Mama-luia

The other day, I was out buying the last of the school items with the kids -- new pencil cases. (But... don't the older two still have theirs from last year? Why yes..., somewhere . Ahem.) The cashier looked at me with gaggle of kiddos and said, "Well, you must be excited for their first day of school!" Because none of them would ever take in from that statement that I resent their presence, that we expect mothers to find being in their kids' company a chore. Oh no, they're all too obtuse to clue into subtexts. {Note: dripping irony. They're pretty intelligent children, and we have even had discussions on people's weird comments about them afterwards. Mostly it's been my attempt to thwart the damage stranger's rude observations may make.} Here's the thing: normally I probably would have wanted to say "yes!" I certainly was a bit burn out by summer last year. Me alone with four kids, including a very new newborn... ?! ...

Imagine the joy of sharing your favourite novel with your children, something you looked forward to doing with them before they were even born. Imagine that they loved that novel themselves, and request to listen to the audio version time and time again at bed time. Imagine telling your children that they would get to see Green Gables in real life this summer, and their starry-eyed wondering and planning began immediately, months before the trip would take place. Imagine the immense delight of watching your oldest child, whom you sometimes worry is growing up too fast, skipping along the path towards Green Gables, singing over and over, "I am so excited! I am so excited!" Imagine watching your sons take in the view of the harbour in Charlottetown, and you somehow see them  simultaneously as toddlers, in their current ages, and as teenagers and beyond.  They are wonderfully young and yet mysteriously maturing, and each stage is so satisfying in it...

We have only a few precious days left of our summer vacation. And what a time it has been! Despite my previous whining about how loud it has been, this may have amounted to our best summer yet. One of the highlights was spending a renewing week at Nazareth Family camp in beautiful Quebec . Although I have previously stated I am not a big fan of "date nights," the principle behind dating one's spouse is perfectly true: one needs to nurture one's marriage for the health of the whole family. Nazareth camp does that for us. While the children are babysat for a few hours in the morning, the couples all gather and have discussions about important subjects relating to marriage and family life. It's very energizing for me and Patrick; I see the fruits of this concentrated attention on our marriage almost immediately. We learn from the example of the other families who are there, and we're so inspired by their witness of faith lived out in a practical, down-to...

As I type, my father is outside mowing our lawn. After spending an hour this morning fixing the railing on our porch. And accompanying me and my tribe of small people to the Farmer's Market, just because. He lives in a different province but he still flew up here to spend just shy of a week with our family. As I continue my current feud with anxiety, he thought it would be helpful for me to have an extra set of hands with the kids during the very full summer days. It is so incredibly humbling being loved this way. Throwback photo to one year ago; grandparents + little kids + "Paw Patrol" Sometimes I wish I was more "capable" than I am; I feel embarrassed that the concrete help from my parents is something I want so dearly, and do so much better with. If only I was stronger, I think, I could manage family life without inconveniencing my mom and dad to the degree that I do. But the truth is, they enjoy being a part of their lives. They are pr...

Summer-tiiiiiiime... and the livin' is... noisy. The livin' is noisy . At 6:45pm this evening I was already curled up in the fetal position on the couch. Elijah was in bed but the other three were all frolicking around, hours of remaining daylight beckoned to us to go experience the great outdoors but all I could think of was "bed... now... please!" Patrick looked at me ruefully and said "you are welcome to do this in an hour, but for now, hang in there!" In actual fact, the kids' antics today were pretty adorable. They spent a large portion of their afternoon getting ready a ventriloquism show for us, after I showed them some spectacular videos of a kid ventriloquist earlier today. You really need to watch the video! It's amazing. Actually, this one is even better: It's pretty sweet how eager they all are now to throw their voices. I've been playing a "self-care anthem" over and over lately, and it's so upli...

Ever wanted to test your patience, sanity and ability to love your husband and children despite all sorts of weird circumstances? No? Clever you. I, however, appear to enjoy walking on the wild side. My current plan, which you are welcome to modify to your own life as needed, is as follows: 1) Lose your water pressure. In fact, better yet, have your well run dry, which appears to be our dilemma. (This, however, makes no sense given how it has rained pretty consistently all spring and summer.) But in any case, this means a) no dishwasher b) not being able to do laundry until it's fixed (. . . !) 2) Have a newborn. Y'know, to feel sleep deprived and all. 3) Take said newborn AND a two-year old on a road trip from Nova Scotia to Ontario. What would normally be about 16 hours of driving suddenly becomes much, much more. 4) When you arrive at your destination, be sure to stay for a whole week at a camp without electricity or running water. Call i...