Giving Thanks

A lot of my friends and coworkers lost someone dear to them this year. Our church family has been through some horrific losses. One good thing that Facebook and social media does is to extend connections and help us be more aware, and if willing, to share in the suffering of others.

I've sent up some prayers today, for those who have lost parents, spouses, and children especially. Those losses make me grateful for those in the room and in rooms in Washington, California, Oregon, Tennessee, British Columbia, Costa Rica and many other places eating and drinking, sharing life.

The kids and I read a book about Sarah Hale tonight. Her idea for Thanksgiving was born after the death of her husband as she taught her children to be grateful for his life and for having known him instead of being bitter and angry. She went on to petition president after president to make it a national holiday. Her wish met success when Abraham Lincoln also saw the need in the midst of a horrific Civil War to be grateful even in the midst of loss. He thought that our nation needed to give thanks even as they mourned losses.

So for those who suffer, for those who mourn, I pray that you can cling to gratefulness.

For those of us who believe, who are preparing to enter the season of Advent and a season of giving, there is no greater way to begin it. Giving Thanks.

Oh, the Places We'll Go

A couple of weeks ago we went on a short vacation "up north." My brother came in to town and I found a last minute vacation condo on Craigslist and we had an amazing time. If I ever get the pictures off my phone I will post them.

We took our kids on some LONG day trips. Two days were 10 hours of driving, hiking and site-seeing. They were awesome. They liked it. They didn't complain (much). And at some point I had this thought: Wow, no diapers to tote along, no stroller, and no snacks to pack in order to prevent major meltdowns. Awesome.

I loved my babies and yet I'm loving this season of life. I have little adventurers. All of them love trips, the car, planes, adventures. Everleigh needs to be carried a little on long hikes but she did most of a mile and a half dune hike.

Not too long along I asked Ben "What are your top three places to visit?"

"I can't decide," he responded.

"Take some time and think about it," I said.

"Mom, I've been thinking about it for months!"

That's my boy. Kyrie also has travel on the brain and she is having a terrible time narrowing it down.  So we work and save and take another trip.

The Flu that Befell Us

Last Sunday I said a "thank you" to God for the good health we have enjoyed this winter. HA!

I think what occurred next must have come right out of the book of Job. The devil called up and asked God if He couldn't test us and see if we would still love God when the good health streak ended.

Ben started in at 4:22am Monday. His flu cocktail of choice always starts with a long croup-like episode that scares us all to death. His body gets the slightest fever and he needs to throw up. A LOT.

I will spare you the details of the rest of our falls....We have all been sick to varying degrees, though Mike merely experienced a dusting and has largely taken care of the rest of us very well. We are hopeful he will stay healthy. We've each had different symptoms.

I am so grateful I had done a huge grocery shopping trip last Sunday and we had freezer meals too. We haven't wanted to eat consistently but at least I didn't have to worry. Mike has been to the store for movie rentals, cough syrup, drops, ibuprofen, tea, and various other items nearly every day.

Our plans have been canceled. It looks like we will have to cancel a few more things for this week as several of us are still going.

Best lines of the Winter 2013 Reitz Plague:

Ben (Saying "no" to a fish stick on the first day he felt better): "I don't want to throw up fish."

Evie (Laying on my bed): "I'm just going to lie here until my head stops hurting."

For the first time in years, we are alone for the Super Bowl. Think I will drag myself down to watch that now.

Happy New Year....(Running Late)

I just checked the calendar. It is the middle of January and I have completely overlooked New Year's resolutions decided to forego New Year's resolutions in favor of looking forward to Lent. Well, kind of.

Let's go back. Fall was a gallop with a near mental breakdown when I took on WAY too much work that resulted in me becoming a monster of a mother. Everything kept getting further and further behind and I focused on survival until the Christmas holidays when I would clean the house thoroughly, unpack the dozenish remaining boxes, and deal with all of the clutter that I haven't had time for. HA!

