These Weeks

Painting the table

Helpful puppy

Sorry with Grandma

Beggar

Tired of being patient

Ferry across the Mississippi

Testing Grandpa's limits

Sewing

After making jam

Swamp tour

Conistoga wagon. I thought they were pretty ingenious!

Feel the breeze

Ferocious Sprinkler Dog

book worm

Mamas make mistakes too. Especially me.

This morning, at the encouragement of a friend, (hi, Nina!) I took the kids out for a Fun Day.  Fun Days are hard, because the day after the Fun Day is NOT FUN.  But Brian is out of town, and it's a beautiful day to be out and about, so I chose one of those paint your own pottery places.

Brenna and Isaac chose the exact same thing  right off, a train penny bank. Isaac has started the "train phase", so that was no suprise, but for Brenna to choose it as well surprised me. They got started, and had a blast, although Isaac gave up about half way through in favor of painting his arms instead.

Nathan meandered around the store.  Then he meandered some more.  He hemmed and he hawed, and finally I told him, "Nathan, if you don't pick something, you're going to lose the opportunity to paint."  So he chose an itty-bitty Christmas tree ornament.  Weird kid.  Thirty seconds later, when he was done with it, I told him he could pick another, and he chose a cute mug. They all had fun.

Afterwards, we went next door to a little cafe and ate lunch on the patio. Nathan was in such a goofy mood.  He was making faces at people through the windows and making the strangest comments.  He kept asking to run a lap around the large store/office complex we were in, and I repeatedly told him no.  I didn't get them drinks, because we had water in the car, so when he got thirsty and asked for a drink, I told him he could go to the car, which was within my line of vision, to get his water bottle.  Somehow he translated, "you can go get your water out of the car" to "you may run a lap through the very busy parking lot." 

I saw him walk towards the car... then he turned right...  then he disappeared behind all the other cars.  HEART ATTACK.  I grabbed Isaac and yelled for Brenna to follow, and of course Isaac spilled his chip bag and had to fuss, and Brenna had to make a big show of twisting her chip bag to save for later, and finally I got to the car, yelling all the while, but he was GONE. Isaac heard a flight of stairs callling his name, Brenna was doing a dance on the sidewalk, and I COULDN'T SEE NATHAN!

All of a sudden, I heard him calling me.  He was standing at the table we had just vacated. He had run a lap. And come back to the logical starting place when one does such a thing.  Oh, my word. Did that kid get a talking to.  I asked where he had gone, and he said he had run THROUGH THE PARKING LOT.  "Just down that row.  I looked both ways."

The talking-to recommenced. 

We covered LISTENING (he asked that I make sure he's actually listening next time.  I was like, "um, that's YOUR job, dude.  I can't make you listen!)

We covered locomotion through parking lots ("You NEVER RUN!  DO YOU HEAR ME?!  YOU NEVER RUN IN A PARKING LOT!).

We covered the relative size of six year old boys and cars.  He was inclined to argue that one.

Then we huffed our way into the car and started home.  On the way, I went through one of those intersections where there are two sets of lights, one right after the other.

I ran the second one. "SHOOT!"

As we pulled onto the freeway, this is what I hear from the backseat:

"I'm glad I'm not the only one who makes mistakes!"

"No, baby, you're not the only one who makes mistakes."

"Sometimes mamas make mistakes too!"

"Yes, mamas make lots of mistakes."

And from Brenna:  "Especially you, Mama!"

You'll have to ask the next time you talk to him :)

Sorry I've been absent for a bit.  This last week has been fuller than most since the school year started.

The library we usually frequent is closed for long-overdue repairs, so I finally decided it was time to find another one.  I found one in mid-city on the library website, then I looked it up on Google, and we were off.  There was no library at the given location.  This has happened SO MANY TIMES since we moved here.  It doesn't matter that Google says it's there, CALL FIRST.  Another reason for a smart phone.  Those things are looking more and more like they're worth spending too much money on!  We did finally find one, and got some great books, so that was good.  It just took up the whole afternoon.

Speaking of books, our FIAR book this week is Who Owns the Sun? by Stacy Chbosky.

This book is amazing, beautiful, and very hard for me.  And not at all hard for my children, which is fine, but makes me wonder if, well, I'm doing something wrong.  Like if I were teaching it correctly, they would understand.  But really, they just can't comprehend it yet.

The story is about a boy who adores his strong, wise father and asks him, "who owns the [sun/stars/wind, etc.]?" and his father responds with a description of the beauty of each of these things, and the answer, "no one can own the sun." 

Then one day, the boy overhears the man his parents work for talking about his father.  He is full of pride at the complements to his dad's strength and work ethic until the man says, "I wish I owned ten more just like him."

