Life with a Ferret

We have recently embarked on yet another pet adventure...a ferret. I'm not sure this was really in the plan. We had discussed a ferret but decided it was too expensive a pet and moved on. Then a free ferret came over the homeschool etree. I didn't think we wanted to pass this one up and I'm really glad we didn't.

Muffles (soon to be renames Gravity) came to live with us a week ago. Never has a pet been so loved. I think he's kind of exhausted from his "love". All the kids (and half the neighborhood kids) have enjoyed following her around the house, holding her, making mazes in the boxes for her, taking her on walks on a "leash", carrying her around in a little bag outside so she can see the world. Gravity has been a joy so far. She's pretty calm (for a ferret) and will endure cuddling.

Ferrets make nice pets...they don't have to roam your house at will, but can be caged. They can be litter trained. They aren't loud. They don't require much more than food, water and a few toys and a blanket or towel. Ferrets are cuddly and they do smell musky...which I can take over other scents. We clipped her nails this week and she was very good. We have a bath scheduled for this weekend as it might be the last of the warm days.

All in all, a great pet. Probably not a starter pet since little ones might hurt one, but once your kids want some pet responsibility but you don't want a lot of money for upkeep, this pet is great fun. Kind of an intermediate pet as far as responsibility and care.

The Fun of an Eight Year Old Boy

Hmmm. Recently I realized that Isaiah was making some strides and growing up and because I tend to push my firstborn, I hadn't really enjoyed those changes. I always seem to think that he needs to do better on ___________ rather than see what he's doing well on right now. So this post is an attempt for me to point out to myself some good things we have going.

First of all, Isaiah has made huge strides in his learning this year. He's such an inquisitive kid. He's constantly asking questions and that's good but I have to admit I don't always see it that way. NEVER do we take a ride that he doesn't have something he's thinking about and wants to talk about. Maybe politics...yes, he's actually fairly up on current events and since he's living in a time of very divisive issues, he's learning quite a lot. Sometimes I mourn that he's not just another oblivious kid, but that's just not the way God made him. If there's news...maybe while Dad's watching for a few minutes on TV or maybe an email up on my hotmail account or an article in Grandpa's "WORLD" Magazine, he's paying attention. He knows more about the political process at 8 than I did at 18.

He also has read more of the Bible and discussed more of the Bible than many kids his age. Recently, I remembered that at 8 I read the Picture Bible so I got him one. He takes it to church and reads it during the times that he's not listening to the sermon. And interestingly, he REMEMBERS things. I was watching a movie on Jeremiah the prophet recently, which he ended up watching with me for a bit and afterward, he talked some more about how Jeremiah was freed by King Nebechadnezzar because he had tried to persuade the Jews to surrender to the Babylonians rather than fight. Seriously...I had to stop and marvel at the way he puts thing together.

He's got a problem solving mind...which he got from his Dad. He's constantly engineering legos to match whatever he's into. He's working out math problems when he finds them around him...which happens to be all the time. He's also very good about negotiating...which actually is not all good. But he's very adept at getting you to see his way.

Finally, he's making good strides in responsibility. We've been focusing on this from a "trustworthiness" perspective for quite awhile and it seems that he now understands that telling the truth, not exaggerating, doing what you say you will do and obeying your parents (even if you think it's lame) is a better way to go than the other. I have to say, he had to learn that one the hard way, but then so did his dad and I. We are currently working on self control and sensitivity to others...and while he understands the need and is making strides, somehow is 8 year old mind and body have other ideas. We will be reminding and encouraging for awhile.

That's Isaiah's highlights for right now. Stop in again and there will be another round. He's growing up fast.

Gabe's Growing Up

Wow, something happens in the 4th (and 5th) years of a little boy's life. Gabe is just changing daily. It's hard to keep up, so I'll blog.

Physically, he's progressing every day. This week alone he learned to pump on the swing AND fasten his own seatbelt. While I was thrilled to not stand behind a swing for half an hour at a pop and to not have to wiggle my way into the backseat of the van (or ask Isaiah or Elly to help), it's a little bittersweet. We got rid of the stroller this week (kept one for baby dolls) since it had been on the garage wall for over a year. He was a bit sad but when he saw the mom with 5 little ones who needed it, he decided it was OK.

Mentally, he's also working hard. He's learned to love starfall.com and pbskids.com. He's quite proficient at the "games"....little does he know he's getting in his "preschool". He's a lover of books. He doesn't mind if he has to "read" them himself, though he will sit for nearly anything you'll read to him (including the books we use for science and history). If it's about a machine...oh, life does not get any better than that. His vocabulary and speech skills have jumped lately. I noticed recently that he can actually tell a story that you can follow now and report details fairly accurately. (His brother and sister are learning that they are not going to get away with some things they thought he wasn't noticing anymore.)