My mom arrived on December 16, my dad came in on the 19th and my brother arrived on the 23rd. I was so wound up that I spent the first week worrying about how I was going to keep everyone fed and still get my stuff done. And then I collapsed. And just rested.

We were all so tired. My family stayed through the New Year and Mike had 7 days off (PLUS weekends) and we played games, slept in, watched football and movies, made meals, and took a daytrip up to Port Austin in the snow. We rested.

Nothing was organized, the house still has giant dust bunnies and the kids rooms are a shambles. Things are out of place and there is so much clutter that I just came across a late bill and had to pay an extra $15 fee. But we rested.

And in the time when my brain finally quit acting like it had been short-circuited and the two wires about to burst quit sizzling, I realized (AGAIN), that I can't do it all. I am just in this moment writing my New Year's resolutions:

1) GET HELP. (Libby starts next week to give me 3-6 hours of free time in which to exercise, make work calls, or clean house without guilt while she listens to my children and makes sure that they aren't destroying themselves or others). Pray Libby likes us and we like her. Really. Pray.

2) Keep Creative. I am a nicer person when I have an afternoon to scrapbook or make or write notes every once in awhile. Blogging is a creative outlet for me because sadly until I sit down to write, I don't have a clue as to what is happening in my head. My dirty house will have to wait for 4 hours one Saturday a month and a few short moments during the week when I grab a few minutes for myself.

3) Train others to help. Teaching children household tasks takes more time than doing them and right now I'm so behind I fall into the "Here kids, please watch this DVD and leave me alone so I can clean for 30 minutes." But lest someday I hear that my son went off to college and didn't know how to run a washer, or that my daughter has no idea how to peel a potato, I need to take a few minutes and train little helpers so that someday they will know how to help themselves.

And that's it. I'm not going to get skinny anytime soon. I am not going to quit eating dessert. (Hmm...possibly related?) I am not going to get all my photos organized and printed and I'm not going to finally take time to figure out how my digital camera works. But Lent's around the corner...So maybe then? We'll see.

Birthday Photos

We have realized Kyrie may have a future as a party planner and that we will not be able to afford any wedding that would make her happy.

The new bike

Ev with her gift assistant

New outfit

With her cake

The Birthday Surprise

Bundled

Our house, Michigan, Sunday, 11/25

Recently Mike came in to work and said something about it being cold....Everyone just laughed and he realized that we haven't seen anything yet. It prompted the two of us to run out and buy ourselves some serious coats. I feel properly northern except when I had to tromp to take Kyrie to the restroom on the way home from our New York Thanksgiving and realized I may have to give up my dislike of boots. Boots are very handy in the snow. I like snow the way I like sand. I love the idea of it; reality is something else. A little too messy for my tastes. But having said that, snow is not rain; it reflects light. I'm very happy about that.

Olean, NY (Sat, 11/24)

The Worship of...Food?

I love magazines. Nothing makes me happier than having a slick magazine and a hot beverage in hand. I'm looking forward to an upcoming 5 hours on a plane where I will catch up on my subscriptions: Christianity Today, The Atlantic Monthly, Budget Travel, and Cooking Light.

I gave up my subscription to that last one for a while earlier this year. When I was first given a subscription as a wedding present nearly a decade ago, it was a down-to-earth southern magazine with moderate circulation. It caught on and was bought out by Time, Inc. and the classy southern editor was dumped for a pretentious Manhattan-y foodie. (E.g. It used to have a spread of 10 new cooking utensil or cooking-related products and how to buy them. They used to be small items that cost moderate amounts, a new style of whisk for a couple bucks, a coaster set made by impoverished Asian women for $8/set, things like that. When Time took over, NOTHING in that section has ever been affordable. October's issue features a $775 coat rack and $250 plates are common.) I was annoyed. I like finding new ingredients but if you don't have a Whole Foods within driving distance now, you are out of luck.

