Wednesday, January 31, 2007
In a feeble attempt at easing my guilty conscience, I've hired a neighborhood girl to come play with my oldest boys twice a week for about an hour and a half. Unless it's pouring rain or negative degrees outside, I force her to take them up to the local school and run them around a bit on the play equipment. It works out great for all of us. She gets a little pocket money, the boys get some exercise and fresh air and I get a little peace and quiet--if you can call being home with three babies peaceful or quiet--and a guilt-free conscience twice a week.
Anyway, Mark stayed home from work last week because like an idiot I didn't finish my first round of antibiotics and my mastitis came back. So I got sick again and he stayed home to pick up the pieces. By the late afternoon I was feeling a bit better and decided to take the babies for a walk while Stevie had the big boys. I had a gift I needed to deliver to a good friend of mine and Caleb needed some fresh air. So I gathered up my sick self and the babies and Mark decided to come too (thank goodness) and off we went. As we walked past the school the big boys excitedly exclaimed that they were digging up ice crystals and that they were going to sell them for money. Oh good, I thought, and have fun.
When we returned from our walk this is what we saw:
And these three salesman sitting on the corner:
And here are the ice crystals that were for sale and no I can't see them either. But I do see my "craft basket" with no crafty stuff inside anymore but rather a bucket. . . full of. . . muddy chunks of. . . ?
Stevie had very carefully planted herself on our back steps out of sight of any passerbys but still where she could see the boys and make sure they were safe. I think I would have done the same thing. Just about every car that passed by the boys stopped to read their sign and see what exactly they were selling. No one, much to their dismay, had purchsed any yet. Trying to be a good mother and get them inside as quickly as possible, I offered to buy an ice crystal from each of them for a dollar each. No luck. They were bound and determined to sell an ice crystal to a non-related party if it took all night. To simplify the story let's just say they eventually went inside kicking and screaming, with the promise that they could try again tomorrow.
Now I only wish the story ended here, but it doesn't. Cause a little while later I found this:
Let's take a closer look:
Yeah. . . that's an ice crystal the boys tried to wash. . . in my bathroom. . . that I had just cleaned. . . . And poor Stevie had mud all over her brand new gloves and pointed out that now she was going to have to go home and wash them and that she hoped they'd be dry by tomorrow. (Denver asked why she couldn't just put them in the drier and she explained that they would shrink in the drier. Then Denver asked, "And puke will make them shrink too?" I don't even know why.)
By the following morning I really was hoping that the ice crystals would be forgotten. I suppose I didn't care so much if the boys wanted to sit out on the corner selling them. I just didn't know how I was going to supervise them and juggle the twins and Caleb in the freezing cold on my own. If I had been thinking at all, I would have hidden them better. Instead, I put them at the foot of our backstairs right where the boys would see them on their way to scool. And you can be sure, before they left for school that morning, they examined them very carefully and were thrilled that they hadn't melted overnight and immediately started making plans for their second attempt at selling them.
When I picked Noah up from Kindergarten that afternoon that was the first thing he asked about and he was very insistent that we set up the ice crystal stand as soon as we get home because he had told his entire class about it and he was sure they were all coming to buy some. But, when we got home and he examined them closely he burst into tears. The clumps of ice, or what looked like just mud to me, had apparently melted and were no longer sellable. Oh, the trauma I had inflicted on Noah by not letting him sell them last night!
Desperate to repair the damage, I said that I didn't think anyone would have bought them anyway (except maybe for Sister Brown) and that maybe we should try selling something a little more marketable, like fresh-baked cookies. I still had no idea how I could possibly finagle a cookie stand, let alone fresh-baked ones, and the three babies but it was worth a try. Noah refused to believe that no one would by the ice crystals and when I asked him what kind of person he thought would buy one, he said, sobbing, "I would." At that point my heart broke into a million tiny pieces because where I just saw a messy clump of mud, Noah saw diamonds and I had let him down--severely. And to make matters worse, Noah then proceeded to explain that he was just trying to earn some money to give to me and now he never could without his ice crystals which he had worked so hard on digging out of the ground. Pretty much, I have yet to recover from the trauma of letting him down so terribly. He moved on rather quickly when he realized it was "game day" and he could get back to his Zelda game. But me. . . not even close. Why couldn't I just be like Noah and see the beauty in everything--even muddy clumps of goo? Then maybe none of this would have ever happened.
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Saturday, January 27, 2007
See that really cool playset? Mark and I designed it ourselves. Pretty awesome, huh? We stayed up until almost midnight tweaking it until it was just perfect for our family. Look closely. See how there's three infant swings. And remember that swing I loved at the Stamford Nature Center. It's got one of those for tired adults. And notice the horizontal tire swing? I've been wanting one of those for months now. There are other cool things there too that you probably can't see--like a bucket so the boys can hoist rocks and sticks and water balloons up to the top of the tower. And there's a secret hatch. And that big green thing over my grown-up swing is a tunnel that leads from one tower to the other. There are two racing slides, a giant twisty slide, and a bumpy slide. And did you notice the rock climbing wall? Plus, for kids with short legs that aren't quite big enough to climb--we added a ramp. It's my dream playset and I want it for my backyard.
