Someone's making breakfast, just walked into the kitchen to find the oven's on and this on the counter
10:40am Archer: I forgot to make my corn dogs!
I like when the kids stay up all night and then sleep late the next morning - I can read my book in peace and quiet. And wonder if the breakfast I ate (pretzels and french onion dip) was more or less healthy than Archer's breakfast. Questions to ponder...
Its right around November 15th every year that we
start seeing the “Countdown to Christmas” messages everywhere. The stores have
already pulled out all the Christmas stuff and by the time we get to
Thanksgiving, we’re hearing the music everywhere. I don’t think it’s a huge
secret that I’m not a big fan of Christmas, I don’t like the pressure to make
my house look a certain way and spend a bunch of money on stuff we don’t need.
But. Mostly I try to keep my sentiments to myself. Last year, the five of us
all finally officially gave up on celebrating with Santa. The youngest kid
knows. We (the parents) can stop trying so hard to hide everything (we were
never very good at that) and we can just be up front about the packages that
keep arriving at our doorstep leading up to the big day. So that was a step
towards making Christmas all around better this year.
David and the kids worked SO HARD to get everything ready.
Many dozens of cookies made (thanks Eli, Shelly, David). Dishes and more dishes
(thankyou Faithful Dishwasher for all
your hard work!). Vacuum the living room, again and again (thanks Archer J). All the windows
washed (Wow! David!!!). Laundry, more dishes, more vacuuming, dusting.
Now on to the real joy of Christmas, what we all know we’re
supposed to be enjoying, but it gets lost in the stress… Family Time. Time
Together.
It happened this year – we really had a chance to ENJOY each
other. Nana came on Christmas Eve, along with Bampa and Grandma Shell and we
had a wonderful evening together. The stories, the silliness, so many hugs for
everyone. Archer snuggled up next to Nana for an hour or two while we watched a
show, then everyone headed off to bed.
Then on Christmas Day, it was the Fortiers’ turn to take
over the house – little by little they trickled in and the house warmed up. We
were missing only 2 of the entire clan and with a group that large, I’d say
that was an amazing accomplishment. To have just about everyone there was
amazing. Christmas has changed so much over the years that I’ve been a part of
this family. All of the grandchildren are growing up, there’s not so much
screaming (with joy) and crying. Not so much of all the kids mobbing
Christopher’s legs and wrestling him to the ground to pile on top of the oldest
cousin. There’s more talk of dating (bleh!! I don’t wanna know!!), jobs,
travelling and the BIG topic this year is who is newly driving, or about to be
driving, or could be driving by now but isn’t…
After food and presents, the
kids found a game to play together and this is where I have to say, I could not
have pictured this 15 years ago. I probably would not have said, “It’s great
that they’re all playing video games!” We always hear about kids and “too much
screen time.” But Christopher told his cousins that he wanted to spend some
time with them and they ALL (that’s 9 kids aged 9 through 25) piled into the
boys’ bedroom for a game on their phones/tablets/computers. They found a game
that all of them could play together. Screen time, yes. FUN TIME with cousins,
DEFINITELY. We had such a great time, I was sorry to kick everyone out at 9:00
because some of us had to work the next day.
I would say it was definitely one of the best Christmases
yet – so much wonderful family time connecting with everyone. Thanks to all who
came over, brought stuff and just hung out. And most of all, thank you to
Elijah, Shelly, Archer and David for ALL of your hard work keeping the house
clean and ready to entertain. My wonderful children never complained even once.
Not when I interrupted their playtime to
do more chores, not when we asked Shelly to give up her room while Nana stays
with us, not when I asked someone to come to the grocery store with me AGAIN. I
have the most wonderful family.
This summer has been filled with the most wonderful moments. I so often think about stopping to write a blog or take more pictures but more often I think - just treasure this moment right now. Yesterday we went to State Fair and a stranger complimented us on our kids' good behavior. Archer was carrying Eli, they pressed their cheeks together cuddling and loving as can be. Tonight all three of them were crawling around on the ground, animal noises and made-up noises and cuddles and a little bit of wrestling. Eli told me at supper he couldn't eat anymore because his stomach was sore from laughing so much. He laughed so hard that he cried!! I keep treasuring more and more of these moments, closing my eyes and picturing all of them having the time of their lives and I get to see it all. What a blessing. What sweet sweet moments. I cannot imagine how life could be any better than this.
So - quick recap.
Archer and I took a bus trip with his school to Washington DC in May. I met some of the kids he hangs out with, we spent SO MANY HOURS on a bus and never quite got enough sleep. I don't know about him, but I learned a lot. I hope our family can visit there someday. I'm glad I got to spend so much time with him. It was the opportunity of a lifetime for both of us, and I'll treasure it forever.
