Ten Year Old Boy + Camera = Amazing Footage

Tuesday, we set out for the bus stop with a car load of kids on an icy road.

I had given my 10 year old son the camera to take a picture of the hill we go down every day. 

What he caught was a series of pictures which documented our wild ride rather well.  Seriously.  :)  (If you want to see those pictures, scroll to the end of Tuesday’s post.) 

Today’s post, however, is about the other pictures he took.  The ones he took while I was out of the car checking on our elderly friend.

This first picture shows the only girl in the car.  Notice the serious look on her face.  I am proud of her for maintaining her dignity.  She showed great maturity and self respect.   And this was the only picture demonstrating these particular traits, I might add.I get the feeling my boy found no fun in that.  Because that’s the only picture he took of her. 

This next one would be his self-portrait.

Followed by two of his buddies in the back seat.

 

 

But the last two pictures are my favorites. 

 

Mount Nostril.

 

And The Grand Canyon.

I’m leaning towards waiting a while to get him a camera of his own.  :)

              

Stepping Out On A Limb Here…

I never know what to say about myself.  Yet I wanted to join the “five things about me” party at My Cup 2 Yours.  So I got to thinking, What if someone at school walked up to my boys and said, “Tell me about your mom,”  what would they say?  

I realize that by actually asking them that question, I’m walking WAY out on a limb twig here.  But now that I’ve wondered, I can’t tame the curiosity tiger.

So, instead of letting them wrestle the night away, I asked them to give it some thought.  The following is a list of their answers. 

(The 12 year old interviewed the five year old.) 

My 12 year old son’s list: (He just informed me that he is over 12 and a half, and technically, I should be saying he’s 13 years old.  I love having him watch over my shoulder.)  Anyway, the list…

• Nice (sometimes)
• Likes cleanliness (and deodorant)
• Hates Star Wars
• Likes Chick flicks
• Good blogger (Aww, that’s a sweet thing to say!)
• computer freak!! (Freak?)
• Pet peeve is teenagers (Really???  Well, they do tend to baffle me at times…but I love them.  Honest.)
• Cool (sometimes)  (I like the qualification, Lol!)
• oh, and a little out of whack.  (What?? What’s that supposed to mean?  Oooooh, he’s telling me it’s teenager language.  I told you they baffle me.  Can any one help me here?)

My 10 Year old son’s list: (the man of few words, but a big heart)

• Very nice
• Intelligent (I’ll take that!)
• Tall
• Loves computers
• Happy

My 5 year old son’s list:

• Smart, but mean
• Sometimes happy
• Way more cooler than Sid (The Science Kid) (Be still my heart!)
• Skinny (He’s definitely my favorite child)
• Lovely
• Kisses you a lot (Lol!)
• Cares about you all the time (ABSOLUTELY!)

I love my boys.  Seriously.  They’re wild and crazy and I wouldn’t trade them for the world. 

They also just helped me out with my Five Things About Me post for Talking About Thursday!   The only thing I might add is that I love Jesus, want to please Him, and fail a lot. 

I’m so glad you stopped by!

A Second Lesson (I’m A Slow Learner)

Don’t cha hate it when God gives you more practice with the very sort of thing that chafes you most?  Like finding joy in unexpected trials.  This can be hard, especially for a routine-loving mamma like me.  MY first lesson left me with sore leg muscles today. 

So when God sent a second opportunity for me to “find joy” yesterday, I was not amused.  I didn’t feel “more loved” because He cared enough to challenge me again.  I was really kind of annoyed.  Truth be told.

The lights went out just as I was starting dinner and my immediate response was to chafe at the inconvenience.  There must have been lots of folks who needed practice with this, because the outage was widespread.  And they must all be slow learners like me, because it stayed out for a LONG time.

After an hour, I resigned myself to getting dinner without the electricity.  

“Very funny, Lord,” I muttered as I hung a flashlight from the fan knob above the gas range.   

We ate by lantern light.  And the boys couldn’t see the peppers and onions to pick them out of the chicken and rice. 

I smiled. 

And then suddenly I found it totally amusing.  Downright funny, actually.  In a way that only a mom of picky eaters can understand. 

And my smile turned into a lingering chuckle.

Afterwards, I stacked the dishes on the counter with a tinge of frustration.  I hate leaving messes.  

But with nothing else I could do, I finally settled down on my favorite chair with a blanket, book, and flashlight. 

