Mom Remembers

We are all painting at the dining room table (big mistake, I know).  Carl picks up Sven's (mostly) dried artwork and exclaims: CARL:  Oh, wow!  Did Sven do this? ME: Mm-hm. CARL:  It looks real!  Was it fingerpaint? ME: Mm-hm. CARL:  It looks like a real tornado, sideways, on the grass.  I never knew that he could paint that good!  It looks awesome!

Having a quirky, genius kid is often delightful. I have been teaching Soren a little bit of music theory.  Actually, he has been teaching himself by reading the text in all the piano lesson books.  But I'll pretend that I've been scaffolding it some. This week he has been working on identifying triads, a task I never dreamed I would teach my 2nd grader.  And then he figured out something additional that astonished and delighted me. He is learning a song called "Cockles and Mussels" and I assigned him to say each chord name of the accompaniment while he practiced.  We went over it in his lesson; at that time he found all the obvious triads as well as the ones that were inverted or split between hands.  That was cool but didn't surprise me. What did  surprise me happened today, during his practice time. He called to me from where I was stirring monkey mac in the kitchen.  "Mom!  I found a chord you didn't see!"  I put down my spoon and hiked

Lest I forget, Leif learned to crawl this September.  He was 8 months old.  At the beginning of the month, he was making a cute but feeble effort.  At the end of the month, he could get everywhere and into everything.  His favorite destination: the cat's water dish.

Michaelmas came like a breath of fresh air this year.  It brought certain pessimistic ruminations to a screeching halt, reminding me once again that God is at the helm and His victory is assured.  Michael and his angels have fought and conquered the dragon once before; with the help of our Savior, we will do it again.  My faith is refreshed and my courage is bolstered. Here is what we did to celebrate: 1. Yesterday, we went apple picking at a my husband's sister's friend's grandma's house.  She has more apples than she can pick and so we took a bucket and brought home plenty for our needs.  The trees were so full, it only took about 10 minutes for the kids to gather enough good apples to fill two buckets.  Soren got the idea that he might like to sell some apples so he filled up his shirt, too. 2. Then, yesterday evening, Scott helped me make boffer swords.  They were surprisingly easy but used a lot more duct tape than I expected.  We now have four service-

Everything a mom has to do is urgent.  It all needs to be done NOW. The broken glass needs to be swept up NOW, before someone cuts their feet. The toddler needs to be caught NOW, lest he think that shouting "no" and running away is an acceptable response. The soup needs to be stirred NOW, before it burns to the bottom of the pan. The baby needs to be fed NOW, or the squawking will drive us all crazy. The reading lesson needs to be taught NOW, before my homeschool looses its credibility because my six year old doesn't read. The scraped knee needs to be bandaged NOW, because there will be no psychological peace until that is done. The bedtime routine needs to start NOW, or else the young ones will be bears tomorrow. The shoes need to go on NOW or we will be late for church/story hour/the pediatrician. But what about all the things that are not urgent?  Like self-care?  Like cuddles?  Like cleaning the floors and cutting the peanut-butter sandwiches into cu

Wednesday, September 23, 2015 at 1:15 pm smooth, cool baby cheek warm knit top baby feet shifting weight on my legs wicker-backing taste of tuna industrial carpet littered with cheerios two yellow pencils pink-handled scissors books on the dining room table:     Getting Started with Latin    Primary Mathematics 2B Workbook    Story of the World, Vol. 1    Dragonflight    The Gift of Failure    The Book of Mormon    A Short History of Nearly Everything orange carrot smoothie brilliant teal skirt burnt down tealight humming refrigerator cooing baby

Today, Soren had a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.  I am so glad that he is in bed now.  Even though he's not sleeping, bedtime is so peaceful.  He doesn't complain at me constantly about how bored he is.  Isn't that ironic?  At the time when he has no options at all, he seems to be the most at peace. I'm not sure what it is that he is so upset about lately.  Although last year was awesome, this year homeschool is a battle.  He is constantly "bored" and wishes that he could be doing something else.  Although, when I assign those other things that he professes to want, they are boring, too. Every day this summer was boring as well so it's not that more free time would solve that problem. And he was epic-ly angry today, even though there was no school.  After finishing his morning work, he wanted to earn some money to buy himself a Lego Airjitzu like Carl got for his birthday.  So I gave him a list of chores he could do for one dollar apiece

