fellow-pomp and circumstance.

ok, so a few days after mikey's graduation came phil's graduation from fellowship.  and his graduating from fellowship meant that this ten-year road of medical school (with an extra year to get a master's in public health thrown in for fun), internship, residency, and fellowship has finally, FINALLY come to an end.  well, almost.  phil has ten days left before actually being done.  why they do the graduation and then make you come back for three more weeks of work is beyond me.

last year's graduation from residency had more pomp than this year's graduation from fellowship.  it felt a little more exciting last year, even though we knew there was this extra year tacked on.  but this year felt more like we were limping across that finish line just because of the particularly difficult past six months or so.  and well, we're both just kinda tired.

this was phil's sixth post-high school graduation.  funny that it coincided the same year as mikey's very first graduation.  :)

so yes, this graduation was much more low-key and less pomp and no circumstance than mikey's kinder-graduation ceremony.  but, we really enjoyed the more relaxed and casual atmosphere.  the graduating fellows were all called to the upstairs patio.

to assemble little wooden airplanes and fly them to symbolize how far they've come and how far they would go.  or something like that.  unfortunately, most of the planes spiraled straight downward.  so hopefully the symbolism doesn't really foretell the future.  cuz uh, that wouldn't bode very well for us.

the airplanes turned out to be a very good thing though, because all the kids there had a blast playing with them.  especially this particular kid.

my baby and my man.  sigh.  hello my baby.  hello my man.  (sorry, been reading too many beginning readers with mikey lately.)

it's official, folks.  got his certificate and everything!  he's DONE!!!!!

ho, ho, ha, ha, ha.  we're all good friends here.  "it's all about the fellows!"  ;)

as well as another certificate for "special recognition in research" thrown in for good measure.  because, as one attending told our kids, "your daddy is a nerd."

four fellows.  ha ha.  see what i did there?  double meaning, alliteration, and all?  ok, i'll stop now.

and what fellow graduation is complete without a pinata?  there's our baby getting pointers from her dad.

she done did her daddy proud!

and by golly, our girl was gonna get that donkey to spill its loot no matter what!  (the girl before allie knocked the poor donkey's head off).

the older kids were blindfolded.  my peace-loving, non-violent son gave the poor donkey three gentle taps before stepping away to give the next person her turn.

finally, cuz it was getting dark, and cuz the donkey appeared to have been built like a tank (except for the head), the loot had to be poured out from above.

and that, my friends, is how one does a fellow graduation right!  :)

way to go, honey for a job very well done.  we're so proud of you and can't wait to begin the next chapter of our lives!

kinder-pomp and circumstance.

i am in the midst of packing frenzy.  we are getting ready for our seventh move.  one month ago, we were planning on moving to orange county.  then two weeks ago, the plans changed and we were going to stay where we are a little longer.  and one week ago, an opportunity presented itself where we could be a blessing to some friends by moving, and so... we're moving.

my head is spinning.  someday i think i'll be able to write down the crazy story of what this past month has been like for us, but i'm not there yet.  right now, i'm busy packing.  :)

but i do want to get the memories from mikey's kindergarten graduation written down before i forget too much.  warning: lots of pictures in this one as is only fitting for a firstborn's kinder-graduation.

so last week...

mikey graduated.  from kindergarten.  the graduates were asked to wear their "fanciest clothes".

i had bought matching ties for father and son and now seemed to be a good time to use them.

correction:  i had bought matching ties for father and sons.

grandpa made a special trip down to attend the graduation.  he also insisted on wearing jonah in the baby carrier the entire time.  have i mentioned that i love my dad?

here comes our graduate!

each of the kids had an eighth grade science buddy for the whole year.  the buddies would come each friday to do a science-related project together.  mikey's buddy was a really nice kid named justin.  he would give mikey a hand-drawn card on each holiday during the school year.  phil and i were really impressed with his drawing skills.  i saved all the cards.  anyhow, the buddies worked together to make these life-sized paintings of the kindergarteners.  i saved that, too.

there's my little guy in his 'fanciest' clothes!

each of the kids had part of a speech memorized to say to the audience.  mikey's part was, "and we will succeed.  yes, we will indeed.  98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed!"

at one point, one parent from each family was asked to join their graduate as they had something special to say.  phil said i should go.  i knelt by mikey and he carefully presented me with a flower and whispered, "thank you mommy for helping me with my homework everyday."  tears sprang into my eyes and i very nearly busted out the ugly cry.  i hugged mikey tight and told him how very proud i was of him for all his hard work and great attitude he had this year.  later mikey told me that he was glad i was the one who came up because he meant his special message and flower for me.  :)

though it wasn't long before the flower was claimed by a little sister.

