My Initial Reaction to Katy Bowman's book, "Move Your DNA"

I stumbled upon Katy Bowman's blog (Katy Says) as a link in a facebook group, in answer to a question about exercises to do at home. This post was about squatting. I read the post, took note of her pictures, and concluded my “squatting position” (thinking “the position I use to do weighted squats as part of my exercise in my home gym”) was fine. Was that the point of my friend posting this? No. Katy is not about exercise (although she is not against it). She is about looking at humans as whole beings – all of our parts, all of the time – in our current living conditions (environment). And to Katy, squatting is not an exercise, it should be a huge chunk of our lives as our bodies were designed to squat. We were also designed to spend much of our days standing and walking, but we do not do that so much anymore. And before you think walking from your car around the store and standing in line is what I mean, I will clarify that it is not. I mean walking four or five miles to the store, standing for an hour or two and walking the four or five miles home – and then going on about the rest of the day. But I digress.

Let me back up.  Here is my general understanding of things (and I am not claiming to be the end-all-be-all or get it all right, but if I'm understanding correctly, here is the scoop): 

Katy Bowman is a biomechanist (that means she studies the mechanics of how the body works - think bones and muscles) that in this book (Move Your DNA) is basically looking at humans from an historical perspective of how we used to behave as hunter-gatherers.  She goes back to this point because she says that time/activity is how our bodies performed optimally and she says a lot (most) of our troubles today (such as osteoarthritis, pelvic floor issues, hyperkyphosis, etc)  are from poor alignment/lack of movement as we do not move as much or in the same way we used to because of modern convenience.

Side Note: This book fell on fertile ground in me.  Whispers of her ideas/concepts/suggestions/explanations have been coming to me over the past few years in listening to my body and paying attention to/choosing my exercise regimen.  And I believe in order for someone to take the advice of another (no matter how smart or educated the one delivering said advice may be) the one receiving the message must see some glimmer of truth in it all.  I see that truth in a lot of what Katy says.  It all makes so much sense to me!!  But if you have not experienced things as I have you might think this post is a bunch of silliness, and you are entitled to such, but I will write it anyhow.

Rather than try and summarize her entire book I will share some things that have been helping me and/or I found particularly interesting.

#1) According to Katy we do not move nearly enough in our average day.  

Even those of us who are avid exercisers, only exercise for an hour or two and then sit for much of the rest of the day.  She is particularly concerned with those who work "desk jobs" and sit basically all day.  We are made to move - so move it!

While my day as a stay-home, homeschooling mom does include more movement than a typical desk job, I can be guilty of parking in the easy chair and commanding the household from my "perch."  I am making an effort to NOT do this.

#2) Katy says walking is good for our bodies - and not just as exercise, but walking is good for all parts of our body and does great things like aid in digestion, etc.  

In her words from this book, "Walking, as basic as it seems, is an extremely complex phenomenon that can simultaneously involve all your muscles at once."

So I have been trying to add more walking into my day - and not just MY DAY, but into the days of my children, too - as even children need to walk.  No, not play sports or run around outside, they need to WALK!  (Granted, children can ALSO do those other things, but walking is important for little people just as it is for big people - accept no substitutes!)

Side Note: You probably do not walk "correctly" or at least could have your walking pattern, gait, etc, improved but I am no expert.  Katy goes into some basics in her book and more on her blog, but her saying is "You cannot do it wrong, but you can always do it better."  

#3) Katy is VERY AGAINST sitting in a typical "chair."  

Our bodies are not designed for this - it has been adopted by our culture - with the chair originating as something of a trophy for the very rich to afford.  Now we sit, I would argue, out of habit and/or because it is culturally expected.  There are chairs in the waiting room at the dentist's office, so if you do not sit in one you are considered a potential "threat" (why is that person not sitting??) or if you sit on the floor you are considered "unprofessional" (you would sit on the floor in public?!?!).  Instead of sitting in chairs, Katy suggests standing workstations and reclining on the floor.  She understands we all need to rest now and again and being on the floor allows our body to open up more and stretch.

