Of Rainbows and Robots, Legos and Pirates

Einstein came running in to find me. "I made a prism outside," he shouts. "Come look!" Only in the name of homeschool can you count both making prisms and landscaping chores as science. We've been doing a lot of "science" lately.




Can you believe all that green? Just when I thought the color would never return to the Arctic Tundra. It's baaaacccck! And so beautiful!

These are some of my favorite pics of the week. This is what boybarians do with Legos and extra boxes. I present... my robots and pirates.








And last but not least... this. This makes my heart pitter patter. It took every drop of will power not to scoop him up and love on him.

Some 5th Birthday Moments

Don't you wish you could freeze time, just for a little while and keep them all just as they are? With each passing milestone, each passing month, each passing moment... I just want to bottle them up and keep them little and timeless. Instead I just click, click, click and try and capture as many moments as possible.






Look at Picasso's face! It is not often that little Trouble has the upper hand over his big brothers. But all the boys have been wanting the new Lego sets. Mr. Trouble was definitely the "cool kid" of the moment with his Indiana Jones and Star Wars legos and minifigs.

On This Day...

On this day, 5 years ago... I was 6 months pregnant. It wasn't an easy pregnancy. I spent months 2-6 alternating between cursing this child for being such a (literal) pain and crying myself to sleep for fear of losing him.

On this day, 5 years ago... I laid in antepartum. My water had already broken. I was 28 weeks pregnant. I was bargaining. I'd do anything, if only... "Please," I begged, "Let him be safe..."

On this day, 5 years ago... my BFF stood by my bedside on what was simultaneously one of the worst and best days of my life. She was there for the contractions, the scare, the emergency c-section, everything. I will go to my grave grateful for those moments.

On this day, 5 years ago... I called my mom at 6 am to tell her my water had broken. And even though she was a state away and supposed to go to work, she found a replacement and got in the car and drove a 3-hour trip in a little more than 2 hours to be there.

On this day, 5 years ago... Handy Man barely made it in time for his son's birth when the antepartum nurse failed to mention the severity and timeliness of the situation, leading Handy Man to believe he had time to run through a drive-through. Handy Man balanced the world on his shoulders in those days, and I still wonder how he held himself and all of us together.

On this day, 5 years ago... a baby boy was born. Silent. A neonatal team whisked him away and immediately worked their magic.

On this day, 5 years ago... a man we call "Dr. John" fortuitously was the attending in the NICU. He made some calls that day that still matter... to this day. We will never forget him or what he did on that day (and on the many to come) that changed the life of a child and his family.

On this day, 5 years ago... I learned tough new words. I entered the life-changing war zone called the NICU. No one who goes through those doors comes out the same person. If baby is there for a week or a year, it is a tough place to live... even for a day.

On this day, 5 years ago... our son survived his premature birth. We wouldn't fully understand what that meant, or how critical those first hours were until much later. Starting on that day we learned to appreciate grams, breaths, ounces and minutes.

On this day, 5 years ago... I made a resolution to never forget NICU families and how much that baby boy overcame to be who he is today. Trouble ultimately spent 3 months in the NICU - coming home on his due date, weighing 5 lb and 1 oz.

*

On this day, 4 years ago... we celebrated a first birthday. Our infant son weighed about 12 lb, and had recently learned to sit on his own. He was on oxygen, high calorie formula, and rarely left the house. He was meeting miletones, although delayed, and was a beautiful, happy, baby boy.

On this day, 3 years ago... our boy turned 2. At 18 lb, he was crawling, but not yet walking. He had a handful of words. He would finally walk a few months later, and put words together to communicate. He was still on oxygen, still rarely left the house. He was bold, happy, and charmed the world with his dimple and lashes. He became drug free this year - a huge milestone.

On this day, 2 years ago... our sweet, now bespectacled toddler turned 3. He was about 20 lb, still on oxygen - and would be until Independence day. That year freedom really rang for Trouble when he was finally able to take off his oxygen cannula. He was 38 months old.

On this day, 1 year ago... 4-year-old Trouble blew out the candles on his birthday cake for the very first time. He was surrounded by those who mean the most to him - his cheerleaders, family and friends - who got to witness a milestone that so many take for granted. Untethered by tubes, he ran around the playground with his friends, ate cake with his Nanie, and had the best birthday party a kid could have.

