my boys will still have to be encouraged to "Use your words!" as adult men....)

Here's Judah when he first started talking last February:

Last summer we were getting this adorable speech:

By this past fall Judah was volunteering lots of verbal information, most of which was intelligible:

And here he is a couple weeks ago talking about his stitches:

Sometimes I just sit and let Judah talk to me because it's SO adorable to listen to his little voice. He has very mature and deep thoughts, but the way they come out sometimes sounds a little babyish still and that combination is enchanting. But DO NOT SMILE OR LAUGH!! It is imperative to take his serious words - even the adorably mispronounced ones - with the proper serious attitude.

It has been an incredible joy to watch Judah flourish and to see the baby grow into a toddler and now into a full-fledged boy. There was a point where within a couple of weeks he seemed to clearly "hit a new stage" in his development - Richard and I both noticed and commented on it. Although he loves to do what his older sibs are doing, Judah certainly has his own quirks and knows his own mind. He really feels and thinks deeply. He has a very serious side as well as a goofiness that has us all rolling when he cares to turn it on.

Judah as a two-year-old was probably like most two-year-olds who really want to do things themselves. I constantly had to remember to give him time to attempt things himself, even when I knew it was something he couldn't do, like buckle his own car seat belt. If I just barged in to do it myself a screaming, crying, frustrated meltdown would invariably ensue! I've learned to not be in such a rush and to allow time for Judah to spread his wings a bit. I've learned to ask first, "would you like me to help or would you like to try yourself?" Usually if after trying himself he isn't able to do some task, he happily allows me to do it for him - the few extra minutes it takes to let him try first are well-worth it. Actually I think "DON'T BE IN A RUSH" is a key motto for parenting in general, not just with 2-year-olds!!

Although Judah and Moses still fight a lot, there has been improvement there as well, and it's so fun to watch them playing imaginary games together, sharing jokes, singing songs and creating buildings and machines. I think Moses has enjoyed finally having a playmate who is both a boy and very much at the same level as he. Sissy hasn't always been so keen on playing the kinds of games Moses has wanted to play. With less than 20 months between them, Moses and Judah have reached a very similar place developmentally, and I'm sure that will become even more so as they get older.

Judah has given me some of my hardest parenting challenges, and I'm constantly praying for more wisdom in mothering him. I often feel like I don't know what's going on in his little mind and heart, because he has such a deep-feeling, internal sort of personality. In so many situations I find myself praying for insight, for a way to reach his heart and understand what's underneath his very frustrating behavior. But even with these challenges, he's an incredible delight!! He's such a complex little boy. And we're still in a sort of limbo time, where he's spreading his wings and maturing but still needing cuddles and lots of nurturing. Sometimes he wants to be treated like the "big kids" and sometimes he needs to be treated like the baby, and I need to be sensitive to understand those needs.

Judah's 3rd Birthday Party

2011-02-21T09:20:00.001-06:00

Mr. Judah Buddy turned Three on Saturday! I'm working on a post about JUDAH being THREE, but in the mean time I wanted to post a few pics of his birthday party.

On Friday Judah fell while playing outside and busted his lip open on some ice. Poor guy! But he was tough and hardly even cried.

Papa took him in to get stitches. The doctor was not as gentle as the one Moses had for his stitches, and Judah cried. I'm glad it was Papa and not me who had to hold him down for the stitches. But, Judah was really excited after the fact, because now he has stitches just like Big Brother Moses had!

On Saturday we had a little party for Judah with just us. The bigger family party scheduled for Sunday was canceled due to inclement weather. =[

A Batman card always goes over well. Moses was pretty interested in it too!

The card had this cool little pin on it.

He was wearing the perfect yellow shirt, too!

Check out my Batman pin!

"WOODY!!"

He really wanted Woody.

Smile...

Bigger smile!!

"Buzz Lightyear!!"

Smile...

Bigger smile!!

Yummy chocolate birthday cake

Mmmm, what a fun birthday.

This is my big three-year-old birthday boy! I love him to pieces.

DIY Valentines

2011-02-07T11:37:00.001-06:00

I don't really care for Valentine's Day as a holiday. Sooo commercialized, sooo lame. BUT, I do like making special things for my lovies, and Valentine's Day is a good time to do that. Here's what I'm working on for the kids:


Fabric envelope which will have a stamp in the corner eventually. Excuse the distortion - merely for personal security issues. =] I wrote "Our House" on the second line and then wrote our city and state on the 3rd line.

I'm using this tutorial to make the stamp.

