Restful

Quiet house, noisy mind.

heart full of emotion

muscles sore from work

this week, so weak.

Water splashes, kids yell.

close my eyes for calm

heart strums hope in chest

rest comes, in full.

Traditions

This started with a question, Eli asking me on the phone what kind of traditions I was going to do with the kids for Christmas. Ever since than we both have been thinking about traditions, what they are and how best to choose which to pass on. 

A tradition is a ritual, belief or object passed down within a society, still maintained in the present, with origins in the past.

Creating memories is tricky business. 

Little minds full of wonder.

And such little time to pack it all in.

How to pick, the important, the good...

Passing down a thing full of beauty.

Chosen moments of life. 

Filling up days with deep meaning.

To learn, and grow, and be loved.

Bff and Sabbaths.

My church is doing this project thing where some of us are getting together and either writing or drawing or taking pictures (or maybe some other crazy madness... you never know at my church...) and we partnered up to reflect on Sabbaths. I picked my very best friend in the whole world who, very sadly for me, lives in California. I am told that by the time I get out of Texas I am halfway there but have you seen how big Texas is? This is very sad. But this is something we could do online. Together. How cool is that? Her half is at: 
Sweet Whimsey and I highly recommend it because she's a much better writer than I. Though I have to tell on her because this made me giggle. I don't think she's stepped foot in a church in like over ten years, and that was probably when I dragged her. She's sort of like a stay at home Peruvian monk. Um, minus the long, smelly brown robe. (I hope.) Though, truth be told, she doesn't realize how brilliant and grounded she is. (Who knew brilliant had two "i's"... oh I'm sorry, I played a sentence game with Kaiya tonight and it's made me very aware of words. It ended with me making her write the word "the" 25 times though if that gives you some idea about how much fun I am.) 
We started this two Sundays ago but since I am so woefully bad at keeping up with this blog I hardly think it matters. I'll post what I've done so far next. I think. No promises after all for the kids just went to bed which means it's ME time. Yay.

Little

They are only little once, and for such a short while.

It’s like eating a great desert, it’s come and gone.

The sweetness. The light. The joy of loving them.

They are only little for a while and then they are gone.

Far away, into the world, and full of love I hope.

Random Christmas joy.

Kaiya was an angel in her little church program. 

I called her the "Lord of the Rings" version of angel because she had that cool gold cape. I promise you I was not creative enough to come up with this. In fact, I did my best to ruin it but even I couldn't screw up how adorable my kid is as an angel. I felt a little bad because she kept turning around the whole time they were singing. It irritated me. Later when we were watching it together she explained that she was trying to get to the second row where most of the kids were. Suddenly I felt like a horrible mom because I didn't make sure she was comfortable with where she was but alas, I thought the show was about to start and since she's so tall it actually made her more level with the other kids to be on the row without the stair. Live and learn I guess. 

I got a real tree this year. I just love real trees. Hubby was convinced it was going to be dead before Christmas. It's browning slightly but I think it will be somewhat alive by the 25th. Truth is I don't care. It smells great. 

Note, the ornaments are clustered together. I haven't rearranged them. Yay me. 

Lastly, the children's director at our church gave us advent books again. We actually did them this year. Sort of. I admit I had more fun than the kids. I also often dutifully put CJ's stickers on his little sticker-manger. I would post pictures of those but they are in the kids' rooms and they are asleep now and waking a small sleeping child should be a federal offense. We also made toilet-paper-tube nativity. I took the liberty of making CJ's for him. I mostly let Kaiya make her own, despite the large amount of twitching it caused. CJ took the liberty of destroying his as soon as he could. I posted on facebook that I had come home to a massacre of the nativity and took these as evidence:

All night long it bugged me so as soon as I made it home from work the next night I posted a picture of this:

With the caption "order restored." I had located most of the other nativity as well, save the other angel. I remarked to Hubby that perhaps he had the angel hidden and was going to post ransom pictures of it. He was too lazy to do that and eventually informed me when he located it. I was a bit dismayed at first that the "fluff" that made the second angel's hair was gone and then realized it was just at the bottom. I pulled it out and he couldn't resist making a comment about butt fluff being on the angel's head. Boys. I had no sooner arranged the second nativity than Hurricane CJ came through and scattered everyone, including baby Jesus, to the four corners of the living room. So sad. 

