Quick Takes Friday

Friday, November 21, 2008

Quick Takes Friday

Thanks to Jen for the idea! Visit her for lots more quick takes (good grammar that, huh?).
1. There is SNOW. On the ground. I can still see the grass and I'm sure it will melt by noon but it's so homey and reminds me so much of being home that I put on Christmas music (I know, SO liturgically incorrect for my domestic church but hey - I'm no liturgy Nazi), put the kids snow pants, mittens, hats, etc. on (SO overkill!) and took a ton of pictures. Right now we are enjoying hot quadat (chocolate). We just have to embrace all the winter we can get down here in the deep south of Maryland.
2. Academic families are mobile families. Every August there is an influx and out flux of families from our little community. This makes me sad. It makes me feel unstable. The plus side is that the influx brings really interesting people because generally academic families are interesting - at least to other academic families :). But I hate to think that next August we will say goodbye to some of the people who welcomed us here this August.
3. We aren't healthy. This is a boring fact and so I will leave it at that but let's just say that all of our orifices are leaking and none are emitting pleasant things.
4. I have instituted a new rule that Moses can have a dessert every night but only if he tries one bite of something new. He generally eats about four foods (all highly processed) and will not even try desserts that he is unfamiliar with. So, in an effort break the nugget-cycle I am trying to bribe him out of his fears. It has not even worked once.
Me: Moses, I have an idea! How about if you eat one piece of cheese, dipped into my soup and then you can have dessert?
Moses: How about if I have pasta and then I have dessert?
Me: No. The new rule is that you need to try something new before dessert.
Moses: Hey! I have an idea! How about you change your mind?!
5. I am reading The Reed of God for Advent - again. I've read it for Advent every year for 3 or 4 years and get more out of it every year. I can't recommend it highly enough. Caryll Houselander offers tremendous insight into the role of Mary in the world, especially as the bearer of Christ. Thanks to my mom for the suggestion.
6. ALSO - Tolkien has a collection of stories about Father Christmas that are wonderful and little known. I love them, they are very clever. Probably best for grade school children.

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Loves and Loveletts

Lex - somewhere in her mid-30's. Homeschooling mom as well as a homeschool graduate. Lives in a little Burg in the Appalachian mountains but will always have a little Michigan inside her. Mother of 6 that were born within 9 years of each other. Lover of audiobooks, praying through singing, birding, asparagus patches, and photographing kids. Grateful for the gift of community - the beauty, the ugly and the mediocre. Follower of Christ.

John - Late 30's Theology Professor, aka The Love Doctor. Always burning the candle at both ends he works hard during the day to form the future of Catholic priests and in the early mornings and evenings he carts children to and from activities and makes his wife mean G&Ts. Evangelization, providing music for Mass and adoration, sharing insights from St. Thomas Aquinas are what he's most known for in his professional life. Doing the dishes every night, dropping everything to meet us in the ER, and fixing the constant rotation of things the kids break are what he's most popular for here at home.

Anthony - Thirteen. Geography and grammar are where he shines academically - both requiring a precision that Anthony has a hard time not overusing. He enjoys playing soccer as often as possible and he stands out on his team as being a guy with his head and his body in the game - attentive and thinking. He works hard on living with equanimity as an introvert in a crowded, loud, busy home.

Rosie - Ten. Leader of "The Tribe": the three loveletts that were born within 2.5 years. She is a hard worker in school and rarely requires my help, just plugs along and gets her stuff done. She takes a lot of art classes and keeps a nature journal and I love what she is able to observe and translate through a pencil. She loves to make up all sorts of games and fun pretends for the younger member of the family. Everyone should be so lucky as to have a Rosie.

Thomas - Nine and all E. Energetic, enthusiastic, eager, excitable, extroverted, exhilarated and engaged. The only trouble we have with Thomas is that it's hard to keep him busy enough - he has an appetite for life that can be overwhelming! He's been this way ever since he mastered crawling. He was off and the rest is history. Anthony wrote this limerick about Thomas this year.

My brother is energetic

His body is super frenetic

He yells and he jumps

and he gives us all bumps

But Thomas is never pathetic.

This is all true.

Cecilia - Eight. Cece is such a great "smack-dabber". Smack-dab in the middle of the family and always wanting to be part of the team. She is generous, inclusive and positive. We often call her excited, positive, can-do presence, "The Power of Positive-Ce". She has none of her older sister's innate sense of fashion and often rollicks around in outfits that make me question her ability to see colors. And patterns. And cleanliness.

Catherine - 5 going on 30. Probably the most thoughtful and caring person in the house. She is totally normal when it comes to wanting to run with the big kids and "do it myself" and other such developmental standards. What sets her apart in our family is that she is so tuned into how other people are feeling and how her actions effect them. When she throws a fit (which she still does occasionally) she is the only child to offer unprompted apologies and amends. She is our sunshine.

Gloria - 3 and THE BABY. She is well ensconced in her role - having no desire or inclination to reliquish her tyrannical hold on all the people older then her. We do her bidding and she entertains us by singing herself little songs, letting us tickle her and having big beautiful eyes and super long eyelashes.

Love Life - Our Grand Tour

Friday, November 21, 2008