I've been fantasizing about fixing up our backyard this summer with all sorts of fun stuff--like a fence and a trampoline and a real fire pit and a hot tub and that playground. Then the six boys and I would live out there all summer long, swimming in our kiddie pool, swinging and jumping and sliding, eating popsicles in the hammock, soaking in the sun, and roasting marshmallows in the night, chasing fireflies and relaxing in the hot tub underneath the stars. Doesn't it sound dreamy? You could come too. Except that playset. . . it costs $13,320.00! Yeah. . . I couldn't believe it either. Kind of turns the dream into a nightmare, huh? Oh well. It was still a total blast designing it. You should try it for yourself. Just visit Cedarworks and click on the pink bubble that says "Cedar Designer" and pretend your a kid again for a little while. Just be prepared when you send for a quote and a major dose of reality. It sorta stinks!
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Friday, January 26, 2007
The boys' gym teacher sent them home several weeks ago with a New Year's Challenge. Now I wouldn't call it your normal every day gym challenge either. It wasn't about how many pull-ups they could do or running a mile in less than ten minutes or anything like that. It was a worksheet with these six questions:
1. I was able to go the whole day without eating any Junk Food (mark one box for each day you were successful.)
2. I was able to exercise for 20 minutes today--Recess and PE don't count (mark one box for each day you were successful.)
3. Please list 5 healthy snacks that are good for your body.
4. Please list 5 yummy but not-so-healthy snacks.
5. What activities or exercises can you do at home to help your bodies get stronger and healthier.
6. How did you feel about this challenge? (Kindergartner's can draw a picture)
Now, normally I wouldn't think much about such a challenge. But in a way, this homework involved me. And it involved me in a way that I'd rather not be involved in. You see, when your kid can't make it a single day of the week without Junk Food or they can't think of a single "healthy snack" on their own, you're not doing so hot in the Parenting and Nutrition department. And it makes matters even worse when you, the adult, can't go a single day without several servings of Junk Food a day and the only exercise you get is running up and down the stairs carrying baskets of laundry and babies. And the real clincher was when Noah, my five year old, had more will power than me and passed up fudge and pumpkin roll for a measley apple, just so he could pass Ms. K's challenge. And there were a few occassions when I found myself justifying things like Kettle Corn Microwave popcorn and Root Beer with dinner, trying to convince Noah he could still eat them and pass the challenge. Terrible, I know.
Now I need to be a little gentle with myself at this point and I'll use the birth of the twins as my scapegoat. See, I had Caleb and nursed him for three months. That's a year of eating whatever I liked because I was pregnant and nursing. At that point I found out I was pregnant again, but this time with twins. Hello! That meant another year of eating anything and everything I wanted and I must admit, when I'm pregnant and nursing that usually involves large amounts of cereal, ice cream and all sorts of Junk. And because it was twins that meant I could double everything and never feel guilty. And, telling a pregnant lady (or a nursing one, for that matter) that she should eat lots of fish and celery and carrots is just plain stupid. It's like my doctor this week, telling me that my case of Mastitis was a mild one and that taking an antibiotic four times a day on an empty stomach while I continue to nurse the twins should be simple. I'd like to kick that doctor in the pants and tell him that his penisitis is just a mild case!
Anyway, I'm getting off the subject. In a nutshell, popping out six human beings in eight years takes its toll on your eating habits. And it's no surprise at this point that I find myself struggling to eat less and change my ways, especially cause I'm still nursing. And let me just say, exercising when your nursing twins is no simple task either--it definitely has to be low-impact whatever it is and I've never been a fan of low-impact. When I exercise I gotta feel it burn, it's gotta make we sweat, or it really seems pointless to me. Plus, we're in the dead of winter and that makes it especially hard to take the kids outside and run them around. And because we haven't fenced our yard yet (see upcoming projects) I have no way of containing Caleb so I can play with the big kids. So to say the least, the timing of this challenge was less than ideal and I shouldn't be too hard on myself.
But still, it has made me think. And I've decided a few changes are necessary, if not for me, especially for the kids. I've come up with two areas that I'd like to work on and this is where you come in. First, I've started making a more substantial after school snack for the kids and requiring them to sit with me and eat. This has been wonderful in several ways. First, with a big, healthy snack after school they nag me less for snacks during witching hour which makes dinner prep time a little more peaceful. Second, with us all sitting together after school it gives me a chance to hear about their day and give them some "mommy time" before I get busy again with dinner and the babies. So that's all great and good but I'm still lacking in the "healthy but substantial" snack department. Homemade mini bagel pizzas, canolis, baked french fries, cereal, mini sandwiches, giant pretzels, apples and peanut butter, fruit and yogurt smoothies, crackers and cheese and tortilla crisps are already on my list. But what great after school treats do your kids get? I'm trying to stear away from things like fruit snacks and pudding and teddy grahams (the prepackaged stuff) because they take those sorts of things to school and they don't fill them up enough. But I also don't want suggestions like carrots and veggie dip or "ants on a log" (celery and peanut butter) because my kids aren't big fans of veggies and if they don't like the snack they'll never sit and never eat.
The other change--twenty minutes of exercise a day. Twenty minutes of reading, twenty minutes of physical activity. Not a lot of time involved in either but they make such a huge difference in our children's lives. I'd love to eventually make that sixty minutes a day but we must start small. . . keep it simple. For now we've got the bouncy castle downstairs and the boys could spend hours jumping around and wrestling in there. But after that, then what? I need suggestions. Taking all six kids outside is impossible right now. I need ideas, such as "Freeze Dance" that they can play inside but that will really get their blood flowing. Anyone? Anyone?
I've never been good at keeping New Year's resoutions. Never. But after all the shame from Ms. K's challenge and watching my children struggle and then fail miserably, I can't help but give it a try and make a change or two, even if they are small changes. Hopefully they'll make a big difference in the long run. Right? Right.
