Asherism.

Yesterday Asher announced to me in a very matter of a fact way, "Mom, call my friends right now and tell them that I am changing my name to Miego."

My response, "Why?!!"

"It's just not fair and it makes me really sad that Cora gets to rhyme with Dora so I'm changing my name to I can rhyme with Diego."

And he walked away.  And I didn't call his friends.

In which I get on a soap box about Valentines Day.

Yesterday was marvelous!!  The kids and I had a fantastic day and Jesse was able to pull away from the craziness at his office with tax season to spend the evening with us. 

I spent a bit of time on facebook yesterday and as we were out and about I listened to conversation around me.  I read posts about being lonely, about being without a boyfriend/girlfriend, about not receiving presents from a boyfriend, posts about being depressed and loathing Valentines day. I heard people complain about the stupid Americanized holiday forcing people to love (it was a dramatic conversation), I read about dates people went on leaving their children with baby-sitters.

Oh I pray that my beautiful girl and handsome boy never feel that way so many people do on Valentines Day.

I woke to sleepy eyes and excited children to celebrate Valentines day.  Any reason to celebrate around here.  We add food coloring to cream of wheat according to the color attached to the holiday.  When that box of cream of wheat comes out my kids know its a freaking holiday! Add some whipped cream and sprinkles to a vanilla steamer and it's even better!

I grew up with a Mom that loved holidays.  She instilled in me to make things fun, to celebrate and make traditions whenever possible.  It's was overwhelming to Jesse when we first got married, he felt a need to remember all the traditions and if you didn't grow up in our family you would need a handbook to know them all.  It's awesome to have so many memories and I attribute that to all the traditions my mom created.  I'm determined to do the same thing for my children.  I never once in my life loathed or even disliked a Valentines Day.  It was a reason to celebrate, a treat to go out to eat or to cook a fancy meal, gifts were shared, cards were given and it was awesome. 

*Daddy left the kids notes and treats in little mail boxes to start the day.

 Here is where I get crazy......I think that parents should spend Valentines Day with their kids.  I think a date can be scheduled for another night.  America makes a big deal about this holiday.  Jewelry goes on sale, flower prices double, restaurants have specials, there is an expectation to give gifts, to get gifts, to have a date, to fall more in love on this day.  And I think it's a lot of pressure.  Mostly pressure for young single people (and our kids will one day fall into that category).  If we all spent this day loving our family, loving our kids, loving our parents, loving our friends, there would be a lot more quality love.

*New outfits for the day!  Asher happened to really need a few things and Cora needed a sweatshirt and then I found this skirt for 5.00.  I held off on the gift for a week so I could turn it into a present.

It was a joy to spend time with my kids yesterday.  They loved all the little things we did.  Next year I'll go to Asher's school and bring lunch, I'll keep bringing out that box of cream of wheat, I'll look for little gifts on sale, I won't spend crazy amounts of money but many my kids will feel loved and they will enjoy this little holiday. 

 We ended the evening at one of our favorite pizza spots.  A little pizza, salad, and coke to end the night.  We have gong there the last 3 Valentines. The wait is long so we open a little gift for entertainment and we bring quarters from their piggy banks to play a few video games.  It's a tradition.  Our kids love it.  Jesse and I love it.  Last night I was delighted to see other families enjoying the night out together.  It's the best way to spend Valentines.  Our kids are our little Valentines, it's the best for them, it's the best for our families, it's the best for our hearts. 

Happy Valentines Day!!  Squeeze your Valentines tight!!!

Good-bye sucks.

Yesterday, one of my best friends, a friend for 11 years, moved away.  Her husband has a job in North Dakota and for 7 months he has been away from his wife and two boys.  Their family is beyond ready to live together again.  But, it's loss for me, it's loss for my boy since his best friend has moved away.  And so for us it sucks.

11 years ago I worked at a church in Missoula, it's the same church we attend now, I was working with Youth in our church.  The current pastor of our church and I worked together at the time.  He called me up and said he had some school stuff to do and asked if I would hang out with his sister.  And an hour later Booba ended up at my door.  I thought it would be fun.....and she hardly spoke a word.  She was tiny and shy and very quiet but slowly she opened up and now I call her one of my closest friends.  And she is not shy....she can dance and sing like no other, just ask my kids, she is hilarious and loud.  She is awesome.