June. 8th grade graduation. (I may have shed a tear. I'll never be back to that school, he's a high schooler now! He's so much more mature than when he started 6th grade, etc. etc.) 5th grade transition. (I may have shed another tear. She's getting so grown up!) Last day of First Grade. (I loved Mrs. Powell! E has grown so much!) Many thoughts about transition and change and moving on/up.
Visit to Nana, dragged her around to all the antique shops we could find just for the fun of looking at old stuff. It was great spending the day with her and talking about times old and new.
Archer attended National Youth Leadership Training for Scouts. Sounds like it was lots of work and lots of fun, he came home with a few stories to share. We're still hearing the stories 2 months later. Also, maybe he'll be staff next year? Something to consider. It rained every day, they ended up in a cabin when their tents were all soaked. But he looked happy when we showed up on the last day, and I'm proud of him for completing it.
July. Our most laid back 4th in many years - no attempt to make it up to HC for a run, just hang out at home till we go to the lakefront to stake out our spot for the fireworks. And someone stole our spot!!! Wait! They moved! We got our spot! Mary and her family joined us for yet another great night at the fireworks. I almost forgot - before that we hung out at Rachel's house with her boys for a cookout (where David kindly grilled all the food while the girls sat around chatting (gossiping?)). That was enjoyable for all of us, except maybe David who looked awfully hot once the 20 pounds of chicken was all cooked.
David and Eli went to Day Camp where they had many wonderful Scout activities for 4 days. By the last day, Eli was seeming more and more run down and David took him home early. We worried that he had heat exhaustion but that night, both Archer and Shelly went to bed early. They had either contracted heat exhaustion from Eli, or all 3 of them were sick. I think there was a little sickness running through our house , and within 24 hours everyone was back to normal.
Archer went to Scout Camp with his Troop. He was kept busy working on merit badges and cooking dinner and whatever else Boy Scouts do at camp. They all came home exhausted and smelling like... well, actually, Boy Scouts don't smell that bad! Part of the Scout Law, a Scout is Clean!
Shelly was at Anokijig again this year. Photography, games and HORSES! Shelly read lots (borrowed a book from a friend she knew from last year, and read instead of slept during quiet time), read some more (hid inside her sleeping bag with a flashlight, why does that not surprise me?), hid some more inside her sleeping bag when a big storm rolled through camp one night... But the best part was the horses, she enjoyed it all.
Let's not forget Camp Snoopy, where Eli hung out while Archer and Shelly were at their camps. So much to do - fishing, kayaking, swim swim swim! Eli actually stayed at Camp Snoopy for most of the week while the older kids were away, so he had his own version of camp and being away from home. I don't think he missed home at all, the Camp Snoopy Counselors (Grandma and Grandpa) kept him WAY too busy to think about missing home.
More stuff
Kingfish Baseball game with F5
Walk with friends at the lakefront
Brewers Baseball game with work peeps
Pool party sleepover with friends
Pool party with Nana
Making windchimes with Shelly
Beach pizza picnic with the kids
There have been a few more days here and there for more Camp Snoopy (kids trying to escape via kayaks), fishing, lefse making, so much swimming, and I forget everything else.
And now I store up these moments in my heart. What a wonderful summer. Time with family, time for the kids to find adventure on their own, so much good. It's winding down and we're starting to think about school supplies and school schedules but we've got a couple more weeks to go. Let's enjoy all the days of summer to their very last minute and find joy in each and every one we come across.
Last week David and Elijah went to day camp at Ohdakota. Four days of Scouting including the standard swimming, crafts, knot tying, camp food, shooting BB guns, archery, fishing, bug hunting and slushies. Ok wait, the slushie thing was the story of this year…. Every year there’s something that kind of sets things apart. (Bee Hive Disaster the most famous so far.) This year, the camp counselors started really drumming up excitement for the slushie machine, and the boys could get commemorative Camp Lyle cups for half price (or something). (Mom commentary - Lyle is now closed, they’re trying to get rid of those cups that have the wrong camp name on them but make it sound like it's a very special deal - Mom commentary now complete.) An hour after getting the kids all excited for slushies, the kids go to the Trading Post and the sign on the door reads “Slushie Macine Broken.” I wonder if anyone cried? Anyway, there was so much disappointment that David took E to the gas station after camp to get him a slushie. Tuesday. NEW slushie machine has been installed (or the old one was fixed?) BUT nothing’s frozen yet. No slushies at camp. Wednesday, finally working, E got his slushie. Sadly(?), the special Lyle cups ran out right before E got to the front of the line so he got a regular cup. But whatever, he got his slushie finally.
The best part of the week was the end, where Eli told David that next year he wants to do camp for two weeks. He was so very sad that the week went so fast. It was so very wonderful that the two of them had four days together to enjoy the sunshine and meeting new friends together. I don’t know if they’ll do two weeks next year, but I hope they get to enjoy at least one week of adventures once again next summer.
