Well, we are kicking off our last year of both kids being able to be at our sweet little classical Christian school together. When we first started this school, we bumped the kids up a grade (I’ll save the long story of why for another time). So Elliott was technically in 6th grade during the school last year. But since the school is very humanities-based (rather than skill-based) grade levels are really not all that important. Therefore, we’re having Elliott be a 6th grader at the school again this year, which puts him back at his true grade. The school is on a 4-year history and science cycle and he hasn’t had the fourth cycle yet. This year he will get the fourth and final cycle and I’m so thankful we get one more year of both kids together at our blessed little school. Oh, I wish the school still went through 8th grade! But I know God will provide for Elliott next year, whatever that may look like.
Water has been a fairly constant presence in our marriage, from living in our first home together on Waterview and then moving to the Dominican Republic and Mexico, where we were within walking distance and/or sight of water. Now even living in land-locked Colorado, God somehow managed to gift us with this amazing piece of land that has a pond. Our first house on the property had a lovely view of the water, but our current home on the property actually has a kitchen sink that faces the water.
So I hardly ever take my eyes off the glittering blue. Especially when I’m doing dishes. When we enjoy our meals together, my eyes glance among my husband, these two precious gifts of children that God is letting us enjoy on earth, and the world surrounding our water. And what a world it is!
It truly never ceases to amaze me how many surprises we are awed by each coming week or month. There is always something new to discover, always something new to explore. Just this summer alone, we have watched a mother Mallard care for her two new ducklings. We have watched a mama Scaled Quail lead her dozen little babes all over our backyard. The kids have discovered, captured, played with, and organized races with the two different types of snakes that are of abundance in the pond: Lined Snakes and Plains Garter Snakes. One day on a walk we took the time to examine as best we could the hanging bird nests we’ve noticed in the past and then God delighted us with directing one of the birds to perch at the top of the humongous Cottonwood and sing us his incredible song. We recorded it and raced home to do some research, finally realizing that these birds, which are always too high up for us to see clearly, are indeed Bullock Orioles. They are the designers and manufacturers of those incredible hanging nests. We identified two new types of shore birds enjoying the banks near our water: the American Avocet and the Wilson’s Phalarope. We also had a visit from a Double Crested Cormorant, which we haven’t seen in a couple years. What magnificent birds!! The swallows have swarmed like normal this spring and early summer, but this year they chose our ideally-suited stucco home to build their mud nests. If you’ve never watched a bird build her nest, stop what you’re doing right now and put that on your bucket list. It is truly a wonder…watching them collect pieces of mud, one tiny clump at a time and build these magnificent pieces of architecture to house their eggs and babies. These have been the new surprises of our summer. This is not to mention the beauties that we are used to: the brilliant golden current blossoming like rays of sunshine throughout the property, the cattails springing up like green shoots, the killdeer running around the shores with their loud chatters and pronouncements, the red-winged blackbirds singing and soaring. The herons swooping in and gracefully adorning the water. The pelicans, in all of their elegance, swimming and feasting. The turtle the kids found while kayaking confirming to us we do have life again in the pond. The baby tiger salamander they found, although it was dead, was like a whispered promise from God: “See? I will restore life here though there was drought and death.” The many minnows swimming confirm the same thing. The sunsets revealing God’s heart for beauty. The mountains declaring the glory of God and the strength of His might and our promise that “those who trust in the Lord are as Mount Zion. They shall not be moved” (Psalm 125).
But, despite all of those wonders, one new surprise God brought to our waters at the end of spring was a goose nest. We have Canada Geese that frequent our Back Forty, but a walk in mid-May revealed to us that a pair of Canada Geese had chosen the banks of our pond as the birth place of their goslings. We discovered the mama sitting on her brood of 5 large eggs, the father dutifully nearby lest anyone try to disturb her. Even as we neared the mama, the father began swimming towards the bank to protect her. We stayed a good distance away, but he was on the shore in no time, ready to fight and defend. Over the next few days we watched closely until one day we saw the two proud parents swimming with four tiny, yellow goslings between them. A walk out to the nest a couple days later confirmed that one of the eggs did not hatch. But over the past couple of months, we have watched this sweet little family grow up and thus, even from my kitchen sink, I find myself marveling at God’s good created order and plan.
The mother goose, the father goose standing guard, and the egg that didn’t survive.
And here is the unfortunate truth of it: this father goose is a truer father than most human dads. He did not abandon his mate nor his offspring. He counts his offspring as worth defending, even while still yet within their egg casings. Because God gave even an animal such as this the instinct to recognize the value and worth of his offspring. God gave even an animal such as this the instincts to reflect His good created order, to recognize that children are a blessing from God. Even an animal such as this will stand by night and day to guard his wife and his children. And that is far more than we can say for many of the American people right now.
