fun

Getting Summer

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I find myself saying “Gotcha!” a lot whenever I pick up Betty.  It can be in a reassuring voice after she’s fallen, or in a fun voice as she is being tickled.

I didn’t realize this until today when Nadine said, “Gotcha.”  Then she paused before exclaiming, “I’ve never said that word before!”  Then she went on to say, “Would someone please explain what that means?” Seeing as though I was the only one in the room at the time, I took the liberty of explaining it to her.

She was unloading the dishwasher at the time.  I had just sat down after teaching school all morning, cooking lunch, and doing some other things.  Nadine said, “It must feel good to take a break!”  I chuckled at her comment, nodded my head, and sipped my tea. I had just started my lunch.  Somewhere in between scrounging up five lunches with very little food left in our cupboards (I’m determined not to go shopping this week), cleaning up multiple spills, cleaning up one messy baby, laying said baby down for her nap… I finally sat down for my lunch.  This is what often happens after the feeding frenzy we call lunch.  Our kids are eating machines.  I can pretty much honestly say that our fridge is empty.

There is a little milk left, 4 eggs, one block of cheese (which is odd to still have), and a bag of peppers,which has now been roasted and pulverized into salsa.  There is a jar of jam, a few olives and some mustard.  Oh, and relish and garlic!  We have some ice-tea too, but that is about it.  We’re out of cereal, bread, and fruit.  We have many tomatoes and butternut squash.  It’s so adventurous cooking only with what you have!

Speaking of cooking with what we have, our garden has been such a blessing this year!  For the past few days, this is what I get, plus some squash:

Every dinner includes tomatoes.  I find that if I just roast them up, blend them up, or cut them up right away, not one goes to waste.  They are just pure loveliness.  Elijah took these pictures of the gardens this week:

I relish every color, every flower, every taste of summer.  I will be hanging on to it with my last bit of strength, even while fall sneaks up to take its place.  The changing of seasons is like a game of musical chairs, except there is only one chair.  As the music of summer starts to fade, and the rhythm of fall is about to begin, I feel badly for the one about to get kicked out into the march of time again.  I just want to grab summer forever and say, “Gotcha!” and never let go.

Jack’s Treasure Shelf

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Climbing onto the top bunk is like climbing into another world.  A world full of imagination and intrigue.  Jack is organized, precise, and treasures memories as much as shiny things.  His love language comes in the form of gifts.  He keeps everything special on his shelf.  I had to capture it.  His pockets used to fill to overflowing with treasures.  Now he keeps them more contained in a box or on his shelf.

Oh, sweet Jack.  I hope you always treasure life.

 

Second Annual Kids’ Day

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Our second annual Kid’s Day was a huge success!  It began with a breakfast of waffles, chocolate ice-cream and bacon!

Our first stop was the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia!

The kids have been begging to go there for a long time.  First, we explored the giant heart!

Nadine and I also rode the “sky bike” high above the atrium!  It was scarier than I thought!

Then we sat on the front steps and ate popcorn.

 

 

The highlight for me was when Matthew bought me cotton candy!  I looked at the street vendor with the same longing as a little kid.  Something about never getting it growing up, makes cotton candy, chocolate chips, and m&m’s all things that will never grow old for me.  Cotton candy.  Oh, my heart.

Our next stop was Grandma Weldon’s where we dropped the little two girls off, since they aren’t super restaurant savvy yet.  Then the five of us went to Red Robin for supper!  It was delish!  Their choice of eats.

Our last stop was a mini-golf place, where the three of them played 18 holes.  Elijah was most consistent, and Nadine came in second.  Jack was the winner of the most holes-in-one and his first two shots were both a hole-in-one.  On the second one, Elijah’s ball actually bumped Jack’s ball, which ricocheted off the edge and then rolled into the hole!  It was exciting!  

It was a great day.  We’re so thankful for our five amazing blessings.  It’s exciting to celebrate our family together and make memories in this way.  Praise God from whom all blessings flow!

