The White Trash Project

We've wanted to have chickens since we found out we were moving up here*. It was going to be a spring project; a reward for surviving the winter. But Joel's boss came into some chickens he didn't want and we're now the proud owners of 4 laying hens.

That's the fun part. The other "fun" part was the building of the coop. Much like my meatloaf recipe for disaster, here are is the blueprint for our white trash chicken coop project.

Day 1: Joel's boss man offers us some free chickens!
Find out we have a week to build a coop.
Dream up amazing plans.
Calculate cost of said amazing plans to be about $600.

Day 2: Go with Micah and Grandpa to TSC to find out pre-manufactured coop is $150.
Reality check with Andrea; many have a monthly salary of less than that amount.
I can (and should) build coop from scrap lumber. After all, what if we hate chickens?

Day 3: Bad day at home. No progress.

Day 4: Grandma Fank arrives! No progress.

Day 5: Silas' Birthday!
Draw up new (simple, realistic) blue print on piece of cardboard.
Debbie and I set to work cutting chicken wire and lumbar.
Chicken run is completed.
Base of coop is established.
Liza's nose gets possibly broken.

The nearly final product; decorative trim, window frames and flower boxes will be added.

Day 6: Pressure is on.
Liza dumps out nails in gravel.
Micah runs off with tape measure in trunk of tricycle.
Silas runs into Liza with his bike.
Micah runs into Silas with his tricycle.
Boys are banished to basement.
Hammer, measure, hammer, saw, pry nails out of mistake, re-hammer.
Liza dumps out other box of nails.
Debbie leaves.

Day 7: Coop comes together.
Hinges are added to doors.
Silas knocks over can of red paint on carport floor.
Coop is set up on stand.
Realize there is no way for chickens to get to chicken run from coop.
Chickens come TOMORROW.

Day 8: Doors and locks are installed.
Stand is leaning severely so we attach braces.
I stare at the run for 30+ minutes; must figure out how to attach it to the coop.
Micah has fever.
Joel and I argue whether we can do any more projects together ever again.

Tree, Henny Penny and Coffee-Pot-Ouch-Face

Day 8 post-nap: Straw is placed in nesting boxes and tools are gathered off the coop floor.
Joel and Silas arrive with 4 hot, smelly, squawking chickens.
Minty Maize Ruff Ruff drools and barks threateningly.
I get poo on my leg while trying to shoosh MMRR with my foot and balance crate with my hands. Hens are named: Tree, Coffee Pot Ouch Face, Henny Penny and Henrietta.
We realize we need a chicken yard.
Micah throws up.
A friend and I take my 26th trip to Lowes find line of demarcation between beast and foul.

The inside of the coop with nesting boxes and roosts designed to educate hens about measuring, math and hiking; Henrietta is not a permanent fixture. In fact, it's my best guess that she'll be the first to go, one way or another...

Day 9: line of demarcation is 4 panels to short.
Take 27th trip to Lowes before Joel leaves for work.
Move chickens to run.
Give chickens water.
Get pecked and scratched by Henrietta on the way.
Line up fence panels.
Give chickens water.
Hammer stakes in ground.
Carry all children inside for crying too much.
Give chickens water.
Decide a hanging water-er might be handy since chickens knock water over so much.
Finish fence just before supper.
Let chickens out; they are finally happy.
Open door to coop at dusk; girls happily go inside on their own.***

14 of Micah's 100 mosquito bites he got while watching the chickens come out of the run for the first time. Now a shirt must also be worn in addition to shoes when entering the chicken yard.

Day 10:First thing a.m.: gather eggs.
Calculate the cost per egg-- $76.67**
White Trash Project well under way.

The chicken run has been placed where the wire fence STILL doesn't meet the privacy fence.The scenic compost bin is in the background with what's left of the chicken coop paint resting safely on top.

*Actually, I've wanted chickens all my life. As a little girl, I can remember feelings of confusion when my mom described how she didn't want to play with the chickens at her grandma's farm.
**This amount could be $26.67/egg if you don't count the cost of the fence which we can use for other things if the chickens don't work out.
***By far, this is the greatest thing about having chickens. Four little somethings going to bed without a fuss; many of you will know how special this is.

Since the good ole days of July 2010

I just heard Joel say to Silas "Well, when somebody poops on the floor, somebody has to clean it up."

Other than that, here is a quarterly update.

JULY
Sorry, I don't remember much. I think I helped Andrea build a tree house. I definitely ate cookies at her house several times. We had the great Family Vacation at the Poteets. We moved out of our LR house. We had to fill in a bunch of holes in the back yard and replace all the screens on the back yard windows. Other than vacation, July was such a sad month for me when I thought of leaving our dear friends and family behind.

