Two Languages

Per usual, we are running from place to place trying to fit every one's activities and social life into a very short 24 hours with only 2 drivers. I was meeting Chris at the Bishop's dinner; Sarah Katherine was off to ballet and then a football game; Christopher was being picked up for cotillion, and the babies were staying home and watching a movie. As I was leaving, it occurred to me I had not planned a dinner for the children. Oops! I'm frantically trying to decide what's appropriate to wear, not too stuffy, not too revealing--you know an issue that will continue as I continue in this vocation. (Gangan told me I was not to be a dowdy priest!) "Ah ha!" I think to myself. "I'll let the children order pizza. They'll think it's fun and I don't look like the mother who forgot I had to feed my children--win win! Yeah me!" But I realize I don't have time and I'm not certain they've ever ordered their own so I ask, "Christopher, do you know how to order a pizza to be delivered?" (I know he's 13; he should be able to,but we don't do it often and with 4 children I can be a little controlling--makes things go smoother)Christopher looks at me aghast eyes rolling and clearly irritated, "Yes ma'am you just say, 'yo, bring me a pizza to my crib quick like.'" (Remember I'm in a frantic hurry, so not easily amused.) I look at him with my best be serious I'm your mother and this is not time for a joke look. He sheepishly says, "I know Mama, now that I'm in cotillion I have to say, 'Yo, excuse me mister, would you be so kind as to bring me a pizza to my lovely crib?'"

Thank goodness for online ordering!

Please say gender

You just never know where the dinner conversation at our house will lead. And in a restaurant, well let's just say there are still no boundaries! Saturday night we were having dinner out at a very nice restaurant in the mountains of Virginia. It was outside, so there was some background noise. This of course meant the children all had to increase their volume allowing every person on the patio to hear enough of our conversations to wonder what kind of parents we are. Here's a snippet of one:

Christopher: We found a cat the other day.

Me: What sex?

Caroline: Can we please not talk about sex? (This was of course the loud comment) I much prefer to say "gender".

Christopher: Gender--that sounds like a fancy New York hot dog.

William: So we eat different genders?

I Try Not to Be a Nerd

UVA took it to the Tar Heels last night in Chapel Hill--it's awesome! One of my smack talking Tar Heel friends did a lot of smack talking yesterday on facebook. So, this morning I comment on his post with, did you say, "not in my house?" My 12 year old son is horrified, "Mama,you don't use quotes when you're talking basketball smack!"

Really? All we wanted was a clean room

Because I'm in seminary, our family has some interesting conversations (as though we needed something to lead us down the road of interesting conversations)! This J-term I've been taking Feminist and Womanist Ethics. A great and challenging class--lots of discussion around the dinner table.

Saturday Chris told Caroline she needed to clean her room before she could go out to play. Caroline, "Daddy you are being very patriarchal and that is a sexist request!"

Well...

It's going to be an interesting year (as though the last 14 haven't had enough excitment). But now I have two in middle school and hormones are raging through our house. Sarah Katherine and Christohper alternate between being confidantes and wanting to kill each other (back to the hormones). I love that they talk and use each other as sounding boards. Well.....most of the time!

This morning Christopher asked Sarah Katherine, "What's it like being a girl?" Now there's a profound question and one I'm certain many males would like the answer to even if it's just so they can try to understand. Long quiet pause, I'm sure Sarah Katherine was trying to figure out how to answer a question she neither had the answer to (got to stay one step ahead as she's the eldest)nor had anything to compare it to. Last I checked she doesn't know what it's like to be a boy. So she's thinking, I'm holding my breath thinking this could really affect Christopher, and Caroline pipes up, "Well.....you pee sitting down." And that my friends is what it's like to be a girl.

The Bells

This past week we moved onto the seminary campus. As I was walking home from class one afternoon, the sound of the chapel bells was so peaceful. I thought to myself how much I was going to love hearing them on a regular basis.

The next afternoon, I was walking with Sarah Katherine and the bells again began to ring. I was just about to turn to her and comment on the peacefulness and the beauty when she says, "Hey where do you think that ice cream truck is?"

I don't think I'll ever be able to hear them quite the same way!

Just Another Saturday

I’m sure you don’t really want the play by play of health at our house, but if I don’t laugh about it, then I’ll cry. So this morning William writhing on the floor complaining of a headache—I tell him to quit being dramatic because I did in fact have a headache (self induced but pounding nonetheless). He gets up and I take his temp only to discover that I no longer am in the running for Mother of the Year (Although I was eliminated on January 1, the committee decided to reinstate me on the grounds of mental anguish caused by children’s illnesses). William’s temp was 104—guess his head really did hurt. Fast forward several hours and several room punishments for Caroline and Christopher who were both being worse than horrible. Arguing with each other, me ,Chris and I’m sure the wall got blamed for something. Throw in a couple of full blown temper tantrums from Caroline. The last one as she is shouting at me that she’s cold and I need to do something about it. Throws herself on the couch in tears kicking and screaming and saying, “Daddy needs to hurry up and take us out of here I’m cold.” I have a brief moment of compassion (previously it was all thoughts of how I can kill her and get off with justifiable homicide—going to hire Katherine Kingren for that)and think, “cold; irrational crying fits hmmm..Fever?” And as Sarah Palin says, “you betcha!” 103 for Caroline. Two nights ago I moved William into Caroline’s room so he wouldn’t contaminate Christopher and now I’ll move Christopher in there in the hopes he’s not already contaminated. I’m seriously considering moving myself to a mental hospital—we’ve already reached our medical deductible so it would be covered 100%.

And now that I’ve filled you in I’ll go back to writing my paper on the controversy between Cyril and Nestorius considering the Christology of the Alexandrian and Antiochene schools and the Nicene Creed—should be a short paper as I don’t even understand the questions!

GO CARDS!