O Tannenbaum!

"Kids, pick out any Christmas Tree!"

"Can we get a huge one?"

"You sure can!"

In our entire married life, we have never had a plastic Christmas Tree.

I love the smell of our house while our real pine tree is up.

Also, you never have the same tree twice.

Usually we just get a small one.

This year, the kids picked out the tallest one we have ever had.

 

Serving Mass with Cardinal Burke

Tomorrow is the Feast Day of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  Cardinal Burke usually makes the trip to the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe to celebrate Mass for the Feast Day and the day before.  Martin was asked to serve Mass today with the Cardinal.  It's wonderful having our son attend a school that considers such a request as an excused absence.  There are four boys in the third grade; two served today and the other two will serve tomorrow. 

 

After Mass Cardinal Burke was greeting people, and he makes it a point to take his time and really try to talk to everyone.  The kids and I briefly met him over the summer, so I opted out of standing in line to let others go ahead and to start the process of bundling up Helen in her winter gear.  As I was waiting for Martin to finish changing his clothes, Cardinal Burke walked over to me and said:

"You look familiar to me.  Do I know you?"

"No Cardinal Burke, I don't think you do.  But my name is Andrea Logue and my husband, Brian works for the Diocese here."  I was thinking there is no way he would know me or remember me from last summer. 

"Oh!  Your son serves Mass here!"

"Yes he does.  Martin is his name."  I said.

"That's right.  Your Martin's mom."

I stood there stunned as the Cardinal and Brian spoke a little about the Diocese.  He saw me with Martin (not to mention at least 200 other people that day) for literally three minutes almost five months ago.  How on earth could he remember us? 

On the way down from the Shrine to the parking lot, I was talking to another priest.  He was telling me about how he knew Cardinal Burke in high school and how he has something of a photographic memory. 

Simply amazing. 

Our Most Recent Trip To The Dentist

Our dentist is great.  She is patient with the kids and gets all of us in on the same appointment.  There is never any waiting and we are in and out.

Yesterday was our scheduled six month cleanings.  I was in one room with a hygienist, Martin was in another room with another hygienist, and Helen had her own room and own hygienist.  We were all getting our teeth cleaned simultaneously. 

For a several moments, it was glorious.  I was lying back in a comfortable chair relaxing while the hygienist cleaned my teeth and lectured me on the importance of flossing.  I had no children in the room with me demanding either my undivided attention or the last remaining piece of my soul.  I was lying there thinking about how I had made it as a mother.  My kids were old enough to be in separate rooms having their separate dental appointments.  It really was magical.

Throughout my prideful, You're-Doing-A-Wonderful-Job-As-A-Mother, pep talk with myself, I kept hearing this rather high pitched noise.  For awhile I thought it was the radio, like a familiar beat in the song.  Then I started to piece things together.

"Is that my kid screaming?"  I said to my hygienist.

Martin immediately answered from a completely different room down the hall.  "Yep.  That's Helen."

She was having her x-rays done, and she was making it apparent to everyone in the dental office that day that her mother still hasn't reached that point of independent satisfaction.  Thanks, Helen, for that reality check. 

St. Nicholas Day Continued...

The Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe

2013

Happy Saint Nicholas Day!

This picture was taken sometime this morning around 5:30am.  Please take note my son is fully dressed in his school uniform.  There is no telling what time he actually woke up because he even took a shower.

Helen crawled in bed with me a little after 5am this morning.  She told me she was very hungry.  This is something she never says first thing in the morning.

Last night as we put out the stockings, the children knew they would wake up to treats.

I should have been more specific.  I'm instituting a rule for Christmas morning that no one gets out of bed before 6am, assuming these kids get any Christmas presents at all.  

Thanksgiving 2013 [in pictures]

The pumpkin pie I made (mostly) from scratch.

A hike in the woods to look for firewood.

Sheldon came along.

Dinner our friends.

Helen helped cook.

And she tried to learn chess.  

And tortured the dog. 

The Start of (my selfish) Thanksgiving Break

Today is the first day of Thanksgiving Break!

I am looking forward to having us all home together.  This is the first year since having the children we haven't traveled to Southern Indiana (sorry Carl & Susan) for Thanksgiving.  I know we are missing time with our family and celebrating my nephew's third birthday, but it is nice not having to pack up the mini van and spend several hours driving south with two restless kids and a 100-pound Labrador Retriever. 

