Busy again!

 I looked at my calendar the other day and realized nearly every day there is something written in permanent marker!

                                                My Life is suddenly very busy again! 

I wouldn't say its' "back to normal," because still, with all of the restrictions, there are barriers in how we "do" life. But wow, we are here and there with school, sports practices, Youth Theatre camp and dinners and outings with friends.

 Life feels full, and I have to admit, I am loving it. 

Our Spring started out with Easter, 

John's 40th birthday 

and our 16th wedding anniversary (when I promised to share my life with him forever....and get a dog 😁

....Oh, and throw in four kids too... 

We celebrated John's birthday with a family gathering around a big farmhouse table in our kitchen. I had the dinner catered, and John said it was exactly what he wanted to commence the next decade of life. 

Easter was the next day. 

We went to church and Evelyn was very excited we had matching Easter dresses. I mean, how many years can I get away with matching with my daughter and have her excited about it?!

 After our church service, we went to my in laws house for a nice brunch with family. My sister in law set up a fun candy hunt. It was a lovely day. 

A few days later on April 9, John and I celebrated our 16 year wedding anniversary. 

This year, we did something different: we took the week off from life and traipsed around theme parks in Florida. 

John's parents graciously watched the kids (we boarded Lucy....😬)

We spent the week exploring Orlando and devoting whole days trying to get on new rides at Universal Studios. 

It was much needed and really fantastic. 

What was also fantastic though was my carpet cleaner coming a few days after we came back. I desperately needed to get puppy residue off my floors, and just the sound of hot water and suction was music to my ears. 

Lucy has truly found her home here with us now. 

Her puppy ways are still somewhat obnoxious, but she brings a lot of joy to the family. 

She just always seems happy, no matter what. 

Everyone seems like her as a pillow. 

Evelyn likes to carry her around like a baby....

But she is perfectly comfortable sprawling out wherever there is room. 

 Lucy tags along whenever she can. 

During Spring Break we went to the coast for the day.

She makes long car rides ride a little more exciting. 

First time at the beach! She didn't know what to make of the waves. 

I can not believe that we are in the middle of the third trimester of school. What a year. My kids have been thriving being back in their school full time. They love their friends and teachers. 

They recently had a jog-a-thon fundraiser at school. West Hills exceeded their goal! The kids had so much fun running their laps and participating in spirit week the days leading up to the event. 

Each day was a dress up theme. 

Evelyn has been writing and practicing her 3rd grade patriotic speech. This project is a big deal in the 3rd grade at West Hills. Each student researches an important person in the United States history and writes a 1st person speech about his/her life. They then dress up and preform their speech from memorization. It's usually a big parent event at West Hills, but this year they will be recorded and sent to the parents instead of being in person.

 Evelyn chose Elizabeth Blackwell, a woman doctor in the 1800s. The night before her speech I asked if she was nervous. She responded: "No, I'm excited but also sad because then it will be over." She is having a blast in 3rd grade. I am grateful everyday that she gets to spend her days at school again. 

The boys were busy with their 1st grade animal research papers. This is a big project for the 1st graders at West Hills. They read, write and make a diorama about an animal.

James chose a cheetah. 

Caleb did a grizzly bear 

and Levi a meerkat. 

It was quite the process to transport three dioramas to school in the mini van.

 There were tears and panic as rocks and sand slid off the shoeboxes.

 Once they exited my van, I breathed a sigh of relief. 

 I love listening to Evelyn talk about her gymnastic competitions with her friends at recess. I smile when Levi tells me how they scored the goal during soccer with his classmates. Their ages are so precious, and I am trying to soak up every moment of their third and 1st grade year. 

Evelyn begged to do track and field this year at school. They have practices on Mondays and Wednesdays, and she comes home red faced and exhilarated. 

The boys are starting baseball and have been playing flag football. 

My Sunday afternoons are spent on the sidelines cheering on our boys at their flag football games. It's so nice to be able to see and catch up with the other parents again! 

SO yes, we are suddenly busy again!

And it's so good! 

Back to School

 Wow. Three full months of silence on my end.

