Just Feed the Children!

Our elementary school has an absurd policy: Pay first or kids don't eat. So perhaps it's not that bad, but why should a child go hungry if a parent is delinquent? And why do we hear so much about how important healthy nutrition to a child's ability to learn if the school is willing to starve the kids? I personally think it's unethical to allow any child to miss lunch regardless of the reason. Because usually there is a reason...
One of my greatest struggles stems from the fact that I write one check for all the children's lunch money. I assume that the money will be used for each of them. I knew we had some money left in our account from last year but just in case, I gave Noah 5 dollars yesterday morning to insure that all 3 children would have lunch. Poor Tessa came home with her hand stamped red & a nasty reminder sticker stuck to her shirt. She cried as she told me I'd forgotten to send lunch money. I tried to soothe her by explaining there'd been a mistake because I had sent money. Of course though, I am always wrong when going up against school administration in my children's eyes. I even asked Noah if he'd remembered to turn in the money. He had :) I realized that Tessa, being new to the school lunch as a first grader is not yet on the list of "Thompson Children" who share lunch money.
Today as I handed Noah a check for more money (with an explicit note that the money is to be divided amongst the 3 children), I turned to Tessa, and said, "If anyone tells you that you don't have money, or if they tell you that you can't eat, simply say, 'My mom said she paid and that you'd better feed me! Call my mom if you have any questions.'" Tessa rehearsed this a few times while giggling. At least she left knowing I'd go to battle for her.

8th Grade Registration

After last years series of unfortunate events, I feel confident we're off to a good start. This year when I went to pay the fees, the financial secretary nervously commented, "I will try very hard to register Elizabeth as herself instead of as Chloe." I smiled and said, "I would truly appreciate that." Time will tell.

Insightful

Nathan approached me today with his helpful insights...
"Little boys make tiny choices.
Big boys make big choices.
Adults make blah!"

Cousins Visit

Can you tell we're cousins?



Jared, Jaime, Wash, Soren, Elijah, Finley, & Max came for a quick visit. We loved having them. I am sad that with all the fun the kids had, I didn't take more pictures. :(



It was fun to celebrate Soren's 10th Birthday. All of the older kids got to go see the newly released Harry Potter movie. Tessa & Finley nearly burst into tears when they realized they'd been left home (or maybe it was the fact that they'd been placed in the "younger" group). To cheer them up, I gave them each a roll of crepe paper and some tape to decorate for the "birthday party." They did a fabulous job and were very excited when I pulled out some fun straws, party blowers, and little toys to embellish the table with. I felt pretty good when one of the boys commented that this was the fanciest birthdays anyone of them had ever had.

Come again Pearces! We love you!

Broken Heart

Nathan woke up this morning very forlorn. As he sat in my lap, looking up at my face, he started to cry exclaiming, "Emmy doesn't love me. She won't marry me when I am bigger."
I suppose matters of the heart are difficult at any age. : )

Cherry Picking

Tessa decided that she'd better make me a "to do" list for all the activities we still wanted to accomplish this summer. Honestly, I probably wouldn't have been able to do all I've done without her list. Item number one was "Cherry Picking." Every day for weeks Tessa would ask me if I had called to see if we could go and pick cherries. (Tessa is very fond of cherries.)

We had gone cherry picking a couple of summers ago. It was a relaxing and rewarding outing. The children could climb the trees and fill their pails with red juicy cherries. There are rows and rows of trees to choose from. There is room to roam. The only rule was: We buy what you pick. It truly was a child's haven.

The sad thing about a perfect memory is that it can rarely be duplicated. However, I had no idea how truly awful this years trip to the cherry orchard would be.
It is a 20 minute drive to the grove. There were countless inquiries as to how long it would take. There was fighting over what we were listening to on the radio and who could sing along and who couldn't. When one argument was squelched, another one sprung. I kept thinking that the fighting would cease as soon as we'd reach our destination.

From the moment the car was parked the cries of dissent howled, "It is so hot! I want that bucket! Why does he always get the bigger pail? All of these cherries are too high! I don't want to climb a tree! I am stuck in the tree! There are too many bugs! How come he has more cherries than me? When can we go home? Can I have a cherry? Why do I have to push the stroller? Can I wait in the car?" With other families in the orchard watching us in dismay, I wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. I tried everything I could think of to promote unity and foster love. No such luck. Instead, I think the trees themselves wanted us to go too and eagerly shed their lovely fruit without much prompting to hurry us up.

The cherries were consumed quickly. We all enjoyed them. I am thinking it will take me a full year to decide if I can return to the orchard....because it can always be worse.

Reflection

Suzette had made me a cute headband a few years ago for one of the girls. I thought it would be super cute with Rilla's dress. I tried to put it on her head but she kept tugging it off. I put her by a mirror to change her diaper. When I finished, she sat up & admired her beauty in her reflection. While distracted, I slipped on the headband. I noticed her eyes follow my hands to the bow. I watched & waited. As she looked from just the bow to her entire image, a smile grew across her face. I encouragingly cooed, "Oooo the pretty baby." The headband remained on her head the rest of the day without any attempt to remove it. Sometimes a little perspective is all that is needed.

Worry & Patience

Finally our hens laid eggs! Emma is ecstatic! I am relieved. Emma has checked several times a day for 3 months to find nothing. She worried and worried and worried that she'd never find an egg. She worried that maybe we had roosters instead of hens. She worried that we'd have to eat the chickens if they didn't lay. She worried that she'd done something wrong....All we could do was remind her that it would just take time and to be patient. We tried to tell her that all of the worry wouldn't do a bit of good. I suppose that while that is true, it is something we all learn for ourselves.

Vows

Pictures don't always tell the whole story....
Tessa had been asking me why I had let her hair get so long....
I kept promising to cut it soon...
When it was time to cut it she just cried & cried.
When I was young there were always girls who would say, "I used to have long hair, but my mom made me cut it!" Then the bunch of listeners would add sympathy by agreeing that the mother had been an ogre. I vowed to never be such a mom.
So, when Tessa began to cry, I hesitated to make the first snip...and yet, she'd begged me to cut it for weeks...and she even accused me of not keeping it short like she likes it, so I cut.



Unfortunately, she still seemed upset when I finished. Being a mom is tough.