Five Sweet Moments from Our Black Mountain Trip

My long absence from this blog can be partially explained by a trip I took--accompanied by my three oldest children--to Black Mountain, North Carolina, for Josiah to participate in a speech and debate tournament held there.  It was a wonderful, memorable trip; and I want to write more about it.  Soon, I hope.  :)

But for tonight, I'll simply begin by recording five sweet moments during (and immediately after) the trip--small happenings that I don't want to forget because they bring a smile to my face.

First, one of Josiah's speech events is Impromptu; and in that round, they are given a topic (actually, they are given two topics, and they can pick whichever one they like), two minutes to prepare, and then five minutes in which to give a (hopefully) well-constructed and meaningful speech.  It's quite a challenging type of speech, as you can imagine; but Josiah did well in one of his rounds in this category.  His topic?  The quote, "She left beauty wherever she went."  In his two minutes of prep time, he decided to speak about three women who are special to him: his sister, who is inherently beautiful/cute; his mother, who is inherently wise (I'm not sure about that! I think he might have stretched the truth!); and his maternal grandmother, who is inherently good.  I was so astonished and moved when he told me about this!  His judges were apparently impressed by it, too, because they ranked him highly.  He didn't fare as well in his other rounds in this category when he was given other topics; but for this topic, he speedily pulled together a speech that moved his judges and brought delight to my heart!

Second, as much as I enjoyed being in Black Mountain and having time with the older half of my set of children, I missed Jeff and the younger three incredibly.  Jeff and I kept in touch through texting; but one evening, he called, and I had finished judging a round and was able to step outside and take his call.  I got to talk to Jeff and to each of the children (well, Benjamin didn't do much talking, although he DID listen to my voice!) ;-), and it made me so happy that when I walked back inside, I was beaming.  A few parents were standing there in the hallway and commented on my big smile, so I got to explain to them that I had just enjoyed a wonderful conversation with the dear ones I was missing so much!

Third, Josiah was so busy competing in the rounds or watching his friends compete that I didn't see him a whole lot; it's just how these tournaments are.  But one day, he came and sat down by me in the hang-out area, and we talked for a little while.  Before he got up to leave, he leaned over and gave me a kiss on the cheek.  I feel so blessed by the affection he continues to show me!

Fourth, all the way home on Friday, my anticipation grew and grew as each mile brought us closer to the rest of our family; and the crowning moment was when we pulled in the driveway--at last!--and spotted Shav and Moriah racing across the lawn to us and Jeff following more slowly with Benjamin in his arms.  The sweetness of reunion is hard to put into words.  When we had come inside and were all jabbering away, trying to share with each other all the things that had transpired during our absence, I held Benjamin and sat down on the little couch beside Jeff.  Benjamin snuggled into my shoulder and just nestled there.  David, who had missed his littlest brother quite a bit too, picked up Benjamin to carry him around and bounce with him like Benjamin often enjoys; but at that particular moment, he was NOT interested, and he squealed like a little pig until David put him back in my arms.  I was so glad to hold him again!  :)

Fifth, that first evening home, my dad offered to take us all to Country Cookin, so we gratefully said yes, since neither Jeff nor I had the energy or inclination to cook.  ;-)  We all piled into the big white van and drove to the mall; and then, as we walked into the entrance closest to Country Cookin, Josiah looked around at all of us, gave a happy sigh, and said, "It's so good to be together as a family again."  He had made a lot of speeches during that week of competition; but you know, that one sentence was perhaps his truest speech of the week!  ;-)

~ the four travelers, during one of our stops on the way down to North Carolina for the tournament 

The Things She Says

At four years of age (almost five!), Moriah is at the very fun stage of verbal development in which I can understand almost everything she says, but she occasionally says things in unique ways, revealing the sometimes-humorous way children learn language .  For example, earlier today she said, "I'm make-suring..."  And that makes sense!  Why shouldn't we say that instead of "making sure"?  ;-)

A couple days ago, she was thinking ahead to her future and asked a question that sounded to my ears like, "When I'm seven, will I be in Olive Garden?"  When I repeated it to her to confirm that that was indeed what she said, she told me it was--but I really think she meant "kindergarten."  ;-)  But hey, if she ends up doing kindergarten when she's five, working in Daddy's garden when she's six, then going to Olive Garden when she's seven, that would be fine with me!  :)

Recently, Moriah was wondering what my middle name is.  Since her middle name is Davene, she thought my name might be Davene Davene Fisher.  :)  I told her that it is actually Grace, and she repeated my full name aloud.  Later however, when we were riding in the van, she was trying to tell Shav about her discovery.  "Just to let you know, Shav," she began, "Mom's real name isn't Mom."

