Nerf Cannons, OrthoIndy, and Wise Men. They Have Nothing to Do With Each Other, But Imagine if They Did.

******* 1 *******

It is 11:55pm, and I just sat down to write today's post.  I am putting all my eggs in the "This is a real storm and school will be cancelled" basket and staying up late, in hopes I will be staying in bed in the morning.  Despite the weathermen getting all excited with the talk of snow and ice and wind and general horribleness, it is not a good gamble.  Even if school is canceled, I'll still have to get up to get that info.  Plus, regardless of whether school is cancelled or not, COW will still want to go to work.  I won't be able to go back to sleep.
Only consolation is, COW parked facing down the driveway.  At least I won't be getting him out of a snow bank.

************* 2 **********

I may be heading to OrthoIndy again tomorrow.  This injury made me cringe more than any other yet this year.  Cuckoo was leaning up over the kitchen island to look over Turken's shoulder when the heavy, metal stool slid out from under him.  Somehow his foot landed first, and the stool came down across the toes of one of his feet.

Take a minute to cringe and gag and suck in some air.  I need it, too.

After icing it and elevating it and icing some more and elevating some more and giving him some Tylenol, he is still in pain.  There isn't much swelling or discoloration, even 3 hours later.  We'll see what it looks like in the morning.

Yeah, this whole staying up late is probably a really bad idea.

************* 3 ************

Before I forget, the FTSF prompt is "One of my favorite childhood memories is..."

The year we got Nerf cannons for Christmas.  Nerf used to be a much better company, making a great variety of products.  We didn't have guns back then.  We had cannon-like things you shot by smacking a bubble-thing of air.  The force of air shot that Nerf bullet a good long distance.  I will always remember my siblings and I stationed on opposite sides of the room, laughing our heads off, shooting the cannon, then fast-crawling into the line of fire to retrieve another bullet.  The best part of the memory, though, is the image of my mom. She was there, in her floor-length robe, laughing harder and louder than any of us, as she shot at us.

**************** 4 ************

Just a little reminder for those who missed the announcement.  There's a new book out this week talking about friendship.  I have an essay in it about my best friend, Amy.  You can just click that little button in the sidebar to read more about it.

************ 5 *********

Our chickens are giving us 4 eggs a day.  Sometimes we don't actually get to bring 4 eggs into the house, but there are 4 chickens laying eggs.  Sometimes an egg gets lost along the way.  Like when someone slips on her way out of the coop and lands on her knee and then her butt, carrying all 4 eggs in one hand.  On those days, we only get to bring three eggs into the house.

Since our one white-egg laying chicken passed, only brown eggs are being laid.  Those Americaunas are slacking.  Big time.  I want some green and blue eggs, dagnabbit!

*************** 6 ***********

The Christmas card has been giving me fits this year.  It took forever to come up with a theme, and now that I have one, it's taking forever to write.  This whole blogging thing is really putting a damper on my creative writing ability when I have to sum up the entire year in four pages or less.  And I've already told the stories with hilarious posts and drawings.  And there's so much pressure to make it good and funny.  I've already had several people tell me they are looking forward to getting our card this year.

Oh, the pressure!!!

********** 7 **********

Talking about pressure, we've begun the three wise men activity.  Each night, the wise men go looking for Jesus around the house, and in the morning the kids look for him.  Even the big kids are getting into this.  It's been fun for them.  It's been worrisome for me.  I'm not good at remembering to do it, first of all.  Secondly, I'm not good at finding new places to put them.  So far, our wise men have been here:

Day 1: a random crock decoration someone made for me 10 years ago.

Day 2:  They were distracted and played a game.

Day 3:  They tried to get on the Bible app to read about where Jesus was born, but they didn't know the kids' passwords.

Day 4:  I forgot to set them up.  I literally took my hand off of one of the wise men's heads as Turken walked in the room.  I panicked, jumped, and pointed, "Look where they are?" while Giant stood behind me and laughed his head off.

Day 5:  I was inspired by Melody.  She showed a photo of her wise men getting into a bag of M&Ms.  While I liked the idea, I wasn't about to sacrifice my M&Ms.  Our wise men are making off with the animal crackers.

