Cake for breakfast

This has been a week of learning for me. Sometimes, when I think I have it all together, I really don't. This was one of those weeks for me. With my husband being in the military, and us moving so often, the four younger girls have not gotten large birthday parties...ever. We always have wonderful family parties with just us. (With five kids, it is a full house anyway.) Our family tradition started on accident, really. We had moved to a new state and did not know anyone when my son's 5th birthday came around. To try and make it as special as possible, the night before his birthday, I decorated the dining room with a birthday table cloth, plates, cups, and streamers. When he woke up the morning of his birthday, it was a big surprise. I have never been good at waiting for surprises and decided that morning to not wait till after lunch, or even after breakfast, for that matter, but instead to jump right into the party the very moment he woke up. So, sleepy-eyed, but excited, we went to the table and proceeded to have cake and ice cream for breakfast followed by opening the present. We moved three more times over the next five years and continued the tradition with the girls as their birthdays arrived. All the while, I had it in my head that they were missing something crucial to their childhood. I felt like a big birthday party was something they would always miss, if I couldn't "deliver" it. So, this year has taken Rick to Iraq and the kids and me to the family "hometown." I decided right away to plan a super three-way child birthday party they would never forget. I have rented an inflatable slide-pool that stands 12 feet tall and is guaranteed to wow any child, especially for a birthday party. I have told the kids they may invite everyone they know. I have even tried to think of the best parties we have ever attended and pull the best from them all. This party is to be the end-all be-all of parties for my girls who have never in their 7, 5 and 3 years of life experienced such a thing. Of course, with such an extravagant plan, and three birthday girls in one party, it has to fall in between some actual birthdays. The party is on May 27th, after Emi's birthday, but before Delaney's on June 9th. Wednesday the 17th was my five year old, Emi's birthday. We have all been talking, planning, and organizing for the grand party, so it is not a surprise. But when she woke up on Wednesday morning, I thought I would die. She rushed into my room and very excitedly asked, "Mama, should I wait up here, is everything set up yet?" Nothing was waiting for her in the dining room. No party table cloth, no special plates, no favors, no presents and no cake. Nothing. The big party is not for another week and a half, and I am putting my heart and soul into its preparation. The "since there is nothing better" family party was not even a consideration in my mind. I tried to tell her gently that there was nothing downstairs waiting for her. No worries, she said, "We can still have cake." There is no cake either, I told her. I tried to make the day special for her, but despite my best efforts, something didn't seem quite right for her all day. She didn't sulk, but was clearly depressed. I worried about it all day, but didn't know what to do. Around 930 that night, Rick called from Iraq and I told him the entire story. He was devastated for her and wanted me to try to make it up to her. How, I didn't know. At 10 o'clock on Wednesday night, I decided what to do. I called my sister Shannon and laid it all out for her. It was a risk that she would laugh and tell me to go to sleep and think about it tomorrow, but she didn't. She said, "I'll be there in 10 minutes." And she was. At 1030 at night I went to the old faithful Wal-Mart and shopped for an entire family birthday party complete with table cloth, plates, cups, stickers, a happy birthday banner, a present, and the all-important cake. I was up till almost midnight getting it all set up for her. Now I was stuck with how to explain that I had really messed up her birthday and needed to make it up to her. Sometimes, I think, actions can be better explanations for a five year old than some long story. So I went into her room Thursday morning and as she woke I sat on her bed. Today, I told her, is your family birthday party. That was it. That was all she needed. She didn't ask, why now? Not, why not yesterday? Just joy. Excitement. Sparkle. So, the six of us headed downstairs for cake and ice cream for breakfast on purple Tinkerbell plates and cups. It was one of the best days she has had since her daddy went off to war. She truly enjoyed her party. So what have I learned from this? What I thought was the "since there is nothing better" family party was actually a tradition that had become ours. The kids look forward to cake and ice cream with just us on the morning of their birthdays. It is who we are. No 12-foot slide, every-kid-in-the-neighborhood party can ever measure up to what we have as a family. No party means as much as that special time that we have created just for them. This is the best I have to offer them. This is what they will remember for the rest of their lives. The slide may indeed be remembered as a great time, but it won't be cherished. Cake for breakfast will be.

Instant in season and out of season

I have learned a valuable lesson tonight. The Bible talks about being instant in season and out of season. Being instant in season and out of season means being prepared. I know that Timothy is talking about being prepared to preach the Gospel, but maybe I should apply being prepared to other areas of my life. This has been a rough couple of weeks for us. Many of the kids have been sick, and although we are all better, we are still pretty tired. We decided not to go to church tonight, but instead to try and catch up on needed rest. After long naps and several sleeping kids, we woke up hungry. I sat and wrote some e-mails and the kids finished watching their show and right around 730, we decided to head out to drive-through McDonald's. I had dressed in my pajama capri pants and a t-shirt when I changed after church before my nap. Nick also dressed in his spider man pajama shorts. When the idea hit us to go get a burger, we decided to just jump in the car and head out. Everyone went potty, and the plan was to drive through and not get out. So, off we headed to McDonald's, just as we were. As we drove into the parking lot and got into the drive-through line, I looked in the dining area and saw many of our church friends all dining after Sunday night services. Not only did I notice, but so did the kids. Our first reaction was to head in and visit, till we realized that Nick and I had pajamas on. The girls were so broken hearted. There was wailing and moaning and begging and pleading. But, what could we do? Had we been instant in season and out of season (namely 8 pm on a Sunday night) we could have gone in. Too bad for us. The good news is, Nick and I both saw the ridiculous humor of us being at McDonald's in our pajamas.

