How Thii Came To Be

Theodore John, Teddy, Teddy Roosevelt, Teddy Roosevelt Bridge, Theo.  The youngest of the Wix Six has a lot of names to choose from.  The one we use the most caused us to ponder spelling.

Theo is what Michael and I found ourselves calling the little guy and eventually the boys took hold of it too.  It wasn't long though, and we found our little clan of 1 syllable name men (Ray, Rob and Sam) shortening Theo to just the 1st syllable as well.  Eventually we all dropped the O in The-o.

However, to simply drop the O verbally is one thing, but in print it isn't so simple.  Theo becomes The which is a sight word that I teach my preschoolers to read.  Add another E we thought.  Nope then it looks old English with Thee and while we do love Thee and had the long E going, the Th sound was too harsh.

That's when we had a generational epiphany.  Seeing as Theo with no O rhymes with Wii, our little guys name should be spelt Thii.

Grandma's Favorite

This is the eulogy I gave at Grandma's funeral last week.

Growing up, I knew I had a good thing going with Grandma.  In her cupboards I always knew where I could find a special treat.  There was always room in her lap for me and she always took time to sing “The end of the rainbow” song to me.  We were always able to share a good laugh trying to get the last hit in on one another.  Time and time again she did “surgery” to reattach the arm on Button Eyes, my bunnies by Billie original.  She had the patience of the saint when came to teaching me how to ‘gnore my brother, braid hair on my Barbies and  My Little Pony, crochet a set of coasters, tie my first quilt, or bake a batch of buns.  Looking back on all of this, it is easy for me to see why I was pretty sure I was Grandma’s favorite.

As I got older, but not Grandma (she was always 39 you see), I remember having a discussion with some of my cousins about this very thing and we discovered something.  Somehow, some way, we had all come to believe we were her favorite.  It wasn’t that she told us this out right with words; it was in her actions that led so many of us to feel a special connection between Grandma and grandchild that surely must have meant we are favored.  And we were; we were ALL favored.

The special treat that Grandma stocked special for you may have been a tootsie roll, or a Kit-Kat, or a jar of peanuts, or maybe a cherry slice, or a frozen fruit cup, or homemade chocolate chip cookies, but you knew Grandma kept it on hand for YOU. 

She may have sung the rainbow song, the cow shed song, boom ditty or some other tune, but she rocked and sang to each and every one of us at some point.  And you could be guaranteed as you grew up and announced your engagement; Grandma would enthusiastically volunteer to sing “CeCe Oh Playmate” or “Blue Moon” at your wedding.

In addition to the laughs we were able to share with Grandma playing dumb like a fox, many also had a special last hit, pinch, or word game (can you say Rats-a-frats and Neh-ner, neh-ner, neh-ner!?) that you played with Grandma that helped you feel connected with her.  We all had a nickname Grandma liked to use: Spoofers, BJ, Phlip, Nana Banana, Jake the Snake, Kit Kat, Danni, Topher, Ash, Lissie, Aimes, Jen Jen, Tiffer. 

Grandma was always eager to help out with mending whether it was a stuffed animal that needed stitching, a hem that needed to be shortened, or a button come loose. 

Grandma taught all of us valuable lessons.  Some were in the kitchen or at the craft table.  We were all taught that if you wanted something clean, warshing was better than washing.  Many other lessons were taught from the heart as Grandma time and time again modeled for us how to care for others, welcome all and love big.  Grandma’s waiting by the window to wave good-bye, forcing us to share her with classmates for Grandparents Day, having a stocking and gift for every, and I mean every, person who came to Christmas, and getting up early to cook breakfast and wish good luck to the hunters are prime examples of her devotion and love for not only her family, but for others as well.

It takes a very special person with a big heart and lots of love to make 13 (plus 4) grandchildren feel that each and every one of them is favored.  And it didn’t stop there.  The same deep love and devotion that Grandma bestowed upon each of us was poured out onto the next generation as well.  With each and every great, we got to see all over again Grandma’s love for these babes.  First there was Lil Ray Ray and Robby, or Scott Robert, who could get her to sit in a parked truck for hours.  Next came Grandma’s Willy Lump Lump.  Grandma was so very happy when she got her 1^st great granddaughter and was able to share her wedding anniversary of March 5 with Danika, also know as little Deana Lee.  Then came Sam I Am, Calvin, Hunter, Dom, Miss Makayla and Miss MaKenzee and Grandma’s love never faltered.  She continued being able to hear and understand babies so well that somehow each and every one of them was heard time and time again saying, “I like my Grandpa, but I LOVE my Grandma.”  When her most recent great was born, Grandma made sure the hospital staff found a way for her and Grandpa to get from his hospital room to the nursery so she could meet her little Teddy bear.  Her adoration for them (and a well stocked freezer) earned her a fitting nickname of her own, Grandma Cookie.

13, plus 4, and 11 more is 28 grandchildren.  And that doesn’t even count all of the nieces, nephews, neighbors, Sunday School kiddos, friends, girlfriends, and boyfriends of ours that she also loved like only a Grandma can.  Each and every one of them loved, cherished and favored.  That takes a lot of heart.  I also think it takes a lot of faith in and love for God because her love was very much like the reflection of His.  I am so thankful that I was blessed to be one of the lucky ones who got to call her Grandma.  Thank you Grandma for the lessons, memories, and love you shared.  I know that each of us will have a freshly warshed room and open arms waiting for us in heaven.