I made the envelope following a tutorial from Sew, Mama, Sew.

Front of the envelope

Note paper?

Look closer!

A combination of machine sewing and hand embroidery.

Inspiration for the sewn letter from Katie Cupcake.

I made something very different for Richard, but since he occasionally reads my blog, I'll post pictures of it after Valentine's Day. =]

**UPDATED TO ADD**

Here's Richard's Valentine's Day gift:

Grace said, "WHAT IS IT!?" and when I told her it was a human heart she was totally grossed out and thought it was kinda weird to be giving something like that to my husband. But there's sort of an inside joke there too because Richard has this thing about how your heart muscle doesn't really contain feelings in it... so I thought it was both not too cutesy and also kind of funny.

Dreams of Summer.....

2011-01-14T19:56:00.001-06:00

Blueberry Peach Cobbler....

My First DIY Reuphostery Attempt

2011-01-01T21:32:00.001-06:00

I enjoy sewing and crafting even though I'm something of a learn-as-you-go hack. I'm so thankful to my Grandma Morgan who taught my mom to sew after she married my dad. What a great mother-in-law! And my mom taught me to sew (although I wish I would have had her teach me more!!) So I know some basics and have learned more through trial-and-error. If you know me, you know I'm pretty much a wing-it-and-see-how-it-goes sort of person, rather than a careful planner. That's why I'm a lot more successful at crafting than at sewing clothes that actually fit people!

Anyway, reupholstering has appealed to me more and more as we furnish our home and I read those DIY, before-and-after blogs of people who take nasty pieces of furniture off the curbs and turn them into things you'd see in a home decor magazine. My thought has been, "I could do that, I mean how hard could it be?"

So when Richard scored this antique rocking chair from a resident whose sewer he was fixing, I was pretty keen to give reupholstery a go. (Rocker was bought for $40 cash!!)

So I ripped off the seat fabric and committed myself to reupholstering it. I decided to leave the springs, even though the middle one was a bit gimpy, because redoing that seemed a bit ambitious, even for me. I figured I'd just get some foam to put over it then tack down some fabric and viola~! New chair. (Remember I said I'm not big into preplanning).

Well, I went to Joann's to get some foam and tacks, and thought I'd better just take a peak at an upholstery book for reference. Again, not big on getting my ducks in a row. After skimming 2 or 3 books I realized I needed more materials than I originally thought, in the form of burlap and batting. No biggie. I also stocked up on glue stick for the hot glue gun, figuring I'd probably end up using it.

***WARNING*** This is in no way a tutorial! Please do not follow any of these steps if you want to reupholster anything. I photo journaled this project for my own pleasure, but you should think of it more as a guide of what NOT to do. Thank you.

I forgot to take a picture before I ripped off the disgusting, ancient tapestry and stained, smelly stuffing of the seat. But you can see the fabric is not super awesome. And it smelled very strongly like old person.

My book skimming told me I should pull out all the old tacks and nails. Clementine was my helper through most of this project.

See? Look how good she helps! Also notice how [relatively] clean my workspace was at the beginning of this project. I'm also not big on "clean up as you go", plus I let the kids scatter toys everywhere so they'd stay out of my hair, so it's not pretty at the end!

After all the old nails are out and I sanded down the rough spots, I tacked burlap down over the springs. From my extensive research I learned that the foam will disintegrate if you don't do this. Oh, and I used Richard's handy dandy staple gun for this. Must Have!!

Then I stapled down 2" thick foam over the burlap. FYI, foam is expensive. Joann's had it 50% off and the two pieces still cost me just under $15. That seems like a lot.

Then finally the batting goes on top of the foam to sort of smooth it out. Again, the staple gun.

And here is the new fabric! I've had this for a long time...got in on clearance thinking it would be great for some project or other and it was a score for like $10. Absolutely perfect for this chair! Which just goes to show you the old adage is true that you should always buy beautiful fabric that's on sale even if you don't have a project in mind for it. That is an old adage, right?

I used little upholstery tack thingies to attach the fabric. The corners were a little tricky, as I couldn't remember exactly the technique the book showed...but I winged it and it turned out fine. And comfy!! Can't feel the gimpy spring at all.

So far so good. And the tornado has passed through the room once. See the dead dog?

Here's the nasty stuffing that was under the old tapestry. Ew.

I left this webbing because it was in pretty good shape and I hadn't bought any new webbing.

This was the only structural damage to the wood of the chair. There's that sad crack there, but my awesome hubby fixed it up good for me! Otherwise this is a super solid chair.

