A Stay Together Ride

Hello there, dear ones.

I have missed you.  It’s been a heck of a month (or more).  It’s been Advent, and Christmas, and now it is flu season.  And I have a sneaking suspicion that the Big Bad Cold that has taken down the entire Cumings family just might be Influenza A.

So I am not quite ready to get back on the blogging wagon, but I am ready to reassure you that I am coming back.

And in the meantime, please enjoy this beautiful story.  Watch the whole thing.  If you’ve already seen it, watch it again.  Be warned; you might get something in your eye by the end . . .

Riding in (1970s) Style

I don’t have much to say about this pair of photos, except that I love them, and I  love them even more together:

Gorgeous, right?  The plaid, the stripes, the feet resting comfortably on the stroller bar.

And then, this delight:

I think I need to get a grown up tricycle immediately, before Zoe is old enough to be embarrassed.

What caption would you give these beauties?

P.S. To see the Tricycle Club from the front, click here.  

Life and Death and Lullaby

Yesterday morning I visited an older man before he had a big, scary surgery.  It’s been a very stressful week for him and his family as they made the decision to go ahead with the surgery.  We’ve been talking about death a lot.

But when I walked into the hospital room, his granddaughter was showing him a picture of his newest great grandchild, born just six hours earlier in a hospital an hour away.

And as we visited, a few bars of Brahms Lullaby suddenly came over the PA system.  Another family member smiled and said, “A baby was just born!”

The lullaby played again a moment later.  The nurse grinned and added, “Maybe twins!”

What a sweet and lovely thing.  To share the arrival of a baby with everyone in a hospital, to give those who are sick, suffering, worried, or in pain a chance to look up, smile, and think about new life.

What’s making you smile this weekend?

Video Bonus: My dad sang this song to my sister and me, in German, every night.  So, what I really want is a video of him singing it, but instead, how about Pavarotti, Carreras, and Domingo?

Want more?  Look around on YouTube and you can find all kinds of versions of this lullaby.  Including one with Nat King Cole, singing an English version, over a montage of sleeping kitten photos.  Which is apparently a thing.  Have fun, everybody!

Advent Alert!

Hello again, dear readers!

It’s been a while.  I am embarrassed, which makes me not want to post, because it’s been so long, but that is just a self-perpetuating something or other, isn’t it?

So, it’s December 4th, and we are just getting into the Advent swing of things at the Cumings house.  Zoe and I snagged the last three blue candles at the store yesterday (luckily, we had a pink one at home, for the third week of Advent).  Also yesterday, Mike made it to the Willmar Target and got one of the last four wooden tree Advent calendars.

I hate being behind, but it worked out great for Zoe, who got to open four doors today instead of one.  She was not impressed with the two days of stickers, delighted with the two days of candy, and intrigued by the little Christmas tree light.  That light means we’re going to put lights on our Christmas tree today!

For each day of Advent, our goal is to have a small object  that represents an Advent activity we will do that day.  It’s a simpler version of the Advent tradition Mike grew up with, and I’m so excited to give it a go this year.

Of course, we’ll also have to find room for a little treat behind each door.  Because one of the joys of Advent is chocolate before breakfast.

What doors are you opening this month?

P.S. If you want to know more about Advent, check out this great two minute video (but know that Advent can now be blue instead of purple):

The Joys of Christian Parenting

The Good

When your child has worn you out with her constant “Why?” questions, you can end the string of queries with the answer, “Because God made them that way.”  (Pro Tip: This is the Christian version of “Because I said so.”)

The Bad

When your child is lobbying for more TV time, she has this weapon in her arsenal: “But . . . but, God wants me to watch the rest of the movie.”  (Pro Tip: This is the Christian version of “But I really, really want to.”)

The Theologically Challenging

When you coax your child to put her coat on, saying, “It’s a new coat, with snowflakes on it!  Maybe this coat will make it snow!”, and immediately regret making this claim, your child will come to your rescue with this response: “God makes it snow!  We can’t make it snow!”  (Pro Tip: If God controls the weather, does that mean that God sends hurricanes and other natural disasters?  Do you want to discuss this with a three-year-old?)

What good, bad, challenging encounters have you had this week?

And the winner is . . .

“I hope you noticed I dressed for the occasion. Quit looking at that axe. It means nothing!”

I loved all the entries in the Thanksgiving Caption Contest!  So, I chose a winner at random, because with such good source material, how could we lose?

So, congratulations to Alexandria at Simply Sage!  I’ll be in touch to find out whether you’d like jam or pickles, and how to get them to you.

Happy day after Thanksgiving, everyone.  I hope you had pie for breakfast.

Black Friday Fight Song

Last year, I had a surprisingly great time Black Friday shopping for the first time.

This year, I’m going to the circus.  (Pro Tip: There’s a joke in here somewhere.  If you find it, share in the comments.)

Wherever your day takes you today–fighting the crowds at Best Buy, fighting the pile of dishes in your kitchen–you need a theme song.  So I offer, for your Black Friday pleasure, Zoe’s latest rendition of the Minnesota Rouser.

Or, as we call it, “Daddy’s song”:

What’s your get-up-and-go song?