Fifteen Years of Kisses

September 26, 1993.

I was a high school junior at the Texas Academy of Math & Science, and had been there for just a few weeks. I was still learning which name went with which faces. There was one face that caught my attention a bit more than all the others, and I had no trouble remembering his name was Allen. We were both members of the environmental club and we had done a service project building trails at a nature center that weekend. I got to know Allen a little bit on that outing. That evening there was a dance at the dorm -- the kind set up by the older students so everyone could meet each other before we got further into the school year. I danced with Allen and he kissed me the first time that night.

Here it is fifteen years after that first kiss, and his kisses still can give me goosebumps. Through the crazy turns of life, we have stuck together, side by side. After dating for several years, we got engaged in 1997, and married in September 1999. That 11th grade romance has come a long way -- 2 high school graduations, 3 college diplomas, 6 cities, countless apartments and dorm rooms, 3 homes, 3 cars, 4 pets, 3 fake Christmas trees, travel to 22 states and 5 foreign countries. Some of our biggest challenges have been presented by the best things to happen to us: our 4 beautiful children.

Allen has been the apple of my eye for almost half my life. Some days it seems like it hasn't been that long, other days it feels like it's been longer. He is, without a doubt, my very best friend. Although we've had our rough moments, I still feel like I'm living in a romantic fairy tale -- with the happily ever after. He is my dream come true, and I hope one day my children each find someone to love them as much Allen and I love each other.

Allen, I love you. Thanks for more than 15,000 kisses!

Dagnabit

Yesterday, Will was watching the Backyardigans on TV while I was feeding the babies breakfast. One of the characters said "dagnabit" a few times and each time Will got an odd look on his face. During the next commercial he asked, "Mama? What is 'dagnabit'?" I answered that it was just an expression kind of like "darn" or "ah, shucks!" He seemed content with my answer and went back to watching the show. I think the character must have said it again, because I kept hearing it. After the show was over, Will came to me and asked me, having thought about the issue quite seriously, "Mama, why do they say 'dagnabit' when they really mean to say 'dammit'?" I took a deep breath so I wouldn't laugh and said, "Honey, I'm sure their mamas told them not to talk like that."

Also this week, we had another new vocabulary word for Jon, and Maddie and Ben quickly picked up the pronounciation, but they are using it more for laughs. Jon, however, has learned to frown really hard, stare into your eyes, and sternly say "NOoo!" It isn't really two sylables, but it gets drawn out longer the more he means it. It is quite funny because he sounds like an adult saying it, but he is clearly just a little kid. If we take his food away because he was playing, "NOoo!" If Ben takes away the book Jon was reading, "NOoo!" If Maddie pokes him or leans in to bite, "NOoooooo!" If Allen takes his toothbrush away and he isn't ready to give it up, "NOooo!" If I tell him it's time for a new diaper and put him up on the changing table, "NOooo!" and he swatted my hand!

Since we're on the subject of defiant toddlers, here's a followup on some previous stories. . .

Diapers: Jon and Ben take their diapers off when they are bored. We started putting pajama pants on them under the other outfits and that worked for awhile. Then they learned to unsnap and take off all their clothes. Last week, I found a huge mess when Jon took it all off then tore it all to shreds. Mom called me and suggested I tape the diapers so the boys couldn't take them off. So I did.

Day 1 went okay.

Day 2: somehow one of the pieces of tape twisted a little so the sticky part got caught on the inside of his (I forget whose?) shirt. I noticed a funky kid dance happening and realized he (was it Ben?) figured out how to wiggle enough that the tape turned inside out, stuck to his shirt, and came off the diaper.

Day 3: I learned the only way to keep the tape from getting loose was to wrap it all the way around the baby's waist so the tape-end was stuck on tape rather than the diaper. First, I taped Jon. I started by somewhat centering the long strip over the diaper tabs and smoothing it down. Then I turned him on his side so I could wrap one end to the back. Then turned him the other way to get the other end down. It worked great! Jon had been easy to get along with for that, so I was happy -- this would be easy.

