Grasshopper Days

Grasshopper Days

For today, Monday, December 14, 2015

Outside my window...

about 40F and raining,

which is not so pleasant here,

but means lots of snow up in the mountains :D

This is what it looks like when you drive up to the

Mt. Baker Ski Area.

The funny thing is that these photos were undoubtedly taken in the spring.

This one (below) was probably June or even July, 

because I know exactly where that is -

they're clearing the road to Artists Point.

Hearing...

Wyatt just left to go pick up Tate from school.

I just love being able to dispatch a Minion on an errand ;D

Pondering...

Eleven days to go, and I think I'm

READY.

I'll do some more baking

(because cookies don't last long around here)

but for the most part, ready.

That feels good :D

Praying...

for work to keep coming in for Kerry,

for everyone to be healthy,

for good attitudes with all the togetherness of the holidays.

Thankful...

Tate is back to normal - whew!

We had a fun time with family yesterday :D

Wearing...

blue jeans,

white t-shirt,

navy blue sweater.

Whoop-de-doo.

Creating...

I'm so very close to being done wrapping,

and then I can start on the batch of baby quilts I want to make.

Going...

crazy?

Nah, just kidding.

Tired of the (happy) clutter of gifts and wrapping all over my office.

That changes SOON.

(It will all be downstairs, under the tree.)

Looking forward to...

the boys have a CAP holiday party tomorrow night that should be fun.

Some years they do a formal "Dining Out"

(which, in a confusing example of military terminology,

is not going "out" as in "out to a restaurant",

but dining IN with OUTsiders - i.e. spouses and family),

but this year it's a casual, low-key, pizza-games-cookies sort of thing.

In the kitchen...

having dinner for lunch,

since Tate works through the evening today.

But what?

Probably chicken :D

In the learning rooms...

there is much rejoicing.

* WYATT - had his finals last week and now has a three week Christmas break.

* TATE - has public school all week, but that's just half-time,

and has only a little homeschool work (a chapter of Civics).

* GUNNAR - has very little homeschool - some math, a little language work, and some reading.

So, HURRAY, it almost feels like we're on break already.

Around the house...

It's kind of a dark day, so I'm really appreciating all the Christmas lights :D

The Mother Load...

when I dig out my office, I'll find that list...

A favorite quote for today...

Does anyone else grit their teeth when someone says,

"I'm a Jesus-follower,"

or is it just me?

I want to say,

"So you're not a Christian?"

What is UP with that?  Trendy?

You're too hip for those old-school "Christians"?

Doug Wilson has this to say...

There is a certain kind of Christian that wants to be known as a "Jesus follower,"

but there is an unspoken proviso that there be no actual following of the hard sayings of Jesus...

There is a certain kind of Christian that is less a Jesus follower and more or less just a follower.

One of my favorite things...

getting our errands done early in the morning,

before the hordes descend from the north ;D

A Bible verse or devotional thought...

our chapel posts Advent readings

(written by regular, ordinary chapel members)

every Christmas and Easter.

You can read them here,

if you're interested.

A few plans for the rest of the week...

finish our homeschool work ASAP :D

finish wrapping the last few gifts and reclaim my space,

try to have some friends over :D

A peek into my world...

The boys and I were talking

(before the event)

about getting together with my dad's side of the family.

Different ones of us take turns hosting,

but Gunnar didn't remember having it here at our house...

"That must have been a long time ago, Mom."

So since I took NO photos yesterday,

I scanned back through the blog and,

LO,

here we all are,

here at our house,

in 2013.

I guess when you're fourteen,

two years ago seems like a long time?

Because You Really Should See This

The view from our upstairs windows, down the lake at sunset,

with fresh snow on Wickersham.

In other news, much to the boys' delight, I made sugar cookies today.

We'll decorate tomorrow.

And a pan of toffee,

and a double batch of taquitos for the

party on Sunday.

And next?

Up to my parents' for dinner and watching

The Polar Express.