AUGUST
1. We moved in. We love our new house. Only a dozen boxes remain to be unpacked. House highlights include a flat-ish drive way for riding bikes, a huge back lot with the perfect climbing tree and gardening plot, good basement space for my Y3K supply of food, a grassy, landscaped yard with few enough weeds that we haven't had to mow much. This is great since our lawnmower blade didn't survive the metal in the LR backyard. Also, grandma and grandpa Weaver live 5 blocks away and around the bend!
2. Joel started his new job. He loves it. Call nights are a joke compared to residency's. They make us happy.
3. We finished the bunk bed project. It's sturdy enough that if you bump your head, it really hurts. It hasn't improved bedtime behavior. It does provide hours of fun.
4. We visited the peach orchard a couple times. I've never had local apples or peaches. AMAZING. And if you come visit, I've got pies, crisps and tarts ready to be thawed and baked...

SEPTEMBER
1. Silas turned 5! He had a great birthday. Grandma Fank came all the way from Ft. Worth. He said school (MDO) was "awesome" and loved everything he ate all day long. The next day, we went to a corn maze to celebrate. Everyone picked out a pumpkin. According to the tractor driver, they were planted too early, but what do I know about that? My pumpkin vines died from rain and dogs.
2. We started school. Not mothers-day-out, mind you, but home school. So far, the boys have really done well with listening and following directions. Unfortunately, Liza is not invited anymore. She gets to spend some quality time with her pacifier ("hassy") and her toys in her bed. Silas' review of home schooling is as follows, "It's not as fun as my other school," referring to MDO, "they have better crafts and lots of fun toys to play with."
3. We decided which church we'll attend. We'll be joining the small, Saturday-night Mosaic crowd at the local non-Baptist mega-church. We've only been a couple times but feel excited about where God is leading this church and are glad to join in.

Now a couple of people specific brief updates:

Silas loves the freedom to come in and out of the house. Our street is very quiet and several of the neighbors are retired so we have spent some time getting to know them.

Micah accuses his teachers at church in front of them every week of not letting him color pictures. Since every other kid comes home with a picture, and the teacher looks confused and embarrassed every time, we think Micah may be a bit on the dramatic/imaginative side. He also catches spiders who go to the circus, juggle while riding the ferris wheel, bite him, hate cereal, etc. etc. Last week, he finally stopped telling me he wanted to move back to our old house.

Liza is an amazing, non-stop, talking human being. She, like Micah, has her quirks. I find them both endearing and intolerable. She calls me "Alice." She wants to sit in every chair at the tall table at every meal. She cannot bear to have the buckles on her booster seat unbuckled.

Joel is busy studying for his pediatric board exam. He took the internal medicine one a couple weeks ago and says he's sure he got an "A" but won't know until January. When he isn't studying, he takes the children on searches to find the perfect park.

I'm starting to feel settled. I love that Grandma Weaver comes to visit me every day. She's really been an encouragement with the kids. She's also a wealth of knowledge about gardening, preserving fresh fruit, and keeping things simple. She and Grandpa both have been very helpful of what I've dubbed "the white trash project". It's almost done and will be the topic of the soon-to-be next post. It involves scrap lumber, various nails and screws and, hold your breath- poultry.

Liza, after the truck tail-gate-on-the-nose incident

My hair cut (for Amy V. who doesn't use facebook)

"Three Children in Kitchen Window Seat Overlooking Birdbath"

My sister Sara -who graciously helped us with the move- amongst the boxes

the Young and the Wrestling

I'm really thankful for friends who remind me that my success as a parent shouldn't be weighed by the outcome.

There have been some great outcomes recently. I'm nearly ready to label Liza's Project BigBed a success. Silas has been wearing underwear without being asked. Micah uses the potty 94% of the time. All of these things happen when I'm home with them.
Could someone else be doing this? Sure.
But it's me.

This week I found out that both Silas and Micah spent time in time-out at MOPs. This is Silas' second week in a row to get into trouble under another's supervision. This week, Silas told me it was because he and Micah were pretending to "fight like a baby" and another little boy got knocked over. Then all this happened at the pool. We swam for less than 35 minutes before I had to take everyone home. After they had received warnings for dunking, running, pushing, spitting and fighting and then ignored every single one, I made them dry off and go home. I feel all this reflects on my parenting but I'm just not sure what to do about it.

The boys have fun wherever they go. That's good.
Other kids get hurt when they rough house. That's bad.
They are cheerful and enjoy each others company. That's good.
They tune out adult instruction/supervision when they're wrestling. That's bad.