I have been taking note of how much of my day I spend sitting in a chair and actively trying to find another position for those tasks - such as sitting on the floor to do school work with the kids and setting my laptop on a shelf to stand while I check my e-mail.  I also squat anytime I would typically bend down to pick something up.  I also squat to hang out with the kids or do simple tasks at floor level (like fold laundry).  Squatting opens up the hips, stretches the pelvic floor, and just overall helps keep the body in good working condition!

#4) Stretching is VERY important.  

And it all starts with the calf stretch.  Seriously, I think every one of her exercise DVDs begins with the calf stretch.  There are a ton of other stretches she recommends, but unfortunately she does not have them all in a neat little list, complete with pictures in such, although she does go through all of them in her book, amidst other information and anecdotes.

If I understand it correctly, stretching is what brings the blood to the muscles and gets rid of the waste.  While the heart does pump blood, it is the smooth muscle of the capillaries that gets it into all those cells.  And our typical "exercise" only uses certain muscles and often in a repetitive fashion.  While these muscles get stronger, those around them get weaker.  (Use it or lose it.)  So wee need to be stretching and moving in all the ways we can in order to keep the oxygen going to and the waste moving out of all our cells.

I am working on stretching more.  I'm not ready to give up my cardio exercise because although walking and stretching would probably make my body the healthiest it has ever been, I am too caught up in the worldly way of things to be happy with my extra weight right now.  While it would eventually fall away (I think! - or at least some of it) I do not have the patience for that!

Plus I would say I am mildly addicted to "serious" exercise.  But of all the addictions I could have, this one has some of the best benefits (losing weight, building muscle - albeit it only SOME muscle on those parts I am actually using, but still - and relieving stress) and the least adverse affects (potential for injury, my husband having to listen to me whine about missing my work-out, or go on and on about how amazing it was today).

#4.5) After having my most recent baby I concluded that Kegels were not doing it for my pelvic floor.  

I then stumbled upon Katy's DVD called "Down There For Women."  This video consisted of five stretches that I found MOST HELPFUL but it was not until I read this book that I realized the final component in pelvic floor health (for me at least - as Katy would surely argue that the whole body works as a whole and you cannot piece out any part of it, from the pelvic floor to the foot, it all goes together).  

Are you ready for this?  The final component to my pelvic floor health was/is sucking in my gut.  And I do not mean the kind of sucking in one would do to button a pair of pants that is a bit small, but the constant tightening of the abdominal muscles.  Yes, the very tightening that my physical therapist recommended I practice "all the time" because that is "what these muscles are designed to do."  Katy says the brain, specifically the unconscious brain, is very smart and your body will naturally respond as it needs to, far better than you can consciously try to clench certain muscles.  So, instead of tightening my core to lift my child I am just supposed to lift my child?!?!  What if I strain my back?  Well, then Katy would say you are not strong enough to lift your child in that fashion in the first place and by tightening your core you are taking the stress in other joints/ligaments that are not up to the task any more than your back and eventually you will feel the injury in them as well.

What does this mean for me?  Well, by relaxing my core muscles and letting them fire when they decide it is right to fire (rather than the constant flexing that creates muscle tension and inhibits some muscles from behaving as they should) I was able to take the final bit of strain off my pelvic floor, allowing it to behave as it should.  (I will save you the specifics but I imagine you understand what I am saying here.)

Funny side note: When I first read that I should not be flexing my core muscles all day my reaction was, "WHAT!!!  NO WAY!!"  Followed by a deep analysis of how smaller, tighter tummies is a cultural thing!  How vain of us!  And now that I have been relaxing those muscles and letting my belly "pooch" out I realize this better offsets getting my pelvis back in neutral (read: sticking my butt out as we are meant to).  Now I cannot imagine NOT doing this.  Unfortunately it means I might have to rethink a few of the tighter/shorter shirts in my wardrobe, but honestly, who am I trying to impress?  I have a husband and he loves me skinny or chunky, with my belly in or out.  Who have I been trying to impress?  Everyone else.  Everyone that looks at my choices in life (to be open to life and to homeschool my kids) and wants to tell me I am crazy.  I am secretly trying to impress them so they will at worst leave me alone and at best encourage me.

#5) Katy considers this way of looking at the whole body as a whole is one of alignment.  

She has a facebook group called "Aligned and Well."  By stretching and walking, standing, and squatting as we should we are able to keep our bodies in alignment.  Key to this alignment is good footwear.  Starting at the bottom, if we have positive heeled shoes (even just a little bit of a heel, like a quart of an inch) it throws off our alignment.