Tate, Oh My, Just TATE

Thank you all so much, for your prayers and kind words for Tate.  He's much improved, has been back to school since Tuesday, and is quite well enough to go to work this evening.  I wish I bounced back as quickly as he does!

Yes, the twinkle is back in his eye, and the humor in his voice.  As part of homeschool, he's working through a Writing Strands book (some of you homeschoolers will be familiar with those.)  Each week he's presented with a writing assignment, broken down into chunks he can divide over the week, though he usually does it all at once.  The assignments are quite varied, and cover different aspects of the writing process (things like word choice, tenses, voice, fluency, vivid description, etc.)  This week's assignment is about organization.  The author gave an example of how he might describe a large jar of marbles.  (Rather than detail each marble individually and uniquely, group them by color, size, etc.)  So Tate was supposed to write a paper describing some sort of organizational technique.  Doesn't that sound potentially very dry and dull?  Not in the capable hands of Tate.  This is what he presented to me this morning.

     As I was sitting idly, by myself one day, I decided that it was time for me to do something helpful; to get up and make a difference by bringing about a small measure of order to this chaotic world.  And so I did.  I got up and crossed the room, headed towards my comfy bed.  Then I knelt down and pulled out a tub of my old toy soldiers.  This is how I’d change the world – by sorting my army men.  But how?         

     They’re all the same color, and weigh the same, so how, you might vainly wonder, can I possibly sort them?  Fortunately, I’m not you.  I decided to sort them by shape or, more specifically, pose.  I get to work quickly, after taking a donut break, and dump the box out onto my brother’s bed (I would have used my bed, but this project might take several days, and I need somewhere to sleep.)  It only takes me a few moments to identify the soldiers’ basic poses, and mere seconds more to steal my brother’s pillow to sit on.

     The soldiers are all about as tall as my pinky finger, except for the squatters, but we’ll talk about them later.  The first soldiers I count are the grenadiers, who look like they’re either dancing or being shot.  I’d pick the latter if I had to waddle around with my feet glued to a sizeable section of plywood like they do.  Bad command decision.  There are fifty of them, and 100 of the shooting-at-something-I-can’t-see-because-my-helmet-is-too-low types who have a hard time not falling over when you stand them up. 

     There are a whole boiling bunch of squatters who are hunched over or crouched down, trying desperately not to get shot by the enemy, or their own side for cowardice.  I don’t count them, and toss them into the corner instead.  They aren’t fit to be called soldiers. 

     Next are the sergeants, who are frozen in a pose that suggests they might be directing traffic, trying to flag down a cab, or just running around yelling their heads off and trying to figure out what’s going on, possibly all at once.  I count about 75 of them before losing interest and moving on to the bazooka men. 

    They, out of all the others, seem the most dangerous, because, judging by how haphazardly they’re holding their weapons, they have absolutely no idea how to use them.  I wouldn’t want to be caught at either end, or on either side, or anywhere near one of those things when their idiot handlers fired them.  Once I’ve finished counting all 83 of them, there’s only one kind of soldier left to count.  His name is Steve. 

     Steve stands tall, taller than he should in the middle of a warzone and, like most of us, wonders what his purpose in life is, since he clearly doesn’t find it on the battlefield, or possibly in this life.  He holds his gun high above his head to let his enemies know exactly where he is, and has his legs spread apart so that he won’t be able to run effectively when they find him.  I count 51 Steves, and while I can’t tell you how they’ve survived this long, I can guarantee that they won’t last much longer.

     My parents were so pleased that I had done one of my chores (changed the world), that they gave me more, and a helping of jubilant sarcasm on the side as a bonus.  My brother however, was tragically shortsighted in his imaginings, and accused me of “leaving a mess on his bed” and “using his pillow to mop the floor”.  It’s hard work changing the world, but one day they’ll see how much my work has benefited humanity.

Grasshopper Days

Grasshopper Days

For today, Monday, December 7, 2015

Outside my window...

the wild weekend winds have died down,

and we're back to cloudy and rainy.

The photo above?

Wishful thinking.

Hearing...

Christmas music.