A forced time-out, I thought, and found my smile again. 

No computer.  No dishes.  No baths for the kids.

The boys played with LEGOS.  They flew their space ships and speeders.  Hid in dark corners.  Made forts at each end of the hallway.  Used their flashlights as laser cannons.  Got excited about going outside to find a tree (he-hem).  And exclaimed several times “how cool” this was.

And for the second time in the space of a day, I was treated to a lesson in how to find joy in the unexpected. 

I realize I’m slow.  But what I’m learning is that…

Sometimes you just have to start with a smile.

And if  you get stuck, watch your kids.

They’re naturals at finding the fun, and happy to have you along.

Unwrapping The Joy of The Unexpected

O.K.  So this title totally ignores the groan I moaned this morning when I looked out the window and saw an unexpected blanket of fresh snow.  Somewhere between third grade and thirty something I lost the easy joy in the unexpected.

I remember it, though.  I remember sitting in the second grade classroom, staring out the window, and seeing the first of the snow flakes that would trigger the decision to send us home early. 

All I remember is the excitement which comes to a child who is dreaming of sledding.

Our bus drivers, though, probably felt a little like I did this morning.

Because at the end of our bus run, they all faced a monster hill off a hard left hand turn at a blind intersection.  The only approach was across traffic from a dead stop. 

On icy days, the bus had little hope of making it up. Those of us who were left on the bus crowded into the seats over the back wheels and the driver would give it several tries. 

Eventually, we were all left off to walk the rest of the way home.  I’m not sure if I ever clocked it later in life to see how far it was.  But I’m guessing now that it was somewhere around a mile to a mile and a half.

In the early years, we begged them to let us walk.  In later years, we groaned at having no choice. 

That’s why I’m remembering those bus rides today.  Because I remember those long walks on snowy days. 

And because in a few minutes, I’ll be taking a carload of elementary kids down several very big hills to the bus stop.  And the last hill reminds me of the hill of my youth.  (poetic, isn’t it?)

It’s really the getting back up that worries me.   This hill sports a long walk home, too.  Something just under a mile. 

I’m taking my camera, and I’ll finish this post when I get back.  I’ll try to have my son get a picture of the hill.  Because you all want to see it, right?  Lol! 

*  *  *

We’ll we made it back.  But my car did not.  Lucky for you, my 10 year old son manned the camera and I’m pretty impressed with his photography!  (Well, except for the pictures he took of things like his nose hairs.)

This is the top of the poetic hill on the way down to the bus stop.  The bus does not come up our hills for obvious reasons.  In this picture, we have just crossed the point of no return. 

“Committed” is what I call it.  It’s just after the place where you pause, and pray that no one is coming up.

 

This is the point where the kids in the back grasp hands, and if I’m lucky, refrain from screaming.  My son is giddy with excitement, perched on the edge of his seat—as far forward as his seat belt will allow.  I begin creeping down the hill in second gear.

 

This is where I see a truck (behind those trees) coming right up the center of the road and I have no choice but to apply the breaks.  Which begins our slide.  See the skid marks at the bottom that veer off the road to the right?  Yep.  There’s a three foot drop off there that someone before me encountered.  It doesn’t take a genius to realize we’re in for a wild ride.  And I’m thinking…crud…stink…not good…and a host of other things I’ll never tell you.

My “No, no, no, no, no, no, no’s” turn into “Back up!  Back up! Back up!  Back up! Back UP’s” as I got closer and closer to that truck.

 

This is where I’m hoping he has backed up far enough because we’re coming down pretty fast and I’m just along for the ride.  (No doubt he’s having the similar thoughts!)

 

This is me catching my breath at the bottom.  Talking to the man in the truck about my scary ride.  (You can’t see it, but my heart is still in my throat.)  As it turns out, our seventy something year old friend had the more wild morning.  He had already tried to get up the hill once, slid back down, and was in the process of trying again…when we appeared on our slide down and gave him a second scare!

We parked at a friend’s house at the bottom of the hill.  After the older kids caught the bus, I decided that my little guy and I would be walking back up.  The car could sit there.  It’d be like old times. 

Sigh.

He was prepared.  I had made sure of that before we left.  Because I’m a good mom.

See his snow suit and boots? 

However, I (the queen of all preparedness) looked down and this is what I saw…

Loafers!  Rats!  I had forgotten to swap them for the boots by my front door.  You won’t tell my 6th grader, will you?  (I MADE him wear a winter coat this morning.  Gasp.)

