Thanks for understanding that I needed a little break from blogging quite so frequently over the last couple of weeks.  There has been a lot to process and we’ve been working hard to resume some normalcy.  I’ve got lots of pictures to post, though, so I hope to get back in the swing of things!  Here we go…

On Thursday we went to meet the teacher at our sweet little preschool.  This is the only year that all three of my kiddos will get to be there together.  They are THRILLED.  And even more thrilled that some of their favorite mommy’s work/turned soccer team/turned preschool friends are going to be there, too.  Aren’t they a fun bunch?

I think “Meet the Teacher Night” should actually be called “meet-my-children-and-for-a-few-minutes-think- they-are-perfect-before-you-start-a-whole-school-year-with-them-and-find-out-otherwise night”.  At least that is the pressure I put on myself.  For one night, I’d love to dress my cherubs sweetly, have them be on their best behavior, and then have dreams that the teacher went home and told her husband “I’m SO excited to have KJ, Cbug or Lou in my class this year.  They seem just perfect”.  Basically I’d love for my children to not act like children at all, and I’ve convinced myself that the teacher hasn’t already seen 10 other equally “pinched and prodded into being perfect” children that night.  Silly Mommy.

That said, it should be no surprise at all that on our way out the door to meet the teacher last Thursday, I was sincerely praying that the sweet ladies who were committed to investing in my children this year would MEET these angels

and maybe not so much MEET these crazies

Because, I mean, who wouldn’t want to have “Mr Too-Cool-for-Everything”, “Mr Crazy Face” (who sometimes forgets his…um…manners) and “Miss I’m-a-Princess-and-I’ll-scowl-if-I-want-to” for A WHOLE YEAR?

Oh dear.  Thankfully, these three really are quite loved at their little school and best of all encouraged to be what they are…CHILDREN!  And on top of that, we were THRILLED about the teachers we got “meet” on Thursday. 

This is going to be a GREAT (but shockingly…not perfect) year!
ABL

On the first Monday after my nephews and niece left, I wanted an easy yet super fun MMM activity to do with my kids.  So we repeated one that they loved last year, Marshmallow Art.

Sometimes, you need to have a “project” for which the only purpose is to enjoy it and the only results are to make a mess, have sticky fingers and get to sample some sweet treats.  As a type A who would rather always have a tangible take-away, this has been a tough lesson to learn.  But on this day of transition for our family, it was just what the doctor ordered.

We painted marshmallows (using milk dyed with food coloring)

Then they strung them together with pipecleaners.

random side-note, I never thought to talk to my kids about “patterns” before this, but apparently they had been learning about them in school.  I was really impressed with both boys and their ability to find the “next” in the pattern.  Since this little activty we have added the “pattern game” to our “games that make road-trips more fun” repotoire.  I say “black-white-white-black-white-white-black…what comes next?” and they fill in the blank.  Yes, I actually am a nerd mom.  thankyouverymuch.

The third and most impotant step
taste the gooey goodness.

And fun it was indeed.
A perfect MMM activity, even if you couldn’t frame it.
ABL

So, I started working on a series of posts about “tips and tricks” that help us around our house.  The first one was about our assembly lines.  While some of our survival tactics are not quite as necessary with “only” three kids under our roof, we are actually seeing the benefit of keeping a few of them around.  One that we are still benefiting from is nightly “circle time”.  Granted, the circle is not quite a large now, the necessity of everyone staying “on their spots” is a little less preschool-esque, and the sounds are not nearly as LOUD.  However, the principal of gathering together nightly, intentionally ending our day with our children really is a blessing.  It helps them settle down before bed, helps RRL and I set time aside from cleaning up the kitchen, packing back-packs, etc and is a treasured time together.

Typically we follow a similar routine:
A few “crazy songs” like “Stand up and Shout it”
(which could otherwise be called “jump around and yell a lot if you love Jesus”…which we do!)
A couple of fun stories
A few “calm” songs
A bible story
Some verses
and prayers.

Obviously, some nights we have more time than others.  But I especially love the nights when we get to spend 30+ minutes on this time.

