Friday, July 31, 2009

How They Listen....


Daddy's doing Bible Time around the breakfast table. I love to study their faces as they listen.
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This morning it was the Beatitudes-- "Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
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We are so blessed to have a Daddy who cares for the little souls entrusted to him.
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I wish I could see inside their little heads. I took these pictures to try to capture any nuance of thought that might express itself.
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Of course, you never have to wonder what's going on inside Sawyer's head.
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And we all know exactly how he feels, don't we? Because we've been there before on at least one Sunday morning.

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

A Custom Card and Pillow Sack Races...


They have a friend named Muffin. Kiki illustrated this card that made me laugh.
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Muffin has a pet turtle, and they got her a stuffed Turtle as a gift.
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On other fronts----





I keep my linens folded in the top of a closet.
On a high shelf.
It's inconvenient to shuffle them around until I find the right pillow case, but I guess the boys didn't have any trouble finding exactly what they wanted.
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Where did they get this idea?
How did they find the king size pillow cases?
OH, it must have been when they were asking for extra sheets to build their fort.
I think every mother should have a set of old sheets and special place to store them so the kids can have at 'em.
Why didn't I think of this before? Before my laundry pile grew by a sheet set?

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

The House Made From Scratch...


My friend Eva trained with a Master Potter and took us to his magical house. Everywhere you turned there was something unexpected.
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This is how he displayed his work.
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He made his house from scratch, from wood and windows that nobody wanted anymore. Those discarded items are now a happy home.
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The whole place was really condusive to creating. It made you want to draw on your inspiration...
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Unless you were a kid, then you just wanted to run through the clean laundry to catch up with the big guys....
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Who were down at the pond catching frogs.
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They probably ran right by these mossy steps,
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I bet they didn't even notice this outhouse from a fairytale. I'm not sure how an outhouse would enter into a fairy tale but I know it would look like this one.
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And what about the Hansel and Gretel chickens? We call them that because they live in a place....
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Like this.
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This is the first time I ever thought I might like being a chicken.
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There was a nice big garden.
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And at the base of the apples trees the owner made a fruit catcher with little valleys so the fruit that fell wouldn't spoil from dampness or pests. Inventive, to say the least.
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This is his wheel, where the magic takes place.
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And part of his display studio.
While we were enjoying all this, and the boys were catching frogs...
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The girls were strolling. It was the perfect place to stroll.
Not hike or simply walk.
Maybe meander.
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If you strolled in the right direction you came upon this view. But with more lake and no wires. I had to take this as a parting shot from our van.
Ahh, reality settles in quickly when you have to leave a magical place like that one.
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Once school starts up again and life gets overwhelming, someone please remember this post if I'm found in the corner muttering "I want to be a chicken, just a chicken..."

Monday, July 27, 2009

Hating Lifejackets


Daddy missed his baby girl. She was at camp for a whole week.
But today we all got to go pick her up and stay for awhile to enjoy swimming.
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Hey, Sawyer, why are you sitting there all by yourself?
If you just put on a life jacket, you can go in the water.
Come on, you'll like wearing a life jacket.
You'll look cool.
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See? Come on, it's not that bad.
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Don't be afraid. Look at how much fun everyone is having.
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See Greyson stuck on the shore in his kayak? Big sister will give him a big ol' shove with her foot. She's always up for that.
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Swimming is fun and safe. Look over there, Lea's getting thrown in the water---
Wait, maybe we should look over here....
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Ooooh! Look at the boys on the surfboard! What a fun idea.
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There they go, watch Sawyer, watch....
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Never mind them. Look! Over there.....
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Paddle boats! Want to try a paddle boat?
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Poor Sawyer, after all this convincing you look so apprehensive.
Do you think you might like it? Is it fun at all?
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He likes it! Hey, Mikey!!

Saturday, July 25, 2009

It's a Little Different Here....


My apologies to my Canadian friends for telling you things you already know. This is more for my fellow Americans who may not survive the shock of finding out what I am about to reveal.
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Look closely at this label. Do you see anything unusual?
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Look closer.
Brain spinning.
Cannot compute.
Mountain Dew with NO caffeine.
That's how they sell it here. Just to clarify, this is not Caffeine Free Mountain Dew. This is simply, Mountain Dew. And the only way you an buy it in Canada. It's against the law to produce sodas with caffeine unless they are cola colored. Or so they tell me. I've not checked the law itself. So double check with your own Canadian to verify.

Thursday, July 23, 2009

I'll Be Waiting...


We rode bikes to the neighborhood ice cream store with Sawyer. Tristan and Greyson were busy swimming at a friend's house.
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Sawyer got his cone first and then stood patiently by the door while Daddy and Mommy placed orders. His patience wore thin and he headed outside, throwing "I'll be waiting" over his shoulder at us.
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What makes him think he's 25? The ice cream ladies got a good laugh and said "Can you believe that?"
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Yes, we can believe it. We've lived with this 25 year old for five years now.
My knee was busted, so I had to drive the van there and back while they biked. When I got home after them I found Sawyer waiting just like this, until he saw me again.
He loves to wait out front for people that are on their way home.
Near or far, my heart yearns for that boy.

A Spy Among Us


We use Yahoo mail. Yahoo mail uses phrases in your email to tailor ads to your profile. Then plasters these ads on your mail page. This is the Header we see everyday:
Bharat Matrimony.com -- Marriages are Forever!
Every morning three modestly beautiful Indian women are throwing merry looks into our eyes. There are "15 million" Merry Indian Women waiting for a forever marriage.

Why does Yahoo think our family needs matrimony?
To Merry Indian Women?
Does our computer know something we don't know?
I am at least glad that whoever heads up Bharat Matrimony believes that somebody is still looking for a forever marriage. I was beginning to lose hope for the population at large.

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

What Trish Did...


I saw these dishes at a second hand store. Have you ever been instantly transported back in time when you've smelled a certain aroma or heard a certain song? These dishes reminded me of some special pottery we had when I was a kid.
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At first glance, they looked like all the other heavy crockery with specks in it. Common tableware. But then I picked them up and saw "England".
They felt special when you touched them, a different weight in your hand. Not clunky at all. I ended up getting some plates and cups just to be transported back to my childhood.
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When I researched the maker I found out that Meakin was a fine china house. Quality stuff. In later years they came out with a line of everyday ware. Kind of like Gucci making jeans.
I know nothing about dishes. But I know I'd like to find the whole line of these somewhere.
This brings me to my friend Trish. She goes to second hand stores because she is wise. I do not because I think I'm too busy. Unbeknownst to me, she was keeping her eyes open.
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And she found all this plus 15 more cups and saucers--- for five dollars.
$5!!!!
It was a really fun surprise. Especially after I checked Ebay and found a set going for $160.
I wish everybody had a Trish.