This is one of those things I TOTALLY GET!!  As I have been struggling with footwear for quite some time.  And finally I realize that bare feet is the best way to be!  And when one cannot be barefoot, minimalist shoes (like vibram five fingers) or at least zero-drop shoes (straight all the way across like this pair I have my eye on, the Kigo Flit - or the Kigo Drive which I currently have) are definitely the way to go, for me at least.  Now, this being said, I can walk fine in these shoes (and it took some work to get my foot muscles to wake up and respond appropriately in the vibram shoes) but I am not ready to run in them.  If you want a quite comprehensive list of "Katy's footwear suggestions," you can find it on her blog.

And I must say that going barefoot and wearing more minimalist shoes has improved my balance as I have woken up all those muscles and bones in my ankle again.  I could feel it as I ran yesterday - even though I was wearing stiff regular positive heel tennis shoes - when I turned a corner that would normally have thrown off my balance and caused me to teeter some, I was able to adjust in my ankle and keep the rest of my body moving as I desired.

The End. . . for now.

While there are many more tid-bits to be gleaned and ideas to process but here is what I have stewing right now.

Journal #24

Out My Window:

Sunny!!  It is January 17th, sunny, and about 50 degrees outside!!  It is a bit breezy, but I went for a walk with "the girls" (Rebekah, Miriam, and Zipporah) and we only needed jackets.

Clothing Myself In:

Yoga pants, a Franciscan Women's AA Basketball Champion T-shirt (let's get specific, ok?) and bare feet.  

Side Note: I realize Yoga pants are "from the devil" and all, but MAN are they comfortable!  Like sweat pants, but more comfy and they don't fall down over my bare feet, casing me to walk on the ends (like my sweats do).  So, yes I still wear them, but generally (except in extreme circumstances) only in the privacy of my own home.  (For the walk mentioned above I was wearing jeans.)

Around the House:

I am really enjoying our new living room set-up.  Moving the half-dresser away from the front window allows it to be used more as there is no window behind it to block now.  So I have started putting the kids school books for the day on it in piles.  We have slowly been moving our school studying from "the study" to the living room because (A) we have poor internet signal in that room - the one room in the house we need internet the most happens to be the furthest from the router, go figure and (B) I am tired of fighting the Legos and K'nex every morning for a space to walk and sit!!  Instead we have been doing school work at the kitchen table (or on the couches or on the floor) and that has been working well for us.

I bought some new Leap Frog videos for Paul and Miriam as I generally let them watch one or two a day when I need them to be "otherwise occupied" when I work with "the big kids."  And let me just say Leap Frog makes some GREAT products that I do not feel guilty giving the kids a little screen time to enjoy.

The Baby:

She is adorable as ever.  She is still not sitting up or really rolling much.  She is doing better with tummy time, but is still not a huge fan.  She will often tolerate it for a little while but then rolls onto her back in short order.  She still sucks her thumb, but not ALL THE TIME - just when she is tired usually.  She is finally starting to get some big smiles and even giggle a little.  Her favorite "zones" are her play mat where she can reach her hanging toys and her bumbo.  She seems to wave her arms more than the other children did as babies - or maybe she just has really long arms.  She is very long (although she has not had her six-month-check yet because the doc rescheduled it) in my humble opinion.

The Kids:

The kids have been draining their kid-sized glass cups at dinner time and begging for more, so I finally bought a small pitcher they can pour additional drinks from to cut down on time I spend going back and forth from the kitchen to supply more drinks.  The kids LOVE it.  They love it so much I often fill the pitcher once and let them fill their own cups and then fill it again so they can fill their own seconds, too.  Why did I not think of this sooner?

In other news, after some tough deliberation, I have decided to cut Swim Team this semester.  The baby has shown me she prefers to go to bed at about 6:30pm, which is not too much of a problem as Swim Team starts at 7pm, but my dear husband has Boy Scouts on Mondays, Aikido on Tuesdays, and darts on Thursdays.  I teach religion class on Wednesdays and they do not have swim team on Fridays.  So. . . in other words, if I cannot take all the kids, I guess it is not going to work right now.  And you know what?  I think I'm ok with that.  We will do swim lessons in the summer and then, when the baby is older, perhaps we will jump back into Swim Team in the Fall.

