All Saints' Party 2010

Introducing Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe in homemade costumes! I sewed Mary's tunic out of an old curtain. Her cape is blue fabric, yellow bias tape, and sparkly gold fabric paint. For John's tilma, I used Avery tee-shirt transfer print paper, which is then ironed on.

Each year, our local homeschoolers get together and throw a fabulous two-hour party for the kids (at night when trick-or-treating is going on). The young kids all dress up and the middle-schoolers and teenagers operate most of the games. The older kids are so gentle and understanding with various young ages of children because most of them come from large families. Each game is adaptable to all manner of ages and for participating the kids receive candy and holy cards (which is really as wonderfully "square" as my childhood friend's father who was a dentist and handed out sugar-free candy and toothbrush kits at Halloween).

The event started with a Guess-the-Saint game divided into age groups. The children gave clues as to their costumes and the other children guessed who they are supposed to be.

After that, everyone gathered around and was led in one decade of the rosary by the two priests there. We prayed for all the people who have died in the last year. Do you know how neat it is to see at least 100 kids instantly kneel on the hard gymnasium floor and fold their hands in prayer? And do you know how funny it is when they're all in costumes, some of them plenty gory (think of martyr saints and their gruesome manners of death!)?

All the games have Catholic twists to them, such as the Seven Deadly Sins golf game.

Ring Toss: throwing halos on the saints (each stick had a holy card on it--note the fluffy "clouds")

This was some kind of relay race with baby dolls, so Mary really enjoyed that.

For this building game, the older kids have more specific challenges. The littlest kids were asked simply to makes piles of sticks.

And check out the pumpkin carving contests (again, in age brackets)! Does it get more fabulously, corny Catholic than this?

"Choose Life"

"JESUS"

Saints in heaven

The Eucharist

The organizers of this party do a fabulous job every year--and it's a big job, I'm sure! We so appreciate having this way to celebrate All Saints' Day! On the drive home, John asked why we had dressed in costumes, which we explained. Then he chattered much of the way home about how we are not saints yet, so he wants to do lots of "chores" to "help people" before going to Heaven. Then he came up with all kinds of ideas on his own about how he would help people, such as fixing people's computers or cars or fixing crashed houses or helping poor people. Just like many of us who fail to see who our closest neighbors are, when I suggested that God loves it when John helps his mommy in such ways as emptying the dishwasher, he promptly replied that he needs to help strangers. (And wouldn't most of us rather put in time at a soup kitchen than serve those in our own homes? Which sounds more holy?) And when Daddy suggested that sharing toys was a chore that God loves, John said he was really working hard on teaching Mary to share and stop yanking toys, which led to a humorous debate as I tried to explain that he needs to teach her by example and he retorted that he needs to "have his turn first."

Costumes, plenty of candy, wholesome kids of all ages, games = a very fun night!

Big Girl Bed

John got his big boy bed at 27 months old, but didn't start successfully sleeping in it till 3-3/4 years, so Mary getting her big girl bed at 23 months is a big experiment. We figured we might as well since she climbs out of her crib and over gates anyway. Our expectations are minimal.

The first night Mary made it till three o'clock in her big girl bed. I knew worry over if Mary was okay would keep me wide awake all night. It took Mary two hours to fall asleep (not crying it out), by which time I was passing out from fatigue. Then when I got up five times in one hour to tend to the needs of both children (John has a nighttime cough right now), that was all I could take. All in all I was awake from two to four, and from then on Mary had to sleep on me, which tells me that she missed me very much. When I tried to scooch even an arm away from her, she said indignantly, "Hey! Stop it! I don't like that!"

I guess five hours in her big girl bed is a success.

Another success is that when John came downstairs this morning, the first words out of his mouth were, "I just love having Mary sleep with me in my room!"

To Laugh or to Cry

Scene: John had been playing Mass with his Mass kit and was now wandering around the play room holding a small wooden crucifix. I don't even remember what I said to cause John to reply: "Mama, do you remember Jesus?"

Mama: "Um, yes."

John: "Do you remember the cross?"

Mama: "Yeah . . ."

John: "Well, that is why you shouldn't speak rudely to me. Jesus doesn't want us to speak rudely."

Does a Catholic mama feel chagrined at being corrected by her three-year-old or does her heart soar with joy at his actually showing some understanding? I think hearts are capable of doing both at once.

More Wasps

First there were the bald-faced hornets above our driveway. Then there were the yellow jackets in an underground nest in our rose bushes. And today: black wasps in our den (see above left).

This afternoon I found one in our den, quickly rushed the children out, and slammed the door. Chris went in right away and killed it with a broom--one of the perks of having a husband who works from home.

Not two hours later, I was reading a book to John in the den when I heard wings flapping (yes, the wings were that big!). I glanced around the room in some panic and saw a second wasp! We rushed out and slammed the door, this time Chris to return after the kids' bed time to kill it.

While he was doing that hit job, wasps 3 and 4 emerged and met their ends. We surmised they were probably coming from the unused chimney, so we opened up the glass doors to have wasps 5 and 6 appear.

Chris killed all six wasps with a broom, sprayed wasp poison up the chimney, sealed the chimney's glass doors with packing tape, and I guess we'll be calling the exterminator tomorrow. It's almost looking like we might as well establish a contract with this nice pest control man, we call him so often!