Goodness, I'm the queen of link-ups today.  This covered three of them.

Stephanie and the gang host the Finish the sentence Friday, Jen has been hosting the 7 Quick Takes since time began, and Jennifer Marie is the one who started the Wise Men activity.

This weekend, as usual, will be the 10 Things of Thankful blog hop.  I hear it's a big one.  Lizzi is having a co-host quiz and contest, with the winner receiving an actual gift!  Mailed to her from England!

Bring on the snow!!

I can't believe I just said that.

Have a lovely day!

Oh, Yeah? Well...Your Turkey Is Ugly.

The following is a conversation I had with Turken.  He came home from kindergarten carrying a big paper turkey he had made.

 

Me:  What did you write on your feathers?

Turken:  Well, we had to write some, and some we got to choose.

Me:  Your teacher made you write certain things?

Turken:  Uh-huh.  (as he points to each feather) We had to put God.  And then a pet.  I put "dog" even though they aren't our pets.

Me:  (completely skipping the questions about being forced to put God) They aren't our pets?  Why do you say that?

Turken:  They don't come inside.

Me:  Huh.  (Mental note: Perhaps we need to discuss what a pet is.)

Turken:  Then I put Ms. (Teacher).

Me:  (under my breath) Did you have to put her?

Turken:  And Dad.

Me:  Was Dad one you had to write?

Turken:  No.  And then Mom.

Me:  Were you told to write Mom?

Turken:  No.

(pause)

Turken:  I just didn't know how to spell anybody else's name.

Me:

And with that, Turken has moved into 7th place in my favorite kid contest.

His cousin has inched her way into the lineup.

My name was "Crissy" until I moved to Indiana, where no one knew me and I could shed the name Three's Company made infamous.  The relatives still use the moniker.

Have a lovely day!

It's Local* Friendship Day!

For a long, long time I have been feeling sorry for myself.  It started when my best friend moved away 5 years ago.  It got worse when my next closest friend moved away a year and a half ago.  I basically had a 12 month pity party, where I was the only party goer.

I was sad that I wasn't the first person people thought of when they wanted to go to lunch.

I was disappointed when I wasn't invited to go to things.

I was upset when people failed to call or even text me.

Here I was, surrounded by many, many people who would do anything I asked if I needed help, yet I was lonely.

And then I realized something.  I was probably in the shower, as that is where most great epiphanies happen.

When was the last time I called anyone to invite her to lunch??

When was the last time I invited anyone to anything?

When was the last time I called anyone just to see how she was doing?

I couldn't remember.

Honestly, I was expecting people to reach out and be my friend, but what was I doing to show them I appreciated them or cared two wits about them??

Things needed to change.

The first thing I decided to do was actually mail the cards I always thought to mail but never actually mailed.

When it was announced at church that an acquaintance's relative passed away, I was going to send a sympathy card.

When I saw something that reminded me of a person, I was going to either buy it and send it, or send a note telling her I was thinking about her.

I was going to call my friends who had moved away.

I did it.  I started doing these things, and people noticed.  Months after I sent a sympathy card to a woman, I ran into her at a church function.  The first thing she did was thank me for the card.  She was genuinely touched to be remembered like that.

And then my goal to be a good friend was tested.  Repeatedly.

One of my book club friends suffered a terrible loss when her baby was stillborn. 

Another friend unexpectedly lost his father.

Another friend's mother had some serious medical and mental problems, and as an only child felt overwhelmed and alone, along with the emotions a person in this type of situation normally felt.

Another friend's husband was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.

While my family was perfectly healthy and fine, my friends were going through some life-changing, scary, devastating days.  What was I going to do?

I ended up having to do only one thing.

Through all of these months of heartbreak, I learned that in order to be a good friend, I simply needed to be there.

I needed to be willing to go through the suffering with them.  When they needed to talk, I had to sit with my mouth shut and listen.  When they cried, I needed to hold their hands and keep my mouth shut.  When they vented, I needed to be on the other end of the phone but keep my mouth shut.

I just needed to be there to let them talk, cry, or vent their anger.  I needed to show up.

And then, when the original, most awful part of the suffering was over, I could act, since acting is my natural way of behaving.