Next, I changed Ben and tore off the 18-20 inches of packing tape for his diaper. If you haven't met Ben, you need to know he is only still if he is asleep. I centered the tape and smoothed it over the frount tabs. I tried turning him to his side, but he thought I was tickling him and he giggled and squirmed. When I got him calm again, I decided I'd try to put him on his tummy and do both sides at once. When I picked him up, the changing pad came with him -- I had taped my kid to the changing table. I tried to make that tape work by taking the changing pad off the tape, but the other end stuck to his clothes. By the time I got it all straightened out, half was twisted and the other half was no longer sticky. I got another strip of tape and tried again -- somehow, we finally got it on.

Sunday, Allen went to get the kids up from their naps and Ben was laying on his blanket . . .on the floor . . . and from the look of his face, he landed on it. He broke out of the tent. I put Jon in the crib Ben got out of, and put Ben in Jon's bed. No one has gotten out yet. I am hoping this holds them for a little longer. I am not ready to deal with keeping more kids in real beds yet.

It's been a busy week so far. Sunday we met friends from college at the East Texas Arboretum and had a great time watching all the kids play. We even survived a short hike through the woods with everyone walking (most of the way, at least.) We introduced Will to letterboxing and he thought it was cool to hunt treasures like a pirate. It took some explaining when he wondered where the gold was, though. I have no idea what happened Monday (there wasn't one this week, anyway, right?) Tuesday was a school-day for Will, the babies stayed in the church nursery while I went to Bible study, then we had lunch with Allen, and went to a store before getting Will from school. Today is one of the two days a month I take the babies to a mother's-day-out program. Will and I try to do fun things that are more challenging for me to do with all four kids.

Today, we met a friend at the "science touch-museum," as Will has dubbed it. We enjoyed it so much this summer, that this time, I just bought the family membership -- I know we'll get our money's worth and I like knowing the money will be used to help teach the kids about science. The kids played for about three hours till we called it quits and went for lunch. I picked up the Maddie, Ben & Jon and now all four kids are sound asleep for a little while anyway.

Tomorrow is another school day for Will, but I plan to come home for the day. I have laundry to do and bags to pack for the weekend. Allen and the kids are going to his parents' while I go up to Kansas for a crop at Chasing Rainbows. I haven't scrapped for months, but I am excited to get to see everyone I've missed. Starting now, for the next fifteen minutes I am going to go shut my eyes.

3:29am - The sweet extras

It bugs me when I can't get back to sleep. Few things are as frustrating to this tired mama as having a time set aside just for sleeping (we call it night in our home) yet not being able to get there.

Maddie woke up around 2:00am crying and with a little bit of a fever. I wiped her down with a washcloth, gave her some Tylenol, and cuddled her for about an hour. I laid her back down which woke the little boys. Jon stirred a little, his eyes open, but otherwise still undisturbed. Ben looked up at me in the dark, so I leaned close to the tent to say good night. It was so sweet -- he leaned against the mesh to kiss me. When I left the room all of them were laying down and quiet. I started to close the door and Ben shouted "NIGHT-NIGHT!" As kind as it was, the shouting jolted Jon and I listened to his wailing and rocking over the monitor for fifteen very, v e r y long minutes. I laid in bed awhile longer then gave up trying to sleep. This is about how last night went, too. Maddie didn't get feverish until yesterday afternoon, but she still woke up crying a lot. I hope it is just her teeth coming in and that she isn't getting sick -- we all just got over the first-fall colds that hit and I'm not anxious for a repeat, especially if it means sleepless nights.

Just a quick sweet story then I'll try to sleep again: This morning -- oops, I mean yesterday morning, I was holding Maddie after breakfast. She was still cranky and not feeling well, and I was trying to make her feel cozy and loved. As she sobbed off and on, Ben came over to her, gently patted her leg, and gave her a favorite baby doll -- the one that usually stops the tears. This was no coincidence; it was an intentional and simply sweet act of kindness from a not-quite-two-year-old to his sibling, and it made my heart skip a beat. Not even ten minutes later, I was again humbled by a toddler's compassion when Jon lovingly brought her sippy-cup to her. Both boys were trying to make Maddie feel better. These two acts of love, so close together, made me realize how lucky they are to have each other, but also how fast time is rushing by. All four of our little ones are getting older, bigger, and wiser and I am not always ready to let that happen.