The one perk of cutting an activity is that we have some more free time one evening to spend as a family and I am looking forward to this.  I know I spend ALL DAY with my kids, but I spend it guiding, directing (often begging and pleading) them to do their school work.  In the evenings, we get to do some serious, no-strings-attached playing.

In the Kitchen:

All the "brilliant" kitchen-savvy-money-saving-types say I should have a monthly menu and STICK TO IT!!  And I have TRIED to do such.  But the following are my reasons for not doing this:

#1) I do not know that many recipes!!

#2) My family often does not take well to new recipes so I am not eager to learn more!

#3) I have difficulty deciding how soon is too soon to have a certain meal again.

#4) I do not like feeling "trapped" in what to cook for dinner.

#5) I often look at my menu for the evening and think "I really do not want to eat and/or prepare this meal this evening!!"

Despite these struggles I have TRIED to do a plan of some sort - and mostly failed horribly at it.  In any case, I think I have FINALLY FOUND SOMETHING I CAN SORT-OF HANDLE!!  Instead of shooting for the whole month, I aim for a week.  And I look at the meal plan as "suggestions," not "requirements," so they are not so intimidating.  This coupled with the fact that I have resigned myself to heading to the grocery store weekly in order to have fresh produce on hand appears to be a winning combination here.

This week we are having roast tomorrow, crockpot pork on Monday, homemade pizza on Tuesday, grilled cheese on Wednesday, hamburger pockets on Thursday, and potato soup on Friday.

I should also note that I have started browning up a bunch of hamburger at a time and then freezing it in meal-sized chunks for future use.  It makes meals like spaghetti super-quick and meals like lasagna much more manageable.  I also make a giant batch of taco meat (read: mostly beans, tomatoes, and spices, but a little meat, too) and freeze it in meal-sized portions to make burritos and tacos into "easy" and quick meals.  I am all about doing more work ahead of time to make it easier around mealtimes. 

Bringing Me Joy:

*My husband.  Tonight he fixed my van door!!!  And he works so hard to keep me happy.

*My children - especially Paul.  I feel like Paul has gotten a bit of a bad wrap because he is so high-spirited, but really Paul is a wonderful son.  He is so smart and funny and a great addition to our family.

*Feeling better.  I know it takes a while to recover from a baby - not just the "getting it out" part, but all the other things that stack up, such as getting my body back to workable condition, getting rest, avoiding sickness, etc, but I ALWAYS FORGET that it takes a while and have very little patience with myself!!  Anyhow, I am finally feeling more up to exercising more intensely (which should help my clothes fit better soon!) and adding more movement to my day (as Katy Says).

Pictures To Share:

Rebekah loves her little sister, Zipporah!

Daddy loves his baby girl.

My sweet, happy, extremely talkative and energetic Paul with his Lego creation.

7 Quick Takes - Daily Grind 2015

1. Putting the Christmas tree away means it is time to rearrange the furniture, right?

The top photo is actually from Christmas 2013, but our set-up this past year (2014) was similar, minus the desk and the chair (instead we had a small half-dresser near the door).  It has been YEARS since I did anything different with our couches.  We shall see if this "sticks."

2. Sight Word Brilliance

My son Jacob's brain works differently than the other children.  The "momma" in me says this is because he is a genius (which he very well might be) but the "reality" in me says that means some things are going to be a struggle.  School work is a struggle for him - not because he cannot do it, but because HE SEES NO POINT IN DOING IT!!  Anyhow, he was fighting me tooth and nail to learn his sight words (which is tremendously slowing down his reading right now) and yesterday it hit me to have him spell them out with letters.  He called it "fun"!!!  We have  winner :)

3. Movement helps the blood flow and that helps the brain work.

This is quite possibly the worst picture ever, but consider it like a "Where's Waldo."  Do you see two ropes (each braided) hanging from a giant climbing-strength carabiner?

I have been wanting to put some rings or a trapeeze bar in my living room for the kids to swing on, but we only have one hook right now and my dear husband already thinks I am crazy (and has a list of "honey do" items a mile long as it is).  So I found a strong clamp and a couple of ropes.  Now the kids pull, swing, and climb.  It has been helpful for me to have them (especially Jacob) answer a question and then swing once on the ropes, only to come back and answer the next question.  

