Canoeing on the Brandwine River

It was a lovely day of canoeing on the Brandywine.  I have been trying to think of all of the things that I would like to do with our last week of summer.  I was reminded of canoeing because Master I recently retold me, with vivid details and a huge smile on his face, the story of a time Mark took him out on a canoe at Island Park.  I was amazed that such a simple act had such meaning for him.  I love activities like this.  I love nature and I want to be in it all day.  I love exercise.  I love spending the day with my family--talking, making memories, making them happy.  Hiking is this for me.  A day at the beach is this for me.  I really wanted to do this all as a family, but the company that we did it through doesn't allow children under 5 on the river.  So I set it up for father and son.  Mark asked if I wanted to do it.  I told him that I would love to, but I wanted them to do it even more because I have already made a lot of memories with Master I this summer.  I believe that I had the most fun of everyone.  I loved imagining the enjoyment that they were having.  I loved seeing Master I's happy face.  Trying to catch a glimpse of the action, the 2 younger kids and I went to the starting point on the river, two different stopping points, and then the final take out point.  We ran along the river trail looking for them and then stopped to play in the river at a different point.  So I even got my day in nature, with exercise, and having fun with children.  

It Could Work

Today was a great day.  Mark is working nights, but able to sleep some at the hospital so we have some time to play during the day.  We decided to go to the zoo.  While we were there Twister told us he had to go potty and didn't have an accident before I was able to take him to the restroom.  I told Mark, "Do you realize all of our children are potty trained?"  He had a look of relief and gratitude on his face and told me it was a wonderful thing.

While we were at the zoo Master I kept holding Twister up to see things and trying to make the day fun for him.  I felt so grateful to have him be focused on making the day fun for his younger siblings.  My oldest brother was that way.

 Recently I have reflected on how wonderful my oldest brother Mike was to me.  We have uniquely strong sibling relationships in our family and I started to realize he was probably a big part of the cause of that family culture.  I remember him inviting me and actually wanting me to play with my older siblings and their friends.  The summer evenings were filled with playing shark  or rag tag in the pool together.  The games were instigated by Mike and he wanted me to play.  When it was time to sleep we would all crash underneath the stars on our huge deck with a blanket and a pillow.  He would invite his friend Horse over on the weekends and all of the siblings and Mike's friends would have a game after dark of capture the flag on our 5 acres. For some reason he wanted me to play. It was more fun for him to have all of us there.  My parents would take us to go on beach trips in the summer.  All of the kids that were old enough would go out in the waves together.  I remember treading water to be able to catch the swells with him.  I just wanted to be around him so much and I felt so grateful that he always wanted me.  For some reason every thing was more fun for him when I was there.  He wanted to to go on the Great Dipper at Santa Cruz with the older kids.  He made my life so fun.  He always loved Christmas and helped to make in magical for his younger siblings.  We would pile onto the floor on Christmas Eve night with sleeping bags.  We would have conversations about what we hoped that we would find under the tree in the morning.  The conversation was interrupted by Mike hearing Santa's bells or seeing him whiz past the window on his sleigh.  He had me fully convinced.

I love Mike and I have realized more and more how magical he helped to make my childhood by including me, by playing with me, and by loving me. I looked up to him.  I loved watching him win his basketball games and receive awards for how outstanding he was in academics as well as sports.  I know his excellence has had a huge impact on my life.  It nagged at me.  I told myself again and again that I had to be smart and excellent too because I was his sister.

Well, that was a tangent.  But, all of those thought were running through my mind as I went to the zoo today with my husband and children.  We had a fun day.  And instead of me despairing over the challenges of such an age gap between my children, I saw something different.  I saw an oldest son that  found joy in making the younger children happy.  I saw that age gap as being the same amount between me and my oldest brother.  And I was filled with hope.  I felt like Tom Hanks on Cast Away.  I wanted to turn to Mark, like Tom Hanks turned to Wilson after so many hardships on the island, and say, "It could work!"My family liked each other today! It could work!  I have hope!