But then we moved to Michigan and I gave away all my years worth of CLs so I didn't move them and I found myself uninspired and needing some new ideas. So I re-subscribed.

Which brings us to now. When scanning the editorial for October (which I shouldn't because the editor is annoying and I HATE all his editorials that are pretentious drivel) I read this: "...[F]ood has taken its rightful place in the center of a family's life....Life's a journey, if we're lucky, of about 82,000 meals." (Scott Mowbray)

SERIOUSLY? Seriously. Okay, perhaps it isn't SOOOO bad if you haven't read all his other editorials, but having read enough, I caught on right away to this sad fact. This man WORSHIPS food. That isn't slang for he really likes food. I really like food. It is the Center of his universe. The god he bows down to, the idol he has erected.

Which is sad. And thought-provoking.

My family does sit down together to eat dinner approximately 29 days a month. This is precious family time, a time to catch up on each other's days, review what we've learned, and try new things or enjoy old ones. Mike and I have a little foodie side in us. We are currently reading Tyler Cowen's An Economist Gets Lunch, for instance.

And when I read the above editorial, it caused me to think: What do I worship? Where is my worship misplaced? Do I tend to worship the food instead of giving thanks to the Creator? There is a largely-lost historic practice of blessing the food before and thanking God after the meal. I confess that even the first part of that practice gets rushed and automatic rather than sincere at times. I'm both saddened by the editorial because this guy is missing SO much and grateful for it. It has made me ponder what it means when we pray before we eat.

The center of my family's life is not food. Thank God! It is a wise and gracious Creator who has given us many good things to enjoy, including dinner.

Chinese, Chinese

Last Saturday night after we took the kids to the nature night, we ventured into unknown territory with them. We ate...Chinese.

Now, that really shouldn't be so weird. We LOVE Asian food (though Indian, Vietnamese, Thai would get our first vote). But Ben's soy/nut allergies have greatly inhibited our eating out style.

But I've grown more disturbed that our kids think eating out means mac'n'cheese or grilled cheese sandwiches. Uck. So we decided a tiny bit of soy sauce wouldn't kill Ben and he could mainly stick to rice. He has safely had nuts in small quantities now (though, saving any attempts at peanuts until I have an epipen).

I was nervous. I was afraid we would have a 2-year old tantrum when we didn't meet our pint-sized dynamo's expectations. I was worried Ben would have nothing to eat.

I did my research and we found a highly-reviewed place. They had a dinner buffet (.50 per year for the kids) and it looked fresh and good. It was startling good. Ben discovered he liked crab meat, Ev happily ate white rice (sigh...) and Kyrie repeated throughout the night "I love Chinese," deeply connecting her to the women on my mother's side who loved to eat Chinese. Kyrie definitely got her $2.50 worth with four trips to the buffet, eating all the shrimp and pineapple her stomach could hold. (My daughter LOVES shrimp; how weird is that?)

It was one of those beautiful moments of contentment where I realized that Kyrie is going to be a great one to travel with and a good dining companion. As long as she doesn't make me eat shrimp.

Family Time

We took a break from routine and took advantage of an off-season special at Great Wolf Lodge in Traverse City. We had a nice time but I was not awed by the Great Wolf experience. Partially because my kids do not "love" the water and tend to be very cautious. (Ben never went on a slide that wasn't in the toddler pool; Everleigh didn't go on a slide until the second day.) The water park was fun though and Mike, Kyrie and I had a great time. We have only these three pictures of Kyrie who was brave on Day 1; Day 2 was too much fun to drag a camera along.

Fall in Northern Michigan

Great Wolf is a spendy venture (we stayed one day) and while the rooms are bigger and more family-oriented than most hotels, they leave a lot to be desired. A stool for children to reach the tall sink (or how about a shorter one)? The kids had a bunk bed fort with a TV with a VHS player, a novel idea. But a VHS? If not a DVD player, perhaps provide a few VHS tapes. When we checked in, our room was a chilly 65 degrees, which did not get me off on the right foot. It was fun, but the experience is spendy enough that it seemed like it should have been even better.