Impromptu Family Reunion

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It’s the first day of summer, and while the world complains about the heat, I actually enjoy it.  This morning I enjoyed some early morning gardening, thankful that I can stand without too much pain today.  Two days ago I found myself flat on my face at the top of our stairs, the second toe of my left foot throbbing like mad.  It was almost numb and yet on fire at the same time.  Without an actual x-ray to confirm it, I’m 99% sure it’s broken. Its black and blue self stares back at me as I prop up my feet.  I’m thankful that I don’t have to be anywhere or do anything.  I’m thankful for a lot of things.  The last week was a whirlwind of family and sisters and my brother and cousins galore.  It was packed with many fun moments and the time went way too quickly.  I’m thankful for the photos of this past weekend, which keep cheering me up.  It’s hard to choose a few out of a couple hundred pictures, but these are definitely my favorites of this week:

I remember when these guys were all little babies, about 6 months apart each.

I was obsessed with this tree at Valley Forge.

Cousins minus the four Watts.

Nadine kept picking flowers and putting them places to honor the soldiers who died at Valley Forge.  It was beautiful.

Betty and Auntie Heather holding hands.

I was also obsessed by these weeds.  So pretty.  So painful to touch.  So much like some choices we make.  They look so good, so appealing, yet bring pain and choke out what’s truly beneficial.

This little guy is a heart-melter.

Jack walked the entire time carrying his backpack and this huge stick.  It’s how he does things.

At last, all seventeen cousins together!

Creek walking is something we did way back when the entire tall crowd were mere munchkins.

I love my brother and everyone loves him!

Jack, finding the biggest rock to throw.  In his mind, skipping rocks means heaving heavy boulders.

A few of the kids who went swimming.

After Audrey found a host of feathers, most of the boys became Indians.  Jack’s war dance was especially funny.  He found a shoe string in the creek, which became part of his attire.

On my brother’s birthday, we all enjoyed cream puffs under the shade of the hundred-acre-wood, also known as my parents’ front yard.

Sisters are the best!

Another highlight of the week was Betty learning to walk.  Just before 18 months, she took her first steps, and every day now she is getting more confident.  She also learned how to climb ladders.

We enjoyed a campfire one night at my sister’s.

I’ll close with my favorite picture of the entire week.  

 

An Afternoon in Philly

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A little while ago our family took a day trip into Philadelphia.  No agenda.  Just ourselves.  We had a meltdown from the 4-year-old, so I took just the tall crowd up the Art Museum steps for some fun pictures.

We saw five different weddings being shot around the Art Museum.  Couldn’t help sneaking this picture.

It wasn’t until I was shooting pictures of our kids when I saw how funny their outfits were.  About 99 percent of the time I let them choose their own clothes.  Sometimes I veto a certain ensemble when we are going someplace nice.  Usually I don’t.  They are who they are.  I love their confidence.

Shadows are such close friends.

Yes, Jack was carrying a gun in the city and brandishing it while he ran down the steps.  One gun was bright blue and the other was a marshmallow blaster made of PVC piping.  Always ready for battle.

The tears flowed for quite a while before finally subsiding.  I love these kids!

Not every day do you see a UFO on wheels!

At last, her sweet face came out for a smile.

Can you guess where this is?

If that was you behind us in your Ferrari, you made my boys’ day.

I love Philadelphia.  It’s my favorite city with so many memories made there.  I can always be persuaded to spend a day in Philly.

Purple and Camo: The Perfect Blend

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This morning as we ate crepes there was much drawing going on around the table.  Robots, cats, and flaming arrows (which I innocently thought were flowers).  Elijah asked Elsie how to spell her name.  She began to clearly spell it out for him in a teacher-like voice.  Then she proceeded to tell him, “Elijah, you didn’t do it correct.  Here, let me do it for you.”  He is the type to be able to chuckle to himself at her bossiness, and we exchanged smiles about it.