Escapades

escapade [ˈɛskəˌpeɪd ˌɛskəˈpeɪd]

n

1. a wild or exciting adventure, esp one that is mischievous or unlawful; scrape

2. any lighthearted or carefree episode; prank; romp

This is what happens when you lose sight of Mary for sixty seconds. I'm just grateful that the headline doesn't read: "Diaper-Clad Toddler Escapes Down Street." We were playing in the back yard, Mary fully clothed until she dumped water all over her dress and I decided to let her play without her wet clothes since it was nearly 80 degrees. Our yard wraps around the house such that there are very few vantage spots (none?) where a mama can see all parts of the yard where her children might be, while she sits comfortably in a lawn chair reading a book. I end up having to be on my feet following kids around much of the time we are having outdoor play time (and you can guess how much fun that is when I'm pregnant and aching). Perhaps some have thought I'm over cautious for keeping such a sharp eye out on the kids and calling when I can't see them around the bend, but the above is how I found Mary when she'd been out of my sight for all of sixty seconds. (She also learned how to unlatch the gates a few weeks ago, so she doesn't even need to exert the energy to climb them anymore.)

I was working in the kitchen with Mary when I heard her running back into the room, singing joyfully, "I found it! I found it! Yay yay yay!" She was hauling the stool from the bathroom, which she set up to reach pretzels and salsa I had left on the counter. I was struck that she didn't even bother asking me for help when I was in the same room, and thought it would be easier or more satisfying to go to the effort to get it herself.

She quickly abandoned the pretzels to eat the whole bowl of salsa with her hands. This girl loves spicy food.

When Chris was with the kids all day on Saturday, he reported to me that he'd lost Mary in the house for a couple of minutes. He found her inside the utility room with the cat's litter box (thankfully, not in it). The little stinker did the same thing to me today when we were in the kitchen together. I actually thought I could turn my back on the child--who was in the same room with me--for several whole seconds, and when I turned around she had vanished and would not respond verbally to my calling for her. It was only because of Chris' story that I so quickly thought to check in the utility room. Mary had stealthily and silently climbed through the cat door and was happily standing in there, in the dark.

You'll Have to Try Harder Than That

Good thing we were planning to buy Mary a twin bed imminently anyway, as she now easily climbs over baby gates and out of her crib--simply like the obstacles are nothing! Might as well get her her own big girl bed, not that I have a clue how I will keep her there . . .

Freedom

Is John destined to be a future dictator of the Communist or National Socialist type? Today he found a baby snail and made it a home in a glass jar with soil and leaves. The snail kept trying to climb out of the jar and we gently told John more than once that the snail probably wanted to go home to his mommy and would die in the jar.

He explained patiently: "The snail's freedom is in the jar."

It reminded me of Newspeak from "1984" . . .

Happy Birthday, Chris!

Good morning!

After Mass--as an aside, Mary's like-new Talbot's Kids wool coat (and matching hat) was my major "find" at the recent consignment sale for $12!

Homemade ice cream cake and "Happy Birthday to You . . ."

Daddy Day

Saturday I attended an all-day La Leche League leaders' workshop, so Chris spent the day with both kids. He did such a great job! I know he's doing his job and doing it greatly when he works in his office all day, but that is sort of "invisible," and seeing him have a day with the kids is more visible to me. I was so grateful to be able to focus on my volunteer work today without either child in tow.

The NASCAR track was having a free day for spectators, so Chris took the kids there, then out to lunch, and then to the Equestrian Center, also free. He also took them to the grocery store and I walked in at five o'clock ready to scramble together a dinner and he had cooked dinner too! (Unfortunately, his phone camera was inadvertently set to take very low-data pictures, which is why these are so small.)

Snapshots of Friday

My rule that "food stays in the kitchen" results in Miss Mary often eating breakfast or snack on the dividing line between the kitchen and the den because she wants to be playing in the den, but I tell her that food has to stay in the kitchen. Right up to the edge of the law!

Cooking vegan chili for a LLL conference our chapter is hosting tomorrow (other ladies are cooking the meat batches)--thanks to Harris Teeter and Trader Joe's for the donations!

I finally went over to the dark side: I asked Chris to buy me a portable DVD player. I'm the one who has a DVD player in the ceiling of my van and I've forbidden anyone from telling the children what it is. When John asks, I just say that it has buttons in it that turn on lights (which is true). So far, I have foregone having the kids zone out to movies on our long trips to Atlanta because I know my children and I suspect that I will suffer with them begging for TV every single time we get into the van. But, anyway, it finally dawned on me that I see a difference between the vehicle scenario and getting a portable DVD player for when I take airplane flights. How many airplane flights have I taken across the country by myself with one or both children? And there has never been a movie for them to watch. So we suffer, we try to entertain ourselves, I am exhausted, they are wretched. If I could give them a soporific drug on those flights, I would . . . and I've realized I can! I can give them the zombie drug of our favorite wholesome DVDs played on this ever-so-light DVD player! My plan is that when we're not on an airplane, the player will be hidden away in a closet and forgotten about. But we had to try it out today to see how it works! The kids and I are flying in a couple of weeks, so I will report how blissful the flight is . . .

Picking Pumpkins

Today we picked pumpkins at the cute and perfectly serviceable pumpkin patch on a grassy spot at our local shopping center.

Mary slouches and continues her new tactic of not cooperating with any photos.

Perking up to shriek, "Look! A pumpkin!"

Mary called this one "a biggie guy."

You will not take my photo. I shun you.

The pumpkin patches gives away one free apple per customer. (E---: I know you are horrified at me letting Mary eat hers on the way home. Thank you for still being my friend.) Mary loves fruit, unlike her brother who eats zero fruit. I have to actually watch how much fruit Mary eats because she'll eat so much. For example, today I didn't pay close attention and I now realize she ate two bowls of homemade apple sauce at breakfast, two oranges at mid-day snack, and this gigantic apple in the late afternoon.

I close my eyes to you. You shall not take my picture.

Since Mary won't let me take her photo, I took photos only of my sweet, smiling boy with our pumpkin display.

Cute child!