beginning with the nighttime moon

Posted on October 10, 2017 by Shanda

“Oh, if there’s only one song I can sing,
When in His beauty I see the great King,
This shall my song through eternity be,
“Oh, what a wonder that Jesus loves me!” ~Philip Bliss

This hymn is stuck in my head this morning and I’m just so happy because today I have absolutely nothing pressing…..in the last week this family has had a total of 10 appointments (mostly dental, one doctor, and others) and I’m ready to have a peace-full morning instead of getting ready to go…….I’m a home-bird…..

I have a steaming Scarlet fiesta mug of green tea on the coffee table in front of me, and a curled up chocolate lab snoring by my side on the couch and I’m ready to let my fingers tippety tap along the keyboard….I love blogging…everyone should do it. Life is so interesting.

Last week, Rich was gone on a business trip for five days straight and our college son Ethan was home for the week, too. After Caleb’s dentist appointment and right before his doctor’s appointment, we had time to sit at the bookstore and drink hot coffee beverages.

(Caleb had no cavities but was put on antibiotics for a sinus infection).

(a page from the latest Victoria magazine–I was so tired last week that I had to read this quote like 5 times before it made sense. And… Seth, waiting for the bus one morning).

Hanging out on the porch with Sarah. She was blowing the whistle CONSTANTLY.

She gets to learn how to play the recorder next year at school and the whistle is a tiny recorder. So she would blow and then take a break to say things like “Can I buy my own recorder, Mom?” “I’m going to get a pink one.” “Did Caleb buy his?” “Where is it?” “What color was it?” “Seth doesn’t bring his home.” “He doesn’t like to play it.” and so on.

These muffins were yummy.

Rich took this at the football games on Sunday.

Reading on the porch with my kitty.

Ethan was home all last week and so (because I’m a good mom) I thoughtfully made him a dentist appointment for a cleaning. (he was less than thrilled because has bad luck always at the dentist). He drove himself. I was at the grocery store when they called me, “Hello we have Ethan here and he has a couple cavities that he didn’t get filled last time and the dentist has time to do them now if you’d like us to do that?” And naturally I said, “Oh yes, that would be awesome, and please have the Doctor check Ethan’s gray front tooth.” Then we hung up. After another hour or so, Ethan came home with his eyes sad and face blank. He put his papers from the dentist down on the counter. Ethan doesn’t talk much so I had to pry. “What did they say about your tooth?” “They said the roots are a little shorter and it might fall out eventually so I have to go to a specialist to get it looked at.” I ran over to the referral paper, and called the number right away just to see if perhaps they could get him in while he was home. And yes, they were able to get him an appointment on Thursday.

So Thursday came. The appointment was at 8:30 in the morning. As soon as the kids left on the bus at 7:30, Ethan and I got in the car to head to his appointment, which was on the other side of Hartford. Ugh busy city traffic. We had no time to go through the Dunkin Donuts drive- thru. So we battled on through the traffic and got to the Endodontist with just enough time to park, find the office, and fill out papers.

Ethan was called to the back for his appointment and I followed, simply because, like I said, Ethan doesn’t talk much and I wanted ALL the information. The dentist took an X-ray, and tapped on his front teeth. Then he held a tiny piece of cotton with his dentist tongs and sprayed icy cold air on it. “I’m going to put this on your tooth and you raise your hand when the pain is unbearable, okay Ethan?” He pressed the cotton on Ethan’s gray tooth and Ethan never raised his hand. “The reason you feel no pain is because that front tooth is dead,” the dentist explained. “You will need a root canal and then eventually we can bleach the inside of the tooth the next time you are home from college. I can’t just put the bleach in it this week or you might end up with a brilliantly refrigerator white tooth and that would be worse than the gray. I need to check the bleaching process every few days so we can take the bleach out once that tooth matches the other ones.” Wow, this was getting interesting. Ethan didn’t say a word.

We left with a root canal appointment for the very next day. Ethan’s bad luck at the dentist continued but you know what? It had to be done and it is all done now. The two of us had breakfast together that morning and then went to the mall and consoled ourselves with new shirts (Jcrew for him and Anthro for me). Rich came home that night and took Ethan the next day for the root canal and now he’s all set until he can get his tooth bleached.