Knowing their goslings would not be able to fly for some time, they chose a nesting ground near water to protect them. Any sign of danger sends them scurrying into the water, the father always last to fend off the foe and ensure his family is safe. Day after day we have watched this precious family grow and enjoy each other while the parents faithfully guard and protect their children at all costs. The children are obedient to their parents. They know the safest place for them to be is with their parents, under their umbrella of authority and protection, not off finding their own independence and deciding for themselves what they think is best. The gosling does not say to his father, “I think I am actually a squirrel. Therefore, I will remain on land and climb trees.” He trusts his father to tell him who he is and therefore how he should grow into an adult Canada Goose who will know how to act, perform and behave as God intended. But even if he did say something that absurd to his father, I am confident that this dad, whom I’ve watched intently over the last three months, would tell him the truth. “Son, you are not a squirrel. You are a gosling whose wings do not work yet. You need warmth, protection, direction and guidance from your mother and me. If you go live on land, that coyote we’ve seen wandering around every few days will find you and eat you. You will die. Trust us as your parents; we will tell you the truth.”
No, there is no rebellion or mistrust from these goslings. There is no ignorance on the part of the parents. Each day as they go for a swim, the mama leads, all four goslings swim behind her in a perfectly straight row, and the father follows behind watching for danger. They know they are safe in their parents’ protection because these parents know it is their responsibility to guard and protect their offspring. They do not neglect their duties in order to give their children a “freedom” that will lead to their sure demise. They do not neglect their duties in the name of “love” but rather have taken up their God-given responsibilities to protect, provide, teach and guide.
In the upper left photo, you can see both parents telling my kids, who are nearby on the shore, who is boss. In the bottom two photos you can also see the Mama Mallard and her two baby ducklings joining the party.
Every single day for the past three months, we have watched this sweet little family go for walks. And it is the same every single time: the mother and the goslings peck and search for food while the father, on the other hand, never eats. No, his head is never down in the dirt. His head remains high up and alert at the end of his straight neck, searching constantly for danger. He is always on the lookout.
Upper left: the father shepherds his family into the water as we were, apparently, too close. The goslings are getting bigger and looking more like their parents every day! Bottom photo: You can see three of the goslings resting, the mother and another gosling eating, and the father on alert as usual.
One day they were taking a family walk near our home. As usual, the children stayed within a few feet of their parents, modeling their mother’s behavior of pecking diligently in the ground to seek nourishment. We decided to go out there and try to get a little closer to observe them. My darling Selah, who sometimes has the habit of acting without thinking through the consequences, decided to charge the geese. I still, to this day, after many thorough discussions, have absolutely NO idea what was going through her head. The plan was to gently and slowly approach, showing we were no threat, just to try to observe. But as Elliott and I gingerly approached the family, Selah came charging from behind us towards the family, yelling a war cry. Of course, the goslings and the mother quickly began to run towards the lake, but not the dad. That father, knowing his duty to protect his family, instead charged at Selah. Though he didn’t exactly “attack” her, he certainly let her know who was boss. He spread his expansive wings, showing off his 6 foot wing span, and flew up onto her back as she tried to—wisely—run away. He squawked and yelled and warned her to never charge his family again. Because HE is their protector, and like all Canada Geese fathers, he will NEVER abandon his children.
Yes, Selah and I have had lengthy discussions since that day regarding her reckless behavior, but that’s not the point of this reflection. The point is, during a time where my heart is, really, overcome with sorrow at the horrific state of our nation’s fathers, God has given me this beautiful reminder that His created order, though decaying because of sin, will not be destroyed forever. In a time where fathers, in particular, have fully abandoned their responsibilities of being a father, I still have the unwavering hope that our Heavenly Father has never and will never abandon His children. This Father Goose will guard his goslings when threatened by an enemy, even to the death. We live in a time where human fathers think the enemy is their child, and it is by the father’s own hand the child dies. We live in a time where if, somehow, by the grace of God the baby escapes his mother’s womb alive, he will enter a world where organizations are fighting to BREAK APART the family model, REDEFINE the family model and then FABRICATE lies about that child’s identity. All of these things will surely lead to the destruction of families, children and the next generation, save the redemption of Christ. It is crystal clear observing these geese: If a gosling would have strayed from his father’s protection, he quickly would have been put to death by the many predators surrounding the lake. If the father had not remained to protect, lead and guide, the goslings would have surely died. The family unit, according to God’s design, brings protection, stability, and clarity for the goslings’ lives and futures.
