A Fun Parent

Today I watched Peter play with the kids. He was throwing the football to them outside, and teaching them to play soccer. Then they all came inside and played hide and go seek, even Daddy running through the house. These are priceless moments in our busy lives, ones that we treasure. These moments can occur at any time, any day, and yet too often we let them slip away until we have completed our more urgent work.

It's hard for me (and I think Peter too) to find - no make - time to make the most of each moment. How often do I play with my precious children? I meet their needs, I go to them at night when they cry or need me, recently racking up an average of 4-5 hours of sleep a night with all the colds and sickness, but how often do I let the dishes, the laundry, my shower(!) go, and just let down my hair and enjoy these little ones? Not often enough.

I want to be a fun parent. I don't mean by that an indulgent parent, giving in to every whim or demand, but I mean one that loves to enjoy my children, and let them see it. Kids can tell the difference between scheduled fun and pure fun, just like grown-ups.

Tonight while I was cutting Peter's hair we were talking about this. We both agreed that we want to spend more "down" time with the kids, playing things that THEY enjoy.

With new year's resolutions just around the corner, you can bet this will be on our lists for 2009. Let's show our kids we love them, and let our actions confirm our words.

Merry Christmas!!!

Overheard...

Here are a few recent kid quotes:

"I must ruuuuuunnnnnnnnn!!!!" - Caleb (age 2), as he goes tearing down the hallway;

"Let's sing 'Angels We Have Heard and Hide!'" - Daniel's (age 4) request during family worship time (he loves the "Gloria" part...); and

"If light shines in the water, does that make the light wet?" - Hannah's (age 5) random question as we drove down the street.

Officially Retired

It's been too long since I wrote updating the family news.

The biggest change is my dad has officially retired. After a long summer of prayer, struggling with Parkinson's Disease, breaking his back, and learning to cope with chronic leg pain, he decided that he would like to spend his "good" days enjoying life with my mom and family and friends, instead of in the office. It was not an easy decision, but I am confident he has made the right one.

With that decision in play, he called up another estate planning attorney to see if he could send a few cases his way. The man offered to not only take the cases, but to buy his entire practice! So, in short, he sold it - all. It's all gone. The files have all been moved to the new attorney's office, and the furniture has been moved as well. He is completing a few remaining projects at home, with my mom as his secretary. He seems much relieved, and his overall health is improving again. It's good to see him smiling so much, and even down on the floor playing with the kids.

This also means that after nearly 20 years, I am retired as well! While I will admit, I had a few tears over the whole change (it has been a way of life for me), after 4 children, I NEEDED to retire. It is timely for both of us.

On the other hand, Peter's practice is expanding. During the fall we came to the conclusion that he needed to hire an associate. He has now hired a very competant gentleman to come and work with him in his practice, beginning in January. Because my dad and Peter share an office, and our lease expires at the end of the year, all of this came together perfectly...because that's what God is in the business of doing.

We are loving having more time with my dad. My mom called me the other day and said that they had both slept well and slept in. "I think I'm really going to like retirement!" she said. And rightly so.

Hannah thinks she likes the whole idea too. The other day Peter went outside to the swings to kiss her goodbye before leaving for the office. "Daddy," she said "Why don't you retire? We could play together everyday!" His heart melted. He explained that is would be many years before he would retire. She suggested that he wait until he is 41. Wouldn't that be nice, eh?

A few weeks ago I asked my dad if he was excited about retiring. His response was telling: "I don't think excited is the word. Relieved is probably more accurate." He wasn't planning on retiring at this time, but it isn't all that earlier than he had planned, and he's in a good position to do so.

He plans on spending more time on working with the law school, as well as pursuing innumerable projects. He wants to keep his mind active, and his body healthy. Good goals!

I'm excited for him, and happy for me too. God is good, all the time.

Make the world a better place for these children . . .

Ben needs cousins and is looking for a volunteer to get Uncle Mark out of bachelorhood. :) (Mark is a good friend of mine, by the way, and happens to be a great guy.)

Speaking His Language

This morning Peter asked me "What are you doing today? Any plans?"

Who can explain the busy life of a mommy of 4 small children, including 1 infant, homeschooling, managing meals, household chores and cleaning, errands, working on the side, topping it off with Christmas and two birthdays?

I replied "I've got triple-booked, back-to-back appointments all day."

He immediately sobered up. "Oh."

Glad to speak his language...

A Visit to the Dentist

Today I took Hannah and Daniel to the dentist. Hannah and I had our regular check-ups, and I thought it would be good to take Daniel so he could see what happened there before I made an appointment for him.

We had a long pre-talk in the car about not touching things, and how Buddy and I would watch Hannah first, and then they would watch me.

As soon as we arrived, they called Hannah first, and Daniel and I dutifully followed to watch from a distance. They decided to do x-rays first.