The conversation the boy has with his father afterwards is heartbreaking.

Stacy Chbosky was 14 years old when she wrote it for a school competition. 

For obvious reasons, race and prejudice have been on my mind consistently since we moved here.  As I talk with my kids about differences, it would seem that they are truly unaware of skin color and the value people place on it.  I am so grateful.  So grateful.


Well, I'm kind of worn out just thinking about that, so I guess I'll be back tomorrow with the rest of what we've been up to around here.  

A Difference of Opinion

So I really like the new beds we got, as do the kids.  Brian thinks we paid too much for them (they came as a set with the hutch/dresser for $400) but I disagree.  As the person who has been pricing these suckers, I think I'm qualified to say that for solid wood pieces, we got a great price, even if they're not in perfect condition.

I was really surprised that Nathan fell asleep on the top bunk with no fanfare... I really was expecting some fear and trepidation, or at least some pretend fear for our benefit, but nope.  He's all good. 

The second night he slept up there, we heard a HUGE thud around 9:30 and took off at a sprint up the stairs.  He had JUMPED down to use the restroom.  We both just about had a heart attack!

Yesterday I told them I wanted to paint the set and asked what color they'd like.  I was envisioning some lovely soft grays or taupes, a la The Nester with bold details inspired by the houses here in New Orleans. But alas, both my children really like "the nice brown color."

Brian reminded me that the beds are "brand new to them", and if I wait a few months, they'll probably be more on board.  I'm counting on it, 'cause when I saw these, I immediately pictured them painted!  Crazy kids with their own opinions!

7 Quick Takes Friday

I have a whole lot of little random things rattling around my brain lately.  I keep thinking I should write a post about that.... but it would be one sentence.  When I saw 7 Quick Takes Friday over at Conversion Diary, it was a little gift of brevity from God!

1.  I've been getting ready to start our home school year all week.  The curriculum I'm using is ordered, and I'm very excited about it, so our actual timeline will likely depend on when it gets here, since we'll probably just dive right in.

2.  I'm contemplating, after these many years of using children as an alarm clock, getting my own.  I KNOW!  It sounds terrible.  But there may be some relief in having my coffee before there are three little voices at the side of my bed making their imminent starvation my problem.

3.  I've also been working on Brenna's quilt, and as I've mentioned a time or two, I like to make things harder than they were supposed to be.  Due to my overestimation of my own abilities, I'm having a problem with the dimensions of the quilt.  The style I chose moves around a lot.  Anyhoo, I also don't really love the way it's all coming together.  It makes me glad I'm getting all this learning out of the way while my children are young enough to think everything I make is THE COOLEST THING EVER!

4.  Isaac is killing me.  He is loud, insistent, obnoxiously stubborn, LOUD, he hits, he throws, he screams, he's fearless to the point of injury, and he's loud.  All the time.  If he's awake, I'm stressed.  Definitely my hardest toddler.  Then he smiles, and oh.my.word.  He's beautiful.  Charming.  Such a gift.  Then he throws his shoes at me.

5.  It's been hot.  Big surprise, right?  So we've been traveling around the area finding things to do on the weekend just to get out of the house.  We figure it's better to be hot someplace interesting.

A few weeks ago we went to Oak Alley Plantation.  It was beautiful.  The tour probably would have been better if the above mentioned toddler hadn't felt it was imperative to be louder than the guide at all times, causing the two of us to have to leave, much to the relief of the other paying customers.

This weekend we're going to New Orleans Museum of Art.  It'll be the kids' first time at an art museum.  Yay for culture!

6.  I can't figure out what to do for the Brenna and Nathan's birthdays.  I'm a little wary of inviting three or four six year old boys over to climb my walls for a couple hours, but it will be too hot to do anything outside and I'm not willing to pay several hundred dollars to rent a birthday party venue for a total of eight children.  Anyone have any ideas for me?

7.  Ummm...

We got a good coupon for a set of tires, which we will need reasonably soon.

Or,

I can't find a picture I like for the place of honor in my wall of pictures, so the frame is still empty.  It's starting to bug me.

Oh, I know! 

This week I wrote my to-do list on the white board, really big.  It's awesome, because I can't ignore it!  I have been so productive.  Of course, that means that my children REALLY, REALLY need to use the white board that they've been ignoring all summer, because clearly it's the most desirable space in the house.

THE END

Purple!

When I brought this beauty, an Islander bell pepper, home from the store, I mentioned to Brian that it was purple, but he was in a 24 induced TV coma and didn't hear me, apparently.  So a few days into our trip to California I called and asked how the garden was doing.  He went back to check on it.  Our conversation went like this:

"OH NO."

