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The Right Team
Bergen is a boy who approaches life wide open. Most people only see Hawkeye revved up, nearly careening out of control at any given moment. But the boy has more depth than that. He loves his siblings. Loves them. He particularly loves his younger siblings. Adores would not be too strong of a word here. Berg offers to hold Piper’s hand when walking outside. He requests the pleasure of tucking her in for daily naps. He reads her books and plays Weebles endlessly with her. Each morning he ambles into our bedroom, thumb in mouth, searching for Otto Fox so he can get in his daily dose of cuddling.…
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So This Is Half Way?
My birthday falls right on the heels of London’s birthday. And when you reach a certain age, like my age, you start thinking about the numbers in a different light. I don’t feel old. Really. (Well, some days, but not every day.) But the truth is, statistically speaking (why do we even say that?), I am middle aged. I could easily be at the half way point of my life. Okay, I guess theoretically at any given moment any of us could be at the half way point of our lives. But you know what I mean! And when I survey my life in the most basic of manners, it…
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Six
Dear London, You make me laugh. Your thinking face is adorable. Your trying-a-new-food face is so serious and thoughtful. Your accents are spot on. (You are your daddy’s daughter, after all.) You are such a good big sister. I love how you help your brother when he is hurt. And I like how you offer your favorite toys to Mosely when she cries. You entertain Piper and make her laugh. You love to pick out onesies for Otto and you always want to cuddle with “his face”, as you say. You are obsessed with food. Every night at bedtime the questions are always the same. “What are we eating for…
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Not Yet Two
That second year of every child’s life is supposed to be the killer one, right? I mean, the year has gotten so bad historically that someone gave the entire 365 days a special name – The Terrible Two’s. I don’t have any two-year-olds living in my house right now. But I have this one kid, who is NOT two, mind you, who spent her day trying to live like a legendary Terrible Two. After breakfast I stepped into the bathroom. (Uh-oh. I should know better than to do that, right?) When I emerged, mere mili-seconds later, I heard Piper making interesting sounds in the other part of our house. I…
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My Boy!
Guess who finally discovered his own thumb? I guess he is a Keigley after all.
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Framily
Framily. It’s not a misspelling. It’s a word I like to think Kevin and I coined. Framily. By this word we mean – the people who are not actually related to us by blood or marriage, but we wish they were anyway. The people who we choose to surround ourselves with, spend time with, celebrate and weep with. The people who we call when we need encouragement. The people who we trust our children with. The people who don’t offend us when they tell us the truth because we know the love behind the words. That’s framily. You probably have some of those people in your life…
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These Two . . .
These two little girls can . . . – Make peanut butter toast – Pick out cute clothes for Piper and Otto Fox – Help Bergen put on his favorite footie camouflage pajamas – Change Piper Finn’s diaper (not requested by Mommy mind you, just took their own initiative one day) – Spread cream cheese on a bagel – Take a shower like a grown up – Answer the telephone politely – Read a book to Piper – Load the washing machine – Clean up their own bedrooms – Secretly prepare breakfast in bed for their parents – Fold towels – Unload the dishwasher Truly, these little girls are such…
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By The Numbers
3 – Number of meals I prepared, consumed and cleaned up 5 – Number of small people who were bathed by me 39 – Number of tiny sunflower seed kernels that Mosely spilled when she dropped the container she was holding while trying to illegally climb up onto the counter 16 – Number of ears of corn that were shucked this afternoon 6 – Number of blood curdling screams that Mosely released after falling/scraping her elbow/ being splashed by hot corn cooking water/ being chased by Magnus/ not being able to open the door from the outside when her hands were full of dog food bowls/ expressing her displeasure at…
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Exhibit A
So lately Maggie has been boldly issuing demands and challenges from her blog. She even claimed that her spouse was the most lovable of all spouses and encouraged her pals to make glowing lists about their own husbands’ incredible attributes on their own blogs. The two Sarahs made endearing lists about both of their beloveds. But those girls are newlyweds after all. Instead of a list, and because I like to buck the system for the mere sake of bucking the system, I offer you instead . . . a photograph. Let’s call it Exhibit A. This photograph features a little girl’s Barbie doll wearing a pair of home-created sandals.…
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Everything
Sometimes I think it is ironic how often the stuff of my daily life reminds me of Biblical truth in some random way. And then I remember. Everything is spiritual. A couple of years ago Kevin and I heard a speaker named Rob Bell teach at a funky little club in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. His speaking tour was entitled “Everything is Spiritual”. And I really believe it is. Remembering that truth actually brings much more meaning (and importance and accountability) to my daily existence. If everything truly is spiritual, then I guess it does matter how I respond to my children when I am exhausted. Or which words come…
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You Tell Me
Is it wrong to dress your children in Run DMC and Rolling Stones t-shirts if the shirts were on sale for 75 cents at Target? I drew the line at ACDC. A girl’s got to have standards – right?
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Friday Morning
Yesterday morning I broke an unwritten Keigley household rule. I turned on the television first thing in the morning. Let me ‘splain. Because Wilder had eaten breakfast off his normal routine, Kevin had already left for work before I was able to take a shower. I really wanted a shower. “Hey guys? Who wants to watch Curious George?” You might call it poor parenting – I call it buying a half hour of my life. My aspirations actually reached beyond the cleansing shower. I had just purchased some eyeliner (don’t tell Riley!) and I wanted to experiment. While in Virginia Emma had given me brief instructions on applying eye liner.…
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messy
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Something About Love
Piper has a little friend. His name is Beckett. Piper is not always very kind to Beckett. Beckett will be standing still. Minding his own business. Being happy and content – a model citizen. Piper approaches out of the shadowy background. She walks behind her young companion. And then, without provocation, Piper two-hand shoves Beckett. It’s awful. I am so embarrassed by her behavior. Ashamed. What in the world? Why would she do that? I scoop her up and take her off to the other room for some baby discipline. But I don’t stop loving her. When we are done with the discipline, I don’t turn away from her affection.…