Happy birthday to Carl!  He is six!  He woke up this morning and told me that he could feel his legs growing in the night.  That's because he's getting bigger! Here is what we did to celebrate: 1.  Most importantly to Carl: there were presents!  He opened up the present from his Grandma first thing in the morning.  It was a great big lego set.  He hurried upstairs to put it together.  But soon enough, he figured out that some of the pieces were missing.  It looked like someone had opened the box in the store and removed the minifigures.  So (at 8 am in the morning), the whole family piled into the car and went to ShopKo to return the set and get a replacement.  Carl was very worried that they would just put it back on the shelf and some other kid would have the same disappointing experience but the shopkeeper assured him that they would send it back to the Lego cooperation to be fixed.  Happy, we hurried home so that the boys could put the set together while I made German p

Sometimes, it seems like nothing is happening in my life.  But when I am keeping a journal, there are a million things I want to write about.  That’s a little daunting.  It makes me not even want to get started because I know that I could just write forever.   I was thinking today, though, about memories.  Our memory is so faulty.  Someday, my children will be grown and I will only have my patchy memories to hold close.  I am grateful for the everyday things I have recorded about them.  I haven’t done enough of it, though.  And so today, I want to write about my kids. Carl is very excited because his birthday is tomorrow.  He was antsy about it all day today.  He kept climbing up on the piano bench to shake the birthday present from his grandma and guess which lego set she bought for him.  Mixed with the pre-birthday excitement, he also had more than his fair share of upset today.  He tripped in the kitchen during lunchtime and, when his father came to sooth him, Carl shouted

Sven:  I think the pioneers went to Illinois. Soren:  No, they went from  Illinois. Carl:  To Utah. Soren:  And there, Abraham Lincoln said "This is the Place."

I have long wanted our family's midsummer festival to be a celebration of balance.  My motto every year has been: "Just enough is more."  I have tried to pare back on the excess in my life and make more room for the simple pleasures. But this year, I took to heart more than I ever have before.  Something clicked and I finally "got it".  I was so excited to slow down and do less--not just for the weekend camping trip but for the whole summer!  Maybe even for my whole life. So I made a list of things that I was going to give up for Midsummer.  I wanted to make more time in my life by doing less stuff.  For starters, I was going to be done with homeschool after Midsummer, whether or not we finished our reading list.  Also, I was going to forgive my chore and blog post back log.  And I decided to take a break from potty training Sven and put him back in diapers for the summer.  Plus, midsummer marks the beginning of our media-free summers, which is always nice.

My baby is pretty cheerful now that he's getting more sleep. And he's getting more sleep now that we are lettering him cry it out. It's awful.  But it's also much, much better.

ME:  You are such a good brother. SVEN:  That's right.  I am Carl's brother. ME:  And you are Leif's brother and you are Soren's brother. SVEN:  And I am your brother. ME:  No.  You are my son. SVEN:  No, I'm not your son.  I am your brother.  Daddy is my brother. ME:  No, Daddy is your daddy. SVEN:  He's not my daddy.  I'm Sven. ME:  Whatever.

Dear Leif, We almost didn't make it to your blessing day.  It was scheduled for April 12, the first Sunday we planned to spend in our new ward.  But our plane flight to Chicago was cancelled and we ended up making our big move on a train, arriving less than 24 hours before your big day. That was enough, though.  We woke up in our own house for the first time the morning of your blessing. The whole building had a jubilant feel to it that day.  The church members were eager to welcome our family into the ward and that spilled over into eagerness to welcome  you .  So many people who loved your dad and watch him grow up are excited to have that same experience with you.   Mother and Father Duede travelled from Michigan to be with us.  Grandma and Grandpa came from Kentucky.  Nan, Poppy, Aunt Rachel, Uncle Ash, and Maddy drove the five minutes from their homes; we live near them now!  How wonderful it was to be surrounded by family on that day and to know that we would

Easter this year butt up right against our family's impending move to Freeport, Illinois.  Although it would have been fun to celebrate newness of life in our own new home, I lobbied for the move to be postponed until the week after Easter.  I wanted to have time for reflection as well as resources for celebrating. Here are some of the things we did to mark the season: 1. On Palm Sunday, a week before Easter, the kids and I watched the Bible video on lds.org about Christ's triumphal entry .  Then we set up our Easter table and talked about our plans for the week. 2. On Monday night, we planned an Easter program that we would share with our dinner guests on the upcoming Sunday.  There would be music, stories, and scripture readings.  Carl and I spent the week practicing a solo he would sing ("It Shouldn't Be Hard").   3. Of course, we spent a lot of time that week cleaning and packing.  During all that time, our Easter candle burnt and I kept replac