Kyrie at Great Wolf

Northern Michigan is beautiful and we had a fun time as a family. Now I'm going to focus on less getaways so we can have a real family vacation sometime in the next couple of years.

Our brave one

Oh yeah!

School

We started this year with some big challenges. I was terrified at the step up required and uncertain I was going to get everything done in any given week. I've been pleasantly surprised at how well we've managed so far. Not much housework is done during the week. But we have managed to stay on task and I have yet to be found crying in a corner when Mike comes home.

Kyrie desperately wanted to do Kindergarten this year. She has been looking forward to it for months. I was terrified: her learning style is completely different than Ben's, she can't hold even close to still, she is extremely stubborn, and it meant more time. And sure enough, Day 1 started when I gave her a coloring page and she said, "I only color girls." A few times over the last two months, she has decided she didn't want to do school on a given day. With an internal war going on between not destroying her love of learning and not wanting her to see that I care one or another which only makes her dig in her heels more but also wanting her to stick with what she's started, I've continued through a few bumps in the road.

And then Friday, she informed me she was quitting school and would resume when she was 6. (Which is a month away.) Now my dilemma is heating up. I'm busy and would like that 20 minutes for something else anyway. But I'm not entirely sure how to maintain a firm guiding hand amidst her insistence on controlling her own schedule.

To give you an idea of our brutal Kindergarten program:

• a brief 10 minute devotional, usually a short reading from the Bible and a prayer
• We work on verbal phonics, usually memorizing poems that help to remember what sounds different letters make (The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading).  This takes 15 minutes a day. 
• She has a writing book in which she practices writing the capital and lowercase letter she worked on in phonics and three words that begin with that letter. 
• She can choose whether or not to listen in on Ben's Latin class and history (where she can choose to color a historical person or scene if she chooses)
• I read a lot...after lunch and before bed. 
• We do an art or cooking project once a week. 
• She takes a science course every other week for 90 minutes. She can participate with Ben's science on the off week if she chooses, or not. She loves her science course. She studied amphibians and reptiles this week, complete with live frogs, salamanders, and a corn snake.

So there is my Kindergarten program. Corresponding is a preschool program for a very precocious 2-year old who loves to chant Latin conjugations and demands to do "school" every day. (She thinks this means coloring or drawing.) Everleigh LOVES puzzles and I'm a little freaked out that she recently pointed out "Annie's Salad Dressing" in the grocery story as "Annie's." (I've never used Annie's Salad Dressing but we do use other products and she seemed to read "Annie's." Which is very like Ben. But colors and shapes...hmm....I'm spending more time trying to do age-appropriate things with her. Fortunately, Ben loves to educate and helps both of the girls with their learning activities.

 And Ben....Well, I'll save his program for a later post.

Health

• Fall arrived in style today. Last week the rows of corn were green and the leaves were just starting to turn. Today, brilliant reds were everywhere and the corn is yellow/brown.
• Mike is coming home from Washington tomorrow. He was there for a few days for a WA Supreme Court hearing on case he started against the governor. I'm so glad he was able to go; I'm even happier it is almost over. 
• Ev and I had a chance to go to the park together, while the older two cheered on Anthony (see Boys) at his soccer game. She was delighted to spend time with just me; she told me which bench to sit on and then which slide she would be coming down next so I could meet her at the bottom. She kept up a running conversation with me and I realized that my youngest and I will never run out of things to talk about. She loves her siblings but seemed thankful for time with just me. She chose to stay home today with me and "snuggle" on the couch while Ben and Kyrie played next door with the neighbor kids. Fall is having its effect on her too. She came and told me she was ready for a nap and put herself down again today.
• Meanwhile, some medical things long neglected have reared their ugly head while he was away. Nothing serious, nothing I want to talk about, but nothing pleasant about it either.  The sweet children had a playdate that had to be canceled and they made their own lunch one day. Ev complained about everything, which contributed to Ben coming and asking me if they could have a nanny.  Yes, can we, honey?