Burlap over the webbing.

First I tried just a couple layers of batting over the burlap because the foam seemed like it'd be too thick. But when you sat in the chair you could really feel the ridge of wood along the bottom of your back, so I tore that out and went with the foam.

I think the 2" foam really was too thick, and it was hard to staple down to this part of the frame. But I got 'er done along with the batting. Again, loving the staple gun!!

Oh, and I did the back of the chair before the front because it was easier. No batting or foam, it just laid across the webbing. The shape of the top was a little tricky, and you can see the slight wonkiness of it, but I figured it would be fine once I put the braid over it.

So here's the front after I got the fabric on. This is my least favorite part of the whole thing because you can see it's totally puckery. I just had trouble getting it over that thick foam and, well, I was winging it. But it's okay. As Richard always says, "Do we look like the kind of people who have to have everything perfect?"

I hot glued the trim on and I really like that part. I burned two of my fingers like crazy but it was so easy putting the braid on.

Close up. The braid really finishes it off nicely. That's my favorite part, I think.

The chair is MUCH more comfortable now, not all squishy and gross like before. The back is firm but doesn't stick out too much, which I was worried about. Maybe the puckers will smooth out a bit after it gets sat in for a while. All-in-all I'm happy with how it turned out!

So there it is, my first reupholstery job. Just like always, I learned a lot and I think I'll be able to do a slightly better job next time. Maybe after 4 or 5 funny looking pieces of furniture we'll have something that's a true gem! In the mean time, I am happy with this chair, pumped that it's really usable now and that the whole thing cost $90! The fabric is really gorgeous and Richard really loves it too. That makes me the happiest of all.

The Weather Outside is Frightful....

2010-12-29T16:50:00.002-06:00

Ice dams on the roof. Twenty feet of snow everywhere. Plowing at 2am. Driving 4 kids across town every morning. Missing fun things because of bad weather. Days and days of below-zero weather. Fender-benders. This is our life in a Minnesota winter right now.... I'm sure most of you can commiserate!

Grace voluntarily went out and shoveled a path to the garage and the compost bin! What a girl.

Richard's job with the city means he has a plow route and so far this winter he has had days and days and days of plowing, many times starting between 2 and 4 am. Yuck. And when he's done working, he comes home and shovels or clears off the roof.

Richard's Plow

I told him I'd take care of the shoveling while he's out plowing.

I got half of the driveway shoveled and he went and bought a snow blower.

Smart man.

I miss grilling on the deck and sipping wine in the evenings watching the stars...

I feel like complaining. A lot. So I'll just end it here.

Breastfeeding Beyond Infancy

2010-12-28T13:06:00.003-06:00

Almost 12 years ago, I was a single 20-year-old mother living with family friends and figuring out how to take care of a little baby. I was working full time. I was not breastfeeding. There are a lot of other things I could say about that time, but that's a different post. What I want to bring up about that time is that the wonderful, generous, loving family who was letting me live in their basement with my 3-month old baby for free had some parenting practices that I thought a little weird.

They had a Family Bed. The mom nursed her children until they were 3 years old. The youngest of their three children was about 3 years old when I lived with them and she was the most articulate and loquacious toddler I had ever met. To me there was something very disconcerting about hearing her talk in complex and complete sentences, using words like "invalid", "governess", and "disagreeable" (true!!) one minute, and then having "Milk and Cuddles" the next. It just seemed "wrong" to me, though I couldn't make an argument as to WHY it was wrong (can anyone say cultural programming?) and I remember confidently (and arrogantly) pronouncing, "If they're old enough to ask for it they're too old to nurse!" To my mind, nothing could be worse than growing up and being able to remember nursing. Eeeew!

Fast forward 6 years. Moses is born, and I have something of a "natural parenting" mindset, but it has yet to flesh out. We're using cloth diapers, I carry him in a sling, he sleeps in bed with us and I know I'll nurse him for a year. Then he turns one. He's no where near being ready to wean. In fact, he still seems like - he still is - a baby in most ways and I see no reason to put him through the misery that weaning would entail, any more than I would suddenly insist that he start using the toilet instead of going in his diapers. He's just not ready!

We decide to "play it by ear." At 20 months old his little brother is born. Instead of being pushed off Mama's lap, he gets to nurse with this new little sibling. They share Mama. Moses holds his brother's hand and rubs his head as they tandem nurse. The jealous older sibling rages I've been dreading never happen. They love each other! (Until Judah becomes a toddler, then we have a whole other ball of wax to deal with....)