January 10, 2015 was a very long day of evenly-spaced but non-active contractions.  They began around 3 in the morning, tapered off around noon, and finally progressed to full-fledged labor in the early evening. That's when this story really begins. My emotional state was less than ideal for the long work ahead.  I felt frustrated and insecure.  I know that I was more than a little whiny.  But my contractions had closed in to about six minutes apart and I was ready to be comfortably ensconced in the birthing center's tub ... as well as the arms of my support team.   I called it in and the midwives asked me to give them about an hour.  That was just enough time for one more episode of Babylon 5 .  And then, with renewed optimism we made the trip with my friend, Monique, along for the ride.   At the birthing center, I was checked out "down there" (6 cm), then checked in (at about 7:30 pm), and finally I checked out (mentally).  My mom arrived, straight f

Wow.  I have a huge backlog of posts to write.  I am planning to forgive it (as well as my chore backlog) for Midsummer this year.  Since some of these planned posts are really important to me, I am hoping to cram them in before our family's traditional camping trip.  Which is June 19th. Here's my optimistic lineup: Tuesday - Leif's birth story Wednesday - 2015 Easter post Thursday - memories from Leif's baby blessing Friday - brief homeschool record for March - June Yeah ... we'll see how much of that I actually get done.

SOREN:  Part of the reason I choose you to be my actual  mom is not just the things you let me do but also your voice. (I am wondering what the difference is between an actual  mom and the regular type.)

1. New babies are so generous.  He will go to anyone and they are happier for having held him. 2. Part of that is because he is extremely easy to sooth; he just wants to be held on your lap and suck on your finger. 3. I like it best, though, when is in my  lap.  I try to be as generous as he is, but I don't often manage it. 4. There is something about his nose.  I just want to give him eskimo kisses all the time. 5. I love his bright, expressive eyes.  They are very dark blue right now; I wonder if they will go blue like Sven's or brown like Soren's? 6. He usually glances away when he smiles, like he's shy.  It's pretty cute. 7. I love how still and calm Soren is when he is holding Leif. 8. I also love how attentive Carl is to him.  He always  stops and gently interacts with Leif whenever he enters the room. 9. Sven loves on him, too.  He will sit next to me and pat the baby's head, crooning "hi, Leif." 10. He's a little guy.  Healthy b

SOREN:  We can use spiritual knowledge as a brick separator in our lives, separating our problems so we can go on our way.

1. His smile makes me smile. 2. He throws diapers in the pail for me. 3. He loves to be read to. 4. He also "reads" to himself during his independent play times. 5. He still loves to snuggle.  I really like it when Scott gets him up in the morning; then he will come find me and snuggle with me. 6. Sometimes he says "mm-hm" instead of "yes".  It's really cute. 7. Also cute: when he says "yes", he hyper-articulates the s sound. 8. Actually, everything he says is really cute.  He's a big talker. 9. He is small for his age.  That makes the talking all the more cute and impressive. 10. It also makes him easy to carry around.  Whenever he asks me to "carry you", I always reply, "I love  to carry you!"  And even with a bran new baby, that's true. 11. He will "sing" (rather tunelessly) and "dance" (rather formlessly) around the living room. 12. He likes to play outside.  And life is certai

Sven is TWO!  (Look out everybody, here comes big trouble.) This is what we did to celebrate: 1. It was Saturday, so I made our traditional pancake breakfast.  But I shaped the pancakes like letters of the alphabet!  Because that's cool, right?  Sven helped me put in the chocolate chips. 2. After breakfast, I put on Sven's birthday shirt.  It has been sitting, folded and waiting, in his dresser for the past six months.  Today was it's big day to shine!  Once he was dressed, Sven and I practiced telling his age.  "How old are you?"  "Six."  "No!  You're two!" 3. A few days before, Sven helped me pick out a cake.  It was funfetti, of course.  So after breakfast, we mixed it up and put some cupcakes in the oven. Sven was really upset about the whole mixing process.  He seemed to think that everything was ruined.  After an hour in the oven, I started to wonder if maybe he hadn't been right.  The cupcakes baked (and baked and baked