We're discovering "who Gabe is" right now. He's tended toward some character traits but now he's fairly consistent. He love to help. He's right there if we're mowing or planting garden. He trails me when I vacuum and as long as someone is helping, he's good at picking up or folding clothes. He's also fairly focused on others for a 4 year old. Not all the time, but often he's willing to share and will show kindness to Maggie when she needs to play outside or to his sister as they play after "school" or even to his big brother (the toughest of all since there's some teasing that goes on) when they are working on legos. He loves to chat on the phone and he's one of the "gang" outside in the neighborhood making sure everyone has someone to play with and going along with the games the older kids sweetly let him play.

Spiritually, Gabriel has "taken off" and it's thrilling to hear and see. We just came off of Easter and during that time we do our Resurrection Eggs devotions a couple weeks up to Resurrection Sunday. They are plastic eggs with little objects to teach the story of Jesus' death and resurrection. This was the year that I presented the gospel about how there was bad news: that we are sinners and God hates sin...and there is good news: that God sent Jesus to take away our sin once and for all if we just believe him for eternal life. And of his own volition, Gabe was right there, with "I believe that Mama." When asked to articulate what he believes, he can't quite find all the words but he can answer basic questions. I've seen this three times now...how each of my children during this 4th and 5th year come to saving knowledge of Jesus all on their own. The Holy Spirit works in them in amazing ways and those lessons we've been teaching on character start to become their own. What an amazing thing to get to watch and even more amazing to be a small part of.

So if you're praying for us, keep it up. There's something new nearly everyday around here. What an exciting journey we are all on together.

Snow Day--In March after the Snow Melted

Yep, after a long, white winter from the first week in December until the first week in March, we were pretty excited to have it above freezing. Someone said we set a record this winter for number of day with snow on the ground in a row and for number of days below 40 degrees in a row. Not good for the winter blahs or spring fever. And, just as we were just seeing the last of the snowdrifts, we wake up to huge, beautiful flakes on March 11th, 2010.

Gabe woke me, going to the window as he does frequently, exclaiming, "Snow, Mama! Let's go shovel!" Yep, he's an amazing kid that way. Loves snow and loves to shovel and loves to help. I groaned and rolled over. Later on, Isaiah and Elly were greeted by Gabe with the news and their sentiments ran more to: "Oh! I thought we were done with snow." "I'm tired of snow." Yep, seems to be the sentiments of Omahans everywhere given the number of comments on facebook today.

However, at least it's right above freezing so we have wonderful slush. I don't mind slush. However I will mind the frozen slush likely to make driving very fun tomorrow morning. (No, I'm not leaving the house till afternoon.)

Here are some pics of the kids making the most of this very wet snow...at least it's good for snow forts and snowmen. Elly and Gabe are on hour two...and probably wet through.

Gabe's 3rd Year Highlights

When the kids were all little, I used to keep a notebook by my bed and every month or so (or more) I'd jot down the new "doings" for each of them. Then, when I scrapbooked, I could add some of their highlights and firsts to their baby books. Well, as happens with life, things change, and that notebook had now collected dust at the bottom of the stack by my bed for a good year now. So, I've decided that blogging some of these little "firsts" might end up being a better deal all around. Gabe, of course, being the third, has been most shafted so we'll begin with him.

Gabe has long been interested in farming. He lives to go to Papa's and visit. The fall he was 2 we were able to visit right at harvest time and we spent many hours sitting on chairs and blankets watching the combines go and the tractors and bogey wagons coming up beside them to unload. We even got to see the semis being loaded by the bogey wagons and roll away to the elevator. On top of that, they parked the huge, yellow combine in the field next to Grammie and Papa's house and Gabe had permission to climb up and see inside. Due to this intense interest, Papa started bringing Gabe his own "books" (magazines put out by implement dealers full of pictures of machinery they want to sell). These books will keep Gabe busy for hours and he loves to "read" them with Papa--pointing out the Case IH combine or the CAT tractor or the John Deere baler, etc. Also Papa stopped by the Case IH and the Cat dealers and got permission, and keys if needed, so that he and Gabe could climb up and sit in the cabs of the big tractors and combines. And, last but not least, no trip to the farm is complete without Uncle Luke firing up the old tractor and taking Gabe (and sometimes his siblings) on a good, long tractor ride. There are no cows to feed anymore, but the tractor rides are still the highlight. Playing with all of Uncle Luke's farm toys is another fun activity that Gabe spends hours at each time we go up.