Love that Pandora :D

Praying...

to see Tate looking like this again -

healthy and happy,

(and apparently not wearing his seatbelt properly - grrr!)

On our way to get a Christmas tree

for Wyatt, preparing for final exams,

for Gunnar and me - colds,

heading for the tree farm.

and work for Kerry,

and especially for wisdom with my family!

Pondering...

juggling responsibilities,

prioritizing.

I know Tate will be stressed about missing school,

and that is the LEAST of my concerns right now.

I just want him to be healthy.

We see the doc this afternoon.

We really like this tree farm.
Don't judge by this year's trees.

Thankful...

for HOME.

Wearing...

blue jeans, Christmas lights turtle-neck, red sweater :D

Creating...

a little bit of organization in my office/craft room.

It's kind of an explosion of Christmas gifts and wrapping materials.

The trees were hit hard by the hot, dry summer.
Healthy new growth on the ends, but lots of dead needles :o(

Looking forward to...

kicking this cough.  Ugh.

Tate makes the first cut

In the kitchen...

thawing hamburger to make something FABULOUS for dinner (what?),

and the boys have requested mac and cheese for lunch.

Good "comfort food" for Tate.

Gunnar finishes the sawing

In the learning rooms...

our studies are somewhat disrupted.

We'll get there.

We found a good one!

Around the house...

our tree is up and decorated :D

We were pretty discouraged when we started looking around the tree farm,

but I remembered there was a low spot near the road

that's always really soggy and muddy in December.

I thought the ground there might have stayed damper in the dry summer months.

We did find a greener, more healthy tree :D

It's not perfect, but we're happy with it.

Gunnar, laughing because we were teasing Kerry about something.

The Mother Load...

oh so hard for me to let go of,

but I need to slow down and rest -

keep an eye on Tate,

and get everyone over colds.

All right, so I WAS doing something silly.

Noticing that...

how fast things can change.

From healthy to sick,

and back again.

Kerry, not exactly pleased about how far the tree I chose is from the parking lot.

Something to remember for later...

Tate's tender heart.

We spent about six hours in the ER.

The beds there are not fabulously comfortable,

but at least he HAD a bed.

I had a hard plastic chair.

And as sick as he was,

he felt badly for ME.

Something fun to share...

did you notice Gunnar's new glasses?

I don't know if that really qualifies as "fun",

but he's glad to have them!

The tree farm always has cookies and hot cider to share :D

A favorite quote for today...

Never wrestle with a pig.

You both get dirty,

and the pig likes it.

One of my favorite things...

a comfy chair with a good book and a hot drink.

Tate LOVES the shortbread cookies.

A few plans for the rest of the week...

that will depend on how everyone is feeling.

Not much on the calendar,

but I'm looking forward to getting together with my dad's side of the family on Sunday,

for our "Christmas" with them.

We don't do any gifts (no pressure!) -

we just get together :D

A peek into my world...

near the tree farm we pass this little church.

(Isn't that a fabulous photo I took out the window?)

Not many churches have graveyards any more.

And what's the little brown chapel in the back?

It's Deja Vu All Over Again...

.... and not the good kind.

He may look pale and sick, but...

Why does everything happen to Tate?  Not that I'd wish ill on either of the other boys, but it just doesn't seem fair.

Let me back up.  Let me explain.  No, there is too much.  Let me sum up.  (Bonus points if you know the quote!)

Tate came into my room in the night asking for medicine and then PASSED OUT.  He must have felt it coming before he could tell me, because he was lowering himself to the floor and didn't have a bad fall - thank the Lord!  He was unresponsive for a at least a minute.  That may not sound like long, but when your kid is suddenly and inexplicably unconscious it feels like forever.  And when he came to, he didn't remember what happened.  And then he talked about a crushing weight on his chest/abdomen.  And then, after we eased him into our bed (it's pretty cold on the floor in December) he passed out AGAIN, while he was lying down.  Followed directly by projectile vomiting.  (That was a lot of  And then's but I'm not editing right now.)