Here are all 5 of the kids saying some of the verses they have learned during circle time.  We learned each of these all together, but this night I just asked them each to say their favorites.  Of course, they especially liked that they got to stand on the fireplace hearth (cough, I mean stage) to be recorded.

KJ and Cbug (chose the same verse to recite)

AB

Translation:  The prudent see danger and take refuge.  But the simple keep going and suffer for it. -Proverbs 27:12

CB

Translation: I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone Oh Lord, make me dwell is safety.  -Psalm 4:8

Lou

Translation:  I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  All your works are wonderful, I know that full well.  -Psalm 139:14

So, there’s another snippet of our everyday life.  CIRCLE TIME!
What are your nightly routines?  Or other “tips and tricks” that help your home run smoothly and intentionally?

ABL

**If you have spent much time around our family in the last few months, you know how significant these colors are.  What started out as a color-system-for-survival came to represent so much more.  I love that each child claimed their color as their very favorite (except for when KJ and Cbug traded) and each knew the favorite of the others.  They often chose things for each other based on their “colors”.  So, to me, this final work of art by the little clan of 6 means so much.  Seeing their “colors” blended together holds great significance in my heart.  So thankful for this treasure.

ps- i promise that soon my melodramatic-ness about this transition will stop.  really.  but in the meantime blogging through it has been incredibly therapeutic.  so thanks for your patience.

As we transition back to life as a Team-of-Five, one of the biggest questions I am wrestling with is “what now?”  Maybe its a bit like re-entry after being out of the country for a long time.  Or maybe its like a spiritual high after a mission-trip.  You wonder how life could ever simply go back to normal.  You are coming home, but home will never look the same.  And really you don’t even WANT it to look the same.  To just continue on would be a waste of the experience.  But in the same breath, you do have to re-establish some normalcy.

For months we have spent many of our waking hours (and some not-so-awake) trying to do what is best for 6 kids.  Especially for our nephews and niece, a huge part of our hearts and our energy was devoted to talking about and praying through what was in their best interest.  In a way, that won’t change, we will always care about them and their family.  We do hope we get to continue to be involved with this story.  And we will always be interested in their well-being, but because of the change in the physical circumstances that will look drastically different going forward.

I mentioned before that I learned from Sandra Stanley (via Hatch) the Nehemiah application of doing a good work and not being distracted.  It seems that Nehemiah was fully devoted to rebuilding the wall, and reestablishing Jerusalem.  He told those that challenged him that he would not be distracted. But just one chapter earlier, in chapter 5, he DID “come down”.  And he came down before the “good work” was done.  There was some family business to take care of, an economic crisis of sorts, and it was tearing the people apart.  It had to be addressed, and Nehemiah did stop what he was doing.  But I don’t think he really did.  Yes, he stepped down from the physical labor of the wall.  Yes, he called the leaders together to “meet” about the problem (so also asked them to step down from the wall). But really this WAS about the wall, it was about rebuilding Jerusalem.  While the enemy threatened to distract (in chapt 6), this God given interruption was to build the forces stronger, to remove what threatened to tear apart the community of workers and actually put a stop to the wall building completely.  I’m guessing Nehemiah never took his eyes off of his primary purpose.  The only think that could make him change his course of action was believing in his heart that this brief interruption would actually enhance the success of that “good work”.

I wonder if it was hard for Nehemiah to resume work on the wall. I wonder if he wanted to grab onto his role as Governor, economic counselor, and claim that as his only purpose. I wonder if it was hard to simply go back to “normal”. Especially since even the normal would come with challenges and distractions. But the gates hadn’t been placed, the project was not completed. In order to make the best of what they community of workers had learned through the chapter 5 “interruption”, they had to continue on in the way they had originally been called- to rebuild Jerusalem.

To be honest, its hard to just simply go back to work.  But I have to believe that our primary purpose hasn’t changed.  And that the only reason that God would have asked us to change our course of action was because He believed this would enhance the success of our “good work”- raising our little family.  We so firmly believe that this was not a distraction, but a God-given-interruption, that we can’t WAIT to see what it means in our “wall building”.  Our own little Jerusalem is still being developed, and a time that could have been used to stop our work will really only make it stronger. 