Little Girls, Little Girls

Mike and I had a chance for a quick date on Friday night. We went to downtown Saginaw's Temple Theatre for The Capitol Steps, a political humor group. (For a fun clip, click here.) Our next door neighbor Diane kept the kids, who were up when we returned at 10:30pm. Girls are especially tricky to get to bed.

The girls have a new bunk bed. Kyrie's bed is on the top because she is older and Everleigh's is on the bottom. Only Everleigh prefers the top (which has a good side bar and Ev is much older than her years on a playground or anywhere else high) and Kyrie prefers the bottom. Both of them will ask to sleep in the other's bed, which is what they have been doing. So today, I had to laugh when I sent Kyrie up to make her bed and she made...the top bunk. Where she never sleeps. However, that bed is nearly impossible for me to make so I think I'll let her keep making the top one until Ev is old enough to make her own bed.

Speaking of Everleigh, she likes to participate in "school." Kyrie is doing a short Kindergarten program this year and learning to read. Ev can chant the phonics poems and has even eavesdropped on Ben's Latin enough to do little verb conjugation chants. It is quite adorable. Along with numbers and the alphabet, she is quite precocious. Only, she doesn't know her colors. I started realizing she called every color "yellow" and decided to work on her colors. Ben and Kyrie were deeply concerned and started to help. She continues to get the names of colors wrong (except for "yellow" which she just keeps guessing until we get to it). So all week I've been perplexed and was set to do a little test for color-blindness. Until this morning. When I came to the kitchen and discovered she had grouped her letters on the refrigerator by color.

And honestly, I have no idea when one normally learns their colors. With the first child, I had a weekly developmental email and managed to read parenting books. Kyrie motivated me to read parenting books that covered discipline and behavior and then Evie came along and WHO HAS TIME? Not me. Which is also why she isn't potty-trained despite showing everyone sign of being completely capable. I ask her at least once a week if she wants to be potty-trained and she says, "No." And there you have it. Since her "no" corresponds with my answer to whether I want to potty train her, we are staying with it. Diapers, I mean.

Looking to Fall

Yesterday was the first day it dipped below 70 in the daytime. It was also the day I realized that I hadn't found the girls' fall clothes and SHOES. We were getting ready for church in a mad dash and it was quite chilly. Kyrie went off in her long-sleeved dress and sandals; it was the best I could do. So today, I will locate fall clothes. I hope.

When we interviewed in June, one of the wives mentioned the challenge of living at the western edge of the time zone. I now know what she meant. I'm so ready for the time change that won't come for awhile yet. The sun goes down at 8pm, and it is September! The girls have a terrible time calming down and getting ready for bed and so do I. And getting up the next morning is brutal. For me. They seem unfazed.

I did have a pumpkin spice latte to celebrate the change in weather.

Our first week of school came off, not without some bumps in the road. My schedule is the tightest it has ever been.

A Month

We arrived in Michigan a month ago today. If you look at our bare walls and the boxes in the garage, you would say "a month already?" If you looked at our calendar, all the things we have to do, and the friends we are already trying to make time to get together with, you would think we had been here a year. 

Tonight we thanked God for our wonderful house, new friends (and from me, the 28 days of sunshine we've had in the last 31). We miss old friends. But we are so blessed!

Weekend with Nana & Grandpa

Building a sandcastle

Kyrie

Beach girl

Mike's parents, sister Grace, brother Matt and our niece Kylie came Friday to visit us in our newer, closer location. We had a great time. Saturday morning, we took a trip up to Midland so Mike's mom could see his office, and we visited The Tridge, Midland's triangular bridge (two rivers come in).