Needless to say, that bought him a trip to the ER.  Which is busier at 4am than you might think.

... look! What a fabulous gown!

If you've known me for long, this might sound familiar.  They ran some tests, which came back fine.  (I was especially relieved at the EKG - his heart is GREAT.)  And the tentative conclusion was also the same - probably Vasovagal syncope.  (Here or here.)  Basically his body (specifically his vagus) is over-reacting to something.  He's fighting a cold and running a low fever, so that's probably "it".  The doc said his vagus may be more "sensitive" than other people's.  The "over-reaction" causes a drop in blood going to the brain, and out-go-the-lights.

And the special Glowy Finger upgrade all the cool kids want.

By about 10am, he was able to walk around the loop without feeling dizzy or passing out, and they released us to go home - hallelujah.  We've had hot showers and "washed the hospital off", and Tate is having a movie marathon (punctuated by naps.)  No school or work tomorrow - doctor's orders.

In a strange but timely coincidence, I'd scheduled his annual well-check tomorrow, so we'll see what his regular doc has to say about all this.

Meanwhile, I'm thankful it doesn't appear to be more serious (though no fun at all!), and thankful for our easy access to great medical care :D  And praying we won't have any more of these episodes.

Friday Brain Dump

21

Yah, twenty-one days until Christmas.

1.  Trader Joe's

With that in mind, Gunnar and I headed out early to be at Trader Joe's when they open.

(Because we'd like to park in the same hemisphere where we shop.)

I could tell you about Trader Joe's (in case you're not familiar)

but if you've read Skipping Christmas think of Chip's,

and if not, read this comedienne's account of visiting Whole Foods...

it's pretty much the same.

2.  Popcorn

You know the giant cans of popcorn everyone has for five bucks?

I thought the can at Trader Joe's was kind of cool, and everyone likes popcorn, right?

So I bought one.

Of course, you'd expect three kinds of popcorn -

salty/buttery, cheese, and caramel.

But not from Trader Joe's.

Noooooo.... 

there are FOUR flavors, none of them normal.

We've got:

Olive Oil  - hmmm, okay, could be salty/buttery?

Caramel cheese - what? together?  What madness IS this?

Hot chocolate - popcorn???

Sriracha lime - popcorn that bites back, apparently.

I have a feeling we'll be putting it all out at our Christmas party ;D

But I really like the can.

Of course, we bought lots of chocolate for gifting,

some two-buck-chuck,

and the famed and much anticipated Candy-Cane Jo Jo's.

3.  Christmas Tree

No, I don't have photos yet.

But how about this?

The cutest Christmas tree ever. :D

Meeting Aunty Tami - home for Christmas - at the airport, 2001.

We went out to get a Christmas tree yesterday.

I'd been going over our calendar, because this weekend is kind of crazy,

and we're trying to figure out how to get everyone where they need to be when they need to be there,

AND when we could all five go get a Christmas tree.

Apparently we can ALL FIVE go...

maybe in January.

*sigh*

So, with Wyatt's blessing, we went without him.

I was thinking we ought to go to the tree farm before the weekend,

because they might get kind of picked over.

Oh boy, was I right.
Our hot dry summer really did a number on the evergreens.
They don't look very healthy.
We walked the whole lot and found one that's green,
but it doesn't exactly have that stereotypical (i.e. groomed) look they usually do.
Let's just say we're embracing a more "natural" looking tree this year ;D

So glad we went before the weekend, or we might be embracing a new tradition...

So classy ;D

4.  It's December; where's the snow?

Because the boys are hoping for scenes like these...

5.  We may not have any snow, but at least we have a decorated house.

I'm trying to simplify - fewer trinkets.

What I love are my nativities :D

And candles - real and electric.

And lights.

Lots of lights :D

6.  Tonight is the Messiah performance...

and I won't be singing.

Because - cough, cough, cough - I have a cold.

So sad :o(

The upside is,

I have tomorrow free to decorate our Charlie Brown tree.

What are you doing for the weekend?

