Grace's 6th Birthday

Maybe some day I'll have the time and energy to write more about the day. So thankful for all the wonderful family and other helpers that made this day so special for Gracie. For now, here's a little video and some pictures.

Makita Moments

J.J. has been taking interest in building projects lately. Of course there's the usual Lego creations and foam block structures in the house, but also some substantial wood fort construction going on outside. Using scrap wood from our deck project a couple summers ago, he has extended the wood playset to connect with a nearby tree. After viewing his little bridge assembly (that he put together with picture-hanging nails he'd found in our kitchen junk drawer), I asked if he'd like to learn to use the Makita drill.
His eyes widened and he forced back a giddy grin, trying to prove responsible and serious enough for this honor.So after a lesson on drilling holes, driving screws, changing gears and key-less chucks, we purposed to fortify the wobbly bridge that just barely supported J.J.'s 50 lb. frame. A few holes and deck screws later, he had a pretty good thing going. Here are some pictures he took of his handy-work.

The tree-fort bridge (view from below).

The tree-fort bridge (view from above).

A seat on top of the monkey bars.

Driving Forth Darkness

This morning we were gazing out at the dark skies and constant downpour that was turning our yard into a pond. It was almost 9am, three hours after sunrise and still it seemed as dark as dawn. We were steeped in darkness.

Then J.J. pipes up, "It's just like the Smith Family motto: 'Tenebras expellit et hostes' which means, 'He drives forth darkness and the foe.' I looked at him as if he were from another planet and thought, "Who is this child? What Sci Fi. book has he been reading that's giving him ideas like this? Does he really understand how profound his words are?"

So I asked, "What ARE you talking about, Son?"

He rattled off the same thing, 'Tenebras expellit et hostes, the Smith Family motto.'

"Do you mean Smith like Grandma and Grandpa Smith?"

"Yes!" he replied as if to say, "Of course! What planet are YOU from?"

He went on to explain that he had a dream last night about Grandpa which caused him to remember a promise he had made about reading the Smith family genealogy (a Christmas gift) every morning. So he was reading Grandpa's genealogy this morning and saw the Smith coat of arms and the family motto.

Sovann said, "We don't have a Pen family motto. Maybe we should make one up."

I really like my family of origin's motto. I love it when my kids teach me cool stuff like "Tenebras expellit et hostes."

Manna from Heaven

dinner conversation:

Sovann: "I wonder what food is going to taste like in heaven."

Gracie: "It'll taste as good as God loves you!"

How is it that my children speak more profound truths than I could ever come up with?

Katherine has been thinking a lot about her future. She's considering education, which I think she'd be very good at. J.J. still wants to be an Army Chaplain or Pastor. He's taking classical guitar lessons now and LOVES it. Grace is still dead set on being a ballet instructor.

Getting Ready for the Show

Day 2 of Pocahontas Dress Rehearsals have passed - we have only 3 more run throughs before opening night! With sound and lights still needing to be set, it's a little scary! The kids are amazing, though - costumes and sets are SO COOL! The dancing blows me away and the singing is really GOOD (and I'm a pretty tough critic). If we can get the technical stuff worked out, this show is really going to be amazing.

It took us three tries to get J.J.'s mohawk right. He's one of the very few kids that got to get this warrior haircut and he's pretty excited about it. He looks pretty fierce with his costume and makeup (no war paint, but he gets a bow and arrows).

Katherine looks lovely and is loving the really challenging dance choreography.

Grace has even been recruited this time to dress up and sell souvenirs! She is thrilled to have a special part!

Great Wolf Lodge!

Right on the heals of auditions came our family trip up into Washington state to celebrate Sovann's birthday. We got an incredible deal on a deluxe suite that included a living room-style area and separate kid's area with their own flat-screen TV. We also had a fridge and microwave so we could fix our own food for a few meals.

So Sunday, after helping run sound and packing everything away, we headed North to Great Wolf Lodge! We stopped for a light lunch at Booster Juice and then enjoyed the fall scenery and time to spend talking while driving another hour and a half. We all howled (literally) with delight as we drove into the parking lot of this mega-resort that is part water park, part hotel.