Why was his tooth gray in the first place you might ask? He cannot remember the injury, but at some point when he was younger he bumped the tooth hard enough for it to die. With seven children and five of them boys, it’s a wonder any of them have white teeth. Seth had a gray tooth for a time, too, but it was a baby one and fell out. My brother David says Ethan should just get a gold tooth and be done with it.

I bought this vintage wool hook rug at an antique store this weekend….it’s now on the pantry floor and I love it. I’ve been waiting for just the right throw rug for my pantry. The outer part of the rug is dark gray, then a beautiful dark blue and light blue design, with light gray after that and a bunch of bright flowers in the middle. The blue matches the blue glass bottles in the window.

YESTERDAY it was Seth and Sarah’s turn at the dentist……(and tomorrow is my turn).

For prizes, they got teeth.

And then we went to the grocery store. I made them leave the teeth in the car and when we were checking out, Sarah turned to Seth and cried, “Seth, we can go to the car and put our teeth in now!”

Back at home…… (with a fogged up camera lens again, it was so damp and rainy)

David was on the roof.

He was bouncing a small basketball off the house and trying to make a basket down below, with the help of Caleb and Seth. He made it once.

(I took this one through the window)

It was pouring rain.

Last night my husband went downstairs to check on Seth, who was crying in the basement. He and Caleb had been fooling around. David and I looked at each other with alarm when we heard Rich yell, “DON’T PLAY FOOTBALL IN THE HOUSE!!!!!!!!!!” and Sarah came running upstairs laughing. “What happened? Sarah, tell me!” “Seth hit his head again and it’s bleeding a little bit right here,” she pointed to her head, “on the side of his head.”

Sure enough, Rich marched Seth upstairs, who already had a goose egg forming next to his temple on his forehead, and got him an ice pack.

This morning it already looked much better, but you can see the remainder of his injury next to his eye. (he had a bump up higher on his temple, and a scrape by his eye). I mean, at least it wasn’t his tooth.

7:15 this morning as I put away the dishes. “Mom, take a picture!”

Kids left on the bus. All is calm, all is bright.

The sun is shining! After a long weekend of rain, it is pure delight.

We end with the morning moon.

Happy Tuesday, friends.
You are loved.

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large family life; kids are always losing things

Posted on September 20, 2017 by Shanda

It’s mesmerizing outside; the air is cool and slightly damp, “it smells like rain” said Seth as he went out the door to wait for the bus. A most gentle of winds is bending leaves and branches and tree tops. The sky is light gray and easy on the eyes.

My husband is away this week on a business trip. I have found that planning a busy evening helps pass the hours until bedtime. The boys’ football practice was cancelled last night so we picked David up from soccer practice and headed to the mall. Three handsome sons had haircuts with a friendly six-foot barber who is getting to know them now after several visits. He asked them about their sports, their older brothers, called them each “my man” and gave them strong handshakes, bending near for a half hug and pats on the back, a big laugh, and smiles when they got down off the chair. The boys love it.

Then we had pretzels and sang to the radio on the way home in the dark.

It was 7:30 pm when we pulled in the driveway and David needed to finish up his homework. I was busy getting Seth and Sarah off to bed when I heard loud bangs and booms. The air crackled with frustration and anger; David couldn’t find his Very Important and Expensive calculator.

(Okay, so. Typically when the kids come to me and say, “Mom I can’t find my “whatever” small item, I simply don’t care in the least. I pretend like I care because I don’t want to hurt their feelings. I say, “Don’t worry, you’ll find it.” BECAUSE I KNOW for a fact that this THING they can’t find WILL show up. I think to myself: don’t even bother looking for it, child, you will come across it very soon. And sure enough, their lost item is, 99% of the time, found in a timely manner. )

