Great Families Have Extended Families

We had such a good time with our Alaskan Grandma here.  She stayed for a whole week, which was not nearly long enough because we only get to see her once a year.  So we try to be as much with her as we can.

Last year, we weren't able be with her as much as we wanted to, because her visit fell just after my mom passed away.  But this year, we had a great time together.

We are incredibly lucky to have a strong extended family web.  We have so many good friends in our family, and we know they are always there for us.  How lucky for us that we have THREE (Jay's, mine, and Trent's) big extended families.  That means fourteen sets of aunts and uncles, and (I'm trying to count) about 60 cousins!  Whoop!

How we love our grandma.  And Opa.  And Gram and Pop.  And our Angel Grandma Susie and Angel Grandpa Ras looking out for us from Heaven.

Men Have Toys Too

We have an iPhone.  An almost-new, perfectly good one.  But then Alec got a new, non-iPhone.  It was newer and cooler and best-er.  He showed it to Trent and they compared phones and apps and features and coolness levels.  Alec won.  So Trent just had to get a newer phone, too.

So if a man gets a new toy,

He will have to play with it.  And if he starts playing with it, he will need to look up and hook up all new cool things.

And if he spends time getting the new toy working, it will get later.

And if it gets too much later, his wife may just go to the bedroom without him and read a book.  By herself.  

And if it gets too much later, 

she may try to bribe him to come to bed.

But if it gets too much later.

She may just give up and eat it herself.

Sorry, Sweetheart.  But then again, I really don't feel all that bad.

And that's the truth.

Disasters

In these last few weeks with Alec, before he ships off to boot camp and his new life with the Army, I really wanted to get some work done.  Partly to keep him busy, partly for him to be helping out, and partly to use his strength and expertise while we could.  So we got the new t.v. as an early Father's Day present, and Alec  had it all hooked up before I could blink twice.

He worked on the dining ceiling repair job and got the sheetrock up and most of the coats of mud.

He helped a bunch on the building of the chicken coop.  I see that I need to update our progress on that project, 'cuz everyone has worked really hard on it.

And he climbed in this baby and ripped out some of the shrubbery that has been slowly dying in our front yard.  Only too happy to do that that one!  Demolition is more fun that building, anyway.

I was happy that he was productive, and happy that we were getting some of these jobs done.  What I did not want was for him to start a job and leave it half-finished.  Sigh.  Sometimes we get what we want, and sometimes we don't.

I'll need to finish the last couple of coats of mud on the ceiling repair.  He had a hard time admitting that he didn't know how to do the finish work, and just left it.  It's hard and tricky work, I know.  I'm glad he learned as much about drywall repair as he did.  Wish I would have done that last bit with him so it could be done.

And the bushes?  

It's a disaster.  Looks like a war zone, with twisted branches and piles of dirt and rocks randomly scattered. A mess.

Kind of how I feel about him leaving.

Great Families Learn

Education is important in our family.  I got my bachelor's degree in education, so I have all the pedagogy for teaching.  I use the stuff I learned in college all.  the.  time.  But maybe even more than the information, or even the methodology, I am glad that I learned how to learn.

I want my kids to know how to learn, too.  I encourage them as much as I can in their schoolwork, but I won't do it for them.  Been there, done that.  I don't need to know how to do the projects - they do.  We talk to teachers, get supplies, and cheer them on.

As much as I love for them to learn, we are all happy when summer comes.

And we'll learn different things outside of school.  Because it's important to keep learning.  It's good to have a mind open enough to get things in, but not so open that they all leak back out.

Goodbye, Strollers!

Remember my hoarding problem with strollers?  And how hard I tried - unsuccessfully - to get rid of them?

I found a solution.  My little salesmen were more than happy to take them off my hands for half the earnings.  They stayed out here for a day and a half and sold five strollers.  Five!  And we still have one more to go.  But the others are gone to new families who can use them.  Yippee!

They each made some good money, and I have more room in the garage.  Win, win, win, win.  Way to go, guys!

(And the double jogging stroller there is still up for grabs, if anyone wants it!)

Great Families Hug

I am Angel and I am 4.  My birthday is in three months.  I think that is after this Sunday and then the next and then it will be my birthday!

I think our flamly is great because we "stir the pot."  It's always fun.  We are all together in a circle.  So we pretend there's a pot (in the middle of the family circle) and there's pudding in there and soup in there and we just stir it up and mix it up together.  And so we do like this (sticks thumb out like a hitchhiker) and we put our thumbs out like this (everyone stacks their fists on top of each other, with your thumb up and holding the thumb below in your fist - as if all helping hold a giant stirring spoon) and stir all together and we say:

Stirring the pot of family love

Goodnight everyone!

Group hug!

And we all hug.  That's what's fun.  I like hugging ever-body. And it's silly and we laugh.

Great Families Smile

Alec is leaving this weekend.  Going to boot camp.  Yi, yi, yi.

I need to have a family picture before my family changes, because it ain't ever gonna be the same again.  I'm ok with that.  Life changes and they grow.  Growing is a good thing - hard, but good.  

Our last family portrait (I'm discounting the after-church hurry up and smile for me puleeze shots) was nearly three years ago.  Too long.  So we need something more current.  Something more now.  Something more this-is-my-boy-while-he-is-gone.  

The only time we could do it was early Tuesday morning.  I expected everyone to moan and groan about getting up at 5:30, but they didn't.  They got up all cheerful and helpful.  I was amazed and delighted.  We had a good session with my fun youngest brother - hero to my older boys.  We chose a spot in the backyard that would catch the morning golden light, and stood and smiled.  We all had a good time, and I have my portraits.  Happy Mama, me.