Slumber Party!

 Matt went and the guys he works with went to Casper to do a job.  He was going to be coming home late the next day so the boys and I decided to make a slumber party out of the night.  We read books, watched movies, and slept in the living room with the light of the Christmas tree.

 

Gideon, the smallest, somehow got a couch to himself.

Silas is showing how many cards he has. 

I had to call Matt and warn him not to open the front door to hard.  Sam decided to sleep right in front of it.

Matt fixing my sewing machine

My sewing machine was sewing slower and slower.  Matt can fix anything.  He is happy to make me happy.

Titus looks frustrated with the progress.  Is Gideon on some kind of drug?

Its a 70 year old sewing machine.  A piece of the motor needs replacing.  The bushings or the bearings or something - I can't remember what Matt said.  Anyway, he and his dad said it is a standard part and we can get it at a parts store for just a few bucks.  So good. : )

The Fort Progress

 

 

Not done yet...

Sayings XXIV

Gideon, "Mom, I want you to read a Honey the Pooh."

Sayings XXIII

Hurrumph!  Why did Matt choose to make sayings be in Roman Numerals???

Titus was helping Matt back the truck up to the trailer to go get some lumber for our fort, and when Matt said we were ready to go, Titus said, "Good. Now the trailer and the truck are tinnected."

Gideon calls his clothing "cloving".  He has asked me several times if it is ok to call clothing, "cloving."

Sayings XXII

commune communion

Mom asked Silas to explain communion. Silas asked, "Is that what Adam and Eve said to the servant in the Garden of Eden?"

Josiah corrected him and said, "No, communion is when a whole bunch of people live together in the same place."

Merry Christmas

We're just dog sitting for Ben.

Preparedness

Elijah is currently wearing 8-10 various knives, all dangling from his belt, jingling everytime he moves. He just bought himself a "hobo" knife that includes a knife and a spoon. He opted out of normal silverware for Christmas dinner and used his hobo silverware instead. He is now mentioning carrying a rope with him at all times. I asked him where it would hang and he pointed to a small opening on his crowded belt...right below his spine. He also mentioned how he would soon be stocking his backpack with an MRE (Meal Ready to Eat) at all times. Later that evening I heard him say, "My mom and dad won't even let me wear a bullet proof vest!"

Sayings XXI

Fezzik came back with Ben Hornok to spend the holidays with us. Matt commented about how it is incredible how quickly Fezzik picked up on his old habits from when he lived with us. Robin said, "Well Fezzik is pretty smart...not like cat...he is D...U...M."

In her defense, she was playing Angry Birds at the time. :)

Titus is outgrowing his favorite outfit

Little Helpers

SantaBug

Soft, Warm and Fuzzy

Meat

At last years Levi Hadley family reunion, Gideon discovered his love of ribs.

GiddeyBug finds Abbie's coat

Setting up for Christmas

Enjoying some hot cider





 
These three are relaxing on the couch while the real work happens.

The kids love Ben

Sayings XX

I told Gideon the story of Jonah and the whale. When I got to the part where the the big fish spit/vomited Jonah out of his mouth, Gideon asked "Was Jonah covered in germs?"

AbbieGator

When Abbie was about 3 months old.... Gideon says at the end, "Mom, Abbie puked on the toy." Mom replies, "That's not unusual."



Abbie bites back. Then Fezzik almost sits on her.

Sayings XIX

Gideon and Titus were helping mom cook. When they pulled the turkey out of the fridge, they asked what it was. One of them looked at it for a while and said, "Mom, I wish we could have kept it as a pet."

Cowtitus and Indibug

Look at the paper feather in GiddyBug's head-dress.  Elijah had made it earlier in the day for them.  They spent the day chasing each other around.


Yes. I gave him a real knife to hold for the picture. No. Robin was not happy with me. 

Sayings XVIII

Gideon came out of the bathroom and said, "The toilet is almist plogged up."

Reach for the Sky!

Stick 'em up!



Higher!

Sayings XVII

Samuel asked, "Dad, how do you sing that Police Navidad song?"

14 months 7 days

Abbey got her first tooth! Well its not actually here yet, but we can see the top of it. A big day. We waited a long time.

Also, I really appreciate my children and my family. Each little munchkin is unique. You wouldn't think 8 siblings could be so different but they really are. And each one is filled with valuable treasures of the heart and mind. I love hearing them talk about their curiositys. I love seeing them play with their brothers and sister. Hugging each other, cooing to Abbey, giving horsey rides to one another, laying 55 pokeymon cards on the living room floor and organizing them TOGETHER. I love their excitement when Matt says, "StoryTime!" They all come running and want "Twig" from the StormChaser.

Ahhh storytime. That is something else I love. Matt reads the boys stories most nights. He does a chapter out of 5 different books a night. He does a portion each, out of the Book of Virtues, Lord of the Rings, The Edge Chronicles (Twig), Thomas the Tank Engine, and a Bible story.

We have been reading Lord of the Rings for about 5 years. We are now in the last book. We are planning a Lord of the Rings party when we are done. Other treasures have been Charlie and the Chocolate factory (which the boys called Chawle and the Choclick factory) along with Roald Dahl's other books, the Little House on the Prairie series, Charlotte's Web, Trumpet of the Swan, The Indian in the Cupboard series, Chronicles of Narnia series, The Wrinkle in Time series, the Children's Treasury of Virtues and lots of others.

During storytime, everybody grabs a pillow and lays on the floor or cuddles up with mom or dad. The babies and little boys just follow the lead of their brothers and join in. You would think by the time story time is done everybody would be ready for bed, but no. Matt ends the story on a cliffhanger and all the kids get riled up and beg and plead for more.

I remember the time we read Charlottes Web. We got to the part where Charlotte had just saved Wilbur again and was very weak. We all got lumps in our throats and then when she died we all, from Matt on down, balled like babies. Sam still talks about the food in Farmer Boy. "The succulent turkey drippings and platters and platters of sweet corn and hot bisquits...".

I love my family. I love our days together.

In a white box**

**No children were harmed in the making of this post.

Sayings XVI

Mom was teaching the boys about Nuclear Weapons. When Dad got home from work, Samuel skeptically asked, "Dad, is it true that La Grange could be blown up by an Automatic bomb the size of a crayon?"

I think maybe he meant Atomic.

Robin's Anniversary!

Robin has been sick now for one full month. Congratulations Robin!



Somehow she still manages to run the household like a fine oiled machine. Most of it is now over, but she still has a constant headache from it. I'm certain it was some sort of strange African East Nile disease, even though the doctor said it was just a virus.

Sayings XV

Robin brought Abbie-Sister and GiddeyBug to bed for some special cuddle time. A little while later Matt said, "I wonder what's going to happen with these children."

Robin got teary-eyed and said wistfully, "I know. What will they be like? Who will they become? Will they love the Lord?"

To which Matt said, "No, I just meant 'who is going to take them back to bed?'"

Enjoying homework