Category Archives: Daily Life

Daily Life, Holidays, Tim

A Dream Fulfilled

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In some ways, I am a very simple man. And some of my aspirations are pretty straightforward, too. One of my prosaic dreams has always been to have a wood stove or fireplace in my home.

Some friends or relatives who have been to my home might remark: “Um, Tim, you have a fireplace.”

This is technically true — we do have a gas fireplace in the family room. But it fell into disuse and I suspect some animals have blocked the chimney — it has been years since we were able to use it. The last time we tried (during an extended power outage) it filled the whole house with an unpleasant oily smell. Even back in the day when the fireplace did work, it wasn’t very warm — seemed like most of the heat went straight up the chimney.

This year marked the culmination of years of doing absolutely nothing in my pursuit of this dream, yet somehow I have achieved it. It all started in the days after Thanksgiving, when I began to troll the pages of Amazon.com for their Cyber Monday deals.

I was happily scrolling through dozens of things I suddenly ‘needed’ (yet had never before known existed) when I saw it: a cute little electric stove. It was marked down about 40%, and I with a click of the mouse, it was shipped to my home! (Amazon’s Prime shipping and one-click shopping is WAY too easy.)

A man and his stove are not easily parted.

A man and his fake electric stove are not easily parted.

As it happened, I was home alone on the day the large, indiscreet Duraflame box was delivered, so I secreted it away in the garage behind rows of bins and random furniture, intending for it to be rolled out on Christmas morning.

Sadly, I am not as young as I once was, and my memory is far from perfect. Christmas came, and Christmas went, and I forgot all about my little treasure.

About a week ago, on the eve of Rachel’s rescheduled birthday party, I suddenly remembered it. Rescuing it from garage oblivion, I installed it happily in our living room, where it fights valiantly against the moaning of the wind and the loss of heat through our poorly-insulated windows. Finding one more Christmas present so long after the holidays proved to be a cheerful respite from January blues.

Now we tend to sit in the living room staring at the fake little electric ‘flames’ and feeling the warm air pour out from the fan at the bottom of the heater … it is a perfect size and capacity for our room, and lends our home a warm, inviting ambience.

Now if I can just remember where I put some of the other presents I bought …

Tim

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Daily Life, Homeschooling

First Day of School 2014

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Sarah wanted me to take pictures and write a blog about The First Day of School in 2014. Hmmmm. I’m looking around the house from my computer chair at the sight before me.

Sarah, I need to borrow your glasses to get a good look at this house!

“Sarah, I need to borrow your glasses to get a good look at this house!”

  • three Advent boxes to be put away sitting on top of a Christmas bin that needs to go back into the garage
  • a pile of unfolded laundry on the chair
  • a basket of laundry on the floor
  • some random clothes Joshua forgot to take back to school with him (found in the washer yesterday)
  • a big school binder nestled amidst the laundry
  • dvds, a Christmas present we forgot to mail, and math scratch paper on my desk
  • two bags of recycling that are neither in the pantry (tidy) or taken out to the recycling bin but seem to want to sit in the hallway
  • three cups from dinner that didn’t make it to the dishwasher
  • a half finished container of apple juice sitting on the kitchen table
  • and the school schedule STILL not quite finished for January

Um, Sarah, this is not really a great photo-worthy day.

And that’s just this room. Who knows what the dining and living rooms look like.

David, you need a sip of my espresso to survive this day!

“David, you need a sip of my espresso to survive this day!”

What did we accomplish today (since it obviously wasn’t all about housekeeping and tidying)? Let’s see:

  • Daniel and David both had online classes for which they were ready and prepared
  • Sarah, David and I read our Bible devotions this morning and each filled up a page in our thankful journals
  • Rachel started classes back up at Pierce College with professors she enjoys and where she is excelling
  • Two children had piano lessons – completed songs, picked up new ones and filled the house with music
  • Tim worked from home and spent time talking and encouraging and counseling each of the kids during the course of the day
  • We did school – read books, worked math problems, studied science, and reviewed grammar
  • We Skyped a dear friend in Thailand
  • I talked to my mom in Michigan (where they have 11 inches of fresh snow)
  • I texted Joshua off at college (where classes were cancelled because of the cold)
  • I got a great new hair cut and color.
  • Tim, Rachel, Daniel and I all managed to fit in a work-out at the fitness center.
This is how the boys look at me, sometimes, when I suggest a quick "10 Minute Tidy!!"