Our plans for the holiday are spending time with just us (and a few friends, of course).  We have become great friends with another local "relative-less" family.  We plan on heading over to their house on Thursday, cooking up a storm, laughing, drinking wine, possibly play a few board games, eating until we can't stand up, and maybe sneaking out for a bit of shopping (I'm not above it). 

I also plan on not planning anything, except relaxing.  Martin will be allowed to play a ridiculous amount of video games, Helen can continue to torture the dog, Brian will catch up on his reading, and I'll just be thankful having my family all to myself. 

"Get in there, Sheldon!  I made a house for you!"

"Mom!  Take our picture together!"

Heart breaker; Soul shaker

[Insert:  Hair of the Dog by Nazareth]

We'll Call This::Monday

When you leave your kid alone with her older brother and a blue marker...

She becomes the Avatar.

The People (and animal) I Love.

Sir Sheldon Winchester.

He's been with us longer than the children.

My husband (of almost 10 years!).
I really did marry up.

Martin Logue.

The (not so) little boy who stole my heart long before I ever knew him.

He prefers to be barefoot, just like his mom.

Little Helen Logue.

It's possible she might be the cutest little girl in the entire human race.

Or, possibly, a future negotiator. 

(Photos by R.S. Dilliner)

Halloween 2013 [in pictures]

 Because pumpkins should be carved in the garage.

And no one likes the goo....

Love Bug Helen.

Oh Brother Where Art Thou?

The Logues

One of my dad's hobbies is photography, which dates back into his high school years with black and white film and dark rooms.  Last year his wife bought him an awesome digital camera.  He has stepped into the 21st Century and continues to learn more about technology and the modern world. 

While he was here, he took several pictures of our family.  Here's a good one in front of our fireplace (which reminds me, I need to get some decorations).  Enjoy!

The Logue Family

October 22, 2013

Recent Happenings [to justify my absence]

I did something crazy... I had a garage sale and sold most of my baby things:  clothes, highchair, crib, mattress, blankets, coats, shoes, toys.  I had a hard time watching people dig through and buy my memories.  Every time someone bought something I would say Oh, my daughter loved this or My son really enjoyed playing with that.  The people didn't care.  They were in it for the deal, not the commentary. 

Babies don't come as easily for us.  And most of the stuff I was holding on to was for the "What Ifs".  And most of the "What Ifs" were taking up space in my basement.  Not to mention we have moved the "What Ifs" around the Midwest for a long time.  It was time to move on and share some these things with someone else.  If a new baby comes along, it will be nothing short of a miracle (as if all babies weren't, but you get what I mean).  And just because we sold the Pack & Play doesn't mean we are saying no to God, but rather I need space to finish the basement for the possibility of a future adoption(s).  It took me along time to get to this place and I feel good about it.

Selling the Stuff

 
Helen has been working on her writing skills.  In her literacy program she has been practicing writing her name.  I'll share with you two glorious examples:

Her accomplishments at school.

I'm proud of her mastering some lower case letters.

Her accomplishments at home.

I'm proud she wrote the word 'Hole' on an empty wine bag.

 

 

Martin continues to be very active in Boy Scouts.  Recently, he and his friends built soap box cars and pushed each other around the parking lot.  It was a lot of fun!

It gets cold here after the sun goes down.

I feel very fortunate to have two healthy children who like to play with each other (most of the time).  Martin has learned how to make his sister happy without interrupting his good time.  I call it:  Improvising. 

He plays the Wii while she plays the Not Hooked Up Nintendo.

My dad was here visiting the last few days.  We always have such a nice time when we're together.  He's a great dad and an even better grandpa.  

I think this picture speaks for itself.

Helen 3.5

Helen is three and a half years old.  Even with all of the tantrums and fits, this has been my favorite age.  She is able to have a coherent conversation, tell me about her day, sing the alphabet, and boss me around (actually, she's done that last thing most of her life).

Right now she is the same age, weight, and height as Martin when he came home from Ethiopia.  Just from watching him grow up (incredibly fast, mind you), I know within a blink of an eye, Helen will be off to school all day with her own friends and her own things to do with her own schedule.  

There are days when I complain that she hangs on me all day and wants to be held, even though she is perfectly capable of walking. There are (many) days when I can't handle her yelling and her fits.  There are days when I wonder if she will ever just go to the bathroom without me. But most days we have a lot of fun playing, coloring, watching movies, and shopping together. 

