Our Four Ring Circus

May. 31, 2007

Fast Forward

The Tuesday after Mother's day was our Awana awards night. Alyssa got her first book award for T&T and earned her Silver emblem. Brendan finished Sparks this year and received his Sparky Award plaque. Chase, who has been in Cubbies with me since he was a year old, ended up cramming 2 years of Cubbies into 4 years and is now done having finished 3 books.

Memorial Day weekend John took Thurs through Tues off and we had what has become our local vacation tradition. I really like vacationing here in Sacramento as we get to sleep in our own beds each night which is a big plus.

Thursday we had baseball games so we stayed close to home and did yard work, etc.

Friday we headed to Six Flags Discovery Kingdom and had a wonderful day. It was our first time there and I think it was actually better for us than Disneyland.

John took the big kids on the rides they like and the little ones and I did kiddie rides and saw the animals and shows.

We saw a dolphin show, sea lion show, whale show and a Looney Tunes show.

Emily was invited up on the stage at the end of the Looney Tunes show to dance with the characters.

Oddly enough, everyone's favorite attraction was Jack-o the Walrus from the movie "50 First Dates." This walrus actually loves to interact with people. We stopped by to see him 3 different times and he was right there at the glass each time, entertaining the kids. He would tap on he glass just to get you to tap back.

We ended the day on the one ride we could all go on together - the water ride - and ended up getting completely soaked for the ride home.

Saturday John took each of the kids out individually for some one on one time.

Sunday after church we packed a picnic and headed back to our favorite park across town.

Monday, we took the kids to visit the veterans section of the local cemetery and then we headed over to see Shrek the Third. Not a great movie but one the older two wanted to see and it was quite an event as it was the first time we've had the whole family in the movie theater. Even the oldest kids had only been in the theater 3 other times so it is rare enough that it is seen as a special event.

Tuesday launched Tournament Week for baseball. Brendan and Alyssa are both undefeated so far in the Tournament. All 3 of the kids have games tonight (Thursday) and then Alyssa has 2 more games tomorrow and the boys both have games on Saturday (assuming everyone keeps winning). Brendan's team is definitely favored to win the tournament having lost only 1 game all season. Alyssa's team is likely to come in first or second, which either way, means we have to play every game.

Saturday is Alyssa's closing day festivities which is a day long event but we will miss much if not all of it as we have the boys games in the morning. My dad is entering his second Legend's Car race on Saturday as well. If we can, we will try to make it out to the race track in the afternoon to watch him. It is a 2 hour drive so it may not work out.

All in all, I'm very glad that the schedule will change dramatically after this weekend. We will have our evenings at home and our Saturdays to ourselves for awhile. Soccer starts the first of August but we have lots of summer fun to get to between now and then.

We are done with school with the exception of Brendan's math. He only has 2 chapters (10 days) to go but if we don't quite make it, oh well.

Emily is fully potty trained (except during the night). I am still pinching myself at how easily she trained. It was so painless, it almost doesn't seem real.

Well, that catches things up on the blog. Now that things have slowed down, hopefully future posts will be in real time.

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May. 30, 2007

REWIND!

Posted in On the Road

I've been itching to document our activities of the last few weeks but between a crammed schedule and some technical difficulties, there has just been no opportunity to sit down and blog.

Rewind to the Saturday before Mother's Day. It started out as just another overscheduled Saturday. Alyssa's Girl Scout troop had entered a team in the 3 mile 'Race for the Cure' but as it had an arrival time of 6 AM, we opted out. That brought us to Chase's 10 AM T-ball game followed immediately by Brendan's game from noon to 2. From 3 to 5, Alyssa's art class had their Spring art show which was all the way across town - 40 minutes away. By the time 5 o'clock rolled around, we were ready for some time off. We went to a little park near the art studio where the kids and I hang out sometimes while we are waiting for Alyssa at art class.