So hear ye this: God alone must be my judge. Not a stranger, not friends or enemies, not myself. I, alice, have typed these things with my own 8 fingers and 2 thumbs. Amen.

Spring has got me feeling all creative (and stuff). Friday night we had this theme dinner:

"Home on the Range"

Menu:

• Eggs-in-a-basket with cowboy hat cut-outs cooked with butter on the range*

• Cowboy hat mini-toasts with strawberry jam

• Sautéed broccoli & carrots with prairie garlic and fresh sage

• Sweet iced cream

Unfortunately no one was allowed to eat ice cream because that was the day Silas and Micah ate all the chocolate before breakfast.

*a cooking stove that has an oven and a flat top with burners or heating elements

A Tale of Two Do-Overs

Do-over One: The Chex-Mix

Joel and I have always been conscious of spending a little time together every day. It's getting harder and harder all the time. The boys are staying awake longer at night and taking shorter naps or no nap at all. I have dreams about the day we have money to pay a baby sitter, or when we're not so brain-dead by the time the children go to bed that we can have a meaningful at-home date time. For now, though, we have settled into a weekly TV routine: Monday- Jack Bauer, Tuesday-LOST, Wednesday-the Middle, Thursday-30Rock, Friday-a netflix movie. Since we got Tivo to record LOST during our small group, we have now added King of the Hill reruns to replace watching the 10 a'clock news. This isn't ideal, I know. But for now, it's the best we can do.

Over time, we've developed a habit of binging on chocolate and junk food once our children are in bed for the night. (Don't try to pretend you don't do it too.) We've even got a special tub that contains a normal stockpile of dark chocolate candy: stuff I bought on clearance at the drugstore after Easter, Valentines, Christmas, etc. Last night we also had shared half a bag of chex mix, I think around 10:00pm.

Somehow, the special tub was left out for a second night in a row.

Before 5am, I woke up to Joel throwing up. At 6:30, I woke up again to giggling in the hallway. At 7:30, I woke up to a chocolate covered face looking at me. At 8:30, I realized not just that the chex mix had been poured out on the carpet, but that my sweet little angels had eaten most of it and turned to what Joel and I have labeled "the artificial children"*.

The "artificial children"s behavior led to Liza waking up early
...which led to TOO fussy at breakfast
...which led to emergency coffee
...which led to facebook
...which led to the waffles being left out
...which led to shooshing the children downstairs to play unattended
...which led to the legos being dumped out on the floor
...which led to the legos being kicked from their point of impact to all 4 corners of the biggest room in our house
...which led to the realization that all the chocolate was gone
...which led us to getting the you-know-what out of the house to the playground
...which led us to getting rained on
...which led to the chic-fil-a playground at 10:40
...which led to the 600 calorie lunch I hadn't planned on eating and the $13 I hadn't planned on spending at 11:00
...which led us home for naps at 12:30
...which led to nap time being over at 2:00
...which led to this blog post
...which led to Micah sticking his fingers through a block of cheese, breaking it off and giving it to Silas
...which I assume will lead to constipation, but you never know.

Do-Over Two: Potty Training

We've waited and waited to feel that Micah was ready for potty training. He told me Wednesday he wanted to use the potty and he's done so ever since. As for "training" on my part, there was none. I'm really, really proud of him! Here's to hoping do-over #3 is just as easy...

*We've been able to identify artificial food coloring as a culprit for some- NOT ALL- unexplained, extraordinarily bad behavior. The FDA agrees with me so if you think I'm just being all kooky, you can stick it.

Dithers

I'm waving my magicians cape all around me as the pyrotechnics display on my brain-stage explodes with sparks of red, white and blue. The music in the background blares "The Final Countdown" by Europe. The final countdown is 6 months.

Somewhere between episodes of "Arrested Development" and the toxic smell of the red paint I washed off the glass door the other day, my mind seems to have gotten cluttered. I've had recurring dreams before but never dreamed of picking up figurines off the floor, turning around and seeing Dora under the table again, staring at me with her creepy/cheery grin and her helmet-head hair. I had this dream 5 times last night!