The last time we saw Father Goose and his family, the day before they flew away.
I awoke one morning this week to see two Canada Geese flying away. We have been watching the parents give “flight lessons” to their goslings for the past couple of weeks, but in the past three months the parents have not flown at all, other than from one side of the lake to the other for the purpose of instruction. But that morning, the two flew AWAY. The other four were nowhere to be seen and we haven’t seen them since. What a beautiful thing God allowed us to witness this summer. A growing family, submitted to God’s order in His good creation, made it. They made it. The goslings graduated and get to repeat the lessons they’ve learned from their faithful father to the next generation of geese.
Oh God, have mercy! Have mercy on us humans who have become “so wise” in our own eyes! So wise, that we think our ways are higher than yours. Have mercy on the father who did not turn to your ways, who did not guard and protect his daughter, who did not tell her the Truth, who allowed her to “find herself” and “follow her heart” straight into the bed of an evil and wicked man who gave her his seed for his own pleasure, only to destroy her and destroy it. Have mercy on this new father who has not only recklessly abandoned the woman who is with child because of him by fornication, but who is advocating for his own offspring’s death. And Lord, have mercy on the woman who has a baby in her womb and paints the words “not yet human” on her almost-full term swollen abdomen. This is a woman who can FEEL the movements of the life within her, who is even holding life within her arms, and yet has blinded her eyes to reality for the sake of “freedom.” Have mercy on the people who advocate for the “right” of abortion, as if murder of the innocent could ever, ever, EVER be justified by the ignorance of fathers, who for generations have neglected their role as CHILD OF GOD, HUSBAND and FATHER. Who for generations have neglected their Maker and all of his ways.
I cannot pray, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do,” because they DO know. Every pro choice person knows exactly what he or she is doing when they vote to legalize the mass slaughter of innocent children. Though they try to justify it through ridiculous lies, even my 9 year old recognizes, “Mama, how could they say a baby in the womb isn’t alive? We all know that anything that’s growing is living. The baby can’t be dead and then suddenly alive once it’s birthed!” Out of the mouths of babes.
But, even though they are well aware of what they are doing, I do pray for God to forgive them…while simultaneously praying for His justice to come. I pray for their eyes to be opened to the reality of truth and for God to have mercy on their souls despite their unwillingness to have mercy upon the lives of the unborn. May God give them the grace to repent.
The guilt of the murder of each of the SIXTY THREE MILLION babies is on all of our hands. As a nation we have strayed so far from God’s truth. In our homes and schools and churches, we have strayed so far from God’s truth. We must pray, repent, and speak truth, even if it kills us. We MUST “speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves” (Proverbs 31:8-9). And we must teach our children the Truth, despite loud voices trying to convince them otherwise.
You may not have a kitchen sink that faces the water. But you have all of creation at your fingertips and even the rocks will cry out to tell the truth. Will you?
Friends, remember Father Goose. And remember that the One who created you will give you wisdom and truth if only you will ask for it. Speak up, fellow believers, speak up. And pray for the unrighteous to stop “stopping their eyes and ears” and turn towards truth. Pray for the unrighteous to seek first the kingdom of God, rather than their own wicked desires, and to find wisdom at its source: through the fear of the Lord, not through the “social justice” created by man’s foolishness. Pray for them to repent.
As you do not know the way the spirit comes to the bones in the womb of a woman with child, so you do not know the work of God who makes everything (Ecclesiastes 11:5).
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousnesssuppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools (Romans 1:18-22).
“This is my Father’s world! O let me ne’er forget,
That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the Ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world! The Battle is not done;
Jesus who died shall be satisfied, and earth and heav’n be one!”
The (double) promise He set in the sky over our property last month.
The rainbow, and all of creation, belong to Him. And He who has promised is faithful (Hebrews 10:23).
We did it! Another school year planting seeds and building up these kids of ours in the Word of God and His truth. We studied modern American history this year and boy, oh boy, did we study some HEAVY topics–obviously. But what a gift to get to work through these wars and hard events in our nation’s history from a biblical worldview. Lots of pondering, lots of discussion, lots of ties to our current nation and world issues.
