What you do in your house is worth as much as if you did it up in heaven for our Lord God. We should accustom ourselves to think of our position and work as sacred and well-pleasing to God, not on account of the position and work, but on account of the word and faith from which the obedience and the work flow. ~ Martin Luther

Wednesday, September 10, 2008

Firsts



It was the night before Corynn's birthday and the stars danced and twinkled their heavenly eyes to congratulate her.

Papa was heading out of town the next day, his first out of town business trip was to be on her birthday (Wonderful timing. NOT.) and wanted to do something wonderfully memorable for her. Something special. So he gave her the best gift a father can give.
Time. Spontenaiety. Love.

Earlier that day he prepared the concrete blocks and she knew something was coming. Something good.

Secretly, I gathered the ingredients.

Then, he gathered the wood and set it aflame.

I hadn't anticipated her excitement to involve running indoors, but that she did- to fetch blanket and book. Apparently, there is nothing more appealing than firelit, blanket-cuddled reading.

We nestled our chairs up close to the fire, gathered sticks and ate Smores before dinner. During dinner. After dinner. We ate BBQ chicken bites, heated over the flames, while the peepers sang their nightsongs and the leaves whispered airy lullabyes.

Then~ all of a sudden~ ***P.o.P***

The sound was like a gunshot in the stillness of the night and the fire rudely sputtered and spit flames and smoldering wood at us. One rather large piece landed squarely on Panda's pants and there it smoldered (quite unknowingly on his part) until I noticed and in sheer terror flicked it off. I was never so thankful that he is not yet potty-trained and was protected by a diaper!

Apparently, rocks explode and my Eagle Scout husband forgot that tidbit. Since my attention was averted to my young son, I didn't notice that the chair I had just emptied to take a photograph (before the explosion) now sat with a large, quietly evil piece of flaming wood squarely in its' center. By the time it was discovered, the Patio chair pad was quite ruined.

After that, the children's chairs were moved back and the Mama and Papa risked our lives (and eyes, and skin, and clothing) to roast marshmellows for chocolatey, grahamy goo sandwiches.


An interesting turn of events, to be sure.



But our night was not ruined (though it would have been if any serious burns or scars had been a result.)

We just sat there in the darkness, chairs far enough away to be safe but close enough to feel the warmth creep into our skin, listening to the crackle of flame and enjoying the golden shadows that played about our bodies. We spoke in quiet tones and we gazed upward to find planets and constellations. We found an airplane or two, Venus, and enjoyed the moon but mostly just enjoyed the thousands of bright stars that lined that cloudless, clear night.

The expression on Corynn in this last one cracks me up. Mattie is scooting Panda back, and Corynn is wondering if another rock is gonna blow!

It was a memorable occasion, in more ways than one, but the one I trust the one the children will look back on is this: We were there with them, making moments into memories, and there is no where else we wanted to be.



And because they are abundant these days, a few more 'firsts' at the Newman Villa :

~ The first dinner at our dining room table, with REAL dishes and cloth napkins! How elegant we felt, even with just plain white Corelle.

~ A first Mama and adolescent bear sighting while eating dinner on the patio- and it found its way excitedly into conversation for days to come.

~ Our first anniversary here- which found a paper plate of grapes, cheese and crackers, and a brownie atop our bed and us toasting our lives and love with iced tea in Dixie cups. I love my husband. I love the six years I have had with him as my husband. I greedily grasp at every future year and memory the Lord will give me. Dixie cup or silver goblet, celebrated with an elegant evening or by doing nothing- our anniversary is always spent in amazement that our lives can be this good.

~ First apples eaten from our own apple tree. For several weeks, Andrew never was without one in his mouth or hands. He ate them even when they were not yet ripe, and actually enjoyed them that way!

~ A first deer family inviting itself to dinner under said Apple tree while we dined just a few yards away. Awe filled whispers and stares, and chubby, grimey dirty bare feet standing motionless in chairs to get a view.