There's a lot going on around here. The numbers speaking to me in my head won't quiet down so I'm going to write "the list" here in hopes that it will therapeutically sooth my angst and let folks feel sorry for me. They'll say "Poor Alice. At least she had a reason to be committed this time."
------------------

1) Joel is interviewing. He's had several interviews here in Little Rock, one coming up this weekend in Bentonville, and had one in Las Colinas in the DFW metroplex.
2) Joel hasn't been offered a salary starting at $1,000,000 like I had secretly hoped. With my secret plan, we would have paid off his loans, our mortgage, adopted several babies from Ethiopia, taken our new family of 12 on a cruise to Alaska, and then Joel and I would have taken a couples retreat, just the two of us, to an all-inclusive resort on the French Riviera.
3) Joel has to register for state-specific peds/medicine boards by February. This means a decision DEADLINE!
4) Silas turned 4 in September. He will need some sort of K4 education if he's ever going to make it into Yale.
5) Micah turned 3 just 2 days ago. He needs to be potty trained if he's ever going to make it into Yale.
6) Liza will be 3 in 1 year and 11 months. If we're going to adopt a baby by the time she's 3, we've got to get some paperwork going stat.
7) Minty Maize Ruff Ruff needs to be spayed so we don't have to send 11 puppies with her to doggy school whenever we have the money for her to go.
8) Our children keep trying to ride Lewis. Lewis keeps biting our children. This is all one big problem.
9) Rice Krispies Treats are just too delicious for me to ever be able to lose weight for Garrett's wedding.
10) I got a new camera for Christmas and have been taking lots of pictures. But I forget to get the card reader out of the disaster room before Micah goes in there to take a nap every day. By the time he wakes up, I've forgotten about uploading pictures. I'm starting to feel a great deal of guilt about this.

OK, thanks for listening. See you for my next session in a couple days.

the Shot Party

October 29, 2009
This is recorded for posterity sake. The Influenza Swineus Pandemic of 2009 will long be remembered by the thousands that stood in line at one of the mass flu shot clinics in Little Rock. I was one of them.

I have been unable to decide whether the worst part of the morning long ordeal was the three and a half hour wait, or the fact that I left my coffee in the minivan, or that by the time we left, I was less than %100 sure that we had even received that right vaccines.

Imagine, if you will, hundreds of people standing in line, in the rain. Now add at least one preschooler per adult. Now imagine a long, mall-like hallway with various tables and signs set up as you make your way towards your desired injection. It sort of reminded me of Frodo, Legolas, Gandolf, and Gimli making their way through the Mines of Moria, except instead of elves and dwarves as my companions, I had my three children under four years, and Jennifer my neighbor and her two children, ages three and one. Instead of a magical ring to rule them all and in the darkness bind them, I had BOB Duallie: The stroller to end all strollers. I tried not to run over other children and mothers, but there were too many people, not enough space and accidents do happen.

This was, of course, after we got in the doors. We arrived at 8:10am, a little less than an hour before the clinic was to open. We had armed ourselves with Krispy Kreme doughnuts, Jennifers laptop for movies, a hot potato game, bird house crafts, stickers, markers, and other snacks. Few of these were used, however, since the first hour and fifteen minutes were spent in the rain. Once we got through the doors, we could actually see the tables with coolers and those red medical biohazard bins! But it would be another two hours before we actually got our shots. So, we built the bird houses, we colored them with markers. We chided the boys for trying to push the black divider curtains over. I didn't like it when another mom said I was a virtual Martha Stuart. "I'll show YOU Marth Stuart" I wanted to say. Marth Stuart went to prison, you know. Since there were police around, I kept my cool instead of starting a riot.

The fun just kept going. We were shuffled to a folding table to hand over our paperwork. Micah kept trying to draw on his face with a read marker and Silas was coughing incessantly, a symptom of a bad upper respiratory virus, over which Joel had warned that health care workers might try to deny him a vaccine. After the lady at the table handed us a pile of paperwork three times the size I had originally given her, we stood in yet another line. After another 20 minutes or so, we were nearly through the gauntlet when...

**Twenty-four hours of reflection on the event has lead me to believe that what happened next was quite appropriate. KATV news was there to report on all the people getting shots. It makes sense; it really was a spectacle something akin to three-ring circus. And what what more news worthy than a mom hauling her three kids through the rain and masses to get shots?**

...the news reporter asked if she could film the kids getting their shots and interview me. She asked "Are all these yours?! And they're all under four?!" Thus I and my children were on the 5:00 news. I think I might have enjoyed this part a little bit except that I had been standing in the rain and wearing the same clothes I practically slept in. Plus with my three children four and under, I thought surely people would think I didn't understand how to use birth control. Now imagine a mom -looking perhaps like a wet mother cat dragging her wet rowdy kittens- being followed around by a camera and news crew.

When we finally sat down to get our shots, the six people at our station had difficulty remembering that we were getting H1N1 shots, as well as seasonal flu shots. They had to consult with one another whether they could do two different shots at one table and then when they finally decided, they had to track down seasonal flu shots for us. Jennifer and her kids, as well as a few other friends I saw there, had been lead to multiple destinations for single shots. Oh, and never mind that all our kids have to get yet another dose of the H1N1 vaccine to have the most effective immunity!