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Wednesday, January 24, 2007
When I think of Hunter, this is how I think of him. At eight years of age he is full of confidence and happiness. He is extremely popular and has so many wonderful friends. There was one day this past Fall, as we were walking to school, that several kids stuck their heads out their car windows to shout "hello" to Hunter. Shaking his head and half-beaming he said, "Oh, I am so popular." He loves life and living and friendship.
Hunter continues to try us with his slow obedience and inability to follow directions very well. Oh how we want to strangle him sometimes. Just today he convinced me he was sick enough to stay home from school. I sent him to bed with orders to lay down and rest until I brought him breakfast. Less than an hour later, Denver was in my room screaming bloody murder with a giant, bloody scrape down his back. What happened? He and Hunter were wrestling and Hunter shoved him off the bed onto an open dresser drawer. Oh, the anger! But there is something so wonderful about Hunter that it is very difficult to stay mad at him for very long. After a very frustruating Saturday, I was feeling down-trodden and worthless. Someone said something to me and my response was, "I didn't do anything right today." Even before Mark could wrap his arms around me and try to cheer me up, Hunter said, "Yes you did! You made us yummy Swedish pancakes for breakfast and you took us to the park to play!" Somehow he knew just the right things to say. He regularly gets up early to bring us breakfast in bed or clean the kitchen or spoil us in some other way.
 He is so thoughtful and helpful. Of course, it has to be on his terms. Like any eight year old, he hates to be asked to do something. And boy, does he let you know it--he's quite talented in the whining and wailing department. But when you least expect it, he pulls through in the most wonderful ways. For example, a few weeks ago I was scrambling to get ready for church. The twins were crying and there was no way I was going to be able to put my makeup on or fix my hair. But Hunter saw a need and knew just what to do. He came right upstairs and scooped up the babies and within minutes had them both cooing and smiling at him. And I was able to finish getting ready. Hunter loves his brothers, especially the babies, and he loves to be cuddled. I don't know how many times I've told him to keep off of adults but he just can't do it. He loves to snuggle and hug and as soon as an adult enters his scene, Hunter is climbing onto their lap or snuggling into their side. There's not a night that goes by when he doesn't ask me to snuggle in bed with him and linger a little longer.
Hunter continues to love Transformers but has added Star Wars and Harry Potter to his list of favorite things. He still loves to build with Legos and has turned into quite a gamer. He loves real-time strategy games as well as card games and board games. I can't say that Hunter is an avid reader but he has started reading Magic Treehouse books and seems to enjoy reading those. Hunter has an astounding memory and recently shocked us all by remembering small details from a book we read together more than four years ago. He loves spaghettios with meatballs, strawberry milk and anything sugary. He hates doing homework, sharing his toys and the fact that his mother never coordinates playdates for him.
  
Anyway, Hunter chose to be baptized this past weekend. He's been excited about his baptism for months now and could hardly sleep the night before. Several friends and family showed up for the event and Hunter was thrilled. He took invitations to school with him and was a little disappointed when the entire second grade didn't show up, but still seemed pleased with the few friends that did show up. The evening went well with only a few hiccups (the cake I ordered ended up being twice as expensive as I was told it would be and when Mark washed all the white clothes afterward, a pink crayon managed to make it into the dryer) but the important thing is that Hunter chose to be baptized and follow the example of Christ. And for that we're so proud. When Hunter was baptized all of the little children came up to the font to watch and it was very fun to hear and see their reactions. Jorgito, when he saw Hunter go under, shouted "whoa," completely surprised by what had just happened. And one of our non-member friends asked, "So that's immersion?" like he'd been baffled by the whole definition of it all. But my favorite memories of all are when Hunter sung a solo (click here to see for yourself) and when he came up out of the water, and raised up his eyebrows with expectation and looked around at everyone in the room to make sure all eyes were fixed on him, the star of the show. It was his day and he knew it and wanted to make sure we all knew it too.
I am so proud of my boy and love everything about him, right down to the nitty-gritty, and hope to share another fabulous eight years together with him. I just hope they don't go so fast as the past eight have. My baby is getting big, a little too fast for my liking.
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Sunday, January 21, 2007
We finally got some snow. January is almost over and we finally got some snow. It was gone by noon but it was snow nonetheless. Noah, who was home sick from school begged me to take him outside before it was all melted. So I did. And this is how Caleb felt about it:
Needless to say we weren't out in the snow for long. But then again, Caleb has been pretty sick. . . perhaps it wasn't the snow that was bothering him so much.
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Saturday, January 20, 2007
Well, here they are--Jericho and Justus at almost three months. Absolutely gorgeous, I know. They've been super busy lately chubbing themselves up and trying to turn their sleep schedules around so they don't miss out on so many fun things like the witching hour and exploding lightbulbs and the "Cooking with Caleb" show (see upcoming posts). I'm still nursing them both, which I think keeps them from sleeping the entire night straight through but I certainly can't complain about having to get up once with both. They totally have smiling mastered now (although I have yet to catch it on camera) and I'm certain laughing and rolling over are next on their to-do lists. They love, love, love to chat with anyone and everyone and have certainly discovered their voices.
