Running with it

"But I've always wanted a dog," was how the young man had run his idea by us.

All the reasons why he was ready to adopt a pet from a class project. Not just run after lost sheep and other animals to give them a home on two makebelieve farms (his dad's, and the other one's supposedly mine).

It was sweet of younger brother to offer to pay for the food. I took them to buy a slightly better home -- than the original juice bottle (!) the li'l critter had been living in!

That was end last month. And now, because FISH-E has been doing swimmingly well since, Jon is ready to take his pet project to the next phase!


Today (in the picture), our two "men in black" after shovelling snow, have gone fishing. Not fishing fishing in this crazy cold weather. But Black Friday shopping for... FISH!

I'm happy with whatever new fish(es) they come back with. And especially if the pet owner and his two, up to three, able helpers, not counting this mom, will take care of the cleaning and scrubbing, haha! I do have some real cleaning and scrubbing to get back to after trying to play catch-up here! ;p

***

A different errand earlier this month I was happy to run...

Going with Kait to deliver lunch for her brothers in school.
It was the big boy's birthday; Jon happy among his friends, including Tr who gave me a hand with the balloons (just three small ones, not more 'coz big boys may not be as happy/surprised with moms carried away like this), and J who sang him a quick "Happy Birthday"! Just before Jon dug into his fave Panda Express bowl -- mandarin chicken with noodles :).

Turning 10 that day, he wanted me to make a note of him running the one-page classroom newsletter. That was something he also persuaded his teacher to let him do. And I try not to be the one running after him to meet his deadlines (on top of other reminders I have to try and not run out of patience for)!

At home, he frosted his cake for the first time and topped it with some candy from the Halloween loot to spell out J-O-N. It was a pineapple-coconut cake Ben had helped me bake when he missed school.

We managed to have a nice meal outside, too, that second day Vern didn't run late coming back from his work trip. Taking a raincheck though on another idea, as wasn't sure if I could run after a bunch of boys and the younger two children, plus take care of the food and all, by myself while the husband was away.

Still, I guess the best icing on the cake is always being able to spend one's special day with the people you love. Jon is also blessed with the well-wishes from our dear ones back home, including a couple of my old friends who remembered.

May Jon be a blessing to those who know him. Help us Lord, too, as parents to know how to run with our children -- beside them or behind them, as they run with their dreams!

(Among other running around we did earlier, Ben and Kait with me cheered Jon for his Bloomsday training, before Jon ran in this year's America's Kids Run, before the cross-country that Ben also took part in, for which Kait and I continued to give them our support. Jon is looking forward to Bloomsday as his next goal. He loves to read and daydream, too, and is not afraid to dream).

Pictures added to post. 

Last picture: Turkey prep on Thanksgiving Day! I actually drove out in subzero temperatures to get the turkey and stock up on more grocery, the next day after Vern had returned from his work trip and could watch Kait for a bit, rather than for me to drag her out in the deep freeze! It was in fact a busier morning at the supermarket (read: life as usual despite the arctic cold), and I was probably the warmest-clad one there!

"Look, pumpkin!" and Happy Thanksgiving

I forgot about our pumpkin sitting outside the front door.

Now it's covered in frost, and whatever snow that's made its way up the steps -- with help or not from the overnight blizzard!

Strangely, it's school as usual for the boys. Then again, this is NOT St Louis.

The husband was away. I didn't want to drive on the slick roads till he got back.

The tricky part was trudging up the slope to get to the schoolbus.

In that wind, and snow still coming down this morning. In our thick coats and clunky boots.

Jon went ahead while Ben was lagging behind with me, me carrying Kait.

She was crying even after we got back indoors -- stepping out at first and then again after school. Because...

IT IS SOOO COLD, IT BITES!

It was good that Vern eventually flew back one day later tonight, earlier than usual, before subzero temperatures will drop to *gasp* -10F!

Do you know how crazy that is? We are going to find out!

By comparison, Spokane got away with an unusually mild winter last year described as "below average". This year's forecast is "above average". Read: there's going to be more of this ARCTIC COLD... BRRR!!!

Now that we are already into winter, and I am so falling behind in our pictures to download and upload and roll out here, I'm thinking I might as well keep my fave fall picture(s) for Christmas.

Seriously?!

Oh, alright. It is almost Thanksgiving ;p.

From the harvest season...

"LOOK, PUMPKIN!" Kait was happy to draw my attention to every one of those big orange squash she spied with her eye -- outside someone's house,

or at this supermarket...

... More than what she could count with her two hands: "1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 11"! She knows her numbers -- a few at a time, hehe!