I sent texts frequently, just to tell them I was praying.

I cooked to help feed the flood of relatives coming in for funerals.

I began calling my friends' mom and taking her out to lunch to give my friend a chance to relax.

I went to funerals and funeral meals, helping to keep in-laws comfortable and children occupied.

I put together lots of freezer meals for days when chemo treatments were just too much for both of them.

I wrote to them, telling them how important they all were to me.

And they responded.  Every one let me know how much they appreciated the things I had done.  Three of the four even said they had to wait to respond, because they were crying and couldn't put two words together.

I learned a lot about being a friend this year.

When someone is suffering, so often we are afraid of doing or saying the wrong thing, and in our fear we do nothing.  I learned that doing nothing is the worst thing we can do.  We need to be there and let our friends know we care.

And this doesn't just apply to tragedy.  It applies to every friendship we have. 

People simply want to feel loved.  We want to know people think fondly of us. 

In order to be a good friend, we need to let our friends know just how special they are.

Fortunately, I have some people in my life who are pros at showing kindness, thoughtfulness, and love.  By watching them, I am learning even better ways to be a friend.

You have all heard me talk about Lizzi.  She is that lovely English blogger who started the 10 Things of Thankful blog hop.  I have never met her in person, but time and time again, she has shown me how to be better at building friendships.  She encourages those who need encouraging.  She applauds those who deserve applause.  She plainly lets people know how much she appreciates them.  She helps friends who need help.  She goes out of her way to do things in honor of her friends.  And she sends presents to people just to let them know she is thinking of them.

Because of her example, I have been much better at letting my friends know just how special they are to me.

Another person who is a great example for me is Kris.  She is so very good at paying attention to details.  When I talk to her, I know I have her full attention, and she is taking note of all I say.  And she does this with everyone she meets.  She actually knows the names of all kids and parents of everyone who has ever played any sport with her boys!  She is very good at remembering these details, and using them at a later date. 

To give you an idea, let me just tell you about the birthday/Christmas presents she got for me.  First, she took me out for dessert to a place I had never been, and bought me not only a bowl of soup for my dinner, but a fantastic, gigantic piece of chocolate cake, with a dollop of ice cream on the side. 
And then, she pulled out some gifts.  The first was my birthday gift.  A lovely, sparkly barrette in the shape of a peacock, because she thinks we should go into the peafowl business next.  After that, she got all excited and told me she couldn't wait to give me my Christmas present and was going to give it to me immediately.

 This is the bag it came in,

and I have to agree.  It certainly was a fabulous gift.  One she clearly had to put thought and planning into.

Back in August, I wrote a post about COW getting rid of a bat we found in the cushion of our family room chair.  COW is horribly afraid of bats, and to end the story I wrote,

Come to the Coop.  Conquer your fears.

There's a T-shirt in there somewhere.

 

 

She remembered that post, and gave me this:

 

 

It really isn't the color of an old, dingy, yellowed shirt.  I just took it at night, so it looks like it.

 

How awesome is that?!?! 

 

Because of Kris, I have been learning how to pay closer attention to details.  How to take note of those little things which would show a person how special she is to me. 

  

I am grateful for the example both of these wonderful women are giving me.

 

And while we are talking about being a good friend, I must add this.

 

It is the big release date for the book I'm in!!!!

 

The Herstories Project:  Women Explore the Joy, Pain, and Power of Female Friendship is on sale now!!!

 

In this book, 50 women writers paint real pictures of friendship; in addition to paying homage to the beauty and power of their relationships, they share the gritty details of bitter friendship breakups and uncomfortable life transitions. This anthology will enable readers to find their own stories in the words of others, cause them to reflect on their own unique friendship history, and perhaps even inspire them to rekindle connections with women who have shaped them. The authors of this book share their stories of friendship loss, enduring bonds from childhood, navigating the transition to motherhood, and renegotiating the role of friendship in their adult lives. The diverse essays in this collection will evoke tears, laughter, and a deep recognition and appreciation for the friends with whom women everywhere share their lives.

 

Starting on page 175, I talk about my very best friend ever, Amy. 

