Did We Ever Tell You Beedle Was Creative???

Beedle's mind is amazing. And so is his love for his little brother. He so desperately wants to play with James all of the time. He's always swinging him in his "Johnny Jumper" and giving him a tinker toy light saber so they can play Jedi's together (of which James usually puts in his mouth and Beedle scolds him saying that if he puts the light saber in his mouth it will "cut his mouth off"). One of Beedle's favorite "toys" is a stethoscope. One would think he would like to play doctor with it and pretend he was performing some type of major surgery. Beedle, instead, puts it around his waist and pretends it is a tail. Sometimes he's a monkey with it on. Sometimes a mouse. A squirrel. A lion (although when he REALLY wants to be a lion, he puts on his ACTUAL lion costume). Today, the stethoscope served as a leash. And who better to play his pet dog....his little brother. Fortunately his mom and dad were around to make sure we was not choking his little brother with his ingenuity and creativity. But, as you would expect, James seemed to enjoy it as well. They have a pretty amazing relationship. Today was just another example of why we love Beedle so much. His beautiful mind. His simple love. His heart of gold. He's a wonderful brother and son!

You Give Me (Cabin) Fever!

With Hurricane Ike making its way through our area late Friday night and Saturday morning, a weekend of fun activity was looking quite bleak for the Chopin brood. And when the power went out at 9:00 am and there was nothing to keep us occupied, we feared we'd be ailing from cabin fever. And at 9:20am, as if angels from heaven appeared chanting "Alleluia", the power came back on and the cool winds of heaven blew upon us (the A/C came back on). With the breath of cool air came inspiration. The cure for cabin fever...bowling, anyone? And so, Gus, Beedle, Gracie and Dad made their way to Lafayette Lanes for a late morning of bowling. When you have a birthday party at the bowling alley or attend one, they give each partygoer a pass to have a free game of bowling every month for a year. This also comes with 4 free tokens for each of them to go hog-wild in the arcade. We've been trying to take advantage of this as often as we can. In our opinion, there was never a more perfect morning. It was a ghost town in there; it was as if they were open only for us. It was only midway through the game that other patrons starting filing in. Of course, more often than not, most of kids' excitement comes from putting on the wacky shoes and picking out their loud-colored bowling balls. Beedle chose an olive-green ball which he affectionately called the Hutlet (Jaba the Hut's son in "The Clone Wars"). Gus and Gracie agreed to share a hot pink ball. Pink for power! They did quite well. Gus really enjoys bowling. Although the bumpers were out, Gus rolled quite a few shots that never touched them. In fact, one of such shots resulted in a strike. Of course everytime they knock down any pins, they run back to see what animation is created on the screen. Sometimes the pin will cut in half (a split) or a pirate ship will sail real fast in a straight line (a spare) or, my personal favorite, a trapeze artist swings and knocks over all the clown pins (a strike). Beedle's attention span was better than average today and he really seemed to enjoy himself. Gracie, Miss Independent, wanted to do it all by herself, but then quickly realized that Dad's help isn't always the worst thing in the world. When the game was over they made a beeline for the arcade. They accumulated a good bit of tickets (165 to be exact) which resulted in a luxurious prize--a miniscule pack of Skittles and a Fun Dip. They were extatic! Not wanting Daddy time to end, I decided to take them to one of my favorite eateries--BJ's Pizza. They enjoy BJ's, as does Daddy, and they always get to hear about all the times Daddy and his family ate there while growing up. They will surely be tired of these stories soon. As we waited for our pepperoni pizza and hamburger for Beedle, I decided to take advantage of our together time by being a little creative and at the same time trying to have a little fun. I grabbed a small stack of paper plates and began to draw different faces on the plates--happy, sad, angry, scared, etc. I had them take a plate, put it in front of their face, and the others had to guess which feeling was being portrayed. By the way, I majored in Interpersonal and Organization Communication, so this is really about the only time I get to use anything I learned from it--pretty pathetic, I know! As they were guessing the feelings, they had to acknowledge what particular facial expressions indicated their decision (ex: angry face had slanted eyebrows and was not smiling). This seemed to go over very well and I felt like I was for once contributing constructively to their social development. And so the pizza and burger came and they scarfed everything down, I am sure because of the serious mental energy exhausted in their communication exercises. With bellies full, we made a quick stop at the store and the gas station (before gas prices skyrocket) and headed back to see Mommy and James. I must say I cherish the Daddy time I get to spend with my kiddos. They are really good kids with wonderful hearts. Today was no different--they still don't cease to amaze me!

Two for Tea

Today we had tea with our new and very special cups. Last Sunday Grandma Dee shared some cups and saucers from her colection. We were each allowed to pick our own cup. Gus chose a special cup from Jeruselem and Beedle picked a "big fat cup." You may notice that Gracie is not in the picture. She was having some issues and is hoping that she can make tea next week. She is anxious to use her new little demi cup as it is just her size.

Today we had to shop early due to Hurricane Ike and we had little time to prepare for our tea. The boys did not seem to mind having Reses peanut butter cups and some swiss rolls. Good thing the person before us at Walmart picked them up and the clerk checked them out with our groceries. There is so much confusion at a store before a storm, and when you add in a mechanic helping the checkers you have some mistakes. God knows what is really a need and today that was sneaking some sweets into our groceries:) We were very pleased to have Gigi with us for tea today. It is always great to share some tea and time with Gigi.