On this very day... our Trouble turns 5. He is an absolute miracle of a child. He weighs in at a whopping 26 lb, and although he may look like a toddler to those who don't know him, he is strong and scrappy. He has overcome more in 5 years than many will in a lifetime. He loves life! And we know that because of people like Dr. John and nurse Diane, his cheerleaders, friends, family and loved ones - that this is only the beginning of a very happy ending.

On the warming bed, in the NICU, 1 week old.


1st time Daddy holds him 2 1/2 weeks; Blanket made of washcloths. Nitric oxide.


NICU Homecoming - 3 mo old - with a 12" ruler.


Age 2


Age 3


Age 4


Age 4

HAPPY 5th BIRTHDAY, TROUBLE!

Friends 'n' Rock Gardens

These are my favorite pics from this week.

We had friends over and I'm not sure who had more fun, Handy Man or the 7 kids running through the house! Our friends are just perfectly Trouble's size. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. ;)





And guess what! Guess who won't be the scourge of the neighborhood anymore? Well, we still might be. We're not sure we can keep anything alive. Maybe that's why Handy Man had 6 huge rock sculpture things delivered. What will Mr. Perfectly Manicured Lawn think of rocks in our garden?. As for the living plants... well, time will tell on that one. Handy Man has never planted a thing in his life. My experience? I once planted tulips. The squirrels dug them up and the deer ate them. It was a raging success. ;) But don't my menfolk look awfully handsome working in the yard?

Interview with a Boybarian

Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?

Einstein: I really don't know. I mean, there are a LOT of choices, Mom. And I'm seven. Seven! How in the world is a seven-year old supposed to know what he wants to do for-EVER?! Well, I am almost eight. Perhaps an astronaut like Mars Mission? Maybe I could build houses like Dad. I just really don't know... (he keeps talking and talking and talking... so I go on to the next kid.)

Picasso: I like farms, Mom. I think I'll be a farmer! (as he stares longingly out the window at a HUGE tractor in a field.)

Me: That's great, Picasso. Farmers are out-standing in their field. Get it? Outstanding? Out standing?

He doesn't get it.

Einstein is still rambling on about the 33rd career choice he is considering, and is oblivious that everyone else has stopped listening somewhere around his 9th consideration.

Me: Trouble? What about you? What do you want to be when you grow up?

Trouble: Indiana Jones!

Six More Weeks of School!

I find this almost impossible to believe since it feels like we are just overcoming winter. Spring has sprung! I couldn't be more excited about the upcoming promise of warm weather... just could. not. be.

We are scheduled to finish our school year at the end of May. I can't believe that's so soon! We school mostly year round so we can take off for unexpected hospital visits, fighting burn out, days of nice weather, etc. We get so few warm outside months here in the Arctic Tundra Iowa, that we really need to enjoy those days when we get them. Either that or convince Handy Man to move us to North Carolina or Texas. ;)

So what have we accomplished in school this year?

Math: Einstein finished 2a, 2b and most of 3a. He also did Horizons Grade 2. He may even finish 3a yet this year. He is still just 7, so I'm not terribly excited about him starting 4th grade math while still 8 years old. I am so afraid of what will happen if he is ready for algebra in 5th grade. We took 8 weeks off doing his books (facts only) and he is still plowing through. Picasso dilly-dallied his way through 1a and most of 1b. He may or may not finish 1b by the end of May. I'm not terribly concerned, because if he were in public school he'd be a kindergartner. Again, I don't see any benefit of my 6 yo doing 2nd grade math. We will continue at his pace and pick up where we left off in 1b in July. I do not add Horizons for him because it takes him a long time just to complete his Singapore books. He is still working on pencil skills.

History: Gracious. The theme of history this year is TANGENT. We love love love Story of the World. It is a great launching pad into a billion other subjects. We are still in the times of knights and castles. But the boys are absolutely loving it! I won't hurry them along while they are still soaking and learning. I've abandoned the idea with will finish these books in a year. There's just too much and I'm not in a hurry. I love that they want to talk about catapults and defense systems, chivalry and feudalism. I asked them if they wanted to eat like a medieval family, then horrified them with what exactly that meant. We talked about the plague and rats. This led to talk about blood, DNA, dinosaurs, if Jurassic Park could really happen, and how diseases are spread. Again, tangent. We will pick up SOTW 2 where we left off and just plan to lolly-gag our way through next year, too. I don't see SOTW 3 getting any less interesting... so I plan for that to be 1.5-2 years, too. Fun!