"I know," he said, a little wearily; but undeterred, she marched ahead with her proclamation.

"It's actually Mom Grace Fisher!!"  :)

I sure do love her and all her funny little mix-ups!  :)

~ Moriah with all her little monkeys...she wanted me to take this picture to send to her Uncle Mike Fisher because he loves monkeys, too ~

Wordless Wednesday {Benjamin Looks Out at the Big, Big World}

Valentine's Day, After More than Half a Century Together

It's been a lovely Valentine's Day; but for tonight, rather than describe my own day, I want to record a little something my dad told me about how he celebrated.

In his basement, he had found a box which contained Valentine's cards that he and my mom had given to each other through the years.  As he was looking through it, he discovered one from 1986 that he really liked, so rather than going out and buying a new card for Mom, he gave the 31-year-old card to her again!  Isn't that hysterical?!?!  :)  :)  :)  I love that for so many reasons!  :)

~ my parents, leaving my house on a recent Sunday after having lunch here with us ~

Another great thing about my dad: yesterday afternoon, I was stricken with a HORRIBLE headache and realized to my dismay that I absolutely could not drive the boys to children's choir rehearsal.  I tried to think of who could take them and ended up calling several people, but nothing was working out.  My dad was not at home--he was volunteering at Gift & Thrift, like he does on a regular basis--but because of my desperation and inability to find anyone else who could help, he left Gift & Thrift, drove home, picked up my boys, and took them to choir before returning to Gift &  Thrift to finish out his shift.

One of his strengths is his willingness to make himself available and meet the needs of others, and he demonstrated that once again during my time of distress yesterday.  I was so grateful!

She Doesn't Remember Why Alstroemerias Are Special

Before I made my wedding plans, I hadn't even heard of alstroemerias; but when I was telling Carla, my wonderful florist, the type of flowers I wanted (a mix of different kinds and different colors), she suggested that alstroemerias be included.  Fine with me!

They're hard to spot in the picture above, but they're in there, part of my bouquet that I loved so much.  I'm fond of all the flowers Carla used; but because alstroemerias had no prior association in my mind, I became especially fond of them.

So fond, in fact, that when my beloved grandmother, pictured above, was diagnosed with a brain tumor and only given two months to live, I gave her a bouquet of alstroemerias during my last visit to her here on earth.  It was wintertime, so no flowers were blooming outside; but on the stand next to her bed in the living room that was my parents' and is now mine, we placed the alstroemerias so she could enjoy their beauty.  They lingered while she grew weaker, then slipped away.  After that, alstroemerias always reminded me of her.

Two days ago, we went to visit my dear mother, and on the way, I dropped by the store to buy some pretty posies for her.  With Valentine's Day being right around the corner, there were a number of choices of cheery bouquets; but when I saw one that included alstroemerias, I didn't have to look any further.  That was the one for her.

The alstroemerias are pink, tucked into the sides of the bouquet--not very obvious at first glance.

But they're there--a subtle message of love and remembrance from my heart to my mother's.

Except she doesn't remember why they're special.

If she can remember my wedding, if she can remember her mother, if she can remember my identity, she cannot communicate to us that she can.  She is cheerful and peaceful and so sweet, but she says very, very little, so even if there are thoughts--of long ago or more recently--floating around in her head, she can't express that.  It is an understatement of the highest order to say that I miss conversation with her.

But I'm endlessly grateful for her, with or without conversation; and to my list of meaningful alstroemeria moments, I'll add a sunny Saturday morning in February when we went to visit my cherished mother and left a bouquet on her windowsill.

When My Creative Energy Is Gone

I had intended to write a blog post tonight--a real blog post, with actual thoughts being expressed through words.  But then I helped both Tobin and Josiah with speeches for upcoming tournaments (yes, Tobin is preparing one, too...for a Juniors tournament next month), and just like that, all my creative energy was gone.

Will a blog post with a few little video snippets suffice instead?  :)

The first two videos are from February 4--the first is Benjamin doing the singsong vocalization that he often does when we travel somewhere.  It's a little hard to hear his voice over the sound of the van.  My apologies for that!

In this one, Moriah shows us how she can "read" a book--an activity she has been enjoying quite a bit recently.

The next one is from February 5, when we were at the home of some friends for a Super Bowl party.  Dear Miss Janie from our church was helping Benjamin ride this horse.  Benjamin was more interested in pulling the mane!  (He loves to pull hair--his own included!)

And lastly, on February 10, Benjamin had a ball scooting around on this smooth, shiny floor while Josiah had his biology class.

Maybe tomorrow, I'll discover a new supply of creative energy!

The Project He Tackled

As soon as I first heard about barn quilts--when I learned that such a thing existed--I wanted one.

