{"id":552,"date":"2011-01-22T16:26:00","date_gmt":"2011-01-22T21:26:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/saturday-january-22-2011\/"},"modified":"2011-01-22T16:26:00","modified_gmt":"2011-01-22T21:26:00","slug":"saturday-january-22-2011","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/saturday-january-22-2011\/","title":{"rendered":"Saturday January 22, 2011"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s Saturday and David’s home!  <\/span>

How long has it been since we’ve had one of those stay around the house kind of Saturdays?  Way.  Too.  Long.  Last weekend he left for the Maryland boys camp at 5 AM and got back at 8 that night.  The Saturday before was the church wood cutting.  The boys have been in desperate need of one of those follow-my-dad-around-and-use-his-tools kind of Saturdays.<\/span>

Does sleeping in skip generations or does it not actually ever happen in children carrying Y chromosomes?  I have yet to figure this one out.  7:30 and in comes Liam with his recently discovered siamese twin (a doll).  “ou old du baby,”  he says.  Adam was right behind him.  David kindly shushed them and brought them downstairs while I stayed upstairs and pretended to sleep in.  <\/span>

We used to always cook breakfast on Saturday morning.  You know, the nice big kind of breakfast that lets you get by with a little snack instead of lunch.  But when Liam reacted to eggs there were so few things we could eat it became a much more sporadic habit.  And in December when David wanted to get to the shop to work, it was so much quicker just to grab the normal cereal fare.  But this morning was different.  <\/span>

This morning we had pancakes (recipe below) and easy over eggs for three of us for the first time in ages.  The boys cheered and cheered.  Liam started digging into his pancake and when David asked him if he likes it, he nodded yes so emphatically his entire body shook.  <\/span>  And then he said, “Dis is aMAZing,” and he and Adam both started clapping and cheering.<\/span>
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So far they’ve been to Lowes and run the drill while David put new casters on the table.  I’ve heard the sander run, fire extinguishers get hung, and a light switch changed out.  Adam is painting a board (one he cut himself with a bandsaw and that I am going to be gifted at some point) and David is staining a frame for my dad.  And I already know that tomorrow and all next week, the boys will be different for this time spent with their daddy.  He has no idea what an enormous gift he gives them.<\/span>

Last Saturday was a different picture.  They like me.  I know they do.  They just need their dad.  I knew it was going to be a terribly long day, especially since they are programmed for dad time.  So I was all prepared.  We did crafts at the table and made a winter sun catcher.  <\/span>
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I made a (somewhat redneck) target for Adam and bundled both boys up to go outside to try it out.  His first shot completely missed the target and cracked in the woods.  Then I took a second look.  “Adam, you have to actually look through the scope.”  <\/span>

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“Oh,” he said.  I watched him for a few minutes then pushed Liam on the swing.  When Liam opted for the sandbox, I opted to head inside after refreshing BB gun safety rules with Adam.  I was watching from the kitchen window as I cleaned up dishes and not five minutes later Adam came in the side door.  “I’m done,” he announced.  Nonplussed I remembered words from a mom friend in church, “You expect too much of yourself.  It’s totally ok to tell your children they have to stay outside for twenty minutes.”  <\/span>

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I tried it.  It was cold, but he was well bundled.  The problem was boredom and wanting attention (and after hours of my undivided attention he clearly wasn’t lacking).  I sent him back out the door with a few suggestions and he dutifully rode his bike a time or two across the back yard.  Not five minutes later I heard him tramping up the basement steps completely bereft of coat and paraphernalia.  “I’m going to do jobs for you, Mom,” in the sweetest tone imaginable.  Manipulation at it’s finest.  I was just ready to say, “Sorry, buddy, you have fifteen more minutes of outside time,” when I heard Liam also tromping up the steps.  <\/span>

“Did you get Liam undressed, too?”<\/span>

Yes.<\/span>

And I hate to admit it, but he won.  Why I did not make him go back out alone I’ll never know.  Call it a bad moment of weakness.  <\/span>

