Power Out!

It has been a long week! And, quite frankly, it isn't over yet! We had a big snowstorm last week that took out several large trees (and power lines with them.) Last Thursday night we lost power and didn't have it restored until Sunday night. The phone was also out, only it was out until mid-day Tuesday! In the midst of all the outages, we switched computers. All that chaos means we finally got our computer back up and running just a couple days ago.

But really, I found myself thinking how many things you really can do with little or no light. True, everything electric or electronic didn't work . . . . and that makes life interesting. When our power goes out, we still have heat (woodstove), plenty of water (even hot water), natural light during the day and oil lamps by night, and gas for the stovetop. We actually do quite well.

--I discovered you can shower just fine with only a tiny sliver of daylight sneaking through the cracked bathroom door. I tend to shower with my eyes closed half the time anyway. (I don't recommend trying to shave your legs in that low of light, but hey, when the power is out who will notice! Not to mention shaving is becoming something of a feat with my ever growing belly!)
--I can clean my house in every way except vacuuming (which after 4 days DESPERATELY needed to be done!) Even bathrooms can be cleaned if you have enough light.
--Meals get really creative as we minimize the number of times the refrigerator gets opened. We have a generator to recharge it once in a while, but still try to keep our large "icechest" closed as much as possible.
--My hens lay eggs regardless of whether the power is out or not!
--We even managed to have a "powerless" church service on Sunday. (Not to imply that the service had no spiritual power, just no electrical power!)
--When the power is out, I can't read at night (lamplight hurts my eyes), so I have time to play with the marble maze set (one of Peter's toys that is my favorite)!



Even with all these benefits, I have immensely enjoyed having our power back on. No worries about the freezer thawing, my washer and dryer work, etc. When they began predicting this weekend's storm, I realized I have a new complex--power-out-aphobia! I found myself washing every stitch of laundry I could get my hands on, baking bread (oven doesn't work when power is out), vacuuming, and other assorted activities I would not be able to do if the power went out again. It is currently snowing like crazy and they are predicting 1-2 feet at our elevation. That means it is almost inevitable we will lose power--again!


So if we vanish from electronic world again for several days, you will know why! (Oh, and this post has no pictures because I can't seem to find where we put them on the new computer! Too tired to figure it out.)

Just Havin' Fun!

We are taking a break from school this week. (I try to use a schedule of 6 weeks of school with 1 week off.) So we've had time to do some fun things! Snow is predicted for tonight and tomorrow, so maybe we will have some more fun pictures soon!

Valentine's Day the kids decided they wanted to make Valentines. Juliana learned how to cut out hearts (much to her delight!) and then we broke out the glitter. Oh how the kids love glitter! I think they are fascinated by the way you put glue onto paper and it becomes transformed into something beautiful when the glitter is applied.

For Christmas, the boys received this "build your own drinking straw" kit. I had saved it for a rainy day activity. As you can see, they had a great time getting creative. Nathan is now making plans for a "triple drinker"!

Can you see how Peter is turning red trying to suck the water all the way up that long straw?!!!

Sunday we had beautiful weather, so we took the kids fishing. Packed a few snacks, the fishing gear and piled into the boat. Didn't catch anything, but we had fun! Sorry all the pictures are from the back. I was in the front of the boat and my ability to move agilely in a boat is diminishing fast. Nor was I about to suggest the kids all stand up and turn around!!

What Really Matters?

Over the past 10 days, our family has walked through some events that have given me a lot to think about. I'm trying to organize those thoughts, so I hope you don't mind a peak into my brain!

First Josh's dad was hit in the forehead with a flying piece of heavy-gauge PVC pipe and only God's mercy spared his life. He had 20+ stitches and a CAT scan shows a small fracture in his skull by his sinus. Josh spent a day at the ER with his dad and it shook us all up pretty good.

The very next day, a Captain from my husband's fire dept. lost his 17-year-old son to suicide. Obviously there has been a lot of grief and pain. It has impacted the entire department, and our family is not exempt. For several days, Josh and I grieved along with this family and had them in our constant prayers.