So besides, modern history, we studied botany and zoology; Van Gogh, Cassat, and Monet; William Blake, Carl Sandburg, and Maya Angelou. For nature study, we focused on reptiles, fish, amphibians, Colorado Winter, birds, and flowers. They memorized Psalm 103:1-14, Isaiah 53:1-6, and Philippians 4:4-8 (and tons more scripture for church but I am just including school-related things here!) Selah can label all the countries in Europe and if you hand Elliott a blank piece of paper, he can draw and label all of Europe for you. The kids read well over 450 books just for school alone. We enjoyed so many together as a family, but some of our favorites were Amos Fortune, Number the Stars, Caddie Woodlawn, Elijah of Buxton, Rifles for Watie, Winged Watchman, Snow Treasure, Shades of Gray, and Across Five Aprils. The kids performed in Shakespeare’s Macbeth, which, you may consider an odd choice for an elementary school play. But when you look at this great work from a biblical worldview, it’s actually a fantastic learning tool, to recognize good versus evil and to see the depravity that lies within all of us. The kids each studied and dressed up and gave a speech as a person during the historical time period we studied–Elliott was Abraham Lincoln and was THRILLED to be able to tie coins into his presentation and Selah, who was Helen Keller, really enjoyed studying Helen Keller in depth and writing out all of her classmates’ names in braille. The kids excelled in another year of Latin study, which included memorizing the Lord’s prayer, The Sanctus, the Gloria Patri and the Table Blessing. Of course, the Winter Market was one of their highlights of the year. This year they tag-teamed and designed/built these adorable little reindeer together. They sold out at the Winter Market and received many more orders!
I’m really not sure a day goes by that I’m not exceedingly thankful for this sweet little community we have! I thank the Lord for another year with this little school and for another year of homeschooling.
And now for all the growth that happened this year:
Elliott. This man is growing up! I feel 100% dependent on the Lord being his mama, and seeking wisdom for how to shepherd his growth without stifling him or having “girl” expectations on him. I am learning *a lot*. He is growing more and more fond of aquatic animals and chose to do his science project on one of our new favorite animals: the tiger salamander. We have all learned so much this year about this animal, which happens to be the Colorado state amphibian! We didn’t know we had them in our pond until the end of last summer. I love seeing how the both the kids’ “want to be” sections change on the little surveys they fill out at the beginning and end of each year. This year we had several fires break out in Colorado Springs–three in one day once!–and one of them was within a few miles of our house. The kids got to watch a helicopter grab water from a reservoir and dump it on the fire over and over. So, aerial firefighter made his list of future jobs this year, along with coin collector and aquarium owner :).
Spiritual growth: He grew tremendously in self-control and obedience this year which made for very pleasant homeschool days for all of us! He has also excelled in Scripture memory, having memorized not only the verses for school but many different whole chapters of the Psalms, including all of Psalm 136!
Academic: He mastered his 13s and 14s in multiplication and division. I do not know those by memory so it was a lot of effort grading his tests each day, ha! His typing improved from 8 wpm to 26 wpm and he can also write in cursive much faster than he could at the beginning of the year.
Life Skills: He excelled in shoveling driveways during the winter and definitely prefers “going to work” than doing school. I’d say that’s a pretty important life skill for a man! He also improved tremendously on doing his daily chores with excellence. And, perhaps my favorite is that he has learned how to make a pretty mean chocolate peanut butter ball. He and I adapted our original recipe to be more whole-food oriented and they are DELICIOUS.
Selah has also grown in so many ways this year. In addition to selling the reindeer at the Winter Market, she made and sold balloon animals. It was such a joy watching her interact with the littler kids, patiently taking their requests and loving them well. She was quick to provide free replacements when a child got a little too wild with his sword and it popped. I think she just might have a balloon animal business in her future… I’m actually a *little* concerned over her total obsession with (addiction to?) reading. Can that be a thing? Addicted to reading? She has always lived all of life with a book in one hand, but this year she really got into audiobooks, so now she doesn’t even need one free hand to read. She spends hours in her room drawing, painting, building, and designing while listening to audio books. I literally can’t check them out fast enough from the library. Part of the issue is that she listens on 2x (or higher) speed, so she sometimes goes through several books a day. Well, there you have it. I’ve admitted it. That’s the first step towards getting her help, right?
Spiritual: She continues to have a more and more contrite heart each year with a true desire to grow and be like Christ. By God’s grace, she is learning to gentle her tongue towards her brother and trust me even when she doesn’t like what I’m asking her to do. It is a true joy to be her mom.
Academic: She mastered her 13s in multiplication and division and I finally got smart at the end of the year and started having Elliott check her times tests since I don’t know my 13s! (#momwin) Her handwriting is improving and she also can write in cursive much faster than she could at the beginning of the year.
Life Skills: This girl is FINALLY learning how to keep her room clean!! I will not write a novel about that drama but just take my word for it–this is a BIG WIN. She is also doing her chores with much more excellence and my favorite thing is that she always sings while doing them.