We all were thrilled with everything from the cabin-themed room (complete with bunk beds for the kids and a gas fireplace for the grown-ups) that had a balcony overlooking the "Howling Tornado" water slide (so big, it's outside the waterpark and nearly matches the 8-story hotel's height)! This place is AWESOME - they've thought of everything, with details like log-cabin style details that make everything feel rustic and homey at the same time, to over a hundred lifeguards, warm towels by the poolside and (one of my favorites) a retractable clothesline across the bathtub to dry our suits off at the end of the day.

What made it even better was that we were there with friends. Katherine hung out with her friend Kaylee and had a blast being a teenage girl. Grace and J.J. jumped into the readily available life jackets on deck and got to practice all their swimming strokes in the MANY different pools. What fun! My only complaint was that the water was so heavily chlorinated that my eyes were stinging just sitting on the deck.

Being there with friends, we were also able to trade kids a couple times - in the evening (after taking J.J. and Grace to the Disney-style animated clock tower "bedtime story" show) we dropped the little ones off with Dawn while Sovann and I joined Katherine and Kaylee for a thrilling (and pitch-black) Howling Tornado ride. Yes, I screamed. I think it was something like a 40 foot drop that we went down (that big funnel thing you see in the picture) in the dark!

After exploring a bit (the lodge itself is quite an adventure, with an arcade, multiple restaurants, day spa (and kid's spa) along with Magi-quest "treasures" all throughout the place), we returned to give Sovann his birthday present - a Flip video camera. Have to say, this was our best Dad-birthday we ever put together! He was thrilled.

I whipped together a light supper of Ramen salad and croissants with fruit and then we headed back to the water park. Plenty of fun snacks also kept us going (water slides and jumping across gigantic floating lilly pads takes a lot out of you, you know?). The kids always know it's a special occasion when Mommy gets Cheetos AND Pringles!

That evening, we all gathered around Katherine's laptop to await the results of the Pocahontas casting list to be posted on the CYT website. J.J. was cast as young Keokum (a friend of Pocahontas) - his first speaking role! Katherine was understandably disappointed with the fact that she was "just" in the Algonquin tribe chorus, but showed great character by congratulating her little brother and stating that "I'm going to learn a lot, Mom - and I can't wait to learn all the neat dances." I know she was hoping for a leading role (or even a chance to be on one of the advanced dance teams), but I am really glad she's having a good attitude and still putting forth her best effort.

Katherine and Sovann found the Great Wolf Starbucks the next morning and used their gift cards (earned from Katherine's Orthodontist for getting regular cleanings) . Then J.J. and Sovann hung out in the wave pool and I spent most of the time lounging on deck and chatting with some of my mom-friends that were there. For lunch, we had our final birthday splurge and visited "Camp Critter" bar and grill for an amazing meal. More fun- and great food at fairly reasonable prices! Katherine and I shared an appetizer platter, J.J. and Sovann shared a buffalo burger, and Grace got a bucket full of chicken strips and fries. We were too full for dessert, so decided to go back and swim off all those calories. But before leaving late that afternoon, we went back to experience the Campfire Sundae.

This has got to be one of the best family vacations ever (well, not sure anything could beat the free trip to Disneyland last year, but this was a close second)! We left very happy, refreshed and bonded closer as a family with our tummies full of ice cream and our heads full of happy memories.

Easter

I can't believe I haven't blogged for so long! I guess any spare time I have is spent checking/sharing Facebook - it seems a little easier to upload pictures, too. If you don't have an account, you might consider starting one (hint, hint - Mom, this is for you). Anyways, here are some pictures from Easter Sunday. Katherine's been taking a photography class and seems to have a real knack for it. She did most of the posing/arranging for our group shots and has been getting lots of kudos from her instructor.

I was recently browsing through some old digital video clips and photos - here are some of my favorites. It just amazes me how time flies and how quickly the kids grow up.

J.J. was 3 years old in the ABC video and 4 in the Caterpillar one.



Here Grace was a day old, getting dressed to go home from the hospital. I don't know how I could handle her crying like that!