Reading: I've been terrible about updating my sidebars, but we have really enjoyed our read alouds this year. The boys look forward to it as their favorite thing. Einstein has also taken a big leap this year in independent reading, doing Ralph Mouse series, the Hardy Boys (thanks Nanie!) and even few of the Narnia chapters. Picasso is also progressing well, preferring anything about Star Wars, or the Narnia readers. He is well beyond Dick & Jane and Nate the Great but not quite ready for bigger chapter books. That'll be the goal for the 2008-2009 school year.

Writing: *sigh* I think I mostly dropped the ball on this one. We were great about copywork until about February. And just when we should be upping the game, we abandoned it completely. I suppose I ought to use the last 6 weeks to reign in the last of it. Einstein is much more willing to take risks than he once was. He has also finished many of the Explode the Code books. We will pick up with ETC 7 and 8 after summer break. Picasso finished ETC 1 and 2. We will see how far he gets in ETC 3 before summer break. We'll continue the series. Explode the Code has been excellent for them. I can't remember why I ever stopped this series to begin with.

Science: Science started off as a trimester on birds, and then we mostly explored topics as they came up. We use Discovery Streaming Education. We've watched educational videos about habitats, animals, environments, animals, Australia, Oceans, the Polar regions, and the African Savannah. We also have several books they've read - of their own choosing - that definitely fall in the science category. Einstein made a book with bird illustrations, too. I can't wait to get it bound. He really wants a new digital camera for his birthday... so if he gets one... I'll let him add bird photos to his book before we bind it.

Preschool: Trouble, Trouble, Trouble. He is just his own little creature. I wish I had known about the Handwriting Without Tears preschool program when my other guys were little. It's so much more than writing. It's been a huge success for him. Through this I have learned that music gets through to him! I can get him to remember anything if we put it to song. I am now picturing him at 35 singing his phone number and social security number (eek!) but whatever works, right? He has taken great leaps and bounds. And while he cannot name any letters yet, he can match them 100% accurate, which proves he is paying attention to their details. He can also count/add with manipulatives, and repeat a 6-8 bead sequence. He still won't have anything to do with the playdough for the roll-a-dough letters... but slow and steady wins the race.

All in all it's been a great year. We've plowed through burn out, survived a week with Trouble in the hospital, and spent the entire month of March passing around germs. But regardless, we've grown up, explored great topics, made great strides and survived another long, cold winter inside. RSV season is over and it's time for the Boybarians to come out of hibernation and finish the rest of the school year with a bang. I love home education!

Week's Up!

It's been a busy week. The three days away last week were fantastic but it took seven to play catch up. I haven't had a ton of time for blogging but I did want to come share my favorite pictures of the week. Trouble shows off his getting dressed skills, then he gives a thumbs up for Lowe's new carts. He was so tuckered out after a morning of errands, he fell asleep like this in his car seat.

Long Overdue Easter Pics

Weekly Silly Report

Trouble's preK stuff arrived in record time. I placed the order late on a Monday night (after hours) and it was on my doorstep on Thursday morning. I love speedy shipping. It makes me wonder why anyone bothers to go to brick'n'mortars anymore. ;)

We've been working on Same or Different, puzzles, fine motor things like stringing beads and Cheerios, following sequencing patterns, and memorizing preK songs and rhymes: Baa Baa Black Sheep, Jack and Jill, Humpty Dumpty, etc





I sooo tried to get a video to show his progress but he couldn't get over the sillies. He kept stopping mid-song to say things like "stinky socks!" or "underpants!" then break into hysterical laughter. He is such a performer. This is what he did when I asked him to show everyone what he can do... he mysteriously fell fast asleep...

The other boys are hanging at status quo. Long division is finally clicking and happily so - we've been doing problems on the dry erase board. We haven't transitioned to paper yet. Picasso is relectuantly moving through his school work, preferring to play at every moment. If I turn my eyes, he is instantly off track. I think we're ready for a break soon.

Now if only we could lose these barking coughs...

"Boybarians" is not JUST a Moniker

I'm not sure why Handy Man wanted to photograph the boys while they were eating, but I saw this one and thought it captured their 3 little personalities so well.
Einstein sits, as the oldest boybarian, smiling obediently into the camera. On his plate sits only plain "chicken", cooked seperately from the other food (it's really pork, shhhh!). He takes a bite and drinks as quickly as he can. Such a picky eater.