If you are so inclined, you can purchase the book by clicking on that little gadget thing in my sidebar.  It's right under my kids' photos and looks like this:
 

 

 



It comes in both paperback and Kindle versions. 

It's all rather exciting.

It's a whole book of stories which will surely give me plenty of ideas on how to be a better friend.  (I just got my copy on Saturday, so I'm not done reading it yet.)

So, now that I've gone on and on, in honor of Local* Friendship Day, tell me about a person who has been a good friend to you.  And tell me what you do to be a good friend to others. 

I can use all the help I can get.

*By "Local" I mean only on this blog.  I don't think anyone else calls this Friendship Day.

Have a lovely day!

TToT, Week 26

The Pilgrims made seven times more graves than huts.  No Americans have been more impoverished than these who, nevertheless, set aside a day of thanksgiving. 

 ~H.U. Westermayer

 

We've been home for one hour after a wonderful trip home to Ohio for the Thanksgiving festivities.  This list will be a piece of cake.

 

 

1.  I am thankful for the easiest drive ever.  Driving to Ohio on the day before Thanksgiving is always a toss up.  On a normal day, it takes approximately 6 hours to get from our house to COW's mom's house.  The day before Thanksgiving can take anywhere from 7-12 hours.  Between traffic coming out of Indianapolis and through Columbus, Ohio, plus any snowy weather they could be experiencing, the drive has been known to be horrible.  We packed the van to be prepared for a worst case scenario, but were thrilled to have the shortest drive we've ever had.  Not one traffic jam blocked our way, and all the snow from the previous day's storm was cleared off the road. 

 

2.  I am thankful for the hall where we hold the Thanksgiving feast.  We used to gather at my grandma's house, but as the family grew and she got older, it became too much.  The Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) hall is the perfect place.  There is plenty of room for the 50ish people, including a stage area for the many, many boys to wrestle and play without hurting any of the adults.  Plus, there is a huge oven for cooking/warming food, and a buffet area to serve it all up. 

 

3.  I am thankful for all the relatives who were able to make the trip.  Aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings, nieces, nephews, and parents made it.  Even my cousin who lives in Hilton Head made the trip with his kids.  Everyone had a great time catching up.

 

4.  I am thankful for my parents' ability to put the past behind them.  My parents were divorced more than 30 years ago.  It wasn't the prettiest of divorces.  We'll leave it at that.  However, over time, they have let it go.  To the point to where they actually enjoy each other's company again.  While it is my dad who hosts, and his family who we celebrate with, my mom is not only invited, but encouraged to come.  She is part of the family, playing cards and talking and laughing with the rest of us.  I am so grateful to my dad and stepmom for including her.  It makes our holidays so much better to be able to spend the day with both parents.

 

5.  I am thankful for my brother's surprise arrival.  Neither of my brothers were going to be able to make it to Ohio this year, but at the last minute my youngest brother's plans changed.  He and his family just showed up as we were getting ready to eat.  Gatherings are always more fun when my brother is there.  (Mom and Dad and any other relative reading this, DO NOT tell him this.  His ego is big enough as it is.)

 

6.  I am thankful for the time I have to spend with my grandma and her siblings.  One great-aunt and one great-uncle and one great-aunt-in-law (all in their late 70s/80s) are frequent attendees at my dad's gatherings.  I love spending time with them.  We mainly play Euchre, but my great-aunt and I have our own Scrabble time whenever I am in town.  I so enjoy listening to them talk about the old days, but talking about current things are just as good.  They all have me laughing whenever I see them.  My favorite line this week came after someone chided them for swearing in front of the kids.  They were upset that people accused them of swearing/cussing, and one great-aunt said, "It's a bull, and it's shit.  What else am I supposed to call it?  Bull poop?"   As my grandma was pointing out to just about everyone over the past couple months, this may be her last Thanksgiving.  (None of us believe her.)  I am going to take advantage of every chance I have to spend time with them.

7.  I am thankful for my snickerdoodle recipe.  I made a batch to take to Thanksgiving, and to say they were a hot item is an understatement.  People were actually fighting over them.  As in snatching them out of each other's hands, even after a bite had been taken.  These cookies are that good.  In the midst of it all, I found out where the recipe actually came from.  I had gotten it from my mom, but didn't know where she had gotten it.  On Thursday, I found out it came from my great-aunt's (of bullshit fame) mother-in-law.  I am so happy to know it's origins, and that it wasn't just out of a magazine my mom read.

