The Things We Are Doing Instead of Working on the House

I haven’t been so motivated to blog lately for several reasons. First of all, our internet was being exceedingly stupid. I had to go out into our hallway and hold the computer in front of the window in the door to get a good signal. Also, the thing that I was having so much fun putting up pictures of (the house) came to what was nearly a screeching halt. So here is a post with a title suggested by Jodi.

1. Telling our Love Story- One night I started telling Eli and Evan about how Kendall and I met. I told them about it for awhile, then I said, "You’ll just have to wait and see what happens next! To be continued tomorrow night!" That drove them absolutely crazy and started something. Now they always want to hear the next chapter at bedtime. It’s good for Kendall and I to tell it together. Eli loved how Kendall accidentally introduced me to his aunt as "Amy." He also liked how Ben and Kendall announced each other’s engagements at church and let us know that he wants to be at church "when Shad does that."

2. Having weird conversations- Evan and I were just eating lunch. Out of the blue, he asked me, "Mommy, don’t you like it when I suffer?" I looked up at him with a very confused expression, only to see the same expression mirrored on his face. Quickly, he asked, "What is suffering anyway?"

3. Enjoying/Battling the Snow- The snow waited a long time to come, but it has more than made up for it’s tardy arrival. We don’t have "snow days" here. The schools are tricky and only cancel bus service. Then school is still officially in session and the missed days don’t need to be made up. From what I’ve picked up, on these days school is basically optional for all students- bussed or not. Anyway, we have already had 3 days of cancelled bus service. That is not normal. Any junk left lying around is now lost until April or May. We’ll wait just as long to see grass. Oh well, at least it’s pretty. Other than the length of winter, though, I prefer this over northern Indiana’s winter. Sunshine and sparkling white snow is beautiful. So, we’re back to deep snow and plugging in the cars and boots and snow pants and mitts and hats all over the place.

4. Learning about world religions- Eli told me he found out that his teacher is a Christian. When I asked him how he knew, he said that there was something about Baby Jesus in their word search. I told Eli that that doesn’t especially mean that he’s a Christian. Then Eli told me that Makale, his buddy, is a Christian too. He said he asked him and Makale said, "Yes. Mohammed." (I don’t get it either.) Then Eli said, "We don’t celebrate that." (I don’t get that either.) Eventually I told Eli that Mohammed is who Muslims believe in. Eli told me that he’s not exactly a Christian. "Then what are you?" I asked. His answer? "A Muslim who believes in God!" And off he ran to play. Has he ever heard of Muslims before? Oh well, we’ll leave it at that for now...

5. Discovering animals a little too close to home- The other day I saw 2 large dog-shaped animals walking across the ice very near to our new place. They were too far to see exactly what they were, but I have my guesses. Hmmm.... When Kendall tried to calm fears of wild beasts and give me a false sense of security by telling me that we were moving to an island, he forgot to mention that the bay freezes in the winter and that when the water is ice, there is no such thing as an island. When I confronted him with this later, all he could come up with was, "Moose don’t like to walk on ice." Excuse me, but it was not the moose in my back yard that were my main concern!

6. Taking care of a 1-year old

We got a call for emergency foster care late Friday night. So we had this little girl here until Tuesday afternoon. Once again, the boys loved her. I am rather spoiled by this point in family life, though, and it was a big adjustment to have a toddler wandering the house. This is a rare picture of her laughing. The boys were the only ones who were really able to get her to smile. Here they were determined that they were taking her outside to play. Have at it guys!

7. Thankfully, Kendall found someone who is able to help him with electrical. He was planning on doing the wiring, but his schedule just wasn't allowing it. He only needed about a week to get it done, but those 7 days would have stretched out into the new year. So someone has supposedly been there this week working. Hopefully getting lots done! Kendall worked Monday night, then got off work at 6am to be at the airport by 6:30 for a 3-day work trip to Fort Severn, way up on the Hudson Bay. His trip got cut short and he got home last night just in time for the boys' keyboard recital. Yea! Meanwhile, I'm trying to adjust my expectations for when we'll be in the new house and just be patient.