But you know what?  When I called my friend at work (who lives by the bus stop) to see if I could leave my car in her drive, do you know what she said?  “If you need boots, there are some inside my garage door.”

Thank you Lord! 

• For wonderful friends! 
• For watching over us!
• For thrill rides we don’t have to pay for! 
• For an unexpected beautiful walk in the snow! 
• For allowing me to have forgotten to lock the house (something I began praying for, 3/4’s of the way home, when I remembered I left the house keys in the car.)
• For giving my five-year-old the pluck to make the long hike.
• And for the hot chocolate and cinnamon buns at home to warm up our very cold bones.

It wasn’t so bad.  And my little guy and I are laughing about it now. 

Thank you Lord for walking with us and answering prayers long before I prayed them.  You knew I needed practice in finding joy in the unexpected!  Even if the laughs didn’t show up until later!!

What are you thankful for today?  And what is God helping you to unwrap?  Join us at  Gratituesday and Tuesdays Unwrapped. 

We’re Behind You All The Way! Go COLTS!!

We live in Indiana. And When you live in Indiana, you live and breathe and walk among incredibly dedicated COLTS fans. And for good reason.

For us, it started with Tony Dungee’s inspiring testimony and heart for ministry when we moved here 6 years ago. We’ve been big fans of the team ever since.

Yet, even without Tony Dungee, they continue to have a great reputation both as a team, and as individuals. As parents of three impressionable boys, having a home team like them is almost like being given a gift.

And how can you not like Peyton Manning?

Besides being arguably the best quarter back ev-er, Peyton is someone I’m happy to have my boys look up to. His integrity, humility and ability to adapt to whatever comes his way make him a truly great role model.

And he’s funny, too!

So, in anticipation of yesterday’s big playoff game with the Jets, we donned our blue, like all good Hoosiers, and settled down in front of the TV. We didn’t have “war paint” or “blue hair” like we saw on people at the Turkey Hill after church, Lol!. But we were just as excited.

Admittedly, the first half was all about the JETS. They had some truly GREAT plays!

But the second half was all about he COLTS Peyton didn’t let us down.

Today, we couldn’t be happier for the team. The COLTS are going to the Super Bowl in Miami. And taking us along for the ride. :)

Well, not literally. We aren’t rich. Lol! (But wouldn’t that be something?)

Instead, we’ll be right here cheering them on! Win or lose. Because we’re cheering for more than the team.

We’re cheering for great role models!

What role models do you see as worthy of encouraging your kids to follow?

I’m joining up with other Mom’s today at Mom Monday. Won’t you join us?

Friday Funnies: Were You There?

Hundreds Gather To Protest Global Warming

I wish I could take credit for this photo.  But I can’t.  And since I have no idea whom to thank, I’ll simply thank my friend, Laura, who sent it to me.  I would love, love, love to hear the back story on this.  How many people do you think it took to make all these little people???

Stop by my friend’s place at Homesteader’s Heart for more fun stuff to end your week!

Happy Friday Friends!

Soldiers, Faith, And The Heart Of A Mom

My boys, like most, love to play army.  Especially my youngest. Sometimes he’s an army soldier, and sometimes he’s a storm trooper.  But he’s always on a mission.

This scene out my front door struck me the other day.  I’ve captured lots of pictures of the boys playing army.  But something about this one made me stop and watch.

Maybe it was because I caught a glimpse of a young man 15 years from now, far from his home and family.  Maybe because, in that instant, my heart ached for all the moms of soldiers far from home.  Moms who will always see those soldiers as their precious little children.

In today’s world, the chances that our children will serve (or be called to serve) in a military setting are real.

Thankfully, this soldier’s mission didn’t look too dangerous.  (The cats should probably watch their backs, though.)

But what about his future missions?

The truth is that we don’t know what the future holds for any of our children.  Only God does.  And if I’m honest with you, the thought of any of them facing dangerous missions on a real battlefield terrifies me.

And it rattles the mustard seed of my faith.

Because faith dictates that we trust God.

Trust him even with important things.  Especially important things.

Like our children. 

I can trust God for a lot of things.  But for my children’s health and safety?  In some ways that’s tough.  In fact, I’ll hold on to that job until the day I die with the ferocity and tenacity of a mamma bear.  Of course, I’ll pray.  That’s easy.