8.  I am thankful for COW.   I know, I mention him in lots of lists.  But over the holidays, I am especially grateful.  We always stay with his mom when we go back home, as my family's houses are all booked up with out-of-state relatives.  Every single night we are home, every single year, COW will take the kids back to his mom's house, put them to bed, and stay with them while I stay at Grandma's or Dad's to spend time with my relatives.  I get to simply enjoy their company till all hours of the night, without having to worry about tired kids or an endless stream of "Mom! Mom! Mom!" 

9.  I am thankful for the quiet morning I had the day after Thanksgiving.  Each year, the NFL Hall of Fame has free admission for kids the day after Thanksgiving.  COW has been taking the boys every year for at least 6 years.  This was the first year all 5 boys were old enough to go.  They all left the house at 7:45, Buttercup had some quiet time with my mother-in-law, and I got to stay in bed reading a book until I felt like getting up.  It was fantastic.

10.  I am thankful for the chance to help our parents and my grandma.  While I love living in Indianapolis, I hate that I am so far away from our family.  My dad, COW's mom, and my grandma are the only ones who still live in Ohio.  There's not a lot we can do to help them when they need it.  When we are home, we try to do as much as we can.  We were able to help them get some heavy lifting and unloading and organizing and wallpaper stripping done while we were home.  I know they appreciate it, but I wish we could do more.

Well, that was the easiest list I've ever done.  I hope you all had a wonderful holiday (or a normal Thursday, for all my non-US friends) and safe travels.  Feel free to link in a post or let me know what made you happy this week in the comments.

Have a lovely day!

 

 



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A Fly on our (Chicken Coop) Wall, Considerings, Finding Ninee, Getting Literal, Home On Deranged, I can say mama, I Want Backsies, Rewritten, Thankful Me, The Wakefield Doctrine

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I Was Smited. In Front of 800 People. It Had Nothing to Do With Chickens or Pigs.

We sit in the front of church each and every week.  We always have.  There is nothing worse for a kid than being in a gigantic room full of people, knowing something is going on in the front of the room, and being unable to see it.  Sitting in the back, all we would hear are extremely whiny, "I can't seeeeeee."  So, in the front we sit.

I know parents are afraid to sit in the front of church, because what if the kid misbehaves?

I say, "What is the worst that can happen?  The kid throws a fit and you leave."  Every parent in the place has been in your shoes, and only one or two heartless people will judge.

I apologize to any and all young parents to whom I gave this advice.

A temper tantrum is most certainly NOT the worst thing that can happen.

We went to 5:00 Mass on Saturday night, with plans on going out for my birthday dinner afterwards.  As usual, we were as close as we could get to the front of church.  The 4th pew to be exact.

COW was down at one end of the pew.  Cuckoo was on his lap, and four kids were in between us.

At a nice, quiet point in Mass, right after the first reading (to non-Catholics, this would be about 10 minutes into the service) Cuckoo coughed.  It was a cough that you just knew had all sorts of phlegm behind it, and he choked a bit.  It was an awful sound that echoed throughout the 800 person audience.

He looked to COW with a pitiful face and croaked, "It made me choke."

He then got off COW's lap and started to make his way towards me.  At his third step, he gave a roar of sorts, then spewed vomit all over the floor.

Did you catch that????  The boy puked.  At church.  In the 4th pew from the front. 