Picasso, clueless that he's getting his picture taken, sits in the clothes he put on before bed so he'd be "ready in the morning." Not sure for what. He insists on wearing a polo shirt buttoned to the top. He's got Gap khakis on, too. He never looks at the camera. His "chicken" is really just a vehicle for all the BBQ sauce.

Trouble. Our little ham. In front of him is: a bowl of fruit loops from his afternoon snack, his second serving of rice, two different drinks, a cherry pie and a small pile of Legos. As soon as the camera comes out, he starts working for that Oscar. His tongue goes out, fingers go up, and out comes every goofy face the kid knows. He cracks himself up... see?


He cracks me up, too. 'Cept when he does this:

Trouble's PreK Learning Tools

Blogger's photo uploader crashed over the weekend, so I've not been able to get this post up. I've been hesitating to blog too much, but I know there are other parents out there that struggle with what to do and how to teach their children who don't follow a normal learning curve.

Over and over medical professionals tell me what a miracle it is that Trouble walks, talks, and breathes. Recently, Trouble was examined by an older doctor - someone who has been in this business a long, long time. He told me, "When I read his medical records, saw this boy's history... well, this is not the boy I expected to see. He is a medical miracle."

And while it takes my breath away each and every day the boy who he is, I am still the one (along with the loving support of Handy Man) who has to help guide and teach him to become the man he is meant to be.

This task feels gargantuan.

I have been pouring myself into forgetting everything I once knew about early education, and trying to relearn from the perspective of a special little boy who needs *more*. Most kids pick up things like letters, numbers, and skills necessary for life from everyday life. This boy has proven over and over that he is not just any little boy. ;)

I have researched Montessori, independent learning centers, tactile learning, and incorporating advice from his occupational therapist. This is what we've come up with so far:

Abadaba Alphabet, book and CD

School Zone, Same or Different?

Kumon's First Book of Tracing

Kumon's Amazing Amazes

Kumon My 1st Cutting Book

Textured Tactile Letters and Numbers


Touch Boards

Zip Snap Button Buckle Lace Tie Manipulatives

Jumbo 15" letters for decorating

Handwriting Without Tears PreK and K materials





Lauri foam lacing, puzzle, tactile Primer Pack and Math Discovery Kit


My Little ABC Coloring Book

Bead and Rod Sequencing, Pattern Kit

Shape Sorting Clock

Window Clings to practice letters

Glue dots - fine motor

ETC Get Ready for the Code

ETC Get Set for the Code

ETC Go For the Code

Besides the regular preK skills, we will be focusing on life skills: dressing independently, brushing his teeth (without the tears), bring able to think through the steps of getting ready to leave the house, getting ready for bed, etc.

I will be adding Montessori resources, and hopefully incorporate the life skills from June Oberlander's Slow and Steady, Get me Ready.

It's a big task, it'll be a big year, but I think both he and I are ready.

Braving the Interstates in Iowa

About 3 hours into our normally only 2.5 hour drive, moving at about 15 mph on a major interstate, we had one of those scary driving moments. The roads were terrible; a layer of mushy, sloppy snow covered ice and frozen sleet. The semi ahead of us was spinning and no longer able to make it up the hill. That's when it started sliding back down toward our van.

Handy Man put our achy, old minivan into first and willed the van to move out of the way. The tires spun, the engine revved and the semi was sliding backward down the right lane of the interstate toward us. The left lane was moving, and Handy Man tried to get the van to catch a patch of snow and pull out of the way. We sat for what felt like an eternity in slow-motion spinning our tires uselessly on a patch of ice.

Just when I thought we'd be pushed back down the interstate by a 10-ton truck, the tires (recently replaced - thank you, Handy Man!) caught the snow and we pulled out of the way as the semi slid to where we were just moments before. I could tell Handy Man was near panic; it's one thing to have a semi heading right toward you, but when it's heading right for your entire precious cargo, 3 of which are young boys, it's an almost unbearable amount of pressure. He stayed remarkably calm, considering the potential danger we were in.

It's amazing what northern drivers put themselves through each year. I have had more than enough of this weather. If it wasn't absolutely necessary to travel in the snow I would avoid it entirely. Thursday night however, was tricky. The weather wasn't nearly as dangerous near us, and we had to get Trouble to appointments on Friday at a Children's Hospital 150 miles from home.