While the boys look very similar physically, their personalities are very different. Jericho is very calm and even-keeled. He is almost always content, no matter where I put him, to just sit and watch his surroundings. When Justus is busy screaming his head off for various reasons, Jericho is almost always laying close by, calmly staring at his brother with a look on his face that seems to say, "Dude brother, you gotta get a grip. Everything's just fine." Jericho weighs in at 11 pounds 7 ounces. He eats very different from his brother, needing to take several burping breaks during each feeding. And when he's done, we've lovingly nicknamed him Old Faithful because he spits up at regular intervals after he eats and when I say spits up, he really spits up, just like the real Old Faithful. We tell Jericho apart by the nailpolish on his toe, the blue pacifier strap attatched to his clothes and his very calm demeanor, although even Jericho has his moments and then we get all mixed up as to who is who.
Justus is our little live-wire. He feels his emotions very strongly and when he's happy he's oh-so-happy and when's angry he's really angry. He smiles readily at everyone and loves to be tickled. But when he's hungry or tired of sitting in a certain place or just plain tired, he can really scream. Justus weighs in at 11 pounds 10 ounces. His eating habits are very different from his brother's, in that when he eats he chugs it all down without a single break and then belches louder than his Daddy can. His latest nickname is Mr. Smiley Pants, which just recently replaced Mr. Slimey Eyes (due to your plugged tear ducts that just finally cleared up.) We tell him apart from his brother by the yellow pacifier strap attatched to his clothes, his ruddy-complexion and square face, and his roller-coaster emotions.
Up until this week I'd say having twins is a snap. Both boys are delightful and easy-going. They've been great sleepers and eaters and haven't asked for much more than a diaper change every now and then. It's been great fun to show them off and watch all the ladies at church fight over who gets to hold who next. And I often catch myself thinking how lucky I am because while I may have double the workload, I also get double the rewards and I can't tell you how fun it is to sit with two babies smiling and gooing and cooing at you. And how heavenly it is to sleep with two little babies cuddled into you, all warm and sweet-smelling.
But of course, they are starting to wake up and are definitely beginning to be aware of all the fun that's going on around them. And it's just a matter of time before they are going to be running around the house with their brothers, causing all sorts of trouble and getting into all kinds of mischief. Both boys have a twinkle in their eyes that says, "Oh I can hardly wait" and as much as it scares me, it excites me too. I've had a tiny glimpse this week at how crazy things are about to get and I know it's not going to be fun. But at the same time, there's something exciting and wonderful about watching these two grow together and just imagining all the adventures we're about to share.
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Friday, January 19, 2007
When we asked the kids what they wanted for Christmas, Hunter said that his number one choice was a Transformer: Cybertron Optimus Prime. I wasn't surprised about the Transformer part, but it was the first time he had mentioned Optimus Prime. I knew I had seen Cybertron Optimus Prime last Christmas but figured Hunter recently decided on that specific character from watching Transformers, or from watching commercials during his other shows on Cartoon Network with frequent toy pitches.
When I didn't find Optimus Prime at Toys R Us on Dec. 11th, (and I didn't want to pay their shipping) I looked on Hasbro.com to find out where else I might find it and I saw this. Twice as many Transformers. Including Cybertron Optimus Prime. That combine together. Cooler. Cheaper. Plus a DVD. Ho ho ho! I hitched up the reindeer and headed to the Norwalk Costco the next day ... no luck. None to be found.
After getting back from Costco, I looked on eBay, and there were several available through Buy It Now just above retail price, with available priority shipping. Hmm. It's a possibility ... Later that day I finished most of the shopping at Wal-Mart, and happened to find this. What he asked for ... But I had caught a bug, and the remedy came in a two-pack. So I bought the insurance plan, but made sure I saved the receipt.
Even 8% sales tax is cheaper than shipping, so a couple of days later, I checked the Port Chester, NY Costco. It's a really cool 2-story warehouse, complete with a set of conveyor belts for transporting customers and their carts up and down. However it does make a "quickly run inside and check" trip take longer than it should. No luck there either.
My plan was then to check the Milford Costco over the weekend, then if I couldn't find it, order it from eBay. The only problem was that I didn't make it to Milford until Monday, Dec. 18th. I checked the toy aisles, and their neighbors - I looked high and low. I looked next to the GI Joe, behind the R/C flying boats, next to the Star Wars Mr. Potato Head, but alas, there were none to be seen - not even a price tag over an empty palette. Shucks!
Before I left, I asked a customer service rep to run an inventory check - 0 units left in stock, status "ready to delete" the item from the computer. He also looked up the inventory at other nearby stores. I asked about other stores in New York State, and the computer inventory showed everywhere in the region (Maine to Virginia?) was out except for Hazelet and White Marsh, which each showed 39. Hmmm.
As it turns out, that is Hazelet, New Jersey and Baltimore, Maryland. Now the compulsive bargain hunter in me began researching a trip to Hazelet (note to self: call ahead before driving...) but the 200-mile, 3+ hour round-trip, with NYC bridges and $10+ in tolls ... eBay shipping started to reason with Mr Frugal, and won out.
So I got on eBay and immediately purchased the 2-pack Buy It Now with priority shipping. Good! Christmas is saved! If it gets here. It was guaranteed to ship that day with priority, with a 2-day estimate. It should get here. (Could I convince Hunter to defer opening plan B if I needed to? Could I substitute for a few days? Was that me or the Grinch talking?) By this point Shana & I had decided Optimus would be Hunter's Santa gift. But that was more reason that it should be the two-pack. Oh well, I will cross the plan B bridge only if necessary...
The next day, I had planned on stopping by the Norwalk Costco on the way home to pick up a few things. Our weekend baking had nearly exhausted the flour and sugar, and in talking to Shana on the phone that day she mentioned paper plates. But I got busy at work and ended up not having time to stop on the way home.