Simultaneously, the following things occurred:

- COW actually tried to stop the flow of vomit by covering Cuckoo's mouth. 
- The thought, "What the hell am I supposed to do with this situation?" flittered through my head.
- a horrified Buttercup (because, really, calling any attention to a 13 year old girl sitting with her parents is bad.  Attention being called because her brother upchucked all over the church is just plain mortifying.) slid as far down the pew as she could, head bowed into her lap.
- Turken cried, "He threw up in my coat!" approximately 24 times
- Star pointed out that a few drops of vomit landed on his leg and could he please have something to clean it
- Giant and Phoenix tried hard to hide their laughter behind cringes of disgust.  They were disgusted with the vomit being so close, but laughing because...well...they are boys, and that scenario is just plain hilarious to boys.
- A dear woman I've known for years and years (and was actually Phoenix and Buttercup's preschool teacher) pulled two handmade dishrags she had shown me just 15 minutes earlier out of her purse, (She had just, and I mean JUST, bought them at the church's "Different Kind of Giving Market"*) and with sadness in her eyes said, "Use these."
- Approximately 300 Kleenex from 40 tissue packs were thrown at us from every direction by the many elderly ladies surrounding us.

I did what I could with the Kleenex and handmade dishrags, but it wasn't enough.  I left church in search of cleaning supplies, cursing our OCD janitor for not allowing paper towels in the bathrooms.  In the hall, I came across COW and Cuckoo.  He had found some paper towels, so I grabbed them and went down that long aisle while everyone sat listening to the second reading. 

I was working on the cleanup, when I realized I had nothing to put the nastiness into.  Back down the aisle and in search of a plastic bag I went.  The trash cans all had huge liners with no extras underneath.  I finally found some donations waiting to be picked up, all in little grocery bags.  I emptied one of the grocery bags and took it back down the long aisle to finish cleaning up the mess.  Thankfully, my dishrag friend was there getting the last of the puke cleaned up.   I took the bag of puke (and her lovely handmade dishrags) back down the aisle to dispose of the bag, clean off Turken's coat, and wash my hands.

I ran into COW and Cuckoo again, and stopped to see how Cuckoo was doing.  The dear boy, as he sat on a bench, swinging his feet and bouncing around, asked me, "Can I go run around in the grass outside?"

He was just fine, but they stayed in the hall just in case.

I went back into church to participate in the rest of Mass.

Thankfully for us, the priest was losing his voice, so there was no long homily, and we were out of there in record time.

Before we could leave, we headed over to the gym to buy some dishrags to replace my friends' sacrificial cloths.  No less than 5 people, who had been scattered around the church, stopped to ask, "Did one of your kids throw up?  We heard the initial, tell-tale blah, then saw a flurry of activity around you." 

Thankfully, no one outside of a 4 pew radius had to hear the splat as the vomit hit the ground.  Or witness the "one in a million, Doc." hit Turken's coat took.  The coat had been on Turken's lap, and that spew went right down the sleeve, shoulder to wrist. 

Unfortunately, I am to blame for the entire fiasco.

The last three weekends, COW and I had to go to different Masses.  The little boys were with me for all of them.  Let's just say, I didn't get to hear much of the last three Masses. 

Seconds before the upchuck, I thought, "Ha!  Finally.  COW gets to wrestle the boys while I relax and listen to the readings." 

Lightening would have hurt innocent people.  This was a much better way for God to smite me.

Point taken.  Lesson learned.

Have a lovely day!

*It seems "smited" isn't a word.  It's supposed to be smote.  But who ever heard that word?  No one will know what I'm getting at if I use "smote".  Just so you know, in the future, I will use the word "smote".  'Cause now you know.

The TToT's 25 Weeks Old! Cake Is Involved.

Happy 25th Week Anniversary!!!

I do believe you were promised cake, so...

Sorry.  I really tried to save it for you, but it's chocolate.  I could only wait for so long.  It totally used to say "Happy 25th Week Anniversary".* 

To celebrate, I'm going to list not 10, but 25 things for which I am thankful this week.  Hope you are sitting in a comfortable chair.  And have some tea to sip.  Perhaps a bag of M&Ms.

1.  I am thankful for my good hair day on Monday.    The curly mullet is starting to grow out, and I finally had one good day with it.  No, I haven't had another one since, but I had one.  There is hope that I'll someday have another.

2.  I am thankful for all you lovely people who read this blog.  COW and I were fortunate to score invites to Kris's 40th birthday bash.  We had loads of fun with all of her friends.  The moment we got in the car, COW said, "Walking into that party, I thought I had walked in with a celebrity, with all these people I never met saying, 'Hey!  It's the Coop!'"   It seems Kris tells people she writes a blog, and many of those people read mine, too.  I am grateful for all the kind ladies (and even a husband or two) who read and enjoy my stories. 