{Sadly, I don't have any pictures of the adventures. If I come across any, I'll try to add them someday.}
This morning we met up with Archer’s group and waved them off as they headed out to Scout Camp once again. This has been going on for so long that it almost feels routine at this point. Archer packed everything himself with very little input from us. They had already loaded all the gear into the trucks and trailers yesterday, so this morning it truly was just enjoying some powdered donuts and deciding who was riding with which drivers. Enough hugs and kisses to embarrass Archer and then, “Have fun, seeya next week!” And the caravan was gone. And all the parents went home to go back to bed. Except not us, not this time, not back to bed.
This time, a new event. Definitely not routine. Shelly is going off to her own camp adventure for the very first time. At ten years old, she’s finally been able to join the campers’ world and we dropped her off at Camp Anokijig for her very first week away from home. She’s super excited (horses!), a little nervous (new place, new people, what to expect?) but I’m really happy that she gets to have this experience. I’m confident she’s going to have the best week ever and hopefully she’ll share a few stories with us when she gets home. We’ve given her postcards so perhaps we’ll hear from her. But I’m not holding my breath for that, she’ll probably be too busy to take time for writing. I will admit… I may have almost cried when we walked away from her. She did not bat an eye, she was too busy looking forward to getting started.
And now, we have a week with Eli, maybe this is the first time in his life that he’s an only child? I wonder how often he’ll end up in our bed, since he doesn’t have anyone in his room to protect him from monsters, or pester him with talking, or steal his pillow and blankets when they share a bed. I often think that he gets a little lost in the shuffle and no one hears him because there are too many other voices in the crowd. Hopefully we hear everything he as to say this week. And I’m confident that Shelly and Archer will come back with some wonderful stories to share.
The company I work for strives to encourage people to serve their community through volunteer work. Since I started there, fourteen months ago, I have attempted to support this mission and once every two or three months I suggest we spend a day working for Habitat for Humanity. Habitat does new construction, but also rehabs older houses that are in disrepair. Finally, after a year of asking the question - when can we do this? - we managed to put together a team of seven people. We all showed up at a house in Milwaukee and spent the day painting. We painted the entire thing. Three bedrooms, bathroom, hallways, living room and kitchen. There were some really bad parts like a few spiders, moldy ceiling and walls, stains splattered everywhere. But mostly there were some really GREAT parts like meeting new people, working hard with each other to do this great thing for someone else. The house still has a lot of work ahead of it, but it was nice to contribute in our small way to helping a family get on their feet with their own place to live. I still have paint in my hair. I wonder when we can do it again? ;)
P.S. While I was off painting, David and Archer were at a Highway Cleanup with the Scouts. It’s really disheartening how much garbage people toss out their windows with no regard for their communities. It’s really wonderful when a group of people can come together and clean it up. It was nice to hear about the people who honked in support or shouted thanks to the boys as they drove by. Perhaps our own kids will learn to pick up after themselves, after seeing the mess it makes when others don’t?
Archer's in track, along with cousin Annika. We cheered Annika on at her final meet of the season last week, the kids had fun rolling around on the grass together and screaming for her as she flew by us in her various events. There's some talk of State? Not sure where that's going for her, but Good Luck!
Archer's last meet of the season was tonight. Every time he has a meet, I tell him to run like the wind. He rolls his eyes at me. Once, at one of his meets, one of his friends hung out by me for a few minutes and we got to chat a bit. It was nice. Archer accused me of being the loudest mom at the meet, I was proud to wear the title. I have no idea who most of the kids are, I just scream the school name and watch the kids streak past, pushing their legs and lungs harder than they think they can go. I've only seen one kid collapse at the finish line so far. Clearly they had more to give. :)
May 6 was a day that will go down in history... It was the day that my firstborn, Archer of many names (I won't list them all here, to preserve his integrity and avoid embarrassing him to death) came into this world and I proclaimed to everyone who would listen, "Isn't he the most perfect thing you've ever seen?"
May 6 will ALSO go down in history because it was the day that great Piano Concertist (is that a word?) Shelly debuted on stage (actually the front of the church)... Shelly performed beautifully in her first Piano Recital.
These kids never cease to amaze and impress me.
Archer. Yes, I gave up pretending that you haven't outgrown me. You're taller than me, you weigh more than I did when I graduated high school, you're wearing Grandpa's running shoes. I say you have Ski Feet. Eli calls you Big Foot. Sometimes you look like you have jelly legs, how are you so floppy and scrawny and tall? Hey Mr. Tall Guy, you're growing up into someone I'm proud to call my son. Normally I don't like to brag about this stuff publicly, except for this blog is pretty private now so mostly I'm just bragging to myself. You were on the High Honor roll last quarter! Not just the regular one, the HIGH one! With your name in the paper! Also you were the champion of the school Geography Bee! Also you're a track star!! Ok, I know you say you're only doing track because I'm making you, and I know you pretend to not like it, but you look like you're having a great time with the other kids on your team. And I see you out there, running HARD and taking pride in your finishes and I'm so proud of you. Keep it up, keep up all the hard work, keep up the antics, keep being you. I'm proud of you, Kid!