This is of Katherine (8) making Grace (7 months) laugh.




Here's J.J. feeding Grace, who is almost one year old.

Narnia Opening Night

Opening night was a success! Praise be to God who provided everything we needed, despite having only half the time (6 weeks!) to put the show together, plus cancelled auditions, rehearsals, and photo shoot because of the worst snow storm in 40 years, loss of rehearsal space because of broken pipes and exploded furnace, misprinted dates on posters, family emergencies (towed car, flood evacuation, surgery, injury, death of loved ones), and no power or heat for 10 hours of move-in (when lights and sound were supposed to be set up and adjusted) at the theater because of a massive wind storm. I remember before auditions were even scheduled, Sheri told me, "It's going to be ugly!" simply because of the crazy schedule that had to be tweaked according to the availability of the theater. Little did she know just how "ugly" it was going to get. And yet, God has made something beautiful out of it. Isn't life just full of contradictions?

Enjoy the photos!

Emily Walter, the Centaur.

J.J. telling Father Christmas (Ethan Morrow) what he wants for Christmas.

J.J. poses with Joann, the director.






Kyra, the Evil Elm Tree.

Jamie Julian - loved the "Hag" hair (I've never known a sweeter, gentler hag in my entire life!).

J.J.'s first experience with finger nail polish. Everyone said he was the cutest and funniest evil henchman alive.

Susan (Julia Reidlinger) and Lucy (Katherine) on stage after curtain call to receive their fans.

Sisters Emily (the Dwarf) and Amanda (Tree) Wright.



Megan Bradner as Owl.

After the show, all ready to head to the opening night party.

At the party - food, music, dancing, friends, games, karyoke...and parents with droopy eyelids struggling to last through midnight after a long week of dress rehearsals.

I Was Wrong

Today we had to be at PLS (the rehearsal site for Narnia) at 8am for Katherine to get pictures taken with the 3 other Pevensie children for the publicity poster. We were excited and nervous about driving in the snow and left early to give us plenty of time to be there. The side street to PSL was very snowy and icy, with one car even parked/abandoned in the middle of the road, so I decided to take the advice of the school principal who had said he'd been parking at the nearby McDonald's and walking.

Since we were early and were using their parking space, I treated Katherine and myself to breakfast (a $3 splurge). Then we trudged through the slushy snow and ice to the front gate, which was locked. I should have checked the time, because we were still very early and ended up standing at the gate for a good 20 minutes before Sheri came to open things up.

It was fun seeing the kids get in costume and get their hair done and transform into their characters. They needed a couple rehearsal parents to stay, so I volunteered and got to sit in on some of the sessions and see the kids learn blocking, dances and music.

After awhile, I started thinking about the car and decided to move it around to the back of the McDonald's lot so the restaurant's patrons could use the spot where I had parked, right in front. I trudged back through the snow and slush and moved the car - there were no other cars around and it was the farthest from the restaurant entrance. I went back and helped sweep up the lobby and supervise until almost 3pm, at which time Katherine and Lizzy (whom I was taking home) and I walked back to the lot, only to find the van gone.

I wondered if it had been stolen, but I first went to the McDonald's to ask the manager if they had called to have it towed, and she said the towing company just patrols the lot and always comes in and asks before towing. So we called the phone # on the sign outside and sure enough, our van was towed and it was going to cost us $349.00 to get it back. I asked the man, "Is there not even a bit of grace given because of the snow, since I only parked there because I could not get down the street?" "No," he said gruffly. "You parked right in front of the sign that says if you leave the grounds, you'll be towed. We have a picture that proves it." I thought to myself that he didn't have to be so rude and mean about it.

Once again, we trekked back to the school to call Sovann and ask Sheri to wait until our ride arrived. All I could think of was, "We have that money in savings, but it's supposed to go towards Katherine's braces." Everyone was very supportive - our CYT family showed true concern and compassion, unlike the tow man. I was frustrated because there were 3 other CYTers who parked in the same lot who did not get towed because they parked right in front of the restaurant. I felt punished for being conscientious enough to move my car to an unused portion of their lot. I also felt stupid and could not deny that I had broken the rule.