A couple from our ward offered to babysit that night so Shana & I could get out together. Shana tried a few times to talk them out of it - but they insisted. So we ended up going to the Milford Costco for flour, sugar, and paper plates. I had done a majority of Shana's Disney DVD shopping just the day before, so I wasn't going to let on that I had just been there.
I did show her a Mannheim Steamroller Christmas collection, and asked her if she wanted to get it (it was on her list) but she realized we already had one of the CDs. She said "Its not fair for you to buy something, then show it to me at the store as a test if I really want it." I said, "I didn't do that!" then breathed a sigh of relief that I decided not purchase it the day before. (Whew!)
I played the piano for a bit, as they had several upright and grand pianos as part of a holiday promo sale. A few minutes later, a man said no one would pay 10 grand for a piano, as he scornfully laughed himself silly. I guess he expects all pianos to come from neighbors' garages or something. Actually I knew he had no concept of worth, or value, nor appreciation for music. I considered pointing out the grand at the end of the aisle for 3 times that price, but I found I had no words for him.
I had several times that night begun to tell Shana about a GI Joe toy that I was considering getting for me - mostly because Costco had a deluxe version (with extras) available for less than $20, while Target, Wal-Mart and TRU had the plain version for $35-40. I thought it was cool, but the appeal was mostly the bargain (remember what I said about the compulsive bargain hunter ...) So I took Shana to show it to her. As I approached the GI Joe palette, I noticed the R/C flying boats were almost gone in 2 days. I guess several procrastinators had found their dream toy and made a run on it ... there it is! T-H-E-R-E I-T I-S!THERE IT IS! There it is! Cybertron Optiumus Prime and Wing Saber! I was telling Shana the GI J ... It can't be. I looked there yesterday! Someone must have returned it or something. More likely it had fallen out of Santa's sleigh. Incredible! I felt like I had willed it into existence. Shana asked if I could cancel the eBay purchase, and I said I didn't think so but I would certainly check. It wasn't until the next store that I finished telling her about the GI Joe and why I wanted to show it to her. But that was so trivial now.
Wow! I GOT it! I got IT! I got it! I got it I got it I got it I got it! WOW! I was electrified. I was ecstatic. I chuckled as I saw it at on the car seat as Shana got out at the next store, and smiled as I carried it out of the car into the house. I could hardly wait another week for Hunter to see it!
That night I checked into the possibility of canceling my eBay order. It did not seem likely, but I thought I should check. I could do a Costco return, but I would still be out shipping. (Welcome back Mister Frugal.) I couldn't see any out - and confirmed that eBay's Buy It Now policy was immediate sale, no cancellations. Hmm. Too bad. Let me check on the shipping progress to see where it is. Hold on - my item status should be Paid For, not Pending. I paid immediately upon buying. I had better check PayPal. Multiple lines?? - Oh that's right, they put a debit from purchaser then a credit to buyer ... but there are still too many lines. They double-charged me! no .... Wait! One line says refund. Why did they do that? Probably a mistake. I wonder when they will reswipe. Here's a reference to another record ... and a note: "This item is sent from CA via Fedex ground; we are afraid that it won't be on time for you. Therefore, we refund the money to you." No way! No WAY! NO WAY! They canceled the transaction on me! YES! Yes yes yes yes yes! Under any other circumstance I would have been mad, but I was elated!
So many coincidences ... I was so excited I couldn't wait to tell Shana. So I tried to wake her up. When I couldn't, I resigned to wait and told her when I heard her stir.
Too many coincidences ... Without a doubt, it was a Christmas Miracle. I marvel that this was a quest, and a trivial one as far as quests go, so I did not even ask for help in finding the toy. I did not request divine intervention, nor did I expect it, but it was granted nevertheless. As I related my experiences to people at work, they too saw a providential hand involved. One co-worker said it gave her chills, while another simply pointed heavenward. I did not need the toy in order to have a good Christmas, nor did Hunter. He would have been none the wiser. While the scripture says "Ask and it shall be given" I had not asked, but had been given. Generously. He does know the thoughts of our hearts, and we are given not only according to our needs, but also according to our wants.
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Tuesday, January 16, 2007
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Monday, January 15, 2007
 You could say Hunter's birthday celebration has been going on for at least a week now. Stevie, my mother's helper, brought Hunter a cake last week that she made for him in school. That was the beginning of it all. Saturday was Hunter's birthday party at the YMCA which turned out to be a huge success. There was very little work involved on my part and everyone had a good time. The kids all swam for an hour and then we served up cake and ice cream. Of course, since Hunter hates frosting, he chose to have Marble Cake, one of my favorites too.
 After cake and ice cream we let Hunter open his presents and Wow! Did he ever get a lot of nice gifts. Poor Uncle Nate who just happened to be in town on business, came by and got stuck holding all the loot. He got an extra piece of Marble Cake out of it though, and I hope he didn't mind too much. Hunter spent the rest of the evening and the next day opening his presents one by one and assembling them (and also refusing to share them.)
 This morning Hunter chose to have Swedish Pancakes for breakfast. We managed to fit all eight candles in one pancake and Grandma Stout called just in time to join in with us while we sang him Happy Birthday. Then he had a Talent Show practice, played Monopoly with Uncle Nate and Daddy, and has since retreated to his bedroom to play with more presents. Somewhere amidst all the errands and jobs around the house we'll find time to let him open a few presents we have for him and maybe fix him up something special for dinner. Until then I've got rice krispie treats to make because of course, the festivities don't end tonight. He's got a classroom celebration to take care of tomorrow and he's the main event!