Shelly Anna, my love. You decided to try something new this year and WOW have you ever flourished! Every week we go to piano lessons and you speak with Ms. Heather in some other language that I don't understand. From the very first week you seemed to know exactly what she was saying to you, and I sat there having no clue what the two of you were talking about. Every week it gets a little more foreign to me, and you settle further into the music and the notes flow from your fingers. I love when you practice and our house is filled with your music. Beautiful.
We invited family and friends over to celebrate Archer's birthday after Shelly's recital and we had a crowd in the house from early afternoon to late into the night. If 9:00 is considered late. I guess it is for me, I'm getting too old to stay out too late. ;) Anyway it was a wonderful day. Moments of kids chasing each other with weapons, lots of shouting and laughing, some games and accusations of cheating, etc. etc. etc. The perfect kind of fun.
Don't ever let anyone tell you that all these electronics are ruining our kids. Sometimes they play together nicely, even when they're playing on their tablets. See?
Archer climbed into the recycling bin, and David told the other two that this is what happens when kids turn 13. We recycle them. Then we get a new one. That's what happened to the other kids. Eli only believed it for a moment, asking us, "What other kids?" Then he moved on to demolishing a cardboard box with a plastic bat.
On another day, David and I sat in the van and watched as Eli went after a box with this giant bat. He had no regard for anyone watching, he was simply performing a job. He crashed his bat into that box over and over, relentless. Finally, after 10 or 15 minutes, the whole thing was reduced to flat chunks of cardboard on the floor. He casually put the bat away, looked at his work, brushed his hands off against each other, as if to say, "Job well done." Ever wish you could get into the mind of a six year old? What makes him tick? He didn't look back at us, just turned and walked into the house.
Scouting For Food bag handout day, we had to call in reinforcements (cousins) to help get the job done. Thanks Cuz!
Eli's car was one of the top 3 in his Pack so he was able to compete in the District Derby. Also, our family ran the event. We've done this before so it was all routine and there weren't too many big surprises.
Well, there was one big surprise. There was a promise made to the competitors that there would be a Blue Angel fly-by before the racing commenced.
Thanks to the Angels (and the boys who will not be named for making this possible!).
Eli registers his car.
Shelly and friend Claire run the concession table, selling hot dogs, popcorn, candy and beverages.
David did a fantastic job of coordinating everything and the whole event went off without a hitch. The boys in Archer's Troop were key in keeping everything running smoothly. Another day of great memories for all involved!
Archer in 4K, 5K, and maybe a year or two more - The List of names comes home. Trip to the store to find The Best Valentine Cards. The child (or the child's parent) addresses every single little card, folds the cards, puts little heart stickers on them. The little heart stickers don't stick very well. An especially ambitious/generous parent also buys some kind of candy treat and attaches that to the cards.
Shelly in 4K, maybe 5K? and the years beyond - The List of names comes home. Inspired by some other past Valentine event, Mom decides that Students should write the names of all their classmates by themselves. This requires much advance planning. Student can only write a few names each day before getting worn down and starting to complain. This also requires super extra planning, go to the store to pick out The Best Valentine Cards at least two weeks before the Big Day. Also, dig around in the closet to see what cards are leftover from last year, so we can buy the least number of new cards possible. Forget about candy treats, now we're supplying cards for two classes (older brother, younger sister), double the kids. That's too much candy to buy. Besides, we'll probably eat it before it even gets sent off to school.
Elijah in 3K, 4K, K - Forget The List. We get a message telling us how many kids are in the class. Writing classmates' names is no longer required, in fact, please don't write other kids' names, it takes too long to sort the cards out at school. Only write your own name in the "from" part of the card. All the leftover cards from past years are too crumpled up to use, or the characters aren't cool anymore. Buy The Very Best Valentine Cards, don't even think about buying candy, that's too many kids to feed. Those little heart stickers still don't stick very well. Mom is now past the whole "other moms do better/more than me" and now is just focused on getting the task done and getting those cards out of the house and on their way to school. Other moms send cookies to school? Great! You send the cookies, I'll just make sure my kid shows up on time and mostly clean.
We're at the point where only two out of the three kids have parties at school, the oldest is too grown up for candy hearts and stuff. At this point, it would actually be too embarrassing to tolerate. Doesn't keep him from stealing his siblings' candy after school though. How did I almost forget that Valentine's is almost as big as Halloween for the candy haul?