It seems fitting that our blog would take its place among the dinosaurs the same year Elliott turned 11. If you’ll remember, we started this little bloggy blog when we were pregnant with Elliott, so just over 11 years ago. And 11 years in computer age is like ELEVEN HUNDRED years in human years. So, our theme (I think that’s what it’s called?!?) is officially EXTINCT. KAPUT. GONE. At rest with the dinos. I noticed in February that our blog was doing something weird…the font turned white which obviously made it hard to read. I figured Brian (aka, builder of the blog and technical support) just needed to push a couple buttons to restore it after an update or something. But alas, when he finally had the 5 minutes to sit down and look at it, he informed me that the change was a result of the fact that our theme was dead. DEAD! Rest in peace, dear lovely theme that faithfully stuck with us for 11 years.
He tinkered with it for close to an hour, trying to get it legible again. The result is something that I would not call “aesthetically pleasing” but it works. It functions. It will do for now. Brian says we will have to start from ground zero and rebuild our blog with a new theme. That does not happen to be MY personal forte and he has approximately *ZERO* extra minutes right now to tend to this problem. So, for those of you who are truly faithful and willing to bear with us as I post a blog or two here and there with my extinct theme, you definitely fall under the category of “true friend/family member.”
I will admit I thought about ending our blog’s life, rather than raising it from the dead, but I can’t bring myself to do it. This serves as the one and only scrapbook we will most likely ever have of our little lives, and I’m committed to making it through as long as there is life in these nimble typing fingers of mine.
So that being said, I bring you the belated news of Elliott’s 11th birthday! His birthday was on a Sunday and he begged us to open one gift before church. We had just happened to get him a new bible for his birthday so we figured it would be very appropriate to let him open it before heading off. He was gifted a bible many years ago with a children’s version of text and he has been asking for one with an ESV translation, which is what we all use. We found him a perfect navy and light blue one and it will never cease to delight my heart that my children are OVER THE MOON when receiving a bible as a gift.
His Washington Grandma and Grandpa arrived that afternoon and surprised us while at church! We celebrated together the next day with a special breakfast, dinner and, of course, mud pie.
As far as celebrating with his friends, you may recognize this birthday theme and think I have simply reposted last year’s birthday party, but alas, it is indeed a new year. All this guy ever wants to do for his birthdays for the rest of his life is play Capture the Flag on our property. And come on, who wouldn’t?!?
We gathered with around 50 people I think (I never got a full accurate count but that is a ballpark) to celebrate this big guy’s life. It was a blast and, unlike last year when it snowed the morning of the party, the weather was PERFECT. I know what you’re thinking–“said no one ever in Colorado”–but I’m telling you, it was. It was cloudy and around 70 degrees and LITTLE-TO-NO WIND. Not too hot, not too cold, cloud cover…it was awesome.
Thanks to all of our loved ones who could come out and bless the depths of our son’s heart by joining him in yet another epic game of Capture the Flag!! Happy birthday to our mighty Elliott!!
We are having a lovely snow day today. Very, very thankful for the moisture God is providing for us! In fact, our little lake is even slowly beginning to fill back up! Three cheers for snow!!
It started off as an ordinary snow day…the kids made waffles and then went outside to make maple syrup snow candy. Brian didn’t have to leave right away so he pulled the kids behind the four-wheeler on a snow tube. Good times in the snow.
And then suddenly, they got the idea to start shoveling our neighbors’ driveways. They have now been going at it for about 4 hours and are not interested in stopping. (Well, Selah came in for a half hour to eat, but Elliott refuses to quit working.) I think they have already done 8 houses**! But, during one of the times I went to check on them, they said, “Mom! It’s 2/2/22! Make sure you tell us when it’s 2:22 pm!!” These are the things that my somewhat-attention-to-detail children take note of.
So I set an alarm (because, who can remember something like that?) and went out to find them just before 2:22 pm. And we took a picture. Because, 2:22 on 2/2/22.
So there you have it. This is what was happening the EXACT moment it turned 2:22 pm on 2/2/22. Elliott wanted me to try to get it at 2:22 pm and 22 seconds, but I told him to forget about it!! (HA!!)
In other news, this is one of the reasons I *absolutely love* homeschooling–to have the flexibility and freedom to work a different muscle of hard work! I love seeing Elliott, especially, come alive when he has real hard work to do. My son, who is sometimes in tears when tasked with drawing a picture, is refusing to stop working–even to eat–after many hours in 12 degree weather because he’s so intent on blessing and serving our neighbors. (And, I should add…they’ve already been thanked with a plate full of cookies and a few bucks in their pockets, which certainly keeps the motivation factor high!) He’s a man. He loves to be productive and take care of others. God, may this character only grow and increase in him as he ages!!! And thank you for his daddy, who has modeled this character for him all his life.