In the end, I couldn't help but think about how simple this clinic should have been. It was inefficient and confusing to patients as well as staff. (This is my plug for NO GOVERNMENT HEALTH CARE). I think that giving birth was less complicated and faster than getting these shots!

To sum up: we got the shots. Hopefully we won't get the flu. But I think next year we might just risk it.

The Job of Being Human

Here's a list of household rules I've compiled. The consequences for breaking the rules change as needed. Some of them are listed and some are not; but make no mistake- there will be consequences. 

1. you may not ask “why” when  cleaning up

2. no hitting when you’re angry

3. when you start to grit your teeth, you have to go outside and run

4. no squealing as a means of communication

5. no punching through the peapod

6. no feeding Liza food unless directed by a mother or father

7. camping lantern may be turned on at nap time only

8. legos are for rest time only, and only if you’re 4

9. nap time is 2 hours, non-negotiable. Unless you’re 4

10. if you throw food, you don’t get dessert

11. if you throw food twice, you don’t get to finish your meal

12. mom must finish her coffee before she can do anything fun

13. no crafts before breakfast

14. we are ALWAYS gentle to animals and babies

15. when  playing “chase jet chase” or "chase jet car chase” you may not  hit in the face

16. when  standing in a chair to help cook, you wait for directions

17. when someone is standing in a chair next to you, you never push them off

18. when someone is standing in a chair, you may not try to stand in the same chair

19. we don’t jump on beds because that’s one way boys can break their arms.

20. you may jump off the back of the couch, but you may not stand on it for any other reason

21. the couches in the living room are for sitting only

22. you have to have on underwear before you can watch “Dinosaur Train” 

23. if you hurt your brother or sister more than twice in 15 minutes, either by accident or on purpose, you get a restraining order issued against you and you  may not be in the same room as that person or in extreme cases, you may not be on the same floor level

24. if you say your memory verse without any help, you get a milk shake

25. if you don't make a fuss at the door at MDO, you get a surprise in your car seat or booster seat when picked up

26. all toys must be picked up in the play room before playing with play dough

27. don't drink bath water 

28. don't eat sand, waffles off the floor, anything off the van floor, dead dried bugs, live bugs, berries from the yard, and don't ever, EVER even put anything from the creek in your mouth

29. bottles may not be used as baseball bats

30. toys for playing "snowball snowball get" must be soft toys

31. if you throw dinosaur goo, I will use your precious blanket to clean it up

32. if you hit your brother or sister with your precious blanket, I will put your precious blanket in my closet until nap time or bed time

33. until you can afford it replace it if it breaks, no touching the computer

34. we all help clean the kitchen after meals

35. we all help clean up toys 

36. we all help get ready to host small group on Tuesday nights

38. if we eat at the hospital, you must be compliant or you don't get jell-o 

39. I provide many things for you to play with but you are responsible for your own fun

40. if you  break something, I may be sad, but I will not be angry if you tell me before I find out on my own

41. if you pull the curtains out the wall again, you will not be allowed to play in the living room for the rest of your childhood

So I realize I'm a mean mom. But it's my hope that these rules, and maybe a couple I left out, will help our children become compassionate, initiating, responsible people who have fun and love freely because they understand their boundaries.

The Things We Hope Will Last (and pictures from this summer)

It's official that in less than 9 months that Joel will finish his residency and right now we're a little worse for wear. For example, the "L" button is missing on our laptop, the only computer we've had since the beginning of Joel's second year of medical school. We recently got a new modem only to find out that it did not solve our ever slowing internet access. We don't think this computer will make it through the year. When it dies, you can expect a new post sometime in July 2010. 

I don't think we can handle anymore home repairs. We just bought some nice $400 springs so we can open our garage door again. Minty Maizy Ruff Ruff has been trying to abolish the window sill outside our kitchen and I'm pretty sure she'll attempt to chew the cable wires so that we won't be able to watch our 12 channels on TV anymore.

A couple other things that have suffered wear and tear over the last 3 years: all but one of our fish have now met their maker, the dryer makes an abominable sound, 3 out of the 6 chairs at our kitchen table have collapsed under someone's weight, and the light that comes on when you open the garage door hasn't illuminated our comings and goings for about 2 years.

