How We Discovered Our Roof Leaks

As a similar torrent rages down our front steps, I thought I'd post the video inspired during last month's night of major precipitation. After I video taped the entertaining waterfall off our front steps, Alan and I went upstairs to get ready for bed. While brushing our teeth, we heard the very loud "thwack" of something wet smacking something else wet. We looked at the floor, where a large circle of wet-ness was drawn on the bathroom rug. Then simultaneously, with toothbrushes still in our mouths, our heads turned upward to see a second drip fall from a large circle around the bathroom light fixture. "Oh no............."

It's amazing how one can get such a quick jolt of adrenaline from one drip of water. In a matter of minutes we had the third floor eaves opened, trash cans in place, and were trying to remedy Alan's sinking spirits. The roof is, after all, directly over his studio.

We have roofers coming tomorrow. Why did it take so long? You must not own a home if you have to ask. Estimates alone take time to get. And in between we even tried a few "friends of friends of friends" who turned out to be, well, not OUR friends.

All of it makes the picture book "It's Raining, It's Pouring" come SO much more alive when reading to the girls! :)

(P.S. Are you impressed with my Frank Lloyd Wright allusion in the video?)

I want to make this!

The door at the bottom of our stairs has a huge window and the lace curtain is falling apart. Plus, lace isn't really "us." Alan found this idea online. He likes it because it looks cool and modern, and I like it, of course, because it gives new life and purpose to something old.

I could slowly transfer Dad's slides to CDs and make these window shades one slide tray at a time. If I had the time. And the right drill. And the little chain mail links. But I can still dream!

Happy Birthday, Little Brother!

Today is Jon's birthday. Being only two at the time, I don't remember anything about the actual day he was born, but I've been told I hid behind the curtains when Mom and Dad brought him home from the hospital and reverted back to diapers after being potty trained.

In spite of that rough start, I've come to like him an awful lot.

They came over last night and joined a group of Bisset cousins for a last-minute potluck. Unfortunately, I could not find my camera and have no pictures of the party. But it was great. Courtney even put Swedish Fish around the cake.

There was also no lack of laughter and wit (thanks to these witty people to whom I'm related and their witty spouses. It is quite entertaining.) One of my favorites was hearing of Darcy's plan to attend the "Rally to Restore Sanity" next month in D.C. Her sign is going to read something like, "I love Jesus but I have no idea how He feels about health care reform." I love these people, especially my little brother. Happy birthday, Jon.

Things I Will Miss Someday

1. Well-loved ("real" if you're a Velveteen Rabbit fan) animals wearing Barbie tutus as veils.

2. Roller skates (and bike helmets) doubling as stuffed toys' strollers and car seats.

3. Random stickers in random places (I'm refusing to remove them just yet.)

4. All the 2nd floor pillows piled at the bottom of the stairwell as a landing pad for sliding.

Typo

Yesterday I took a really nice group of RVR volunteers on a horse back ride to thank them for their efforts. It was a GORGEOUS day. At the ride's end, I handed out a flier of upcoming needs for volunteering, which included varying blocks of time helping at October's weekend Maizefest.

An hour later, I got a call on my cell phone from one of the older ladies who'd been on the ride. "Tina," she said sheepishly, "I don't think you should hand out any more of those fliers."

"Really? Why?" I said.

"Well, there's a typo. You've left the letter 'f' out of the word 'shift.'"

Cousin Camp

Somewhere along the line I forgot to post pictures of our August 2010 Cousin Camp. Jon & Courtney and we have been sharing this all-cousin sleepover since Anna & Evelyn were the only two cousins, and I can't believe how easy it's gotten. No diapers, no high chairs, and everyone can pretty much dress himself or herself and take care of most other personal needs independently. All that's left for the grownups is the planning, supervision, and general fun-support.

We basically did a sugar-packed day (Dunkin Donuts is one of the many places to which we can walk from our house, and we made the most of it) followed by a beach-packed day at a local river to burn it all off. You can see for yourself how perfect the Hammerman Area of the Gunpowder State Park is for kids of this age.

"Cousin Camp" will likely morph into plain-old sleepovers now--and a true "Cousin Camp" will have to become something a little more elaborate, like taking them all camping in tents, or road-tripping together to the farm in ND. Or maybe not. Calling ANY cousin sleepover "Cousin Camp" has a very special ring to it.

Shelley's Birthday, More State Fair

It was nice to celebrate Shelley's b-day here Labor Day weekend. Her sisters, Stacey & Sarah drove down (2 of her sisters are now on the East Coast!), joined by Jon & Courtney & the kids and my parents. Very nice. Check out the AWESOME chocolate layer cake Stacey ("I don't really bake") made. It passed all the Kennedys-who-love-chocolate test perfectly.

We hung out all day long and even tried to walk to a local place to eat, but found them all either too crowded, too pricey, or too not-quite-kid-friendly. So Jon & Courtney spotted everyone a Chick-fil-A coupon and we ended the day there. Too fun. (Jon & Courtney are people who do that camp-out-at-the-new-chick-fil-A-and-win-52-free-meals thing...pretty cool, eh?) The best part was sharing in one another's lives and getting to know each other more. Wish I had more pictures, and I'm grateful for the ones Courtney took and posted on FB.

The girls just love the State Fair. They petted baby chicks, milked a cow, and rode favorite rides (Amelia's: the little motorcycle featured here; Evelyn's: a hang-gliding ride where you're strapped in lying on your belly and go swooping up and down. She was barely tall enough.)

I added the video of the swing ride because I still can't believe BOTH my kids are old enough to be riding it. My, time sure does fly.

