Project 365, Rachel

Christmas Good-byes

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Hellos are some of my very favorite things – HELLO, Summer! HELLO, Spring Break! HELLO, Mamie! HELLO, Beloved College Kids!!

Sweet family picture at the airport curb.

Sweet family picture at the airport curb.

Good-byes, I guess, have their place as well. I don’t mind saying good-bye to winter or a long school year or extra pounds.

Driving to the airport, however, and dropping off beloved family members is NOT my favorite thing. Last week we said good-bye to Mamie (my mom) and she flew home to Michigan. Today we drove Rachel to the airport to return to TN for the January term at Union University. Sigh.

How many people does it take to drop off one college student?

How many people does it take to drop off one college student?

We loved having Rachel home with us this Christmas break. Such a sweet time of relaxing, celebrating, shopping, playing cards and games, baking Christmas cookies, watching movies, visiting friends, and so on. As always, we will long for her return in the spring and another HELLO.

Project 365 – Day 2
Kathy

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Project 365

A Fresh Start

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It has been delightful to have Joshua and Rachel home for Christmas, but there has been one sour note. Joshua, who is pretty careful not to say anything negative, remarked on our blogging practice.

“Yes, I remember when I was younger, you used to blog all the time,” he reminisced. “Now that I’m away at school, I often check the blog to see what is going on, but all I see is the same post from two months ago.”

It is true that our blogging seems to come in fits and starts. In 2013, we had a total of 6 posts; we did better in 2014, with 47. In our heyday, we posted 405 times in a single year (2007).

Admitting that more is not necessarily better, we’re resuming our blog with Project 365. Basically, we’ll try to post every day, alternating between me and Kathy, posting at least one picture taken that day or the day before.

Here’s a picture from last night’s New Year’s party.

Some people seemed to feel that to properly celebrate the new year, you need to kick off your shoes.

Some people seemed to feel that to properly celebrate the new year, you need to kick off your shoes.

Each year, we host a New Year’s party, inviting many of our closest friends. This year, one of our gracious friends offered to host it on our behalf.

“Let’s have your party, but do it at our house,” they offered.

It is true that our house would have been overwhelmed — this year 95 people attended, whereas usually we keep it to 50 or so. We played many games, ate delicious food, and celebrated the new year with abundant joy.

We are so thankful to have so many friends, to share life with, and to encourage and help us live in a way that is pleasing to God.

Project 365 – Day 1
Tim

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Family, Holidays

Holiday Hours

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As the Papa, I have certain prerogatives. Some of them are weighty, like making sure my children fully understand the gospel, and that they learn to love God. Others are more whimsical, like my gleeful tradition of throwing a glass of cold water over the shower curtain, onto any of my children who take a shower in my bathroom.

You can see that these children are sorely in need of a cold glass of water in the midst of their showers.

You can see that these children are sorely in need of a cold glass of water in the midst of their showers.

But this time of year, there is only one prerogative that matters: I (and only I) have the authority to declare the beginning of ‘Holiday Hours’.

Don’t get me wrong — we do lots of things to celebrate Christmas. We start listening to Christmas carols as early as the first of November, some years. Kathy’s passion for all things Advent sometimes threatens to eclipse the actual day of Christmas, entirely.

But there is a moment when school and work are finished, and when the real fun begins, and it is based on my work schedule. For the children, it means that bedtime constraints (never very strict in our household, anyway) are relaxed, and that we begin to seriously address ourselves to the fun of being a family. We play more games, we watch more movies, we bake more cookies and we generally enjoy each other in a deeper and more significant way.

Some of my favorite girls, at the Scrooge play.

Some of my favorite girls, at the Scrooge play.

Last night, we had our Scrooge party, and attended the excellent musical of that name at a nearby church. When we got home, I gathered the kids into our family room for an extemporaneous Family Meeting.

“I have an announcement,” I said, gravely, standing to my feet.

“Uh-oh,” Daniel flinched. Sometimes, my announcements are not very welcome.

I raised both arms and loudly declaimed: “HOLIDAY HOURS!”

And so, the fun begins.

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Daily Life, Holidays

Zero Fun, Sir!

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One of my favorite Football movie quotes is from Remember the Titans, in which the new coach (played by Denzel Washington) is haranguing the team. One of the football players is clowning around, and Coach Boone singles him out:

Petey Jones: [has hand raised for a high-five and is smiling]
Coach Boone: Put your hand down.
[Petey does as told]
Coach Boone: You’re smiling.
Petey Jones: Yes.
Coach Boone: Yes, sir. Why are you smiling?
Petey Jones: ‘Cause I love football. Football is fun.
Coach Boone: Fun, sir? It’s fun?
Petey Jones: Yes.
Coach Boone: You sure?
Petey Jones: I think…
Coach Boone: Now you’re thinkin’. First you smile, then you thinkin’. You think football is still fun?
Petey Jones: Uh, yes.
Coach Boone: Sir.
Petey Jones: Yes- no, sir.
Coach Boone: No?
Petey Jones: Um, it was fun.
Coach Boone: Not anymore though, is it? *Is* it?
Petey Jones: Not right now, no.
Coach Boone: No, it’s not fun anymore. Not even a little bit.
Petey Jones: Uh… no.
Coach Boone: Make up your mind. Think since you’re thinking. Go on, think. Is it fun?
Petey Jones: No, sir.
Coach Boone: No? Absolutely not?
Petey Jones: Zero fun, sir.
Coach Boone: [addresses team] All right, listen up! I’m Coach Boone. I’m gonna tell you about how much… fun you’re gonna have this season.

Mustering all my authority (as pater familias), I instructed my children, many of whom are now off from school. Like Coach Boone, I radiate authority and am generally obeyed without question.

Well, most of the time.

OK, once, I was obeyed without question, sometime in 2003. I’m pretty sure.

“Now, you understand that Sarah and David and I are not on Christmas break, yet. We all have school and work until Friday, and until we are off, there will be no fun whatsoever. No fun until Friday evening.” I waved my index finger sternly.

Zero fun, Sir!

Zero fun, Sir!

Naturally, they all took my words to heart, and are NOT playing games, watching movies, drinking egg-nog, and generally being festive.

Related posts:

Daily Life, Family, Holidays

Home for Christmas

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Strange things are happening in our household this weekend. Joshua and Rachel are home from college, and Mamie (Kathy’s Mom) is visiting us for a few weeks. When my parents stopped by for a quick visit, we all rushed out to the front of the house for a family picture.

A passel of Edgrens (and one Moore).

A passel of Edgrens (and one Moore). Not sure what happened to Daniel.

It is quite a change for us, transitioning from a quiet, relatively empty house to chaos and bursting at the seams. I am surprised at how much it fills my heart with joy, to have the older kids back home.

My favorite five children, typically silly.

My favorite five children, typically silly.

And of course, it is always great to have Mamie here with us. We always wish she would stay longer; I suppose she finds that our chaos is better in small doses.

Hooray for Mamie!

Hooray for Mamie!

We have them only for a few weeks, then Mamie heads back to Michigan, and Rachel back to school for January Term. Joshua will stay for most of January; a nice change from last summer, when he was in Turkey most of the time.

Kathy and I are grappling with being parents of grown children — they think they can rush off and have their own lives, how rude! I guess the secret is to make the most of the time we have, so I will cherish these next few weeks.

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The musings and ravings of a bloggart family