Minty Maizy Ruff Ruff: our newest family member has joined Sabrina as an "outside only" pet

The boys and Garrett, the neighbor, painting gold nuggets for Silas' 4th birthday party

Baby Liza (not pictured: her one tooth)

But among all these things that are destined pass are many that shall not. I think we're going to come out of these 4 years, not unscathed, but like having passed through a fire of sorts. Even a month ago I questioned what a future for Joel and I would like, thinking maybe our testing would result in our being burnt to a crisp. But up from the ashes we're rising to new heights. We're learning to trust and love one another on a deeper level that we didn't know before. We're learning that it's better to have a marriage that matters to one another than to have a marriage that looks great to every body else.

I got a hair cut

In the lives of our children, we're leaning to let go of many things. We no longer grieve our inability to provide the safest carseats possible, or the toys whose manufacturers would have us believe would make our children brilliant. We're learning to care less about how we appear as parents and more about how our children appear to the Lord; that for now, we're fully responsible for that.

Trying to keep Silas and Micah from spoiling in the heat

Liza is a crawling machine

We've learned that to live a life without the Lord would be the worst possible thing that could happen to our children.  May we do our best to both model the love of a warm God- not just tolerating our presence- but delighting in every choice that actively moves us towards him. And may we prevent as many accidents possible, especially the ones involving diaper rash cream and carpet or broken bones and stitches. 

Shooting the breeze after a fast game of "chase jet chase"

Not Because You Told Me To

But thanks for the reminder to post anyway. And no, there are no pictures. Things happen slowly around here and I forget to take pictures. Or sometimes I remember and I can't find the camera. And to be honest, there have been a handful of days recently that I simply don't want to commemorate. 

I'm hoping that the worst of it has passed now. By using my new mantra "I only have to outlast them by one more than they've got" here's the good we've accomplished as of tonight:

1) it's 8:15 and everyone is asleep, or at least they're quietly laying in their beds.

2) the toys have been picked up 5/6 nights this week.

3) Micah's 2-year-old screaming tantrums have become confined to the time-out chair.

4) no one has thrown food at a meal in a very long time.

Still in progress: no hitting, biting, throwing toys, putting fingers in Liza's mouth, getting up at 6:30 in the morning, jumping on the beds, yelling during prayer time, pulling up vegetables before they've had a chance to produce, jumping off the back of the couch, pouring water on their brother's head, drinking from the water in the sand box, emptying soap into the bath tub, pouring a bowl full of pennies on the carpet, standing on the table in the hallway, holding down the water button on the refrigerator until there's so much water I need a beach towel to clean it up, hitting glass doors with t-ball bats...I could go on...

But it's quiet now and I'm shooting for 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep tonight. Time to get that going.

Weigh-In

Something I know everyone has laid awake at night thinking about: what foods do Joel and Alice like to eat? Great news for you- you'll now be able to go to sleep a little earlier because...

Joel and I have created a scale from 1-10. We each have a scale, but for the most part they're close enough that for publishing purposes, I've combined them. Some examples are included for clarification as well as occasional reference.

1- the worst food I've ever tasted. I will avoid this food at all costs. Example: natto*

2- I hate it, but I could choke it down if I had to. Examples: peas (J) raw onions (a)

3- I would eat it if served to me only. Examples: roast (J) dry chicken (a)

4- I wouldn't order it in a restaurant or anything but I would not complain. Example: green beans (J) 

5- I don't like or dislike. Examples: apple pie (J) rice (a)

6- I am sometimes in the mood to eat it. Example: broccoli  

7- I will sometimes ask for it. Example: spaghetti (J)

8- I will ask for it regularly. Examples: crackers (J)  Chic-Fil-A (a)

9- I like it a whole lot. Example: chocolate chips, nuts, dried fruit

10- The best food I've ever tasted and I would like it on my birthday. Examples: brownies (J) steak, chocolate truffles, twice baked potatoes, red beans and rice, chocolate chip cookie bars, cherry turn overs, crescents, fair-trade medium-dark roasted coffee with cream and sugar, hot chocolate, chocolate peanut butter bars, christmas cookies with peppermint icing, french bread with butter, summer tomato-basil tart with mozzarella, powder sugar doughnuts, cherry toaster streudels, cheese pizza, fresh tamales with jalapeños, Velveeta shells and cheese with broccoli, green salad with artichokes and blue cheese dressing, stuffed figs with prosciutto, etc., etc., etc (A). It's amazing I don't weigh 1000 lbs. 