I watched her fall in love with her husband, she watched me fall in love with mine.  Beau is awesome....I've seen bits and pieces of him I don't think many other people have and for that I'm grateful.

I stood outside the hospital room door with her brother and heard her push this little guy out....oh his first cries were magical!

I have now fed this little guy lots of food. He's not all that little.

 Booba and I have joked from the beginning of our boy's lives that they will be each others best men in their weddings.  They really are best buddies.

Asher wrote Hunter a card.  He spoke and I wrote.  These were his words:

Hey Hunter- I love you Hunter, I'll miss you. I want you to have a bunch of fun at North Dakota.  I want you to have a good home. Don't forget the cool guy thing.  Your one of my best friends. You like playing basketball. ~Asher

We all get it that they need to be together as a family.  But it still sucks.

We lived together when I was in college, we shared clothes, we ate English Muffins with coffee and vanilla creamer every morning.  We were totally dorky.  Our favorite thing to do was trick Beau, and we were mean.  Really mean.  I feel embarrassed by some of the things we did.  

We took a drama class together and we thought we were AWESOME.  Actually, we were awesome and we let it get to our heads.

 We were pregnant together.  And I let her watch my birthing video.  And you don't let many people watch a video of you giving birth on a big screen.  That's friendship.

I was 2 weeks away from giving birth here people, give me a break.  Hunter was a bit horrified by my large belly. 

We've been together for parenting milestones like first hair cuts!  Beau and Booba lived for us for a time when they were building a house.  6 of us in our little 3 bedroom house.  Our younger kids had their first nights away from Mama at each others house.  For a season Cora preferred Booboo as she called her over me.

I think I still have the hair from this first hair cut.

 

We have a lot of trick or treating together under our belt.....

I was in wreck when I was 7 months pregnant with Cora and I couldn't walk and Booba came and took care of me and Asher and made me latte's.

 I love my friend.  My boy loves his friend. Cora loves her friend soy-boy. Since we don't have cable Booba DVR'd trashy TV for me like Sister Wives and other TLC junk.  We would let the kids destroy the house and we watched TV.  No one can replace that! Not to mention Booba is an encourager, always willing to help and bless us.  I can't imagine my little life without my friend.  I can't imagine not watching her boys grow and change.  It leaves a burning feeling in my heart.

But more than not being able to be with my friend, I can't imagine them living split up as a family, the boys away from their Daddy.  They are making the right move.  And even though it sucks for us, 10 hours is a drive we can do in a day, we are both great on the phone so we can call and soon Skype will enable our boys to see each other.

I love you dear friend!  We love you Hart family.  But still, good-bye sucks.

She really loves the Griz! :)

Baby - the weekend delivered.

The weekend delivered. Saturday night was the "Father, Daughter, Daddy" dance as Cora called it.  Daddy and Cora had a date and my little guy and I went on a date.  It was awesome.

There is something about Daddy's taking their little girls on a dates.....it's the excitement of the girl, it's the being treated liked a princess and praying that she always feels that value, that importance from the men in her life, it's the beauty she feels, it's the special moments like these that bond a Daddy and her girl.

Cora was delighted to get her hair curled, to pull out her fancy dress, to put on a little make-up, to wear Mama's perfume.  For weeks she has been telling everyone including strangers that she was going to a "father, daughter, daddy dance."  There has been build up and expectation and the event delivered!

It was magical.

Cora danced her heart out, or so I'm told.  

The carnation corsage, sat by her bed for two nights, and today she pulled it out of the garbage can and placed it back on her bedside table.  She held it and looked at if for a long time.  She didn't say anything to me, but I won't be throwing that away again.   It's a piece to her magical night.

* A few of her 50 favorite things accompanied her for the car ride.

After they pulled away, Asher I were off.  We have been talking about our date for awhile.  I thought my guy would have picked McDonalds and a movie but when I asked him what he wanted to do his answer was a fancy restaurant, the mall to buy each other something, then an art gallery downtown.  Wow.

And so my guy and I headed to a "fancy" restaurant.  We ate edamame, shared an entree, played tic tac toe, talked and dreamed of life, I unplugged completely from the world (except to check a text from Jesse on an update about their date) and soaked up my guy.