In a few years, they probably won't wake me in the middle of the night to deal with a stuffy nose, but by then, I will have lost sleep the first half the night waiting for them to get home from a date. Oh well, such is parenthood.

Although I might be a little groggier and need an extra cup of coffee later, I really do treasure the midnight moments when my little ones are not quite awake, so very willing to cuddle. The pale light of the moon makes little cheeks glow just enough I can see if their eyes are open or shut, and I don't have the healthy kids competing for my attention. Tonight was Maddie's night. I said some extra prayers for her, I gave her lots of extra lovins (as Will says), and I was simply amazed by her beauty. Thank you, God, for the extras you gave me tonight -- please let me sleep a little more before everyone wakes up for real.

Photo Challenge: CHANGING SEASONS

It is Photo Challenge time again and the theme this week is Changing Seasons. As I mentioned before, I use the challenges, not necessarily to take new pictures, but to have fun going through my older ones.

Changing seasons. . . I have always loved this time of year -- the "in-between" season, not quite summer, not yet fall. If only I was able to I would bottle the smells of September with the freshly-mowed grass from summer mixing with the crunchy, colorful leaves of fall, the morning dew, and all of it so much fresher just because the air is crisp. I can't decide whether to light the berry-scented candles or go with the cinnamon scents, so I often light both and that adds another unique autumn-scent to our environment. For my "obvious" picture, here is one I took a few weeks ago on our trip to New England. There were some leaves starting to change for fall, but we were there at the end of summer, so we enjoyed the colors of the wildflowers, too.

Another change of seasons for our family is represented in this photo.

Know what that is? That is MY view of my tummy when I was 4 - yes, FOUR - months pregnant with the triplets. Allen insisted my feet were attached, but I never saw any proof. The seasons were changing then, all right. We were on our way from being a family of 3 to doubling that to 6. Will was on his way from being an only child to being a big brother. Many events happened just before I delivered the babies that represented change of season, but the most difficult was that my grandmother passed away. Because I had such a high-risk pregnancy, I couldn't travel, I couldn't see her that one last time, I couldn't be at the funeral. And just like seasons, . . . one left as another came to be.

This time of year, I sleep well and have a little more bounce to my step. I enjoy the lazy weekends when I can grab a book and cuddle with my family. I am excited to see the apples, squashes, and pumpkins taking over the produce section. I like to watch the leaves change color and float to the ground when the breeze catches them.

For now, I take pleasure in the little things of this "in-between" season: delighting in nature's symphony of scents, sights, and flavors; cherishing the memories I have of loved ones; and experiencing the joy of family.

Maple-Dijon Vinaigrette

I've experimented and come up with a tasty salad dressing. The recipe was created by me but inspired by the dressing we had at Stone Mountain Art Center in Brownsfield, Maine.

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup maple syrup (use real maple syrup even though it costs more than the maple-flavored syrup)
4 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 1/2 Tablespoons dijon mustard
1 green onion - minced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper (use black pepper if you don't already have white)

I put all the ingredients in a bottle and shook it until it was well blended. I have no idea how long it will last in the fridge. . . ours will last about two salad nights. We had it over the following:

bag salad - pick your favorite, we like the baby greens or spring salad
tomatoes - diced
onion - sliced
cucumber - diced
carrots - cut to matchstick size
pineapple - chunks (since I had them leftover and needing to be eaten)
dried cranberries
dried blueberries
walnuts

sunflower seeds

blue cheese crumbles (since it can't ALL be healthy AND still taste great)
chicken - I had some baked that we cut into strips and put on top of the fruit and veggies.

It was not the exact salad we had at the theater, but it made for a great meal. There is something about the different textures -- crunchy seed and nuts, chewy dried fruit, crispy veggies, soft tomatoes and cheese -- that just works with the sweet but tangy dressing. Let me know if you like it or if you find a way to improve it.

