I'm Thinking of Hiring a P.I.

The kids love a good mystery book.  My girls are head over heels for Nancy Drew and Thomas will read just about anything that keeps him guessing at 'Who dunnit?'  I'm not much of one for mysteries, though.  That being said...

Several weeks ago, Friday afternoon found me looking incredulously at the children in my family and wondering if their eating habits had changed and nobody told me.  

It was the pencil can and it was empty.  

No bigs, right?  

Except it kind of was because I'd just filled it with twelve fresh, sharp pencils the previous Monday.

They even had their erasers in tact.  (I know y'all know what I'm talking about.)

The kids looked at me blankly when I asked them where the pencils were.  I sighed and pulled out another pack of fresh pencils.

By the next Friday, they were all gone.  Not a single one to be found come spelling test time.  

"Children, what hast thou done with the pencils?" I inquired.

Five sets of beautiful eyes looked up as me and blinked cluelessly. 

Out came another pack of pencils.  Round and round, ground and ground went the pencil sharpener.  

Guess what?  It's another Friday and another empty pencil can.  

The mystery continues...

The Cheeseball

Daniel.  He's the baby of the family and he knows it.

A couple months ago, he wandered up to me and asked to be allowed to do something he knew I'd say no to and then he pulled this hilarious little face.  He scrunched up his nose, squinted his eyes, and pasted on a fake smile.

I laughed a great big, belly laugh, pulled him up in my lap, smothered him with kisses, and said, "No, Cheeseball."

Since then, he'll do the Cheeseball face on command or according to his whim.  He occasionally pulls the Cheeseball when he's trying to get out of trouble.  He still gets in trouble, but I do have to work harder at being Serious Mama when he gets all comical on me. 

 He's a stinker, but he's my cuddly, chuckle head stinker.

For Christmas, my sweet friend Bethany made him the most awesome super-hero cape.  He loves it and wears it every single day.  He especially loves to pair it with his fireman rain boots. 

While we were at the beach this past fall, my brother-in-law found this little Superman figure in the sand and presented it to Joshua because everyone knows my husband is a Superman.  However, Daniel spied it and once he got his little boy hands on it, he's not let go too many times.  Notice he's actually holding it in the above picture. 

We call Daniel SuperDan.  If you ask him what his superpower is, he'll tell you "Make noise and shoot away!"

These are good days, y'all.  Good, good days. 

Guess What I Got For Christmas?

This poor blog has suffered for nearly nine years from not only a lack of good photography skills, but a lack of a real camera.

Not that the dismal skills have anything to do with the ownership or non-ownership of a camera.  But I'll try to stay on track here.

Guess what I got for Christmas??

(Do you find it ironic that I just took a picture of my snazzy new camera with an iPhone?) 

I'm reveling in my ability to have more and better pictures of my people, even if my skills are sub-amateur.  It makes me happy.  See?  

This is what we call 'The Cheeseball'.  He pulls this face out at any random moment of the day, but generally when he wants something (like a snack or your undivided attention) or wants out of something (like picking up his toys or putting on his pajamas).

Just because he was spinning me a fabulous tale and he's little and it won't last forever.

Still trying to figure out how to take pictures inside without getting all those major shadows.  Got any tips?

We celebrated Anna's 6th birthday a bit late, but the finery knew no bounds.  Her sisters set the table with my grandmother's china and served blueberries and string cheese for snack.

We're pretty proper here - tea parties are a part of our daily life. 

Sarah Grace has an amazing capacity to include this little guy in whatever it is she's doing.  He loves the attention!

The Freeman home hasn't evaded the Frozen epidemic.  These adorbs little hats were made by our sweet friend Angel and they get a TON of wear. 

Kid loves his 'heh-mut'. 

New Year's Eve.  It was late....

She makes kitchen chores entertaining!  A spoonful of sugar, right?

Just a few days before we chopped all her hair off - it was also FREEZING outside!

Hot chocolate.  Because I have a new camera and I can. 

That time it took me two days to think to check her ears when she kept complaining about a sore jaw and neck?  Totally used my essential oils and she bounced back in less than 12 hours.

Little Bits of In The Trenches Truth

It's the end of another day.  It hasn't been a horrid day, but neither will it make my list of Super-Fab Days I Want To Remember Forever.

We had good moments and bad moments and in-between moments.  Quiet moments and loud moments and crying moments and laughing moments.  They all came fast and furious and made up this one little day.

Some days seem to wear on forever and others are over before I know it, but the truth is, all the pages on the calendar fly by and I can barely breath as these years spin away so quickly.

I want to slow the clock.  I want to squeeze every ounce of joy into a bottle and savor it.  I want to remember the rainbows, though I think I want to forget most of the rain.  Not all, because balance is necessary, but fewer memories of days like today would be okay.

There were sassy remarks.

Lots of unkindness and bickering amongst the kids.

A handful of training moments due to not listening the first time.

Plenty of disrespectful moments towards Mama.

Several temper tantrums.

No lack of whiny people (them and me).

Lots of prodding to get through with school.

A few sobs over hurt feelings.

More than enough unthankfulness for what we have so generously been given.

There was one child who was up in my grill All. Day. Long.  Child and I spend a lot of time going in circles with one another.  We miscommunicate as our primary language, we get on each others nerves, we just struggle with one another on so many points.

It's hard.  I love Child with all my heart.  Child makes me laugh, amazes me with abilities, and is a cuddle bug (all my kids are, and I love this in big ways).  Child is in the moment and tends to not think about how actions in this moment will effect the next moment or the moment two hours down the road.  Child is kindhearted and wants to be of help, but Child will frequently hatch a brilliant-to-them plan that is way off base from my expectations or even my specific directions.

Child is so very capable but needs almost constant monitoring.

And so we dance.  These days that aren't horrible, but just wearing.  Emotionally, physically wearing.  In my mind, Child should be beyond this kind of childishness.

Which is why, among other reasons, Child needs me.  To point out those childish ways.

I'm in the business of raising children into adults. Don't get me wrong: I want to enjoy every single moment of their babyhood, toddlerhood, little person, medium sized kid, adolescence, young adulthood, and any other phase.  Ultimately, though, I want the kid to walk out of my house with a heart for the Lord and confidence in their step and a mind that can think for itself!

I don't have a pretty bow to help wrap up this messy package of thoughts.  I don't have any words of wisdom to share about how we are making the most of these swift days with Big Moments of fun and frustration. 

But I place my faith in a God who is so much bigger than even the Big Moments.  He is faithful to carry us when we wilt and cry out to Him.  When we hide under the covers for a few minutes of peace, He gives us the courage to come out again and carry on His work with His children that He has entrusted to us. 

I know it's okay to have All the Feelings about today.  I know that our entire family is being refined every day.  And I know I'm thankful that He loves us enough to change us for the better. 

And tomorrow?  Tomorrow I get to wake up to a fresh day full of His promises.  Tomorrow we dance again.