Summer Fun in Oklahoma

The kids have spent a glorious few months with family, having fun in western OK before we head back east to our work in Florida. They've loved the time with cousins especially, as we all do, I think. Most of my best friends in life have been my cousins, and Zaya and Mimsy are no different.

With the S Cousins (all but Baby T)

With "Blaze" at the Zoo

The Oldest and the Youngest T Grandkids

 We've been living on Grandma and Grandpa T's yard since we returned in April, and the kids settled in right away. In the picture with the "tent" you can see Nobby the RV on the left and Kline the storage container on the right. Home sweet home.

Making a Tent

Mim is "Tall and Sophisticated"

Learning About Augers from Grandpa T

 We went with Grandma C to Texas, and visited with aunts, uncles and great-grandparents. It was such a short visit, but I couldn't imagine being out here and not seeing all of them at least once. In this picture, Grandpa P made a classic Grandpa P type joke, and the kids are responding appropriately.

Laugh Like G-pa's Joke Was Funny

Tea Party with "Claye" and Grandma "Lilibeth"

 There have been lots of solo adventures as well: playing at the skate park, petting fluffy kittens and jealous dogs at Grandpa's worksite, and just generally being goofy kids.

No, He Doesn't Know What He's Doing

Making Mulberry Jam

Yes, She Does Know What She's Doing

At the Barn Build There are Animals!

 Grandma C took them to the Science Museum in OKC, which might just be their favorite museum of all time. They like it even better than all the Smithsonians. Had I only known, we could've saved a lot of time and money with that week in Washington DC.

Mim Waits for the Giant Toothbrush

Pulley's are Cool

Ok, Mom, We'll Pose if we Have To

 On Memorial Day, we were able to visit the graves of the great-grandparents who are waiting for us in heaven. We picked wildflowers and enjoyed the cool morning. I hope we never lose our connection to family and who we are, no matter how far we travel.

Great-Grandparents B

Great-Grandpa T

Educate! Educate! Educate!

Mim decided that her Lego Dalek was lonely today, so guess who had a baby.

Then became a teacher.

One little Dalek arrived late. Don't you just hate it when everyone's looking at you?

Zaya built an alien to add some interest to the little Daleks' day-

-and then they had an evening class on what to do with Timelords.

Mim also built an RV. This is not something I'd want to be in during a high wind, but the little Lego figure looks quite relaxed about it all.

She's got a bed, a stove, a jeweled steering wheel, a microscope...really, what more could a girl ask for?

Just another normal day in the bunkhouse in Crisfield, MD!

Still Alive

So Mim has decided that she can speak in a French accent. No, she can't. She just thinks she can. She especially likes to pull it out in the evenings when she's supposed to be going to bed.

"Dahn't zhou lahk ma Frenzh ahceunt?"

Actually, though, I do, because it's pretty cute. She gets a very mischievous grin on her face when she's "speaking French". Why is it that our kids always pull out the cute stuff just when you're making them go to sleep for the night?

Zaya has now decided to retaliate by speaking in a "German" accent. No, he doesn't have a German accent any more than she has a French one, but I've decided what they need for Christmas.

School is progressing well, because we're now forced to stick to more of a schedule. Gone are the days where the kids can amble out of bed at 7:30 and dawdle for an hour or more over breakfast and getting dressed, only to complain when I tell them that it's time to start school at 9:00 or thereabouts.

Now we're into the bunk house by 6:45 every morning, and the kids settle down to school as soon as Daddy and the other volunteers leave at 8:00. It's working very well, and I've even discovered that they don't need me hovering right over them all the time either. It's good for all of us.

Banishing the Big Bad Wolf

Today I threw away this little backpack. It might not seem like anything special, and considered as a financial investment, it certainly isn't. This bag was a "free gift" that came with a subscription to one of those children's magazines, like Highlights or Ladybug. It wasn't something I purchased with care, or a gift from a loved one, yet when I threw away this bag today, I almost shed a sentimental tear.

This is the bag that held Zaya's nebulizer for the last nine years. It fit perfectly, with the machine in the main pocket and the various attachments and medications in those pouches on the sides. It was never used for anything else, and it performed its function admirably, for all its ignoble beginnings.

Zaya was nine months old when he had his first asthma attack, and I think I can honestly say it was one of the scariest moments of motherhood. I went in to find him in his crib, coughing strangely and wheezing hard. I called the doctor on his home phone, and he could hear Zaya in the background. "Take him the emergency room. Now." We drove the 15 miles into town, and my little baby received his first breathing treatments from nice nurses who assured us that this was very common, and not really a big deal.

