Gary's fun

Here is how Santa got into our house.  At least that's what the kids think.

We might have a reason

For a long time now, Gary and I have been struggling with parenting Ellie.  Last year we took her to a psychologist, then a therapist.  They really didn't help.  At all.

This past Monday, Gary and I went to talk to another counselor.  We described what it's like in our household; how Ellie behaves; how frustrated, worn out, upset, and unsure of ourselves we are.  She listened.  She asked questions.  She understood.  She did not condemn, blame, shame, or judge.  She listened.  She gave us hope. 

She asked us what we knew of ADD or ADHD.  She gave us, and one for her teacher, a short questionnaire to fill out.  If the scale leans toward ADD, then we will take Ellie to see a psychologist for further testing. 

And if it doesn't lean toward ADD, then she will still work with us and give us practical techniques in parenting her more effectively. 

Yesterday, when I had to redirect Ellie so many times, that I can't remember how many, to do her home work and to get her bath, I kept telling myself that maybe she is having trouble because of something she can not control.  I did not blame her, or shame her or judge her and I did not compare her to others.  Our afternoon and evening went exponentially better.  Gary even noticed a difference when he got home.

I know it was just one day.  And I know things will not always run so well.  But my mindset was different.  It was better.  And that makes a difference.

Josh turns 6!

One of our first family-of-four photos.











I just love looking at him.

And in case you were wondering, it isn't just my side of the family that is goofy.

Josh gets it from both sides.












He likes to dress up, too.



















And he is VERY inquisitive. 

"What's in there?"

.

He loves to work with his hands

"What's in there?"

"What happens when I do this?"

"What happens when I make this?"






That's my boy!
 

My Strenghts

What are they?  Sometimes it seems as though I have none.  I feel like I live in my weaknesses.

But . . . 

God has given each of us gifts and abilities.  Really thinking about it and ignoring the lies of satan (which is hard because he continually plants doubt, lack of confidence, and comparison in me), I came up with a few.

Photography.  Finding things.  Organizing. 

A reposting of my first post . . . and my commentary

 

Thursday, May 12, 2005

A Wood Thrush singing. A Hawk Soaring. The sound of deer passing by.

These are all memories I have of visiting my grandparents in the Poconos.

I am going there tomorrow. I love going to the cabin. The smells and sounds bring back wonderful memories of growing up years. Spending time with my grandparents was the highlight of my summers.

But for two years now it hasn't been the same. My grandfather died in September of 2003 and Grandmom moved into our area. She misses the cabin and Grandpop. They built the cabin and lived there for thirty years.

My daughter is 9 months old. I want her to grow up and know the special time of being at the cabin. I will share with her my memories. And maybe someday, my parents will be living there anticipating the summers when their grandchild will visit.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am glad I had the chance of living at the cabin for a year and a half.  I will treasure that time always. And even now the cramped feel of it has faded. 

My parents are indeed planning to move there.  Their house is for sale, plans for remodeling are mostly complete.  But now it is grandchildren, and they may not be there in the summers.  But we will still visit, always, any time of year.  Even if it is just weekends.

I hope Ellie and Josh are able to retain their memories of our time living there. 

My Mom

Here she is.  My Mom.

(And my cousin. I picked this photo, because my cousin's birthday is the day after my mom's, and we always celebrated them together. So Happy Birthday to Karen, too.)

This is my great- grandmother, Anne, from whom I was given my middle name.  I think my mom looks like her in this photo.

 But not so much in this photo.

The bride and groom.

A handsome couple.


 




















Her children and grandchildren, who call her blessed.

She loves spending time with her family at home or on a trip.

Snuggling with a grandchild is also at the top of her list of favorite things.

She is also willing to be a little crazy.

Or a lot crazy, you know.  (But not to out do her husband.)

 I am quite thankful for my mom.  She has passed on a sense of family value.  She always had a home cooked meal for us.  My mom passed on great recipes as well.  My favorite is, for dinner, her beef stew, and for an afternoon snack, warm homemade applesauce and chocolate chip cookies.  Yum!

 She always has a listening ear and is willing to lend a hand.  If she sees something that needs doing, she'll do it.

My mom encourages others.  Including my friend.

All she has passed on to my brother, sister and I, is also passed on to her grandchildren.

That's my mom.  Happy Birthday!

My Dad

 













Here we all are.  His family.
  

My dad is a tireless worker.  He always has a project going on. Lazy or procrastinator could never be used to describe him. He doesn't complain, just keeps working. 


Sometimes he has help. 



 

He works in his garden, fortifying it to preserve the produce from varmints.  He grows enough beans and tomatoes to can for the coming fall, winter and spring.

He loves his grandchildren.  And wears their birthday crowns.

 
And holds them when they ask.  They love to see their Poppop.

 








My dad is a man of character.  He can fix practically anything.  He can be quite animated.  I look up to him.  He is an example for me to follow. 

He's my dad.  Happy Birthday.  I love you.

My House Feelings

I was thinking today of my previous posts about our house.  And thinking that one might just get the impression we do not like it and in fact regret buying it. 

