An Interview with Gus (the Giggly One)

Q:  What is something your mom always says to you? Stop (doing that.) Q:  What makes your mom happy? When I obey Q:  What makes your mom sad? When I don’t obey Q:  How does your mom make you laugh? tickling me Q:  How old is your mom? 36 Q:  How tall is your mom? [...]

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Overheard At Our House, mid-September edition

This picture was not posed at all.  I walked into the family room and there they were – every one of them reading!  What a glorious day that was! monsterella = mozzarella (cheese) -Dimples ——- And with the monster theme, we decided that if Handsome is the Tickle Monster, I must be the Tickle momster!  [...]

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The Art Book

When Bubba was in kindergarten her teacher was awesome.  And by “awesome” I do mean that God gave her the best teacher ever . . . for her!  Mrs. S was all kinds of cool, but for my child’s needs one of the coolest bits was that the year before Mrs. S had been the [...]

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Boxing and Sugar and School, Oh My!

We received this letter from a friend this week: Dear [Gus] and [Little Man], I am sorry for boxing you.  And I am sorry you got hurt.  please come play again soon. from, [our friend] That is definitely one for the scrapbook!  Oh, my lands!  I can’t tell you the laughter this whole situation has [...]

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Tis The Season

I can hear them from my post inside – working. The laughing and screaming. My middle two children are in the front yard with their dad, wearing their soccer jerseys from years past.  There’s a soccer ball out there among them, bouncing around at the command of bare feet.  They are dripping with sweat and [...]

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Overheard At Our House

Dimples wakes up very easily in the mornings, so by the time Handsome has gotten up, shaved, and showered, Dimples is usually awake.  He lays in his bed, just waiting for Handsome to come get him and tickle him, and he is delighted every morning when Handsome does exactly that!  (Morning people – how do [...]

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Play Games With Your Kids

Yes, that’s an imperative. Recently I was playing a game with a group of children ages five and six. The kids were having a great time, that is except for one little girl.  She seemed really unsure of herself.  I helped her though the game, but watching/helping her made me think about how much we [...]

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Because the Heartbreak of a Child is an Unbearable Thing

“Other countries are still sending children home to their adoptive families.Why is the US waiting on UNICEF?Ask our ambassador.”  posted here, recently, from Haiti. And here, a post that should break your heart but will hopefully inspire you. And here, an article that will probably surprise you. Read here. Be informed. Pray. (And if you [...]

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Overheard in Our House – At the Dinner Table and Winter Olympics

I was telling Handsome about this great story, when I mentioned that the governor was on board the plane that went to fetch the orphans and their caretakers. One of our children asked, “What is a governor?” “The leader of a state,” I answered. Then the discussion wound around a bit; we arrived at city-level [...]

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Because I Lock My Children in the Basement and Don’t Feed Them (?)

Checking out at a big box store, one with a bullseye on the front. Employee on the other side of the counter is very friendly. She notices that I’ve had a lot of fun at the dollar isle and that most of it revolves around teacher-y things:  a set of three self-inking stamps, three workbooks [...]

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