Mid-Lenten Updates

I could blame my absence on a million little things; however, the two big things have been a general Lenten fast from the blog world combined with two months of stomach flues.  Seriously, I think that someone has been throwing up most weekends since the beginning of February.  The stomach scourges seem to have passed and Dave somehow made it through unscathed.  We are looking forward to a healthy March Break.

During the brief breaks between stomach flues we managed to speak at the two weekends that comprise our local marriage prep.  These are always tiring times but well worth it on so many levels.  Dave and I really enjoy working in marriage ministry and these weekends serve as a good shot in the arm to our own marriage.  The spin-off from this last weekend is that I will finally become fully certified as a Billings Ovulation instructor and can start offering a course to those interested.  I find this very exciting as NFP is one of the greatest hidden treasures of the Church.  My heart is overwhelmed each time I watch women learn about the inner workings of their bodies and wonder, Why did no one tell me this before?

But, on to more humorous updates. I took the five kids out for a sort-of-springtime walk yesterday after school.  We started off in sweatshirts and rainboots but the weather quickly cooled and Ben, our thinnest by far, ended in his original sweatshirt plus my winter hat and scarf.  He looked like a slightly androgynous kindergartner - at least my outerwear tastes tend towards black and navy blue.  As we were starting to walk Jacob asked me if many boys chased after me when I was younger.  I laughed and said, "No.  Rather the opposite, actually."  "Why?" he asked.  "Well, I was a lot chubbier then than I am now,"  I replied.  He responded that he would have still chased after me.  What devotion.  He then said, "Mom, if I saw you now, I would gawk."  I took this as a compliment thinking that we were still operating along the same conversational vein as before.  I asked why and he replied, "All these kids!  If I didn't know you I might think that you were crazy."

On another walk a few weeks ago I took Jacob and Hannah for some one-on-one time.  We were talking about some topic which I can't remember and Jacob threw up his hands and said, "Women!  I'll never understand you!"  Poor Jacob, he has only been trying to understand for eight years so far.  Despite his lack of understanding, he has a fiercely loyal devotion to his twin sister.  If he were a knight, she would surely be his lady.  Hannah, on the other hand, would be much happier with remaining a twin sister rather than an object of devotion.  Nevertheless, despite Jacob's fondness for his womb-mate, he can still find a few character faults in his sister.  At supper the other night he said to Hannah, "When I get married I won't marry a woman with a fiery temper like yours!"  She coolly responded with a roll of the eyes, "Yeah, but she'll have a really big womb, right?"

And the last word belongs to Joseph who adamantly tells all that he can't wait for Baby Nichola to arrive.  Nichola?  Perhaps he's on to something.  We have explained to him that the way that we choose baby names is by praying about them and then asking God what He wants the baby to be called.  Joseph loves me to then tell him how he was named.  I then tell him the story of how we thought his name was Simon Andrew; but then God told Mommy that his name was really Joseph Michael; and when Mommy told Daddy, Daddy said, "I already knew that,  I was just waiting for you to tell me."  Usually Joseph's face erupts in a huge smile and he hugs me in response.  However, this time, when I told him the name story, he added a sequel:  "And then I prayed to God and God told me that your name is Mommy-Elena, so that's what I called you."  Sometimes there is no arguing with our alpha-child.