Gabe is our best playing kid. He plays well with others...mostly Elly, but Ashley, Ady, Isaiah, Zach and Jack are favorite playmates. He's a great sharing boy and also isn't so set on his way that he can't bend to building a house out of duplos...and playing Pet Shops or dressing up, much to his brother's consternation, to dance with Elly to Angelina Ballerina. (A favorite moment: Elly asked Gabe to "dip" her and proceeded to bend back...thankfully, Gabe is about the same weight as Elly and didn't drop her.) This year has been the year that Elly has had "school" in the morning. Gabe is wonderful at playing by himself either in the family room or up in the playroom. Often, he goes up and Elly finds him after she finished about an hour later, happily doing his own thing...usually with tractors. He also has become quite accomplished with the mouse this year. He started with a farm CD rom--imagine that and now has fun on starfall.com working on his letters, sheppard software working on their preschool units and pbskids.org with Curious George, Clifford, and Super Why (with Elly's help). Other times (usually when Mom pulls out a book or an activity...so History or Science or Literature...Gabe comes in and plops on my lap to read along for awhile, and then finds his toys and proceeds to play on the floor nearby and listens along. How do I know this? He answers the questions right along with the others.

Gabe has long loved to be outside. He loves the park, the sandpile, and the street if Mom's up for going out to supervise. He also is the first to grab his shovel when Daddy is shoveling the driveway, to grab his mower, when Daddy is mowing (and the handle of the wagon to weed eat), the hoe or his other gardening tools when Mama heads out to the garden. He loves to help wash the car and wipe down appliances. If you'll help him, he's a great picker upper. Uncle Luke was changing his oil in the truck while Gabe visited and not only did Gabe come out to watch him like a hawk, but he fetched tools for his uncle and much to his uncles delight, put things away when he was done without being asked. Gabe has been gifted with being able to see a need and serve. It's an amazing thing to see a three year old so delighted to help. He also makes his bed and puts away the "kid cups and dishes" in the dishwasher. I guess when you're the third, you see chores being done and you pitch in. Of course, it's always better when there's a buddy though. This willingness to work also asserts itself when learning new things. Gabe followed his big brother's example and learned to ride his bike without training wheels at 3 1/2. It's a little scary, but he's a good driver. Since he's learned to balance on the scooter, he only had to learn starting and stopping and that took about 1 day.

Gabe is the funniest three year old I know. I do wonder sometimes if Elly and Isaiah were this funny, but I had another baby by then and was too exhausted to laugh. He remembers one liners (a talent inherited from his Daddy). He loves to sing but has "chronic lyricosis" (inherited from Mom) so the words are never right. He would love to be the clown at the supper table but Daddy put the kabosh on that trying to train the kids to eat quietly and take turns in conversation. Mama also literally restrained him because the new rule is that if he gets out of his seat once, he gets a warning and then out comes the kitchen towel to tie him in. He's even prayed and asked God at Sunday School to help him sit still so he doesn't have to be tied up. (Yep, had to explain that one.) He loves to watch Looney Tunes and plays "I will hug you and squeeze you and call you, George." with Mama. He's quick to cuddle up with a book on your lap and it will need to be about machines or something funny.

Gabe has been a kid that trains easily. If you sit down and tell him why you need him to ____ or need him to stop _____. He seems to get it. If he forgets (or tests the boundary) usually one or maybe two consequences get his attention. He doesn't like to have people upset with him and notices when they aren't pleased. I realize this people pleasing mentality will have to be watched later on, but for now, in training a three year old, it's a good deal. He's also quick to understand he was wrong and apologize and then in turn to confess and ask God's help. I do pray that this willingness and humbleness will never leave him as he gets older.

Elly's 6th Birthday

Wow, it's hard to believe we're at the end of February. But at least in the short--but this year, very long--month we have Elly's bday to get us through to the end. I think it's a mixed blessing but she's learned all her days of the week and to count very well as she's checked off days getting here.

Because of the snow and cold and schedules, this year's festivities came in spurts of fun. Wednesday was cupcake and cake baking and decorating day. She wanted something springlike and settled on M&M flowers on a bright green and yellow cake. That day went according to plan, the rest of the day have been increasing Elly's flexibility.

Thursday started out with the fun of Ashley and Ady coming to play but Carissa had a cough and couldn't come in the afternoon. That turned out OK since Mom realized the house needed some cleaning. We met Grammie, Papa, Uncle Luke and his new friend, Heidi in Fremont and Elly picked Runza (so she could have real chicken strips). Since we had the very occasional treat of kids meals to boot which at Runza includes ice cream...all was well. The highlight there was a special jewelry organizer (just what Elly needs!) that her Papa made for her. She and Mama were thrilled. We got home in time to see some Olympic figure skating (no not all of it) and that was an added bonus.