This is how the boys look at me, sometimes, when I suggest a quick “10 Minute Tidy!!”

There was laughter, lots of hugs, yummy meals together and good conversations. There was correction, hurts, forgiveness, more hugs and a day full of living out what it means to be a FAMILY.

Sarah, you were right. This was a GREAT first day back to school!

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Daily Life, Daniel, David, Joshua

They’re as Tall as Church Steeples!

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Back in 1999, when we first moved to Washington, Kathy and I had only three children. Then David and Sarah were born in 2001 and 2002, and suddenly we were a tribe. As my foul-weather friend Tom used to say, “Tim has five children, but they ride like a thousand.”

When your kids are small, you sometimes wonder if they will ever be out of diapers. Twice in our family history, we have had two in diapers at the same time, which is definitely too much of a good thing.

Which way is the beach?

Which way is the beach? The beach is that way.

These days things are a little different. With two of my sons standing well over six feet, and another with a gleam of upward-mobility in his eye, I often feel a bit diminished in comparison. I find myself seeking the high ground when we are photographed together, not that it does any good.

I am reminded of the line in Seven Brides for Seven Brothers in which one of the town girls describes the Pontipee men. “They’re all as tall as church steeples,” she exclaims in admiration.

A couple of weeks ago I had a follow-up appointment from my kidney surgery (more about that on another day).

“How tall are you?” the doctor asked, in a voice that seemed to hold very little interest in my answer.

“Oh, 5-foot-10 1/2, maybe 5-foot-11 on a good day,” I told him, chuckling nervously.

Brusquely, he measured me. “Nope. 5 foot, 10 inches,” he informed me with a minimum of compassion. Gone, apparently, are the days in the Army when a charitable staff sergeant measured twenty-year-old-me at 6 feet even. Or maybe the cares of the world and the weary work of parenting has bowed me down to a shadow of my former height?

My three sons

My three sons a-looming.

Daniel’s life ambition is to be taller than Joshua, and he seems well on his way, if only by craftily choosing his ground. I guess I will have to take refuge in the fact that I still outweigh them each by a significant margin.

Tim

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Daily Life, Holidays

All Glory Be to Christ our King!

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Many years Kathy throws a party on New Years’ Eve, inviting as many people as she can reasonably expect will fit into our house. This year we had 47 people in the house (although fortunately not all at once) for games, fellowship, and lots of tasty treats.

In spite of Joshua's hatred of 'fake' trees, we used our artificial Christmas tree this year.

In spite of Joshua’s hatred of ‘fake’ trees, we used our artificial Christmas tree this year.

Usually the men-folk squirrel themselves upstairs for strategy gaming, while the ladies occupy the family room for party games like Head of the Herd or Scum. The teens and young adults often stake out the living room for Mafia or Resistance, while the youngest kids make the best of it in the garage.

Sometimes we try to add some spiritual significance to the evening, by adding scheduled events on the half-hour, but this year only one special event made the cut. Our dear sometime-adoptive daughter Jenny brought words for an adaptation of Auld Lang Syne, which we sang around the piano just after midnight.

Should nothing of our efforts stand
No legacy survive
Unless the Lord does raise the house
In vain its builders strive.

To you who boast tomorrow’s gain
Tell me what is your life
A mist that vanishes at dawn
All glory be to Christ!

[Chorus]
All glory be to Christ our King!
All glory be to Christ!
His rule and reign we’ll ever sing,
All glory be to Christ!

His will be done, His kingdom come
On earth as is above
Who is Himself our daily bread
Praise Him the Lord of love.

Let living water satisfy
The thirsty without price
We’ll take a coup of kindness yet
All glory be to Christ!

[Chorus]

When on the day the great I Am
The faithful and the true
The Lamb who was for sinners slain
Is making all things new.

Behold our God shall live with us
And be our steadfast light
And we shall ere His people be
All glory be to Christ!

[Chorus]

A spiritual version of Auld Lang Syne is a great way to ring in the new year!

A spiritual version of Auld Lang Syne is a great way to ring in the new year!

I was too far away from the piano to read the words (47 people make a tightly-packed crowd in our home) but I got a chance to sing it with a smaller group the next day. I loved the chance to reflect on the joy and hope that our King gives us, as we face a new year!

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