They were right. It was (is) very common, and not really a big deal, but for many years after that, we dragged our own personal nebulizer around with us on trips, to family events, and eventually to his school room when the asthma would be likely to flare up. He always took his treatments so well and calmly, and I was very thankful for the technology that allowed us to at least do something, even if, occasionally, it wasn't as effective as I might have wished.

It's been several years now since we've needed the nebulizer. He's old enough to use an inhaler if he feels the need, but he hasn't even needed that for a blessedly long time. (Several months!) I think Zaya may be one of those children who actually "outgrow" their asthma, or at least the worst of the attacks.

I realize that asthma, in the grand scheme of things, is nothing serious. There are mothers out there at this very moment who are watching their children suffer in ways that I can only imagine. I pray for them, and would give them all a big hug if I could. But asthma was our family's little glimpse into that world, and throwing away that bag brought back a lot of memories.

There were other trips to the ER, before we had figured out how to recognize the early signs of an attack and what medicines to keep on hand. There were months when we used the nebulizer every single day, and I would turn around and go back to the house for it if I realized it wasn't in the car. Life moves on; my children grow and change. But I don't think I will ever stop listening to them breathe at night, and sigh with relief when everything sounds clear and peaceful.

In Memoriam

This morning we rejoice because Granny, my husband's maternal grandmother, is no longer feeling pain, and she is in the arms of her savior. She will be missed by those of us who loved her, but we can still feel the joy of knowing that she no longer suffers.

I will always choose to remember Granny from the times that we spent at her house when my kids were little. We walked the block to her place at least once a week, and often more, and my little ones would play with toys that were older than their grandmother, watching out the door in case Papa came home from the farm.

Zaya would put on Papa's hats, and Granny always brought him a mirror so that he could see his own reflection and make sure everything was settled to his satisfaction. She never tired of this service, and I often sat in amazement that the two of them could enjoy the same game every week.

Granny was just that compassionate. She invested all her attention in her visitors and loved to know that the little ones were happy.  Both of my kids spent their very first Sunday on the earth at Granny's house, as their tired Mama could rest and watch the local church service on the cable TV while my mother-in-law, Granny's daughter, held them and soothed their tears with much more efficiency than I ever could.

It's been many years since Granny recognized me or the kids. We were relatively new
additions to the family, and so were some of the first to leave when her memory started to decline with the advance of years. I know in my heart, though, that she loved us, and never for a moment did she refuse the hugs and kisses and smiles of the children when they came to visit. I don't think they would ever have realized that she didn't remember if we adults hadn't brought it up.

I look forward to seeing Granny again someday, and she and I will both laugh about the times we spent together, helping the kids to build with blocks, teaching them not to eat marbles, and letting them put on Papa's big hats.

On With the Show!

Yesterday was one of those unexpected school days that can only happen at home. I had made lesson plans, carefully lining up our learning for the day -  Bible, math, English, spelling, history, etc. - and we got as far as Bible and history. After our history chapter for the day, the kids decided that they wanted to write plays.

Of course it would've been too easy for everyone involved if they had chosen the same subject matter and collaborated. Instead we have two completely separate plays, taking place on two completely separate continents, with only the general time period being similar, but in no way relevant.

Mim wanted her play to be about Catherine the Great, and I don't think anyone should be surprised, at least not anyone who knows her, that she chose an empress as her subject matter, considering that each child was going to star in their own production. Zaya, on the other hand, wanted to write about Eli Whitney and the cotton gin. He is playing the part of a slave named Nicodemu. (The name came from a book about children from around the world. Don't blame me.)

This means costumes, props, and make-up for the court of a Russian noble and the hut of a slave in the South. It also means taking apart my house to find things that are "just right" for each part. Mim still has what looks like a geologist's lab set up in the hall bathroom as she experiments to find the exact sandstone that, when mixed with water and made into a paste, will color Zaya's face and hands for his role as an African slave. (It's just a thing she does. Don't ask. Usually it's make-up or war paint)

 Mim's entire production was written and performed in one day, while Zaya's will be performed later in the week. For one thing, I can only take so much, but it also turns out that it takes a while to build a fake cotton gin and write a full play. Yesterday we got so far as to unroll all the paper towels and scatter broken toothpicks on the floor because we needed the inside tube for the roller and the insufficiently strong toothpicks for the teeth. Pictures of the finished product will be forthcoming, assuming we all survive.