The Girls Take on the State Fair

For the second year in a row, Mom and the girls and I went to the State Fair on Labor Day. The all-you-can-ride bracelets were, as always, a hit, and this year I kept count--if we'd paid for the tickets individually, it would have cost FOUR times as much.

I'm bummed I don't have any pics of all of us, especially of Mom, who braves the noise, the crowds, the interesting socio-cultural mix, and doesn't even really like rides herself, but has a blast watching her grandkids buzz wildly from the Crazy Chopper to the Cliff Hanger to the Fun House and all over again.

Last year we got ice cream at the Fair, but this year it was so crowded we couldn't even walk in a straight line, let alone STAND in line waiting forever for ice cream. So we went to Friendly's, where Mom and I sneered at the ridiculous thing that passed as a sundae for us to share--it was served in this tall, soda-fountain style glass that was so thick it held about a scoop and a half. We decided NEXT year after the fair, we'll just buy a container at the grocery store and sit around it in the back yard with spoons. That should make a nice memory!

The video nicely captures our girls' personalities. They are each riding solo in separate tea cups. Try playing the "who's who" game as you watch. :)

More Firsts

Amelia started pre-K this morning (half-days, 5 days a week.) We dropped Evie off at Tunbridge, listened to "Annie" in the car on the way to Calvary, walked in together, put her book bag in its cubbie, and put her folder in its place. Then she ran to me, clung, and cried. Oh dear. My heart melted, of course. She and I put her name up on the attendance chart together, then the gray-haired aide came over, sat down, took my little daughter into her lap, and I snuck away as Amelia leaned into her shoulder. I walked out, got into my car, and yes, cried a little.

On a lighter note, last night as we were starting the bedtime routine, Evelyn was pulling down her pants to sit on the john when I noticed that the seat was up. I called out to her--too late. She sat down. All the way down. Entire-backside-in-toilet-water down.

So last night turned into bath night. It was probably for the best. I'll have to post the pictures soon of Grandma, the girls and me storming the Maryland State Fair yesterday. I'm sure Grandma took a nice bath last night, too. :)

On a spiritual note...

...I took the girls to the NCR trail this evening to ride our bikes. It was just shy of a fiasco, with Evelyn's chain popping off every three minutes. She got frustrated (who wouldn't?!?), and talked Amelia into switching bikes. Ev's bike is too big for Amelia, of course, so as Ev rode off into the sunset, I rode up behind Amelia tried to pull off a smooth move. Did I really think I could push her bike while still riding mine?!? Instead, I collided with her, bumped her over, and became entangled with her trying to stop her fall with my leg as we both fell. A kindhearted dog-walker untangled my poor, screaming child from our bikes and helped me up as I scanned the horizon for my first born.

When we caught up to Evelyn, we switched the bikes back to the right girls, and as we rode on, Evelyn suddenly yelled over to me, "Mommy, I prayed to God that He would help me have a good attitude and it worked!" I told her she'd reminded me that I have to pray for a good attitude, too. Whew.

And the pictures? They are of Amelia's dollhouse church service. Note the woman preacher and her crazy, spirit-filled hairdo. :)

First Week of School!

I want to thank all of you who've been such encouragements to me over the question of school for the girls. The Lord has used your e-mails, prayers, and phone calls to remind me to trust Him and continually put our children in His hands.

This week Evelyn started Kindergarten at the Tunbridge School, a brand-new charter school 15 minutes from us. The school's focus is health and fitness, and she has lots of movement throughout the day. She looks adorable in her uniform--a school t-shirt paired w/black athletic shorts.

She says she likes it (although I never quite get her lunch right--it's usually "too short," which means it doesn't take her very long to eat it), and she's made some new friends (all boys.) She had an embarrassing moment in art class when she drew a picture of herself with last year's boyfriend, Isaiah, and the class giggled when she explained it to them. I told her kids often giggle when they hear about boyfriends and girlfriends, although I did feel a tweak in my heart for her.

Tunbridge starts at pre-K, and Amelia is currently #5 on the waiting list. We are hoping at some point this school year she will gain entrance, and until then, she is attending the same school we sent them to last year, and will be in the half-day pre-K at Calvary Lutheran, with the same teacher that Evelyn had last year. It's worked out well for her to be in a familiar place, and if she has to switch in the middle of the year, she'll at least be familiar with Tunbridge through the daily drop-offs of Evelyn. Plus, she'll know her sister is there.

Tunbridge uses a curriculum that promotes peace and wellness physically, emotionally, and socially, so there is a lot to like about the way they are learning to think about and interact with one another. There is a lot of positive reinforcement and praise, and I look forward to volunteering now and then to get a peek at it in action.

One thing I think about as my kids get older and move more and more out of the small circle of our family is how they are understanding and (hopefully!) owning their own faith. I read Bible stories with the girls each morning and we pray together--usually with some eye-rolling and heavy sighing (they'd much rather turn on the TV immediately!), and I am conscious as I interact with them to be overt in expressing my own decision-making processes, sharing prayers aloud, and talking openly about the Lord and His truths.

In a strange way I look forward to facing those inevitable circumstances with Evelyn and Amelia--as they realize that not everyone believes in Jesus or even God; that not everyone believes in "asking Him into your heart," or in eternal life. At some point we as believers step out of the comfort zone of people thinking we are "nice" or "wholesome" to where they think we are over-the-top or just plain weird.

And that's where love comes in. That's where I rest in the love of Jesus for me, and pray that I will love others in a way that will prove more than mere words ever could--that God is not only real, He's personal, and He longs for us to be close to Him.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate the thoughts and counsel of those of you who've gone before us in the parenting process and are on the other side (or in the midst!) of these same experiences. It makes for good fellowship and GREAT encouragement.

Who knew the first week of school would elicit such thoughts?!?