and then another little sister.

it was a veeeery long and drawn-out ceremony.  over two and a half hours of pomp and circumstance.  phil said this graduation was even longer than his medical school graduation.  and that's saying something.  so, we had to find ways to keep the little ones entertained and somewhat quiet.

happily though, the littlest one slept through the entire thing nestled against grandpa's chest.

each of the graduates also had an opportunity to give their thanks, their favorite part of kindergarten, and what they wished for (see?  over two and a half hours!) before getting their certificate.  mikey thanked his teacher for teaching him a lot of things, said his favorite part of kindergarten was you get to do a lot of things, and he wished his baby brother could grow up so he could play with him.

there were also three or four songs to perform.  this one involved star-shaped sunglasses.

and finally, there was the throwing of their caps!

but it wasn't over yet!  there was also a father/daughter dance (the chicken dance) followed by a mother/son dance (la raspa).  yeah, kinda random.

my sweet boy and i survived kindergarten!!!  (and i couldn't be prouder of him).

then it was time to eat!  each family was asked to bring a family favorite dish.  here was my chance to show off my culinary prowess.  so i dug deep and made...  mac 'n cheese!  hey, it IS a family favorite anyway...  and was a big hit with the kids.  : p

mikey and one of his good buddies.  who asked him mom if he could stay with mikey the one time i forgot it was early thursday and was forty-five minutes late to pick him up.  hey, it was soon after jonah was born...

the graduating class of 2011!

these two little sisters would often see each other while coming to pick up their older siblings from school throughout this year, and became friends along the way.

i asked ms. ella to take a family picture for us.  and here it is.  thanks, ms. ella!  :)

he DID it, folks!!

ok, so the graduation was on tuesday and there were still three days left of school.  so here's mikey and ms. n on the actual last day of school.

mikey and another good buddy, d.

and the kiddos with the class volunteer, ms. ella.  she worked every day in mikey's class and stayed as long as the teacher did to help her out- for free!  she was also especially sweet to our girls and encouraging to me.  and also stayed with mikey the one time i forgot it was early thursday and was forty-five minutes late to pick him up.  hey, did i mention i had just had our fourth child?  just sayin.  in any case, we're gonna miss her.

and there you have it- the kindergarten graduation of our firstborn child.   whew!

now i gotta go pack for reals.

11 weeks.

jonasu (another new nickname) is eleven weeks old today.  huh.  that's odd.  i really thought he was ten weeks old today, but i seem to have missed a week somewhere in there.

in any case, we have had an impossibly sweet, laid-back, happily cooing and gurgling little baby in the house for the past eleven weeks (really?  it's not ten?).  he's so far been the textbook definition of easy baby- eats good, poops good, sleeps good (he's been sleeping 7-8 hours most nights since he was 5 weeks old without my having done any sleep training with him!).

jonah has fit seamlessly into our family and into our lives and i can't really imagine life without him.

God is so good.

but like my dear friend put it, it seems like you have to put life on hold for a few years when you're starting over with a new baby.  i definitely find that to be true.  we have to begin at the beginning again.  we go back to the starting line.  we do not pass "go".

and aside from ambitious weekend birthday trips, we've lately just been staying close to home.  it's so much easier that way and thankfully, the kids all really enjoy staying home and having lots and lots of time for free play.

like allie said yesterday, "mommy, i like it best when everyone's home together."  and i absolutely have to agree.

because staying home means...

that allie-girl gets lots of time to love on her baby brother.

and okay, lauren also enjoys a good cuddle with the baby too.

hello, little brother.  hello, big brother.

i believe i mentioned that allie loves baby jonah, yes?  enough to where she loves doing anything for him, even changing his diaper.  i don't know what i'd do without my little helper girl.

daddy checking for baby foot funk.  (and no, he didn't have any).

this is jonah's most favorite way to sleep.  correction- if you picture ME there in place of the pillow, then you'd know his MOST favorite way to sleep.

allie loves baby jo...  wait, i said that already, didn't i?

when two little sisters set up a pretend picnic in their room and ask you if they can have real food to eat at their pretend picnic, the answer to that is always yes.  so you give them grapes, goldfish crackers, raisins, raspberries, and homemade lemonade.  and it most definitely helps to turn a blind eye to the otherwise messy room.

there were a few weeks where jonah would get into a fussy snit in the evenings and laying him tummy-down across an arm was one of the few ways to calm him.  phil wondered if it was just because it was harder to cry in this position.  i said he just liked it.  why, doesn't he look happy to you?

thinking deep, eleven-week-old thoughts.