"What?  What happened?"

"I think I killed the peppers!"

"Why?  What happened?"

"They turned PURPLE."

I laughed.

This morning started out so well.  Our whole family was up and out of bed early,  dressed and eating breakfast an hour before we needed to leave for church.

As I was upstairs fixing my hair, I heard thunder roll overhead.   I thought, this is an alternate definition of insanity: flattening my hair before going out in a thunderstorm. Little did I know!

I came downstairs, and Brian was checking the weather.  The rain was pelting the windows so hard it sounded like drums.  I tried to make a video of it washing up over the curb in front of our house, but mostly just succeeded in soaking my pants and the floor six feet into the house.   I never stepped out the door.  We couldn't see the storm drain in our driveway at all.   

So we decided to wait for the rain to die down, then make a run for it.  In the meantime, we played twister, strategized out trip to the car and enjoyed the show outside the windows!

When it finally calmed, we ran out the door, and our neighbor was on the porch.  I learned he plays the piano at his church, and couldn't get a ride.  We had plenty of time, so we drove him in the wrong direction to his church.  The trip was pretty amazing.  And scary.  Here are some pics I took with my camera phone, in between quizzing Brian on all the reasons we were NOT going to end up like all the cars we saw dead in the middle of the road.  My husband is quite intrepid!

This is St. Charles, the main historical street, about half a mile from where we live.

 

This is also On St. Charles.  We were driving on the neutral ground (the median) on top of the street car tracks.

 This is a four way intersection with sidewalks.  That car up on the left is dead in the water.  As we drove down the street, one of the several people we came across standing out in the water directing traffic around the deepest parts of the very potholed streets, yelled at us to slow down.  As we made wakes, water was being pushed into peoples cars and houses.

 

We were circling around the freeway, trying to find an open on-ramp.  That car was blocking the one we needed.

So finally, we got to church.  We ran in, because we were pretty sure they were going to be short staffed, and we were teaching the three and four year olds second hour.  A very relieved woman who was caring for ALL the under-fives by herself during the Sunday school classes quickly left the room, taking the smallest babies with her.  As things settled, Brian and I ended up with the two to five year olds.  TWELVE of them.  Chaos ensued.  

Oh, a hilarious moment during the Bible story time:  our church here brings the kids into the same room for the Bible story, then sends them back for snack and crafts and whatnot.  So during the story today, the teacher asked "what do we hear with our ears?"  The kids yelled "sounds!" and "music!" and one five year-old yelled "NOISE POLLUTION!"

After church, we experienced our first crawfish boil.  I'm not gonna lie; I found it a little bit alarming.  At one point, a gentleman I really like asked me if I sucked their heads.  Um.  I turned around and looked at him, and said, "I'm going to pretend you did not just say that."

There was face painting, balloon sword fighting, and a toddler rolling around in the mud (which I unfortunately did not get a picture of, but someone else did, so hopefully I'll be able to get it).

A very, very full day.  Followed by much needed naps.

A Little More Homey

Brian and I have known since we bought our little 1930's cottage that we wanted to fill it with period appropriate furniture and restore the details that gave it charm before they were modernized.  Then we moved to New Orleans with a bare minimum of furniture, and no storage.

Part of our challenge has been to acquire furniture that is useful here, and will fit in when we go home.  I had pretty much lost hope of finding anything affordable.  I was starting to troll the aisles of Walmart, Target and Cost Plus World Market (which I love, but quality?  Ummm... not so much) for anything that would be affordable (read: cheap) without regard to style or quality.

And then.

Man, I love Craigslist!

These two pieces were built in the 20's and refinished somewhere along the way.  They were being sold about ten minutes from our house (which is really good, because we only saw the ad for the buffet and didn't take any extra money) by a man who is in the process of restoring his 1860's home.  The only thing that dragged us away from a very fun conversation were the three children screaming in the car!

The grand total of our purchases?  $200

Seriously.

Well, I suppose it was actually $202, because we had to cross the bridge twice :)

And we are in love.  We have been very surprised by how much warmer and cozier they've made our house.  A wonderful addition.  And an added bonus?  I can now display the china plates Brian's grandmother gave me.  These belonged to her mother and Grandpa's mother.

God has provided.  Again.

Alright. So it ended up being two carseats, a booster seat, three suitcases, a garment bag, a diaper bag, a backpack, a purse and five jackets. And three children.

After a whirlwind visit, we're home from California!  It was a fun, but very busy trip.  We had something going on every single day, and since three of the five of us got sick, we'll need to rethink some things next time!

