Friday, January 09, 2009

may they always be so close

Almost all of the stress I've incurred from dealing with my family this past week, has been offset by spending time with our children at home.

Oh sure, I went a little nuts when they used Dry Erase markers to write on the walls. And when they peeled open the bedspread from their doll house and pulled apart all of the foam, inside. And when they went through an entire 10-oz bottle of hand soap in an afternoon. And when they climbed in to the cupboards, confiscated and ate an entire bag of miniature marshmallows at 5:30 AM.

But for the most part, I have loved having them home with me.

It's like I know what life is like when they are off in school all day and I'm not ready for that just yet. There has been a huge weight lifted off my shoulders, not having to get them up and dressed and fed and washed and lunches packed and out of the house every morning by 8:30 AM. And did I ever mention that I counted the traffic lights on the way to school and although it was only a seven-mile drive, there were 26 traffic lights?

Consider that for a moment.

In one day - I would drive through 104 lights just dropping off and picking the children up from school. And the vast majority of the time, I would hit at least 50% of them when they were red.

This afternoon, I took everyone to the park. And while I stood watching our children climbing up and going down the slide, I kept thinking, "This is the way siblings are supposed to help each other."


This is the way they are supposed to support one another.



This is how they should always stick together.


This is the way it's supposed to be.


Although I don't know if it would be quite as cute if they fell to the ground in this kind of embrace when they were in their 40's.



They warm my heart, completely.

16 comments:

  1. I love that video Jen. It warms my heart too.

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  2. I was wondering why I haven't gotten myself in bed yet. Then read your post and saw the video at the end. Now I can go to bed smiling. You are so blessed!

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  3. Ha! William is one month younger than my daughter. And, boy, can he RUN! Go, William!

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  4. What a sweet post! You have had so much to think about and deal with concerning your dad I'm sure that a leisure day with the kids was a wonderful relief. I love the way they fell on the ground hugging. They are so lucky, some day they will treasure these images that you have of them together.

    And about those traffic lights, that is hard to believe. This will be equally as hard for you to believe; the county I live in has
    9 traffic lights. At least 6 of those were put up within the last 10-15 yrs and how we moaned that we would have to deal with them, never again;)

    I hope and pray that you are getting some positive feedback from your siblings. I think they are very lucky to have such a good communicator trying to mend family ties.

    Kathy

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  5. That is adorable and just what I needed this morning to cheer me up. Great video and pictures.
    So much better than being in school and tied to a desk.
    NONI

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  6. What a cute video to capture!

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  7. Jen,

    Just like it should be.........Wait until you see what home-school does for you, Charlie and OH! Yeah! the kids will benefit too.

    You guys are going to LOVE what school at home will bring to your family. It is all just amazing:)

    Love, Lisa
    Home-school Mom for 6 years and counting.

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  8. Henry is getting so big!

    I'm glad you're enjoying the time with the kiddos at home. They are all precious.

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  9. Oh MAAAAAN, what a cute video! Just too adorable. Worth every dry-erase marker and mini-marshmallow!

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  10. That was absolutely gorgeous! It really made me smile - they clearly love each other so much.

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  11. My brother and I are like that when we see each other, too! It's kinda weird now that I'm 37 and he's 30...
    (call me so we can discuss the 5K)

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  12. Thank you so much for sharing this, it is beautiful!!
    Good luck with everything and continue to be brave & positive through it all.

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  13. I love the Random Dude in the video. Do you think he knows 2000 people are going to look at him over and over today?

    I can't BELIEVE you drove through that many traffic lights. I go through THREE to take mine to school. Good grief. No wonder you were going bonkers. Did I ever mention that our public school is one block from the house? One block. And it starts at 9;05am. Oh, man. Too bad all the crack head kids go there. Crack isn't that bad, is it?

    So glad the kids are giving you comfort during this stressful time.

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  14. Wow. So you weren't kidding when you told me you were from the Boston area, eh? That accent is more than recognizable from 3,000 miles away. ;)

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  15. That's what good parenting is all about -- teaching them how to get along w/one another through thick and thin; young and old.

    The most important job you and Charlie will ever have -- Keep up the good work. (and happy homeschooling)

    Love, Marg

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  16. I meant HENRY is one month younger than our daughter... I bet that poor little guy gets that a lot.

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