*a traditional Japanese food made from fermented soybeans

Quirky

Liza was 12 weeks old yesterday. She is a really fun baby. Here's why:

1. Her favorite activity is to talk and laugh. 

2. She likes to play in her bouncy seat. 

3. She likes to look at her mobile go around and around and around.

4. Though she looks surprised every time, she's always happy in the bath. 

5. Silas and Micah are very interesting to her, probably because of all the noise they make.

6. In good Fank fashion, she loves to be outside, even when it's cold (but not windy).

The traditional "sack of potatoes" hold 

Liza also has some quirks. In fact, she is the most peculiar baby I've ever know. As you know, she's had colic. Frustrating, but normal. Here are the not-so-normal-drive-me-crazy little tid-bits about her:

1. won't sleep in a bed*

2. doesn't like to wear hats

3. doesn't like to nurse on my left side

4. doesn't like to nurse under a blanket

5. occasionally won't nurse at all

6. doesn't tolerate milk products in my diet

7. has no predictable sleeping schedule, unlike her brothers at this same age**

Sitting in the bouncy seat outside

*We haven't actually tried to put her in a bed in about 6 weeks. After the colic set in, we did whatever we could to get her to sleep, and keep her asleep. This meant sleeping in her car seat or swing, where she currently sleeps. In the next couple of weeks, we'll probably start the transition to the pack and play.

**This is most likely related to the colic as well.

POST LOGUE:

Liza is now 14 weeks old. We have still not attempted to put her in a bed to sleep. She is, however, taking 3 regular naps and goes to bed at about the same time every night. Almost all of these bedtimes occur with little or no crying! But please, don't bother asking me if she's "sleeping through the night". That's all relative now. 

Mega-saucing: the "new" Liza

Intriguing Bible Lessons

Here's the bedtime conversation between Joel and Silas:

Silas:  "I was faithful at church today!"

Joel:  "Oh?  What does faithful mean?"

Silas: "It means you bake someone a birthday cake on their birthday..."

Joel: "Oh, that's nice.  What else could you do that is nice?"

Silas: "Gordon was nice when he pulled Thomas out from the smoke and fire..."

Joel: "You're right.  What could you do that is nice?"

Silas: "I could pull Micah out from a puddle when a snake drags him in."

Joel:  "You're right.   You probably could do that."

Yes, we're teaching our children lessons with an exceedingly limited scope.

2009 Winter Games

Today, Silas and Micah have been playing together more than fighting. 

This morning, while climbing inside the vacuum cleaner box (we finally got a new vacuum cleaner), Silas said, "Mom, you can be Mary, Micah can be Jesus, and I can be the newborn baby and I'll sleep in the baby manger. Liza can be the Angel." He then closed himself inside the "baby manger". 

Since then, Liza has napped in the swing while the boys ride their bikes around the dining room table, with an occasional break to bake cookies in their kitchen. Come over to try some. They have sugar, oil, broccoli, powdered sugar and syrup in them.

No Country For Old Men

I've sat down to update our blog about 4 times since the last post. Each time, the boys squabbled over a toy, Liza spit out her pacifier, Micah asked me to open the door on a toy that has a door, Liza spit out her pacifier again, Silas needed his pants buttoned and zipped, the phone rang, Micah asked me to open the door on a toy that has a door again, Liza needed to eat, Liza needed help going back to sleep, Micah bit Silas, Silas pushed Micah into a wall, Joel came home, a friend brought us supper and wanted to meet Liza, Liza needed help going back to sleep again after meeting the friend, Liza spit out her pacifier...and now I need to help put train tracks together. 

I guess you're pretty  much updated on life over here.

Elizabeth Hope

Liza was born on Saturday, November 29 at 5:52am. It was a (nearly too) quick and mostly uncomplicated delivery. She weighed 6 lbs and 14 oz and is 20 inches long. She's a very sweet girl and likes to eat every 4 hours for an entire hour each feeding.

Silas and Micah have loved having her home. So far, Silas has taught Liza that fire is hot and you shouldn't touch it. Micah has given her very gentle kisses and likes to try to share his milk from his sippy cup with her. He's also interested in seeing what will happen if shakes paper in her face. It will be interesting to see whether she learns to sleep with all the noise or rather learns to function with less sleep. With her parents on either side of the spectrum, she could go either way.

The New Baby

If you ask me if she's been born yet, I'm going to lie to you and tell you yes.

A Quick Growing-up Update

It's officially fall at our house. You can tell because 1) Silas and Micah are fully clothed in 3/4 of the pictures in this post and 2) everyone looks so happy. It's been an eventful season so far and there's still so much more to come. 