I'm happy to report that we made it safely. It took us 4 hours to drive the last 120 miles of the trip. The boys were disappointed that the Ronald McDonald House was full and unable to accommodate us. We were able to stay at a hotel near the hospital that had a 100-foot waterslide. It was so much fun after a long day of grueling appointments to spend the next morning playing in the pool and sliding down the waterslide.

As for the appointments themselves, like any time one needs to spend an entire day at a children's hospital, it's never what a parent wants a child to endure. Trouble was a trooper for 8 solid hours of evaluations. It's more than any 4-year old should have to tolerate. He was so well-behaved and tolerant. Handy Man and I were so proud of him.

Mill Creek Academy 2008-2009 Academic Year

A curriculum post again. Feel free to meander on to the next blog on your list if curriculum posts aren't your cuppa. ;)

I think I've nailed down our choices for the boys' next school year. Our school year runs from July 2008 until May 2009. We use short but frequent lessons, focus on read alouds, and try to keep lessons under 3 hours a day so we have plenty of time to be boybarians!

Einstein - 8 years old

Phonics, Spelling, Writing & Reading:
Explode the Code - finish this phonics series
Spelling Wisdom - a Simply Charlotte Mason product. It's spelling via immersion. Not rote lists, but rich language and prepared dictation using today's 6,000 most frequently used words.
Writing Tales 1 - A beginning writing program. Gentle but thorough. You can see samples here.
Lively Latin - Unlike some classical homeschoolers, my goals for Latin are for grammar and vocabulary. I hope a couple years of early Latin will open doors for modern language learning of their choosing. We won't start this until the ETC series is finished. I can only handle so many language programs at once.
Evan Moor's Daily Paragraph Editing - Despite its title, I plan to use this only 1 or 2 times a week to spot common errors in writing, if I feel we get enough of this in WT1 we might use it during breaks. They are pretty short, basic paragraphs; most of them are only 4-5 typed lines.
Reading choices - I won't lay out an exact plan, as I will let their interests dictate, but we will try to get through many of the choices at Ambleside Online Years 2 and 3 (except for Pilgrim's Progress. Blech. We won't be reading that.), Sonlight Core 3 readers, and some from the Caldecott/Newberry List.

Math:
No big changes here. We will continue on with Singapore Math, 3b and 4a. We will do Primary Math, Intensive Practice and Challenging Word Problems 3. I am considering dropping Horizons since he finally has a good pace without all the extras I was using to slow him down.
Primary Grade Challenge Math, by Zaccaro. We love love love this.

History, Geography:
Some of Story of the World 2 will carry over into the next academic year. Over spring break, I will begin working on customized go alongs for SOTW 3 that incorporate Catholic history, historical fiction from Sonlight Core 3, art and artist history and biographies, as well as notable architecture aligned both chronologically and geographically with SOTW 3. These will feature books suggested by Simply Charlotte mason, Ambleside Online and Sonlight, as well as the Magic Tree House books because my 6 year old loves them. For American History, the list from A Book in Time is an excellent resource.

Science:
We are doing Earth and Space Science. We will be using Discovery Education Streaming (formally "United Streaming") as well as several reading books. I will post them on my sidebars as we get to them. We're using everything from Dr. Suess to Magic Tree House research guide to big inflatable planets from Learning Resources.
We will also be using the Earth Science part of the curriculum put together by Jessica of Trivium Academy. It can be found here.

The rest of the stuff we will outsource: Einstein will continue art classes at the art museum. He will take religious ed at the church. His PE interests this year are swimming, karate and fencing (?). I haven't found a place that will teach him fencing yet. Not sure why anyone wouldn't want to teach an 8 year old how to use a sword. ;) Also, as an extra curricular, he is hoping to join the Junior Lego league.

Picasso - 6 years/7 years old

Phonics, Copywork, Writing, Reading:
Explode the Code - continue to work through this series at his own pace.
Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading -he will not be quite finished by May. I hope to finish this in Fall '08.
Copywork - Happy Scribe copywork, as well as this, which was written by two homeschool moms and published on Lulu.com.
Reading: same as big brother, above.

Math:
Singapore 2a and 2b. We'll also do Intensive Practice and CWP 1. Like big brother, he will participate in the Primary Grade Challenge Math problems up to whatever level he can.

History and Science will be done with Einstein, same plans as above.