This weekend there was a father-daughter dance at church.  The girls were decked out in their “wedding dresses” (dresses they wore to Matt’s brother’s wedding) all afternoon.  Yes, Elsie wore a yellow head-band.  One would never know the drama that went on with that decision.  When they came home that night Elsie told me that, “I was only dancing with my feet one time.”  The rest of the time Daddy held her while they danced.  We both realize this will not always be so, so we treasure the small beautiful girl with the high-pitched voice that we sometimes just want to be quiet.  Even though some days the tears seem to come in the quantity to fill a small ocean, we love our precious Elsie Rose who knows how to spell her name and loves everything pink.  And purple.

Then we have our oldest, who didn’t need to be held to meet Daddy’s eyes while they danced.  Her beauty is swiftly unfolding, and it’s frightening and exciting all at once to see her growing up.  When we were driving to church the other day she dramatically yelled from the back seat, “Don’t open the windows!  My earrings are dangly!”  Elijah agreed that they just might fly out.  It was pretty funny.

While the two oldest girls were away, the boys, Betty, and I stayed home.  At the moment I was taking this picture, I was not exactly happy with the mess going on here.  They made strawberry-watermelon juice with every kitchen tool imaginable and I was stepping on sticky juice all night.  Matt left me with a smile that said, “Enjoy them, they’re just being boys.”  After this picture, they hopped in the tub, Betty went to bed, and I made pizza.  Then I introduced the boys to one of my favorite shows as a kid: Knight Rider, and we ate homemade pizza and oohed and aaahed over the coolness of Kit, and there was nothing girly until the purple clad girls came home donning balloons and memories of dancing with Daddy.

Our house is full of the mixture of flowers and flounce, camo and guns.  Gaudy necklaces and hair ties that don’t match, bicycles that make loud noises and robot drawings.  Pretty tea parties and scary bike ramps.  Perfume and stinky feet.  Hello Kitty bandaids covering a scratch and bruised and bloody knees that deflect the stick of  a bandaid.  Once in awhile these two worlds collide, and I catch moments of gentle love between them.  True gentlemen can put aside their macho muscles to gently hug their sisters and tell them how pretty they look.  Strong women can hang on to their femininity while scaling daunting heights and playing in the mud.  When boys and girls live together there are clashes, yes, but there is also a perfect blending of beauty and brawn, sweet and salty, tenderness and toughness.  Sometimes I don’t always appreciate their differences and honestly I sometimes define different as wrong.  Don’t we all?  But having five little personalities surrounding me every day all day long, I realize and must embrace their differences and not try to compare them with others or change them.  They each fill a void that would otherwise be in this world, and together they are the perfect blend.

Sweet Six

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Jack Attack turned six last weekend.

We had a relaxed family day at Grandma Weldon’s.  While the rain poured outside, we enjoyed chocolate cupcakes and a warm fire.

A new game of Perfection made us laugh, with its power to startle every single time it exploded.

Betty loves to give kisses, and who is better to love than Daddy?

So now we have a six-year-old in the house.  Even though he’s still patiently waiting for his first tooth to fall out, he’s growing up.  He’s my own personal body guard and he’s my sweet little boy.    I do hope he always dreams big, like his walls that are covered in taped up wishes and dreams.  Pages of lego magazines and cars and toys.  Drawings he has made.  Cockeyed static stickers.  He has so many dreams of being a man.  One day he will be just that, and I pray that his heart will always be tender towards others.  I know that one day he won’t have playing cards duct-taped to his bicycle wheels to make it sounds like a motorbike.  He won’t always wear his shirts backwards or forget to put on his underwear.   He will no longer have a shelf full of shiny rocks, bottle caps, lego men, old keys, and special memories.  Or, maybe he will.

Exceptional Reminiscence

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This weekend goes down in history as one of my favorites in a long time.  I knew it would be fun, but an hour after arriving in Syracuse, my sides were already aching from laughter.  It was great to be with my blood sisters and African sisters.

My sister, Sherry, graciously hosted all of us in her home.  She is an artist, with touches of beauty all throughout her house.  We spent most of our time around her kitchen table, looking at these sweet things her son picked for her.

Mugs of tea and coffee warmed our hands as we told story after story after story.  We finally unglued ourselves from the table to enjoy a gorgeous day at Green Lakes State Park.

