Category Archives: Husbands

May11

Busy Week

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Busy Week

So it is Friday, and I haven’t managed to post one time this week! I thought once school ended that I would be posting like crazy, but it just hasn’t been possible. One of the things taking up so much of my time is a perfectly awesome house that my family will soon be moving into, Lord willing. I will be happy to share pictures and details once the deal is final, but until then I will continue to dig deep into my filing cabinet for paperwork that is requested, drive all over town to 3 different branches of my bank to request a cashier’s check (only to be told that the seller’s realty office messed up and I have to go do it again. And again! 4th time was the charm!), and spend 15 minute increments of time locked behind my bedroom door so the person on the other end of the phone can understand what I am saying without kids screaming, “MO–OM!”

Anyway, today was a special day. My Jason had a birthday. I had a few chances to serve him today, but I wanted to specifically write about the kids. They have been talking for weeks, making plans about what they were going to do for dad for his birthday. Miranda asked last week if she could get online and do a search for how to make birthday party decorations. I allowed her to, and she found a couple of good ideas. Not having a lot of money to spend, they got resourceful and began designing their party. Here’s a picture of their set-up.

They wanted to eat outside and enjoy the weather, so we cleaned off the table, put up the umbrella, and they decorated. Last weekend at a birthday party, my girls learned how to tie together clover flowers to make bracelets, etc. They came up with the idea themselves to tie enough together to decorate for Dad’s birthday. The poor girls started on Sunday afternoon and had a strand 8 yards long. Unfortunately, it was dried and brown by Thursday so they had to start over. They spent a few hours outside today finishing them up. Of course, my girls don’t feel like anything for Dad is complete without including UK (University of Kentucky), so that is why the pendants hanging from the garland. They spelled HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD, UK UK UK UK.

Also, we tried out one of the ideas that Miranda found online, tissue paper flowers. There were tons of websites with tutorials and videos to show how to make these, and they turned out really cute. You can see them in a vase in the center of the table.

One of Dad’s favorite things is Sour Patch Kids. So we bought the biggest bag we could find and had them sitting on the table when he got home from work. I made Stuffed Green Peppers and Homemade Breadsticks, which Elsie and Grant ended up wearing on their face for a couple of hours after dinner since I was cleaning up the kitchen. Jason is not a cake eater, so I made a cherry crisp and stuck a candle in it. Funny thing is that Elsie blew out his candle with one little blow before he could even try. She couldn’t even blow out her own candles 2 months ago at her party, but she sure knew what to do with Dad’s!

I just wanted to praise my kids a little for being such a servant to their daddy. Yes, he probably would have preferred to sit and relax instead of using the coupon to “take a walk” with the kids. And he might have liked a little more personal space after dinner was over, but instead he let the kids pester him to death. But I know he understood the point of all this affection: they all love him and wanted to make sure he had a good birthday.

Jason Enjoying Sour Patch Kids

Feb28

Surprise Date

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Surprise Date

Today I thought I’d share with you something fun I did for my husband several years ago. I was able to plan the perfect surprise for him, and he knew absolutely nothing!

The first reason this worked out so well was that I knew his boss. Jason had an excellent working relationship with him, and I visited his work often, so I got to know him pretty well. I contacted him with my plan, and asked for a vacation day for Jason. He was fine with it and granted him the day off.

The night before this special day, we went to bed as usual. Jason had no other reason to believe he wasn’t getting up for work in the morning. After he fell asleep, I tip-toed quietly to the alarm clock, turned off his alarm, and set the time back 2 hours. Jason always got up at 5 am, so it was still dark out for a couple hours. After a full night of sleep (for him! I was too excited to sleep, wondering if he would notice the clock thing.), he woke up with it beginning to get light outside. Of course he panicked and checked the time on his cell phone. When he realized he had slept in, I told him that today was a special day planned just for him. And of course, I explained that his boss already knew and there was nothing to worry about at work.

So we got ready, and got the kids ready (we only had 2 at the time), then dropped them off at the babysitter’s house. She, too, was in on the plan of course. Jason still didn’t know where we were going, but I made him drive anyway. I would only give him the necessary directions for the next turn. Finally, we arrived at our destination–Dave and Busters. (If you have never been there, it is a restaurant in one area, and a big kid arcade and game room in another.) We spent the day eating and playing, just goofing off without any worry about getting back to the kids or job.

We did spend all our tickets on stuff for the kids. They got big bright eyes when we handed them bracelets and rings and all sorts of cheap toys.

It was a day the two of us will never forget. It was just as much fun for me to surprise him as it was for him to get a day off work. I know it isn’t common for every wife to be able to request a day off work for her husband, but if you can, you should! Jason’s job situation now doesn’t allow me such flexibility, or I might try it again.

Have you ever surprised your husband with a date or day out?

Feb24

True Hospitality

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True Hospitality

Hospitality has changed over the years, and doesn’t look quite like it did in the days of Martin Luther. However, I think the heart behind the hospitality can be just the same. If you do not know the history surrounding this man and his wife, you should go read this short portion of their story.

