Pictures of You- The Momma

January 31, 2010 by Rieshy


Last Friday I posted a memory I had about being with my mother in Italy when I was 14. I looked and looked through my parent's photo albums to find a picture of my mother and me to include. I discovered that there are hardly any pictures at all of my mom during my teen years.

It made me look through my photo albums. I have teens, more specifically; I have teen girls. Someday they might want to remember what I looked like. I wondered what I would find. Nope, hardly anything.

I know why. I'm always fussing at my husband or children not to include me in whatever photos they are taking. Usually because I don't have makeup on- or my hair's a mess, or I'm in raggedy yoga pants.

Hmmmm. Either I am terribly vain or I am a habitual slob. Even worse, perhaps I am terribly vain and a habitual slob...

My mother died when she was 54. I don't have any more chances to get her photo. But I do have time to let my photo be taken- no matter how I look.

Anyone need to join me in a new photo-philosophy? If so, throw away raggedy yoga pants and smile for your personal paparazzi.




Also check out this new meme I just found called Making Your Home Sing Monday.


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More Southern Snow Days

by Rieshy
We've been "snowed in" southern-style all weekend. Southern-style simply means that we got 3 inches of snow with a layer of ice on top- literal icing.

My children have had a blast- except for this guy who, at 37 pounds, did not weigh enough to sink through the crust of ice. I'm re-naming him Legolas.


This next picture is purely to show off Legolas' hat. This is one of the first things I spun years ago on my Kromski spinning wheel. Ignore the fact that I knit it before I knew how to make stripes match-up in the round.

This was shot was right before he slipped, yet again for the last time. "Bad snow."


The snow and ice meant we didn't have to worry about our bikes being stolen, not that we ever do. Notice the man-in-black. He's tough.


This morning I asked 2 year old if he liked playing in the snow yesterday. He answered, "I fall down, and down, and down."

I think that's a, "No."


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Boys2men

January 29, 2010 by Rieshy


This is a photo of noise. It makes me smile. Forget the ripped pants, no males were injured in the making of this photo, just eardrums.

This is what happens when 15 yo sister decides to be musically retro and play Queen's, "Another One Bites the Dust."


Right after dinner is spastic time at my house; add a strong drumbeat and I get to watch my 4 boys jump on each other. Even the 2 year old can hold his own.

Weird. Noisy. Fun. Not for the faint of heart.


Linked to Feel Good Friday.


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13 Blessings

January 28, 2010 by Rieshy
I'm tired, fuzzy brained and somewhat random. I wasn't going to do Thankful Thursday this week because it's been a long week- a week made longer by my 2 year old's stomach virus.

However, as I switched the coffee maker on I realized that listing my thanks for this week would be good exercise for my sleepy brain, and a great way to turn my personal dial away from the cranky setting- yes, I'm still analog.

I'm thankful:
  1. for fresh coffee
  2. for a dishwasher that is so quiet I can hear my family talk while it runs
  3. for disposable diapers (see above mentioned stomach virus)
  4. that my son is doing well, getting better and didn't require a hospitalization
  5. for the fact that no one else in the family seems to have gotten sick- I could tap dance on the roof over that! (if I could tap dance, and if I could actually get on my roof)
  6. for my new schedule- We were able to keep the house running smoothly even though I've been up all night checking blood sugars and temperatures on little ones since Monday
  7. for my husband- he's just generally wonderful, and works so hard- plus, I like the way he smells
  8. for raw corn starch (not as random as it looks- it's given as a preventative for hypoglycemia)
  9. for fresh milk from a friend's cow
  10. for my friends that brought us an enormous box of chocolate, I mean mongo-enormous.
  11. that my big kids are funny, helpful and interesting people
  12. that every time I come home from an errand my little ones treat me like I'm a returning hero
  13. to the blogger (I can't remember who or I'd put a link to her great post) who blogged about this passage: "My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:9




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Attending Church Services With Toddlers

January 27, 2010 by Rieshy
I've had a baby or toddler in tow for basically 18 years straight now. Even though all my children have learned to sit quietly in church services pretty quickly, services with small ones is not exactly restful or conducive to deep personal "spiritual" participation.

Even the best behaved babies spit up, have ill-timed diapers or need to nurse. Toddlers wiggle, want to play with your hands, hair, bracelet. Small children fall asleep against you, tugging your neckline down so that you spend 2 verses of a song trying to tug it back up without waking them. Notebooks get dropped, older kids need help finding passages.