We took a leisurely 3-mile walk around the uniquely green-colored lakes, with the backdrop of tree blossoms just about to pop, all around us.  Our photographers included strangers pulled from their own walks.

Also, a handy log and camera self-timer make for a good shot!  I almost got impaled by a branch running over to the group for this one:

There were more funny things that happened or were said than there are legs on a centipede.

More even than the amounts of time a bumble-bee can buzz in its entire life.

Sisters, indeed, are the best.

After our lovely walk, we pampered our toes with some beauty and whimsy.  Bonnie skillfully painted flowers, designs, and filigree on our toenails.  Can you tell which ones are mine?

Saturday night we made an African meal, complimented by more stories.  On Sunday, before we left, we took a series of photos.  I gave my camera to my nephew, Nathanael.  When I told him he could take as many as he wanted, a small chuckle escaped his throat, and we heard a constant stream of “click, click, click,” coming from his direction.  I deleted over 50 shots, kept quite a few, and am sharing my favorite four.

When Ruthie and I first met, we were more like friend-emies… a mixture between best friends and enemies.  For over twenty years now we’ve visited back and forth, been in eachother’s weddings, marveled at eachother’s children, laughed, cried and prayed for one another.  What a blessing friendships grown with time are.  Like the most delightful wine.  Aged to perfection.

I love how this picture captures the fact that, no matter how many years have passed, we’re really still just kids deep inside.

I will relish these memories for the rest of my life.  I treasure these friendships even more.

Jack Be Nimble, Jack Be Quick

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The other day Jack tried explaining that he wanted me to take a picture of him floating away, just like he had seen in a photo once.  We had the sidewalk chalk out, and he had drawn a balloon.  So, I climbed the tree and tried my best to to capture the image of him being pulled into the sky by a single balloon.  Super fun!

Jack likes to say things like, “Oh, grateful,” instead of “Oh, great.”  When Matt asked him if he had a high metabolism he answered, “I forget.”  I purposely don’t really watch them on the trampoline, because their bravery exceeds my own.  However, when I’m hanging laundry on the clothesline, they are drawn to the black circle of bounce and I’m forced to watch their aerial flips and daring leaps.  He is a regular ninja when it comes to the trampoline, and it’s both frightening and exhilarating to watch him.  When he runs, he looks more like a gazelle.  Every few steps he flies through the air in a leap and keeps on going.  Higher is better.  Harder is better.  Pain is weakness leaving the body.  His legs are more bruised than not.  He never wakes up during the night, so when he came stumbling into our room one night I knew something was wrong.  Turns out he fell out of bed… which means he fell from the top bunk.  Ouch!  I have no idea how his wiry body slid out with the side rail on, but I’m glad he was okay.  He loves oats, life, and everything in-between.  For him, every day is about as exciting as being swept away by a single balloon.

Oh My Tacky Yard

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This week, our neighbor was cleaning out his basement.  The kids happened to be outside, and he happened to offer them bags of his old treasures.  I agreed to them accepting the gifts as long as they stayed in the back yard.

I haven’t seen so much excitement over plastic in a long time!  They went hog wild, hanging eggs on the trees, bushes, and my favorite: the alley fence.

Jack specially put up the black cat (not sure where that fits in the Easter theme going here), to scare away the ever-dreaded “Alley Cat”.  The very first day we moved here, I woke up hearing a meowing sound, only to find a black and white cat standing in our bedroom looking up at me.  I screamed, thinking it was a skunk at first.  Learning it was only a cat, I escorted it downstairs to the basement, where I shooed it outside through the outside doors which we had forgotten to close the night before.  Mystery solved.  Ever since then, however, we have spotted it here and there in our yard, and the kids get all in a tizzy.  I’m glad Jack came up with this idea.

Pretty scary!

So, even though I’m pretty much anti-plastic-decorations, I felt it was worth it to see the joy on their faces as they arranged each egg carefully throughout the yard.

Tacky to the enth degree, but perfect as well.