This particular restaurant brings a platter of dessert options to your table.  Asher could hardly wait.  I wanted to convince him of a small dessert, one that was in our budget, but he picked out the chocolate trio....the most expensive dessert on the tray.  I tried to steer him otherwise, but his big brown eyes kept looking from the waiter to me, to the waiter to me, and I was a goner.  It was a look of such desire, not begging, but deep wishing and longing.  There are moments to teach frugality and there are moments when you make wishes happen and it was one of those moments.

Asher consumed as much dessert as his little body could, and then he said, "we have to get a to go box mom, this is too good to waste." We ended the night with a beta fish purchase.  It's been a wish of Asher's for awhile now.  Asher named the fish, Cool Beta Barnes.  At the end of our night, when we were a family of four again, we sang with our kids and tucked them in.  Both were so happy and felt so important.  I kissed Asher goodnight and asked what his favorite part of the night was.  His answer, "All of it, and I love my new fish and I love that I just knew his awesome name right away, he is just awesome," long pause, "I wonder if I should have named him awesome."

Man my kid rocks.  

We said good-bye to some of our best friends this weekend as they head off on an adventure.....more on that tomorrow.

A new family member.

No, I'm not pregnant!  But we do have a new member of our family and she will be in many pictures I'm sure....she is with us all the time.  On Christmas Eve Cora opened a present from Grandma Suzanne, Papa Jim and Grandma Pat.  We could hardly wait for her to open this gift.  There were two cameras, two video cameras and a number of cell phones! Her response, "I love dis!"

Meet Baby Coco!  She is an American Girl Bitty Baby and she makes our little girl a Mama.  She comes in our car, to every place we go, we all rock her, Cora nurses her and sleeps with her every night.  It is so fun to watch! 

Her cheeks are so red, she was exhausted I think she finally opened the present at 10:30.  Cora got the starter kit full of accessories! She loves the little bear!  Auntie Monz gave her the other little doll in her arms.  Cora named her Africa.  Africa sleeps with her every night too!

Thanks Grandma Suzanne and Papa Jim!!  You made Cora so happy!

More moments.....

Those moments I want to remember?  Well here are a few more.......

 Here is an excerpt from our family Christmas letter.....

We just returned home from cutting down our Christmas tree with our wonderful friends.  This is our 8th year of this tradition.  We started out young married couples and now between us we have 11 children.  The calm laid back tree cutting has a whole new meaning between loosing gloves, jackets that need to be zipped, and boots that have fallen off deep in the snot but it's a tradition!  Today I looked around at the moment and took a mental snapshot.  Our children are laughing, sledding, cutting down small trees for their rooms, words over presents desired are shared and I'm happy because we have wonderful friends, our children have wonderful friends and we are happy in this beautiful Montana winter land.

i

Moments of setting up our trees!  The kids had one for their room this year.  Our house was full of so much excited energy as we put up the tree, Jesse and I trying to beat out the other one by saying, "look at her," "look at him," "do you see his face," "can you believe her excitement," it was a battle of the parents we were stinkin' lovin' life that day.

The cast of characters......

*yes she wears sun skirts during the winter, she is spirited!

Moments of Asher singing at church......and 30 plus Mama's firing their cameras off, it was like a strobe light going off!  Children squinting their eyes, looking out to see their parent watching them beaming with pride.....I have one shot.  This Mama's camera died.  Thank goodness for a desperately needed new battery under the Christmas tree!

Thank goodness we had Asher's first pre-school program to attend!  I had a well charged battery and Asher brought a large crowd of supporters!  He was so proud of his work....songs, poems, and a special gift he made for us wrapped with paper full of his hand prints in red and green paint.  This Mama was beaming!

Daddy and Cora eager to watch.

Moments to remember.....seeing Grandma Suzanne in the audience...oh he was proud that people were there to watch....he couldn't wait to throw his arms around her!

And my favorite moment of the day?  The proud little sister who kept telling Asher how great he did, even hours after we left pre-school.  Sibling love is amazing!

What great moments in our little family.....captured by my camera, remembered in my mind, and stamped on my heart.  Oh I love this family of mine!