It is a very quaint little park. Sandwiched on a small lot between 2 houses, it has 2 swings, a rusted out slide, very high monkey bars and a few picnic tables. I'm not sure why the place is so appealing but it is.

One thing that adds to its charm is that though it sits in the middle of a residential neighborhood, it is right on the line between suburbia and the 'surrounding countryside'. The back of the lot opens to a wooded area with trails just calling to be explored. We have been there nearly every week since before Christmas but it wasn't until the Friday before Mother's Day that we started down one of the trails. It led to a bridge that had washed out over what is now a dry creek bottom. The washed out bridge was our clue to turn around so we did.

When we came back on Saturday, we had to take the whole family down to see the collapsed bridge so off we went. Much to our surprise, the bridge had been set back in its original place though no repairs had been made. It was rickety but we all managed to cross and off we went on an adventure we city folks don't often encounter.

The path led to a beautiful narrow lake that ties in to the American River not far upstream.

Of course, we came face to face with nature along the way.

The trail eventually dumped us right back into a residential neighborhood and of course, we had no idea where we were. Our first instinct was to head exactly in the wrong direction but not long after we started up the street, we found a resident and asked where we were.

It was hot, we were tired, we had no water or anything with us and now we were basically lost but it created an 'us against the world' situation that was very adventurous and a lot of fun.

We finally found our way back to the little park and after indulging in a few of the local cherries growing on the public land there, we headed home.

On the way, we stopped at our favorite grocery store for steaks and other BBQ items in anticipation of a great dinner to end our day. As we headed to the check-out line, Chase (age 5) stopped me and said he needed to get a "credit card". Confused, I asked him what he meant by 'get a credit card'. "You know," he said, "for Mother's Day." "Oh," I said, "a greeting card." John and the other kids were already in line but I took Chase over to the card section and he picked out a couple he thought were nice and asked me which I like best. Upon careful examination of each (particularly the back), I made my selection and off ran Chase to catch up with the others proudly bearing his treasure for mom.

When we got home, we got busy preparing the dinner and in came Chase asking where he could find his 'credit card'. By now you would think I would have known what he was talking about but it took me a few seconds to figure it out. I got the card and he went to fill it out.

Chase hasn't really started school yet - he can write his name but that is all. A few minutes later, he came back and asked me how to write "I love you". I was so touched that he was going through all this effort of his own volition and I showed him how to write "I heart U" on a piece of paper. Again he retreated to his room. A few minutes later he returned looking for his dad as he needed help to make the heart.

As a mom, I just can't imagine a better Mother's Day gift than that which comes right from the heart of my little boy.

Sunday was another great day. After church we headed back to that broken down little park 40 minutes away just because we had such good memories of our time there the day before. We didn't go back down the trails but the kids played on the swings, we ate cherries and enjoyed this wonderful stage of life that we will always remember fondly.

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Apr. 29, 2007

Field Trip to the Giant Sequoias

Posted in On the Road

Yesterday we had 2 baseball games at 8:30 AM which put us up and ready and through with our obligations for the day fairly early in the morning. When we returned home around 10:30, we started pondering the best way to spend the day. As temperatures were projected to reach 90 degrees in Sacramento, we decided a little trip to the mountains was in order. Our destination of choice was the Calaveras Big Tree State Park - home of the Giant Sequoia Redwoods - the largest living things on the planet. We are currently going through the Apologia Botany course so it was a perfect compliment to our science studies.

Though temperatures were in the low 80s, there were still a few patches of snow in the parking lot. Albeit dirty, it was snow and thus had to be explored.

One of the first documented trees to be discovered here was cut down almost immediately and turned into a tourist attraction. This stump was used as a dance floor.

Over 25 feet in diameter, it took 5 men 22 days to fall it using long handled pump augers in 1853.

This fallen section still sits near the stump. I have no idea how this child managed to climb it.

