Celebrating

We do a lot of celebrating around here. Rarely do more than a few weeks go by without having some reason to wrap up a gift or two and whip up some yummy dessert. Our kids are just like that. So, the other morning when they came to me and said they wanted to have a "sibling party", I knew that all the details were already worked out and that all I needed to do was listen for my instructions. They wanted to celebrate having each other as brothers and sisters and they thought that a tea party, some snacks, some music and some dancing would be the perfect way. While I prepared their refreshments, I could hear them busily getting ready upstairs. The boys put on their "nice jackets" and brushed their hair (it was a very special occasion) and Caroline donned her Cinderella dress and crown. They told Benjamin he could stay in his regular clothes and I could, too (since I was only there for picture-taking purposes). Their first order of business was to make their tea. Then as they drank they wanted to go around and tell each sibling what they liked about him or her. Their likes ranged from "sweet laughs", to "fort building", "house playing" and even "growls". It was so precious to me to watch them love each other and I am so thankful that they are building such strong relationships from the very beginning. The fun and laughter that will fill our table because of these good friends make me so very grateful for our big family.

Guiding gently

I've had some thoughts swirling around in my head regarding things that Jimmy and I have recently been learning and ways we've been growing and changing and softening in relation to our children. I've put off posting about it until I could gather my thoughts well enough to explain, then I came across this post. There is no way that I could say it any better. Have a look around while you're there. I promise, you will leave refreshed.

Bringing Maine home with me

I'm planning a picture-filled post on our weekend in Maine in the near future, so to whet your appetite I'd like to introduce you to the most amazing scones you'll ever sink your teeth into. Trust me, I know scones. And because I really like each and every person that reads my blog (hi mom), I'm going to tell you how can try one for yourself. Go to the Bass Cottage Inn, recipe section, and then go make these delicious scones for yourself. We felt like we were back in the lap of luxury (almost) when I made them to go along with our breakfast-for-dinner tonight. Mine were not quite as perfect as the ones my favorite new chef (the one who made us creme brulee french toast one morning. And a brie and apple omelet the next.) set before us each morning, and I forgot the light dusting of the powdered sugar that make them look so pretty. But even still, they served to take us back, if only until one of the kids smoothie cups went flying. I promise, you will not be disappointed.

Cousins

Outside our window

A few weeks ago while doing yard work, Jimmy discovered a robin's nest nestled in the branches of one of our crape myrtle trees. This tree is right in front of our play room window, which has made keeping tabs on the sweet little robin family quite easy. We've all been looking forward to the day when we would discover this....

One of the kids was making the daily rounds to check in on them and detected the faintest little movements in there. The best way I could think of to get a better look was to take the camera out and just hold it up and see what we would find. There are four of them all snuggled up in there! The mama robin checks in often, bringing fat, juicy worms from the yard. This is how she is greeted...
This is now the image that comes to mind whenever I think about the fact that my Granny used to fry four whole chickens every Sunday to feed her five hungry men! I'm sure any mom can relate to this sight.

Blueberries!

This is the sign I've been waiting to see since about this time last year. I absolutely love the natural progression from strawberry season right on into blueberry/blackberry season, and I really love living somewhere that makes taking full advantage of said seasons so stinkin' easy. For some reason we only made it out to pick strawberries once this year. I'm not exactly sure what I was thinking. I had these grand ideas that we would pick gallons and gallons of strawberries and we would eat them for days and then we'd freeze so many gallon-sized baggies that we'd still be eating yummy local strawberries in the dead of winter. Umm, yeah. We already blew through all two of those gallon-sized frozen baggies of strawberrries. And it's only July. And strawberry season is over. And I've purposed in my heart to not allow that to happen with the blueberries.