so, while having a new baby in the house does mean having to give up certain freedoms and putting many things on hold for a good long season, it turns out to be a small sacrifice after all.  because the trade-off is worth it a million billion times over.  :)

busy mama.

we received some rather disheartening news earlier this week.  downright crushing, if we let it.  i'm sorely tempted to despair.  to wallow in disappointment and give in to anger.  so instead, i shall fight to focus my heart on the truth of who God is, that he is in control, and that this news didn't catch him by surprise as it did us.  i shall trust that the Lord who loves our family will use this situation for our good and his glory because he is able to turn what looks bad to us into blessing beyond measure.

so i take comfort in the following from the mahaneys' blog:

“Reader, if God has given you His only begotten Son, beware of doubting His kindness and love, in any painful providence of your daily life! Never allow yourself to think hard thoughts of God. Never suppose that He can give you anything which is not really for your good. Remember the words of Paul: ‘He who spared not His own Son—but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things’ (Romans 8:32).

See in every sorrow and trouble of your earthly pilgrimage the hand of Him who gave Christ to die for your sins! That hand can never smite you except in love! He who gave His only begotten Son for you, will never withhold anything from you which is really for your good. Lean back on this thought and be content. Say to yourself in the darkest hour of trial, ‘This also is ordered by Him who gave Christ to die for my sins. It cannot be wrong. It is done in love. It must be well.’"  (J. C. Ryle)

and this too...

"God's grace is illustrated and magnified in the poverty and trials of believers. Saints bear up under every discouragement, believing that all things work together for their good, and that out of apparent evils a real blessing shall ultimately spring--that their God will either work a deliverance for them speedily or most assuredly support them in the trouble, as long as He is pleased to keep them in it....He who would glorify his God must set his account upon meeting with many trials. No man can be illustrious before the Lord unless his conflicts be many. If then, yours be a much-tried path, rejoice in it, because you will the better show forth the all-sufficient grace of God. As for His failing you, never dream of it--hate the thought. The God who has been sufficient until now, should be trusted to the end." (Charles Spurgeon, Morning & Evening, March 4, morning.)


and while i wait for the good to come out of this trial, i'll also take extra pleasure in the precious gifts God has entrusted to me and phil.  :)  here's the entry i was working on earlier this week before we got the bad news.


********

without fail, every time i've gone out with our four kiddos, i've felt eyes on us.  some downright stare for uncomfortably long spaces.  others are more discreet, but i can tell they are silently counting exactly how many there are.  and invariably, it always leads to a comment such as, "wow, four?  are they all yours?"  "are they twins?"  "how old are they?  they're all so close in age!"

and then i always smile and nod and say yes, there are four, they're all mine, and no none of them are twins.  the conversation always concludes with some variation of "wow, you've got your hands full".  or "you're  busy!"

but because i never want any of our kids to think there's too many of them...

or that we don't want each of them...

or that somehow there's something bad about having many kids...

or that i'm unhappy because of them...

i always smile and nod again.  and think to myself, "yes, i am a busy mama with my hands full.  but i love it.  LOVE it.  because i love them.  with all my heart."

i am blessed four times over.  and maybe next time, i'll say it aloud!


"behold, children are a gift of the Lord.  the fruit of the womb is a reward."  -psalm 127:3

the birthday continues...

mikey also got to celebrate his birthday with his class the next week, too!  families are invited to bring in whatever they would like on their child's birthday- most bring in pizza, cake or cupcakes, ice cream, and so on.  and again, originally i had something more elaborate and homemade in mind, but the thought of running around to gather everything and then preparing everything and then bringing it all in myself with three little ones in tow proved to be just too daunting a task.

so after consulting with mikey and later with ms. ella (the classroom assistant), i decided to go way simpler this time around.

and because mikey is the kid he is, he didn't mind that his celebration was much simpler than his other classmates' have been.  he was excited and nervous and looking forward to it all the same.

class pic.

and it's not an understatement to say it was a simple affair.  store-bought cookies, milk, a book for the class library, and glow sticks.  the end.  oh and little party horns, too.

the little sisters were happy to take part in the simple party, too.

after the cookies (and recess), the teacher turned off the lights and let the kids put on their glow sticks to have a simple little dance party.

and after school that day, i asked mikey if he had fun at his birthday celebration.  he said yes.  i asked what his favorite part was.  he said he liked the cookies and glow sticks and horns and reading (i had read the book we brought to the class) and dancing in the dark.  then he continued, "but you want to know my best part of all was?"  i waited for him to continue.  he simply pointed to me and said, "you.  i was glad you were there for my birthday."

that boy.  he's simply the best.