End of an Era

I remember pouring over all the baby items when we finally learned we were expecting our first baby.  Travel systems, gliders, the crib...

We settled on a pretty wooden crib that we could purchase a matching changing table for.  The table held all of the pretty quilts, bedding, spare wipes, diapers, and bath things, as our first little house didn't have a linen closet.

I remember ordering the crib excessively early.  I was so excited.  I knew we wouldn't need it for months, but I was so glad to get it.  Justin put it up the bedroom beside ours.  The house had originally been a two bedroom, but a previous owner had converted the attic space to two more 'rooms,' though they had neither closets nor doors.  We, of course wanted our newest addition in the room next door.  The light would shine through the two windows, filtered by the trees.

We left that house when Kate was only one, and still using the crib.  We moved it to Alabama, where is sat in a huge room.  She slept in it night and naps...long naps in those days!

Justin was granted a professorship the following fall, and we followed his academic dreams to Kansas.  We set the crib up, this time with Kate's help, to receive a new little baby.  Gabby slept there for nearly two years, just like Kate, when she was moved so the crib would be ready to hold yet another little one.

Nate actually slept in it very little in that house, taking quite some time to sleep through the night, but when we moved to Tennessee he had a nice little room where he slept in it every night.  We were only in that house for a year, giving ourselves time to look around and purchase a house that we could love and call ours.  We set the crib up in a room for him again, and I teased that he would stay in it until he climbed out or went to college.  I didn't make good on that promise, but he did stay in much later than his big sisters.  When we moved him out, for whatever reason, we didn't immediately take the crib down.  It had become part of the background of the house.

Then we found there would be another little one to join our family, and she was able to sleep there too.  Over the past few weeks, we've moved Ellie to a big girl bed, and the crib has finally, almost exactly eleven years from the day we put our first little baby in it, served it's usable life.

So Justin took the tools and pulled that crib apart one last time, but not before I got pictures of the little teeth marks, and scratches that remind me of the little people who have slept there, even if they aren't so little anymore.

Kristy

Harry Potter

NO Spoilers

I was a bit late to the Harry Potter game.  I was never against the books, like some in Christian circles are, fearful of witchcraft and all, as I saw the same fear with The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, which are the opposite of antithetical of Christianity, catch my double negative.  I just was busy starting college, getting married, teaching in a field away from where those fit in.

The year I left teaching, we moved far away from all of our friends, and had no family close by either.  Kate was only one, and took long naps in those days.  I was bored and lonely.  My sister recommended I pick up the books, as  they could fill at least some of those hours.

I checked them out one by one at the nearby library, and read books The Sorcerer's Stone through The Half Blood Prince in quick succession.  I had to wait only for the last book to come out a few months later.

Over time, we've introduced the books to the older three kids.  We had a detailed plan of releasing them one book at a time, but as they grew, specifically Kate, she seemed ready for them more quickly than once a year.  Add to that Gabby was getting teased by Kate, who knew more of the story, and we ended up getting audio books, again from a library, and listened to them all.

They teach lessons about friendship, loyalty, that being a smart girl isn't a bad thing, and the value of self sacrifice.

When The Cursed Child came out, I insisted the kids let me read through it first, knowing that our original wizard friends would be all grown up, but I didn't find the content to move beyond the issues that one might have with the original books.  There is mention of an adulterous relationship (no details given) that I had to explain.

I found that the rich details of scenery and of character development are missing, since this is a play.  And I missed that.  Of course if you're seeing it in a theater, all those things will be on display for you.  The book also read extremely fast because of that.  I was able to read it aloud to the kids in four days, none of them long sittings.

I found the characters were true to themselves and the story, though much more brief than one of the original books, was good.

There were some great lines.  One of our favorites would be a horrible spoiler, so I'll not share it, but the next favorite at our house has been, "Rubbish.  Beautifully put but beautiful rubbish."

So all in all, a good story, even if it was a little threadbare.

One of Those Days

Life has been crazy busy.  Though that seems like it is just life at this point too!  It has had a bit of extra crazy.  We're getting settled into our school year.  I've been running full speed ahead into our American Heritage Girls year, which means budgets, training meetings, planning meetings, parent meetings, board meetings, and getting paperwork together.

Cue yesterday...I'm working on a flier for the fall camp out, printing all sorts of forms,  creating worksheets for school, answering emails to a lady I met at training about how our troop handles various administrative things (as their troop is new), teaching, and I go to throw in some laundry.  Run it.  Go to move it, and find wet clothes in the drier...from Saturday.  I guess I did just ask her to move them, not run it.  Ugh.  Pull those out, go to move the jeans, but those only ran as a small load (as the gal who moved the whites was running a single dress on gentle on Saturday), so now I have two loads to rewash...

There is the gnashing of teeth over math x 3.

I picked up a pork tenderloin on sale this week at the store.  20 minutes the online recipes said (2 different places).  I thought it seemed awfully short, but the internet says so, so it must be true!  Dinner was 30 minutes late.

I run to the bathroom, and find the toilet stuffed with toilet paper...  Roll empty.  I guess we were due.  We've been the parents of four toddlers, and this was a first for us.  It didn't unclog with a plunger, so hopefully Justin will get it cleared later today.

We've had this kind of day before.  And I'm sure they will come again, but hopefully not today!

Kristy

Friday Funny

Nate: (to Ellie) You have the most beautiful pimples.

Kate: That's not very nice!

Nate: (looking confused) Why not?

Me: Dimples.  He means dimples.

Kristy