The best part of the day is to see how peaceful  and content Mark is.  I believe that this has come from getting a job offer that he is really excited about.

The night was lonely and I got bored, but Master I watched a movie with me and proved to be such a companion. We watched Love Comes Softly. Master I gasped at all the right parts and enjoyed it right along side of me.  He even turned to me and asked me if I believed what one of the characters said.  He was referring to the line, "Sometimes love isn't fire works.  Sometimes it comes softly."  I told him I though it was true.  He said that he thought it must be true too.  I am sure I wouldn't seek and appreciate Master I's companionship like I do if that need was always met for me.  So, in the end, even that was a great blessing.

Back at Home

Well we are finally back home. At first I was relieved to be out of the suitcases. But, then we Got unpacked and then we were lonely. After a couple of days we figured out how to get along with only each other again and got it.

This last week Master I had basketball camp. He loved it. There were competitions all week for the kids's shooting skills.  There were three areas:  hotshot (how many shots you can make from different areas on the court in a minute,  a lay up competition, and a free throw competition.  Master I was in the top three each competition. By the end of the week he won the hotshot competition. He was thrilled and got a special award.

Master I was also the only boy in camp to win to a shooting game. The game was called "Go For It." Only a couple of the children were chosen each day to try win.   Isaiah was chosen on Friday. The player was given a chance to make a shot relatively close to the basket.  If they made the shot then they won a candy.  If they wanted to "go for it" they would take another shot farther away from the basket. If they won that they would get a Gatorade. If they lost it they would lose the candy bar as well.  Then the child needed to decide if they wanted to risk in again by taking the farthest shot in hopes to to get a Swarthmore College practice jersey in addition to the candy and drink or risk loosing what they won.  Master I was the only child to win all 3 items that week. When he won the game the coach put him on top of his shoulders and ran him around the gym. All the kids were cheering.  It made him feel really special.  He told me that he didn't think he would have that experience until he won in college or the NBA.

Miss R continues to feel really grateful for everyday life.  Every prayer that she says in the same.  She thanks God that we are all back together again after a summer apart. She'll say, "Dear Heavenly Father, I am really glad we are all here together.  Amen."   It  was very hard on her to be away from her Daddy. However, she has cried the past two days for her Monet.  It is hard for Miss R to be away from people that she loves.

One morning this week I went to wake-up Miss R and she groggily told me it was her birthday.  This is one of her idiosyncrasies. She will declare that it is her birthday on random days, will remind me that it is her birthday all day long, and she'll insist that she is five.  I asked her last week how many birthdays she has a year.  "Twenty." she said.  I figure that is about right.  The funny thing was that a friend was cleaning out her toy room and gave us a huge toy kitchen complete with play food and dishes.  She also gave Miss R many lovely Disney princess dresses.  When I put her to bed that night I told her, "It really was a birthday today!"

Twister is back to his twisting ways.  He is climbing on things, tearing apart the couch, constantly trying to wrestle me or the kids,  jumping off of things etc.  He was so much easier this summer when he had a pool in the back yard, a big home to tear through, and lots of friends to distract him.  But, don't get me wrong.  That boy is so darn enjoyable to me that I can't get enough of him.  He is so playful and happy.  I adore him.  Just watching him brings me happiness.

Mark got back from a great interview in Fort Worth, Texas.  I am thrilled about this job prospect for him.  It is precisely the type of job he has been wanting and that I desired that he would have.  The down side is the Yosemite valley isn't right around the corner for him to sneak off to and have his John Muir moments.  I have so longed for him to have that.  I also hoped for a job were our parents could drive  to see Master I play basketball or were we could enjoy a Sunday evening chat after dinner.   That is a gift that I would have loved to give to my children and to my parents.  Maybe we can still have it all somehow.  I am still trying to figure it all out.  But, in the meanwhile, I am grateful that Mark is no longer asking me (sincerely) what I would think about moving to Qatar.