Thanksgiving

... was wonderful :D

With Wyatt and Tate working like crazy this week, they weren't as available as they have been in the past...

Aren't they cute?  I think that was 2011.

but they did their part when they could, and Gunnar was an extra big help :D

Earlier in the week we had some stormy weather - even got some snow in the hills just above us.

I had the work spread over a few days... some cleaning on Monday,

and then a lot of cooking on Tuesday:

the mashed potatoes,

two apple pies,

gravy,

and Old Tom.

I had to get a picture, since he looked so good!

But I love getting all the meat off the carcass,

and getting everything all cleaned up and ready to go.

So much easier to do it ahead, without a house full of people!

And we did have a house full, with fifteen family members and a couple of friends besides.

Hmmm, my sister looks like the food doesn't meet with her approval!

Most years I put two long tables end-to-end so we can all be together,

but this year - with more people - it worked better to separate the tables.

(Only by a few feet - we're still together!)

Tried to get a family photo, but my camera just isn't focusing sharply.  Rats.

But we're all here!

 Wyatt and Tate both had Thanksgiving AND Friday off, and planned a movie day with Uncle Dave,

then spent the evening with Kerry's brother (Uncle Patrick) and family playing computer games and watching another movie.  (I think there was someone there who had never seen Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and that needed to be remedied, because OF COURSE.

All of which gave me a whole, lovely, quiet day with the house to myself.

And you know what that means?

Christmas music and Christmas decorations!

No tree yet - a little early, since we get a live one,

but maybe next weekend :D

27 days until Christmas ;D

Thursday Brain Dump

Well.

There are some days, you just say, 

Well.

1.  Weather.  In case you've heard in the news about all the wind, rain, and flooding in Washington, we're fine.  We even have power.  Of course, it flickered several times, meaning we had to reset everything (more than once), but no problem.

2.  Gunnar was out hunting today and got skunked again.  They saw nothing.  Not even does.  Gunnar, of course, takes this quite personally.  It's a bit hard not to when you go up in the hills (where it's legal to hunt) and see nothing, but this guy hangs around (in the city limits) in your yard.

3.  House "fluffing".  Since Wyatt was at school, Tate was at school, and Gunnar was hunting most of the day, I had a lot of time, so I did something good:

I'm so happy about my flannel sheets that it's not even 5pm and I'm already thinking about going to bed!  Can't though, because I'll have to pick up Tate from work, and Kerry too.  Let me tell you that story...

4.  Kerry drove down to Seattle last night because he's going to a seminar all day today (continuing ed, for his architecture license).  Anyway, he decided to go down last night and stay at my cousin's, because traffic.  Seattle traffic is the stuff of nightmares.  Anyway, the phone rang about 10:20 last night, and that's not usually good, YKWIM?  The car died.  (Kerry drives a 26-year old Toyota 4Runner).  DIED, he said.

Well, actually he was able to limp to my cousin's house, with no headlights, no windshield wipers, and the battery light was on.  (Alternator?)  So he started strategizing about getting the car to a mechanic down there, how long that would all take, etc.  Mind you, all of this is two hours from where we live.

BUT WAIT.

For several years my parents have gotten us Triple A for Christmas.  We've never had to use it, but with all of us driving older vehicles (and Tate an I making multiple trips to Seattle Children's) it's all about peace of mind, right?  And now... NOW...  now is the payoff :D

They buy us the "Plus" plan because it includes 100 Miles of towing.  So I jumped on Google maps and here's the fun part.  You know how far it is from my cousin's house to our mechanic, here at home?  99.4 miles.  And the tow truck driver will let Kerry ride with him, so we won't even have to pay for a Greyhound ticket :D

Of course, we still have to fix the car.... but I'm so thankful I'm giggling :D

5.  Tate doesn't have to work on Thanksgiving.  There was no guarantee of that, as this is grocery stores' busiest time of the year, so we're not taking that for granted.  Wyatt will get his schedule tonight.  Hoping he'll be off as well.... :D

6.  35 Days until Christmas.  You're welcome.

7.  Stay spectacular :D