I had intended to keep a log of all Sven's words up to age two, just like we did with Soren.  But, like Carl, Sven's language progressed so quickly that I gave up early.  By around 21 months, I was no longer surprised by any word he said and was probably using five to ten new ones every day.  Now, at two, he is producing multiple clause sentences. He still says "carry you" instead of "carry me" but other than that, his grammar is impressively good.  We have another talker in the family. Anyways, without further ado, here is the list that I maintained, up until it became unfeasible: By 1 year hi, ow, more, all (as in "all done"), mama 12 months dada, please 13 months ball, bye, whee! 14 months up, no, uh-oh, shoe 15 months down, diaper, stick, side (as in "outside"), flower, nose 16 months ears, cat, juice, milk, day (as in "someday"), cake, night (as in "good night"), mine, rice, door, poop, thank

1. He is friendly and happy when meeting/greeting people. 2. He responds when I talk to him.  He doesn't always like what he hears but I always know he heard me. 3. Sometimes, he responds with a cheerful, "Yes, Mom!" 4. I love to hear him sing. 5. He expresses sincere gratitude without prompting. 6. His lego designs are surprisingly elegant. 7. His new belly button looks great.  He had surgery last month to repair an umbilical hernia and he was a really good sport about it. 8. I appreciate how very attentive he is to baby Leif.  He asks to hold him at least once every day and likes to sooth him when he's unhappy. 9. He is also really sweet with Sven, who is going through an emotionally turbulent time right now.  Carl likes to help his little brothers feel better. 10. I love to watch his pretend play.  Frequently, he and his friends pretend to be lego minifigures.  Carl holds his fingers in a c-shapes in imitation of the minifigure hands.  If he is sudden

When Carl first showed me his very wiggly lower central right incisor, I told him the story of the tooth fairy. "When I was a little girl," I said, "my dad told me that I should put any teeth I lost underneath my pillow.  And then, at night, the tooth fairy would come to take them away and leave me a coin in their place." "That's just a trick," Soren interjected.  "The tooth fairy isn't real." "Well, I  think she's real," Carl said. Carl was smart to believe.  When Soren lost his first tooth, he ended up with nothing to show for it but a hole in his mouth.  He responded to my tooth fairy story with incredulity and then threw the tooth away.  In the trash.  So much for my attempt to share a fun, childhood tradition with him. But with Carl, I got to try again.  One morning, he came out of his room, still in his pajamas, and very excited to show me his detached tooth.  He wanted to take it to preschool and show all

They're big.  They're beautiful.  They're finally here! Baby's first smiles: This picture really doesn't do them justice.  But you know how hard it is to get a baby to smile at a boring, electronic devise.  I had to use a little bit of misdirection to catch even this shy beauty.   He started busting them out just yesterday.  At least, those were the first real smiles that I  saw.  Soren was raving about smiles on Saturday but I refuse to believe that Leif smiled first for Soren.  Soren does nothing  for that baby!  I slave  over him!  Sigh ... I guess babies have no concept of fairness.  

We kept coasting on bare bones this month: read-alouds, composer study, and picture study.  Sometimes I would throw in a game or a math lesson but mostly, I just didn't bother.  There have been more important things to do this month.  Like adore a newborn.  And buy a house. In Kindergarten The Bremen Town Musicians - In spite of the fact that I wasn't doing much for 1st grade and Soren, I was eager to get back into the swing of things with Kindergarten this month.  For my first post-baby unit, I chose the Brothers' Grimm story "The Bremen Town Musicians".  The kids loved  it, maybe more than any other story we have done this year.  They were rolling on the floor with laughter every time I told it.  To accompany it, I shared silly rhymes about animals (like "Hey Diddle Diddle") and taught the kids to sing "With Songs of Praise" (Hymn No. 71).  If you can't tell from my lovely fingerpainting, the artwork above is of the thieves' hou

Goals for Soren: * keep up with Ambleside Online reading schedule for homeschool * finish the container story for main lessons before moving to Illinois * learn to resolve disputes with Carl Goals for Carl: * no hitting or kicking other kids during Yard Time * obey "The Lego Rules" during Quiet Time * don't keep brothers awake when they want to sleep Goals for Sven: * no shrieking! * Table Time at 8:30 am * stay on the rug during Rug Time Goals for Leif: * be put down for naps awake * eat no more frequently than every 3 hours at night * be delightful Goals for Carolyn: * pray and read the scriptures in the morning * eat breakfast and lunch * drink water, not Coke Goals for Mom: * supervise Carl constantly and enforce rules of polite interaction with other kids * don't say "I don't care" when Soren tattles * stay awake when feeding/soothing Leif at night