Children

I have often said they should video tape a normal family on a normal day and show it in sex ed class.  Teenagers would think twice before they engaged in activity that may result in the things they see on that tape.  Don't get me wrong, children are wonderful and I love being a mom.  However, they do take a certain amount of patience and I am convinced that as a parent you must be mature enough to have "nerves of steel."  My children prove this point well.  Lissy has been screaming now for 10 minutes because she does not want to pick up the legos she threw all over the floor.  I am ignoring her except to tell her that her screaming just earned her the right to clean up a few more things. Children are loud and messy.  They don't always let you sleep much.  They break things.  They scream. They fight. They eat and leave crumb trails and half of the food stays of their face.  They scare me constantly by climbing and tearing around in their rough play.  As a mom or a person really, these things drive me nuts.  I look past the messes, (well I yell at them about it) the fighting, (ok, I lose it sometimes and send them to their rooms) the broken things, (yeah, after I cry about them for a few minutes) and the climbing and rough play (I'm still paying on their hospital bills. )  I try to focus on the hugs, the kisses, the way Eve will stroke my face and say "I like you", or the way Ethan will still slip his hand in mine when no one else is around..  Children are blessings.  If you have any doubt look at one when they sleep.  The days offenses melt away and their innocence emerges.  Everynight I sneak into my childrens room when they are sleeping and give them one last kiss.  Occasionally in their slumber they tell be back.  Their hair falls across their cheek and they are cuddled up with their rabbit, blanket, or bear and for just a moment you see Heaven.  Oh, Lissy just picked up the legos.

Life sometimes gets in the way of my happiness.

I am generally a very happy person.  Now granted,  that is not to say I don't cry a lot, have a temper, and feel sorry for myself on occasion.  I am an emotional person and my feelings are not very easily hidden.  My feelings might have bubbled over a bit tonight.  It never ceases to amaze me that some people do not share my feelings on life.  Maybe that is why when someone intentially does something out of malice or greed it cuts me deeply.  Tonight I was faced with yet again another episode that rocked me.  I lost my temper, sent my children to the house, then ranted and raved to my poor poor husband.  He was up to this situation neck deep and didn't need to hear my ravings.  I finally realized this and zipped my lip.  After calming down I allowed my thoughts to dig into my Christian beliefs.  Does this really involve me?  Does this really in the large scheme of things deserve this reaction from me?  Does my poor husband need to deal with more?  And finally, don't I trust God to handle this situation?  I realized that yes, I was furious,  Yes, I deserved to be angry but my reaction was helping no one, and finally Yes, God would handle this situation.  Now, I have a great idea how God could handle this.  My way!  But alas, I have to admit,  He is so much smarter than I.  He will handle it His way and I may never even see it. I finally conceded, asked my husband to do the same and not let our anger consume us.  Anger is a horrible drug that is as addictive as heroine and eats away not your internal organs but your eternal soul.  I will try to let this anger go.  I want to continue to be happy and not let LIFE get in the way of my happiness because the older I get the more I realize that life can really stink sometimes. :) Tomorrow is a new day and I want to smile.

Family Reuinions

This last weekend was the annual Morse family reunion.  Every year approximatly 60-70 family members cram into a cabin up by the Calamas lake.  Grandma is in her glory surrounded by her offspring.  She bore 6 children who all had at least 3 of their own giving her 24 grandchildren.  The grandchildren have given her over 25 great grandchildren and more are always springing up.  Grandma is full Czech and Grandpa was 1/2 Czech and 1/2 Dutch.  This makes for a lot of loud rowdy Bohemians having a good time.

The grandchildren is the group to which I belong.  For just a few days we shed our responsibilites of parent hood, drink a lot of beer, eat a lot of really good food, tube down the river, and enjoy each other.  Our children run around playing, their hair curling with sweat and humidity, stinking of bug spray, and covered with food and dirt.  They run in packs and the older care for the younger with small interventions from parents or grandparents.  Tubing down the river most little kids are left behind with grandmas and grandpas as parents want to enjoy their lack of responsibility for just a few more hours.  I missed tubing this year and feel that I missed a huge part of the fun.  We float down the river in our tubes catching up on all the family gossip and trying to catch the tank that holds all he beer!  We end up crawling out red as lobsters, tipsy, and bonded.