When everyone else had left, we gathered together and prayed. Then quite unexpectedly, someone (who would like to remain anonymous) offered to pay the fine, "no strings attached," she said. "The Lord has blessed us differently than you, and we can do this for you." At first I was embarrassed, then humbled, then relieved and then angry. "But you shouldn't have to pay anything, " I said, the tears now freely flowing. "No matter how unfair it seems, it is my problem to deal with and I was the one that caused it."

Sovann arrived with the kids (he had to wake Grace up from a nap and get them all bundled up in snow gear and into carseats) and the title to the car, and after talking briefly we decided we would accept our friends' very kind and generous offer. I hope we can pay them back some day, but quite frankly, I don't know when that will be possible. I took the kids home while Sovann got the van out of the impound lot (which also doubled as a wrestling tournament place).

As I was driving home with the kids, I thought about the Narnia musical and the story of "The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe." It struck me that friends were paying a price for us that we really could have and should have paid ourselves, but that would have dealt us an intense blow financially. It was our penalty to pay, not theirs, and just as Alsan gave his life in exchange for Edmund's, it was out of love that they gave sacrificially and not because we deserved or earned it in any way. I was convicted that lately I have come to the conclusion that Christ's suffering on the cross was somehow easy because he was God. But sacrifice of any kind is painful and costly, and may God forgive me for diminishing in my own mind the price he paid for me. Through puffy eyes and tear-stained cheeks, I shared my thoughts with the kids as we sat in our driveway.

Later, Katherine told me that a friend of hers pushed a wad of money into her hand after hearing of our situation. She said she gave the money back and said, "Thank you, but we'll be OK." I told Katherine that there was nothing wrong with giving the money back, but that part of being in community and living as part of the body of Christ meant having the humility to accept help when you need it. What if the family we bought Christmas gifts for came back and returned all the things we gave saying, "Oh, thanks, but we'll be OK." That would have hurt and robbed us of an opportunity to be Christ's love to them.

So I was wrong in my last blog when I said that giving sacrificially (and loving others) was what Christmas is all about. Christmas is also about receiving gifts and letting others (especially Christ) love you. This has been a very humbling lesson that I am still trying to choke down. You would have thought I'd learnt it this fall when the another family extended grace to us, or last month when God arranged a dream vacation for us via the goodwill of strangers ("Blessing"). I don't like asking for or accepting help; I am very stubborn and too self-sufficient for my own good sometimes. I just hope and pray I learn this time, because I don't know how many more of these "lessons" I can handle.

What Christmas is All About

Yesterday everyone got caught up on homework and got their rooms clean! It took all day, but boy it's nice to have a clean house. We decided to walk to the little strip mall near our house to eat out for lunch since it looks like we'll be trapped at home with no particularly special food for Christmas Eve or Day. I have some leftover chopped turkey in the freezer from Thanksgiving - hmmmm, what can I do with that?

Anyways, we all walked to La Costita for lunch and had yummy chalupas. Katherine and I dropped into BiMart where we met everyone else from the neighborhood with cabin fever. It must have gotten a little above freezing, because the snow was actually turning slushy in some spots. There was a little mini-backhoe trying to clear the parking lot at BiMart and quite a few people out driving around (with chains). Back home, we worked on the snow fort a bit more. I think we started the foundation too big/wide, because it seems like too much work. We opted for a snowball fight instead. Here's a shot of the kids sliding down our front steps, which are now completely buried in snow.

Sovann shoveled the driveway again and dug out his car enough to see if it would start. It did. We were so full from lunch that we opted for a late, light dinner of soup and butter flake rolls (mmmm, sorry Mom & rest of the fam - we were going to share these with you, but since we're stuck here...). Grace fell asleep in the living room floor with a pencil and pad of paper in her hand - I guess we all forgot about her nap time, and the droning news coverage of the snow (that has gone on and on and on) put her right to sleep. It put Sovann to sleep, too. ; -)

After dinner, we all watched Court Jester (with Danny Kaye and Angela Landsbury) and ate Jiffy Pop popcorn (the kind you do on the stove that puffs up into a big foil mushroom ball). Life is good - we might not have everything we want, but life is still very good for us. We thank God for providing for all our needs - so very faithfully.