However, this calculater was another, more urgent lost item, part of the remaining 1 %, and had to be located like, five minutes ago. Four of us had remembered seeing it with our very own eyes in the new football bin on the porch. The bin is so big that it can hold the football stuff AND several backpacks, a lawn chair, soccer balls, and old cleats. The last time we saw it, the calculator was on the bottom of the bin, after falling out of David’s backpack, but now to everyone’s horror it WASN’T THERE. David stormed around the house, inside and outside, looking for it. “SOMEONE TOOK IT!” he accused. He slumped on the couch and said impatiently to his brother, “What are YOU looking at?” He stomped upstairs and downstairs. Finally I said, “It HAS TO BE IN THE BIN!!! If we last saw it in the bin and none of us touched it, IT HAS TO STILL BE IN THE BIN!!!” Seth (who got out of bed because he “wanted to help”) looked in the bin, David looked in the bin three times, and I also looked in the bin. Hmmmm, it really was not there. I suggested other spots where it could be. No. Finally, I suggested calling their Dad. He didn’t answer, but called back about half (a long) hour later. We were all completely stressed out. “I don’t like it when David gets mad”, Seth confided in me. “My night is…. totally ruined,” I secretly thought dramatically to myself. “Ugh. That calculator was so expensive, too, I wonder if we should give him a new one next week for his birthday to replace it. He would LOVE that.”

HOWEVER……Rich knew what we were talking about right away. “I saw it on the bottom of that bin and put it in the front pocket of his book bag,” he said an an annoyed fatherly voice because he hates it when things aren’t put away where they are supposed to go. We hung up.

David stomped up to his room to look in his bag, again. There was a long silence. I was in the kitchen, pressing my hands to my mouth and willing myself not to ask. I finally called upstairs, “Did you find it?” “NO. IT’S NOT IN HERE.” he was still sounding very frustrated. What the heck?????

Then, I had a thought (through many years of problems, moms become amazingly brilliant at problem solving–if you remember, it was also my idea to call their Dad and ask him).

“Maybe he put it in Caleb’s bag by mistake.”

We rushed to find Caleb’s bag. We put it on the counter. We opened the first front pocket. No. We unzipped the second front pocket. And there it was. “Stupid” was for some reason the word that came from my mouth as I walked away. “Did you just call me stupid?” David asked. Then I laughed, “No, I guess I’m just calling this whole situation stupid.” The tension left the room.

By that time everyone else was in bed, the house was dark, all but a friendly glowing lamp. David and I each got our books and read together in quiet until 9:30. I interrupted the silence only once.

“Can you please keep your calculator in the main part of your backpack, zipped up, so it never falls out again?” He stared at me for a moment, I held my breath.

“Okay”, was all he calmly replied, looking back down to the page in his book.

******

Last week I was standing on the porch, busily brushing the dog. The kids were all at school. Clouds of fur lazily rolled across the porch and down the steps. I brushed one side and then the next. We didn’t talk. A light rain was falling. Then, all of a sudden, a little flock of juvenile blue birds came flying over the house and landed in the yard. My arm froze in mid-brushing. “I know I’m supposed to be brushing your fur, but would you mind if I got my camera?” I asked politely. He wagged his tail which I assumed meant, “Do whatever you want I’m gonna love you anyway and never ever get offended by anything you decide.” So I turn into the house and got my camera. As an apology, I let him take some of the photos. I thought they turned out pretty good.

****

Oh, one more quick story about kids losing things. Caleb has his own kindle and every once in a while when I think he’s been on it too much I take it in my room and hide it. Well, the two of us could not find it for days. And I’m thinking to myself, “I’m finally losing it. I can’t remember where I hid the thing. I can’t even remember hiding it.” Caleb was wandering around the house singing, “my kindle, my kindle” and it was putting me on edge. He even slyly searched David’s room. No luck. Finally we asked Sarah, who was upstairs playing in her room, if she knew where it was. “Seth has it. He took it to school. It’s in his backpack” Caleb and I stared at each other and then yelled downstairs to Seth. “Bring us your backpack, Seth. Where is Caleb’s kindle?” Seth looked so guilty, I rarely see a guilty expression on Seth’s face and it was ugly. Sure enough, the kindle was in Seth’s backpack and Seth had to go into my room for a talk. The point to this story is if you really can’t find something ask the youngest person in the family because 9 times out of 10 they know. They have amazing observation and memory skills. The other point is, when you feel like you’re finally losing your mind, 9 times out 10 –you’re not. It’s just that you have lots of kids and there is no limit to what can happen in a particular day.

PS, Mom? If you’re reading this? I can’t find my deodorant.

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thrifting finds

Posted on April 5, 2017 by Shanda

This picture doesn’t go with the rest of the post but I wanted to slip it in. I am enjoying the birds every day, and yes we had snow on April fool’s day. It’s all gone now.