But it is incredibly hard to turn them over to God and present them, palms up, to His care. 

What if He takes them away from me?  What if His plan includes a dangerous mission or battle field, or a serious illness? 

I think it’s a struggle every mom faces.  And many are put to the test more than others. 

I haven’t been tried. 

At least not yet. 

Would I be able to hold my three sons out to God, palm up, and trust Him while they walk through difficult or dangerous situations?  Will I?

Even though my mind knows that there is no one more capable or loving than God, I think I would struggle. 

For now, at least, my little soldier’s eyes are still innocent.  I still get to tuck him in at night and hold him when he cries.  And I’m incredibly thankful for the safety in which we live, and the many blessings we enjoy.

 

But for parents of real soldiers, fervent prayers take the place of tender hugs.  Let’s add our prayers to theirs.

Dear Lord,

Thank you for our soldiers.    

Guide their steps.  Protect them.  And bring them home safely when they are done their job. 

And may our faith in your loving and sovereign care be renewed every day.

Links:

   

Less Shabby!

We purchased this double rocking chair love seat new thirteen years ago.  Today, the piping is popping out, and both seat areas are showing significant wear.  But with our boys still young, it probably isn’t a good time to replace it. 

Updating a few pillows, however, might reduce the shabby factor somewhat.  So that’s what I set out to do.

I was keeping my eyes open for a few reasonably priced pillows that would work.  That is, until I discovered a new product at one of my favorite stores last week. 

Dollar Tree has just started carrying covers for throw pillows in a variety of fabrics. 

Some of the fabrics made me wrinkle my nose.  Seriously.  But the navy blue covers had a nice feel. 

I liked that the color was neutral, and that each slip case had a nice hidden zipper closure. 

Also, the thought occurred to me (I don’t know why), that these covers would stay put no matter how hard the pillows got thrown.  I liked the idea of one less thing for me to have to put back to rights.  Not that my kids throw pillows. 

But my kids are boys, and we’re talking throw pillows here. 

Just saying.  

A mom thinks about these things.  

I love it when I can make improvements for just a few bucks! 

And sometimes a little less shabby is just fine.

A Weekend Without Computers

Friday evening, our computer server tossed us another blue screen of death. 

It has done it twice in recent history, and my husband finally gave up trying to “revive” it.   Instead, he built a new server out of the parts he has been collecting. 

Although he has more work to do, I can now access the internet and email.  The old one will be buried promptly just as soon as we can retrieve any living files from its memory.  I wouldn’t mind taking a few swings at the thing with something heavy before we lay it to rest! 

I certainly won’t miss the constant “file error” messages, it’s random reboots, or its inability to cooperate with my computer.  (Boy, are we dependent on the internet these days!)

The boys had off from school both Friday and Monday.  So our long weekend without computers had us sitting around taking in plenty of togetherness.  Which has its good points and bad.  Lol!

What did we do? 

• We watched WAY more TV than normal.  My being sick didn’t help.  My head hurt too much to read, so I found myself laying on the couch in front of the TV.  And where there’s a TV, there will be kids.  And where there are kids, there will be toys.  And Bickering.  And blanket forts.  …Get the picture?
• We had several deep family discussions.  The heartbreaking stories out of Haiti had us thinking about our own lives, our priorities, our blessings, and also those things that tend to pull our focus away from God.  They were great conversations.
• We ate abnormally.  I didn’t feel up to cooking, so the guys consumed large amounts of cholesterol and fat, courtesy of our local fried chicken restaurant.  The chicken was supplemented with PB and J’s, cereal, and large bowls of ice cream.  I don’t think anyone minded.  Accept our bellies.
• We looked at real books for research.  My oldest has a project to do and needed to find pictures of the Bismarck.  Since he couldn’t just Google it, he was forced to use the library.  Not a bad thing.  :)
• We watched Mall Cop.  Twice.  And laughed harder the second time.  Apart from several unnecessary innuendos, the movie is really funny.
• We watched Monsters, Inc.  We hadn’t seen it for a while and my own little monster needed some couch time with his mommy while his older brothers entertained friends in the play room.
• The kids had a two hour delay this morning because of dense fog (no kidding).   So we got to sleep late--which was a perfect ending to a long weekend.  I like it when God eases us back into the routine.   

So how about you guys?  Did you do anything fun over the long weekend?