Plus the ropes help keep them in the same room.  Jacob was pacing from room to room as I read him a story yesterday and I broke down at one point exclaiming, "Jacob, would you just STAY IN THIS ROOM, PLEASE!!"  Once I made it clear it was ok for him to pace, but I just wanted him close enough to hear he happily walked in circles around the table and from door to door while listening.

4. Move Your DNA by Katy Bowman is seriously BLOWING MY MIND!!

I know I have already posted about two other books she has written (well, they were really parts of her blog turned into books - this is her first "real" book, written as a book), but this one really takes the cake!!  Katy is a biomechanist that is basically looking at humans from an historical perspective of how we used to behave as hunter-gatherers.  She goes back to this point because she says that time/activity is how our bodies performed optimally and she says a lot (most) of our troubles today are from poor alignment/lack of movement as we do not move as we used to because of modern convenience.  I think my reaction to this book might be its own post soon.

5. Paul says the cutest stuff sometimes.

We had to upgrade our van last year before having Zipporah.  We ended up selling our mini-van to my parents.  When they come visit, Paul always refers to their vehicle as "the money-van."  

6. Samuel spoke up at Mass today.

This picture only kind-of goes with this number.  After Mass this morning there were many poinsettias looking for homes.  This one found its way to ours.  We shall see how long it lasts.

We try to go to daily Mass with our local Catholic school, at least once a week.  The priests regularly ask the kids questions during the homily and I often feel bad as I know Rebekah would LOVE to answer but they never venture further than the main aisle where all the school kids sit.  Today, however, Father Earl came over to our section as a few of the older school kids in front of us answered some questions.  And then, before I knew it, Father had called on Samuel!  Just like his momma, when he feels the need to say something he is not shy.  

Father was asking where we might find synagogues today.  Samuel answered, ITALY!!  Which, in his defense is quite wise of him.  We have been studying a lot about the Roman Empire in history right now and they just recently (in our studies) took over Judea and Jesus was born.  Since the Roman Empire first came from Italy, it makes sense he would say that.  Father got a good chuckle from it and agreed that there probably were some synagogues in Italy.

7. I took my two oldest children to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation on Saturday.

I only took those two because they are the only ones old enough to receive.  (This was Samuel's second time to receive this sacrament.)  It was a great experience.  I love sharing the faith with my children.

Zipporah (almost seven-months-old here) is very happy I am done blogging so I can play with her again.

Christmas!! Yes, it is still Christmas!! :)

Journal #23

(Do I really only have 23 "journal" posts for the year?  And was my last one really in August?!?!  Oh well, you get what you get, don't throw a fit :)

Out My Window:

Snow, glorious snow.  I believe we have a high today of seven degrees.  As cold as that sounds, everyone in this house is pretty happy as we have had such a mellow winter so far, it was freaking me out and disappointing the children.

Clothing Myself In:

Jeans (that used to be too big and now just fit. . . I find it difficult to have patience with my body after having a baby :(  ), an M.S. Bike-a-thon t-shirt and a pair of the hubby's wool socks (hey, I need to see if I got him a decent pair for Christmas, you know :)

Around the House:

It is still Christmas!!  Did I mention that yet??  Well I feel like I need to shout it, because it makes me happy and so many people don't believe me and I think they are just missing out.  Here is our Jesus, resting oh so comfortably on the strings of the children's good deeds in Advent.

I thought it would not be so difficult to find space for our Christmas toys this year since they were mostly legos or kinex, both of which we already have large tubs to contain.  However, I seem to have overlooked how both of these types of toys vomit all over the room - and into the next - and then get broken and pieces end up everywhere!!  I will let them out a few more days and then make them pick them up soon - for my sanity.  The funny thing is that the kids seem to "get" my moods (or maybe they feel the same) and often comply easily enough on picking them all up for a bit.

I just moved the couch, about a half hour ago - so it sticks out into the living room.  Mostly I did it because I have a rope hanging from an old hook (long story) that the kids can climb and they were climbing/jumping off the couch (which is not allowed, btw)  on said rope.  So I moved the couch out almost ninety degrees to "compensate."  We shall see how long it lasts. . . or if it solves the problem.