Now Moses is two. He's still nursing for naps, bedtime, anytime he gets hurt, anytime he's scared, anytime he goes through something emotionally difficult, anytime he needs connection. He's not ready to wean and I see no reason to insist that he does, any more than I would insist that he put himself to bed at night.

Finally it's a couple months before Moses turns three. I've been tandem nursing for over a year. I'm pregnant again. I cannot handle the thought of tandem nursing through a whole pregnancy. Moses is still nursing at bedtime and naptime and various other times during the day, as is Judah. I decide IT'S TIME. HE'S READY! The kid is not going to wean himself, but he's emotionally ready to handle the change. He's ready to move on to forms of comfort and connection that do not involve nursing.

I introduce the concept of "nums are for night-night." This means we only nurse at bedtime. With only a little fuss, he accepts that boundary. So far so good. Several weeks go by during which I'm preparing him for the change. "Soon you will be done with nums! You're a big boy and we're going to give the nums to Judah and the new baby. Mama will still cuddle you and read you stories." Does he understand what's coming? I'm not sure, but one night I tell him he's all done with nums. He's sad. He cries. I cuddle him and read him a story. It's not as good as nums, but he does go to sleep. For about a week he is sad when I tell him no nums. A few times he gets hurt and I let him have some nums, but mostly I spend a lot of time cuddling and connecting with him. Then it's over! He's weaned! He stops being sad at night and stops asking for nums. Once or twice he asks and I tell him sure and he says, "I guess no." There were no tantrums, no acting out, no sobbing hysterically. He cried a little here and there, but he pretty much accepted it and moved on with no hard feelings.

All in all, Moses and I had a beautiful and satisfying nursing relationship. Besides giving him perfect nutrition and great immune defense (he's always been super healthy - much more so than Grace ever was!), nursing gave Moses a sense of comfort when life got scary, it calmed him down when his feelings got too intense, it lulled him to sleep, and it gave him the connection he always needed after he'd been out exploring the world. Nursing kept me physically available to Moses. I wonder how much less touch and physical connection we would have had in those 3 years if I hadn't nursed him. I see it now, how nursing Judah and Clementine forces me to touch and hold and connect with them - forces in a good way, in a I-can't-get-too-busy-and-just-forget-to-cuddle-my-kids way. And now that Moses isn't nursing, I do

So here I am, a mom who nurses her kids to 3 years old. Is it gross? No. Is it "wrong"? No. Was I uninformed and naive and arrogantly passing judgment on something based solely on unexamined cultural biases? Yep, pretty much. And although I'm not hugely outspoken about my extended breastfeeding, neither am I ashamed of it, at all. So just in case you think breastfeeding past a year is weird or gross, or maybe you don't want to wean your 1-year-old but don't know anyone who's nursed that long, I'm sharing my story and some really good resources. And you know what? I hope my kids do remember nursing, and how incredibly special it was. I'm proud to have given 3 of my children such a precious gift.

P.S. - Judah turns three in February and we're in the weaning process. He's handling it differently than Moses did (they are SUCH different kids...), but he also is accepting it without tantrums or despair or sobbing. He's ready too.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A great place to start: Kellymom Breastfeeding Past Infancy Fact Sheet

If you think it's gross, read this: Not Just for Babies: 10 Good Reasons to Breastfeed Your Toddler

References, links, common concerns and tips on parenting a nursing toddler: Kellymom Nursing After the First Year

The best book under the sun for anyone who nurses past a year:

Mothering Your Nursing Toddler. This book has saved my sanity and changed how I view mothering. I would love to loan it out, but it's really, really worth owning.

"My first-born, Emma, was 14 months old. I had enrolled in a course, and, with the feeling of my life opening up again, had begun to wean. It was at that time that I read a book called Mothering Your Nursing Toddler. Starting with the assumption that extended breastfeeding is satisfying for both mother and child, the author, Norma Jane Bumgarner writes of the security, confidence and self-esteem that we give our children when we allow them to nurse, and wean, according to their own schedule. She certainly convinced me, and Emma and I went on to nurse happily for three more years.
Re-reading the book six years later, her message seems less radical. My three keen nurslings have, to me, well proven the benefits of an extended breastfeeding relationship, with a physical resilience and emotional independence that comes, I believe, from the access to loving arms and the secure base that breastfeeding provides. Over the years I have also learned about the more tangible advantages of extended nursing..."
The Pleasure of Extended Breastfeeding by Sarah J. Buckley

A super cool video on extended breastfeeding. I big puffy heart love this video:

This is a goldmine, a serious goldmine: LLLI Nursing Past One Year Articles

For those who might feel isolated, you're not alone: Breastfeeding Until Age 3, 4 or 5: More common than you think?