*****

I drove to Vermont on Friday to get Ethan from college. He is home for the week. You may have seen the photo I put on instagram of all seven of the children. I’m glad the older ones are starting to do their own things but there is nothing like those moments when all the family is together again. It’s been even busier than ever at my house, hence not as much time to be on the computer.

This morning after getting the kids off to school and cleaning up spilled evaporated milk from all over the fridge, I had to go to the Post Office. I asked Ethan if he would like to go along with me. He insisted on waking up Jake and the three of us went.

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We went to the coffee shop first and I read them trivial pursuit questions while we enjoyed lattes and Jacob had a sandwich. It brought back good memories of homeschooling. I could sense myself slipping into that “mama teacher” feeling.

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We walked to the Thrift store to see if I could find any treasures. The boys didn’t just walk, they jumped up on bridges and things……

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They can finally do what they wanted to do when they were five years old *but Mom would stop them so they didn’t kill themselves*. I kept having flashbacks. (By the way, Jacob is currently 20 and Ethan is 19).

BACK HOME after thrifting and mailing books out to my friends…..

…..and here are some photos I took of *some* of my thrifting finds from today. I was most excited about the framed needlework that I found, which I promptly added to my collection (after hunting house and garage for a nail.) I used a rock as a hammer.

The collection is growing slow because I am very particular. Not only does it have to look right, the price also needs to be right.

If you are observant, you can see the word “mom” written in red by my bedroom door. What you can’t see is the “X” next to it. When I asked little Seth why he wrote “X mom” by my door he said, “Because you weren’t in your room.” Made sense to me! I can’t tell you how many smiles I have gotten out of that simple red sharpie “X mom” scribble by Seth since he wrote it a few years ago.

Ceramic Bunnies!!! They say 1983 on the bottom and the woman’s name, Eve, who painted them. The lady at the thrift store said ceramics were a trend during that time period and there used to be a ceramics place in town. Aren’t they so cute and perfect for this time of year?

I didn’t even look in the book when I chose it, I just saw the words, “Holly Hobbie” and knew it was for me and added it to the books I already had in my hands…….here is a look inside at some of the illustrations;

I love them all so much. Holly Hobbie has been a favorite my entire life. This book was published when I was a year old. And I also love nursery rhymes. It will be fun to read this book out loud to Sarah and hopefully even the boys might listen and enjoy.

Lastly, a couple baseball books for Seth. I also bought two books for myself. The bunnies, the needlework, and the books cost me 3 dollars.

I bought potted hyacinths at Trader Joes last week and they bloomed. They smell of springtime.

Still watching the geranium buds…..

Kitchen window display of things that make me happy.

“I don’t really collect, I’m attracted to certain things, I get them, and they accumulate.” ~Natalie Gibson

in the fridge

Posted on March 6, 2017 by Shanda

I noticed today that someone’s growing up.

(Seth, age 8)

a boy named seth

Posted on February 2, 2017 by Shanda

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Last night after the High School wrestling meet, there was a special youth exhibition. Seth was one of the boys who got to wrestle. He wrestled a boy who was bigger and better than he was (although, actually, Seth would disagree with me on both counts) and was soundly beaten. He was also dropped on his head. The ref stopped the match while Seth recovered flat on the mat, Rich and the coaches by his side, and me on the bleachers with an icy stomach and worried sisters by my side. He got up and finished the match, getting pinned 2 seconds before the buzzer blew to end the match (which he would have lost by 2 points).

It was very disappointing and sad for Rich and me but only because we are his parents. The team did awesome and won the meet. All the boys did so well and we were extremely proud of them.

Seth has only lost two matches this season out of about 14 (I lost count). He is very good and enjoys the sport. When we got home, Rich was concerned about a concussion and slept four inches away from Seth on the couch all night long. I was concerned about my precious sons wrestling in general but Rich said that life is risky and they were just as apt to get head injuries on the playground or climbing trees or wrestling each other when I’m not looking.

Rich decided to have Seth stay home from school today so he could rest and be quiet.

This has worked out nicely for Seth, because

his

birthday.

Seth turns 8 years old today.

He is currently sound asleep on my bed after a whole morning of “quiet”.

But this morning after his bath, I took these portraits of him.

