Kaleb, my almost fourteen year old son, came to me with pleading eyes and his request brought me to tears. "Please Mom, can Daniel come with?" Daniel is five and his brother Kaleb is his hero. I know Kaleb loves Daniel, but his thoughtful consideration was still surprising. I couldn't believe how much he really wanted Daniel included in his upcoming birthday outing to the city. Jeff and I were skeptical whether Daniel could handle the full day including Shakespeare in the park, but Kaleb would have none of our hesitation. "Please -- he would love it and he has never come." I understand when he pleads for a few more minutes for Daniel's bedtime, so he, Ben, and Dan can play baseball together, but this one seemed pretty unselfish. It seemed almost more important to Kaleb that Daniel enjoy Kaleb's birthday celebration than Kaleb enjoy it-- or that Kaleb would get such enjoyment from watching Daniel's first experience in the city... It did my mom's heart good. Daniel, for his part, would be joined at the hip with his older brother. I laugh today as Daniel spends his free time walking back and forth on the lawn keeping Kaleb company mowing even though they can't even talk over the sound of the mower. And he begs to go to every baseball game Kaleb plays. When I was young at my brother's games I don't think I glanced at the field even once, but Daniel could give a play by play account of both the game and his brother's every move. I know it is typical for the younger brother to want to tag along, but I love that the older brother delights in the younger's company.
Then again today Ben wants to use his money to buy catcher's stuff so he can play and help Kaleb learn to pitch better. As I was breaking the news to him that tax would add quite a bit to an already expensive purchase, Kaleb comes bounding down the stairs and says he wants to contribute so Ben can have what he wants. Yes, these brother's have their moments, but the overarching care for each other is a beautiful thing.
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Ben is quieter about it, but he sure knows what he wants. After receiving a letter from his cousin, he followed me around asking about spelling and can I have an envelope and will you help me address this? I love how he plays with Dan in a mostly gentle and joking way, and they love to be together. Ben joins the olders in their playing and rollicking chats in the evening, but he is also quite comfortable as the ringleader of the littles when the olders go off to co-op and speech and debate on Thurs. and Fridays. All the littles love the attention of their brother Ben. My favorite is to catch him sneaking up to one year old Sarah and making her laugh. Kyra works at so many things with dedication and zest. She is diligent, focussed, and thoughtful. It is really funny to see her expressions even in the mundane moments of life and to watch her work at editing a video or practicing her speech -- Ransom of Red Chief. She puts so much heart into her dramatic endeavors and works hard at other subjects she is not as fond of. It gives me joy to see her using her time well. Claire and Maddie have taken to lobbying her to spin her magical story webs for them, especially when they have their neighbor friends over. She keeps them entranced. Kaleb has baseball on the brain these days, and as well he should. He has waited long and prayed hard for an opportunity to play on a team. Now the time is coming and he, in his Kaleb way, is persistent about when we can get him gear, turn in his registration, etc. And does playing baseball mean he can't have a season pass to Great America? I am also noticing this week his sensitivity to the moods and concerns of his friends. He is super aware and caring of the emotions of those around him. Kaleb loves words and uses them in ways that amuse us. This week he proclaimed that doctors can not block our sebaceous glands much to the dismay of teenagers everywhere. I am delighting in watching the joy Koryn takes in so many of her favorite activities. We all know she loves to read, but these days she's also been loving writing, debating, talking politics, asking questions, and pressing hard after the worthy activities she so enjoys. I have been gratified to see her delighting in the perspectives of several good books she's been reading recently such as Heaven, Blink, and Do Hard Things. Sometimes it's hard to get a word in edgewise, but she presses on with funny or pithy insight we inevitably enjoy. As in so many good family projects, she's the engine behind this blog.