Hannah has not had x-rays before, and had she known that they were actually x-rays, would likely have protested loudly, as she has always had an unexplainable fear of x-rays. Daniel and I watched as they put the little film pieces in her mouth. Then she threw up. Not gagged, actually vomited...on her new sweater from Granny. She wasn't at all upset, but seemed rather impressed with the drama of the situation. The hygenist looked a little disgusted, and a little bothered at the setback. Daniel was more interested with the giant sailfin fish on the wall, so he wasn't bothered either. I pulled him over to the legos while the hygenist and Hannah talked and decided to abandon the x-rays for today.

Just then they called my name. Daniel and I went into the little cubicle area and tried to get him to perch on the dentist's stool and watch. He was very good and didn't touch anything, but the spinning stool was pretty exciting just by itself. When it was time for my x-rays, the hygenist asked Daniel to come out and back over to the legos, which he promptly dumped all over the main walkway of the office. It's a good thing they are used to kids...

When that was completed they began cleaning my teeth. I was trying to relax, knowing that my 4 and 5 year olds were roaming the office, hoping that they wouldn't fight or turn on any drills, and listening intently for some sound of them. The hygenist made some comment about "Careful, I don't want this sharp instrument to cut you..." when I opened my eyes to see Daniel hovering about 2 inches over my mouth, watching with wrapt attention.

"I'll bet you've never seen your mom from this angle!" the hygenist said. By then I was cracking up, the hygenist was continuing to work as if nothing were out of the ordinary, and Daniel wasn't moving one ioda. This only made me laugh more. I had to close my eyes.

Daniel spent the rest of my check-up right there, occasionally leaning down further to give me a gentle kiss. (I love my Daniel.) At one point the hygenist asked him if he'd like to be a dentist. "No," said Hannah, he wants to be a lawyer."

"A lawyer?" said the hygenist somewhat incredulous that Hannah would come up with such a suggestion.

"Yes, he has to be. Daddy is a lawyer, and so is Papa and Grandpa." she said logically.

Daniel had no comment. Apparently he'll be what Hannah tells him to be. He's a good sport.

From there we went out and got frozen yogurt together before heading home.

Now he can't wait to go back and be the one to sit in the chair and have the dentist look in his mouth (and then hopefully go out for yogurt).

What a nice start to dental work.

Baby Magic

Five Year Old Politico

Hannah has been soooo into the election. It started with her U.S. Presidents placemat at the breakfast table. She studies each portrait and asks so many questions that I just can't answer them all without looking things up myself.

Then it was in her reading. She gets the God's World Magazine for kids and they had a big election article that really captured her attention, together with an online exercise to learn about voting. She held her own elections about an issue important to her: whether cleaning your room should be a prerequisite to dessert.

On Tuesday, she got up early to go with Daddy at 6:45am to the polling place to see how we vote. She came back, sample ballot in hand (to keep forever) with a look of triumph and an "I voted!" sticker. Dad had cast his vote - for all the right people and causes. She further informed me that she will be able to vote in 2020. (Just a little bit off, but not by much.)

So when we turned on the T.V. on Tuesday night just in time to see McCain's concession, she almost cried.

She's a dyed-in-the-wool Republican already, with a few extra quirks.

• She thinks that we ought to elect a conservative and then make it so they stay in office for the rest of their life;
• She proposed that she and Daddy would go out after dinner on election night and FORCE the Republicans who had not already voted to do so; and
• She thinks we should have a recount for John McCain, just to make sure.

She's funny.

We also found a great book at the library called Vote! by Eileen Christelow. It covers everything from a history of voter rights (she was horrified that only white landowning men could vote at one time), voter registration, volunteering to help with a campaign, fundraising, going to vote, and... recounts. This book is well done for children, on a topic many might not find interesting.

The final word came yesterday when Peter and I were talking about F.D.R. and how many years he had been in office. We were batting around 11 or 12 years, and then tried to recall who his vice president had been who had stepped into his place. We couldn't remember, so we asked Hannah. She promptly responded "Harry S. Truman!" like 'who doesn't know that?' Then we came downstairs and looked at her placemat. She was right.

She's amazing...

Big Radiant Smiles

One day she's going to think this is a less-than-flattering picture. But I love it. This is the first big radiant smile we've captured on camera. She is 5 weeks of joy!

Watcha Need - the 1st Month

My sister-in-law is expecting her first baby. I'm really excited because I have never been an aunt before, and it's fun to add a baby to your family that you really have no responsibility for - you just enjoy them! Of course, having one of your own is better, but I already have a few of my own...

She recently asked "what do I need" for baby? Here is my two cents, and I'm hoping that a few of my friends out there will add their two cents to pass on with this.

Our pediatrician says that the first month, all they do is "eat, sleep, pee & poop." Since I have a 5 week old, I can attest that this is true.