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Thursday, January 11, 2007
... to a Three Ring Circus? Chris Dodd, a senator from Connecticut, announced today that he would run for the 2008 Democratic presidential nomination. It is not a big surprise, as he has been mulling the decision publicly for nearly a year now. Last year, an article pointed out that if Dodd won the Presidency, we would have a Mormon First Lady. Dodd, a Catholic, is married to Jackie Clegg, a Mormon from Utah and a former executive at the Export-Import Bank.
The article then went on to relate the following anecdote from Utah Senator Bob Bennett: Speaking at a recent gala dinner of the Brigham Young University Management Society in the Georgetown University Conference Center, Bennett said a tongue-in-cheek Dodd told him, "At Bob Jones University, we are now a two-cult family."
Dodd was apparently referring to the fact that some evangelical Christians view both Mormonism and Catholicism as cults. Bob Jones University, a fundamentalist Christian school in South Carolina, has attracted criticism for past hostility to some denominations and to interracial dating. Despite the lack of comment from Bennett or Dodd camps, a Salt Lake Tribune writer took the hypotheticals one step further (albeit parenthetically): Easy polygamy joke of the day: Who knows when there might be a
Mormon Second Lady or Third Lady?
I guess that would require three rings.
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Hunter is having a birthday party in a few days so I've been trying, little by little, to prepare for the big event. On Tuesday I put together the party favors and much to Noah's delight I had a few left over items--a.k.a. sling shot sticky bugs. I gave one to Noah and didn't hear from him much after that. Yesterday, while I was trying to rest in bed, Noah decided it was a good time to practice slinging the sticky bug on the walls around me. I could see he didn't quite know how to "sling" the thing so I offered to show him. Well, the instructional turned into frustrated tears for Noah and eventually we told him that if he continued to cry we'd take the bug away and he'd lose it forever. If I remember correctly, given I am doped up on antibiotics, it wasn't even his technique that was upsetting him but rather the fact that the bug wouldn't stick to the window and that's where it was warm for him (the bug) to take a nap. Anyway, this afternoon Noah came up to my room in complete hysterics. When I asked what the matter was, this was his reply:
"I was trying to throw the sticky bug somewhere where I couldn't make it stick so I threw it somewhere where I could never get it again."
"Why?" I asked.
"Because you said if I cried about it again I'd lose it forever and now I'll never get to play with it again."
Poor Noah. He's harder on himself than all the rest of us combined.
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Wednesday, January 10, 2007
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Monday, January 08, 2007
I quit writing my monthly letters to Caleb when he turned one, assuming I wouldn't have so much to write about after that. You know, the first year is full of so many "firsts" and then after that everything slows down, right? Well. . . not right. My brain is about to explode trying to remember all the things Caleb can do that it's time for another letter. So without further ado, meet Caleb at fifteen months:
Caleb the three words used to describe you most around home are silly, sweet and delicious. And those three things you are. You never fail to make us all laugh, all the time. You are always sweet, the way you snuggle up with that silkie of yours and pop that thumb in your mouth and plop down on my lap. And delicious. . . your skin is so soft and plump and your eyes so big and round. . . I really could just eat you up. You are the happiest, most easy-going baby I've ever known.
You have several favorite things to do right now, most of them requiring I keep a constant eye on you at all times. You love playing the piano, vacuuming, playing outside, playing in water, and climbing, playing with the telephone, dancing and trying to keep up with your big brothers. Oh, and did I mention your silkie? There have been several times when you've been playing the piano that you've been mistaken for one of your big brothers. You love to play and when you play it sounds like real music, not just random pounding. You curve your fingers just perfectly and you sit with your back so straight--I won't be surprised if you end up being a great pianist like your father. I think you have a deep love for music because not only do you love the piano but you love to dance as well. Anytime we put a c.d. on, you squeal with joy and dance and prance about in the most bouncy way. Denver has caught onto this love and every morning while you are still stuck in your crib, Denver will put on Daddy's crazy ballerina music and watch you squeal and dance over and over and over again. We all love to watch you dance.
You love water almost as much as you love music. It doesn't matter where the water originates from as long as you can play in it. You're content to stand beside me while I wash dishes and slosh around in the dishwater. I'm not sure what you're hoping to catch but you love fishing in the toilet and just today you discovered that you can climb on top of the toilet and turn the water on in the sink. Anytime you hear me in the bathroom brushing my teeth you come running with the stepstool and climb up next to me, thrilled if I hand you a cup of water to drink or a toothbrush to chew on. You love bathtime and if Mommy or Daddy are in the shower you can bet you'll be there too.
You got a vacuum for Christmas and after your silkie, it's your next favorite thing. Whenever I fire up the real vacuum you come speeding around the corner like a bat out of nowhere and in almost a panic start looking for your vacuum. Then, side by side we vacuum and whenever I shut down my vacuum your little heart breaks. You love to vacuum but I think you love to mimic us grownups even more or at least have our company. Today, however, I managed to trick you by leaving the vacuum running while I worked on making the pancakes for breakfast and as long as the big vacuum was humming you were happy vacuuming on your own.
You love your big brothers and wherever they are, you want to be too. Unfortunately, as much as they love you, they don't always like you tagging along with them. More often than not, you are promptly removed from wherever they are playing, plopped outside the door, rejected. But sometimes you get lucky and they don't seem to mind your presence, like the other day when they were playing playdough. You climbed up on the table next to them and kept yourself happy and busy emptying the playdough box and reloading it, stopping occassionally to eat a wad of playdough which you actually thought was delicious. That time even they seemed to enjoy your company.