HELLO KRIS'S FRIENDS!!  :)

3.  I am thankful for garlic.  Garlic cooking in butter is one of my favorite aromas in the world.  We grew garlic in our garden the last two summers, and I am loving it.

4.  I am thankful for quality library programs.  Every week, Cuckoo is thrilled to attend the 45 minute free** program at our library.  I am thrilled to have 35 minutes to sit and read a book in mostly peace and quiet.  (Of the other moms, grandparents, and caregivers, I am the only one who stays out and reads a book.  Even though the woman in charge tells us every single time we don't need to go in with our kids.  What the heck??) 

5.  I am thankful for Star and Giant, who consistently do all of their daily chores without being reminded.

6.  I am thankful I have my new "about me" page written.

7.  I am thankful I can finally get Dyanne and a Bible study friend off my back, since I got a new photo of Phoenix on the sidebar.  Sure, it's the wrong size, but it's there.  We can work on the size later.

8.  I am thankful for making it to age 42.  (My birthday was this week.)

9.  I am thankful for Zoe and her hilarious JibJab birthday card.  It looks just like the me from back in my roller skating days!  (Go here to see it.  Or here to see the first one, before she found the birthday one.  (I have got the moves!))

10.  I am thankful for my mom's safe return from her month-long vacation in Florida.  Sure, she had fun and I plan on doing the same type of thing when I'm retired, but honestly, I didn't need another phone call letting me know how gorgeous it was down at the beach.  She's back to the miserable cold and wet weather that is the Midwest(ish) area. Our conversations go much better now.

11.  I am thankful for hot showers in the morning.  Since I don't drink coffee, I need something to get the cobwebs out of my brain.

12.  I am thankful for the warm weather last weekend and my kids' ability to enjoy it before the storms rolled in.  Sure, I had to yell, "Get outside and play right now, and don't come in until the storm is knocking on our door!" but they went out.  And they played. 

Shall we pause for a photo collection?

We shall.

Yes, Cuckoo is wearing shorts over pants.  Every time he wears those pants, he wears those shorts.  I have absolutely no idea why, except that he's cuckoo.

 

13.  I am thankful we made it through Sunday's record-breaking storms with no damage to our property.

14.  I am thankful for the lovely couple who watches our house and animals every time we go out of town.

15.  I am thankful for a great alternative to Elf on the Shelf.  I am not a fan of the elf.  I am not a fan of threats to children to behave in order to please Santa.  (Kids should behave because it's the right thing to do, and because I said so.)  I read on Melody's blog about an activity in which the three wise men go searching for Jesus every night.  They keep looking until the Epiphany, when they show up in the nativity scene.  There's going to be a link-up and everything, in order to give me some ideas for what to do with the wise men each night.

16.  I am thankful for the people who love our kids.  Cuckoo's godparents took him out for some fun last weekend, and sent him home with all sorts of new-to-him clothes for the Build-a-Bear they gave him a couple of years ago.  Hoosier used to be a boy bear with one outfit.  He's now a girl bear with about 6 outfits, 6 pairs of shoes, 2 pairs of pajamas, and two pairs of underwear, all of which are nicer than anything I own.  Hoosier gets changed upon waking each day (from her new cardboard box bed next to Cuckoo's bed), eats every meal with us, and changes back to PJs before retiring at night. 

17.  I am thankful we have finished raking Mrs. G's leaves.  This year, we got help.  Phoenix is being confirmed this year, and COW and I are co-leading the classes.  Service is a big part of preparing for confirmation, so we invited the group to help us with the leaves.  We managed to get 200 bags of leaves bagged up in 3 hours.  

18.  I am thankful for COW's job, which gives us the opportunity to experience lots of things we normally wouldn't, like Pink in concert.  We went on my birthday, and while I would never take one of my kids to a concert of hers, I can't help but be impressed with her ability to perform, her athleticism, and her down-to-earthiness.  At one point, she responded to a fan in the front row with, "You want me to sign your forehead??  Where are we, Talladega Nights??"  I have to enjoy anyone who can pull out a Talladega Nights reference like that.  And then there was the flying... 