Where the wild things are

Guess what? I won something!! This doesn't happen too often now since I don't like having to put my email or snail mail or phone number out there for marketers to call, but this time I did. A friend from high school has a blog called "Traveling with Baby." I have it linked on my side bar and check it periodically for her family updates, but also for her baby product reviews. A few weeks ago, I left a comment and that put me in a drawing for a Scholastic DVD -- miraculously I won it, and my kids have all enjoyed watching Where the Wild Things Are.

Right now she has another drawing for this great DVD on her blog. If you have kids (or even grandkids), go over and enter. While you are there, you might discover some neat products that she has reviewed.

Discipline

I told Will it was time to rest -- he didn't have to sleep, in fact, he could read quietly.
It is a struggle to get him to be quiet and stay in his room.

Will just said "I HATE you!!" to me.
Then he came back and said softly, "Mommy?"
"Yes, Will?"
"I really, really, really super hate you."

I am deep breathing -- still calm, haven't lost my temper.
Needing love though and I still have an hour to go until Allen heads home.
At least I can count on love from my husband.

Why does discipline have to be so difficult on the parents?
Why do I feel like I am being punished for being firm and steady with my son? I thought Will wasn't supposed to "hate" me for another ten years, but it seems to be a daily practice of his.

Changing the look

I had to change the look of my avatar on the left. My hair has grown a bit over the last few months and I don't wear my glasses very often now. I've found it's much more convenient to wear sunglasses when my contacts are in, and I've donned the jeans since the weather is getting cooler.

After finding so much to do in a small area of New Hampshire and Maine last week, we've decided to do the same here. Rather than sit at home and wonder what there is to do around here, we are going to make the effort to see Texas as tourists. I've searched online and in the Texas travel guides and started the lists of what there is to do close to home. After our vacation, Allen and I decided we wanted to get the kids out in nature more and consider day hiking with them. Last night our walk was a test, but at the end of it we realized the kids stay fairly close to us, but when they get too far we can call them back to us easily. That should make exploring this vast state a little easier.

So the avatar Me being outside on a trail might be wishful thinking, but if the weather cooperates this weekend, my wish may come true.

Tales of the Crib'd

To end a rainy, yet relaxing weekend, our family set out on a walk last night. Everyone walked -- we held hands to cross the street and walk for a while until we reached the greenbelt, then we let all the kids just go. They ran, they jumped, they stopped and picked up "rrrrrwoks," pinecones, sticks, and leaves. They had a lot of fun just being curious little kiddos. When we got the playground area in our neighborhood, they explored and played with the stones. Somewhere along the way, Ben relieved his bowels then immediately stripped his diaper from his bottom. It happened so quickly, I didn't notice anything but the mess -- he took the diaper off without removing his clothes, so there was a big mess. We immediately headed home, and got him cleaned up and everyone in bed. Next time, I will at least bring a trash bag so I don't have to carry the mess home.

I would have skipped right over that episode, but it fit so well with what happened this afternoon and I had to have enough reasons to justify the Crypt zombie image. Today, the weather is gorgeous. I've had the windows open all day, but this morning was a bit cool. No problem for me, that somehow calms me. The little ones were fussy this morning, yet I seemed to have an unending pot of patience to serve. This afternoon is another story. When the triplets started yelling for me to come get them out of their cribs after a nap, I went to change them and let the play. Thank goodness the window was spend and letting in a bit of a breeze, because the smell . . .if you've read this blog before, you can guess.

For some crazy reason, Jon took off his onesie, took off his pants, took off his wet diaper and must have sat for a long time shredding it. What possesses a child to do this? Then he emptied his bowels and stepped in it, wiped his hands through it and smeared it on the side of the tent, on the sheets, blankets, and toys in the crib. When I got him out (VERY carefully) I didn't know how to clean him up. Is it wrong to stick a kid in the toilet and flush a few times just to rinse him off? I didn't actually do that, but I seriously considered it. I finally got him bathed and dressed, and came back to the nursery to see Maddie and Ben working on an escape plan. The princess rascal can reach the zipper of Ben's tent and sometimes raises it just enough for him to grab it and pull it open. This morning, Ben's tent was entirely open, so I rezipped it and asked him how he did that. He proudly reached through the little hole he dug in the mesh, reached the zipper, and unzipped. Tonight we will search for patches at Walmart to repair the tents. I don't know how much longer they will keep the boys in their beds, but I am not ready for them to be lose in the house yet. (Photo on left edited to keep readers from becoming nonreaders.)