Today our "adopted" family from the school where our church meets was able to borrow a car with chains and come pick up their gifts. It felt really good knowing we spent more on Christmas gifts for them than we did on ourselves. They asked to forgo toys, video games, etc. and just get them things they needed - warm clothing and work boots for the dad. On top of those things, we were able to throw in some nice hand-me-down toys and some yummy treats as well. We pray they will be blessed and feel God's love. What a privilege to be God's feet and bless a struggling family this year - THAT is what Christmas is really all about!

Trapped!

So it's Monday now and we've done the hot cocoa and caroling to our neighbors thing. We played in the snow and shoveled the driveway (4 times now). We've played games and baked cookies and watched everyone in the neighborhood slide down the hill in front of our house (on foot, sleds, skis, snowmobiles, ATVs and a few brave 4WD vehicles with chains). We watched the Santa Clause 3 and several other movies. Now I'm trying to get the kids to clean their rooms and do their chores. We're getting a little tired of being snowed in.

We thought the big storm was over but we got another foot of new snow today (the blizzard conditions were gone, but the snow wasn't). It's not so fun anymore! The bunny shelter roof was about to cave in from the weight of the snow, and Sovann's car outside is so covered you can't even see the fron end. The city of Gresham has declared a state of emergency and is telling everyone to stay home. People with 4WD and chains are saying they can't get out of their driveways. AND IT'S STILL SNOWING.

Right now there are about 10 people walking down the tire tracks in the middle of the road on their way to BiMart (or Burger King?), desperate to get out of the house. Sovann is going to try to shovel his car out of the 4 ft. drifts now. I guess we are just not equipped to deal with this amount of prolonged snow. Usually the rain washes away the 2 or 3 inches after a day or so - we've been stuck for a week now. We are very lucky to still have power - the news just said there have been over 145,000 homes without power over the past week. OK, enough words. Here's the proof.

More Crazy Weather

Thursday (Dec. 18) was another cancelled school day as another big storm was supposed to hit. Well, it never really did. It didn't thaw out, but we had no new snow, either. We tried to do school, but it was difficult with all the Narnia excitement. And Friday was more of the same, except that things got a little warmer and the roads turned slushy and drivable. Knowing that another big storm was coming in, I rounded up the kids and we did a speed-shopping trip! We drove up to Jon & Bopha's and quickly swapped presents, dropped off something to Christy (who was working on the next show's program), ran in and out of Craft Warehouse and then braved the packed WINCO. It took awhile to navigate the parking lot, but we blazed through the store and stocked up on essentials for the weekend.

I dropped J.J. and Katherine off at their first Narnia rehearsal and then went to 3 more stores at Gresham station to buy presents & gift cards for a family from Dexter McCarty middle school that our fellowship group adopted for Christmas. Seems everyone else had the same idea (shopping)! Lines were long, but Grace and I whizzed back to the CYT parent meeting that went until 8:30pm. It was snowing and blowing pretty hard by the time we got home, but nobody was hurt and the roads weren't too bad yet.

That night, the winds really picked up and the skies dumped about 6 inches of snow (with drifts over 2 feet in some places). Gusts up to 55mph blew our deck chairs around and kept snow from accumulating on trees and rooftops. We awoke to a winter wonderland. Sovann went sledding with the kids while I made hot cocoa and actually cooked breakfast (biscuits & sausage gravy.)

Not surprisingly, Saturday's rehearsal was cancelled, including a photo shoot for the advertising posters for the show. (boohoo) We all spent a good deal of time on Facebook, connecting (artificially) with friends. We pretty much knew at this point that we'd have to cancel our trip to Grants Pass (the weather plus the fact that J.J. was just coming down with a cold). I called my mom and we cried together about being separated (again) for the holidays. But little did we know how much more bad weather was on the way.

