Minnesota is Heaven, But Virginia is Home

Even though she still has school this week, Annika had her preschool graduation this past Sunday. Hans shot this picture--we tried to put William into the nursery, but he cried so brokenheartedly that one of the attendants came to get me just before the service began. I spent the next hour and a half tailing him around the church grounds, then back into the building, then back out on the grounds, then onto the preschool playground. It was very hot and very sunny and we were both kind of a sweaty mess by the time church finally let out, but strangely enough, I had fun chasing Will around, just him and me on a beautiful, peaceful Sunday morning. So, now that she's graduated, is it time for her to move out and get a job?

After Jack Hanna's Amazing Animal Show Even better than paying $18.95 for theme-park hats: taking pictures and then putting the hat back Josiah (in the middle) In a rare moment of solidarity, Annika becomes Josiah's wingman What a face! We were trying to catch him with that stub of fruit stick in his mouth--he looked like Winston Churchill...or possibly Hannibal Lunch at the German pavilion We went to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg on Friday and we had a fabulous time! We all agreed that we had more fun at BG than we did at Disneyworld back in February. For starters, we got in for free--Anheuser-Busch is fantastic about giving active-duty military free tickets to their theme parks. I know that the fact that we didn't have to pay for the tickets (which would have been around $220 for the day) really helped. I didn't feel like we had to get there early and stay late and wring every last dime out of the experience because we didn't pay for it. That pressure was gone...

A few pictures from Josiah's gift-opening extravaganza on 5/19...cake eating/candle blowing out pictures are on Hans' iPhone, so I'll have to wait until he downloads those pictures to add them to this entry. Josiah chose his cake flavor--vanilla, and chocolate buttercream frosting. He helped me mix up the cake and frost it and then I let him lose with the red and blue frosting and red, white and blue sprinkles. His cake reminded me a lot of the cake Annika made with Jodi: able to cause cavities just by looking at it! Josiah wanted to make it look like an American flag--that was the plan, but we figured out it would have worked better with vanilla frosting. Oh well, there's always next year and hundreds of other flags to try!

I tell my kids all the time that the best food on earth is food that you harvest yourself and eat shortly thereafter (if not right there in the field). Let's just say that when it comes to Annika and strawberries, my point has been driven home! These pictures are from a couple of weeks ago, but we went again today and picked strawberries and sugar snap peas. I used the strawberries to make Hans a strawberry-rhubarb crisp--I've never been a big fan of the strawberry-rhubarb collaborative, but I have to say--that crisp is awesome. I brought the bucket of peas out on the porch and sat and shelled what felt like 1,021,320 of them to get what amounts to a 1/2 cup of peas, but dang--those were the best peas I've ever eaten!

May 20, 2004 - Josiah's first trip to Target May 21, 2004 - 2 day checkup Ditto Oh, the number of pictures I could post here of Josiah and his seven years on earth, but I'll settle (and I hope you will too) for a few from his very first days with us. I was thinking this morning about what an amazing kid he is...he was easy from the start, just a happy, easy-going baby who became a happy, easy-going toddler. He was so easy that he fooled me into believing I was ready for Annika a mere 21 months later! Well, to be fair to Annika, she was a very easy baby too with the exception of a little colicky-ness for a couple of weeks... My children are so special to me, but Josiah has that extra hold on my heart as my firstborn. Having him in my arms and in my life made everything complete. I remember those early days and months quite clearly. Hans was gone a lot with the ship or working long hours and so most days it was just Josiah and me. He was more than my child, he was a companion ...

We tried a different church on Sunday. Backtrack: I had been going to a nearby Lutheran church and while I love the service, the pastors, the people (many of them transplanted Midwesterners who understand the mindset of a Minnesota Lutheran) and everything about the church, there is one small problem: they don't have a nursery. They have a "quiet room"...a glassed in room, like a fish tank that juts out into the church. Nothing like feeling like a zoo animal while trying to concentrate on a Psalm, you know? And trust me, it was a zoo in there. I think the Lord probably appreciates the trouble that we go to to get our children to church, but I was getting nothing out of the service between chasing William, prying other kids' toys out of his hands and attending to the myriad needs of two bored older kids. It's so hard because being Lutheran is just part of my blood. I can't imagine trading my faith. Lutheranism is something I find a great deal of comfort in. I ...

One thing I've learned about myself: I really am most comfortable when life is in a routine. Another thing I've learned about myself: Sometimes it's good to go outside the routine and leave the laundry for tomorrow. I'm writing this post from a place of sheer exhaustion. I can't complain about my kids' sleep habits...they have been excellent sleepers overall. Annika and Will were both sleeping through the night around 3-4 months. Josiah, a little later but that was because he is my first and I was sure that letting him cry it out would destroy his little spirit. Oh, what we learn and apply the second and third times around... Anyway, back to the point, which is hard to come by because my brain isn't quite firing on all cylinders this morning. William woke at some point in the night (I don't have an alarm clock because (a) I don't need one; and (b) any sliver, chink or ray of light in the ultra-dark room keeps me awake (I'm delicate that way)...I ...