Sometimes I just don’t know about him. When I walk in the room and see him dressed like this? And then he marches outside in the full getup with no embarrassment at all? I’m just chalking it up to a good imagination. Who wants cookie cutter children anyways?

(OK, the creepy jokeresque smile is simply from Kool-Aid, the FIRST time he had it and he was a Kool-Aid junkie, he must have asked me to fill his glass 5 times - I didn’t - but then I caught him sneaking drinks from mine. It is a really disturbing addition to his disguise.)

There are times when his mind seems so grown up.  Like this morning he told me that the clouds were cumulonimbus. And then other times he still needs me so much. This evening we were at a friends watching an outdoor movie. Halfway through he jumped up out of the group of kids, ran up to me and threw his arms around me. Then he said “Sit together with me Mama”. I couldn’t help but feel a bit sentimental cuddling with  my almost 7 year old.  My arms still wrap around him, but his feet were on the ground.

Boys and bowling is an awesomely fun combination. A big “Thank you!” to Aunt Lori and her co-workers at Landstar. They allowed us to have a great time bowling with the Sunday School group and raising money to support a good cause (and Mom&Dad didn’t have to fork over $50 each). Simon had a ton of strikes and spares - I lost count.  I probably lost count because Miriam made 2 strikes and then she was done. Completely, run-off-the-lane-screaming-hide-under-a-table-pull-her-shoes-off done. But I’m still glad we decided to get the little guys involved in a charity function. It’s important to get the concept of giving to others ingrained in them at a young age. I know they don’t fully understand the deeper meaning right now, but the seeds have been planted and who knows what will come from them?

I wasn’t exaggerating about Miriam.

I recently read a post on Karen’s blog (Only Sometimes Clever) that spoke to the issue of the coolness factor of cynical mothering. I was encouraged that I wasn’t the only one who was noticing the trend. And I was inspired to comment early on, however I might not have if I had waited and seen the flurry of discussion it caused. Even though everyone was nice. I usually don’t speak up unless I find things important. But then mothering IS important to me. My comment said I would write a post about how much I love my children and that starting the wheels spinning. I didn’t want to just gush about them even though I could, I wanted something more, to dig a little deeper.

I started out thinking about the time most mothers gush over their children - when they are sleeping.  We call them sweet, precious, trusting, peaceful, and refer to them as angels. Then my mind wandered over to what I know of angels in the Bible. And in very many of the stories that I can pull out of my mind - angels aren’t really described that way.  Angels are messengers of God.  Sent for very specific purposes. They are powerful yet also comforting. When I think of angels in the Biblical sense I do not think of sweet sleeping adorable creatures. I’m not sure where that connection came from. 

I also starting thinking about all the wonderful lessons that I learn from my children, from being a mother to my children.

And I began to think that my children really are angels. Sleeping or not. They are giving me messages from God everyday. Teaching me, showing me the way. Now that is a reason to love your children.

Catman and Fishgirl

School spirit week. Backwards day was easy, so was Crazy Hat day, School Colors day, and Pajama Day. But Crazy Hair day stumped me. Simon’s hair is less than an inch long, what do you do with that? Simon’s idea was a fauxhawk. But he didn’t sound very convincing to me, I figured once we got into working on it he’d flip.  And that would be permanent. So I did some searches for colored hair spray - not so easy to find, and Simon was not keen on the spraying. Next I thought gelling his hair into spikes? But that wasn’t really crazy. The night before I racked my brain, thinking of all the coloring items we own (I work well under pressure). A few searches online turned up that Crayola Washable Markers (which are readily available in any room in our house) color hair and wash out perfectly! So that’s what we did. I really like the way it turned out. And we all went in the bathroom to watch him wash it out at the end of the day. A rainbow literally ran off his head and down the tub. It was so awesome looking. Miriam loved it. The markers washed out like a dream, not a hint of color left.

If anyone else decides to attempt this, I would just note a couple things. One - it rubs off pretty easily so be prepared for the inside of hoodies or any other thing that touches the hair to be tinted with color. Two - don’t do this on a rainy day, they are washable colors and will run right out.