And just in case you’re interested, here’s a picture of the living room in the Luther’s home, The Black Coister.

40 monks once lived in this home…seems like a lot of upkeep to me!

This picture taken from Wikipedia. More photographs and facts can be found by searching Martin Luther on Wikipedia.

Feb15

Little Things, Valentine Edition

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Little Things, Valentine Edition

Of course, there is lots of serving to be done on Valentine’s Day. There are ways for each member of the family to let the other members know they are loved. So here is how my family did that this year.

On Monday night, we had our normal date night. (Thanks, Hannah!) Jason found a new little cafe, and we enjoyed dinner together. (Well, I enjoyed my pulled chicken sandwich and mashed potatoes. Jason really didn’t care for his meal. But we enjoyed being together!) Oh, and we had Starbucks, which is pretty much a given on our date night. I had a Venti Soy Cinnamon Dolce Latte, thanks to my free birthday drink. I’m pretty sure that is why I couldn’t get to sleep till midnight….

Tuesday began, um, rather unexpectedly. I woke up out of a dead sleep at 5:40 with Jason saying, “Are the kids up downstairs?” We got up and walked down the stairs to find several lights on, and the three oldest kids out of bed. Clare and Miranda were cleaning up the family room and “decorating” it with hearts. Grant was sitting on the kitchen FLOOR, pouring cereal into bowls (and he had just spilled Rice Krispies all over the floor). Now what? I knew they were doing all this with a heart of love, yet I really did not want them up this early. So we thanked them and asked them to go back to bed for a little longer. Unfortunately, no one actually went back to sleep, so when Jason got up for work, we had a family breakfast!

(We won’t talk about the fact that we had 4 tired and grumpy kids all day. And how there was 1 tired and grumpy mommy trying not to lose her cool. Needless to say, all 4 kids ended up taking a nap in the afternoon!)

For my hubby, I decided to make a pecan pie for dessert after dinner. He LOVES them. Every time my mom comes for a visit, he begs her to make one. I have tried my hand at them two or three times before, and each time I bake them so long that the crust burns, but the middle still does not set up. So I wasn’t sure how it would turn out, but I tried a new recipe with good success. The pie turned out pretty good. My mom should be very happy though, because Jason still loves her pie the best!

One thing is certain, I will not forget this Valentine’s Day. I will not be letting my children forget this Valentine’s Day either.

How were you served on Tuesday? What did you do to serve someone else?

 

Image Credit: Free Pixels

Feb13

Little Things 5

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Little Things 5

Here are some little things I noticed last week, that I want to add to my list.

 

#1)  Jason was gone for three days last week. Before Daddy left, Grant wanted to help him pack. He was running back and forth between me downstairs, and Jason upstairs relaying messages and carrying items up the stairs.

#2)  Knowing my hubby was gone for three days last week, my wonderful sister called to check up on me and the kids.

#3)  My two older girls have really been helping out with Elsie lately. Both girls jumped at the chance this week to bathe her and get her dressed. (I’m pretty sure that is so exciting because they get to choose her outfit for the day.) This frees up several minutes of my time, so I am thankful for this service.

#4)  Since the girls knew Daddy was coming home on Thursday, they hurried through their chores and jumped right into their schoolwork for the day. They wanted to finish everything before he got home, so they could spend extra time with him.

#5)  Miranda loves having her dogs, but with that also comes the responsibility of feeding them and taking them outside each day. It is one of those jobs she does, because she has to, but also gets very tired of doing daily. Clare got up to feed the dogs one morning, so Miranda wouldn’t have to.

 

I’m sure you have seen kindness this week. Care to share?

Feb7

Little Things 4

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Little Things 4

I have been writing this series of posts on the little things that sometimes get looked over in a day. I want to be more conscious of those little acts of kindness (serving), so I am making a list!

 

#1)  My girls watched our neighbors dog back in December, and had a blast! They enjoyed having another dog to play with and to snuggle with. Though they did it without expecting to be paid, our neighbor paid us back with the softest, comfiest, warmest University of Kentucky blanket. (I know, enough about UK already, right?!?) Not too sure how much the kids are going to get to enjoy it though–Jason called dibs.

#2)  My kids were allowed to take a quarter from their banks to buy a gumball from those kiosks in the mall this week. Miranda begged me to be able to take an extra quarter from her own bank to buy her baby sister some M&Ms.

#3)  I had a rare, but pretty intense headache yesterday (which is sometimes caused by a lack of caffeine intake), so my hubby made a special trip through the Chick Fila drive through to get me a “large sweet tea with very light ice”. (I’m not picky or anything…)

#4)  A good friend of my girls came over last night, and brought them a beaded pin that she made them, to wear on their shirt.

#5)  I got the sweetest Thank-You card in the mail today, from my dad. He was saying thanks for the retirement party last week, and letting me know how much he enjoyed it. It’s great to have such an awesome Dad!

 

Let’s hear yours! Who has served you recently?

Jan12

Get Everybody Talking!