 I haven't written, and if you know me, the written word is something that I believe defines me. It is my creative energy,  a way to process all that is going on in my life.

 But, if I'm honest,  I've been chronically uninspired. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has felt completely overwhelmed and dispairing as I've witness the world around me change so rapidly;  I've had to reconstruct everything from my disintegrated reality. 

I've had to grieve relationships, expectations for my children, my once beautiful city; my heart aches for so much. 

Aches. 

And in this aching, I've feel as if my essence has dried up. I've had no motivation, or margin, to engage in many of my former activities.  

With homeschooling and trying to keep my head above water with the things of the home and family, there wasn't a moment left to do anything extra.

 And then there is the fifth child fir baby. 

Although Lucy is John's dog, she sure loves to hang around me and create messes. 

But recently, there has been some indication of reprieve from the barrenness I feel. 

Our school has resumed, and with this normal cadence, my spirit revives a bit. 

I feel as though a veil has been lifted, oh so slightly, and so I am forcing myself to sit down and write.

 So this blog entry is an attempt to break though the haze that has collected around me.

I feel extremely fortunate and do not take for granted that my kids go to a wonderful private school. Although I did my very best to give my children a good home school experience, alas they need to be back in REAL school, learning from a teacher who is not also their mother. 

There have been so many sweet moments from our long days at home. 

Actually the boys were apprehensive about going back; on the other hand, Evelyn couldn't wait. 

School definitely looks different with all the protocols, but they are on campus, and it's ultimately better for all. 

Here's a recap of the last 3 months of our life.

Well, let's start with Evelyn. 

She turned 9 on December 27. 

For her birthday she requested that her room be "redesigned." She was totally in charge of it all.

 Her room truly transformed from  a disordered little girl's room to an organized, mature, beautiful space.

We spent the holiday and Evelyn's birthday in Chicago with my family.

 It felt so normal to be surrounded by people I love and who love our family. 

It was perfect. 

Upon returning to Portland, the kids got their Christmas gifts from us, new bicycles. 

(although, it was a little rainy and muddy to really put them to good use....)

We ended homeschool at the end of January. Our last unit was on outer space and the boys really got into it. They finished out the month drawing posters of supernovas and constellations and galaxies. 

  

On February 1, I drove around the track at West Hills to drop my kids off at school. It felt surreal after almost 11 months.

 After school they were all smiles. We kept our tradition going of ice cream after the first day. 

February 7, we celebrated the boys turning 7 years old. I can hardly believe it. 

My baby boys have been alive SEVEN YEARS. 

I really couldn't even fathom having them any other way except for being born all together. 

They are perfect together. 

Evelyn worked hard at making special ice cream cake for each one of them. She put a lot of love and creativity into each one. 

She also worked hard at making a special birthday poster. 

I am constantly in awe of her kind heart. 

About two weeks after starting school, Portland experienced its annual "Snowmegedon". School was canceled for a day as rain froze and turned the streets into ice rinks. The boys had fun playing ice hockey on the street with the neighbor. And Evelyn had fun exploring chunks of snow with Lucy. 

A few days was enough though. The constant layering and shedding of wet clothes is exhausting. And none of my kids have boots or snow gear that actually fits. Being that it only snows a few days a year, I do not invest or store such articles of clothing. Needless to say, my kids don't last very long outside before they need to come in, warm up and put on new, dry clothing to go outside again! 

And then there is Lucy. 

Lucy is a handful. Everyone warned me that getting a puppy was trouble ;) but because John wanted her so badly, it makes all the trouble worth it. 

Lucy is truly John's buddy. I have to say. he hasn't tired of her once. But, we are having a heck of a time potty training. She has constant energy and curiosity. 

Often times she rides with me to pick up the kids from school. They are always delighted to be greeted by puppy kisses and a wagging tail. 

So that is a quick little recap of the last few months. The fact that I'm sitting here in a nice, orderly, quiet house writing this is a miracle in itself. 

I'm hoping in the months ahead to reclaim some of the things I've enjoyed as I seek to return to a bit of normalcy and peace. 