I finally finished the quilt square for the Log Cabin Quilt we are making in our Sister’s class at church. My very first quilt square ever. It only took me about a month. But it’s so pretty. I would love to have the time to make more. Someday I will. Someday when life slows down, and quilt squares can rise into the circle of priorities.

“Miriam, what are you doing with my hair elastics?”

“They are Indian shoes, Mama.”

I’ve been tagged in a Meme! I had to go look up what a meme actually was before I could decide what that meant. I found my answer here the daily meme.  Karen at Only Sometimes Clever posted one and put In My Tree in it. I had the instant worry that lots of people might now look at my blog, and what will they think? But then my better half reminded me that it doesn’t matter what other people think. I know that, but sometimes you need reminding so that you can believe it.

I am rather new to exploring the blog world, so I have very limited resources - I don’t have 3 answers for most of these categories. 

Three Blogs I Read Every Day Without Fail: (if I am on the computer that day)

1. MommyCoddle
2. 2 Many Kids 2 Little Time
3. Only Sometimes Clever
   

Three Blogs That Have Been on my Blogroll the Longest (to the Best of my Faulty Memory):

1. 2 Many Kids 2 Little Time
2. Limberlost Design (although this isn’t really a blog)
3. PrivvyDigging

Three Blogs on my Blogreader or RSS Feed That Aren’t (Yet) on my Blogroll: (I just have these bookmarked)

1. SimpleMom
2. Cookus Interruptus

Three Bloggers Who I Wish Wrote More Often:

These would all be my close friends that have family blogs and I’m not sure they want to be linked to?

If You’re Interested in ________ , You Should Read These Three Blogs:

1. OOAK fairie, dolls: Limberlost Design
2. Privvy Digging:  PrivvyDigging
3. Helpful Mom/Home Tips:  SimpleMom

We love hiking, we really do. It’s sad that we don’t go more often. We need to live in a forest, with a large winding creek and some small cliffs or at least a few big boulders to climb on. Then we could hike everyday and I would be happy. We went for a small hike today at the same park we hiked in for a few hours last fall. No camera today, so these are the pics from before.

No one argues when you are out hiking, the peace of nature seems to calm the soul. Even little souls. God is good and he really does speak to you when you surround yourself with his handiwork. Mommas can show off a little to their sons who are still young enough to be impressed.  And at the end all is good, the stresses are gone , you can just be yourself and be content that that is just what you ought to be.

Simon is reading. It started quite slow and I was a bit discouraged.  Not at his speed, but at the frustration he was having and how it just wasn’t at all fun. He would get stuck on a word and pout and whine that he “just couldn’t do it!” I knew he could, I knew he would read.  I knew he would attain a reading level suitable for his age.  I just didn’t know if he would enjoy it. I love reading and really wanted to see that love and excitement in him.  And now it’s there! I’m so glad.  He’s reading everything now - we just started a chapter book last week at bedtime (It’s a yugioh title that i never would have picked, but i can always pick the next one). I’m just so happy.  One of those mommy moments where you can smile and enjoy a little bit of your child’s success.

It’s now public too - Simon has taken over the “Gabriel Good News” announcements at meeting.  Grandma Sherry is so good with him - she encourages and really builds the excitement and fun of it all. She types out a script every Monday, it sits on our dining room table and he practices all week long, then reads it aloud from the podium. Everyone is so proud of him - we are blessed with such a close and caring family here in Rockford.

I’ll just view some winter recollections through my soon-to-be-used rosy colored sunglasses. There are some really nice things about winter that just don’t happen in any other season.

We always stop at Evan’s house for a warm up during our walks.

Bundled up munchkins are just so stinkin’ cute.

You explore your house and imagination for creative ideas to stay entertained and active, yet warm and shielded from the bitter wind. Even though there’s snow, it’s not always warm enough to play in it.  So our snowman came inside this year. 

And the static buildup in winter can be absolutely amazing! So you encourage your children to do things that are fun for them, amusing for you. (she is actually having fun, it was just another camera hating day)

And Hot Chocolate with Marshmallows after every outdoor adventure! It’s a lovely way to bring your children in from the cold, they come running with big grins on their faces. Then the six year old covers that grin with Marshmallow powder.