One of the many big trees on the 1.5 mile trail. These Giant Sequoias are the largest living objects on earth and grow naturally only in 75 groves on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada. The Coastal Redwoods, while not the largest living things, enjoy the distinction of being the tallest.

I'm not sure what caused this large scar but the tree is alive and well.

The root systems of the trees are very wide but not deep. They can extend out to encompass an entire acre but only go down 6 to 8 feet.

These trees blew down in 1965 in strong wind. They crashed with such force, many people thought an earthquake had occurred.

The Giant Sequoia of the Sierra Nevada grow in mixed conifer stands with several other species. Coastal Redwoods, by contract, grow in pure redwood stands.

These two giant neighbors have a nice walking path between them.

Chase was actually a little timid about getting in and under some of these monstrous giants. He wasn't concerned about any danger posed by the trees but about encountering ants (which abounded in the park) in these cracks and crevices. I thought it was a little ironic that among the largest living things on earth, it was the smallest creatures that gave him pause.

There were several downed trees that have rotted sufficiently as to create tunnels you can walk through. Here you see John leading the way but Emily was actually in front of him. Chase opted to go around.

Brendan & Alyssa looking back from the other side.

The center of this tree was intentionally carved out in the 1880's to create this tunnel as a tourist attraction. Amazingly, this tree is still alive and has green branches as it goes up.

The kids were not too excited about the prospects of a 2.5 hour drive to see trees, but in the end, a good time was had by all.

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Nov. 19, 2006

Picture break

Posted in On the Road

Just taking a little break from all the rambling to post a few pictures from the last week.

Emily gets serious about her turn on a pony on our visit to Apple Hill - an area about an hour from here which features 50 working farms/orchards all with a little tourist business on the side.

Giddy-up

First time on a horse but playing it cool.

These are the Turkey cupcakes we made for Cubbies club.

Yesterday we attended 3 soccer games followed by 3 end of season pizza parties.

Chase has waited for this moment for most of his young life. He finally got his own soccer trophy. 2 years ago he was so upset that the other kids got one and he didn't, I had to buy him one on ebay.

(Brendan-far left w/ red eyes -my good camera is in the shop)

At Brendan's soccer party, the pizza place handed out lumps of pizza dough for the kids to play with. 12 boys + siblings all had a great time for 30 minutes playing with it. Very brave of the restaurant - they will probably be finding dough ground into the carpet for the next week.

Brendan has had a banner year this year in sports. His baseball team finished second in the division in the spring. His soccer team finished undefeated, the top ranked of 54 teams in his age group.

They played 14 games, scored 53 goals and had only 13 scored against them. Brendan was first string goalie. Their scores would have gone even higher had not the coach arranged the players to keep the team from getting too far ahead of their opponent.

We put Emily in pigtails for the first time today. The rubber bands didn't happen to match. Can you tell she's a 4th child?

We did all of our Thanksgiving shopping on Friday to get in ahead of the rush. Friday night Chase was itching for some egg nog but I told him we had to wait for Thanksgiving as I didn't want to be going back for more before the big day.

Saturday morning the first thing he asked when he got up was, "Mom, is this the day we drink egg nog." Some call it Thanksgiving, others Turkey day, but around here, I guess its 'the day we drink egg nog'.

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Oct. 31, 2006

Moses, the Fly, the Frog, and the Pharaoh

Posted in On the Road

What a wild month this has been. From our wonderful vacation to Southern California, to a very nice visit from the grandparents, to our fantastic "Family Fun Day" Halloween alternative at church, October has been short on school, long on fun and memories.

Tuesday nights are typically AWANA for us but since Halloween fell on Tuesday, our church hosted a party for the kids. We entered the contest for the best Bible character costume as an ensemble of the Plagues of Egypt. Brendan was Moses, Chase was Pharaoh, Alyssa was Plague #2 - Flies, Emily was Plague #4 - Frogs, and I dressed in all black and went as Plague #9 - Darkness. We tied for first place.