And speaking of two, notice anything missing...

In the last week Gus has lost both of his front teeth. If you are wondering what to get him for Christmas, I think it's pretty obvious! We can't believe we have a son old enough to have his two front teeth missing. Where did the time go?

What Fun It Is...

What a Great Find!

This morning when taking out the garbage we found a little egg. What a great find. Since today is Tuesday, we got to journal about the find. We probably would have journalled any day that we found something so great. It was really cool because you could still see a bit of the yolk. The kids were really excited until there was a little accident. That is the way it goes. Much consoling went on and mom assured Gus that it was better to squish the empty shell as opposed to the egg with the little bird inside!

After our lunch we all headed out to bring Gus to his first Latin class. He did not get to start last week because of Hurricane Gustav. He was very excited and his teacher was very impressed. Mr. Larry kept saying "He is a bright student!" Hopefully he continues to enjoy class and maybe he can teach his parents. Homeschooling is a family affair.

Ballerina by Day....Cowgirl by Night

Today was Gracie's first day of ballet! I do not know who was more excited mom and dad or Gracie. She got ready this morning in record time. We all loaded up (including B.J. and Eeiah) and headed out to Milton. We had heard great things about this school so we were prepared to take a short trip out of town to take ballet. Mom was preparing Gracie and telling her the name of her teacher and Gracie said "I love Ms. Beverly!" She had yet to meet her. Some of the girls were shy and a little timid but Gracie could not get in fast enough. It was a fifty minute class so we had time to eat our fruit, feed babies and do Gus's history lesson. This will work out nicely. Gracie did not want to leave even when she was told that she would get to come back every Monday. Hopefully she stays this excited all year!

We returned home to eat a quick bite and unclog the sink before we had to rush out for Beedle's therapy (again out of town.) Gracie insisted on being a cowgirl and wearing boots. Who is going to argue with that!! It was definitely more appropriate than the pink fur hat she wore all last week in the heat! After our doctors appointment we were off to get Gus a haircut. Beddle had a crocked haircut this summer and we had to shave his head. Gus wanted to do the same so it has taken a long time to grow out and it was getting long in the back only. We told the lady exactly what dad said "Gus' hair is a little too much country and not enough rock-n-roll. It is time for a haircut to get rid of that MULLET!" She did a great job and cut only the back. Gus reminded her three times "Don't cut the front." Hopefully he never asks to shave his hair again because he looks better with longer hair.

Gigi was great enough to cook tacos for dinner and Dado gave the kids baths at five o'clock so he did not miss kick off. We are definitely still supporting the Packers this year. Everyone was happy to learn some facts about Wisconsin and the three kids and Gigi passed their quiz. The Packers won their game and Dado was thrilled that another game followed so football season is officially here!!!

Hi God

Today we were able to go to adoration. Dado was in charge of music for the kids. Mrs. Kessie suggested Hi God, and that is what she got. It is really neat to share this music with the kids. Mom remembers listening to the double album--it actually opened up and held two records on both sides. Dado grew up with the live version (Dado was named after Carey Landry, the artist who wrote Hi God, who was a close friend of the family). The kids were happy and I think that Dado will be asked to play music again. It is great to have an opportunity to have family adoration time and we thank Father Chauvin for exposing Jesus for us.
We were blessed to get to eat lunch and have an extended visit with the Thomas'. As always they were great hosts and the kids had a blast! We left feeling Gods love for us!

Friday

Today we were finally able to get up and go to Mass. We have been having repair work done on the air conditioner and it has taken up two mornings. Apparently turning off your air conditioner during the storm is no guarantee that it will not fry when you turn it back on. Having no air conditioning is not such a big deal when so many of our neighbors are without fans, lights, and even the convince of a refrigerator. Mass was of course, followed by a trip to Dado's office. We left promptly when James decided he did not want to wear his outfit anymore and because he is unable to talk, made me aware in another way!!

The kids have been wanting to go to Books-a-Million for a while and this made the perfect day. They got to meet a new friend and we came home with three new books. James was unable to get a book because he decided that a new outfit was more important.

After nap we had a nice tea with rice crispy treats and homemade chocolate candies (thanks Gus!) Today's choice for tea was French Vanilla Cafe. The kids have requested it again! We finished off the evening with our regular sandwiches for Friday dinner and a discussion of mother Theresa. The kids colored pictures of Mother Theresa and we went around the table picking quotes from her and sharing what they meant to each of us. We were very grateful to be together as a family in our cozy and COOL house.

Puting the Pieces Back Together

We spent an exciting day with our extended family the Maders. We are so appreciative to have had great fellowship while waiting out the storm. The kids were absolutely unaware that it was even raining outside. They are ready for another hurricane party, a.k.a. movie day with friends.

Unfortunately we got a call just before the calm of the eye passed over us. Gigi had a huge tree fall on her house and another huge oak on her fence. Given the heart procedure she had she was at home instead of the hospital. Next time a storm comes through she will probably volunteer to stay at the hospital! Carey and Brett went out to get her and nanny Wanna before the next part of the storm came through. Although we were sad that her house got crushed we are more than a little relieved that everyone was safe. God is good!!! This is what a house looks like with a huge oak on top of it!

Carey said he always wanted his mom to put a swimming pool in the back yard!!!

And Then There was Light

We will blog tomorrow but we are letting all know that we are alive and well. Sadly we did not all make it through unscathed:-( Our Labor Days start tomorrow!!