Also, cleaning. . . is it just me, or does anyone else ever wonder WHERE DOES ALL THIS DIRT COME FROM!!  Seriously, I miss one day of sweeping and I have PILES!!  I really need to teach my kids to sweep better so they can deal with it.  (Although I was kind-of hoping their sweeping skills would simply improve with time/practice - unassisted practice that is!)

The Baby:

She is six-months-now.  She is quite unique from the other children in that she is considerably smaller for her age.  She was in the 5oth percentile (for everything, head, weight, and length) at her last check-up (and will go in for her six-month-check next week).  All the other children were either in the 90s or off the charts as babies, seriously.  She seems to be developing a little slower, too. . . but it is probably not a big deal - nothing to be concerned over anyhow.  She can roll around, but does not do it much.  She is not crazy about being on her tummy and will often roll on her back as quickly as possible.  She is quite content to lay on her back and bat at her hanging toys, or put them in her mouth.  She is not scooting or locomoting much at all.  Perhaps that is because everyone comes to her??  She does not sit up or pull up or anything crazy like that.  She will stand a bit if you hold her hands, but would not get in such a position on her own.

She still likes to suck her thumb.  I think I would rather have her take a pacifier as then I could decide when she could have it!  But she does what she does.

I had a breast infection several weeks back and I have been concerned about my milk production since.  About three or four weeks ago, I finally got it back up to were I am not really "worried" about her getting enough milk but I still notice that she is considerably less satisfied on one side.  And who wants to have lopsided boobs?!?!  Generally, though, I think her increased fussiness lately has to do with her attempt to get teeth maybe??  And/or the insanity of the holidays (as she does not rest well away from HER crib).

The Kids:

They have enjoyed the holidays and extended family fun.  They are happy with their toys and generally loving this season.  I only wish I could spend more time playing with them, but the call of housework and "projects" is too strong to resist right now as they are otherwise occupied.

Crafting:

I finally am almost caught up putting pictures in albums.  (And I was about three years behind, so this is huge, people!!)  Hopefully I can stay on top of this now that I am caught up and have a good system going.  The kids and I really enjoy looking at these albums.

Some day I am going to pick up my knitting needles again but they will have to wait until my arms are empty of Zipporah as she has made it clear that when she nurses, I am not to be engaged elsewhere!!

Reading:

I actually finished a book the other day.  It has probably been about a year since that happened.  In case you were curious, it was Little Women.  And I don't think I have ever read it before, even though it seemed familiar (I must have come across the title in school at some point).   In any case, I enjoyed it and finished it and now I am starting Emma by Jane Austin.  Yay for old classics.

And to add to the excitement, shortly after finishing Little Women, I also finished Getting the Marriage Conversation Right.  It is a short book about how to promote and defend traditional marriage in non-religious terms and I highly recommend it for all.  Very clear.  Easy to read.  And it made me think.  I am considering getting some more copies to pass out to some of my friends.

And my current reading consists of two books by the same author, Katy Bowman, over similar stuff.  Alignment Matters and Every Woman's Guide to Foot Pain.  I started the Alignment Matters book a while back and enjoyed it, but got busy and put it down.  Now I am seeing how some of this stuff REALLY makes sense, so I read more and picked up the book on foot pain, not because I have foot pain necessarily, but because it is considered her "introduction book" to what she is about - even though the book is really about foot pain, it is more than that, too.  In any case, she has some notions that really blow my mind.  I joined a facebook group about alignment and restorative exercise and am finding much fruit in the practices and ideas.  This will most likely be its own blog post in the future.  Oh and if you want to check her out on your own, she has a blog.

Bringing Me Joy:

*Zipporah!  As much as she has been so fussy and difficult to deal with over the past few months, she is truly a treasure I love.  When she smiles and coos or falls asleep on me. . . well, let's just say those are moments I find deep contentment.

*My husband.  He has been showing signs of maturity (shhh don't tell him) and beginning to really step up his care of the kids and offering to help me - even in tasks he thinks are somewhat a waste of time.  It is really sweet.