Seven

One evening a month or so back, we were having dinner at Culver's.  I don't remember what started the conversation, but Ray informed us that 7 is a pretty special number.

"For every 7 kids, you are guaranteed a girl."

"Huh?"

"For every 7 kids, you are guaranteed a girl."

"Really?  What makes you say that?"

"That's just how it works in big families.  So you only have to have 1 more and it would be a girl."

"Well, I'm still not sure where that come's from, but would mean 3 more kids in our family.  We have 6 people, but only 4 kids."

"Oh yea.  That's what I meant."

"Hmm, that's a lot of kids.  What would we drive?"

"Well, I guess you'll have to wait a few years and then I can get another Yukon and drive some of them for you!"

Juvie

I'm sure by now, most of my readers would have to agree that Sam is a free spirit.  He is SO his own person.  He also had a bit of an independent streak to him.  This being said, you can understand why we are occasionally late for things.  You'd think by now I'd allot 5 extra minutes for him to brush his own teeth.  Oh, and 5 more to put on his shoes.  And 5 for him to buckle his own car seat.  Well, you get the picture.  It can be incredibly frustrating to find out that even after giving him extra time to find out he has not done the task he was suppose to but instead find him engaged in some sort of distraction.

The other evening we were about a block from our destination when Sam hollers from the way back for Michael to stop the truck immediately.  "Dad!  STOP!  I'm not finished buckling yet!"

"Oh, Dad's going to go to jail now!' commented Rob.

"No, Sam's going to juvie!  That's kid jail!" chimed in Ray.

I'm not sure what part of this bothered me the most, the fact that Sam was not completely fastened in or that my 8 year old knows about juvie.  Oh well, I guess back to double checking everyone's buckles for the one and prayer is about all can do for the other.

Infinity and Beyond

"I love you"

"I love you more."

"I love you the most."

"I love you to the moon."

"I love you to the moon and back."

"I love you to Pluto and back."

"I love you infinity!"

This has been an ongoing dialogue at our house for years.  The other day, Sam got the last one in on me and I thought I had a clever response, "I love you to infinity and beyond!" (Of course spoken in a Buzz Lightyear manner.)

I was a little surprised that instead of giggles, hugs or kisses, I got the following response, "Mom, infinity's not even a number.  It's an idea.  You can't have more than infinity."

Thank you 3 year old Sam for putting your mother (who earned her master's degree by studying what else, mathematics education), back in her place.

5 Quarters

"Did you flush the toilet?  Did you wash your hands?"  These are the questions I ask multiple times a day when I see one of my boys tearing out of the bathroom.  Whether they readily admit it or not, the answer is almost always no.  I do not understand this.  I have tried drilling it into them, beating them over the head with it again and again, but still, they "forget" these important steps in sequence of using voiding themselves.  Time and time again I turn them back around so they can head right back in there and complete the process.

Boys being boys, they have of course tried to figure out how it is that I know whether or not if they have indeed done these things without even listening to their verbal responses.  They seem to be truly stumped as to how I just know.  Of course, listening to hear for a flush followed by a rush of water is one way, but my boys aren't stupid and they figured that one out early.  They were truly amazed the first time someone turned on the sink but neglected to wash that mom caught on.  They of course then moved on to the wetting without washing of the hands trick, but somehow Mom still knew.

In the not so distant past Rob went in and out of the bathroom rather quickly.  When asked about flushing and washing (knowing the response should be affirmative and negative), Rob's word were quickly yes and yes, but his eyes told a different story.  Dad happened to be closer and made a move closer to Rob when Rob balled his hands up and said, "You can't small my hands."

Michael stepped closer and zoom, off ran Rob, "Only if you can catch me!" said a giggly blur.

"Mom! You should get this on video.  If you posted it on Youtube, you'd already have 5 quarters by now."

"Huh?  What do you mean Ray?"

"For every 1,000 hits or something like that, Youtube pays you a quarter.  You could make a lot of money that way!"

Don't Wake the Baby

Theo is not much a napper.  I imagine it's because our house is somewhat busy and he doesn't want to miss out on anything.  Or maybe it's because every time he drifts off someone startles him with a lightsaber, car motoring, or a fight over an electronic.  The fact that every time I lay him down he is accosted by the baby mauler Rob doesn't help either. One of the few times he may nap is if he falls asleep in transport and is left in his carseat.  Even this is rare, but welcome occasion.  So you can imagine my dilemma when left with the options to either wake the baby or deal with the uncomfortable fullness a nursing mom sometimes has when baby doesn't eat on schedule.  

"I wish Theo would wake up so he would eat.  I don't have the heart to wake him myself." I said on the side to Michael as I battled with this choice.

I'm not sure how he heard it because he was engrossed in some activity on his own, but Rob hear my plea and enthusiastically shouted with an ear to ear smile,  "I can do it!!!" as he set off to smother his baby brother in kisses and sure enough, wake him up.  What a helpful kid.