Happy Birthday Gabe!

Happy birthday to Gabe who turned 5 on Thursday.  He helped his older brother make his cake and took us all out to dinner.  He says it was his best birthday ever.  Happy birthday little man.

When a Teen Chooses You

The book When a Teen Chooses You by Joseph Moore is a must read for any adult who might find themselves in a position to provide spiritual guidance to teenagers.  The books simple and direct style helps to take the fear out of providing guidance to teenagers.

This book is not one that tells you what to say to a teenager.  It is not one that acts as if teenagers are bumbling idiots who need to be told exactly what to feel, think, say or do.  Instead, this is a book that helps you to understand the questions a teenager might have and how to direct a conversation so that the teen is able to come to their own conclusions within a recognized spiritual framework. 

I particularly enjoyed this book because it encouraged the adult to simply guide the teen through thoughtful questions.  The author assumes that a teenager may need guidance but does not necessarily need black and white, yes and no answers.  By encouraging the adult to guide rather than direct, a door is opened to providing a relationship built on mutual respect.  It is precisely this sort of a relationship that will allow a teenager to feel safe in coming to an adult when they need help sorting out a spiritual or moral concern.

This review was written as part of the Catholic book reviewer program from The Catholic Company. Visit The Catholic Company to find more information on When a Teen Chooses You. This is also a great Catholic gift store for all your seasonal shopping needs, such as Christian wedding gifts and Catholic Garden Gifts.

Little Flowers Bonfire Night

Monday night we invited the Little Flowers group over for a bonfire.  We kept it a family event because I truly dislike evening events that leave out most of the family so we had a large group of kids hanging around.  I do believe we went through more than 2 bags of marshmallows while the kids made s'mores.  Nothing like sending everyone home entirely hopped up on sugar.  And I am just going to admit that I look at some of these pictures and still have a hard time believing that this is actually our back yard.  I do believe we will have a very hard time ever going back to living in a neighborhood again.

Home Depot Workshop

Liam and Katie went with me to the Home Depot Kids' Workshop today.  They built these awesome looking Penske trucks.  (Yes, that's only one but we did bring home two.)  I  don't like Penske trucks.  Ever since Bryan fell out of the back of one on our move from MO when he was 4 and hit his head on the driveway they've given me bad memories. But these trucks are small enough to look innocent and be loved.

These workshops provide me with a bit of Saturday morning entertainment.  The parents who are so stinking type A that they won't let their child build the project themselves baffle me.  Oh my gosh, there's a hammer, he might get hurt.  Oh my gosh, there's paint. What if it gets on his hands?  What if he does not put the project together perfectly?  Yup, they baffle me and amuse me at the same time.  The grandparents who come with a single small child and have to take a bazillion and one pictures all the while giggling and using that fake high pitched voice that adults often think is necessary for children other than their own.  (Who are you kidding, we all know when you are at home alone with your child you scream like a monster when the kid gets into trouble.)  Today I got to watch a Dad try to paint his son's truck while the Mom stood there telling the Dad to just let him do it himself.  Dad replied with "But I need to show him how not to use too much paint."  Yup, that's a loosing battle right there.  It all cracks me up and takes my mind off the pain in my fingers from being hit by hammers (holding nails and pieces of wood together can be dangerous business).

The kids always have a great time and today was no exception.  I'm looking forward to taking them again next month.

What We've Been Doing

We've actually managed to stay rather busy this week.  Tuesday morning was spent at the movies (Ellie is not quite ready to sit still for that long but she did a great job for the first half and Robert seems to think movies mean lots of potty breaks), that afternoon was spent at the library where the kids signed up for the summer reading program.  On Wednesday we went to the park.  Thursday the kids had karate class and we celebrated Liam's birthday.  Friday we hosted a campout for a great group of boys and their dads.  Then on Saturday Alan took the older 6 kids to a Rhinos soccer game. They were offering free tickets to students so we only had to pay for Alan's seat.  So I took advantage and bumped them up to a better section since $10 seemed more than reasonable for 7 seats.  Everyone had a great time but several of the kids expressed dismay over the half-dressed gyrating cheerleaders.  Yup, those are my kids saying ladies should act like ladies and not flaunt themselves or their bodies for money.  Alan also said the goalkeeper had a major ego. 

And a picture from a few weeks ago.  Proof that I did indeed take the older children to the waterpark for their birthdays. 

Boys' Campout

On Friday night we had a group of guys descend upon the yard for a campout.  Something we really should do more often since we have so much space and rarely get full use out of the land.  This was a guy only event because it is ever so important to give boys a chance to just be with other boys.  Let's face it, most Moms are a bunch of wimps who  don't like the more active stuff boys enjoy and usually do their best to ruin the fun.  Boys need time to get away from that influence and just be.

All the tents gave the yard a decidedly different look. This picture only shows one of the areas with the tents.

From what I saw, the favorite activity for many of the boys seemed to be chopping up fire wood.  Every time I walked out to bring more food or fetch a child, a new boy was wielding the hatchet.  They had set up plenty of wood around themselves as a barrier to keep other kids out of the way although I do kind of wish they would refer to it as a safety circle, not a circle of blood.  Apparently that is the new phrase in Boy Scouts and it seems just a tad too real for me.

There were flashlights running past the front windows playing man hunt well past sundown and I don't think most folks got to bed until after midnight.  Our parish pastor came out to spend the evening with the boys and from what I understand, everyone loved listening to him share his stories and just hang out with the boys.  He also made sure everyone sang happy birthday to Liam.

We escaped the evening with only one injury, an unfortunate incident involving the grape lines.  I'm thinking the boys will up for hosting again next year if all goes well.

Happy Birthday Liam!

Liam turned 9 on Friday.  He's a kid who knows how to celebrate in style.  We went to Buffalo Wild Wings and came home to a Heath Bar cake (made by Sean).  We had our family birthday celebration a day early because we hosted a camp out for the older boys in our homeschooling group on Liam's actual birthday. Which worked out wonderfully for Liam since it meant an amazingly great time on his birthday.

This year Liam has truly grown and is now in charge of most building projects around the house.  He's been known to take it upon himself to fix a loose porch step and put together book shelves.  I see great things in his future as long as we continue to make an effort to find ways to harness his natural interests and give him ways to use them rather than trying to discourage his creative side.  Happy birthday kid.