It sure has taken me a long time to get one though.  ;-)

Here's the story...

15 months ago, on the evening of November 11, 2015, Benjamin was two days shy of being two months old.  And on that evening, Jeff began to draw out a pattern for our barn quilt on a piece of wood he had purchased for this project.  I had admired barn quilts for some time before this and had searched online for a pattern, admiring dozens and finally choosing one that especially caught my eye.  On July 7, 2015, I pasted a picture of it into a Google Doc; but it wasn't until November 11 that we got to work.  "We," meaning Jeff, but that's a given.  :)

While he worked, the rest of the family played--Moriah by jumping on the couch...

...Josiah by doing email...

...the rest of the boys (excluding Benjamin, obviously) by playing with LEGO guys and blocks.

Benjamin got to play by swinging in his baby swing; and oh my goodness, seeing these pictures whisks me back in time so quickly, I get a little dizzy.  He was so little!  Just a baby!  He could fit in this swing!  This swing that we haven't even owned for months now!  How did that all happen so fast?!

Anyway, in this busy, happy family scene on an autumn evening a year and a quarter ago, Jeff was carefully working...

...meticulously sketching the lines for this barn quilt I was so keen on having.

Little did I know then how many more months would pass before we took the next step.

You see, after this night in November of 2015, we put this board on our porch, and there it sat.

And sat.

And sat.

We weren't exactly sure what colors we would use, and we didn't have the paint.  In fact, we weren't confident about what kind of paint would be best.  From time to time, I looked at the board and wanted to make progress on it.  From time to time, we talked about what the best way to do the next step would be.  But most of the time, the board simply took up space, half-forgotten, never-focused-on, just waiting.  Until...

December 13 of 2016 - We began to paint, using some old paint leftover from when our bedroom was painted.  Why it took me this long to dive in, I'm not exactly sure.  One of the mysteries of life, I suppose.  ;-)

At this point, we figured we didn't have much to lose, so even if this wasn't precisely the best kind of paint, it was better than doing nothing!

Josiah got to do some of the first painting...

...and the next day, December 14, David continued (and, although I don't have photographic proof, I think Tobin and Shav each got to do a little bit then, too).

At this point, since I knew there would be other colors in the adjoining spaces, I wasn't very concerned about whether some paint got outside the lines.

But as you can see...

...David was very precise.

It was GOOD to get started on this, and I was so happy to see some paint on the board; but we hit the pause button again on the project until...

...December 23, when I bought myself a pre-Christmas present.  :)

But who has time to paint when it's Christmas, so again the project got put on hold.  Until...

...January 18, 2017, the day Josiah, David, and I were gone most of the afternoon and all of the evening, getting registered and helping to set up for the speech and debate tournament that was kicking off early the next morning.  Before we left the house, we had talked about the colors I had marked on the board, Jeff had gotten out the painter's tape, and he had opened the can of green paint.

I knew progress was being made, and I was thrilled.  :)

Tobin got to help, too, and he was thrilled.  :)

And then I departed, grateful that Jeff was working on this project that I had put off so long, but not expecting astonishing results.  It takes time, after all, to put on the tape, paint a section, then let it dry before taping off another section and doing it all over again.  With adjoining sections like this barn quilt had, there was no way to proceed very quickly with the process!

Or was there?

Jeff started texting me pictures; and each time a new one came in, my jaw dropped.

I was delighted when I saw this...

...and even more excited when I saw this!

Flabbergasted, too.

How had he managed to do so much in so little time?!

Then he sent me this, and I realized that he had FINISHED all of the paint colors.  WOW!  That went WAY above my expectations!!

As it turned out, he got tired of using the tape, so he began to freehand it.  He warned me that, if I looked closely at it, I would find lots of imperfections.

Huh.  It sure looks perfect to me!!!!!  :)

I have felt quite silly and have done a fair amount of kicking myself that I procrastinated so much on this project and here, Jeff was able to whip it out in ONE AFTERNOON.  Clearly, arts and crafts are not my forte!  But I'm SO pleased with how it turned out and SO, SO thankful for Jeff tackling this project, that I've been able to forgive myself.  ;-)

It's not quite done.  We still need to get some kind of sealant (I have no idea what I'm talking about) to paint over everything to protect the wood and the paint, and then we need to hang it in its place of honor on the side of our woodshed.  Any guesses about how many more months it will be until we finish that?  ;-)

Until then, it's brightening up our porch, reminding me every time I see it of Jeff's love for me.  You know the concept of the five love languages?  Well, Jeff's skillful work on this project poured many gallons of acts-of-service love into my love tank.  The memory of the love he showed will remain in my heart even longer than it took us to bring my I-sure-would-like-a-barn-quilt wish to fruition!!  ;-)