Remember the time when your legs were so short you couldn’t bend your knees over the edge of Mom’s old rocking chair?

Remember that baby face you used to cover in kisses that you can still see glimpses of?

Remember that birthday when you were turning eight and you asked your mom to bake you a chocolate cake with vanilla cream filling and you licked the beater?

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Remember the card that your sister made you and she wrote “You’re the best brother ever in the world?” and when you read it you said, “I said that to Ethan once.”

And how on your birthday you think you need to go outside and look for your shadow?

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Remember how I love you?

“For what is joy if it goes unrecorded, and what is love if it is not shared?”

Posted on January 18, 2017 by Shanda

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Good morning! Hannah made Seth some joggers yesterday.

She is showing me things that I never dreamed my sewing machine could do.

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She used a pattern on one of her favorite online sources: Patterns for Pirates.

This pattern is called Baby Bear Joggers and she sewed it using a nice thick knit for the fabric.

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Seth was so full of energy all afternoon wearing his new pants that it made Hannah laugh and say, “Well, at least we know he has a full range of motion in them!”

He wore them to bed and then wore them to school this morning.

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Yesterday was also homemade noodles day.

We went for two walks.

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We received a box full of good things as a surprise from Hannah’s mom; homemade jewelry, cookies, candy, and some gingerbread tea which we enjoyed before bed last night.

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PIG EARRINGS

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so far, these cookies are my favorite

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THE ULTIMATE COMFORT FOOD; homemade chicken and broth with noodles, served over homemade mashed potatoes.

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Hannah began making a dress for Grace, a beautiful red and cream lace dress; in which Grace will be sure to look like a Valentine in February.

When Hannah was done sewing for the day, she neatly covered everything up with a tablecloth so the cats wouldn’t eat thread or shred the patterns.

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Deep down inside, Sherlock really believes she has thoughtfully made him a bed.

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This morning is quiet; the children have gone to school and Hannah is getting dressed while I blog, drink tea, and look out the window with my cat.

*****

“For what is joy if it goes unrecorded, and what is love if it is not shared?” Jennifer Worth
~quote from an episode of Call the Midwife which we watched last night with our gingerbread tea.

how long was the foot massage?

Posted on October 11, 2016 by Shanda

Saturday night, Rich and the boys stayed up late watching TV while the rest of us went to bed. The lights were off with only the glow of the television, and the boys were enjoying some time together after their beloved Dad had been away all week for business.

As is frequent at our house, and because their Dad is a runner and often has aching feet, the boys were called upon to give their ol’ Dad a foot massage. Seth, our seven year old, was happy to sit at his Dad’s feet and rub them. Eventually, Rich, who is always exhausted by the end of the day, drifted off to never-never land.

Waking up hours later, he found the living room completely empty and a note on his chest. 14642229_10154404895611343_4023043817698754794_n

my new garbage disposal

Posted on October 10, 2016 by Shanda

“There is often more wisdom to be found at the edges of life than in its middle. Life-threatening illness may shuffle our values like a deck of cards. Sometimes a card that has been on the bottom of the deck for most of our lives turns out to be the top card, the thing that really matters. Having watched people sort their cards and play their hands in the presence of death for many years, I would say that rarely is the top card perfection, or possessions, or even pride.

“Most often the top card is love.”

My Grandfather’s Blessings, by Rachel Naomi Remen, M.D.

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Good morning, friends.

When I first woke up this morning, I sat in my bed with a cup of hot coffee and listened to the wind. It was a lovely autumn wind, yellow leaves were flying past the windows. Wind chimes were loud enough to hear and their music was saying, “It’s a windy morning!”

It has died down some, and the rain of yesterday is past, leaving clean fresh air and a brilliant blue sky. It’s hardly 50 degrees and feels invigorating but chilly.

I’m eating lunch as I type; vegetable soup.

The children are home from school for Columbus Day. Sarah Joy had a dentist appointment at 9, which I was not looking forward to after her year of kidney stone adventures. She was so sweet and brave until the last when the tears came…..she was worried that the dentist would pull her loose tooth out right then and there. The dental hygienist was sweet and understanding with Sarah. As a mom, that meant the world to me.

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On Saturday we spent the entire day at the football field. Rich, myself, Sarah, Seth, and Caleb.