As for extra-curricular, this is my shy one and at this point he is adamant he will not do anything outsourced. I'm going to try to get him to do swimming. He attended art camp last year and announced at the end of it, "That was fun mom. I'm never doing it again."

Trouble - 5 years old

Trouble's needs haven't been assessed. I will have a plan for him soon. He will be a preK specialneeds learner. His goals for 2008-2009 include:
recognition of letters and numbers
writing his name
basic math using math manipulatives
letter sounds

***UPDATE - Trouble's PreK learning materials can be found here.

Phew! Did you get all that? It should be an exciting year here at Mill Creek Academy!

Just Like Daddy

For those who have asked about Wordless Wednesday,

No, the Ghostbusters shirt is no longer in my possession.
The year was 1985. I was 9. June-Bug was 8.
I think we were on vacation, and I have no idea what our parents were thinking.
And no. June-Bug doesn't know I posted the picture. Maybe I'll post a recent one soon, so I can redeem myself and show how cute she really turned out to be. And she no longer lets her belly show. She's decent like that.

So! Onward!

I really love when the boys dive right in and get involved with Daddy. Since Handy Man works uber-hours, we only see him in the evenings and weekends. A few years ago, we adjusted bedtimes back an hour when we realized bedtime was only 1 1/2 hours after his usual arrival home. This barely left time for hello, eating and running off to bed. The boys needed more daddy time.

Handy Man is a real hands-on daddy. He changed diapers. When most daddies would stutter and wage guesses, Handy Man knows what sizes his boys wear and about how much they weigh. He knows their diagnoses, what they're working on in school and when they have a bad day. He spends lazy Sunday afternoons putting together complicated Star Wars Legos. When I took on part-time employment, he took over the bedtime ritual. He reads the stories, puts boys in pjs, and tucks them in to sleep.

But nothing warms my heart more than when my beloved Handy Man tries to teach the boys the ropes at work.

So, Handy Man... is this how it's done?

Since You Asked

Occasionally, I get questions in my comments or via email about things I've rambled on about here on my blog. So you want to know... here are the answers. Have more? Email me, and perhaps I'll get to them in the next installment.

How do you find out how people find you?

I happen to use Stat Counter and MyBlogLog. But there are hosts of free counters that can track traffic on your blog. Just Google "free stat counter" and pick one that suits you. They tell you super strange stuff, like the screen resolutions of your visitors or what browser they use. But it also tells you interesting things like the cities, states, providences and countries your visiors are from. Waving to Pago, Pago, American Samoa, Greece, and South Africa. Sometimes it's just cool to see how small the world really is. It also, much to my mad giggles, tells you what keywords people use to find you. Those are just funny.

What in the world is Trouble eating?

Do you not recognize the nutritious Boybarian staple, Toaster Strudels??? The Wildberry flavor happens to have neon blue frosting.

Are you going to interview the other boys or Handy Man?

Ummm... eventually they'll each hold still long enough for an interview. The worst is actually Handy Man. He's a workaholic and goes and goes and goes until he falls asleep. Often standing up. I happened to catch Trouble in the bathtub where he can't run away. Isn't that a great trick?

Do you charge for design work?

This is Handy Man's biggest pet peeve with me. Seriously. Ask him. I am trying to build a portfolio and some credibility. But it takes a lot of time to makeover a blog. I hope to eventually turn the design work into some book money to help offset homeschool expenses. Many of my loyal readers are homeschoolers so they get it, but unlike public schools, we have to pay for things like microscopes, globes, maps, and books. And even though we pay taxes to the public schools and not use their services, we don't get any credit to offset our expenses. This is a voting year, so you can bet my ideal candidate hopes to provide some tax relief to homeschoolers. Anyway, that turned into a tangent. The short answer is: No I don't... but that window will be closing shortly. I can't work for free much longer or Handy Man is going to take away my beloved toys.

What is the story behind yours and your grandmothers' names?

My name is Darcy. My grandmothers are Marcy (Marcella) and Darlene. My great-grandmother's name was Lee. I think you can figure out the rest.

How long did Trouble spend in the NICU? How long was he on oxygen?

Trouble spent 3 months at birth in the hospital in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit). He spent over 3 years - 38 months total - on oxygen with tubes up his nose and dragging tanks everywhere. It was a very hard time for our family, so I don't blog about it much. If you want to read more about Trouble's rough start you can read the essay, "Why I Missed My Own Son's Bapt