It seems like Martin woke up one day and was independent and wanted to avoid me at all costs, and I know Helen's day is just around the corner. 

Reading Jane Austin.  She has her mother's taste in literature. 

Sunday Funday

Fishing with his dad and the rest of his scout friends. 

Martin-san

The other day Martin & I watched The Karate Kid.  Not the original, mind you.  The one with Will Smith's kid.  It was god-awful.  (Don't watch it.  I'm serious.)

After any action movie, especially any karate movie, my kid jumps around like a maniac trying to recreate every fighting scene he just watched.  It's tiresome, really.  I keep telling myself this is typical boy behavior.

Here's an example:


Scene from the movie

 

Scene from real life

 

A Quick Glimpse On Why I Don't Homeschool

The other day Helen came home with homework from school.  She needed to finish coloring her letter 'V' picture, with the uppercase 'V's purple and the lowercase 'V's pink (her two favorite colors).  She was sitting at the table next to Martin while he worked on his homework.

"Helen, you need to finish your picture," I reminded her as she started messing around with everything on the table.

"No.  I think I'll do it later," she said as she tucked her feet under herself and began The Stare Down.

"You should really do it now, then you can go outside and play."  Please keep in mind that it's not about the picture.  It's about doing what is asked.  Helen is a very strong willed little girl and is at the stage of being constantly disobedient. 

"No.  I don't think so.  You do it for me," she told me with arms crossed as The Stare Down continued.

"I don't think so.  Mrs. Adams expects you to do it, not me," I told her.  I started losing my patience. 

Meanwhile, I have Martin hoovering over me wanting me to quiz him on his Latin vocabulary, which I can barely pronounce half of his words.  So, in the mist of a Mexican stand off between me and my daughter, here sat my seven year old son correcting me on every Latin pronunciation. 

Several minutes passed. 

"MOM!!"  Helen interrupts.  "I'm finished!"

"No you're not.  You haven't colored anything," I said to her.  "Look, Martin is going to be done before you and he has a lot more homework."  

In desperate times, I am known to use racing between my children as a way to get things done in some kind of timely manner.

As I go back to helping Martin with his Latin, I watch Helen pull out a purple crayon and start to color.  The very next thing I saw was her little fist hitting the table and under her breath saying "Damn it."

I am not a home school mom.

Photo taken prior to profanities.

Helen's First Day of "School"

I signed Helen up for this non-profit literacy program.  It's a wonderful hidden resource in La Crosse, and we are taking advantage of it.  The idea is to have the children who are enrolled to read before they start kindergarten.  We have had several friends who have had great success and recommended the program to us. 

Helen is incredibly excited!  She has watched her brother go off to school and learn things, and now it's (finally) her turn.  We are going with this program in lieu of pre-school, because let's face it, pre-school is just glorified babysitting.  Here, she will have about an hour and a half of intense (but fun) learning. She shows a big interest in books and learning to read.  I'm predicting she will catch right on and start reading before long. 

But, wait... Wasn't she just a baby yesterday??

Third Grade!!

Is it possible I am now the mother of a third grader??

The Last Few Hours of Summer Vacation

There's about twelve hours of Summer Vacation left.  We're trying to squeeze it all in before time runs out. 

Let The Count Down Begin

So I had this entire entry in my head about how I have the End-Of-Summer-Blues.  You know the feeling, when you have had the best summer together since being a family.  About how our life was being consumed with baseball, swimming, story time, play-dates (kids & moms; with or without wine), bike riding, cliff diving (against his mother's better judgement) Loggers games, sleepovers, sidewalk chalk, library trips, camping, flashlight tag, running through the sprinkler, neighborhood kids, canoeing, late nights, fun, fun, FUN!

Then all the scheduled and organized fun suddenly stopped because I had this grand idea that we would relax the last two weeks of summer before the intensity of school and routine started.

Big fat WRONG.

My kids have discovered they are siblings.  And siblings tend to fight... and argue... and throw things at each other... and pinch each other... and yell at each other... and take each others' things... and fight... and argue.

I know what you're thinking:  Not Martin and Helen!?  They're prefect angels!  Let me reassure you, it is in fact, true.  And they're driving me nuts. 

School starts in exactly one week.  Let the count down begin.

Quick!  Mom is looking!  Act like we like each other!