And "LOOK OUT!" was what I did NOT have to alert other shoppers to that same day she was out to impress me with her driving skills, yet again. Everybody somehow knew to stay out of our way! Did I mention that it was a humongous cart and she was anything but steering it safely from inside the kid-size cab?!

So it wasn't until another week, another usual grocery trip with me -- and this time I tried to stay one step ahead of my baby, by heaving the pumpkin into the cart first, before we finally brought it home!

Look how mighty pleased she was with it!

In-between, we also made a "pumpkin" princess, and a prince, with construction paper. That was also when Ben who loves to draw, made his own cut-out of a boy -- with arms outstretched and wearing a shirt he had written "Welcome home, Dad" on it. It's stayed on our pantry door since, to welcome Vern back from his weekly work trips going on still.

And "Hippity hop, hippity hop!" went my Li'l Pumpkin -- toting her pumpkin bucket, during her own dry run of the big candy hunt last month...

... before the last leaves have fallen since a couple of weeks ago now!

The li'l girl loves to play with her brothers. She knows a Wookie from an Ewok, and Princess Leia of course, not just how to "clink" lightsabers and popsicles with Jon and Ben since little-r.

Thankfully, she did also get back to clinking rakes with me after joining them in their "LEAF FIGHT!", now turned "SNOWBALL FIGHT!".

As for the boys? They were casting Harry Potter spells on one another, and faster than how fast my fave flying colours have flown off the trees, they'd flown off on their broomsticks! Even before I could bag up those leaves!

Oh, all their childhood memories I will love to bag, too -- not to chuck, but treasure!

Season by season, the biggest joys are often found in the simplest things. That when we stop and gaze, they are there -- Thank You, Lord -- for us to count our blessings.

On a good day or not so great one. Rain, shine, or snow.

Thank you all also for stopping by here to gaze with me, and especially because you care :).

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!

(Kait at 25-27 mos.

Pretend play gets more and more real, going from feeding a plastic dog to walking a ball of wool to imagining nothing as a pooch.

There's the "Look, leaf!" and "Look, pumpkin!", and "Who's that?", "What that?", and "Where?". Or if "I looked everywhere" and she can't find something, she concludes it's "hiding!". The curiosity as well as making associations on her own of what she knows about something she can name or spot also opens up a world of things to play, and stories to enjoy and retell in her own simple words.

Use your words -- we encourage her, but it can be really tricky at this young age. The screams and tantrums can be quite out of this world, too, and I still have not figured out how to wean her. Otherwise, I do really like Kait's "I do!"/"Me, too!"/"Yay, I did it!" enthusiasm).

Amazing Autumn Races

The crowds thickened. And so did the crisp autumn air...
... thick with excitement and anticipation...
Spot Ben (above), among some 800 qualifiers from 34 schools?


That was him alright, with his fingers plugged into his ears, eagerly expecting the races to begin!


Ready, set...


*BANG*!!!

And off they went!

Keep going... Go, guys, go!


And "Go, school name, go!" Kait would shout out the school cheer, too. Always there with me to support her Gor Gors.

The All-City Cross-Country Meet (first three pictures) was the culmination of a good amount of training and two meets at zonal level that both Jon and Ben took part in (rest of pictures), over the last two months.

It was a proud moment when Ben finished sixth among boys his age... never mind that's counting from the back lah! ;p.

That sense of finishing something you start, beyond the adrenaline rush.

Put your best foot forward, that's what counts, yah :).

Cub scouts is the boys' other main extracurricular activity so far this schoolyear. Even then, it has meant racing from one thing to another when activities come together -- and hopefully, I'm not running around like a headless chicken or mother hen with her three chicks!!! The husband is either away on his out-of -town work trips or at work to run around with them. But what's really nice, before the weather has turned from cool to wet to colder now, is that such outdoor activities let the children burn off some of their energies, while I tried to take in more of fabulous fall. 

The boys also enjoyed a first trailblazers' outing their daddy made time to take them one Saturday. And while he's bogged down with work, I'm learning to pace myself also. Go, Kait, go! And Go, mommy, go... 
It was funny yet encouraging when she applied it to cheer me on out of the blue one vacuuming day, when she wasn't skipping around the vacuum cleaner or hanging onto me so much. 

Likewise it tickled and soothed me and what a precious moment it was, when Ben put on his grown-up hat to tell me this, like he knew I needed it to go on after a series of rough moments with the kids: I know how hard it is for you to take care of three of us. I can't even keep up with Kait! 

Of course kids being kids, you hope also that your "Be sensible" reminders to them all the rest of the times don't just go in one ear and out the other, before they've scooted off to play!