In actuality, I am more upset with the sellers and the state in which they left the house.  And I feel cheated and lied to by them because of the condition of the house and items they left. 

It isn't the house's fault the sellers didn't take care of it. 

I do really like our house and enjoy living here.

The Seventh Word (Hebrew numbering, since it was written first in Hebrew.)

"Thou shalt not commit adultery."  Although the ancient Hebrews restricted understanding of adultery was rather limited, we Christians have a much broader sense of the word.  And before reading this post, I hadn't thought to relate it to parenting.

In the post, the author says that adultery "is about breaking covenant and giving someone else a place that doesn't belong to them."  How often have I chosen to ignore the needs of my children to please a stranger or even an a acquaintance, not wanting to offend them?  What about my own children?  They are indeed a higher priority.

And even though it is more the spirit of the commandment than actual commandment, I am reminded to be committed to my children, after my husband and before all others.

Lilly

Here I am again.  My life has been somewhat chaotic since we signed those papers.  Those darn papers. (I don't have it in me to type "damn" there.)

Those papers that made this house our problem.  But yet, don't get me wrong.  I am liking our house more and more.  Once all our junk is put away or sold away or given away or thrown away, and we fix or replace or decide to just put up with the broken appliances, it will feel like a pretty nifty home, not just the place we get our mail.

And with people like these living here . . .

. . . who couldn't love these faces!

Lilly is our new puppy dog.  She is about 5 years old.  And if you can't tell, she's a Saint Bernard (yes, AL we decided to get one anyway.)  Josh and Ellie adore her.  They want to take her for walks, play with her, give her treats, brush her, feed and water her.  Ellie will even wipe her mouth after she drinks.  (It can get a little messy otherwise.)  But they draw the line at picking up poop.

She is a great dog.  She is calm, hardly barks, doesn't jump (we have to lift her into the car, which isn't easy with a 96 pound dog.  She'll put her front legs up and then wait to be hoisted.)  She absolutely LOVES belly rubs.  Though she spends most of her time on the floor snoring, she does like a walk around the block.  But don't make it too long she says, or she'll start slowing down.

Today we went to the groomers.  She came home all pretty and with a bow on her ear.  When I took her, I had to pull her in, while a vet tech pushed. She remembered being there yesterday for her vet visit.  Yesterday she walked in the door, then thought better of it once it was time to go on the scale.  And again when time to go into the exam room.  She hunkered down and wouldn't budge.  The floor is nice and slidey, so we kind of pulled/pushed/dragged her.  She eventually realized she was going and got up and walked.  And once it was time to go, she held nothing back.  So, once back at the same place as yesterday, she put on the brakes at the front stoop.  She wouldn't even go in the door. 

It's going to be great fun trying to get her in to have her nails clipped more often.  They were neglected, so the quick is too long and have to be trimmed more often to get it to recede. 





 

Our house . . .

where high hopes meet hard reality.

At closing, the previous owners said they cleaned the house.  She needs to check with Webster about the definition of clean.  Because there was no "clean" at our new house.  The refrigerator was filthy.  Cabinets had hardened food residue.  Floors were dusty.  Cobwebs clung to walls.  The tub and toilet were grimy.

I knew I would wipe down surfaces for moving in, but I didn't realize I would need to scrub nearly every surface within an inch of it's life.

It was disheartening.

First week of ownership:
1.  Clean refrigerator and cabinets.  My friend cleaned the fridge, while I scrubbed cabinets.  She, also, was taken aback at the dirtiness in the kitchen.
2.  Buy supplies.
3.  Cut down spruce tree.

Weeks two and three:
1.  Spackle and paint.
2.  Buy supplies.
3.  Clean.  I am tired of the filth of the previous owners.

Weekend of July 27-29:
1.  Move in.
2.  Buy supplies.
3.  Clean.  Really tired of finding more filth from the previous owners.

Weeks following:
1.  Unpack.
2.  Buy supplies.
3.  Clean.  Tired of finding mouse poop because of the filth of the previous owners.  Even found mouse bones stuck to sticky pads under the stove.
4.  Continue moving remainder of belongings still at parents'.
5.  Organize.
6.  Figure out how to eliminate the water in the basement every time is rains, not just during heavy rains as the disclosure states, and the leak in the attic, of which the previous owners were unaware, so says the disclosure. (A River Runs Through It.)
7.  Work really hard at not being completely discouraged by the problems with the house we bought.
8.  Contemplate which breed of dog to adopt - Lab or St. Bernard.

We signed the papers.

We are home owners once again.  Now the work begins. 

Party in the USA

Not that I am a Miley Cyrus fan or anything, but for some reason I like this song.  And I like watching this fellow sign it.  And my goal is to sign it as well.

The kids are partial to this song.

Just because

I liked the look of this fence, so I stopped the car and grabbed my camera and took some photos.
They are from December last year.

A Phillies Date

In Baltimore.  We took a water taxi. Here is some of what we saw.

It was a sea of red and orange at Camden Yards Saturday.  I dare say more red than orange.

 Here is the lovely couple in their Phillies' shirts.