So before my niece (who stays with us every summer and who's not allowed to go and get too cool for me by the time next summer rolls around) and my mom (who's pretty cool herself, but never too cool for a trip to see her grandkids) ventured back to central Florida we decided to put them to work. It didn't take long for us to figure out why those little pint-sized containers of blueberries are so expensive in the grocery store. It takes a loonngg time to fill a bucket with blueberries! (It might have something to do with the fact that there was a lot more smacking than ker-plunking going on...) It may take a while to gather any sizable amount, but it's certainly worth the effort. Not only are these berries un-sprayed, but they are really inexpensive when you pick them yourself - a whole gallon for $8! That's a lot of blueberries.


We've gone back for more twice now and let me just tell you, these blueberries are amazing. We've pretty much been having blueberry everything lately-muffins, pancakes, oatmeal and even my first attempt at a blueberry pie (which far exceeded my husbands expectations, thankyouverymuch.) And little Benjamin has decided they're his favorite food thus far (he's very, very smart).


So, the first couple of times we grabbed our buckets and headed out to pick it was like an adventure. The kids pretended to be farmers harvesting their crops, we talked about what great fun it was going to be to have our own blueberries one day and how great it will be to go out and pick berries for our breakfast on Saturday mornings. They didn't even mind the heat so much because they knew they were picking for a pie and they had never had blueberry pie before and Travis was anxious to prove to me that blueberry pie couldn't even hold a candle to apple pie. So they picked. And picked. And picked some more. (And ate a lot more while they picked...) But now we have two weeks left of blueberry season and nothing in the freezer to show for all of that picking and, well, my crew is getting harder to motivate.

As for the blueberry pie, once Travis tasted it I could see the inner struggle he was faced with. Should he stand by his original insistance that nothing could trump an apple pie, or should he confess that his daddy had been right all along about the wonder of a blueberry pie? He decided that he could have several favorites, one for each season. Blueberry pie wins for summer.


Ooh... maybe the promise of yummy blueberry pie in the dead of winter would motivate them to get back at it and fill my freezer? I think they could probably be persuaded...

A new look!

What do you think? I love it! A friend directed me to Simply Fabulous Blogger Templates where I chose a template that I liked and switched it all around. It was much easier then I thought it would be and you can trust me when I tell you that's saying a lot! Computer savvy, I'm not. It's just too simple (and totally free!) to not have a shiny new blog. Go get one!

Sass

On Motherhood

"When people begin to talk about this domestic duty as not merely difficult but trivial and dreary, I simply give up the question. For I cannot with the utmost energy of imagination conceive what they mean. When domesticity, for instance, is called drudgery, all the difficulty arises from a double meaning in the word. If drudgery only means dreadfully hard work, I admit the woman drudges in the home, as a man might drudge [at his work]. But if it means that the hard work is more heavy because it is trifling, colorless and of small import to the soul, then as I say, I give it up; I do not know what the words mean…. I can understand how this might exhaust the mind, but I cannot imagine how it could narrow it. How can it be a large career to tell other people's children [arithmetic], and a small career to tell one's own children about the universe? How can it be broad to be the same thing to everyone, and narrow to be everything to someone? No; a woman's function is laborious, but because it is gigantic, not because it is minute. I will pity Mrs. Jones for the hugeness of her task; I will never pity her for its smallness." (bold mine)
G.K. Chesterton

Benjamin is one!

April 7, 2007 (one week old)

Truth be told, sweet little man, you've actually been one for over two months now. Either the days in this past year were not actually 24 hours long or there just weren't as many of them as there usually is, because it doesn't even seem possible that the tiny little bundle with the rock star hair is actually now 14 months old (you do still have great hair though!).

Little Benjamin Bunny, how do I begin to tell you how much you are loved and of all the joy you bring to our family? Everything about this past year with you has been wonderful (tiring! but wonderful...). After three babies in our family already, Daddy and I might have been tempted to think that we had the baby thing all figured out. Kyker babies are all the same, we thought. They weigh in at 7lbs max, they are early to love a routine, they sleep great, they love their own beds....You came to "teach us some lessons", as Daddy likes to say, and that you have!