Rich officiated Seth’s game. Seth made several good plays as a quarter back (at his level, the boys take turns trying different positions). I was able to get this series of photos showing an impressive pass to his teammate, who did a great job at catching the ball.

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Seth with the ball……

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…..ball in the air……

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…..with a catch and first down! Not bad for 6 and 7 year olds!

We had time to leave and eat dinner before Caleb’s game, which they won brilliantly.

It was raining on and off the whole day and we were soooooo ready to be home afterwards.

I love this little girl with all my heart.

And this one, too. Rich took Grace with him to go get a new garbage disposal.

The other day I was tired and grumpy but trying very hard to not say anything. Zak was here and he played a prank on Jacob in the kitchen. Jacob had left his cup of coffee on the counter while he went to the bathroom, and while he was gone, Zak put coins and butter in his coffee. I was in the kitchen, working, saw everything, and became annoyed. Jacob came out and dumped his coffee down the drain, and into the garbage disposal went the coins. I continued to be annoyed and I said to Jacob, “YOU put your hand down there and get the money out.” I assumed he did and the next day when I used the disposal it of course made (along with me) a terrible noise of distress and woe. I instantly knew what had happened and was mad this time. I put my hand down there and retrieved two almost unrecognizable pennies. I got the broom and used the end of the handle to try to get the disposal moving again, but no. I sent Jacob a text saying *no friends this week* (it was last week now) and he was still saying things like “It wasn’t me, it was Zak”…. like I cared WHO it was, which I did not—as long as I was not the one to have to deal with the messes of teenagers. “It was only one penny” they insisted. Rich was alway on a business trip and now my garbage disposal wasn’t working at all. As a homemaker, this was very unsettling. I called the plumber and he fixed several things (like a drippy faucet in the bathroom) but said he would have to get to the disposal in a few weeks. When Rich had time to look at it on Sunday, he discovered a QUARTER stuck so tightly in the disposal that there was nothing to be done but buy a new one. Thankfully, the disposal was old anyway and honestly needed to be replaced or I would still be annoyed at this moment. (I am over it and Can Now Laugh).

Rich and Grace came home with a garbage disposal so quiet I don’t believe it’s even working because I’m used to my old one that was as loud as a chainsaw and dripped gray water into a bowl under the sink each time I used it.

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While they were out shopping for the disposal, I had asked Ethan *which would he rather take back to college with him, brownies or cookies* and he picked cookies and said, “Thanks Mom” which completely melted my heart. He kept coming in the kitchen to eat the dough. My kitchen was a mess because the disposal wasn’t working. True! Really! 🙂

I made the best chocolate chip cookies ever and even snuck in some wheat flour. I pressed pumpkin seeds on top of a dozen (kids won’t eat them, of course). Ethan took about a dozen with him to school.

This is an easy snack for the kids….buy a loaf of garlic bread at the store and bake it according to the package directions. Then, open up the loaf and put some sauce, cheese, and dried basil and bake it again until it’s done. Glorified french bread pizza.

I watched David play the piano.

And noticed Gentleman Gray sleeping in an odd place with his leg sticking out. 🙂

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We ended up sitting on the floor in the corner together, petting the cat.

Jacob made the trip to Vermont yesterday with his brother. They took Grace and Tessa along, and Zak, too. Although it was sad to have to say goodbye to Ethan again, I heard this morning that they had a very nice time together on their little road trip, listening to music and stopping for coffee and a buffet for dinner.

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The view from the porch yesterday evening was stunning.

Love.

“Blessing the life in someone usually requires a deep respect for their uniqueness, an openness to allowing them to uncover who they are rather than shaping them into who we want or need them to be. Innately, blessing life confers a greater freedom on those we bless.” ~Rachel N. Ramen, M.D.

in my heart there rings a melody

Posted on September 8, 2016 by Shanda

(grandpa’s old barn)

The north wind brings forth rain,
and a backbiting tongue, angry looks.

It is better to live in a corner of the housetop
than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife.

Like cold water to a thirsty soul,
so is good news from a far country.

Like a muddied spring or a polluted fountain
is a righteous man who gives way to the wicked.

It is not good to eat too much honey, nor is it glorious to seek one’s own glory.

A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls.