Those are my only horror stories for today at this point. I am happy to announce that Jon's tent wiped clean very easily. Unfortunately, now I need to go deal with the rest of the mess. The worst part wasn't even the poo, but the stupid little pieces of diaper lint that got shredded.

Red + Blue = ???

Nope, I am not talking about politics. . .I am just wondering why, when Ben chews a red crayon and a blue one, doesn't it make purple?? Seems it should, but his teeth looked more GREEN! Will wanted to color this morning, and the babies thought they needed to also. Luckily I had already had most of my coffee and I was feeling up to it. It is not exactly an easy task to undertake when all of them decide to create. Will has to pass everything out. It is a bit of a struggle for him to understand that HE (Will) does not get to make decisions for Ben, Maddie, and Jon as to what colors THEY want to use. After a few minutes, he "understood" that. Ben creates his crayon art in his mouth. When we are really lucky, he chews on a washable (aka: easily dissolves with spit and makes tempera paint) crayon and sticks it in his ear. It is fat enough it doesn't go in, but all the color does. Maddie is quite the artiste. She has mastered the art of scribble rather quickly; however, she hasn't realized where the edge of the paper is, so the large sweeps of magenta and tangerine extend from the middle of the paper to the middle of the table. (Thank you Mr. Clean for Magic Eraser!) Jon takes a minimalist approach -- small dots and swirly doodles punctuated with thoughtfully-chosen stickers of a "baaa" (lamb) and "cack-cack" (duck). Like Ben, though, Jon has to taste his medium before creating, but his teeth stayed red like the crayon. Somehow the 8 minutes of art seems like an 8-hour job -- oh wait, that's just the clean-up. Will created several sticker people amidst a sea of ever-changing color. He told me the pink smiley face was me and the red blob around it meant I was hot. I promise I acted calm the whole time.

Later I explained a bit about the approaching storm to Will. I told him it was going to be very windy tonight so later today we would need to get all the toys out of the yard. When I got a chance, I got a bunch of empty boxes from the garage and put the on the porch so I could pick up the yard later. The next thing I knew Will was outside putting his large Tonka truck in one box, thus filling the box completely. He picked up a tricycle and put it in another box, filling it, too. I looked out and all three boxes were full -- one riding toy in each, and none of the sand box toys, balls, or trucks had made it to a box so he was crying. When I brought him in to ask what was the matter, he sobbingly told me all the rest of his toys would blow away. I said I would make sure that wouldn't happen and he was happy again. What a helper!

After I got the triplets down for a nap (they are always over-cranky when it is going to rain) I gathered the toys from outside, the grill, the toy-horse, the bikes, trikes, trucks, and cars and moved them to the garage. I took all the swings down, and considered bringing in the dumpster but decided that would wait until bedtime. I think the outside is almost as cleaned up as I can make it. We are far enough inland that we aren't boarding up windows, but we are in the path of the storm -- right about where we don't know yet if we'll get hurricane or tropical storm winds. Either way we are expecting it to be like the top of Mt. Washington without the freezing weather. It sounds awful to say, but I am just a little excited about Ike -- I am not happy about the devastation it is sure to bring to many people, but I think it will be fascinating to see what happens here. Monday, I may be in tears, stressed over the mess we have to deal with, but we are praying that isn't the case. If the power is out for too long, we are sure to visit family -- we have enough gas in the car to get somewhere if need be. Hopefully we won't lose too many trees, and I am crossing my fingers that none of our big ones hit the house. (deep breath, count one, two, three, . . .)