In the evening, we took a trip back to Frankenmuth and went to Bronner's, the world's largest Christmas store. We went to Zehnder's, which is a famous restaurant around here and one I had first been to 15 years ago when I went to a conference.

Cousin time

Grace, Ben, and Evie (back), Kylie and Kyrie (front)

Yesterday we took a drive up the east side of Michigan and went to Tawas State Park on Lake Huron. It was a warm sunny day and Nana had come with sand pails and toys and the kids relished their time at the beach. It was a great weekend. Even better, it is a 3-day weekend so we have a day to recover.

The Return of Modernity

After four and a half days of no internet and no home phone, we received a new wireless box that fixed both. It is good to have it back.

Not that we've been idle.

We had visitors from Illinois this week. Our friends Dave & Connie were here with their three kids. Dave works in Michigan (an hour and a half south of us) one week a month so he commuted and we had a good time catching up and doing random things like walking the Tridge in Midland and visiting Frankenmuth. Today was our goddaughter Cloe's 7th birthday and we had fun spending it with her. We visited the Saginaw Zoo and then went to her aunt and uncle's house for her birthday dinner followed by ice cream at a local old-fashioned ice cream parlor.

All kinds of great kid sayings. One that stands out from today is when Neil (age 4) asked Kyrie: Have you ever been to China?

Huh? Our kids all get along fabulously.

And while I had help with the kids, I obtained a very important license: my Michigan's driver's license. And after reading very carefully all laws pertaining to driving in Michigan, I can promise you that the driver's manual says not one word about cell phones, not even texting on cell phones. I am all for freedom and limited government but must admit that this much freedom gives me pause. Especially when others have it.

Travel, Travel

Mike just returned from his first business trip in his new position. That he will be traveling was a given in this position. This time he went to Oklahoma City for a few days. The plus side is that picking him up from the airport takes 11 minutes; another that arriving at our airport more than hour before your flight leaves is deemed insane. So Monday morning I had him there 40 minutes before departure. Of course, the downside is that unless he has a meeting in Chicago or Minneapolis there are no direct flights.

We are hoping to get in one more short overnight trip as a family before winter sets in. There are so many great new places to explore. I keep checking Groupon but so far, nothing great. 

The House

For those curious, here are photos of our house. You might observe these things:

• It is huge. (Yes.)
• It is rather bare. (Yes, it is so big that we need furniture, but alas, we will have to wait on that for awhile.
• It is messy. (Yes, I can only unpack so much. Everleigh and Kyrie are EXCELLENT at unpacking, just not so much at putting things away.)
• It is sunny. (Yes, when my aunt went through Olympia late last week she sent me a message that she it was very gray. No, I do not miss that.)

Front

Back

Living Room with dining room in the back

Entry and Stairs with top landing above

Family Room

Kitchen and eating area

Built in desk next to eating area/kitchen

Basement...the kids have taken over that.

Kids bathroom

Guest room (COME VISIT!)

Ben's room

Girls' room

Our room

Our bathroom

Back to Reality...Kind of.

My mom left today to go back home. Knowing she can't run up on Amtrak in a few hours is tough and we were sad to see her go. The airport is 11 minutes from our house....12 minutes if you miss your turn like I did today. Pretty amazing. There are only four flights a day so you have to plan carefully.

I'm starting to think about school....I am not ready but none of the teachers, parents or kids I know are either.

We have some wonderful neighbors. Next door is a pastor and his family. His wife told my mom yesterday she really wanted us to come to her birthday dinner Friday night but knew we needed a babysitter and her 17-year old daughter had plans. Today she told me she wanted us there so badly she had asked her daughter if she wouldn't be willing to change her plans for her birthday. And her daughter responded: "Of course I will Mom." We are feeling really blessed to have such a wonderful family next door.

Now we need to buckle down and get into a routine. I still have some unpacking to do.

Today we set up a local bank account. Next up...

Library card.