Mim's play was a great success, despite her brother's annoying tendency to jump out of character at the least provocation. It's hard to blame him, though, since his character, Peter (Ulrich)  III, was a drunken lout who dies at the end of the play to the joy of all involved. Mim even roped our neighbor kids into helping and playing their own parts.

I don't see the production hitting Broadway, but it had a good local run, and the audience (Daddy) was most appreciative. He was less appreciative of the state of the house after a full day, and I do mean a full day, of scrounging around for props and other accoutrement of the theater.

It's all learning though, right? No seriously, tell me it's all learning, because if it isn't I just let my children destroy my house, my sanity, and my lesson plans for nothing. I figure I can at least count it for history and writing. I haven't seen my children willingly write that much, in one day, in their lives.

Happy Birthday, Aunt Hazel!

My mother's family has had the honor, over the last few years, to get to know a new sister. Aunt Hazel, who grew up in the Philippines, married my Uncle Tom, and then was finally able to arrive in the U.S. in December of 2007.

We didn't really know her very well at the time, but we knew Uncle Tom loved her very much and so were excited to welcome her into the family. Over the years she has become an important member or our crazy little clan, and we love her dearly.

She might be a little quiet when there are so many of us together during the holidays, but her smile speaks volumes, and I know she makes my Uncle very happy. And let's be honest, anyone in a room with so many members of the P family is bound to be a little intimidated by the shear impossibility of getting a word in edgewise.

Today I was reminded of how precious she is to us, and to her family back in the Phillippines as well, by a video they made for her where they all gave birthday greetings and then sang for her. They didn't dwell on their separation, but instead sang a praise song and talked about how much they loved her. They made a huge sacrifice when they let their daughter, cousin, sister, friend leave them for the wild unknowns of west Texas. They love and miss her very much, but their love is the truest kind: unselfish and based on the love of Christ.

Hazel has now made herself an integral part of her workplace, her family, and her new country as she completed her citizenship in 2012. She is an inspiration to those of us who take our easy lives for granted. I hope that I will someday be able to say that my own love for others bears half the power of that of Hazel and her family.

Pi in the Sky

We celebrated Pi Day in style this year. Grandma Lilibeth gave the kids Pi shirts specifically for the occasion. You probably can't tell from the picture, but the pie image is made up of many tiny digits of Pi.  Here they are with Grandma. Aren't they stylish?

We did a day of Pi-related school work and activities.They learned what Pi was, got certificates for memorizing it to a certain amount of digits, drew some pictures, then went to Walmart and each chose a Pi, I mean pie, for us to share with our guests this weekend. (Mim chose coconut cream and Zay wanted Dutch apple, if you must know.)

Coincidentally, it was also Albert Einstein's birthday. Zaya is wearing his Einstein pin from the Science Museum trip last fall. We had fun with it all, and the day felt like a little break from normal routine, which is always welcome.

Whether or not they'll remember anything about what we did remains to be seen, but it can't possibly have hurt. Maybe someday they'll be able to find the volume of a sphere that little bit easier.

When Life Gives You Rubber Gloves

If you were to walk into my kitchen right now, you would see a big red bowl on the table. You might think that I am in the middle of baking something, which has been known to happen. You would be wrong. If you investigate further, you would see that the bowl is partially filled with water, in which floats a blue rubber medical glove.

You would be forgiven for being very concerned about the sanity or health of my family. I cannot speak to the former, but we are all healthy. No, the reason for the bowl and accoutrements is that Mim occasionally likes to pretend she is milking a cow. ...yeah...

She fills the glove with water, carefully pokes tiny holes in the ends of the fingers, and proceeds to "milk the cow" back into the bowl. I blame all the field trips to "city farms" over the years. She demonstrated her technique this morning, explaining carefully how this worked and was very realistic. My daughter has never actually milked a cow, of course. This is all theory.

I don't know why this was suddenly the activity for the morning, but I let it happen. Personally I'm just glad that she hasn't thought of using real milk instead of water.

Maybe she's got a great career in the dairy industry someday. A mom can dream.

Dad to the Rescue

My best homeschooling decision this year has been to beg, trick and encourage my husband to take over the science class for the second semester.

Last fall we began doing a joint chemistry class with friends who also do school at home. I "taught" the class to the best of my ability, and I think we learned...something. Or I hope so. After Christmas, the plan was to switch to physics, since I think grade school level children can still have a "well-trained mind" without a year on each.