So…what were YOU doing at 2:22 pm today?! If you missed it, you have another shot to document your whereabouts on the 22nd, when it will be 2/22/22!! (Set an alarm!!) If only we could be alive in another 200 years and take a photo at 2:22pm on 2/22/2222! I might even be willing to try to get it at 22 seconds if I could be on this earth for that!
It was just an ordinary Thursday. (It also happened to be Brian’s birthday, which, if you know him, means it was–quite literally–just an ordinary Thursday.) We were planning on celebrating Selah’s birthday that evening with a friend when–*gasp*shudder*scream*–the birthday present we had gotten for her was GONE!!! In its place was a ransom note with a clue.
We immediately contacted Nancy Drew, whose novels Selah devours at alarming speeds, to ask for her help. Unfortunately, she was detained in Europe and could not come to our aid. She felt terrible, but after hearing that Selah had read almost all of her books, she was certain Selah could solve the mystery with the help of her two fellow sleuths. Nancy studied the ransom note, which we had faxed over to her, and mailed a letter to Selah (it arrived that same day, all the way from Europe, if you can believe it!!) giving her detailed instructions for how to proceed.
Elliott, Selah and Aspen piled into the car after school and I burst into uncontrollable tears, telling them what had happened. “Your present was…STOLEN!!” I blubbered. “Our house has been turned into a crime scene!!!” I handed Selah the certified, Top Secret, Confidential letter from Nancy that had just arrived because I was too upset to say any more. She opened it, and with wide eyes (and lots of giggles, I might add, though I didn’t think that was an appropriate time for laughter) read through the instructions and the attached ransom letter. Perhaps one of the most important instructions was that they were not to enter a room unless the clues led them there or else bombs would detonate that would destroy crucial evidence or, worse, the purloined birthday present. (“Or worse,” Elliott added, “our house!!”) Thankfully, the thief had, indeed, left behind a number of clues and Nancy prepared to set Selah, Elliott and Aspen on several missions to track them all down.
Thankfully, Nancy also sent along some Pop Secret snacks for these hungry sleuths!
The ransom note read:
Your birthday present is gone!
What should you do?
You’ll find that I took it
And hid it from you.
It’s hard to believe
but a mystery is due.
The best way to find it
is to get all the clues!
Your first clue…
What has a face and two hands but no arms?
They solved the riddle on the drive home and once we got to the crime scene they immediately found the first envelope tucked behind the family room clock and they set off to accomplish their first mission, which was to crack the code to figure out their aliases.
Working as a team, they DID figure out the code and discovered their code names: Singing Puppy, Speedy Glowfish and Sneaky Turtle. Aspen was SHOCKED when she discovered her alias, saying over and over (and over and over), “But I HAVE a glowfish!! How did she know??!!” There was one more code tucked in the envelope and after they had solved their names, they solved the extra code which said, “Minn of the Mississippi.” Singing Puppy immediately figured out to check inside that book and found the first letter (L) with a riddle written on the back of it, which said: I never ask questions but I am always answered.
It took them a little while to figure this one out, but they finally did and found the envelope attached to our doorbell.
Once they reached the vault AND made it back up through the lasers again to the landing level, they opened up their needed supplies.
Each sleuth received a magnifying glass, glow sticks, spy glasses that let you see behind you, spy pens and a notebook. They would need each one of those things to solve the mystery. At the bottom of the vault was a bag containing the second letter (O) with a riddle on the back: Some people take me in the morning, others take me in the evening, but one thing you should know—that when I’m taken’, I don’t really go anywhere.
It did take them a little while to figure out it was a bath, but since we only have one bathtub in our home, they knew where to go immediately. And they were very careful to not open any other doors…
They opened the envelope and read the mission and as soon as they entered the bathroom, the door was shut behind them! Somehow, the light switches didn’t work (I’ll have to look into that…) and since there are no windows in their bathroom, they were forced to use their glowsticks. So this was DEFINITELY the hardest of all the missions but with a little help from yours truly (good thing Nancy and I speak the same language) the sleuths cracked the code. The clue was written with a scytale—so there was a long strip of paper with letters on it and they had to match the arrow on the piece of paper to the arrow on the paper towel roll and then wrap the paper around it to read the word. They knew the piece of paper with the letters was important but they couldn’t match it with the paper towel roll. So once we solved it together, it led them to our home library where they found the 4th mission on the side of a bookshelf. The 4th letter (S) was scattered among the items in the bathtub so they also had collected that.