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What do you do when your boys are bored?  Why can he sometimes come up with the most elaborate pretend play and the next day be completely incapable of feeling inspired to play anything even with suggestions?  How do you teach them to be independent?  He would have stayed out there for two hours if I’d have stayed out there and cheered his shots.  Is that really necessary?  No.  How is he ever going to learn to do a grown up job without someone hovering?  <\/span>

I’m pretty sure the bad habit started when we lived at our other house right next to a pond.  I absolutely did not let him go outside unless I was out with him and even then he had to stay within my eyesight.  When we moved here he had just turned three.  I worried a little about the road, but I let him go outside.  Unfortunately, the neighbors had this enormous, very hyper, bad mannered dog that would come and jump on Adam and knock him over.  He was terrified and refused to go out.  The dog must have moved because he hasn’t shown up for almost two years.  But by that time Adam was four and simply refusing to go out.  Last summer he would go outside sometimes if Liam went with him, but most of the time it was too hot or too sunny or too boring.  The only thing he wants to do is dig huge holes in the garden (not the sandbox) so once it’s planted full he thinks there is no reason to go outside.  How can I get him enthused about playing outside when it’s nice?  <\/span>

But back to Saturday, Adam claimed it was a very fun day.  All I’m going to say about that is that it didn’t go down on record in my book quite the same way.  And I am thoroughly enjoying listening to David take care of issues like Adam deliberately choosing to play with Liam’s truck and trailer because he knows it will make him scream and then bossily saying, “He’s grabbing.”  I like hearing him take care of Adam pouncing on Liam for the five millionth time this month even though he *knows* Liam hates it and it will make him scream.  I adore the fact that he gives them food at lunch time and that for one meal out of the week I do not have to say, “Adam, lean forward.  Adam, close your mouth when you chew.  Liam, get your fingers out of your mouth.  Adam, don’t scrape your food off your spoon with your teeth.  Liam, keep eating.”<\/span>

I know that life with kids is kind of like the Israelites rebuilding the wall.  “Line upon line. Precept upon precept.  Here a little and there a little.” But sometimes stepping back from the front lines for a few hours helps me to see the wall again instead of having my eyes smeared shut with mortar.  Maybe it’s not just the boys that get their buttons reset with daddy time.<\/span>

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Pancakes (the gluten, dairy, egg free version)<\/span>

Combine:<\/span>
2 heaping tsp flax meal<\/span>
2 T. water<\/span>
Microwave for 30 seconds  <\/span>
(If you’re not allergic to eggs, you can use 1 egg instead)<\/span>

2 c. milk (we use goat milk and it is the one thing I have never yet been able to tell the difference)<\/span>
2 T. oil<\/span>
1 1\/2 c yellow corn meal<\/span>
2\/3 c. buck wheat flour<\/span>
1 tsp baking soda<\/span>
1 tsp salt<\/span>
2 tsp sugar<\/span>

Mix all ingredients.  Stir until smooth.  Fry in oil on hot nonstick griddle.  I found that out the hard way this morning when I tried to use my stainless steel pan.  In spite of being well covered with a layer of oil, the pancakes stuck to the pan so much I could not flip them.  <\/span>

I always feel like I’m living in Laura Ingalls days when I make pancakes with buckwheat flour.  And I feel more shocked than ever at the stacks of pancakes Almanzo used to eat.  These pancakes fill you up <\/span>fast<\/span>. <\/span>

Happy Saturday!  I hope something happy is in your food future.  We’re having tacos.<\/span>
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It’s Saturday and David’s home!  How long has it been since we’ve had one of those stay around the house kind of Saturdays?  Way.  Too.  Long.  Last weekend he left… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-552","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p39ynQ-8U","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/552","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=552"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/552\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=552"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=552"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.michellebeachy.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=552"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}