As I started looking through all my physics books, though, I became more and more stressed. Unlike chemistry, I never took physics in high school, and math is not my strong suit. Enter "Super-Dad!" also known as Art. He saw the growing panic in my eyes and offered to take the class for the semester.

It meets once a week at our house, and the kids are actually getting to ask questions and learn from someone who not only took physics in high school, but also has a degree in mechanical engineering. I feel much better about that.

They've talked about Isaac Newton, built marshmallow/spaghetti structures, flown paper airplanes, played with magnets and lasers...and presumably Art didn't have to write himself notes to remember what the definitions of their vocabulary words were.

Yes, there is some guilt in asking my long-suffering spouse to teach a class after he's worked all day, but the relief and joy is strong enough that the guilt has been mostly smothered.
I now get at least one hour a week to hide away in another part of the house while education happens. It's a great feeling.

I Dual-Wield Kleenex

Last night and this morning we had a snowstorm. Our country church is a fair drive for almost all the parishioners, so the services were canceled and we had our own cozy church service here at home instead. I wouldn't want to switch to a permanent family church format, but it made for a lovely, peaceful morning- with our own unique twist.

I played the piano while we sang a few songs, then Mim had a Sunday school class. Art read a passage from the Bible and Zaya said our prayer. Mim's class involved a craft-time that she had prepared.

As usual, Daddy was a bit of an overachiever. I don't think the Bible ever specifies that angels like a little dual-wielding, but maybe he knows something I don't. Also, Zaya chose to take the phrase "make a star ornament" literally. This one (green) is complete with spots, flares and other stellar phenomena.

Art and the kids are planning to go outside to play, despite a high of 14F today and strong winds. I am planning to stay inside, because I am sane. If the house were on fire, I would leave. There isn't much else that would pry me out right now.

I do plan to help the kids make some snow ice cream later when they bring a bowl in, so I will come into contact with the stuff at some point during the day. However my snow ice cream will not include raw eggs. I know, why don't I live a little? I'm sure that handing out Kleenex and doing all the laundry and clean-up required to support this expedition will provide enough excitement for the day.

I have to confess, this is my idea of a great way to spend a snowy Sunday. If you come over this afternoon, you will find me here, by the fire, probably reading a book. This girl knows how to party.

One Small Step for Rubbermaid

 You may think this is a plain, lime-green rubber tub, but you couldn't be more wrong. This is a space capsule. Inside this tub is an astronaut. While the outside of the tub is sitting near our wood stove, the inside is traveling across the galaxy with a small, slightly cramped astronaut inside.

Here she is, travelling to Betelguese as commanded by mission control, otherwise known as Zaya. Sometimes Mission Control takes his turn as an astronaut, but this morning he was content to direct the endeavor.

The astronauts are well fed on their journeys. Specifically, they eat apple chips, turkey jerky, and peppernuts - the snack of champions...and astronauts apparently.

The iPad has added another dimension to space travel. Usually it takes place in a cardboard box with the control panel and viewscreen designed by Sharpie and Crayola. Since this tub will be returned to Grandma T at Christmas-time, they decided to use an iPad app called SolarWalk to visualize the adventure instead.

Does this count as science? Sure, it does. Why not? 
 

Snap to it

 I hadn't really planned for electronics to figure into last Friday's curriculum, but Mim dragged out all the Snap Circuits so I decided to let them "play" when they probably should have been finishing their science vocabulary sheet.

Mim made an FM radio, and she is happily surfing the waves. Zaya was worried about what she might run across. To alleviate his concerns (and mine) we made a Christian or talking rule. Since the only talking she could find would be commercials or Trade-ee-oh, it wasn't a problem.

Zaya made a motion sensor and a siren. Why you would want to spend so much time and effort making various loud noises is beyond me. I suppose I need a Y chromosome to really get it.

While there was a little more "Mom, can you help me?" than I had hoped for out of playtime, it was worth it in the end. I hear electricians make a good living, and if all else fails they'll at least be able to construct the most critical parts of a cop car.

All Dressed Up and Several Places to Go

 Another October come and gone, and the kids made good use of their costumes this year. They wore them to a Gymnastics party last night, a walk around the town square this afternoon, and trick-or-treating this evening. I was reminded that I really don't like Halloween; it seems like a fairly dumb holiday, but the dressing up and the free candy I'll take, particularly the dressing up part. Society can have the rest.

