Me at a holiday dinner at my grandparents' house

Five years ago today was the day that Levi was “supposed to be” born. I was pretty sad about it at the time.

It was also the day I turned 30, which I wasn’t sad about.

Five years ago today, I was pregnant with Acadia but didn’t know it yet.

Hidden blessings.

Sometimes things are like that, where you don’t particularly feel the goodness of God, or wonder if He is in control of things or not. You have to believe and trust despite what you feel at the moment, even when “the moment” is more like everyday reality.

If we have been justified by Christ, we can take comfort in knowing that these experiences are truly temporary, yet God is using them to make eternal changes toward Him in our hearts.

Even when we never see tangible blessings here in our pre-eternity lives.

This is my Dad, posing with my kids (2/5 of his grandchildren).

This is Brian, dad to our kids. Ignore the awful haircut I had recently given Gannon. Focus on the great fathering going on.

This is my Grandfather. When he was alive he’d tell me I was his favorite granddaughter. I know he meant it, because I am cool like that.

Here’s Brian’s Dad, the kids’ Pop-Pop. He used to put up a good front, but he’s always been a softie. Now he doesn’t bother with the front.

This is my brother Josh. He’s a great dad to three great kids. He’s not as stern as he looks in this picture.

Go love your dad.

I think we’re far enough now from the real reverence of Memorial Day for me to post this story.

While much of the rest of the country was observing the day with parades and, well, memorials, for us much of this past weekend was spent with my nieces and nephew over at my Mom’s house. While there, the kids found a dead bird. As a result, the three adults present were witness to a ceremony of delightful solemnity. I have to apologize that I didn’t have my camera during this documentary-worthy event, but in hindsight, maybe it was better that way. Out of respect.

First the five kids (ages 8, 6, 6, 4, 3) examined the poor bird at close range, gently poking it with sticks. Then the oldest carried it around the yard (with sticks) to find a suitable hole in which to inter the remains. They found one, plopped it in, and set about to decorate the gravesite.

The kids arranged flowers, grass, leaves, a brick, an old bird nest, a notebook, and a keychain reading “NC STATE RECYCLES” on top of and in front of the hole. This they did quite reverently, except for the screeching of one child at the appearance of a few largeish beetles from under the bird carcass. That was pretty much the end of that particular child’s involvement in the project.

Then it was time for the actual service to begin. By this point two of the kids had wandered off, and the other three stood in a line, gazing down at the grave. I knew we were in for something good. I waited for what would come next. This is what I heard:

“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic….”

When they had finished, the oldest sort of looked around, wondering what was to come next. Inspiration hit, and he went down on one knee and gestured dramatically to the grave. The other two eagerly followed suit. They said a few words.

“I’ll always remember this bird.”

“I’m sorry you won’t be around to make eggs next spring.”

And a few more oddly appropriate sentiments. Then, the clincher came. The moment that it all became perfect.

It was during the eulogy that the sound of Taps could be heard wafting over the trees.

I joke not. Taps was being played. Somewhere downtown a Memorial Day ceremony was being held at just the right moment. Close your eyes for a moment and picture it. Three solemn children, kneeling, extolling the virtues of a bird they hardly knew, while a lonely trumpet plays Taps. It was almost more than we grownups could bear. I wanted to howl with laughter, but somehow remained quiet enough so as not to disturb the service.

As the small group began to depart, the oldest stood facing my son, a concerned yet resigned expression on his face. He put his hand on Gannon’s shoulder, looked him in the eye, and nodded comfortingly, a gesture that was lost on my son.

At the conclusion of the affair, the gang of cousins went back to playing knights and ladies in distress. (I must say, however, that it was the girls’ dresses that were really in distress. Tulle does not hold up well to hemlock branches and lilac bushes.)

Yesterday my baby turned four!

“How are you guys doing?”

The answer is…we’re still alive. In fact, yesterday we emerged from our self-imposed quarantine from society, blinking, into the open air and sunshine. Brian went to work. I took the kids to McDonald’s to climb in the PlayPlace and to Wal-Mart to spend some Valentine money from their grandparents. The kids were still coughing, hacking, and sniffling, and Gannon didn’t go down the slide more than twice, but at least we were out of the house.

This morning Gannon is pooped out again, but Acadia is raring to go. Her cough is occasional, but it still sounds yucky. I’ve heard that’s the way it is with RSV, and not to worry. So I won’t. <— lie

The kids received a gift card from some long-distance relatives (Hi Mike! Hi Diane!), and we got the fun of going to the store and picking out what to buy. They love doing that. Gannon is really picky, turning everything down till he finds something awesome. Acadia, on the other hand, likes the first pink or fluffy thing she sees and carries it around till the next pink/fluffy thing turns up. Her first pick was a Disney Princesses bathing suit (gag re: the scantily-clad Disney Princesses). Then she wanted a fluffy red sweater-type thing. Then she fell down and whacked her head on the floor and cried and didn’t want anything for about 10 minutes. In consoling her, I brought her around Housewares, where she spied a pillow that she liked. Being both pink AND fluffy, it held her interest all the way to the Jewelry. Then she saw a very cheaply-made Disney jewelry box that cost $20. Oh, how she wanted it. I told her we could get it if it turned out to be on sale for, say, a dime. When we got to the checkout, alas, the item was NOT on sale and she cried and cried and settled for the pillow. As soon as we left the store, she expressed her adoration for the pillow and all was well.

Gannon was disappointed because the store didn’t have any toys except for those attached to t-shirts. He was willing to go for a toy/t-shirt combo with a transforming robot and a shirt featuring some sort of flaming skull on wheels. I mentioned that the shirt was kind of ugly. He said that we could just give the shirt to the thrift store and he could have the toy. Not a good deal for $10, and I vetoed that one. After passing by a certain display on our THREE trips to the rest room in the customer service alcove (which, by the way, is as far from the children’s section as possible; thanks for your brilliant, family-friendly planning on that one), he noticed a very large box containing a table-top air hockey game. The price was only $19.99! Brilliant! We placed heaved that baby into the cart and made our way to the registers.

After all our shopping, I had to fish out only $1.98 from my wallet to add to the gift card’s worth. Woo-hoo! So very fun.

And as you can see, Gannon’s gift is being enjoyed by more than just the kids.

Actually, they had already put up the decorations at the time of these photos. When we decorated, I chose to actually take part instead of viewing the whole thing through the camera. Therefore, the following photos are a little bit posed, although very true to actual events. Right down to the cheesy smiles.

Merry Christmas, friends and family!

While I was putting this post together the kids pointed out the baby on the floor. Gannon said, “It looks like it fell there and said, ‘Aw, I hate Christmas!’”

Our answer to the question, “What have you been up to lately?”

Today’s my mom’s birthday. Everyone leave a comment and wish her a happy day!!

I’ve been asked to put up a list of stuff I want for Christmas. There’s a lot of stuff I want, so that seems easy, right? The problem is that I have developed this aversion to the Wish List. (As my parents can tell you, this is certainly not an issue I’ve had all my life.) But, putting that aversion aside, here’s the Christmas Wish List 2007 for our family.

Brian: See his post on the subject here.

Eva: colored cardstock, an oven thermometer, a heavy cornbread/scone pan, a small digital food scale, HP 98/95 ink cartridges for the printer, stationery

Gannon: Legos, a kid’s calculator, Calvin and Hobbes book, Garfield book, art/craft supplies

Acadia: Legos, kid-sized mommy’s helper kind of things, little girl’s nail polish/makeup, baby doll supplies, art/craft supplies

Merry Christmas!