Friday dawned and Elly was in to see if she could open the packages from Mom and Dad...which she did before breakfast while we all camped on the bed. Her favorite was an outfit...which she proceeded to change into immediately and a digital camera. She got the hang of it (thankfully only 4 buttons total (on, playback, up and the clicker) after we bought batteries. And she took some really good face shots.

After that the day kind of morphed. We expected to do school and then get ready to have Bible Study and a little fun for El's bday. But due to sick kids, extra work hours and such that all got cancelled. At this point, Mama knew we needed a little something special...so we hopped in the van after school and got a taco, and then we hit Target where Elly was able to spend her $6 from Grammie getting accessories for her Easter outfit (Yes, she's already got it planned.) and finding batteries to run her camera.

Our afternoon then turned out well...we got to decorate with balloons and streamers which we wouldn't have time for. Then Miss Lynette, Ashley and Lyndsey saved the day by coming over for cupcakes and bringing "my best gift"...a baby polar bear that you can feed and cuddle and a set of hair scarves. GrandMary and Grandpa George came soon afterwards to eat tilapia, rice and raw veggies (Elly's requested dinner) as well as ice cream and her beautiful cake. They brought a beautiful mirror that GrandMary's friend, Mrs. Park had painted with flowers and Elly's name. Elly also opened a tea set from Aunt Sam and all with a lazy susan organizer which she decided made just the right centerpiece for the table.

We had time for a little more Olympics before bed and the new 6 year old went to bed having had a full day of fun--with her new polar bear in tow.

Life with a Dog

So, my sister's family has a dog. They are going to Virginia with the Army for 14 weeks so my brother-in-law can do some schooling. They don't have a place to stay and thought they'd leave their dog and cat with my parents in Wayne. Fine, fine, fine. Except that my parents have three dogs currently and the "top" female dog hates Maggie. They fight and can't be outside at the same time. And then my sis said, "I don't suppose you guys would take Maggie?" I'm a people pleaser...what do you think I said? I wanted to help them out. This was a way; I was on it with gusto.

So Maggie came to stay early in January. The kids were thrilled. Yes, we'll feed her. Yes, we'll brush her. Yes, we'll walk her. Yes we'll pick up her poop. (My personal non-favorite...who ever decided that would be a good idea?)

Well the kids are thrilled and do fairly well on the feeding. They brush her back at least and take her out for some ball fetching (seeing as there are no sidewalks scooped to walk her on in this neighborhood). Generally we're doing OK. They love Maggie. If I permitted it, I'm sure they'd sleep with her.

However, we are not getting a dog when Maggie leaves. Why you ask? Let me tell you... (And me for I'm sure I will need to reread this post when my children start begging for a dog...3.6 seconds after they say goodbye to Maggie.)

She stinks. Not terrible. Nothing multiple bottles Fabreze and scented candles can't handle but I just don't like it. We were forewarned about this...it's very true.

She has nightmares and howls in the middle of the night. It's enough to wake the dead (all but my children who could sleep through anything apparently). We were also forewarned about this...also very true.

She doesn't stay in the yard if we leave her by herself. The neighbors are kind enough to call me when, oops, I forgot we put Maggie out FIVE MINUTES AGO! This past weekend, Kev let her out at 11pm and came up to tell me something. Maybe a 5 minute conversation. You already guessed what happened? Yes, she was gone. Not a little-calling-out-the-front-door gone. The kind of gone that requires Kev to get in the car and travel the neighborhood and me to call out the back and front door every two minutes and traipse around the yard in my jammies and coat. (Yes, if you're wondering, she did come racing back from way back in the acreages behind our house. I'd say she was chasing a rabbit or squirrel and forgot herself.) I just have to say that I prayed more fervently for that dog to come home for twenty LONG minutes than I have in the recent past. I kept thinking of the phone call to my sis and her kids I would need to make. Not good!

All that to say. I'm not a dog person. I'm happy to dog-sit. But I just like them outside, in a doghouse, all the time! I know, I should go live on a farm...but they don't even do that on farms anymore. My mom lets the three dogs in the utility room in the basement every night 365 days a year and has the cats out in a shed with a HEAT LAMP. I just don't attach well to animals. Could have been raising a bottle calf and then finding out I was eating "Spunky" or maybe the dozens of favorite cats I went through living on the farm. (Cars and tractors and rat poison to not make for long cat lives.)

Oh, and I do love Maggie and the kids are THRILLED to pieces to have her. I'm glad we have her for a little while. She is one sweet, quiet and obedient dog. Thus the reason that she's still in my house!