Once again we scavenged our home, the local thrift store, and the internet for props and pieces. I finally remembered to ask them about their costume desires early in the season. While I can scrounge up what I need to at the last minute, it was nice to have the luxury for accuracy.

Mim wanted to be Professor River Song this year. For the uninitiated, River Song is the wife of The Doctor, the title character from the TV show Doctor Who. She is a no-nonsense, time-traveling archaeologist who makes good use of hallucinogenic lipstick, a good blaster, and her vortex manipulator to travel the universe, occasionally saving the Doctor, and occasionally being saved herself.

We were trying to re-create this specific outfit. Did we succeed? You be the judge, but don't tell me if you think we failed. I couldn't take it. We did curl her hair as well, but it would've taken a lot more hairspray and a lot more time than I was willing to put into it to get those curls.

Zaya dressed as Dr. Erwin Schrodinger, the quantum physicist who famously postulated the Schrodinger's Cat thought experiment. If you want more details, follow the link to the Wiki page. His box there contains a "cat". (It's a plush lion because it was the only feline that fit.) He couldn't bear the thought of killing the cat, so he wore the vial of radioactive poison (glow-stick) around his neck in the evening.

His costume was occasionally mistaken for The Doctor (The eleventh Doctor, specifically.) and Harry Potter. It's understandable given the bow tie for the first and the round glasses for the second. At least one person thought he was dressed up as "a nerd". What can I say? Who am I to argue? He makes an awfully cute little nerd. I'm sure the real Schrodinger's mother thought the same.

We went around our little neighborhood with some next-door friends and another homeschool family. Most of the other kids were fairly shy, but good ol' Schrodinger came up with enough chit-chat to make up for the other seven quiet characters. At the very first house he yelled, "T-R-I-C-K to the power of treat," to the poor unsuspecting home-owner. River Song gave him a don't-embarrass-the-rest-of-us wallop, but I don't think it was effective. I decided to hang back with the other parents and let him be himself. River kept him in line, more or less, anyway.

Familiar Familial Faces

One of the best parts of our recent week of field trips in Oklahoma was the chance to visit with family. We didn't get to see everyone, but Grandma T (who avoids cameras, so I have no proof) joined us for a day at the zoo, and we met Grandma Lilibeth and Grandpa Turtle at my nephew's first birthday party in Norman. Isn't my mama lovely, and isn't little Blaze adorable? It was wonderful to see them- and Blaze's camera shy parents as well.

We spent the week staying in the home of my infinitely patient and hospitable Aunt and Uncle T. Can you imagine saying, "Yes, of course!" when your niece asked you if she could park herself and her two rambunctious young 'uns at your house for a full seven days? They did, though, and we loved every minute of it. There's nothing like returning from a full day of sight-seeing to visit with quiet, peaceful people. It was wonderful, and I couldn't possibly thank them enough. My Aunt played games with the kiddos for hours, and Uncle T and I read books, chatted about history, or watched a little TV. Ah! Bliss!

They took us out to eat at Pops after church on our last day there, and then we headed off on Route 66 to wind our way home. We walked past the Biker Gang to take a little picture that didn't include cars and gasoline pumps.

And yes, my son does pose like that on purpose. His plan is to keep me humble.

Electric Electives

 We went with our church to "Christian Skate Night" at the skating rink in a nearby town. (They play Christian music and there's a brief devotional half-way through.)  My kids did skate, but during one of the everyone-participates games out on the rink (for which Zaya and Mim were not ready) their Daddy gave them a few quarters and let them play video games. Joy of joy!! They were so excited!

I decided they might count as classes. What do you think?

Homeschool CLEET certification - The young cadet practices his accuracy with a hand-gun and learns to recognize "perps".

Homeschool Driver's Education - You get to drive a sports car that your parents will never buy for you and drive it with wild abandon. (While wearing skates, you'll notice. Take that Gene Kelly. [if you follow this link, skip to 2:20])

Homeschool Hunter's safety course - The young hunter gets to stand a mere two feet from his targets, but it all works out because he doesn't get to eat any of the turkey either. Bonus - it's a pump-action plastic shotgun, and what little boy doesn't love that?

Well, I guess that's probably not quite enough. We'll find the real thing in the future if that's something they want to do, either that or make a few more trips to the skating rink between now and college.

 All you drivers out on the road in about eight years time should breathe a sigh of relief. The turkeys and criminals weren't real worried to begin with.