So, I’m still not sure what that means is next for us.  Just know that as you start to see this little piece of the web go back to its roots…normal family life…we are back up on the wall.  The same.  But different.

ABL

Aunt S,
The short time we’ve had to grow in love for you does not nearly measure the AMOUNT of love we all have for you.  Oh my, it is a lot!  Thanks so much for the way you take care of one of our very favorite people, Uncle M.  And for the way you love these three (adorable) crazies!  We are so excited for you as you begin your last year of Law School, and so very proud of how hard you have worked a long the way.  And the fact that you are now a resident of one of our favorite states is just icing on the (hopefully strawberry) cake!  Hope that means we get to see a lot more of you!

Love you, sweet sister!!
ABL

 152- The number of days

I’m glad we didn’t count…

the number of loads of laundry

the number of broken toys we repaired (or trashed)
the number of times we said “please don’t whine”

the number of meals we ate cold
the number of times we swept the kitchen floor

But we didn’t count any of those things.  While it might have made for a nice record, it really doesn’t matter.  Those numbers wouldn’t reflect our purpose.

I wish we had counted…

I’ve decided to try to do a series of posts about “tips and tricks” that are helping us around here.  The idea is partly to share what we are learning but even more hoping that some of you will chime in with other ideas.  We’d love to hear what helps your house run smoother and happier.  Anything that saves time, helps kids be involved, creates everyday learning experiences, etc…really anything that adds value and efficiency to your family life.

This post could alternatively be called “making lemonade”
because the pictures for today’s “trick” started with this whopper of a lemon

So, when I discovered the mess I took a forced “time-out” for myself before responding.  Took some pictures, posted them to facebook (you know, just in case any other moms could relate), and took deep breaths.  THEN, I went back to enforce clean-up.  To make clean-up a little more fun and engaging, I utilized a “trick” that has become a favorite around here.

Enjoy!
ABL

It is not very often that I advocate “a cause” or any particular product from this little piece of the web.  It is not because I don’t have causes that I am passionate about and not because there are not products that I find helpful or valuable.  Typically, I just reserve this blog for family.  But today, there are brand new products that have been launched on a website that deserves your attention.  This is cause that blends something of the things I love most- community, family, care for others…AND JEWELRY!  I’d be remiss to not share this opportunity with you. 

I’m not trying to win a contest by posting this, I’m not getting “paid” to tell you about it, really there isn’t anything in it for me. 
But there is something in it for you.
You will “get beautiful things and…give hope”
I especially love the bibs…oh, and the jewelry…oh, and the bags…oh, and the scarves. 
Um, maybe you better just shop for yourself.
What an amazing opportunity for YOUR family help THESE families!  And in doing so, be introduced to an amazing story, one I’m just beginning to learn about myself.

I really don’t have any words that could add anything to their story, you’ll just have to check it out for yourself. In typical DRRF fashion, I started to say “you’ll thank me later”…but really, you’ll thank them.

FROM THE HILL COUNTRY HILL TRIBERS WEBSITE:
About Hill Country Hill Tribers works primarily with refugees from Burma. The women and their families fled persecution in their home country, often based on their different ethnicities. They are members of various Burmese hill tribes, including Karen, Karenni, Kachin, Chin, Lisu, and others, now starting new lives in the Hill Country of Texas. Forced to leave their farms and villages, sometimes with very little warning, these artisans carried bamboo looms through the jungle to safety, dedicated to continuing the traditional art of backstrap weaving that has been passed down for generations from mother to daughter.

In Austin, these weavers are joined by other skilled artisans—seamstresses, knitters and jewelry-makers—to make up Hill Country Hill Tribers. By crafting beautiful products in their homes and gathering together often, these artisans are weaving a community in Austin that is rooted in their past and reaching toward a new future.

http://hilltribers.org/
Please visit the site to learn more.  And of course- show your support by shopping!

ABL