Missionaries In Haiti: Their Blog and How We Can Pray

I don’t know about you.  But this week has been hard.  As our family has watched the news, all kinds of feelings wash over me in waves.

Shock at the devastation.

Horror at the injuries.

Guilt over how fortunate and blessed we are.

Deep, deep sadness for the moms’ who’ve lost children, the children who’ve lost parents, and the many, many people feeling alone, bereaved, and hopeless.

Jesus and Dark Chocolate shared a link (thank you so much!) and I decided I needed to share it with those of you feeling helpless like me.  

The Livesay [Haiti] Weblog is a blog written by a missionary family in Haiti.  It is personal.  It is moving.  And it gives us specific things to pray for.

I don’t feel quite so helpless now. 

Read it.  Pray specifically.  We can make a difference. 

This artwork arrived in my email quite a while ago with the title, What Really Happened On the Hudson River.

Isn’t that a powerful picture of God’s love?  It reminds me that God’s hands are not idle in Haiti.

Dear Lord,

Gather the people of Haiti in your arms.  Give them help and hope.  Give them comfort during the nights.  And strength for the days.

 

Sustain and protect the rescuers.  Give wisdom to the organizers.

 

Bind evil.

 

Walk with this missionary family and others who are reaching out because of You.  Let them be your hands and voice.

   

May many hurting people see the outpouring of your love, and as a result, may they embrace you.  Both in Haiti, and around the world.

Check Wal-mart’s Holiday Clearance For These Surprisingly Good Wal-Mart Clearance Treats!

While looking over the holiday clearance isles in Wal-mart last Thursday, a woman came by and picked up three of the tall tins of Chocolate Graham Cracker Crunch Mix , and three of the Mint Chocolate Cookie Bites.  “Have you tried these before?” I asked her.

For the next 3 minutes, she gave me THE run down on all the tins.  Which tins had good stuff in them.  Which tins you should probably skip.  And why, of course.

Before she was finished, another lady came scooting by and picked up several of the tins to put in her cart.

“Aren’t these good?”  She asked the first lady, back-tracking and picking up another set.

“Yeah!  Surprisingly!”

That was all I needed!  I parked my cart in front of the display and snatched up a couple of each!

The verdict?  They were really really good!

If they still have any left, you need to try them!  If you decide to throw a party, these make perfect finger treats!

The original price was outrageous (I think over $4).  But they are on clearance for about $1.25 per tin.  Plus, you can re-use the tins later!  I think they would probably keep for a while, because the treats come in sealed plastic bags inside the tins.

The Chocolate Graham Crunch Mix is a mixture of yummy white and milk chocolate pieces with Golden Grahams and tiny white marshmallows (Think Lucky Charms marshmallows).  The mix is delicious!

The Mint Chocolate Cookie Bites taste just like little round versions of Mint Chocolate Girl Scout Cookies.  Yum!! 

They still had quite a big supply when I went back on Sunday.   Since my boys like both, I’ve been sending  some of each in their lunches. 

Thankfully, I have a cavity that is keeping my sweets cravings in check.  Or else I’d be snacking all day!  I almost don’t want to get my tooth filled on Monday!  Lol! 

The empty tins find new treasures in a hurry!  It’s a good thing we have lots of them!  Lol! The possibilities for them are endless!

Let me know if your Wal-mart still has them!

A Fun Winter Party Craft That’s Practical and Versatile

The pretty green scarf on the left was a Christmas gift from my sister-in-law.  I love it, and wear it almost all the time.  Indoors and out!  So when I was tossing ideas around for my Mom’s-Night-Out party, my scarf came to mind. 

That’s it! I thought.  These would be so much fun to make while we chat! 

As it turns out, it was not only an easy craft, it was a big hit!  With temps around zero outside, and the house rather chilly to boot, the scarves came in handy! 

My friends and I have often joked that we belong to an elite club known as the Worst Moms In The World.  And if not the Worst, at least the meanest.  Lol!  Now, we all have matching scarves to seal our membership.  :)

What you will need:

• Strips of 9 inch wide double sided fleece
• Scissors.

That’s it!

I picked up two yards of a pretty striped fleece from Wal-Mart and cut four scarves per yard. 

The length can vary depending on how long you want the scarves.  The width of the fabric, as it turned out, was just the right size for what I thought adults would wear.

I cut the strips ahead of time and had them all tucked in a basket.  All we had to do was decide on fringe length and whether we wanted to cut fringe all the way around, like my green scarf, or just on the ends.  