You were our first "surprise" baby and we were completely certain that you were a girl. We had a girl name all picked out and I do believe I had even called you by that name a few times when I would talk to you while still in my belly. We were both so surprised when we heard, "It's a BOY!" at 12:23am on Sunday, April 1, and any thought of hoping for a little girl completely vanished. You were completely precious and BIG! At 8lbs, 1oz, you were our biggest by a full pound. You were so alert and aware... you had big, blue eyes right from the start and everyone, and I do mean everyone, commented on your fabulous hair. Thick and dark with blond tips! You were such a beautiful little thing. Once everything settled down and Daddy and I had you all to ourselves, we realized that we needed to name you! We had three boy names that we had somewhat settled on "just in case" and really had a hard time deciding which suited you best. We settled on Benjamin Wesley and, of course, I can't even begin to imagine you with either of the others.

Travis, Sam and Caroline came to meet you about 9 hours after you were born. They fell in love instantly and you've been at the center of their world ever since. Once when you were about a month old we were in the car and you were really upset (undoubtedly ready to eat, as usual!). For whatever reason, the three of them began to sing to you to try and cheer you up. I have to admit, my first thought was that they were just adding to the volume level, but when your crying immediately stopped as they began singing the doxology (the song that Caroline and I had sung together every night while you were growing inside me), my eyes filled with tears as I was reminded yet again what an awesome blessing it is to have a house full of children who love each other and adore their baby. I would often find them singing over your bassinet if I was taking too long to come for you and their "trick" worked every time. They have adored you from day one and love you more today than ever. You're the one everyone wants to sit next to at mealtimes, you can gather a crowd in a flash when you decide to try and take a step or two (and completely revel in the cheers!), and Travis says he looks forward to bedtime now that you're the youngest "roomie" in the boy bedroom. No matter how long you've been in bed (and we've assumed you were sleeping) and no matter how quietly Travis and Sam creep into their beds, every night for the past week since you've moved in with them they've been greeted with a huge grin and a hearty, "DADA!" from the crib. We caved against our better judgment that night and let the three of you play for a bit and the laughter coming from that room had Daddy and I cracking up in the hallway. We're so thankful that you're already starting out as friends.

Little Benjamin, there are so many things to be thankful for when it comes to you, but there are a few things that really stand out to me that I don't ever want to forget. It has taken four babies to get this through my head, but you have finally taught me to be in the moment. Seems crazy to think that with more kids in our house than ever I'd be better able to do that now than even when I just had one, but it's true. Maybe I've just seen first hand how quickly the days go by as I watch your brothers and sister get so big, or maybe I've finally learned to not wish the harder days of newborn demands away in favor of the easier days and nights that come with an older baby...whatever it is, I'm so incredibly grateful to have finally learned to embrace everything that comes along with caring for and loving and nurturing a sweet baby. My own insecurities and uncertainties as a mommy caused me to fret a lot more with my other babies, but you calmed me down and taught me to just be. And that didn't just help you, but it helped your Daddy and the rest of our little family who have all benefited from the quiet confidence that you brought to me.

Now, I can't say that I've always been grateful for the fact that you've been our first ever "wakeful" baby (I've never actually "walked the halls" in the middle of the night until you!), but another thing you've taught me to do is to look for the "silver lining" in otherwise difficult situations. I'm not one that does well on little sleep, but once I realized that our first nighttime wakeful baby came during a time when I had a friend who needed much prayer, and specifically during the night, it suddenly felt like a privilege to be awake with you praying for my friend. You've helped change my perspective in so many ways.

And now at fourteen months old, you are still an absolute delight. Your eyes are captivating, your smile melts our hearts, your ROARS and your demand to be included in every wrestling match or tickle session crack us up, your complete devotion and love for your "blankie" (and the thumb that has to go with it) makes us smile... even your temper is funny to us (for now, I know that very soon it will not be funny anymore!). We are incredibly grateful that God gave you to us to love and teach and enjoy and to learn from. You've already taught us more than we've taught you! We love you so very much, sweet boy, and will treasure every day, every second that God allows us to spend with you. Happy first birthday.

April 2008, one year old