They have been having a ball with them though. The first night I asked Kaiya where Joseph was and she grinned and explained that he was off fighting the monsters. I must have missed that part in Sunday school. 

I hope this season is very bright and merry for you. And free from monsters.

Paper plate ornaments

I know, I know... shut up already about ornaments you are saying to yourself. I don't blame you. I would promise that this will be the last post about ornaments but I don't want to lie. It seems I am obsessed with them this year for some reason. 
This was my solution to the missing box of ornaments. We had done something similar last year but on a much smaller scale. Since I had all my lovely usual ones, of course. 
It's actually an amazingly easy way to make some cute ornaments. Low-fuss. I promise. I even broke out the camera, whoop!


Paper-Plate ornaments

You start by getting those little paper plates that you use for appetizers but usually are stuck with a bunch left because they are too small for a whole piece of cake and too flimsy for real food. Since you have nothing better to do with them let your kid paint on them. Then you cut out the center, punch a hole, thread a ribbon and wha-lah! You have yourself an easy ornament that Grandma will love. I often write on the back the kid's name and year as well to keep track since we've done it a few years now. Happy decorating!

Lament of Ornament

Hello. My name is Court and it's been five days since I last adjusted the ornaments. (Waits for applause.) It's a daily struggle... (Coughs awkwardly to stall.) ..especially since the girl child insists on moving them around regularly. She last moved the new little paper star TO THE SAME BRANCH as my pretty pink crystal ball one. This just should not happen. That pink one was from my single days. When I had a pink year. The whole, bloody, tree was pink doggonit. I loved it. (Sniff, hiccup.) And that was the year I bought the pink Strawberry Shortcake ornament. (Sigh.) Which is lo... lo.... lost! (Sobbing.) A whole box of ornaments. Gone! Tragically taken in the move. 

(Straightens up a bit; holds head high.) But. I'm being strong. For the kids. So I've sworn off ornaments. No longer do I fondly rearrange after the kids go to bed. Why, I haven't even scoured the living room for the ones the toddler yanked off and flung to the nethers. I also have not prematurely strangled the cats as they sit at the foot of the tree licking their little cat lips with that look of: "Oh... There have to be little birdies up there!"

Sometimes late at night, when the temptation is hardest, I fondly gaze at the lights. On weaker moments I make laps around the tree "admiring" it. (Snort.) We all know where "admiring" leads, don't we? (Wry look followed by exaggerated nod.) 

It starts with something small like ornaments and the next thing you know you're tackling an octogenarian in Wally World to get the latest farting Elmo doll for your boy. Every boy needs a farting Elmo, you rationalize, from jail. Speaking of... I wonder where that Elmo ornament went to? No! I will not yield!

Um? What? Oh. My five minutes are up? Well, thank you folks. I'm just going to be taking it one day at a time. Only fifteen days left till "C" day anyway so, um, hang in there. And peace. On Earth. Oh man I wish I had my little dove ornament, the one that was crocheted.... (weeping as escorted off stage.)

Dogs.

As I write this in the wee hours of the morning I would love to say that not a creature was stirring. Oh. If that were true. There is one creature who is shaking the house with a thunder that surely must register at least a 3 on the Richter scale. It's my dog. Scratching his *)&!@. When he does this he makes a sound that causes one to throw up slightly in their own mouth. 
Then there's the dog that is more like a cat. He's our friends' dog and we watch him on occasion. I love this dog dearly. In fact, he essentially ushered me into the possibility of having a dog around all the time. What I didn't realize was that he's not quite a dog. Sure he has ears like one. He barks, annoyingly, like one. But he prances. My husband informs me that dogs are not supposed to prance. I believe him. Meanwhile. The other dog. I hope to God those sounds I'm hearing are just farts. But the smell. It just shouldn't be. No living thing could possibly... 
I guess now that we finally have a house I will need to get used to dogs. Fru-fru dogs that are easy but bark incessantly to big butch dogs that are a "man's dog." Excuse me while I go lament the peaceful days of just cats and quietly let go of my secret dream to become the ultimate cat-lady.