My Age

I am still a young woman. I have five children, so I am not exactly a spring chicken, but am young none-the-less. Inspite of that fact, I am constantly obsessing about how old I am getting. I didn't realize that the kids were paying attention to it till a conversation I had with my son. During his Bible lesson (we homeschool) he learned that people in Bible days lived much longer than they do now. People lived to be in the hundreds back then. So after much reflection, he called me over to the computer and said, "Mama, its too bad that we don't still live to be 900 years old. If we did then Grammy (my 70 year old Grandmother) would be considered a young woman. I would still be a baby. And you really would be considered 29." Out of the mouths of babes.

Shoot or be shot?

My husband is deployed to Iraq and has been gone for several months now. The kids and I have all had mixed feelings about the deployment and have had to deal with various issues. One of the first and still major issues we deal with is how safe is Daddy? I must push past my own fears and reassure my kids that their Dad is fine and is doing his job well and will be home soon. Unfortunately, we have had to cover topics that no Mom wants to deal with. Early on in the deployment, my oldest who is 10 wanted to know if Daddy would shoot the bad guys if the bad guys came near him. What a terrible thought for children. Will Daddy shoot or be shot? So, I told him what I felt would be the best thing for him to hear. I told him,"Yes, your Daddy will shoot any bad guy before he can shoot him first." That story has a funny ending in that my older girls (ages 2, 4 and 6) jumped on the concept and prayed each night that Daddy would shoot the bad guys. I am sure God was not displeased with their prayer, but I decided to guide their thoughts and prayers in a different direction. That is when we began talking about arresting the bad guys instead of shooting them. Now we pray that Daddy has success at putting the bad guys in jail. It has made for much better dinner conversation since then.

A Beautiful Day

My sister, Shannon, has four children. So when we are together there are nine children talking, singing, hopping, and in general, just moving. We have fun. We checked the weather report for the week and found today was the only day this week that was going to be nice enough for the kids to get outside and play in the sprinkler. So the plan was made. Shannon brought her kids by around 9 am and went to a meeting. The nine children and I sat outside and literally waited for the temperature to rise enough to turn the water on. They took turns each asking what degrees it was starting around 9:01 and continuing every minute on the minute for the next two hours. Finally, I brought them all in for a quick lunch. I made three boxes of macaroni and cheese, kielbasa sausages, and spinach quiche. Guess which part was for me? Shannon arrived during lunch and helped us all finish up. The kids then cleaned up the kitchen (about seven of them pitched in)and headed out to play in the water. What a beautiful day! What joy! What mud! What little pieces of grass stuck all over their little feet and legs! What fun! Shannon has since gone home for the day and I have two down for a nap. Better take this time to rest, myself. M-

Hi. I have finally decided to listen to my Grandmother and write down all the funny things that happen in my life. As lives go, mine can be a real hoot. I have five children under the age of 10 and none of them are twins. You do the math. Yes, they were all on purpose. I get asked the craziest questions when I go places. Things like, "Are they all yours?" Well, yes. Most people are not gluttons for punishment enough to take five small children into a restaurant or anywhere for that matter if they are not all theirs. I have been asked if I run a daycare. The answer to that is also yes. Only, all the children are...Mine! It seems to spill into night care and weekend care and on and on. Anyway, I digress. My kids keep me in stitches with the funny things they say. I am always calling my Grandmother and updating her on the latest thing. If she has said once, she has said a hundred times that I should write it down. Well, Grandma, here it goes. This is for you. My husband is in the US Army and currently deployed to Iraq, which leaves me with five beautiful babies all by my lonesome. If that sounds terribly crazy and scary, it is. We homeschool our kids and keeping the house running, school running, and myself somewhat sane while Rick is deployed is a full-time job. That is why I named this site My Favorite Thing in the World. My favorite thing in the world is ...drum roll, please.... Five Clean Babies. I have been saying this for years (adding to the number as the number grew). Why, you might ask? Because five clean babies are all taken care of. They are bathed, dressed, usually fed and on the way to bed. Nothing is more rewarding as the mother of five than bedtime. Don't misunderstand, I love my babies more than anything. But to function from day to day, I need my down time. Five clean babies is the signal that down time is on the way. I don't want to make this first blog a hundred pages long, so I will stop for now. I will update on the happenings and goings on in the household. I will keep you posted on the beautiful things that my five beautiful babies come up with. And I will keep you posted on life as an Army wife living without hubby. Lots to come.