On another note, I am thrilled to report that last night we hired a babysitter for the first time (at least the first time since our family doubled in size). Allen & I went out for a fabulous dinner last night with some people he works with. It worked so well, I think her number will be posted in my cabinet. This is another big step for us, and it is exciting, too. Tonight we get another "date" night since our church has a parents-night-out. We aren't planning anything fancy -- just running the errands that are easier to do without tagalongs. It will be a crazy weekend for sure, but if you don't read a blog for awhile don't fret. Now that Will is back at school, Bible study has resumed, and I am taking the little ones to MOPS and mothers-day-out (twice a month), it is harder to find time to sit and type my thoughts. I am just busier, but that's how I like it. Have a great weekend!

Male Bonding

I saw this on one of the blogs I visit and I had to share it. Look, Dad, we can play together!

"Can I just say one thing?"

Story of yesterday that kept me up late laughing. . .

The triplets and I picked Will up from school. Although he was upset about me getting him early again, he was pleasant on the way home. He kindly held Jon's and Maddie's hand as they walked from the driveway to the porch and then inside the house. When I asked the kids to take off their shoes and put them away, Will took his off and put them in the closet. Then, with Maddie, Ben, and Jon sitting on the bottom step next to the closet, Will leaned over and sweetly helped each of them doff the socks and shoes AND he put them in the closet for them (yes, the little ones do this on their own, too.) I was smitten by the sight, (yet still ready to rush them all to naps so I could get one, too.)

Will: . . . Here. I will take your shoes off Maddie. See? This is how we take off socks. Good girl!
Me: Thank you for being so helpful, Will! I really appreciate you doing that. You should be proud of yourself.
Will: Mama, can I just say one thing?
Me: Sure, hon. What is it?
Will: IDIOT!

Home again, Home again

. . . jiggity jog.

Yes, we are home now. Allen and I flew into Dallas Wednesday night. He drove all the way to Houston for an early morning meeting and I somehow got to Waco. I have been slow updating the blog because I have a yucky cold -- the kind I get when I spend two days on airplane-air, a few days in a different environment, and many days having fun and not getting quite enough ZZZZs. Yesterday, Allen let me sleep ALL day, and I am feeling so much better for it. As the little ones like to say, Daddy gets "clop - clop - clop - clop - AAAAANEN!!!" (translate: clap, clap, clap, clap, AMEN!) Thanks, Babe, for taking care of everything!!

Our trip to New Hampshire and Maine was wonderful, even if it did seem weird without kids. We flew into Manchester and spent our first night with my dear friend, Kamal, and her husband Bill. Kamal went to high school with Allen and me, and it was our first time meeting her husband. We had a wonderful time catching up and reminiscing. They just moved into their beautiful home, and already they've unpacked more than we have and we've been here a year. Thank you both for a gracious New England welcome! (I would love to have a yard that pretty. . .)

The next day we hit the road for a scenic trip through the western part of Maine to a little town called Fryeburg where we checked into the Admiral Peary House B&B and parked our bags for the rest of our vacation. Rather than post every picture I loved, I'll just post a slide show. I know they all start to look the same after awhile anyway. The weather in Maine and New Hampshire was beautiful. We slept with the windows open at night, and during the day, I think the highest the temperature got was 82F.

Here is a quick summary of events. The details might be of interest if you are actually heading that direction, but otherwise, it will bore you. If you need or want the actual locations, email me & I can expand. We spent almost a whole day just driving to Fryeburg because I wanted to take a scenic route, but it was enjoyable. We ate at a tasty Thai restaurant and then tried to go to sleep early. At 3:00 am (yes, 2 am our time) the alarms rang and we joyfully jumped out of bed, dressed quickly and were on the road before 3:30. (The insanity -- that we would do this willingly?) Our goal was to make it to the top of Mt. Washington before the sun broke over the east coast. On the way, I saw a moose walking down the highway, but Allen was very focused on the road -- driving an unknown, windy road in the dark. Thankfully, the drive up the mountain was also dark, or I may have looked over the edge of the cliffs and made him turn back. (Think, windy, narrow road, steep cliffs, loose rocks, no guard-rails, more than 6000 feet up -- eeek.) We did make it to the top, but the top was in the clouds, so we didn't see the sunrise. Just a few hundred feet down, we got some beautiful pictures, though.

