Thursday, January 29, 2015

In Which Matthew Turns Seven

I was going through some piles of stuff this evening and came across Matthew's birth announcement.


It's hard to believe that little bundle (he was the smallest baby in our family until Josie came along) is now a "big" boy (what he lacks in stature he more than makes up for in self-confidence).

 
Around here birthdays seem to rival Christmas in terms of excitement so I guess I shouldn't be surprised that I heard them stirring and scoping out the kitchen table around 5 am. 
 
 
It was beautiful to see everyone genuinely happy and excited for Matthew, and there was nary a word of complaint or grumbling from the smaller siblings who did not have birthdays (maybe a first?).
 

He requested an army tank cake and it was quite the group effort to construct, and there were plenty of willing mouths eager to make use of the leftover icing.


In his words, "I'm glad I'm seven but I really wish I were seventeen so that I could join the army." 

And as an addendum:


Maybe it was the extreme fatigue messing with her head, but as soon as Josie got her piece of cake she requested some more salad.  I asked again to make sure I wasn't hearing things, but indeed she did, and finished them both.

Saturday, January 24, 2015

The Sun'll Come Out Tomorrow


Jonathan has taken quite a liking to Sunnysides recently, and we got a kick out of this "sun" that completely slipped out of the clouds to brighten our morning.

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Happy Hour

Reaching 70 degrees in January is a reason to celebrate, right?
 
 
 

(Notice the residual tear?  This girl was highly offended that she did not get a drink and straw of her own, and the 5 minute trip home seemed like an eternity for all of us!)

Saturday, January 17, 2015

Soaking in the Sun

Over the last couple of years, I've come to recognize the power of SAD: seasonal affective disorder.  Constant gloom and dreariness combined with cooped up kids leads to mentally gray days.  So when the sun comes out, make the most of it.


We headed to Chickamauga to stretch our legs and explore more fields and cannons.


The enemies were quickly located and eliminated with a barrage of gunshot.




Our fearless leader remembered the map and compass and passed on his navigational skills to the boys.




The girls got prime seats for most the of the hike.







My favorite image of the day, however, was of Jonathan.


As we arrived, we met some friends from church, and the first thing Jonathan said was, "I look like I have five eyes but really I just have two" as then proceeded to rip of his hat.




Then he went skipping across the field without a care in the world.

Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Katherine at 18 Months

 
I was shocked when I made this discovery.  I've not been the kind of mother who really keeps up with months past the first birthday so when someone asked me this week I had to calculate.  Can it really be?
 
This girl is a hoot.  She is busy, busy, busy.  She jabbers a lot, but not much is discernible besides "mama," "bye," and "no, no, no" (complete with finger wagging) in addition to a few animal sounds.   It doesn't hamper her ability to make her desires known (including the Full Body Sprawl if you happen to disagree).  And just this week she has discovered that Stephen gives the best rides and will be coerce him several times a day into playing. 

Monday, January 12, 2015

Hunkering Down

Miracles are hard to find in winter, but the season presents plenty of opportunity for the endeavor.  There is enough spare time to bundle up, take excursions and make discoveries.  Or you can hunker down close to home.  Winter is for intimacy, for snuggling up together and reading something warm and cozy, for clasping warm mugs after snowball fights, for sinking into pillows....winter has an opaque quality, so that all of your memories of the holidays, sledding, pine cones, and greenhouses are muted, as if seen through frosted glass.  And they are all flavored with hot chocolate.  Winter has a tough exterior, but it keeps a warm heart.
 Tovah Martin, A Time to Blossom

Monday, January 5, 2015

A Blank Slate


I love the feeling of a blank slate, the world of possibilities and wonder of what lies ahead.

Saturday, January 3, 2015

Wedding Excitement

We ended our trip to Virginia with a cousin's wedding.  With the Christmas craziness, I guess I never explained to Josie what was happening so when my mother mentioned where we were going she asked, "And I am going to get married?" 
 
 
It was nap time and she was growing restless, but as the bridesmaids started to enter, she slipped from my lap to the other end of the pew.  I prayed that my mother would keep a close eye on her lest she should decide to join the wedding party.  She was enthralled!



Congratulations to Jordan & Harmony!

Friday, January 2, 2015

Get Your Game On

Games have always been a part of my family's life.

There was the typical Candy Land and Hi-Ho-Cherry-O.

And endless hours of watching my parents, uncles and grandparents play Trivial Pursuit, my mom always dreading the Sports slice which was her weakness.
Solid Gold Saturday Night - (1-800-634-5789) - and Scrabble went hand-in-hand.

On more than one occasion my mom hosted a Game Party for church friends, setting up different games in various rooms of the house (I clearly remember lying in a sick stupor and hearing the roaring laughter of the event while dozing on and off).
Her retirement has allowed her more time to play, not the typical Bridge,
 but a wide assortment of games. 
She's passed the excitement on to the kids who are always eager to play, especially if there are prizes.
Apples to Apples, Bingo, Pet Detectives and Story something or other were hits this trip.
My dad and I battled it out with Boggle, and I won only because I can see easy words while my father looks for things like "deist" and "gavel." 
And after the kids were abed, there was Scrabble once again. 

Thursday, January 1, 2015

Bowl Mania


Doug was really hoping to watch the bowl frenzy on a flat screen, but I'm pretty sure this was not what he imagined.  (And I'm equally sure that he had planned for Ole Miss to show up for their game).