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Get Everybody Talking!

I wrote earlier in the week about our creative story time, and I thought I’d take a post and share where we originally got the idea.

A month or two ago, I ran across this post that provided an entire file of “conversation starters”. I printed them off and we began using them every night at dinner. Most of these conversation starters are questions. Some are serious, thought provoking questions. Others are light-hearted, “what if” questions. And there are “Story Starters” similar to the one I wrote about. Each of them are great at getting the kids and adults talking. Even if you don’t usually have a problem getting conversation going, this can guide the topic a little and help you get to know each other better.

Because we had been enjoying ours so much, I made a couple of these as gifts this Christmas. You should really go print a copy for yourself. I promise you’ll have a blast!

 

Jan9

Creative Story Time

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Creative Story Time

We were given this idea recently, and it has become one of our favorite things to do. (Especially if you ask the girls!) While it is a fun activity that passes time together, it is also a good way to develop their creativity. Clare has just started creative writing in 2nd grade, and Miranda is working on developing her writing skills in 3rd, so this is teaching them to use colorful words and phrases.

Mommy or Daddy start the story and leave off with an incomplete sentence like this:

One dreary, rainy day we were sitting around the house a little bored. We decided to pile in the car and….

Then we go around the table and add a sentence or two to the story. We have found that it is best to set a 20 second timer and when it goes off, the next person begins. It is really fun when it catches you in the middle of a sentence.

Tonight our hungry family ended up in a fruit orchard with apples and bananas talking to us, after trying every restaurant and grocery store and finding them closed. It was very amusing and there were lots of laughs!

Any ideas for interesting starting sentences?

Jan3

Noisy Kids???

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Noisy Kids???

My husband is so clever. He comes up with all kinds of solutions to the problems I have around the house. At dinner a few nights before our Christmas vacation, the decibel level around the table was so high that he and I could not even carry on a conversation. After many attempts to shhhh everyone, he devised a plan.

“Miranda, go get me a package of crackers,” he said.

“Okay!” she happily replied. [My kids eat crackers like we own stock in the company!]

When she got back to the table, Daddy pulled about 6 or 7 crackers from the package and put them in front of her on the table. Then he said, “I’m going to set the timer on my phone for 1 minute. You eat as many crackers as you can before the timer goes off.”

“Okay. That’s easy.” she said.

When Daddy said, “Go!” she shoved 2 crackers right into her mouth thinking this was going to be so easy. Within 10 seconds she was laughing hysterically with crackers spewing out of her mouth. I ran to get the camera but by the time I returned, she had the situation in her mouth a little more under control. These pictures definitely do not do it justice!

Just starting out, still thinking "I can do this"

 

Now she's thinking, "This is crazy and impossible!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Racing each other

 

When Clare finished her food, she wanted to try it too. You could see on her face that she thought it was the simplest thing ever. “I can definitely beat Miranda’s 3 crackers,” she said. So we set them up to have a cracker eating contest.

 

 

"Seriously, Mom? Enough pictures already!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then they wanted Daddy to try it too. So later all three of them had a contest. Believe it or not, 3 crackers was the most anyone was able to completely chew up and swallow before the timer went off, including Dad.

It is kind of hard to talk, much less yell, with a mouthful of crackers, don’t you think? :)

Dec23

Scavenger Hunt

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Scavenger Hunt

A couple of years ago, Jason and I jotted down some items and decided to let the girls compete in a scavenger hunt around the house. It had been quite a while, and they enjoyed it so much, so we decided to make a couple of lists and do it again a few nights ago. This is one of those things that a kid enjoys so much they never want it to end. We played 3 rounds, then I had to clean up from dinner. The girls had so much fun they tried to make their own list and continue playing by themselves. (This rarely works out to be as fun as when the adults were involved and usually dissolves into lots of petty arguments, but at least we know they enjoyed it.)

Well, I decided I’d put them all down on paper, in case any of you are interested in trying it. There are 3 rounds, each in a different color. You’ll notice page 2 has the same items that are listed on page 1, however they are in a scrambled order. We found it is best that they are after the same object at different times, so there is less pushing and shoving. So you’ll need both pages for 2 children to participate.

And pages 3 and 4 are empty so you can fill in the blanks with items you find in your home (in case your house is full of boys and you won’t be able to find a Barbie dress). Oh, and one of the items on List 3 is “Something with a sport logo.” This one was quite entertaining. In our house, THE team is University of Kentucky basketball. We all have shirts and hats. Grant’s room has several U of K themed items, such as a rug, bank, book, basketball, etc. The girls ran in circles trying to figure out where they could find something. They started freaking out saying, “Where are we supposed to find that? I can’t find my hat.” We had to give a couple of hints for the easiest to find item on the list!

Here’s the file to download for all the Scavenger Hunt Lists. Scavenger Hunt

I tried to capture a couple of good pictures in all the craziness…Enjoy!

Taking off!

"Something Purple" and a "sock"

 

Listening for the next item

Table full from 1 round (we made them put all the items from the previous round away before beginning again!