All of this of course happens after the morning rush of getting everyone dressed and fed and out the door- "No I don't know where your other black shoe is- quick someone go back in the house and grab the nail clippers so I can clip 5 yo's disgusting nails on the way!"

Sometimes it's just a long and dusty work regardless of how insightful the sermon or beautiful the singing. The corporate worship and fellowship aspects aside, I've often found myself wondering why? What am I getting out of services?

One answer was given me yesterday.

Any mother dreads stomach viruses. They can spread like wild fire through the family, wiping out weeks of productivity. Almost everyone has one kid who seems incapable of making it to the bathroom. Ick. I especially dread stomach viruses because my two youngest have a metabolic disorder and a stomach virus can trigger a metabolic de-compensation.

My 2 year old got sick yesterday. His first stomach virus. How will he do? It's almost not a matter of if, but when and to whom this sweet, coughing, runny nose, feverish, kiss-giving toddler will share the virus. Will it be to his 3 year old, more fragile brother?

I was getting dressed when I felt a balloon of panic fill my chest. Visions of two babies in the hospital at the same time- all sorts of scenarios started rushing past my mind's eye.

Then, out of the past 18, often dusty years of church, came the words of a hymn. A hymn I don't even like. The balloon popped; panic was replaced by the words, "The battle belongs to the Lord".


The power of darkness comes in like a flood
The battle belongs to the Lord
He's raised up a standard, the power of His blood
The battle belongs to the Lord

We sing glory and honor Power and strength to the Lord
We sing glory and honor Power and strength to the Lord
by Jamie Owens-Collins

The words don't mean that the stomach virus will instantly disappear. But they do remind me that Christ has already won the ultimate victory; I'll lean on him, and that's enough. In the meantime I'll get to enjoy cuddling the above mentioned 2 year old, who is usually far too busy to cuddle.

I guess I've been getting more out of services than I realized.






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Monkey See, Monkey Do Knife Tricks?

January 25, 2010 by Rieshy
Imagine a relatively quiet house. I am hiding in the dining room enjoying the last cookie and a cup of tea. My brain slips away...

Commotion from the direction of the kid's bathroom. I can hear 2 year old being evicted. His company was not desired during 13 year old's bath.

I tune everything out and mentally vacate to an age where I could be wearing an elegant morning gown, sipping tea out of bone china while my cook awaits the evening menu.

Commotion again. I can see 2 year old stomping into the kitchen like a man on a mission. He angrily opens the cutlery drawer.

Whoa, this is not part of my ideal 1790's daydream. I follow unobtrusively as he marches with his newly acquired butter knife back to the bathroom door. Once there he deftly inserts knife into the keyhole and begins to unlock the door.

Commotion yet again. Sounds of the 2 year old trying to resume his conversation with 13 year old sister, squeals of outrage from said 13 year old, gasping sounds of momma trying to hide her laughter.

Obviously every-time I've had to jimmy an accidently locked interior door, a monkey has been watching.



This is part of Steady Mom's 30 minute challenge. This post took 27 minutes and several ginger cookies.
I'm so grateful that God made mothering such a surprising and ever-funny field of endeavor. Check out Gratituesday for more reasons to smile.
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Let Sleeping Dogs and Children....

January 24, 2010 by Rieshy
*Napping at 2:00 in the afternoon because...


At 4:00 a.m. the above sleeping-sweetie and his 2 year old brother tried to throw a party. None of the other invitees, including me, were happy.

Little brother is so tired this afternoon because of last night's soiree that he's uncertain which way is down.


Because of their metabolic disorder I can't allow either of the night revelers to take an extra long nap. I have to wake them to make sure they eat on time.

When my boys can't sleep, and want to drink and drink and drink at night, and are full of restless energy it usually means they are coming down with a regular, everyday toddler illness; which is stressing their already fragile metabolic system.

We have to work to keep them from developing life-threatening hypoglycemia- thus no late mornings or long naps. So at our house, sleeping dogs may lie but children have to wake up and eat cookies.

I think I'll join them...



*I've had some questions recently about what our sons' illness means on a day to day basis. So I thought I'd try to occasionally post some glimpses of normal daily life with my children's version of FODs.

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