*Getting fresh flowers.  Today I took all six children with me to the store because we had been gone and needed EVERYTHING.  As I was leaving, the florist handed me a bouquet saying that I deserved one for bringing my whole family out in the cold.

General pictures to share:

This was shortly after our first extended family Christmas.

Rebekah braided Miriam's hair.  So sweet, right? :)

Christmas!

Rebekah was Mary, Samuel was the "blue" wise man,  Paul was the shepherd with the brown "hat." (on the end).  They all did great in the Christmas pageant during the children's Mass at church.

Samuel helped Zipporah open her Christmas gift.  She was enthralled, especially with the paper.

Zipporah's Godparents got her an ornament.  I think she approves :)

"The Kids" (and me, as I was trying to keep Zipporah happy) at Gordie's extended family Christmas.

Jolly Old Saint Nicholas. . .

As a child I do not remember celebrating Santa.  There were not "gifts from Santa."  My father certainly never dressed up as Santa.  I was never told to "be good because Santa is watching" or any of that kind of thing.  St. Nicholas came on December 6th and sometimes he put candy or small toys in my shoes and sometimes he brought a wrapped present in the morning.  But, Christmas was about Jesus.  We had an advent wreath and we faithfully lit the candles and said our prayers and then Jesus was born on Christmas and we got gifts from Mom and Dad and extended family, etc.  That was that.

(Odd Side Note: Although this is how I remember things, a while back as I was going through some of my childhood items, in a scrapbook my mom had kept, I came across an article in the local newspaper that I had written and guess what it was about?  It was a letter I had written to Santa!!!  I think I was in the fifth grade.  I asked for world peace.  How noble is that?   In any case I do not remember writing the letter and I certainly do not remember ever believing in Santa so perhaps we had to write such a letter for class or something, that is my only guess.)

I now have children and as the oldest two were getting old enough to pay attention to such things (somewhere between 2 and 4 - possibly one was 2 and the other 4 or something like that), I calmly sat them down and explained that Santa was not real and that what "the world" considered Santa was actually a glorification of St. Nicholas.  I explained the story of St. Nicholas - leaving candy in the children's shoes and throwing money in windows for the poor girls' dowries. I proceeded to give them small gifts, and/or to celebrate the feast of Saint Nicholas.  (I know one year for whatever reason I did not have gifts ready - I think maybe we had been sick - so I made a special dessert and we sang "Happy Birthday" to St. Nicholas.)  That was all fine and dandy.

It was the next year, I believe, when she was in Kindergarten, that Rebekah asked me before each gift was opened, who it was from.  I answered her truthfully that it was from Mom and Dad or Grandma or Aunt whoever, etc.  That year I had gotten a bit overzealous in my shopping and decided to bless the children with ADDITIONAL gifts on Epiphany (I called them "Kings Gifts").  So not only had they gotten Christmas presents from Mom and Dad and all their extended family, they got ANOTHER gift in January to celebrate the arrival of the three wise men.

About a week later as I was taking down our Christmas decorations (which normally happens for us on the Baptism of the Lord) Rebekah made a comment.  She said, in a mournful serious tone, "Santa did not bring us any gifts.  We must have been bad."  And my heart broke for her, but what could I do?  It was too late for Santa to come and I had already explained that he was not going to come anyhow.  How could she not "get it"?!?!

So another year or two passed and she no longer asked me about Santa, but then I overheard her tell someone, "Mom does not believe in Santa, but we (as in her and her siblings) know he is real."

Another year or two passed and now we are up to this year, this very evening, I believe she has finally reasoned out how her understanding of Santa (which I would argue is different from my attempts to make him a displaced St. Nicholas) fits in with the real reason for this season, the birth of Jesus.  Tonight she was eating dinner with the rest of the children at the table.  From the kitchen, I overheard her say,

"the one gift Santa can give God is his heart.  He lets God use him as an instrument of peace."

All I can say to that is "well-said, dear daughter, well-said."

7 Quick Takes - Advent

Advent Sweetness

This morning I was reflecting on Advent and feeling a little guilty that I have not taken the time to really prepare my heart.  But then I realized, Advent is not over yet!  There is still time!  Time to refill my lamp and/or get some more oil because the Bridegroom is not here yet.  So this morning, amidst the regular insanity of life here at "The Green Turtle Dojo" (our homeschool name) I sought out the "sweetness factors" of my life.