Earlier today the grandparents returned to their home in Virginia. They had a nice visit which started 13 days ago with a bit of a jolt. When they flew in, my FIL had an episode at the airport that resulted in an ambulence ride from the airport to the ER where he spent 8 hours undergoing tests. It turned out to be a case of Vertigo and he was fine for the duration of their stay.

Each year we like to take a trip to the pumpkin farm about 45 minutes away. It is a fantastic place with lots of fun activities and they have no halloween emphasis which we really appreciate.

Oh, those poor miserable children locked up in that jail.

Petting zoo at the pumpkin farm.

Emily attempts to walk with her feet in sand buckets on our trip to the beach.

A blast from the past: with all of the other activity this year, we made no attempt at carving pumpkins but this was our attempt at pumpkin art last year.

Tomorrow we resume school in earnest. I never intended for October to be so light on school but I'm glad we could have the flexibility to take the time to make all these great memories.

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Jun. 20, 2006

The Strangest Thing Happened

Posted in On the Road

Last Thursday, John left some paperwork he needed at his office. About 9 PM, we decided to take the family out for a drive to retrieve it. He works in a large government building downtown which probably houses more than 100 offices but at 9 PM, about the only people there are security people and janitorial staff. His department is housed on the second floor where there are only a few offices and several large training rooms. He and his 3 colleagues each have desks in a single room.

When we got to the building, Chase was asleep so I stayed in the car and John took the other three up to his office. The room was completely dark and the door was locked just as would be expected at this hour. He unlocked the door, turned on the light and sat down at his desk to sort through the material he needed. The kids wandered around the room, looking at trinkets and pictures on various desk all the while being chided not to touch anything.

A few minutes into their visit, my daughter approached a desk in the back of the room to get a better look at one of the photos. As she came closer, something under the desk caught her eye. A woman was hiding behind the chair. The woman motioned to her to 'shhh' and not knowing what to do, Alyssa turned to walk back to her father's desk. I can only imagine what was going through her head at this time. She had to assume that this woman was up to no good as it was obvious that she had been in a dark room behind a locked door and now she was hiding. Concerned for their safety, Alyssa made sure the baby was a safe distance away. The woman, realizing she was caught, came out of her hiding place and startled the crap out of John as he turned to check on the kids and saw this stranger in the back of the room.

She quickly explained that she was a cleaning lady and she had come up to this room on her break to take a nap as she had a headache. When she heard someone coming, she went under the desk hoping she would not be discovered.

Everyone was on an adrenaline rush as they returned to the van to tell their tale. Thankfully, she was a fairly diminutive woman who posed no real physical threat or things may have gone differently.

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A few years ago, when our oldest was 4 and her two brothers were both in diapers, my in-laws were a few days into a visit from their home 3000 miles away when my father-in-law noticed that the rug under the dining room table was in serious need of vacuuming. He is not prone to domestic duties (his wife is a great housekeeper) but seeing the need, he decided to try his hand with the Hoover. As soon as 'Grandpa' declared his intention to get out the vacuum, four little feet ran for the toy box to get vacuums of their own. We had one toy vacuum and we improvised a second from a 'popper' push toy. The baby, who was not yet walking, was right in the thick of things on all fours, never one to be left out. Grandpa, trying to maneuver the self-propelled 'Wind-tunnel' around the 10 foot rug while avoiding the table legs and dodging his three little helpers, remarked in exasperation, "I just wanted to clean the rug, I wasn't looking to start a three ring circus." Welcome to my life!

About Me

My name is Tiffany. I am a 39 year old mother of 4. My husband, John, and I planned to homeschool even before we married 17 years ago but it would be several years before our oldest would be ready to start on this journey. We had our children in alphabetical order, quite by accident at first, but once we got started, we figured we had to keep it going. They are Alyssa 10, Brendan 8, Chase 6, and Emily 3. Our 4th baby, D, miscarried at 13 weeks. We have no intention of making it to Z.

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