It was definitely an experience we will remember. We were prepared for the cold, but not so prepared to handle the wind. I think most of the wind was about 45 mph, but there were gusts as high as 62 mph that nearly blew me away -- at least that's what it felt like. I tried filming Allen leaning into the wind, but as I moved, a gust caught me. . . It was terribly foggy so we didn't really get any pictures of each other, just of the fog (imagine photo with white. . . not much else in focus.) I am posting this video because we laugh so hard every time we watch it. It is hard to see exactly how windy it is, but Allen's pants and jacket are flapping madly. If you have the sound on, you will hear what we heard: nothing but the wind. We could barely hear each other. I came home with cheeks pinked, not by the sun like on most of our vacations, but by the wind on the mountain burned my cheeks rosy.

We got back to the inn in time (by 9 am) for a tasty breakfast of muffins, banana-coconut pancakes, and fresh berries with berry-thyme sorbet and a welcomed hot, delicious cup of coffee, then we went back to bed for a bit. We woke up around noon and went out for a self-tour of the White Mountain National Forest and surrounding villages, focusing on finding country churches, covered-bridges, and letterboxes. That evening, we ate at a dinner and listened to the Waybacks perform at the Stone Mountain Arts Center. Okay, I am getting into the details I didn't mean to . . .oh well. I had a dinner salad that was awesome and I can't wait to try some of it at home -- yeah, it had the lettuce and tomatoes like usual, but there were dried cranberries, cherries, and blueberries, candied walnuts, and blue cheese crumbles, topped with a maple-mustard vinaigrette. Now my mouth is watering again. You know what the best part about the day was? That we made it turn into two days -- at least it seemed so: Day 1 at the mountain, Day 2 touring the area and listening to music.

The next real day was Monday and it was the only day we didn't have firm plans. We had another great breakfast and let the wind direct us. We did a lot of driving, taking pictures, hiking, and finding more letterboxes. We have decided this is an addictive hobby and definitely something the family can enjoy together. In case you didn't click on the link above, according to letterboxing.org,

• letterboxing is an intriguing mix of treasure hunting, art, navigation, and exploring interesting, scenic, and sometimes remote places. Here's the basic idea: Someone hides a waterproof box somewhere (in a beautiful, interesting, or remote location) containing a logbook and a carved rubber stamp. The hider writes directions to the box (called "clues" or "the map"), which can be straightforward, cryptic, or any degree in between. Often the clues involve map coordinates or compass bearings from landmarks, but they don't have to. Selecting a location and writing the clues is one aspect of the art. Once the clues are written, hunters in possession of the clues attempt to find the box. When the hunter successfully deciphers the clue and finds the box, he stamps the logbook in the box with his personal stamp, and stamps his personal logbook with the box's stamp. The box's logbook keeps a record of all its visitors, and the hunters keep a record of all the boxes they have found, in their personal logbooks.

At the end of the day, we were worn out, but excited at all that this small area (geographically) has to offer.

Tuesday we took a five-hour round-trip on the Conway Scenic Railroad up to Crawford Notch. The scenery was spectacular, as promised, and we were lucky enough to arrive at a perfect time: the leaves were just starting to paint the mountains with reds and oranges, but the valleys still were speckled with wildflowers. It was amazingly stunning and it was obvious God was the painter of these magnificent landscapes. We finished the day with more of the same -- enjoying the vistas and finding beauty all around us.

I found it fascinating how much older things are up here than what I've seen in Kansas and Texas. The "recent" buildings are sometimes early 1900s, even though there are some late 1900-built ones, too. Many of the older churches and town halls have notes over the doors (ie, Est. 1836). In a moment of mindlessness, I was in awe to see a wooden house marked 1550, an another next to it from 1548. It was so hard to believe that that particular house was actually nearly 500 years old, but here in New England it isn't uncommon. My sense caught up with me when I noticed the third house, seemingly built around the same time, said 1546 on it. My awe flew away and was replaced by a slap to the forehead when I realized those numbers were the addresses and not the ages.

