Ode to a Lightpost.

My house is quiet tonight. The boys are in bed, the dishes are done, and Mike, who went to put Jake in bed...again, hasn't come down. My guess, is that he wanted to set the proper example for his child, and fell fast asleep himself. The quiet moment reminded me that I really needed to mop my kitchen floor! Moping lends itself to thinking. So tonight as I mopped, my mind danced with all the thoughts that during the day it rarely has time to dwell on. I thought about North Logan, the home of my youth. And more specifically that beautiful corner of North Logan where my mom and dad live.

One week ago today, we packed up our suitcases and left that beautiful place. It was time to come home. Time to come home to school, callings, responsibility, heat that makes your eyeballs melt, home repairs, and a job. I thought tonight, that even after eight years of leaving that corner, it never gets easier.
Yes, home is where my little family is now. As it should be. Home is the happy sound of Mike coming home from work, of my kids playing "secret agents" in the backyard. Home is the tree house we built in the backyard, the sound of cicadas in the evening. Home is where my laundry pile never ceases to grow. But home will also, always be that corner of the world where I can go for a few weeks out of the year and feel like a girl again. The place that is so familiar and safe. A home where for a few days my motherhood responsibilities seem a bit lighter, because there is another mother around who never ceases to mother me. I love that. What a breath of fresh air it is to go home to my mom and dad, ... sister and brothers. It's the place where I can walk upstairs to the room of my youth, lie down, look out the big window, and find my star. The little star between the mountain peaks that I wished on night and night again. I sent up another wish recently, one that might involve me not always being so far away from that special corner of the world.


This is a happy memory. Do you remember this light pole? The light pole we all scratched are names into. It was fun to take a moment this summer and look at this pole. As young neighborhood kids we all autographed the light pole, trying to get are name as high as we could. It was fun to see the names of my "generation," still shining through. I noticed names of kids older than myself as well as kids who trailed a few years after. I even saw new names of current neighborhood kids and I smiled to think that the tradition lives on. In the moment, I had to find a good rock and scratch my kids names on that post as well. I hope this pole never gets painted, it would seem a little to sacrilege.

Here's another view of the light post, surrounded by my mothers beautiful "park strip" flowers.

Enjoy a shot of heaven on earth!

A Sunday View

Today Mike captured a scene that I love...my three little boys sitting on the couch and Will reading a story to them all. Each of my boys have loved stories. From a young age, each will sit and listen as we read book after book. Reading together is one of my favorite times. Today, however, I had to catch my breath as I realized that my little boy is now 7. Seven is still little, yet so much older than two. More than that though, Will, is (thanks to a Nazi first grade reading program) reading like a champ. He is reading all by himself! As his mom, that's an astonishing thought. He is becoming more and more independent. He is reading and a whole world is opening up to him. I am grateful for that. Watching these babies grow up is sometimes surreal. It happens so fast, too fast. And as their mom I can do nothing about that. But I can love them and I can cherish these moments. I can bask in the realization that I get to be a mom, that these boys are mine, that they are good, and that there will always be lots of stories to read.

Perhaps the only quiet moment in our house today.

Team Anderson!

I was picking up the play room today, tossing the ever increasing number of balls in the ball box and realized that I have never written about one of our favorite family activities. It would be a crying shame if we didn't document the activity that has consumed so many hours of Anderson family life. So tonight without further adue, I want to post about one of our favorite family activities...Dodgeball.
Yes, Dodgeball. We love it! Dodgeball has been heaven sent to us. It has become our winter activity staple. Since living in good old OK, we have found that a perfect way to spend a cold winter afternoon, or a rainy day, is to play Dodgeball at the church. It is a great way to blow off steam. Here is the simple equation: having church keys plus living less than three minutes away from the church plus $1 backyard balls from Walmart equals DODGE BALL.
The boys love it, and I have to say that Mom and Dad love it too. Sometimes throwing a ball at your kid and nailing them in the legs is just what a parent needs to feel better about parenting. The BEST part about it, is while you are trying to hit your kid with a ball, your child is having a superb time and is thrilled to be playing with you. They never need to know that getting hit with that ball may or may not have extra intentions behind it. In fact, just running around with your kids, hearing them laugh and playing with them is good for the soul. This is true. In fact, it has been during these crazy games that I have, many times, taken stock and realized what really matters most. In my book, family dodgeball qualifies as a "Wholesome Recreational Activity." Our family is stronger because of it. And as crazy as it might sound, for our family, tension lessons and family love increases on the dodgeball court. This I know.

Other than the personal family benefits, dodgeball has also become a fun way for us to have an easy get together with friends. We invite another family or two, bring some rice krispie treats along, and walla...we have just thrown together a pretty fun party. A party that doesn't involve any planning, money, much time, and my house doesn't get dirty. Yippee! It's a Win Win situation.
Team Anderson has come up against some pretty tuff rivals on the court. We've learned what balls fly better and which ones to avoid. We've learned that there are about as many different ways to play dodge ball as there is wind in Oklahoma. We've learned that we love being together. We've learned that Dad has some pretty impressive moves. We've learned that two year olds play both sides of the court. We've learned that boys against girls is not a fair way to play at our house. And we've learned that it would be fun to invest in some real dodgeballs. We might want to kick it up a notch. But wait.....Team Anderson is going to need a sponsor for that purchase.

Any takers?
Go TEAM GO!