Saturday was the memorial service. I would estimate 50-100 uniformed personnel attended, in addition to many not in uniform. Here are a few pictures of the moving gesture of respect, love, and support that was given to the family as they arrived at the service.

All badges bore a shroud of mourning.

This is known as a Sea of Blue. You cannot actually see the entire line here. We are a small dept. and a small town, but the show of support was amazing! As the family arrived, they were greeted with a silent salute.

And so now, as the days return to some sense of normality, I stop and consider. The days of our lives are so fleeting! I think mostly I have stopped to ponder what really matters. My children are young. It seems like a very distant day before they will be grown. And yet, can I take for granted that they will always be with me? I cannot. God has given them to us for today.

What will really matter? That the floor was clean? That we covered every possible subject in school? That they had matching outfits for Christmas? That they participated in lots of activities? We all know the answer is simple to state--no! What will matter is our love for each other and our relationships as a family. Yet that can be hard for me to live out sometimes.

I get caught up in the things that "need" to be done and forget to do the little things that really matter to my kids. I forget to take them to the park, read an extra story, snuggle on a cold morning, admire the handmade mud bowl (while ignoring the mud-covered clothes, boots, and hair!), bake something special together, go fishing even if it is the wrong season, or just give them a hug for no reason when they walk by.

Yesterday reminded me of this again. We took the kids fishing because they really wanted to. We were exhausted and could have used a nap, but we went anyway. Didn't catch a thing. You could say it was a wasted afternoon, but it isn't wasted time--it was an investment in what matters most--the hearts of our children.

And so as I head into this week, I find myself thinking of ways to emphasize what really matters. We made heart-shaped pancakes for Valentines Day today. It took longer, but the kids have a fun memory. Or the kids decided today they should make Valentines, complete with glitter. They adore glitter and watch with fascination as their glue marks turn into beautiful glitter patterns. Rather than being frustrated with the glitter that will be all around the house for days, I decided to let those sparkles be a reminder of a fun 2 hours we spent together. Next time the kids want to read a story, I'm going to stop what I'm doing if at all possible and snuggle them each close.

Many aspects of our day will stay the same, but I want to also seize those moments to say, "I love you. You are special to me" to those who matter most in my life.

I love you
Josh, Nathan, Peter, Juliana, and Little Baby!

Shopping with Boys!

My boys are hard on pants--that is the plain, simple truth! Above is a fairly typical pair of pants after about 6 months! While they wear these at home for digging in the mud, I do want them looking presentable in public! But some days I feel like I should buy stock in a jeans company!

Recently I talked with a mom who has started buying her pants at Sears using the Kid Vantage program. Basically, if the kids wear out the clothes before they outgrow them, Sears replaces them for free. I had heard of the program, but wondered if it really worked. This mom loves the program and has replaced multiple pairs of pants for her son. So I decided to give it a try.

Thus we embarked on a new adventure--taking boys pants shopping! Oh my! Girls like trying on clothes. For boys it is torture. Peter immediately declared "I'm not taking off my pants in the store!!!!!" I explained they have fitting rooms for privacy! I have never bought this brand of pants, so I had them try on two different pairs to see what fit best. (Only two mind you!) The dialogue went something like this:

Mom: "How do those feel?"

Boy 1: "Fine"

M: "Too tight? too loose?"

B1: "Fine! Great!"

M: "What if you tuck in your shirt?"

(Pants now won't button because the slims became too snug with a shirt inside)

M: "How about now?"

B1: "Still fine!"

M: "Let's try on the others and see how they fit" "How are these?"

B1: "Fine. No different than the other pair!"

AAAAHHHHHH!

By now the other brother is seeing how many faces he can make in the mirror, whether he can see through the slats in the door, and other assorted antics. The dialogue with boy 2 went very much the same. I still can't figure out how "slims" and "regulars" can feel the same! They complain at home if the pants are too loose or too tight, so I wanted to make them as comfortable as possible. Finally decided on some pants and checked out. Whew! Now that I know what size they need, it will be a while before I have them try on pants again!

I'm curious to see how they will hold up and how often we have to replace them.

I told Peter I wanted to remember how his pants looked when they were new. He decided to point out there were no holes or dirt!

And he thought we should have a view of the backside!