I know, they are horrible photos.  During her last song, she was flying and spinning and cartwheeling up high and down low all over the entire arena.  While singing.  At several points throughout the show, she did some amazing acrobatics.  I almost thought we accidentally walked into a Cirque de Soleil show.  I was cringing half the time, as they did these things with no safety harness whatsoever.  But when she did this flying bit, I was jealous.  I want to fly like that.  (Little known fact: I spent a week taking trapeze lessons.  I have a sense of what flying feels like.) 

19.  I am thankful for the new Blue-Ray/DVD player COW gave me for my birthday.  Before tonight, we had a VCR and an old DVD player that did more skipping and stopping than playing. 

20.  I am thankful for the DVD of "The Jerk" COW also gave me.  Everyone in my extended family can quote just about every line.  Tonight, my kids were introduced to it, minus the bit with the carnival worker.  They now understand why I yell, "The new phone book's here!  I'm somebody now!" every single year.

21.  I am thankful for all the lovely people who called or messaged me to wish me a happy birthday. 

22.  I am thankful for our built-in babysitters.  COW and I can go out and enjoy ourselves every once in a while, knowing everyone will be fine at home.

23.  I am thankful for Phoenix's hard work to get himself out of the hole he dug earlier in the semester.  He made some big mistakes, but he has learned from them and is doing much better.

24.  I am thankful for the pizza place 3 minutes from our house.  There are few establishments 3 minutes from our house.  I'm grateful a pizza place is one of them, especially on a Friday after a night of little sleep when I haven't been home most of the day and don't feel like cooking.

25.  I am thankful for my chocolate birthday cake. 

*OK, so the cake above might not have said Happy 25th week anniversary.  It is possible it said Happy Birthday, Christine". 

**  Free for most.  While Cuckoo was in his program, and before I got to sit and read, I got to pay a sizeable fee for a lost book.  We just call these fees "investments in our children's education".  OK, I say it.  COW just says, "What the hell??"

Now, for the big reveal of the anniversary blog hop button.

You know you want to join in just so you can have one.

Have a lovely day!

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 Your hosts

A Fly on our (Chicken Coop) Wall, Considerings, Finding Ninee, Getting Literal, Home On Deranged, I can say mama, I Want Backsies, Rewritten, Thankful Me, The Wakefield Doctrine

An InLinkz Link-up

Why Did the Chicken Climb the Tree?

In the kitchen, getting dinner ready, I saw a flash of white fly by the window, followed closely by a blur of black running.

'CHICKEN!!!!!!"

I ran outside, four kids hot on my heels, expecting to pry Roy the Wonder Dog off of a chicken.

Instead, I found this:

 20 feet in the air.

Sweet mother of all craziness, how were we to get that chicken down?

The sun was setting, and we couldn't leave her to roost up there.  It was supposed to rain soon.  Plus, we couldn't keep Roy tied up until she decided it was time.

So, Phoenix, being the tallest at our house, was told to take care of it.

After evaluating the situation, he decided shaking the branch with another stick would be the best plan.

He was wrong.

See her up there above the second story window?

So, he tried throwing walnuts up there to scare her down.

That didn't work either.

Basically, she just sat and stared at him.  When she was good and ready, she simply flew off.

We chased her back towards the coop, only to find mass pandemonium.

Two chickens on the roof, and more in the western holding pen.

When we chased the white one to the back of the coop, the two came off the roof

and Phoenix was able to catch the tree climber.

And then we were off to grab the ones in the holding pen.

Once all were back where they belonged, Phoenix went to feed them. 

So, why did the chicken climb the tree and why did the two get on the roof and why did the others go to the holding pen?

Because the child who normally feeds the chickens (not Phoenix) failed to mention we were running low on chicken feed.  As in there was no chicken feed left.

The chickens were hungry.

So, I made them some oatmeal like my new chicken farmer friend wrote about, and made a trip to Tractor Supply for some food for them this morning.

God as my witness, my chickens will never go hungry again!  (Scarlett O'Hara fans out there?)

And if they do, I'm not chasing them down.

Mostly because I'm 42 and getting way to old for this crap.

Have a lovely day!