Proverbs 25:23-28

Good morning, friends, how in the world are you?

Imagine! God’s many numerous good things are all around us, oh to have the eyes to see them, really see them! Even on the “down” days we are going UP UP UP, on our way to glory land. Eternal life is NOW, it starts now, never to end……..as believers we have so much hope, it’s hard sometimes to keep our minds focused on the wonderful promises of God, but nevertheless they are there in the Bible, they are real and never changing. Isn’t it incredible to have security in an unchanging Father? He always loves us, always cares for us, always holds us in his mighty hands.

My parents have a nice pumpkin patch, we all visited it and “blessed the pumpkins” by giving them a nice pat, you can’t help but want to touch them because they have very smooth looking skins. I especially love the photo of son David using one as a pillow.

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From a distance, the pumpkin patch. My prediction is that it will be even bigger next year.

Back at home now, Gentleman Gray is wondering where his friend Snickers is. Snickers has been missing for a week and we are all beginning to worry. They keep coming to me and asking about him, but so far there is no news, no letter, no message, no sign.

*sigh* I hate losing cats. My guess is that the smell of skunk was too much for him.

Speaking of which, the house is smelling much better. What a relief. (Now if the dryer would stop screeching….) Parker the dog is still smelly so he spends most of his day outdoors in the fresh air.

The garden is still producing tomatoes and my favorite way to eat them…….

……is generously placed on toasted & buttered Pepperidge Farm white bread, with salt and pepper (more pepper than salt). Breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

dsc_2433-1

I also made a banana bread. (Grace’s favorite, turns out Michael likes it, too).

“I can see you!” I remarked to the amusing Grasshopper. He shifted and twitched. Being upside down is not a safe place to be if your legs are your number one escape mechanism.

Ah much better.

I looked & looked without touching and he never did jump away. I think he liked me, too, but most likely he was scared out of his wits.

These are a most wondrous scented wild flower.

I looked it up in my wildflowers book: nothing.
I looked it up online by googling CT wildflowers, yellow: nothing
I looked it up again online, using the name of what I thought it was, “morning primrose”: found it!

Its common names are: Evening Primrose (I was close), Evening Star, or Sundrop.

Wikipedia has a very interesting article about it here.

delightful. You can smell them before you even get close to them.

And then I decided to pick a pink bouquet.

“It isn’t what you have in your pocket that makes you thankful, but what you have in your heart.” ~ Author Unknown

My heart.

Seth is holding the “tough guy ball” which looks JUST like a coffee bean, and is rewarded to a player after every practice. The player takes it home for the night and then returns it at the next practice.

Look how handsome he is. I tie his string and buckle his buckles and then bend down to double knot his cleats. He looks around as I fuss, ignoring me as I adoringly serve him. It is an honor for us both but only I am conscious of it.

We arrived at the field’s parking lot for practice and as he briskly took his helmet out of the back of the car, I closed the truck and turned to him to say goodbye, “Have a nice practice, Seth! Give me a kiss.” (the test–to see if he would kiss me in front of his friends, I wouldn’t mind if he didn’t. In fact, I was sure he would wouldn’t.)

Without hesitation, he came over close and gave me a quick, distracted kiss on the arm. (lip height). Like of course it was the most natural thing in the world to kiss mama before running off to football practice.

My heart.

**********

I have a song that Jesus gave me,
It was sent from heav’n above;
There never was a sweeter melody,
‘Tis a melody of love.

In my heart there rings a melody,
There rings a melody with heaven’s harmony;
In my heart there rings a melody,
There rings a melody of love.

~Elton Menno Roth~

don’t cry, kids

Posted on September 1, 2016 by Shanda

I agree, it was a wonderful long dreamy dream of a summer; the summer of ’16. But it’s over now and you must go back to school today.

I love how Grace started High School with two brothers by her side and is ending High School with two different ones.

She’s rather full of herself. David said, “Will you please get off me?” And I said, “Uh oh, Grace, I bet Caleb will be taller than you are by the end of the year.” and she lifted her head to try to gain a few more inches. Then she ruffled his hair and said, “Caleb you have nice hair.” “He has the best hair of the family,” I say. “No, Ethan does,” she replied. “What about my hair?” said Dave. “And Seth has the nicest eyes,” Grace continued.