We decided just the ends. I put a mark on the scissors so that we could easily cut the fringe the same length as we went.  And then added the slot.  The slot, you say?

It’s really hard to see, but look closely at the right hand length of the green scarf.  See the slot cut vertically in the middle of the fleece about 16 inches from one end?

The slot is cut intentionally so that when you put the scarf around your neck, you can pull the other end through the hole and make it as snug or loose as you like.  Without a big old knot under your neck.

You can see how it works on my little model.

I had no trouble getting him to wear it for me.

The trouble was getting it back!  Lol!

I can see this craft being a big hit at just about any winter activity!

• Classroom parties (Christmas or Valentines)
• Birthday parties
• Teacher Gifts
• Winter retreats.  I can see it being a fun way to distinguish small groups!  :)

Since my boys are really bummed that they didn’t get to make one, I have a feeling the craft would even be a hit at boys’ events.  There are tons of masculine colors and prints.  But don’t be surprised if the boys like the bright ones, too!  My older boys are just as bad as my youngest at swiping my new scarf. 

Can you think of any other kind of activity this would be good for?

Linked to Works For Me Wednesday and Just Something I Whipped Up Monday.

Budget Flowers Don’t Have To Be Ugly!

For my Moms/Girls Night IN party, I was keeping my eyes open for a distinctively feminine table decoration/center piece.

No, I didn’t HAVE to buy anything, and neither (obviously) do you for a party.  It’s just that I hardly ever do something so frivolous and I had a hankering for something new.

This time of year, flowers are always a nice touch, and these feminine pink roses caught my attention.

The back story on this is that for years, I lived just 15 minutes from the Flower Warehouse in Blue Ball, Pennsylvania.  They had every imaginable variation of silk and dried flowers/plants you could possibly imagine.  Hundreds and hundreds of square feet to wander through.  A decorators dream.  Sigh.

Naturally, I became a flower snob.   With so much to chose from in a quality no other store could match,  there was no need to settle for less than the best.

Even today, I would rather do nothing, than do gaudy.  And sadly, there is little here in Indiana which can compare to the  Flower Warehouse.

However, like I said, these lovely silk flowers (which I found in the most unlikely of places) caught my attention!  I know you are wondering where.  But wait.

I picked out one stem of silk roses, two of pink tipped carnations, a sprig of baby’s breath and a stem of (decidedly plastic) ferns.  From the the next isle over, I picked up a large clear vase and three net bags of glass pieces (in green and white). 

And this, this great big beautiful arrangement, went home with me.

What did it cost me?  Just $9!  Now do you know where I found them?  Yep. The Dollar Tree! 

I’m still a flower snob.  But I’m tickled pink with this frugal arrangement. 

Want To Have Fun? Need a break? Throw A Girls’/Moms’ Night-IN Party!

House Party, recently selected me to host a pretty awesome party for my friends.  Saturday night was “party night” and we got to review Your Shape, a new Wii fitness game, and try JELLO Mousse, a wonderful new low-calorie treat!

We laughed ourselves silly over the game.  Seriously.  Not a one of us could do the exercises correctly.  But no matter!  It was probably more fun that way!  (They also sent us Just Dance, but we ran out of time before we could try it.)

The Mousse, however, was something we could all do quite well!  Are you kidding?  Eat chocolate?  Lol!  We actually each built our own parfait creations alternating different kinds of Mousse with whipped cream. 

We had such a good time!  I’m wondering why it took a company sponsor to get us together!  We decided right then and there that we needed to do this much more often.

So this week, I’m planning to share some tips and ideas for you to throw your own inexpensive party.  We moms all need refueling and refreshing and a break from the routine.  So, why not make it happen???

The first thing to do is set a date.  If you don’t, it’s just not going to happen.  Don’t even worry about what you will do, yet.  Women could do nothing but sit and talk and have a wonderful time.  We’re tying our next one into Valentines somehow.

Second, choose two homes from among your friends.  One where the moms can get together, and another where the guys and kids can retreat to.  For us, we chose two homes very nearby so that the guys could drop off their wives and then continue on with the rest of the troops to their “hangout” place.

It worked wonderfully!  We simply sent along plenty of treats and movies to their “hangout” and they had a blast!

And it truly freed us up to enjoy ourselves without worrying about our families!

So, call some friends and set a date.  The planning can come later.  :)