Anytime the telephone rings, you think it's for you. When I answer it and I don't hand it over to you, you fall to pieces making it very difficult for me to talk on the phone. I can only blame myself for that because I give you the phone to play with on a regular basis. Of course I always unplug it first and even you've learned that before you can play with the phone it has to be unplugged. Unfortunately, you've gotten to be so good at climbing and getting exactly what you want all by yourself, you don't always wait for me to unplug the phone and I'm afraid it's only a matter of time before you have the firemen knocking on my door and reprimanding me.
You are such a little character. The other day we went to see Charlotte's Web and you were thrilled with the little bag of popcorn we presented you. There you sat on that great big chair with your itty-bitty bag of popcorn happy as can be, peering over at me occassionally with those great big eyes and even bigger smile. The other day I took you to the doctor for your well-child visit. You refused to sit on the scale so they made me weigh myself with you in my arms and then weigh myself without you. How embarassing, standing there with all those nurses gathered around to see how fat your MaMa is. But you were thrilled with the new game and I doubt we'll ever weigh you on an infant scale again. So stubborn and silly--all 25 pounds of you. And a few nights ago, when we were getting ready for dinner, you were down in the basement playing with the toys. Daddy tried getting you upstairs in every way possible, including turning off all the lights. But still you stayed in the basement having the time of your life. Then, Daddy asked someone to give the prayer and whatever it was that you were playing with hit the floor and you came running to join us. You hate to be left out of family time, including prayer time and dinnertime. You have a determination about you that is inspiring at times. You so desperately want to be able to go up and down the stairs like the rest of us do, that you'll go out of your way to find a small step and then practice stepping up and then stepping down again, over and over again until you can do it without falling down. You've done the same with doors (perhaps determined to not be shut out of all the fun your brothers are having) and can now open just about any door in the house all by yourself. You love to be surprised and surprising us with a great big "Rarrrrrr!" anytime you come running around the corner or you greet us at the door. Life seems to be a great big game of hide and seek to you and your eyes light up everytime someone new enters the scene, whether it be me coming home from dropping the boys off at school or Daddy coming home from a day at work. You greet us with a smile wider than the Grand Canyon and a "Rarrrrr!" Then off you run to find someone else to growl at.
You have quite a vocabulary for such a little man and can say all of the following: Mama, Dadda, Hunter, Noah, Justus, Jericho (Co-co), Diego, apple, banana, wow, cool and alright. Daddy has also taught you how to sign all sorts of things including: water, milk, candy, more, food, cookie, hot, father, dog, baby and cry. Anytime you are thirsty, you sign water. Your favorite thing to ask for is candy. And anytime the babies are crying you let us know. It really is quite spectacular and always impresses the neighbors--you are so fun to show off.
But by far the cutest thing you do is eat. And it's not so much the eating part that's cute as is your reaction to the food that you are eating. After almost every bite of food you eat you say "mmmmmmmmm!" and you raise your eyebrows and throw your head back and it looks like your head is going to pop right off your neck. Everytime. And over Christmas you were very good at finding the Gingerbread houses we had made and helping yourself to whatever candy looked good to you. Every day you'd come wandering into the kitchen with a sucker in your mouth with a gumdrop stuck on the end or a sugar cone covered in frosting and M&M's and you'd raise your eyebrows and throw your head back and say "mmmmmmmm!" like it was the best thing you'd ever tasted in your entire 15 months of life. And even if we couldn't see you, we'd know you'd found the Gingerbread houses by the enthusiastic "mmmmmmm's" we were hearing downstairs. You could never eat in secret, that's for sure.
But of all the things you do, Caleb, the way you make me smile is my favorite thing of all. Just today I was practically in tears, fed up with the days events, exhausted and frustrated. You were standing next to me by the sink, sloshing in the water the way you do, while I washed a stack of pots and pans. Then you started "mmmmmmm-ing" the way you do and I looked over and you had smeared bubbles all over your face and were trying to lick them off and laughing all at the same time. And all of the frustrations of the day melted away and I couldn't help but chuckle at your little face smothered in bubbles. And while you keep me on my toes from the time you get up till the time you go to bed at night, constantly getting into mischief and demanding so much of my energy, there's not a day that goes by that I don't look forward to you. You make our world go 'round little buddy and I love you.
Love, Mom
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Sunday, January 07, 2007
This past Christmas was my very first Christmas with no snow. I know we've already broken several records for the warm weather we've been having up here in the Northeast. Yesterday was no exception. I think the record high for our city on January 6th was set in 1974 at a whopping 65 degrees Farenheit. Yesterday we hit 67 degrees Farenheit. I miss the snow terribly and so do the boys. They talk all the time about how they miss sledding and building snowmen and throwing snowballs and watching the snow plows go by. But then again, it's been sort of nice all the time we've had to play outside. Like my sister said, "If it's gonna be warm in January, we might as well enjoy it." And that's exactly what we did. We too visited the local elementary school and played, with no coats or bundles in sight.