The envelope was filled with small squares of paper with lots of very random things typed out on them in size 2pt font. They read through each and every one with their magnifying glasses until they could figure out which one was the clue. One of them said, “Happy Birthday to You!” by Dr. Seuss and that just happens to be one of the books on our bookshelf. Inside the book was another letter (A) with a clue written on the back: I am alive without breath and cold as death. I am never thirsty but always drinking. What am I?
They ran up to Sneaky Turtle’s room and found the 5th mission attached to his fish tank. Unfortunately, they also found something very fishy indeed… a dead fish. That terrible thief! Must have scared the fish to death! But, undeterred and undaunted, the sleuths carried on and read the mission at hand. How Nancy knew that a birthday version of Headbandz was Selah’s one request for her birthday, we’ll never know. It was a personalized birthday/detective version and, let me tell you, it was just the perfect game for Singing Puppy and her fellow sleuths. They worked together and laughed hard and the very last clue to guess was a teal balloon. There were balloons scattered all over the living room but only one teal one, which contained the next letter (M) with a clue on the back: I begin with T, I end with T, and I am mostly full of T. What am I?
Inside the bag was a bowl of cooked noodles. Once they had all reached inside they guessed, “noodles,” and Singing Puppy knew to go to our pantry and look inside the noodle bin. There, she found the next letter (H) with a clue on the back: When I was invented you could look through walls. What am I?
Speedy Glowfish immediately thought of looking out the window…
They came inside to accomplish this mission…
Working together, they got 10 shots and then Singing Puppy ran to the target, intuitively knowing to check behind it. She found the letter (E) with the clue: What has to be broken before you can use it?
Inside the mission envelope were lots and lots of oddly shaped pieces of paper with pictures and words and sentences written on them…in invisible ink. They had to use their spy pens to read them and then decide which one was the clue. One of them said, “Your favorite breakfast to eat with whipped cream and strawberries.” Singing Puppy ran to the pantry containing the waffle mix, where they found a letter (S) with the clue: “I don’t speak, can’t hear or say anything, but I will always tell the truth. What am I?” They finally figured it out…
Once they found the paper plates in the cabinet, they had to unscramble them to figure out what was for dinner. I loved the moment Singing Puppy realized the plates spelled out “Pizza.”
The exhausted sleuths ate and were merry…and then Singing Puppy found a clue underneath her slice of pizza! (Can you see it in that lower left picture?) It was a letter (O), wrapped in aluminum foil, with this clue written on the back: “I sometimes have leaves, but I’m not a tree. I’m sometimes bedside, and sometimes coffee.”
Brian and I figured it out right away but, come to find out, none of these three children knew that a table has “leaves.” However, as Speedy Glowfish leaned back in her chair, scratching her chin to try to solve the riddle, she happened to glance down and see that the last mission had fallen to the floor from where it had previously been taped to the underside of the table. And so it was very easy for them to find it on the floor at their feet, ha!
Inside the envelope were tons of pieces of paper filled with quotes from Nancy Drew and/or other detectives in very small font, backwards. So they had to hold the papers up to the mirror to read them. Somehow, and we will never know how, the very last paper that held the clue had dropped to the floor without them noticing. (See it on the floor in the bottom left photo?) That paper read, “The last letter is found where the clothes go round.” And there, in the washing machine, was tucked the final letter (R).
Here are the letters they received. Can you solve the case??
LOSAMHESOR
Okay so the unscrambling of the letters was a WEEEE bit difficult for these sleuths. Thankfully, I was able to help them crack the case with a few hints (I’m guessing it’s two words…let’s think about who this day is about…) they finally got “Selah” and were left with OMORS. And finally they put it all together to get…SELAHS ROOM.
The purloined birthday present was a DESK!!!
The thief had–very conveniently, I might add–dropped the stolen loot in HER BEDROOM!! WHEW!! I breathed a sigh of relief for the first time that day.
Singing Puppy, Speedy Glowfish and Sneaky Turtle all celebrated.They each gave Selah wonderfully-thoughtful gifts and we enjoyed some mud pied cupcakes together. (And yes, I fussed and at the very least gave Brian a candle in his since it was, indeed, HIS birthday!)Her Aunt Angela and Uncle Tony sent her a compass and #11-20 of the Nancy Drew series. These are just some of the faces that accompanied the opening of these amazing presents. It’s like she struck gold. (Which, really, she did!)
Selah also got to celebrate her big day with Brian’s parents and some of the Mauss family. Thankfully there were no more crimes that needed to be solved during those festivities!! If only Nancy could have joined us for some mud pie…maybe next time!