Oh the things I've heard about breastfeeding past a year. It helps to know: Dr. Sears - Handling the Criticism

Other moms talk about nursing past a year: Health Happy Roundup: Extended Breastfeeding

Every one of these is worth reading start to finish: Mothering.com Breastfeeding Past Infancy Articles

One of the first articles I read about extended breastfeeding: Breastfeed a Toddler? Why on Earth?

Think there's no point in nursing past a year? You couldn't be more wrong: Extended Breastfeeding's Benefits

This one speaks for itself:Breastfeeding Beyond a Year: Exploring benefits, cultural influences, and more

This article broke my heart and renewed my confidence all at the same time. It's not a list of the research and benefits, but to my mind it's even more convincing: A Nursing Triad

{this moment}

2010-12-24T05:52:00.000-06:00

{this moment} - A Friday ritual. Photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. If you're inspired to do the same, visit Soulemama to leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments for all to find and see.

Seven Years of Pure, Unadulterated Bliss!!

2010-12-19T08:39:00.002-06:00

Our Wedding, 12.19.03

Seven years later....

I realized we have very few pictures of the two of us together...not sure why, probably because we're so busy taking pictures of this brood of children that has sprung up around us!

Also it's hard to take pictures of yourself.

But now we have this awesome new iMac with PhotoBooth, so here's our 7 year anniversary pictures!

Finally some picture of just the two of us....mostly.....

So Happy 7th Anniversary to my Dear and Loving Husband.

I love you!!

Thanksgiving Preschool

2010-12-18T10:05:00.000-06:00

Okay, so I'm waaaay behind in blogging, but if you don't mind I don't mind. Here's some pics from our Thanksgiving preschool co-op. These kids are so much fun!!

We focused on being thankful (there's lots of turkey and pilgrim crafts out there but it seemed to me thankfulness was a better emphasis). I used the verse from Psalm 100 (which we've memorized in Circle Time) that says, "Enter His gates with thanksgiving, and His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him and bless His name" as our "theme" and had the kids draw some pictures of what they were thankful for.

Even though Judah's not officially preschool age yet, he and little Theia enjoy participating here and there.

The first thing Moses wrote was "BIBLE". I was so proud!! Then he wrote MOVIES (he asked me how to spell it of course) and then TOYS. Okay, well one out of three ain't bad.

Judah just scribbled on his, but Olivia and David had fun with princesses, Hercules the family dog, and monster trucks. All important things to be thankful for!

Mr. Mo Man surveying his work

I made each of the kids a little linen napkin. Since I procrastinate horribly in preparing for this co-op, I was not able to follow these instructions for hemming the edges and making mitered corners as I initially planned. Instead I just sewed a 1/2 inch around the edge of the napkins, threw them in the wash and dryer, and cleaned up the frayed edges a little for a more "rustic" (read "lazy sewer") look.

Then we traced each child's hand on the napkin with fabric markers (thanks to Mrs. P!) and let the kids decorate with their own drawings. This was pretty fun and something that I'm sure both moms will want to hang on to for a long time. =]

Mr. David working on his linen napkin.

Hard at work

We read some books about Thanksgiving that I had gotten from the library, and Moses and David especially were very interested in the story of the Pilgrims. Sailing on the boat, making friends with the Indians, and planting a fish with each corn seed were all details they remembered well.

Unfortunately I found it somewhat difficult to find good books about Thanksgiving! Having not previewed all the books before co-op started (refer to above comment about my procrastination), I eagerly began reading several books to the kids only to find them to be full of CRAZY stuff and then having to discard them. One book talked about the "tradition" of Thanksgiving coming from many different cultures, starting with the Greeks and Romans, and from African and Native American spiritualism... really?? I mean, I know other cultures have ways to show and celebrate thankfulness, but THANKSGIVING is a holiday directly and soley coming from the Christian Pilgrims of North America!! (And I believe Squanto and Samoset were Christians too, were they not?)

Anyway, I was disappointed (but not terribly surprised) to find several books that just talked about Thanksgiving as a time to be thankful in a very general and unspecific way and didn't really mention the role of the Christian faith in the story of the First Thanksgiving.