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Friday, January 05, 2007
I have lovingly nicknamed the time between 4:00pm and 6:00pm the "witching hour" for various reasons. Mostly, all of my kids somehow have complete meltdown and symptoms of "severe starvation" during those hours. Everyone is either crying or shouting and all six of the kids are desperate for attention and food. As a result I have made one simple request of my husband--please be home in time for dinner. Of course, when you work 20 minutes away but you have to fight New York City traffic the entire way, turning your commute into an hour such a request is not so simple. He could always ride the train and have me pick him up but that's way too complicated. I mean, witching hour is hard enough. Loading six kids into a car during witching hour is just plain inhumane.
Anyway, tonight was no exception, except that it was worse than usual. I was trying to make dinner as usual and the three big boys were all fighting over a new toy that a friend had just dropped off. The twins were taking turns fussing and Caleb was happily entertaining himself by throwing every kitchen utensil he could get his hands on, onto the floor. I finally strapped one of the twins onto me and put the other in a bouncy seat on the kitchen table. I busied myself with the spaghetti and sauce and garlic bread I was trying to make as well as setting a timer for the boys to make sure they were sharing and taking fair turns. It was then that I noticed the blood. Everywhere. On every single utensil scattered all over the floor. All over the cupboards. All over Caleb's face. All over Caleb's hands. I immediately abandoned the pasta and sauce and sat down on the floor with a twin still strapped to me, and tried to wrestle a measuring cup away from Caleb so I could investigate where the blood was coming from. Sure enough, he had somehow cut himself on his thumb and was gushing quite a bit of blood. It was then that I discovered the apple corer slicer on the floor. Assuming that was the cause, I threw it in the sink and returned to Caleb who had returned to playing like the fact that his thumb was gushing blood was a normal everyday occurence and nothing to be concerned about. I grabbed a wad of paper towel to try and control the bleeding. But Caleb, very active one year old that he is, refused to sit still, let alone let me clamp a paper towel around his thumb. I sent Hunter in search of a bandaid and foolishly tried to wrap it around Caleb's tiny little thumb. Hunter claimed there were no more bandaids and I insisted he look again and bring me another one, or two, or the whole bandaid drawer if necessary. He returned again with the entire bandaid drawer in tote where I found several very large bandaids. I tried tape. I tried Incredibles bandaids. I tried everything sitting on the kitchen floor, surrounded by bloody kitchen utensils and bandaid wrappers with a twin strapped to my chest and the other one screaming it's poor little head off while the pots on the stove boiled over and the boys beat each other over the head with the new toy my friend had brought by and Caleb screamed and wriggled and bled all over the place. Finally, I had success only to watch Caleb rip it off two seconds later. I had success again, only this time I knew Caleb couldn't be left alone with the bandaids on his thumb so I scooped him up and with him on my hip and the baby strapped to my chest, I planted myself firmly in front of the bouncy seat and held the pacifier as best as I could in the screaming baby's mouth while I tried to bounce all three babies and keep Caleb from removing the bandage on his wee thumb. And it didn't matter if dinner burned or the big kids killed themselves over the new toy, I wasn't going to move until Mark came home. And he did a few minutes after everyone had calmed down. But I bet you he wishes he never did. And the craziest thing of all is that I'll wake up tomorrow morning fully aware that I'll have to deal with another witching hour and I'll still get out of bed.
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Wednesday, January 03, 2007
 
 
 
We spent New Year's Eve at home as usual. The Rodriguez clan joined us for some homemade pizza and a bit of socializing and then left us to our own devices. The boys were determined to stay up until midnight and suckers that we are, we let them. We passed the time shooting off leftover fireworks from the Fourth of July, watching Star Wars and playing Davinci's Challenge, a fun new card game Hunter got for Christmas. At the stroke of midnight the boys ran outside for the traditional pot-banging ceremony and fell asleep a few short minutes later in their beds. New Year's Day we took down Christmas which mostly consisted of disposing of the real-but-now-dead Christmas tree. I worked on putting laundry away and Mark worked on completing last year's home project of painting our stairwell. Hopefully the painting of the bathroom project, which was also started over Christmas vacation, won't take another year to complete. Then we took the kids to see Charlotte's Web and finished off the night with McDonalds and the Henrichsen tradition of breaking to smithereens the candy houses. Once again, Noah had the best night of his life and we all went to bed.
Here's hoping this next year is extremely dull and boring with no new additions to our family, chickens or babies, no big job changes or relocations or sicknesses or anything of the sort. Dull and boring--that's my New Year's resolution. But I hope yours is full of all sorts of excitement and wonderfulness. Happy 2007!
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Tuesday, January 02, 2007
 I found the idea for these in my Family Fun magazine. Now, if Mark hadn't forced me to try a chocolate covered potato chip last year I probably would have turned the page on these tasty treats without a second thought. But he did force me and when I saw these I knew it was just a matter of time before I'd be making some of my own. I bought the stuff for them long before Christmas but got distracted by other Christmas goodies. So this past weekend I whipped up a batch or two of these and we all fell in love with them instantly. Denver seems most-smitten of us all and wants them for his birthday treats this summer and probably everywhere inbetween. Anyway, I know we're all on our New Year's diets and even the thought of a chocolate dipped Pringle is a big No-No, but I thought I'd just share the idea and maybe next Christmas when you're looking for a quick and easy yet super yummy treat to share you'll think of these. I just melted chocolate chips in my double boiler, dunked the Pringles in about halfway and let them dry. The cans have wrapping paper around them and a stick on bow on top. Super simple. You can use the large cans but I found reloading them a bit tricky so I'd go for the mini cans next time. And plus, any of you manly readers with wives suffering from PMS--consider these your new best friends. Whip up a batch of these and your wives will thank you forever. Happy sinning!
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