Eat - They will eat seemingly all the time. If you're nursing, that means that you need to eat well and be hydrated. Beyond that, I really appreciate having a good chair to nurse in (a glider with an ottoman is my favorite), a Boppy to hold baby up (your arms get tired even holding a 7 pounder for hours each day), and lots of lightweight blankets and/or burpcloths for spit-up. It is also a good idea to purchase a small breastpump. I'm on my third one now, and I like the Avent Isis Manual Pump. It's quiet and efficient. I also have a Medela electric pump that is efficient, but it is incredibly loud! Both the models I mentioned are in the $50 range. You will also want a few bottles to accompany them. It is convenient if they are the same brand as your pump, but not critical. I also buy milk storage bags and freeze the milk for future use (like for when we go out on a date). You will also want to purchase the appropriate undergarments and some disposable leakage pads.

Sleep - When we had our first baby we were in a one bedroom apartment. We had no room for a crib. On top of that, I was on bedrest for months before she was born, and had virtually nothing for her. However, before she was born, a friend bought me a bassinette, and some onesies and someone else loaned me some baby nightgowns and two outfits. We managed just fine with these few items until we had a baby shower, about 3 weeks after she was born. All this to say, you do not have to have everything on the Babies'R'Us check-off list. You will need a safe place to have your baby sleep. If you don't have a crib, I would recommend that you invest in a nice crib that converts into a toddler bed, and later a double bed. I don't have one myself, but if I were shopping I'd choose this. You'll need the other items later! Another option is a Moses Basket. These, like bassinettes, only work until your baby starts rolling over and moving about, but they are very handy - especially the Moses Basket for travel. (The basket is not absolutely necessary...I've had babies sleep in blanket lined dresser drawers when we travel, and even on the blanketed and cushioned floor of a hotel closet. I just like the baskets...) Another good option to acquire is a Pack'N'Play. Baby can sleep in it at your house, grandma's house, the backyard, etc. and can use it as a play yard when they're bigger. Don't worry about the fancy sounds and dinglebobs. If you get it used, just make sure it is really clean because you can't take the fabric off to wash it.

Pee & Poop - I would recommend that you at least acquire a padded changing pad. These are foam filled and contoured on the sides. (But don't EVER leave them unattended - they will start to roll over when you least expect...) We set a pad up on the bathroom counter for years. I loved it because it was right near the sink! When we moved to our present house, none of the bathrooms would accommodate a changing pad, so we had to find a changing table. I found a very decent one for $14 at a baby consignment sale, and turned a closet into a changing room. You will also need a diaper pail. I like the Diaper Champ, because you can put regular kitchen size garbage bags in it (as opposed to the Diaper Genie, which requires special liners), and the fact that it doesn't smell horrific after 4 kids. One trick: when they start eating solid food the smell will amp up. You can purchase little diaper disposal bags that you stick the diapers in, before you toss them in the diaper pail. It wipes out about 90% of the odor. Diapers? Any brand will do, but I like Huggies. When it comes time for a bath, you will need baby soap, washcloths, and warm water. A baby bathtub is great, but don't spend a lot on the attachment to prop them up in the water - you have to hold them anyway!

Other things:

Travel system. You have to get around, right? I like the travel systems that have both carseat and stroller. I'm on my third now, and my children were happier with the Evenflo brand ones than Graco. I think the Evenflo carseats are slightly larger, which will last you longer. Hannah loved her carseat so much, that when she was really upset, we would let her sleep in her carseat instead of the bassinette! Make sure that you get a new carseat. Most other things are OK to be "gently used" first, but you need your carseat to be structurally sound and not outdated.

Bouncy seat/Swing. These are really nice for when you want to put your baby down, but don't want them always on the floor. (They do need some "floortime" though to develop muscles and learn to get around.) We recently got a portable swing and I LOVE it. It folds up into a decent box to transport it, it is lightweight, and no clicking sound. (The brand is Boppy.)

Blankets. Several different weights of blankets are helpful. They will get spit-up on, and your weather will vary. I also keep at least one in the diaper bag at all times.

Go register. Babies'R'Us and Target are good places. They will have checklists for you. Keep in mind that this is an INDUSTRY. They want your money! Fancy is nice, but not always best. Keep quality in mind!

That ought to help you through the first month. We're officially in Month Two now - which is much more fun. Our doctor calls is "Smile and Coo." You should see her smile...Precious, precious, precious!

OK Ladies, anything to add?

Growing

This one is for Granny. Abby is growing and looks very much like Hannah! We can't wait for you and Grandpa to meet her.

If any of you did not get Abby's birth announcement in your email - and want to see it (complete with video of the other kids initial reaction upon seeing their new sister), let me know and I'll email it to you. I don't have everyone's email addresses...