~ Last Sunday was the first time I wore a necklace to church, that morning unpacked from a recently moved jewelry box. And I was dressed like a queen.

~ The first two child disappearances: I found them standing in empty window frames in the furthest barn from the house. They climbed up old rotten hay to perch in their own square, oblivious to the notion that I cared where they were.

~ A first pee on the potty-pot for the Panda with crowing cheers and claps from all.

~ A first night slept under covers all their own, on mattresses all their own. The children slept like babies.

~ The first box of books unpacked, joy of joys! Storytime just got more interesting!

~ The first time we 'created' with more than just crayons or a pen. Unpacking the 'art supplies' box has given us joy every day since. Markers have never seemed so vibrant until now. Construction paper is really quite beautiful. And GLUE!?! How handy!

~ Papa rested his head and fell asleep, cheek snuggled into my abdomen. Bunkin biffed him. SCORE! Your first, Bunkin!

~ A first day of Homeschool: and it ended with "Please Mama! I want to do MORE school! PLEASE can we just do a BIT more?"

It seems everyday there is something new to celebrate.


Posted by Picasa

12 comments:

Tracy said...

Glad that no one was injured during the rock blow up!

And a belated Happy Anniversary to you two. May you share many more beautiful years together!

Full of Grace said...

What a wonderful post! Congratulations on many firsts out here in NY and hoping you have many more! :)

Anonymous said...

It sounds like Corynn's Birthday Eve celebration was a "tad bit" eventful. I am sure glad no human damage was done, but I mourn for your patio chair. I know how special they are to you.

All these "firsts" make it apparent that the Villa is certainly "HOME" now. Miss you all terribly, and I miss the sound of your voice and laughter.

Love from the "whole clan".

Nanci

Beth said...

Oooh, I love the pic of the flames. Do you see the person in the flames? That's the first thing I noticed.

I haven't ever commented here before but I have been a lurker for a long while.

Congrats on the move. Happy B-day to Corinne and Happy Anniversary to you.

Beth

Bonnie said...

What Fun! I love a good fire, and S'mores. MMMMMM.
Gifts,(if you are properly raising your children;0P), are just fluff in my opinion. They would MUCH rather just spend time with parents, grandparents, etc. Corynn will remember this evening far longer than any gift you could have given her.
I like all your everyday celebrations- it makes life an adventure!

Beth said...

Sorry for the misspelled name in my post. I know another Corinne so that spelling is what I typed.

Sorry Corynn. I'll do better next time, I promise. ;-)

Beth

Andie said...

Sounds busy at your home, but oh, so much fun as well!!! I remember one tine while I was pregnant with my Andrew, Abbigail was leaning on my tummy and he kicked so hard that her head bounced. She was only 15 months old, she sat up and gave my tummy the biggest scowl her sweet little face could make! What a blessing those first interactions between siblings can be!! :o)
Blessings to you and yours-
Andie

Rebecca said...

Nanci~ only a few more weeks and we can see each other FACE to face!!! I'm terribly excited!

Beth~ Thanks so much for stopping by. I LOVE de-lurkers! That face in the flame is actually my son's profile. I said "I think I see a bear!" and he turned his head and said "HUH?" Hence, the open mouth. Of course, he most often has a "huh" mouth on anyway...

Unknown said...

Rebecca!

You won the drawing for the Skirty over at The Fortnightly Purse (aka www.rebekahmerkle.blogspot.com) - so make sure you let me know what size you want, and what name you want on the bookplates! Congratulations!

Rebekah Merkle

Owlhaven said...

What great photos!

So glad you found my blog and said hi

Mary, mom to many

Beth said...

Rebecca: I see him now!! I wasn't looking at the black image, I was looking at the actual flame image. Kind of like an inkblot test.

Beth

Rebecca said...

Ha! BETH! I see what you see now! That is neat. I always loved those things....