Here are the highlights: after a quick trip the hospital 3 weeks ago and medication for pre-term labor ever since, new baby will be 35 weeks gestational age on Friday! It's been really difficult to try to be still during this time but the state of our house and the amount of laundry that needs to be folded and put away will attest that I'm at least not tending those chores. It's sort of like an alternating workout: most people choose between a cardio workout or focus on a specific muscle group for that day. Mine has been choosing between cleaning the kitchen that day or doing a load of laundry. I've vacuumed the upstairs once, the downstairs once, and the middle floor once. Twice in the last three weeks I've picked up toys. 
Micah has been talking more and more. He's really fun to listen to, especially at meal times. This is good because otherwise I would probably be frustrated with him all the time. He's a VERY picky eater and even the food he loves (that is, bananas), he eats very little of. Micah has also learned to run, is trying to jump, and really likes to try to throw himself down the stairs when I'm holding his hand. I think he has no idea there's a baby coming and I'm a little worried about how he'll take it. When I'm sitting down he likes to be in my lap or in my face. It's lovable for certain; it won't be as easy when I'm trying to nurse a newborn.
Silas is getting bigger and bigger. When I see him, I don't see "my first baby" anymore. He's doing things like buttoning his own shirts and catching fish with a fishing pole. He's started play fighting and wrestling with his buddies, and "shooting" at pesky mice and dinosaurs in our backyard with whatever stick, pine cone or rock he can find that reminds him of a weapon. Friends with boys said this would happen with or without exposure to violence. They were right. No one uses guns on Sesame Street or Thomas the Train. 
Hopefully we'll get some good pictures of Halloween this year. You may experience some deja vu when you see what Silas wants to be...I can't wait. Then it's the baby (or Thanksgiving with the Fanks), then Christmas...

Where is the time going?

No Turning Back Now

After going on vacation for the first time as a family, I don't think we'll ever stop planning for the next one. What a wonderful week! It was much needed after Joel's work schedule in August and I think I'll be drawing strength from its memories this week as we now tackle what I believe to be the most emotionally difficult task yet: Silas and Micah are giving up the pacifiers.

Dreading bed time. The boys are now asleep after a combined 1 1/2 hours of crying.

 Micah and Silas with their special animals that we got today since they're working so hard to overcome their addiction. Silas picked out a dinosaur that he named "T-Rex" and Micah liked the monkey best. The monkey's name is "Coke, Coke, Banana," one of Micah's favorite sayings.

The Great Vacation of 2008 was a huge success. With 8 adults, 3 3-year-olds and 4 1-year-olds all sharing a beach house, I didn't expect to enjoy myself as much as I actually did. Sure, a couple of times there were people in my way when I needed my morning coffee, and there was certainly a squabble or two over sharing toys. And then there was the arsenic hour in which all children between the ages of 0 and 35 get fussy just before dinner is ready. But everyone was gracious and patient toward one another and I know I'm better for it.

Despite this precious picture, Micah actually seemed to hate the beach until the day we left.

At the National Naval Aviation Museum with JG, Ava and Abbi

Learning how to fish

 

Silas and Andrew at Fort Morgan

Finally, if you're still reading, here are the final highlights: 

*Sitting around the beach fire in the dark with the grown-ups. I always feel like I'm up to no good when I'm out after dark- and to me, that's a good feeling.

*Getting to watch good parenting in action. I think this played a large part in being able to share a house with so many people. 

*Watching the array of personalities that have developed in each family's children. From compassionate, bold, loud, observant, fun-loving and patient, there was so much to take in and dream up where our children were concerned. (Not pictured in this post: Mason and Corrinne. I don't know how I managed to come home with zero pictures of them.)

*Sitting on the beach during naptime.

*Being able to watch Joel have so much fun with the boys. I think I really underestimated the effect of being away from our house. 

Now the plug for next year because everyone is invited...

"PINE IN '09"

A Rainy Day Summary

AM: Micah had his 15-month well-baby check-up (at 19 months...oops.) He has gained a little over 2 lbs and now weighs in at 22 lbs, placing him in the 5th percentile. No worries though- his head continues to be larger than at least 85 out of 100 babies his age. Good for him because it's really cute.

PM: took naps, watched the refrigerator repair man, boys knocked each other over several times with handfuls of walmart bags. Even though it had been raining all day (and was still raining) I decided we should go for a walk. Another mom and her boys on our street joined us with umbrellas for some fresh air. Everyone got muddy and wet but we successfully accomplished much running and much throwing of rocks and hickory nuts into the creek for about an hour and a half.


For supper, I cooked a roast with potatoes and carrots. The following are the boys responses to this meal.
"Mmmm...I like the ketchup, mom."  He definitely at all the ketchup (with his carrot, I guess). Add that to the 1/4 pbj sandwich he had for lunch and that's the grand tally of Silas' food intake for the day.
"It's a hot dog!" This particular roast recipe didn't call for hot dogs. I think Micah must have been referring to the carrots. He ate all the food on his plate, and most of Silas'.