Wednesday was bittersweet -- there was still so much we wanted to do and see, but we were ready to hold our children again, too. We boarded the plane and said good-bye to the pristine streams and rivers, the crisp mountain air, the fresh scent of New England flora, and the heavy cloud of mosquitoes that followed the scent of "Texan" blood.

It is good to be home and back to normal. It seems that the cusp of autumn has followed us back -- at home, the air is a tad bit cooler, the shadows are longer, and we can open the windows in the morning and evening. Now I just need to finish up a little laundry and make out another grocery list, and we will be good to go.

PS - Check back later this week for the slideshow of photos we took. Allen used his film camera, so we are waiting to get those back from the developer. I may also post more info about our letterboxing.

Photo Challenge: THINGS WITH WINGS

You know what I really like about the photo challenges? I love going back through all my older photos . . . reliving the moments that were captured in the picture. Some of the memories have been sweet, some sad, and many just bring tears of joy. I am sure the challenge was originally intended to get me to TAKE photos to signify the theme word, but I have had so much more fun going through my collections with a new eye.


So, here is my collection of photos that fit the theme: THINGS WITH WINGS. And since my fun is in reliving the memories, I'll share some of the story that goes with each photo.

In my home are three handmade icecream bowls: the results of an afternoon with my son, my dad, and me in a paint-your-own pottery shop. My goal was to get some bowls with Will's handprints, but we each painted a bowl that day. Will was not even two, so it was a little challenging to paint while keeping him occupied. He did paint a little, but it was Dad who really got into the painting. I told him to paint the bowl with whatever he wanted to, and by the time I realized what he was painting it was too late . . . I would have an icecream bowl with a giant fly in it ALWAYS. So, my first photo is an icecream bowl with fly WINGS. I laugh every time I see it -- it reminds me in so many ways of Dad: it's colorful, it has an animal in it, it's made for icecream, and it's just silly.
In October of 2006 life got crazy when we double the size of our family. Although I spent a lot of time at the hospital 100 miles away with our newborn preemie triplets, I tried to keeps some parts of life normal for 2-year old Will. On this day, about a week after I was released from the hospital, Mom and I took Will to the local Halloween parade all decked out as Batman. Will decided to just watch the parade rather than be in it which was a good thing since I still couldn't quite stand comfortably after my c-section. Our little Batman didn't really have WINGS, but the cape was sort of winglike and I love this photo. It is Will smiling and happy to be in his costume. So much was changing in his life that it was great to get this photo with the spotlight on him.
Maddie spend her first Halloween in the hospital, so I was so excited to get to dress her up in her first costume just after her first birthday. (Yes, I had fun dressing up all the boys, too, but there were no wings on them so it is a different story.) Maddie was Tinkerbell -- chosen by big brother Will to fit with Captain Hook, a pirate, and Peter Pan. Unfortunately, I never got any photos of her smiling because she was sick. She really just wanted to lay down and sleep all day, but I couldn't let Halloween pass without a photo of my little fairy with WINGS. (I also had fun playing with PhotoShop with this picture.) Even without a smile, I love this picture of my daughter.
Back in time again . . . in summer of 2005, my parents and Allen and I went to Belize for vacation. It was a place Allen and I wanted to see and when we heard my parents wanted to also, we planned a trip together. I had been to tropical jungles before, but I knew it would be a little different seeing it with my parents. Dad used to catch bats in Central America as part of his job, and he was excited to show them to us up close. In the first picture, we had entered a looted Mayan tomb (creepy sounding, huh?) Hovering in the caves were lots of bats. Since I am my dad's daughter, I climbed in and got pictures of them, but I had to get them ruffled a bit so they'd fly and actually look like bats. The lower photo is dad holding one of the bats, but I forget if it was one he got from the cave or from the nets (he brought a bat net so we could catch-look-release some.) That was quite an adventure and there were lots of WINGS.


That's my trip down memory lane for this week. Check back in about two weeks when I will join the next challenge.