Some highlights (or lowlights, depending):

Brian and I were surprised by how comfortable it was to arrive in New Orleans; I guess that means we've settled in.  This morning after a breakfast of bagels (the only thing in the house, thank goodness I remembered to pull them out of the freezer last night!) we made a beeline for the grocery store.  Must have half and half.  I had my first cup of coffee at 11 this morning.  Not Good.

*****

The flight out was amazing.  The best part was that an angel sat in the seat next to Nathan.  This kind, kind man entertained my five year old for FOUR HOURS.  He pretended to be scared when Nathan yelled BOO! (in his ear, over and over and over and over).  He made faces and pretend reactions when Nathan called out animals, (i.e. SKUNK! in his ear, over and over and over and over).  He let Nathan lean across him to look out the window to see the clouds and snow and whatnot.  Talk about a gift from God.  Amazing.

*****

Brenna's trip highlight:  "Nana lets me crack eggs!"  Mama is not so brave.

*****

We stayed in a hotel for a couple nights in Concord (it was VERY hard to visit and not go home to our house!) and the kids LOVE the breakfast buffet.  It's the joy of their hotel experience each time we're in one. They are not particularly fond of Mama's rule that you can only fill up one plate at a time.

*****

There are a variety of reasons I love Brian's annual meeting; one of them is the drive.  All that time in the car to talk WITH NO CHILDREN!  I think we get more complete thoughts out in that drive than in the rest of the year combined!   

*****

Somewhere around Benecia, Brian informed me that if I die before he does, he's going to announce in my eulogy that I drool like a labrador in my sleep.  Just thought I should let you know that my funeral might turn into a tell-all.

*****

We had a great conversations about women and body image.  Just a heads-up, ladies, but men really hate it when we blow off their compliments.  They feel belittled by it.  

We talked about having a healthy body, and what that means, as well as different body types.  I tried to explain (in my own neurotic way) why a woman might not believe her man finds her attractive.  It was interesting and eye-opening to me to hear Brian's perception of my own ups and downs.  I guess it's probably obvious that he's not as hard on me as I am :)

*****

Lots of moms have told me horror stories about their kids' lack of tact.  Nathan is really a sweet kid, and I really thought we had mostly missed that phase.  GUESS NOT.  In the airport, while waiting for our plane to board, Nathan asked, "MOM, ARE THOSE PEOPLE TALKING SPANISH?"  He was referring to a couple sitting facing us about four feet away.

Hoping that a short answer would satisfy, I just said yes.

"WELL WHY DON'T THEY GO BACK TO THE STATE WHERE ALL THE PEOPLE TALK SPANISH AND NOT COME HERE?

Are you mortified for me?

So we had a little impromptu conversation about how it's okay to ask questions about things that are different, but could you PLEASE, PLEASE ask me politely in my ear, not while dancing in the aisle between us and said couple?  He asked a few more pointed questions, so we had to briefly cover the concept of discrimination, a wonderful conversation to have in the airport, made all the more poignant by the fact that the people sitting back-to-back with us could surely hear every word and, I'm pretty certain, "talked Spanish".

*****

Fifteen minutes later, as we sat in our seats on the plane, a woman with a pronounced birthmark on her neck and jaw placed her bag in the bin above our heads.  Once again, my sweet boy felt the need to question me at top volume.  Rinse, repeat.

*****

Brenna had the flu for the last three days of the trip.  You know what is no fun?  A three year old who is too whiny and weak to walk on her own two feet through an airport when you have a bazillion bags to carry.  Anyhoo, she's over it today, and all the words she didn't use for those three days came out this morning.

No coffee + TOO MANY WORDS = grouchy mom

*****

Man, I always get to the end and have no idea how to close.  So, ummm...

Bye.

Who Says They Have the Best Food Here?

When we moved I had to give up my sourdough starter.  It was a sad day pouring that down the drain, but there was no way I could bring it.  So Brian and I have been on a mini-search (all inclusive of the stores we go to often!) to find some good sourdough.  A few weeks ago, Sam's club had ONE package of sourdough, which we brought home, made sandwiches with, then spilled water all over.  I almost cried. 

On Sunday, at our weekly trip to Sam's club, I decided to ask the bakery if they had any, since there wasn't any on the shelf.  A woman making an order kindly let me go in front of her to ask.  The answer was, of course, no, but as I turned to walk away, I heard the woman who was behind me ask, "what's that she's asking for?"  and I glanced over my shoulder to see the young lady at the counter, with a VERY dubious expression, gesture that it was a round loaf as she said, "you put filling or something in it".  And with a look of total distaste and a shrug, "some people like it".

Alrighty then.  A new starter is sitting on top of the refrigerator!