1. Miriam and Rebekah showering together in the morning.  Rebekah has started showering more, partly because she is getting older and mostly because she has long hair.  In any case, Miriam likes to be in the shower with her older siblings.  It makes my heart happy to see how joyfully Rebekah lets Miriam shower with her.  And it reaffirms my desire to homeschool as we would probably not have time for this if Rebekah had to be at school by 8am!  

2.  Paul's enthusiasm is really amazing.  He LOVES to talk. . . ALL - THE - TIME!!  But his enthusiasm really makes it adorable (except when I am grumpy or in a hurry, then I do not find it adorable because I am too busy being upset, but I digress. . . ) and I am often in awe of how he seems to have an endless river of excitement and enthusiasm.  It makes me think of how Jesus says we cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven unless we become like little children.  Perhaps we can take a lesson or two from Paul.

3.  I love that my children are growing to love Scripture.  This morning Rebekah was reading Sacred Scripture for our Jesse Tree.  At one point, she says, "That is all I'm supposed to read, but I'm going to read more because this is such a good story."  (It was David and Goliath.) 

4.  Zipporah is growing in her ability to interact with us.  We are now affectionately calling her "the little dinosaur," as she has started doing this little grunt/growl thing.  I will try to catch it on video, but trust me - it is really cute!

5.  This morning as the children, noticing that Baby Jesus' manger was still rather sparse, were tripping over each other looking for good deeds to do in order to put some more padding down for the little king.

6. Amidst the good deed search from the previous point, the children asked what Zipporah might do to participate.  I told them every time she smiles they could put in a piece of yarn for her.  And that brought on the smile-fest of the morning for sure as each child would kneel before her and cheerfully command, "Smile Zipporah!!" with their biggest smiles to show her how.  She complied, of course, and  I am sure Baby Jesus will find this "hay" to be the most soft and cozy!

7. Samuel received the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time yesterday and we as a family (those of us old enough) also were able to receive this Sacrament.  No matter how often I receive the Sacrament or Reconciliation, it NEVER GETS OLD to me.  Such a blessing we have for the Sacrament of Healing and Forgiveness.

Samuel and Zipporah

Happy Birthday, Samuel!

Today is the birthday, I wonder for who?  We know it's for someone who's right in this room.  So look all around you for somebody who, is smiling and laughing, my goodness it's you!  Happy Birthday, Samuel, from all of us to you.  Happy Birthday, Samuel, from Daddy and Mommy, too!  We congratulate you, and pray good-luck follows, too.  Happy Birthday, Samuel, may all of your good dreams come true!

(My music teacher had us sing this song to "the birthday kid" after we say Happy Birthday.  Of course, today is NOT Samuel's birthday.  But we got the month right :)

1) Samuel reminds me most of myself.  He is a little OCD, a little socially awkward (and will probably shoot me later when he discovers I mentioned this here), a little crazy, and just a lot like me.  I honestly can remember acting/feeling/thinking/saying, as a kid, the same stuff he does now.  Seriously.

2) He really likes pumpkin goodies, like cookies, cake, bread, etc.  He is also a stickler for peanut butter cookies.

3) Samuel is an amazing student.  He is quite smart and catches on quickly.  He is also fairly driven (that minor OCD for the win) and will buckle-down and get his work done!

4) Math is Samuel's favorite school subject and he was actually a year ahead in Math until this year as we are doing the virtual school and I was not sure how to tell them about his amazing math skills, or even if they would care so much.

5) Samuel is quite athletic (which is not so much like me - must get that from his father).  He does rolls in Aikido like most people walk across the room - so graceful and quick.  He is also really fast - and he knows it!

6)  He is so good to his sisters!  He likes to play with his brothers. . . well, especially Jacob and sometimes Paul, but Samuel seems to always have a tender spot for his sisters.  Since Rebekah is older, she is always "fun" but he often sings to Zipporah and gently pats her head, or helps Miriam put on her shoes or take off her bib, etc.

7)  Samuel loves to sing.  He may be a little off on pitch or melody, but he sure belts out those tunes and seems to genuinely enjoy doing so.

Happy Birthday, dear Samuel!  May God continue to form you into a virtuous and joyful young man.