Well happy birthday to our darling Singing Puppy Selah. The mission to turn 9 years old was, indeed, ACCOMPLISHED!
Sometimes, due to life and health (or lack of), over 2 and a half years pass by and you haven’t been able to get your hair cut. And then at one point you think to yourself, “Hmm, I wonder if my hair is long enough to donate…” and you think about how wonderful it would be if God could make beauty from the ashes of your way-too-long-in-desperate-need-of-a-cut hair. And then you look at your lovely daughter, who also has not had a hair cut in ages, and you wonder, “Hmm, I think HER hair might be long enough to donate, too…” Then you wonder if you are ready to give your baby girl a bob cut and you ask your husband and he is not so sure about that either.
But, you and your little girl, whom some call a “chip off your old block,” find a place that provides free wigs to children who suffer from permanent hair loss. You watch a video together about a little girl who has lived the first many years of her life with no hair. You talk about the challenges she must face and how beautiful she is because she is made in God’s image. Your little girl, who was hesitant to cut her hair into a bob at first, decides that this very small sacrifice she has the power to make could bring a lot of joy to a little girl just like her who has this need.
As you are contemplating all of these things, you find out one of your favorite people on the planet has just been diagnosed with a very serious and rare breast cancer. You cry your eyes out and pray fervently and then when you finally get to see her through the waterfall in your eyes, you ask her with a lump in your throat, “Do you want my hair?” She already has a wig purchased so she doesn’t need yours, but now you are truly determined to give your hair away.
So you grab your daughter’s hand and you march to the salon together. The stylist cuts 17 inches off the longest point of your hair and an average of 13 inches from your little girl’s hair. And you each smile big after taking these huge chops off your old blocks…and you realize your daughter is still a chip off of yours.
Your heart swells as you read the letter your daughter includes with her donation:
Dear Friend, I hope that you are able to trust God in this hard situation. I encourage you to read the bible and pray without ceasing. Have courage and don’t give up, even if people make fun of how you look. You can depend on God through any hard trial and remember that He is always with you. Love, Selah Bethany Moberg P.S. I really hope you like your wig.
And now, all you can do is hope and pray that some little girl (or two) feels the love of the Lord through your small sacrifices. You continue to hope and pray for your dear friend who is fighting cancer hard. May He make beauty out of all of our ashes.
Letters from authors the kids had written, a shimmery purple-blue butterfly, two hot air balloon landings on our property one morning and a creature that we still can’t identify!
PROJECTS
Brian and Elliott rebuilt the crumbling concrete wall surrounding the drain to our lake. Selah even jumped in (quite literally) to help from time to time.
COOKING
Selah cooked many different meals this summer, but by far her favorite thing to do was make her own creations. She particularly enjoyed making dessert creations for us…imagine that :).
MOWING and BUILDING
Ummm, yes, that IS Elliott driving our 100 horse power tractor ALL.BY.HIMSELF. Thus begins the time when my 10 year old can do things I’ve never done. He also built a floor in our attic, so add that to the list!
DEATH
With GREAT HOPE for spending eternity with our friend…
LIFE
In case you couldn’t spot him in the Moberg family photo, meet the kids’ new cousin: baby Beckett!
ADVENTURE
DAHLIAS
All thanks to Uncle Joe!!!
GRATITUDE
And although I have no picture for this…I must document that this summer Elliott beat me AND Brian at ping-pong!! WHAT?!! He has come A LONG WAY since we got our table at Christmas. Way to go, Buddy!!
Though we know it was in the year 2000, neither Brian nor I remember the first time we met. I so wish I could remember…and often wonder if we will get to replay that meet cute in Heaven one day. But although I don’t remember meeting him, I have always remembered him as being my friend. And eventually he became my good friend. And I DO remember the moment those strange feelings started bubbling up inside of me when I was around him, and the time he finally asked me on a date, and the time he slipped a ring on my finger and asked me to be his wife. I became Mrs. Brian Moberg 12 years ago this month and, my goodness, now I can’t remember a time that I didn’t love him. Honestly, I think I have always loved him.
We have been sorting through lots of boxes this month and I came across my keepsakes box. I don’t know when it was opened last, but it was at least 3 houses ago. And I came across my cross-stitch birth stats and immediately texted Brian’s parents…because…LOOK.
It was love at first cross-stitch. {squeal}
Did you catch this poem that I wrote about how “God knew“? Yes, indeed, He knew. Now, I believe Raggedy Ann and Andy were actually SIBLINGS but still…their love ran deep :). What a sweet little wink from the Lord.