Art 101

Art has been happening at our house. During the last cold days of Winter, the boys entertained themselves by drawing, drawing and drawing. Will has been especially diligent in the art department. After reading the book, A Buffalo in the Mall, Will took creative liberty and wrote his own version.

A Buffalo in the Mall... By Will Anderson A Buffalo in the mall.

A dog wets on the carpet, a cat barfs in the hall.

The animal you like best is a Buffalo in the Mall.

Maybe a little uncouth, but nonetheless it's Will's creativity shining through.

Next, for some odd reason, I've yet to discover, my boys have become infatuated with Elvis Presley, of all people. Jake even walks around singing, "I'm all shook up....ooooooo Ya!" I guess Will thought it would be fun to combine the two and without further hesitation, I give you...

Buffalo Presley... by Will Anderson Buffalo Presley, by me Will

The animals at the Mall wait to see Buffalo Presley. I'm all shook up.

The animals liked him when he sung, I'm All Shook Up.

But we will always remember Buffalo Presley. The End.

AND

I Present to you.....Elvis, by Will.

And here is Minnie Mouse, just to shake things up a bit.

And last but not least, I give you the Dave collection. (if your wondering why it's the Dave collection, you need to watch Despicable Me.)

one for Dad.

One that burps, now really boys, this has to come out in your pictures too?

One for Mom.

And one for your closest 25 friends.

Hope you've enjoyed our Luve.

What once was lost, now is found.

This is the view out my kitchen window yesterday...... And here is a memory of some pretty fun snow days back in February. Yes, we found the lost camera. Oh Happy Day!

Our own little bunny hill provided lots of snowy fun.

Will was suppossed to pose for a picture. He loves doing that so much he would rather fall face first into some cold snow.

Basketball

Domination!

Because another mom was on the ball, here are some pictures of my son,

"The Wall."

I'm pretty thankful for these photos.

Coach Taylor giving the team a pep talk.

Determination

Mr. Athlete himself.


Thinking about the shot.


Pure Joy!
Will loved every minute of his Basketball Season. I loved every minute watching him play.
I'm so thankful for his healthy, active body.
Being his mom is a joy!

Shamrocks

Today Isaac was telling me about what they did in school. He started talking about their classroom calendar and how they took down all the February numbers. Then they only put up a 1, because it is the first day of the month and the 1 was on a paper that, "was a rock that looked like a butterfly." It took me a second and then I realized that he was trying to tell me the calendar numbers were printed on Shamrocks. When I asked him if the 1 was printed on a Shamrock, his eyes lit up and he said,"Yeah, Mom, that's the right rock!" I love that little, twinkly eyed boy.

Happy March!

And here's to all the shamrocks we'll be seeing now! They do kind of look like butterflies now don't they?

(Ike almost three years ago. He melts my heart.)

Hello Again

Well hello again you Dusty, Dusty blog.

It's a little weird knowing where to start. It's been a while.

So much has happened.

Holidays have come and gone.

And, I've lost my camera....

Somehow it's not quite right to post without a picture to attach. At least it's not nearly as fun. You see, we have a budding photographer in the family. Perhaps one of these day's between he and myself, we will be able to remember where that blessed thing is hiding. When we find it, I'm sure there will be impressive new pictures of toes, and brother's backsides, and the interior of the mouth and a close up of the eye, and a shot of the deck boards, and the inside of the fireplace. These are a few samples of the subjects he's been focused on lately.

And I know there will be pictures of the last few months on there too. Pictures, from last November, of our glorious Japanese maple tree ablaze in brilliant red. Pictures of the dried out creek bank behind our house, that the boys have spent hours hiking and discovering.

Pictures from Christmas time, our first Christmas in our new home. I will always remember how magical it was to walk down our garland lighted stairs Christmas morning. I love watching my boys discover all the treasures Santa left. Treasures like Annie (Jake's rocking horse) and air plane tickets to see cousins in Utah. There will be pictures of our trip to Utah too, highlights, we want to remember. Highlights like taking the boys skiing for the first time, sledding at the farm, playing with cousins in the snow, going snow-shoeing with my siblings. Snowshoeing was a blast. We went straight up the mountain, literally. I really wish I had that picture of my sister, Sue, siting there in the tree "regrouping". She had tears rolling down her cheeks because she was laughing so hard. I love my siblings, those I was raised with and those that married in, and it was so fun to be together.

There will be pictures of our house too. Pictures of the new back splash. Pictures of the new doors in the boys room, etc... Mike is really a handy man. I keep being impressed with him. I love working on these types of projects together.

There will be pictures of basketball games. Do I fail as a mother if I don't have any pictures to document my 7 year olds first season playing B-ball? I might have lost my camera, but I will never forget the permanent smile on Will's face as he ran up and down the court. He felt pure joy, I think. His team named him "the Wall." Not much got past the kid. He was a tuff defender and it helped that he was about a head taller than everyone else on the court.

There will be pictures of our 8 snow days, EIGHT DAYS in which we got to enjoy no school, no schedule, no going anywhere! Days spent sledding down our own little bunny hill, playing lots of games, and watching lots of movies.

And of coarse there will be pictures of some cute boys who are growing up too fast. Boys who love to dance and wrestle and run and shoot hoops and tell jokes and make messes and draw pictures of Dave from Despicable me, and sing old Elvis songs, and spike their hair, and crack their mom and dad up everyday.

~

p.s. And when I do find that camera, I commit to downloading my pictures more than once every three months.