Sunday morning, we found freezing mist coming down and a 1/2 inch of freezing rain on top of the now 8 - 10 inches on the ground. Church was cancelled, but we determined to have our own service. We prayed, sang some carols and listened to the Christmas story as narrated in Luke on Sovann's Bible Experience CD. We also started our snow fort, which didn't get very far because the snow was so dry (it was 20 degrees outside). We had frosty ice chunks on the inside of some double-pain windows, and even though it was cozy upstairs, it remained a constant 63 degrees downstairs in the house.

We took little loaf of banana bread next door to our neighbors and sang them, "We Wish You a Merry Christmas." They handed us a box of Belgian Chocolates and later brought us a cheesecake and a big pan of sweet rolls! Lunch was tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwiches (yum!), then we made/worked on and wrapped some gifts. After dinner (turkey and dumpling soup) we played "Word Sweep," a fun and challenging new game that GBC gave us (thanks everyone). Sovann and I were very impressed with J.J. and Katherine's vocabulary (and we're no biased a bit, really).

Here's a little clip of us playing outside. Katherine tried to make a snow angel, but it didn't work because of the layer of ice. J.J. and Grace were so light that they could walk on top of the ice without breaking through. Grace says in the video, "I'm saving snow daughters and snow sons." She picked up little chunks of snowy ice and gathered up in a pile - right behind Sovann's car (should make it fun to back out when things begin to thaw).

Crazy Weather

It all started with an inch or so of snow and an arctic blast of freezing temperatures. As everyone hurried home after church last Sunday (the 14th), the wind blew the snow across the surface of the streets like a ghostly fog. After a quick trip to the library, we made it home just fine and hunkered down for the night.

The next day we were bummed to hear that Narnia Auditions had been cancelled for the day. J.J. and Katherine had home school as usualwhile all the neighborhood kids got the day off (there was MUCH complaining about THAT). We had to melt the ice out of the bunny's water a couple times a day, and the packed snow from tire tracks and footprints became raised icy spots where the loose snow around had blown away. Sovann walked with the kids to BiMart to get essentials like coffee and milk. We watched a lot of movies and YouTube videos and the kids practiced their audition numbers a lot.

On Tuesday, we walked a mile in the freezing weather (the packed snow made it slippery, but not too hard to walk in) to swap Grace off to a friend and take their daughter to auditions with us. We spent the rest of the day at a makeshift audition location (a freezing cold church - they say the heat was on, but I couldn't feel it). I helped check kids in, recorded their costume measurements, and watched some auditions. It was so neat to see how much everyone had improved since a year ago. They crammed auditions and callbacks into one long marathon process (from 1:15 to 9:30), but we all survived and got home safely. Phew!

We were all so exhausted the next morning, and pretty sure that Katherine's Heartlife classes would be cancelled, that we all slept in and hung out in our pajamas most of the day. We all waited with baited breath for the Narnia cast list to be posted that evening. I tried to keep the kids on track with their schoolwork, but no one could concentrate. Katherine resolved to recite the Serenity Prayer every hour and we all prayed for patience. I forgot about Grace's dentist appointment, and while anxiously moping around Katherine heard a loud crash in the front yard. She looked out and saw a pickup truck had crashed through our fence. We got part of the license plate, but not enough to actually find the guy who drove off without even so much as a "sorry." Arrrgh!

As I was on the phone with a contractor friend to get a quote for the fence damage, Katherine started screaming, "I got the part! I'm Lucy! I, I, I...I can't believe it!" We hugged and screamed together (after hanging up the phone) and tears of joy were shed. Yes, the part Katherine had been hoping for, working towards, practicing on for the past year was really hers now. This is especially neat because this will be the only CYT production she will get to be in this year. The big difference that I saw was her confidence level. During callbacks, she ran up and said, "Mom, I amazed myself! I just sang every note the best I could and didn't once say (to myself or out loud) that I couldn't do that very well or didn't want to try."

We all quickly went back to looking at the cast list and found that J.J. also made it into the show!!! I am so proud of him for listening and following directions and trying so hard (even when tired and sometimes confused). He got the part of Wolf2, (which we think might be a speaking part) and is also a part of the "Cruelie Chorus." Here is his audition that a friend videotaped. I love hearing people's reactions to him more than anything else.