Ultimately I find hope in knowing that God is in control of all this, and I can know that my experiences are not wasted; I have to keep reminding myself that happiness and order is not the goal, but refinement. 

Puppy Love

 It was a very pleasant day on Thanksgiving 2020. 

Every year gets sweeter and easier with the kids. Every year Caleb dares to try one more item  of Thanksgiving plate.

We had a smaller Thanksgiving this year, with our immediate family and John's parents. It was perfect though, and we could have fed a dozen more with all the leftovers! :) 

Evie and I went on a walk in the forest with Lucy in the morning and I have to say, we attracted a lot of attention with our cute little puppy. 

Actually, it occurred to me that we have entered a whole new world: the world of dog owners. Whenever we passed another dog on the path, there was always polite, interested conversation and attention.

  "How beautiful she is!"

 "How old is she?" 

"What's her name?' 

"Is she a golden retriever or a mix?" 

Evelyn loved all the attention, and I told her this is sort of what it's like when you have a baby: Everyone comments and you feel a special bond with other parents. 

Now we enter the world of Dog. 

John has been floating around in somewhat of a puppy nirvana. He is on cloud nine every time he lays eyes on his little Lucy. He is in love, and it makes all her potty accidents and nipping worth it to see him so happy. 

There have been some really sweet memories already. 

But, I insist that every creature in our home is a clean one. 

I have always been the Mom who bathes her children nightly. I believe that the human body needs a good daily scrub, and my sentiments are no different when it comes to furry family members. I have a very keen sense of smell. 

 One night I wanted to expedite the cleansing ritual so, somewhat exhausted, I came up with the idea of putting the puppy right in to the bathtub with Caleb.

He thought it was incredible. And soon, James was stripping down and wanting to join the action. When Levi heard the fun that was taking place, he quickly tore off his clothes and stepped in. Needless to say, it was a crowded bathtub! There was a lot of laughing, and water and a puppy who was not super thrilled by all the attention she was suddenly getting. 

Leaping out of the tub, Lucy went running down the hallway. 

"She's escaped!" yelled Levi.

 "Get her!" cried Caleb. 

The three boys jumped out of the tub as well. Naked, the three of them ran down the hallway after her. It was a sight to see, a saturated puppy being followed by three naked, dripping wet boys. When they finally tackled her to the ground, Lucy submitted, and I think she was just glad to be wrapped up in a dry towel. 

Levi has really impressed me with the way he shows genuine care and love for Lucy. He walks around the house carrying her across his arms and Lucy is very content with him. I can already see a beautiful relationship between a

 boy and his dog. 

James is more of a "small creature" type person. The dog's activity intimidates him and he is unsure about having a dog share his space. 

Speaking of James, he lost his first two teeth the same week! 

Evie's "lifelong" dream has come true with the adoption of Lucy. However, she still has affinity and commitment to Bob, the neighborhood cat. She often rotates her affections between the two throughout the day, and it makes me happy to see that she has not abandoned her first love. 

Big Bob.

And then there is Caleb. His easy going, lovable personality makes appreciating and loving a dog second nature. However, he is enthusiastic about most things in life, so his attention and affections are sporadic throughout the day, but they are genuine. 

My big "shift" in caring for Lucy is early morning, when I naturally get up anyways. I miss my quiet solo time, but I'm not surprised at the loss. I knew taking on a puppy would be a transition and I knew there would be added work and sacrifices that come with it.

 However, John does take on most of it, and seeing the joy and life it brings to him and our family is worth it. Perhaps one day Lucy will be content to just sit contently on my lap in the mornings instead of nipping at my heels and yelping for attention. However, because I have the benefit of going through various seasons with my kids, I know that this too, will evolve into something new eventually. 

For now I will savor the quiet puppy snuggles and delight in watching my kids (and husband!) glow in the aura of puppy love.  

We topped off our Thanksgiving weekend by finding "the perfect" christmas tree. Lucy was very excited to go with us on our hunt, and I realized that adding Lucy makes every outing just a little more exciting :) 

(psst...and I'm falling in love with Lucy too ;)