But there are a couple gems out there! We super duper love this book:

Three Young Pilgrims by Cheryl Harness

This book is the true story of three siblings- Mary, Remember and Bartholomew Allerton- who actually made the journey on the Mayflower with their parents, and the story is told from their perspective. It is chock-full of information about the Mayflower and all the people who sailed to the New World on her. This makes it very interesting for older kids, but the story is simple enough to engage small children too. There certainly are some sad parts (the children's mother and infant sibling die), but that is a true part of the Pilgrims' story! And the faith these amazing people had in God is clearly portrayed. All around awesome book. We own this one.

Mayflower 1620

This was a cool book as well because it uses photos of a real replica of the Mayflower and people dressed in accurate costumes. Although we didn't read every word on every page, the kids really loved the pictures.

A good one for older kids:

The Thanksgiving Story by Alice Dalgliesh

And two fun ones for young ones:

This First Thanksgiving Day: A Counting Story by Laura Krauss Melmed

The Very First Thanksgiving Day by Rhonda Gowler Greene

"T" for Turtle

2010-12-03T19:17:00.000-06:00

This made me laugh:

Moses came to me with a piece of paper he had cut out in a sort of tombstone shape, with little squares drawn all over it and asked me to guess what it was.

A cookie?
No.
A phone?
No.
A remote control?
No.
I give up!

"I'll give you a hint, Mom." Moses said. "I'll tell you what letter it starts with."

Ok.

"Um, hmmm.....what letter does "turtle" start with?"

"T."

"Okay, it starts with 't'."

Is it a turtle?

"Yes!!! Mom, how did you guess?!"

{this moment}

2010-11-19T05:18:00.001-06:00

Preschool

2010-11-16T13:12:00.004-06:00

With Grace in school this year for the first time EVER, I am back to the basics of homeschooling. Moses is almost 4 1/2 years old and we're doing a very informal preschool together this year.

I started our homeschooling adventure with Grace in Kindergarten in 2004 when she was 5 years old. Although I loved homeschooling and being with Grace, looking back I know I was too rigid and uptight about it all. As a result, we were both burned out at the end of our first year. Neither of us enjoyed school and we were both glad to be done with it each day. I just didn't have to right ideas and attitudes about school at home. We didn't have an atmosphere of learning and I didn't foster the joy of discovery in Grace, but instead focused too much on "getting it right" and "finishing this page" so it would look like I was a good teacher and so I would "have something to show" for our homeschooling efforts.

Hopefully I've learned enough by now to avoid that with Moses. I want Moses to love learning. I want him to learn without knowing that he's "doing school." I want to follow his lead a little bit and let him "take off" with the things that really grip his imagination. And I hope my goal isn't to have a workbook full of perfectly finished pages, but a little boy who is eager each day to discover more of what the world has in store for him.

The world is so full of a number of things,

I'm sure we should all be as happy as kings.

We're also doing a relaxed and informal preschool co-op with my dear friend Debby. She has a Kindergartener and a preschooler, as well as a toddler and new baby, so it's both very fun and a little chaotic. We take turns teaching and hosting and have two co-ops a month. We have a "theme book", a letter and sometimes a holiday/season theme. Moses totally loves it.

So here's some of the things we've been doing, and at the bottom of this post are some resources that I rely on heavily for inspiration and encouragement. Judah, of course, also joins in on many things Moses and I are doing. After all, that's what homeschooling is about, right?!

Potato printing:

My first co-op was "T" for tree. The kids glued sticks, bark, pinecones and these little fabric leaves I got from the dollar store onto a letter 'T' printed on cardstock.

Didn't they do a great job?

(This is Judah's) =]

Then we did leaf rubbings/wax resist pictures.

These are the tops of trees waiting to be stuck onto their trunks.

(Project found here)

A trip to the apple orchard is full of fun and learning opportunities!

We've had lots of other fun learning experiences, but unfortunately Mama hasn't gotten pictures of much. Moses is totally into snakes, basic electrical wiring (I'm very serious), learning how to write all his letters, and drawing elaborate scenes and creatures. Judah is learning so much just by being around Moses, which is nice! I didn't have the experience with Grace, obviously, of a younger child just picking up stuff from the older ones.

Hopefully I'll be able to post more about our preschooling adventures this year! Here's some great resources:

Websites:

No Time for Flashcards

Preschool Daze

Preschoolers and Peace

Simply Charlotte Mason:

Early Years Guide and Early Years Book List

The Crafty Crow

Elizabeth Foss -

In the Heart of my Home

Serendipity

Articles: