touchyfeely saturday

cool horse exhibit @ the mus of natural hist*

yes, we had to grip + grope
every
horse;
we wouldn’t have it any other way, really.

nathan: um, no.

ps – humor me.
just a little taste of the
caroline-henry
love-you-mess-with-you-
can’t-live-with-or-without-you
relationship:

pps – humor me again.
for their lunchtime amusement,
cory put on a comedy show
involving launching a
plastic waterbottle
daringly high into the air.
oohhh. aahhhh.

(apparently captivating if you’re
younger than 10)




and he let this one
bounce
off his head.
they screamed.
oh, the scandal.

ppps – after the rain broke +
we put in another 2.5 hrs
at the park across the street
(thanks, paula + lucy,
for taking the girls to the park;
i had a moment to myself
in the middle of a
weekend afternoon.
fancy that.)
it was most definitely time
to put our feet up +
enjoy a show.

*next time we’ll
actually go inside
the museum.

1K yrs

i think i know how the Lord feels.

you know,
the part where
to him a thousand years
is like a day
and a day is like
a thousand years?

well, the latter part.

in a good way.

. friday, 30 may 2008 .

our friend, cash, turned 2

happy bday, cutie

a double stroller, of sorts

flowers for p’s shower later tonight

mrs. wall, libby + kate;
grandma/granddaughter trip to nyc
for libby’s h.s. graduation*

love his meticulous +
just-a-touch fancy
hand-lettered signs.
and the raspberries were heavenly.

we only lost one pop fly
‘into the drink’
(aka. the hudson river)

hooray for
josephine boone ireland;
patricia’s shower @ rachel’s
(your eyes aren’t deceiving you
thinking p has gone blonde;
melanie’s holding boone at the moment;
p is second to left in the back row)

*okay, you must know that the
hammons family
is a.maz.ing.

i had the total privilege of
nannying for them
when i was in college.
jamie (mrs. wall’s daughter, l+k’s mom)
taught me everything i know and
currently practice.

when i started, there were five:
julie, andy, nate,
libby + kate (who was 3),
and their wise, witty,
diet-coke-from-sonic-loving,
clever parents:
jamie + david.

and now there are seven outstanding
human beings + two spouses:
julie (+ chris), andy (+ baylee), nate,
libby, kate,
trudy + emma.

campers unite

a few more from the
memorial day
testosterone-fest

ezra, henry, nathan, hank, houston, adam r, jack, eli, adam k, campbell + james

just say no to ’shanghai sunset’

that scandalous red nailpolish.

by george w. crane,
northwestern university,
circa. 1930.

body language expert

i’m no expert,
but here’s what i’m predicting:

body language = eye roll
scenario = when my good-humored
hairdresser, matthew, sees that
i’ve taken the scissors to my hair,
yet again.

body language = shrug + a smirk
scenario = when we tell our
kindly pediatric dentist* that we
don’t even know how to keep our
tooth brushes in our mouths for
one
whole
minute
(he sent us home with this cool
sand-hourglass-thing that measures
One Full Minute
suggesting that you’re
apparently
supposed to be able
to brush your teeth for that long.

look, we’ve tried.

by that time, we’re all in fits of
foamy-mouthed laughter
because we can’t even
think of any more
ways to scrub around in there
besides brushing our
brain stem.)

body language = knowing smile +
the hug that will follow
scenario = when cory gets home and
i recount to him how the
last two hours of our day went:

when henry was ‘bored’
(spoken as if it’s a terminal condition)

and nathan and betsy couldn’t
stop their sassy game of
‘i poke you, you tickle me,
we run to another room and
i poke you, you tickle me,
we both squeal ultra-loud and
run to another room where
i poke you, you tickle me…’

and sweet caroline was trying to
interpret my directions for everyone,
‘guys! you need to
Change The Game!
changethegame!
guys! guys!’

and then she did her
now-classic move
where she turns to me,
smiles an angelic smile,
shrugs her shoulders +
joins in the childish fun.

hey, if you can’t beat ‘em…

*we really like dr. ken @
west side family dental.
we’ve been going there for
4.5 yrs now + have a
good track record of
positive experiences with
that staff.
two thumbs up.
212.496.9600

i think even kamikaze-inclined-henry
gets a teensy bit nervous when
betsy does her runningdive on the slide thing.

because nothing screams
’summer’
like hot pink cowboy boots
?
(she wouldn’t even hear of the sandals)

hardest working man @ the swingset

making-up after hasty words

an afternoon’s ramble, anyone?

we’re re-reading prince caspian
before going to see the movie,
which we’ve heard is ‘perfect‘ (t.k.)

and tonight’s chapter included
the most inviting description.

“…it was an old pathless forest,
and you could not keep anything
like a straight course in it…

i mean, it was not a nice place for
people in a hurry.

for an afternoon’s ramble
ending in a
picnic tea
it would have been delightful.

it had everything you could want
on an occasion of that sort–
rumbling waterfalls, silver cascades,
deep, amber-colored pools,
mossy rocks, and deep moss on
the banks in which you could
sink your ankles,
every kind of fern,
jewel-like dragon flies,
sometimes a hawk overhead and once
(peter and trumpkin both thought)
an eagle.”

calgon,takemeaway.

keepin’ it real

so, my cutie mentioned this morning
that the next 3 wks at work are
going to be especially busy + stressful.

and i’m trying to think of ways
that i can make it as
light
as possible
for him at home
while maintaining my
own sanity.

i’m thinking:

:: make sure he gets a massage next wknd
(you know that place on 72nd
where you have to sign a waiver
saying that you understand it’s
‘deep tissue’ and they mean
deep-we’ll-try-not-to-hurt-you deep?
he loves that one)

:: don’t book any additional
social engagements other than
what’s already on the calendar

:: make sure his favorite yankees shirts
are ready for him to
’slip into something more comfortable’
after work

:: consistency in
reading the bible + praying
so that i am not a raving mad woman
by the time he comes home at night.

other ideas?
tips?

clara barton wannabe

i remember buying a book on
clara barton
with my own money
at the book fair
one year in elementary school.

i thought she was a
rock
star.

and i wanted to be her,
nursing wounded soldiers
back to health.
cheerfully, willingly,
with great courage +
a brave face.

well, our 3 yr old bundle of sugar+spice
has finally succumbed
to a feverish sleep
(it’s 3am as i write).

and i’m wishing i learned a few
more practical tips from
the good lady, cb.

i can sing soft songs,
run the little hellokitty washcloth
under cool water,
and tickle her arm
(her request)

but medically,
i’m just guessing.

here’s hoping your morning is
fever-free and ready
to play pretend nurse,
sweet caroline.

$2.50 each?

this sign caught my eye
and cracked me up
while walking in midtown
this afternoon:

‘ear piercing
$5
TWO holes!’

ps – sweet caroline wasn’t feeling well
tonight and so i brought her a cool
washcloth to put on her forehead
as she and cory were snuggled up.

and you know why that pleased her, right?

because it’s just like when
l a u r a
gets sick on
little house on the prairie.

they put washcloths on their heads.

oh, to be like laura.

granted,
in that episode,
they were succumbing to
smallpox,
but the washcloth idea seems
quaint
nonetheless.

pps – speaking of quaint,
i love baseball season
largely because it means
we all get to enjoy
cory listening to
the yankees games
on his little portable radio.

and on warm nights,
he takes it out back
in the dark
and practices his
golf swing
while rooting for his team.

quaint, indeed.

men + boys

dads + sons camping trip,
superfun.

and on the homefront,
the girls and i had a laugh-y
slumber party with carrie
(thank you, friend),
a scrumptious breakfast @ laran’s
and a perfect afternoon
with the herring girls;
before we knew it,
‘our boys’ were back.

we do not like
sleeping without them.

crosby, harris + cates crews
not pictured: reynolds, herring + kramer crews

henry + houston

nathan, ezra + hank

ps – kristen wiig is cracking us up.
but i can’t figure out how to imbed it:
judy grimes: travel tips.
just kidding.

pps – even after washing + drying,
their clothes still smell like
campfire.
hints?

ppps – i had been contemplating
getting rid of my desk
and using the space as
another family sitting area.

so here goes…

we’re looking for a
used upright piano
(keep your ears open)
and i’m thinking this could
be just the spot.
(where my desk was)

for now, it’s a sweet
curl-up-and-read or
watch-backyard-playing
seat.

pppps – a friend of a friend of a friend’s
budgeting system;
really simple, clean looking,
and it literally took me 5 min and
a few questions to cory.
pearbudget.com

now, if it really was just that simple…

dadisgreat, givesuschocolatecake

we are crying
watching the boys
eyes + smiles
as they listen to
classic
bill cosby
comedy
for the first time.

chocolate cake,
adam + eve,
the dentist,
dogs + cats…

crying.
we’re crying.

(download it and laugh along with us)

jono, like bono

only different.

this one’s for the kiddies,
for their
saturday morning
listening pleasure.

kj the dj,
rockin’ em live.

jonathan wraight, a.k.a. ‘mr. morven,’
‘our god is a great big god’

bobblehead brothers

after looking at every single
(i’m not kidding)
bionicle + lego set @
toys r us,
we were walking home
and decided to stop for
a little laugh.

first,
the $2 guy (48th/bway):

next,
the $5 guy,
mr. peter (49th/bway),
who we really liked:

everyone wants to be
a superhero.
he drew henry as spiderman +
nathan as superman.
clever salesman.

wrap party

we just wrapped up
another sweet year
of co-op preschool
today.

the ‘little kids’ class:

betsy, kathryn, wilson, cash + isabella

the ‘big kids’ class:


hank, daniel, benjamin, mitch, jane, caroline + abby

end of year pizza party @ train park
(68th + riverside blvd);
what a terrific bunch of kiddos.

also pictured:
big brothers lucas + ethan

and not pictured:
little sisters hannah, laura + maya

september will be here before we know it;
ready for the next round of preschool.

tornado

how sweet are two of you to call +
several of you to email
to ask about my parents.

they’re fine +
the house is fine.
finding patio furniture
in unusual locations,
but the tornadoes (7 of them)
missed them
by about 5 miles.

ouch
for the rest of the area.

greeley, colorado
yesterday

frigidtales

i love hearing everyone’s
plans for the holiday weekend.

ours is off to a strong start,
thanks to a pre-dawn fairway trip
to fill up the mostly-empty food chiller;
you know it’s
crickets in there
before 6am.

can you make out the
4 tins of raspberries,
4lbs of strawberries +
10 kiwis on the top shelf =
good morning, cates’ house

the week’s worth of milk;
bring it on.

ps – yes, ladies + gentlemen,
this is precisely as exciting
as my life gets at this stage.

i have just showed you
a picture of my refrigerator.

nice.

but we all know,
a happy fridge = one solid step toward a happy family

pps – see that half-empty pitcher of
green tea iced tea?
we have two pitchers that size
that usually sit side by side;
i’m just barely keeping up with
neighborly consumption at this point.
which i love;
come on over.

the current selection includes:
-mango (from hawaii, thanks to lbrn)
-pineapple (ditto)
-passion fruit (ditto)
-green tea (rach got me hooked)
-peach
-blueberry (new in the rotation this year)
-peppermint (morv and i will always
think of it as ‘prayer tea’)

top o’ the morning to ya

yesterday, jenny mentioned this verse:

‘for you were once darkness,
but now you are light in the Lord.

live as children of light
(for the fruit of the light consists in
all goodness, righteousness and truth)
and find out what pleases the Lord.’

ephesians 5:8-10

specifically that last part,
‘find out what pleases the Lord.’

she mentioned the obvious,
delighting in him and
glorifying him forever.

and then there’s the personal,
the specific;
finding out what in my life
specifically
pleases (or displeases) the Lord
and pursuing (or forsaking) that.

hmmmm.

so begins friday;
have a good one, friends.

ps – did i mention that charis
sounds amazing? i’m dying to
pop over to the hospital and
meet this sweet new angel, ahna.
hopefully tomorrow.

pps – did i mention that
i owe a handwritten note +
20 bucks
to whoever those special people are
who were praying for betsy to
sleep
in
her
own
bed?

because she is.
and she has been for about 2 wks now.
(remember post-loft,
her transitioning from crib to
bunk bed was less than stellar.
freedom!freedom!imustescapemybed!)

a.maz.ing

thank you.
and send me your address.

ppps – here’s what nathan wrote
in blue pen in his notebook
last night at dinner devotions:

[after we were talking about
how our christian heritage isn't
about a bunch of dead people, but...]

‘our history is about how God
makes his people
holy and blameless
so that we can
live in his presence.
exodus 1-2′

(props to susan hunt.
we’re going thru her,
‘discovering jesus in exodus‘
right now)

orzo-riffic

reason no. 1048 that
i love our little mom’s group…

lunches like this one
@ jen’s today:

fresh gazpacho
cranberry walnut rolls
jen’s mom’s scandalous orzo salad*
cold seltzer
piping hot coffee
fresh raspberries +
cookies

and mostly because we are able
to sit still for about 1.5 hrs,
to talk,
to crack up,
to offer perspective,
to listen + pray,
together;

a unique experience in each of our weeks.
(the other four women
have three children each)

*we need to master this recipe
and make it, oh, at least
once a week
this summer;
it’s that fresh.

the basic gist:
-prepare the orzo.
-add a smidge of olive oil.

-combine approx. 2T of each of these:
lemon juice,
champagne vinegar,
dijon mustard,
fresh grated parmesan
s + p.

-add fresh minced basil,
2 oz prosciutto cut into small-ish pieces,
1 can artichoke hearts,
4 scallions (blanched in hot water
to take the edge off).

mix ‘er up.

mmmmmm.

fun with strikethru

classic shot of the mom’s group
controlled chaos celebration:
honor, karis, c + b, cash, luke, trey + hank
(not pictured: annie, sloan + ryan)

starburstbucks school

betsy’s rainhut home away from home

urgent + frequent

6 guys +
5 girls +
the most delicious vegetable-y pasta-y dinner +
ann-marie’s homemade chocolate pecan pies +
(most importantly)
matthew 18 =

a sobereager discussion on
the importance
of constant
repentance, forgiveness and
reconciliation
we must seek +
we must offer eachother
in light of the gospel.

we looked @ the true gravity
of the debt we owe to God
in comparison to debts owed to us,
which relinquishes our ‘right’ to inflict
pain upon those who have
inflicted pain upon us.
ouch.

listening to the sermon on sunday,
i was struck with the
frequency
which we must do this.
and repeat it.
and repeat it again.

urgently seeking reconciliaton
and restoration in all of our
relationships.
every day.

gulp.

ps – i doubledogdare you to
download the sermon here.

mix tape

i’ve finally entered the 80’s.

i’m getting the hang of mix tapes.
(my mom is so proud)

so, my technologically-sophisticated friend,
carrie, taught me the nuances
of that sweet beast,
itunes.

and i think i’m a wee bit
addicted.

case in point,
after burning 20+ cd’s
as ‘happy summer’ presents for
our mom’s group,
(which took just shy of for.ev.er)
i came home yesterday afternoon
and
immediately
made a playlist
for
nathan.

of course.
exactly what a 9 yr old
needs on a wednesday afternoon.

so he would have something
to listen to as he went to bed
last night while we were having
fellowship group.

a little beatles,
a splash of beach boys,
a hint of miles davis,
charlie parker,
u2,
caedmons call,
elvis presley,
the cars,
jack johnson,
dave brubeck,
wait!
i can’t stop.

and by looking at my playlist,
you might have noticed that
i’m quite the rookie.

still trying to find the
magic
that transitions one song
to the next.

anyway,
i’m proud to be joining you all.
firmly in the 80’s.

now, what technological
feat of strength is next?

you say ‘eight track’
i say ‘let’s go!’
8track
let’s go
8track
let’s go

ps – cory pointed out that i’ve
finally earned my
kjthedj moniker.
nice.

pps – how ’bout ‘the office’ finale?
where michael wants to make a
mix tape for the new hr girl.
he’s looking for songs with
‘double meaning’
you know, ‘welcome to scranton’
and
‘i love you.’

ppps – scandalous, i know:

rainraingoaway

an open letter:
thank you to whoever threw out
this fantastic plastic car.
hours of rainyday laughter
and i bet you have a few more
square feet in your apt.
sweet.

can you see how dark it is
out the back door?

7 stircrazygiggly kiddos afterschool;
rach and i made the best of it.
[read: we baked blueberry muffins,
tried to keep the crowd safe +
opened up a craftshoppe on the table]

there’s a joke begging to be made here
about sitting on the fatboy.
but i’ll leave it alone.*

hours later…
still going.
[i must say,
betsy had seatbelted herself into it
and was half-terrified at the speed
the boys were racing her up and down
the hallway;
one in front of her,
the other in the back.]

and you know the best thing
about a trashfind?
one minute after we’re ‘over’ it,
back out it goes.
to find its next new owners.

*cory said since i made my
fatboy poke,
i have to tell you what caroline
said about my hair.

two nights ago,
as i was finishing nightly clean-up,
i had taken my ponytail holder out
and my hair was in full
end-of-the-day humid-glory.

caroline walked over,
tipped her head to the side
and looked at me and said,
‘your don’t look very pretty, do you?’

i don’t think i responded,
so she repeated it,
‘mom, you don’t look very pretty like that.’

i said something about how
a comment like that could
hurt my feelings.

so she clarified,
‘i mean, anyone with hair like that
can’t look pretty, right?’

she sweetly smiled,
shrugged her shoulders
and walked off.

thanks, love.

modern-on-my-mind

a rainy day +
2 little girls =

1. pink umbrellas + polkadotty raincoats
made for a dryhappy walk
to starbucks (’starburst’ to betsy)
to do our ‘homework’
(well, we practice writing our names +
drink some vanilla milk)

2. little house on the prairie

3. playing with jane*

4. way too much ‘chicago’ on itunes;
i can’t fight the feeling.

5. dreaming of modern design

humor me:
1. mod apt in amsterdam

2. do you see that cabinet?!
should i tear out my kitchen +
make one of these?!
i wish.

3. clear + white = brilliant

4. i didn’t know you could do
this in flushing.

*cracking me up:
caroline + jane were playing ‘family,’
decked out in full princess regalia,
consisting of the mother (j)
and the daughter (c)
and their ‘baby’
was a
horse.

overheard:
‘mother, shall i get more oats for our baby?’

cozied up in a rainstorm

yesterday was
simply
perfect.

cory and i met for
a rare during-the-day-date
near his office.

we met @ the strand,
browsing the children’s stacks,
scratching my head,
‘how do they sell them so cheaply?‘

we sauntered up to a
little french restaurant
in the 20’s on park
and ducked in for a late lunch.

after we were inside,
the sky grew darkdark
and the floodgates opened.

but we were all cozied up
in a corner booth
talking about summer vacation
and personal sin patterns
(nice combo)
while sharing a goat cheese/herb omelette
and a ham + brie on baguette.

moments before we had to
step back out into the real world…
sunshine.

and, icing on the top,
i had a few moments
to pop into the
calvary st. george thrift shop
(always superclean, tidy, + with a cheery staff)
and scored
2 pr of little girl’s dress up shoes ($2)
and
a massive unopened box of a
lego fighterplane ($2)

everyone was pleased.

. ahna leigh smith .

charis + ryan
are the proud parents
of a beautiful baby girl

:: ahna leigh smith ::

20 may 2008
2:30pm
7lbs 20in

oh, hooray!

4″

how much nathan grew
in the last 12.5 months.

annual check-up today:

9 yrs old
61″
92lbs

no wonder the milk is vanishing
from the fridge;
we’re up to f i v e gallons a week
for the family.

should i just buy a cow?
put ol’ bessie in the back yard?

pins + needles (pink ones)

baby smith is on her way!

we’re praying for you, charis + ryan.

god says

[dear morv,
please don't hate me for
posting your email for
public consumption;
it's just too good not to share.
yours faithfully,
kj]

here’s what morv did with
kiddos in western australia yesterday:

“On Sunday I was talking about us being a mirror
and reflecting God and so we were
thinking about ways we can reflect God.

I played ‘God says’ with the kids -

I would say ‘God says..’
and if they thought God said the thing
they had to touch their heads,
if not they had to touch their feet

(my plan had been to get them to run to
different sides of the room
but they were hyper and
that would have made it worse!)

Anyway it started obvious -
God says punch people and
God says obey my parents.

But then I put in some tricky ones about
loving the school bully
(at least one kid I know has a problem with a bully).

They weren’t exactly sure about that one and
then all their stories came out -
one four year old spoke of his problems with ‘mean girls’ in his kindergarten!

It’s good when you see abstract things
begin to take root and can then talk through
what it would mean to reflect God
in everyday situations.”

well, here’s the actual last line she wrote,
“Girl, I learned it all from you!!!!”
but i can hear you laughing from here,
so i thought i’d just omit it
before the outcry began.

anyway,
here’s how i’m playing ‘God says’
with myself today:

God says think about the things that are irritating you. (tap feet)
God says think about Him, about things that are True. (tap head)

God says have a pity party about any number of things. (feet)
God says pray first, read scripture* and Wait On Him. (head)

God says keep thinking about those irritating things. (feet)

God says ask him and he will help me have the
right attitude as i clean my house
and do the laundry
and scrub the marker off the wall,
all the while thinking about the abovementioned scripture. (head)

God says pray for my family and beg him to
show us how Christ’s resurrection
enables us to live godly lives today. (head)

God says email my friend, morven, and remind her
of how faithfully he uses her to encourage me. (head, twice)

now, about those irritating things…

*’finally, brothers, whatever is true,
whatever is noble,
whatever is right,
whatever is pure,
whatever is lovely,
whatever is admirable—
if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—
think about such things.

whatever you have learned or received or heard from me,
or seen in me—put it into practice.
and the God of peace will be with you.’
philippians 4:8-9

and

‘make my joy complete by being like-minded,
having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose.
Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit,
but in humility consider others better than yourselves.
Each of you should look not only to your own interests,
but also to the interests of others.’
philippians 2:2-4

a slug named ‘fluffy’

betsy + cory found a pet.

i wouldn’t let them bring it inside.

the end.

perichoresis

perichoresis: [greek]
to dance around;
a term used to describe
the triune relationship
between each person
of the Godhead.

we went to redeemer’s
arts greenhouse
dance performance last night.
wow.

ballet + modern dance,
christian reflection,
and a gentle pre-rainstorm stroll
from our house
(a cozy theatre @ 57th/8th).

way to go, dancers;
we’re looking forward to the next one.

our very own chris;
i cried happy tears thru
her whole performance.
[mary ellen, cindy + ellen
confirmed that they, too,
cried thru it]

cory loved getting to sit
next to zoe and
i loved watch
zach, toby & zoe’s faces
as they watched their
radiant mom dance.

miss alice, of nutcracker fame

ps – i’m getting the hang of the name,
‘perichoresis.’

when the reminder
emails popped into my inbox
before the actual show,
i mentally saw
‘psoriasis’;
the psoriasis dance.

classy, i know.

saturday stats

spilled:
.. one gallon of milk (caroline, kitchen floor)
.. one liter of red gatorade (betsy, hallway floor)
.. one bucket of tiny plastic beads (betsy, boys’ room)

consumed:
.. one bag of post baseball game blow-pops [see below]
.. two pounds of the juiciest green grapes

waited:
.. for the wind to die down on the hudson
so we could kayak. it didn’t.
.. for betsy to begin riding the scooter
she insisted we bring for her. she didn’t.
.. for it to rain on our picnic lunch
in the back yard. it didn’t. (whew)

[seriously rough water.
there's no way we're getting out there today.]

removed:
.. three stitches
[before]

[during/after]

baseballbaseballbaseball:

we *love* that leah jennings

no. 5, on deck
[two great hits today]

coach cory huddles the troops

we bring our own cheering section

seriously, i’m pretty sure there
were more than 20 blow pops
in that bag

that’s, like, 3+ blow pops
per person

(cory’s giving me grief
about blurring out that jogger
but trust me,
it wasn’t a flattering shot of her)

not with swords (bummer for henry)

after singing this hymn
this morning,
cory was asking us about
the second half
of this second verse

‘lead on, O King eternal,
till sin’s fierce war shall cease,
and holiness shall whisper
the sweet amen of peace.
for not with swords’ loud clashing,
nor roll of stirring drums;
with deeds of love and mercy
the heavenly kingdom comes.’

henry pointed out the
list posted on our wall
of things that are
important (and imperative)
to our family;
you know it’s as much for
me
as it is for
them:

01. quick obedience
02. be content with what you have
03. quiet spirit, calm heart
04. listen + respond
05. cheerful + happy
06. restore order to your belonging
07. kind + gentle
08. respectful
09. think of others first
(remember ‘i’m third’ from kanakuk?
Jesus first,
others second,
yourself third…you get the idea)
10. quick to reconcile
(i’m sorry.
will you please forgive me?
hug + be careful next time)

deeds of love and mercy, indeed;
let the games begin.

bday girl

at breakfast yesterday,
cory reminded the kids
that there was going to be
a special treat at the
end of the day,
‘the cho’s are coming!’

to which henry replied,
‘what’s a ‘cho’?’

[lydia & ezra, he knows;
the fact that they had a
last name was new to him]

happy bday, jordyn;
we are so glad that you guys
moved to the city
and to redeemer.

ps – yesterday (may 16) was
charis’ birthday
and
her due date.

happy birthday +
hang in there, sweetgirl.

do the math

today’s equations:

cory + betsy + kj =
a happy walk around
our block,
holding hands.
literally, just this one block
with no errands;
you know it took 25 min.

cory + caroline + kj =
a ballerina and her parents
enjoying a late lunch
at the west side diner
and then off to watch
her dance,
so happy that her dad
was watching.

cory + nathan + henry =
a bike ride to chelsea piers,
some video games + dinner,
and a happy race home.

thankful for the
happy configurations
in our family
today.

oh, and another
shout out to
the u.s. court system
for sending my husband
home in the early afternoon
for us to enjoy him.

blind leading blind

caroline + i
planted flowers
in the back yard
this morning.

hmmmm.

i’m going to guess that
o v e r c r o w d i n g
is a rookie’s mistake, eh?

i’m two for two on that one.

ps – thanks to the kind ladies
@ clarie’s garden center
for helping us choose
the flowers last saturday.

i love jury duty

seriously,
anything that brings my
favorite husband home
early,
whistlinghappy,
and
wearing his favorite jeans
in the middle of the work week;
thankyouverymuch,
u.s. court system.

ps – he doesn’t have to report
until 10:15am tomorrow;
dreamy.

ps – laura b. [from fellowship group] is in myanmar
coordinating world vision’s response to the catastrophe.

she’s writing about the situation
on anderson cooper’s website.

administer away

on giving:

‘this, then, is held to be the
duty of the man of wealth:

first, to set an example of modest,
unostentatious living,
shunning display or extravagance;
to provide moderately for the legitimate wants of
those dependent upon him;

and after doing so
to consider all surplus revenues
which come to him
simply as trust funds,
which he is called upon to administer,
and strictly bound as a matter of dugy
to administer in a manner which,
in his judgment,
is best calculated to produce
the most beneficial result for the community.’

-andrew carnegie, ‘wealth,’
north american review, 148, no. 391,
june 1889

‘keep your lives free from
the love of money
and be content with what you have,
because God has said,
“never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you.”
hebrews 13:5

julia-gulia

happy birthday
to our favorite
jules.

it was so special
to celebrate her
last night after church,
on her actual bday.

(though it was far too cold
to sit outside, bummer.)

sitting around laughing
with friends +
enjoying her angelic self.

boy, oh boy, we love you, j.

{the bday crew:
colin, kirsten, matt,
faith, chris, mary,
brett, meghan, scott,
cory and ,of course, jules.

as well as:
cheesecake + chocolate cake,
some of our favorite cheeses,
fairway olives*,
cranberry/white choc/macadamia cookies,
and no less than 5lbs of strawberries
and not one strawberry sliver remained.
partyon,garth}

shopping for morv’s wedding dress

i love it when she wears green.
or blue.
or pink.
or…

*i’ve long found olive boats intriguing.

so when i finally broke down and
spent the $4.95 @ gracious home
and proudly brought it home,
cory will not stop
teasing me about that thing.

granted,
it does look goofy empty,
but it’s so clever that
you don’t have to dig
your big ol’ fingers thru
all the olives in order
to choose your favorite.

and it does just look cool
on the table.

so there.

4x the magic

it was such an encouragement
to get to see ryan + amanda
f o u r
times during their visit last week.

saturday morning was precious:
all of the kids playing,
feeling like we got to know baby eleanor
and
thanking the Lord for the
way He is at work in their family.

first thing that morning,
caroline came running in with
these huge ponytail holder things
and exclaimed,
‘i need to look fancy.
cousin clara is coming!’

fancy, indeed.
or something like that.

CT or bust

we had a lovely time away
in connecticut on
saturday and sunday.

croquet,
games,
reading in the sunshine,
watering plants,
and
being quite refreshed by
the sunshine and fresh air.

a million thanks, ragland fam

oops

a fun evening with
church friends
ended in an
e.r. visit:

sweet nathan is
there now
getting stitches in
his finger
after a run in with
the cheese knife
(he’s a sucker for
a good manchego).

poor kiddo.
more later.

12:01am update:
stitches are in,
spirits are good,
discharge is imminent.

goofy get-well signs on our front door
might bring a smile to his weary face

earlier in the evening:
homework

deluge

hope you carried your
old umbrella today, amigo;
the wind is beating up
the cheap & the expensive
umbrellas
indiscriminately,
so save your ‘good’ one,
in my opinion.

all we could do at
school pick-up was
laugh.

it was raining that hard
and
parents, teachers, students + siblings alike
were
drenched.

we live across the
street from the school +
we were drenched.
(even in our raincoats)

so we’re warming up,
turning on
‘alvin & the chipmunks,’
for early familymovienight
(sorry, cory;
we just can’t wait, man.)

let the games begin.

my other kitchen table

remember when tim talked
years ago at mcm
about ‘third spaces’?
(surely he had a more savvy term,
but that’s how i remember it)

the idea is that because
urban apartments
are small,
we use public spaces
as an extension of our
private spaces.

well, i’ve had the sweetest time
this week getting together
with friends at my
‘other’
kitchen table.

[aka. magnolia bakery]

you know, that little slice
of heavenly real estate
that is usually virtually
e m p t y,
full of dreamy sunshine,
and
you can take your time +
stay as long as you’d like?
(the rarest of combinations)

charis + ryan
wendy
carrie
ryan + amanda,
clara, adelle + eleanor

i’m loving it.

and i’ll see you there next week.

nopinkforyou

brit gave us these cool
lightlight pink sheets & pillowcases
and i’ve loved using
them in our bedroom
in happy rotation with
our usual
black & white polkadot ones

so, anytime betsy sees
pink
pillowcases
in our room,
she evidently assumes i’ve
mislaid them.

since as everybody knows, dahling,
pink
is only for
girls.

so all of the pink pillows
that make me so happy
(come on, it’s not like i’m
overwhelming
cory
with pink;
2 of the 6 pillows on our bed
have the pink cases,
and it’s the lightest prettiest
whitewashiest pink possible)
are
gone.

permanently
relegated to the
‘princess suite,’
as grandpa dick christened the girls room.

nice.

nosoupforyou

on giving

thinking about creating a
culture
of generosity
is killing me.

in a good way.

i mean,
this stuff is keeping me
awake at night.

well, that, in addition to
betsy’s bed-swapping
shenanigans.

anyway.

“i do not believe one can settle
how much we ought to give.
i am afraid the only safe rule
is to give
more
than we can spare.

in other words, if our expenditure on
comforts, luxuries, amusements, etc.,
is up to the standard common
among those with the same income
as our own,
we are probably giving away
too
little.

if our charities do not at all
pinch or hamper us,
i should say they are
too
small.

there ought to be things we
should like to do
and
cannot do
because our charitable expenditure
excludes them.”
-c.s. lewis, mere christianity

okay,
where to start?

control yourself

i have some fantastic news for you:
ryan & amanda
clara, adelle & baby eleanor
will be at the morning west side
service this sunday.

now, please, control yourselves;
don’t mob them.

but do get in line
for a sweet greeting.

(i’d even consider double-dipping
church-wise just to get to see
them one more time

we loved every second of
our tuesday night in the garden with them,
laughing and talking until
the late hours of the night.

and then an afternoon in the
park yesterday with
caroline and clara
as inseparable playmates;
this morning, she keeps asking for
‘cousin clara’…

we love you, hullinger fam +
happy 12th anniversary, lovebirds.

ps – strangely intriguing list of
75 skills every man ’should know’;
take with a grain of salt +
a bit of common sense
on which ones to ignore
(and definitely ignore the
rest of that website)

‘lisards & snakx’

henry’s kindergarten report on
‘animals in the desert’
this morning

sibling cheering section

betsy didn’t pretend to be interested;
she just played with the cash register.

reading to ms. mariano + the hinzman’s

superproud, kiddo

ps – here’s the poem on ‘birds’
henry composed on my computer
this afternoon:

‘berds

berdsarecyewt
berdscanbeesmol
berdscanbeedifrintcolers’

helpful things

i’m grateful today for those
animate & inanimate
things that help me
do my jobs
well.

1. the fruit man @ 70th/amsterdam
bananas, 4/$1
strawberries, $2/box
cantaloupe, $2 ea.

and he’s superkind
to the children.

2. my lemon yellow miele vacuum.
if you put that thing
on your arm,
it would suck a bruise.

i love it.

i would write poetry in its honor
if i thought it could hear me.

3. popsicles.
juicycoolishgoodness
that makes their day
which in turn makes
my day.

4. summer dresses.
for them and for me.

5. cory’s favorite shorts.

they make him that happy.
and i score big points
every time they come
out of winter-hiding
and into the light of spring.

6. beatrix potter.
since much of my time the
past 9 yrs has been spent
reading to children,
i’m grateful for good literature.
(and, inversely,
find poor writing for children
rather despicable)

in today’s reading of tom kitten,
remember when
mittens, moppet & tom kitten
have lost their beautiful clothes?

so mrs. kitten discovers them
and offers this rebuke:

’she pulled them off the wall,
smacked them,
and took them back to the house.

‘my friends will arrive in a minute
and you are not fit to be seen.
i am affronted,’ said mrs. tabitha twitchet.

’she sent them upstairs;
and i am sorry to say she
told her friends
that they were in bed
with the measles;
which was not true.’

next time, i will simply
tell my children that
‘i am affronted’
and assume that is
reprimand enough.

nice.

ps – if i tell you my
children are in bed
with the measles,
be suspicious.
be very suspicious.