A game is always played on Saturday nights.  All the children of my Grandma grab their very large families and line them up to begin the competition.  In the past we have competed in the Morses have talent, Dancing with the Morses,  Fear Factor, and  The Morse Olympics.  This years theme was the Morses as Couch Potatos.  We had crocket potatos, potato sack races, potato sking, the potato catapult, and potato sculptures.  My Dad's  family won hands down this year!!!  We are the best potato sack racers in the county and the competion never had a chance. Although, it is great to win, the winner must design the next years game.  We are always instructed to lose but the competitve nature somehow always kicks in and we actually try.

A family is bonded.  Bonded by memories, experiences, and love.  Some drive us absolutly crazy.  Some we get crazy with.  For just a few days, we become a very large unit.  A family. 

Bithdays

Ethan celebrated his 8th birthday today.  My childrens birthdays are always bittersweet.  Every birthday I am reminded of their actual birth and their firsts.  I remember that Ethan was so difficult.  How he has changed.  He is a bright happy boy that tries so very hard to act like a man around his uncles but then crawls up in my lap and snuggles in.  What a change from the first 7 months of his life when all he did was scream and nothing could convince him to stop. 

I am always amazed how traditions just sort of transpire.  For years the Morse family has sang the birthday song as off pitch, loud, and obnoxious as one could possibly imagine. The Kipp children have been sang to in that style for every one of their birthsdays.  It is just expected!  And today we did ourselves proud!!!  It was so obnoxious that my brother actually covered his 4 month old son's ears. Presents are then given.  Poor Ethan has been teased for years that when he turns 10 he will become a girl.  From his uncles he was given a pair of very lacy little girl panties wrapped in sections from the magazine "Seventeen."  They then presented him with a very nice baseball glove and tackle box full of fishing supplies but the panties are what got the picture.  I wonder if he will get a dress on his 10th birthday.  We also play baseball on birthdays.  It is something to see with ages varying from 4 to 86.  Eve, the four year old, runs around in circles not knowing which base to run to and the 86 year old has her own chair amongst the field.

It is nice that one day a year is set aside for ones very own day.  Your birthday is YOUR special day.  I don't care if you are 1 or 100 you need to feel special.  It was fun to see the excitement of that in one very special 8 year old boy that recieved everything from lacy girl panties to a toy swather.

Circus TIme

On a sudden impulse inspired from a friend I took my children to the circus.  They enjoyed the twirling aerialists and the wild animals and my son especially enjoyed the motorcycles.  At the end we were told to treat everyday as if it were a circus.  Obviously that woman didn't have children of her own or she would have known that everyday with children IS a circus. 

Just like the circus, I too have girls that can climb up to high areas and twirl around.  They dangle and make me gasp with worry. Lissy has gotten so adept and maneuvering the high wire that nets are no longer even an option.  Sure she falls every now and then but that just gives her more initiative to keep trying.  Eve is much more conscientious. However, her lack of trying means much less practice therefore, she falls much more often. I too have wild animals that rampage through my house that need to be taught to sit, stay, and most of all dance around jumping on you!  My dog can do tricks.  He can jump on me and slobber!! Just as the dirt bike exhibitors do my son can ride his "bike" performing all kinds of stunts.  From riding with no hands, to having his legs behind the seat he can do it all. I have yet to see him ride upside down however I feel pretty confident in saying that after today he will be trying it.   I also have magicians.  Things from my house are always magically disappearing then reappearing later just slightly changed. I have comedians and clowns. Cody is the biggest clown and believes his humor surpasses all others.   And more often then not, his and the kids faces are painted free of charge but only if you do not mind that the only color we have is that of dirt.  My home is happy and most often G rated.  Kids are always clapping and hollering.  Animals are always cavorting and showing off.  We even have a slide!  The one thing we are missing is and elephant but give it time and one may wander in.  I wonder if I should start charging admission into my private Kipp Circus?