Not only does Dad earn the bread to buy the bread for all these hungry mouths, but first thing Sun. morning, he takes the boys and some littles shopping. Strange occurrences at the store-- many items jump into his cart without him knowing or even giving consent. It is highly provoking. You might think I'm referring to little children sneaking, but no - it is Dad's alter ego that does the dismal deed. Amazingly, these are things that would never make it into mom's cart; stuff chock full of sugar and unpronounceable ingredients. When he gets home, he is inevitably unsure how it happened and endures my loud complaints. Then, he helps unload, feeds the kids lunch, takes a family walk, and settles the heated arguments of who is to be attached at his hips. Sadly, he has only two, but gladly has some time on the walk to switch off the coveted space right next to Dad to talk and laugh with him. This is good as he has spent much of the morning admonishing kids to stick to their work and "listen to mom". After our walk he oversees rest time, a variety of other chores and plays ball with Dan, insisting to a reading Koryn that they will only stop their near misses to her head when they bean her good. After that, he needs be late for dinner as he is attending to a client. This being Sun. I don't have to endure the loud wails that accompany the announcement that Dad will be late as they have satisfied some of their unending desires for time with Dad. Then he spends another hour giving feedback and modeling for their interpretation speeches as he's the one from whom they take most of their creative gifts. For the high drama in our house, I definitely blame him. Then comes the few remaining hours of the day for him to plan for his busy week. Fortunately for my hardworking husband this includes a vacation to Mexico where I am very much looking forward to revelling in my turn with Dad.
My eyes open in the morning and first thing my mind races to the piles that need to be clean. With all the house refinishing, it feels like we are just shifting messes from one room to another. If only these thoughts that swirl first thing in the morning actually accomplished getting the task done... No, we really have to get up and work, and usually I am doing the directing. The problem is I often try to direct and clean and cook and field disagreements, questions, ideas all at the same time. It is a lot when nothing extra is happening. And really huge the past few months of redoing so much of the house. I have to remind myself to stop spinning and look those sweet kids in the eyes. To enjoy each of them. To take questions and tasks one at a time and finish what I am starting. I try to do too much at once and get impatient. Then, when I fall in bed at night, I get to replay the precious moments -- Sarah, who clicks and kisses and copies, who has just begun to crawl and mess in earnest. Pulling garbage from the can and eating bits of food from the bottom of the dishwasher. She is in trouble as fast as we can chase her. Mick always has a funny thing to say. "I can handle it mom" he tells me today as he carries a big doll bed from one room to another. It was nap time for him which he interpreted to mean set up dolls and dinosaurs and blocks, and he got upset when others came up to listen in the room he set aside for his menagerie. "Oh no" he told Dad. "Mom said I can be alone" which he extrapolated from my permission to set up his animals... He loves making up stories and going to "buy" me different flavored kisses and hugs and bites. Strawberry, chocolate, and even crouton flavored. Today, when the wheels of his trike stopped spinning because of a too tight screw, he announced that he needed to "fill the tires" and when he couldn't find our pump, walked over to neighbor Ernie's to get the job done. It was a half hour later that I realized the wheels weren't spinning and that was his best and only idea for how to fix the bike. As Kaleb says, he is from the cute batch! Dan is listening with understanding to stories in earnest and really catching on to more than we would think. He's glommed on to Lad: A Dog --"well, well,well, How's Zat" was his favorite line from our current read-aloud about Lad's friendship with Zat the bird. He's so proud he can write his numbers and never minds that they're backwards. He's taken to playing football with himself and a foam ball in the living room. That is -- if he can't find a brother to play with at the moment. He's so spoiled with someone to play with all the time that it's taken him this many years to figure out how to play alone for a couple of minutes without loudly complaining how lonely he is. At points during the day, I will tease him and he flashes his trademark crooked smile sometimes rolling that little cute tongue. Madelyn has a plan every moment of the day -- what to play, what to read, ideas for her birthday and of course, what treat we should have. Her sweet smile has four front teeth missing. I don't remember another child with that big a garage door in front. And she is the first child to get a visit from tooth fairy Ned. The lumbering, bumbling fairy earned full-fledged tooth fairy status because dear Madelyn requested his visit. Our normal tooth fairy Sparklejuice happily stepped aside for this momentous occasion. Claire has so much expression for everything. In the middle of our busiest time of the week -- unloading groceries, she puts her two hands on my shoulders with an idea that I "must say yes to". Which is to start a business whereby she, Madelyn, and Daniel pick up neighbors sticks for the low low price of $5. I didn't have the heart to tell her that not all people have been as busy as we have, and they already picked up their sticks from the wind storm which happened four weeks ago. Koryn saved the day and offered to chaperone, and they asked one person before they noticed there was not much business to be had. Point is, Claire's earnest face and pleading eyes -- carrying out her plan was necessary for the blood to keep flowing through her veins. There is nothing lukewarm about Claire. Claire joyfully takes it upon herself to "do school" with Mick and Dan. The minute she learned to read which of course she does quite expressively, she has delighted in the the job of reading, teaching and playing with the boys for about an hour every day.
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