A Synopsis

Natalie, Aiden and Sarah have been here for a week and a couple of days. It truly has been a whirlwind of events and people. Where would I start to explain all that has gone on here at this wee li'l house? So, I'll just 'synopsize' this past weekend.

Thursday night was a hullabaloo with music lessons, then people gathering for the gathering, and Jon & Alicia and four kids arrived - it seemed all at once. Six children in a three bedroom house (one of which is an office), and 5 adults. What to do? Well, this house became a hostel for the next few days -- mattresses on the floor, couch, playpens...Afton sleeping in my king size bed with me for a couple of nights, a playpen at the end of my bed with baby boy Croy. A couple of nights I crawled across the bed to get to my 'position', because I couldn't get past the playpen. Plus I have all my office stuff stuffed in my bedroom! We have never had so many people sleeping in this house to date. Children everywhere. Reminds me of a nursery rhyme somehow. And the house looks like a toy factory, and I'm thinking of developing a floor wax made of spittle and Cheerios.

We even ventured into the rock wall basement for more play space. All three levels had a child on it at any point in time. I love it! But I can't imagine living this way EVERY day, as some people in the world do, I'm sure...

Friday afternoon was a family meal at Granny & Jed's with the clan and the Southshore Sister and my youngest sister. Saturday was the market (that was an historic event in itself, trying to manuever six kids through that fray. Then McDonald's Playland, and THEN....Costco on a Saturday afternoon. Oh my...

On Saturday night, more friends of our children came over for a meal with yet another baby, making seven. The logistics of serving a meal to that many children is unexplainable. Mass confusion. And my small kitchen exploding with tables, food flying, babies crawling. Well, you can just imagine. You can hardly move around without bumping into someone -- and all the mothers trying to serve food. I finally just slumped down in the corner by the fridge. When all else fails, go into a corner somewhere. After supper and all the kids were bedded down, with visiting baby Ruby in the laundry room (yes, the laundry room), the young adults and the middle-aged folk played Balderdash and 'pictures,' and laughed a lot til midnight. We love having people in our home. I just wonder why we didn't buy a bigger one. (of course, we had NO grandchildren when we bought this house seven years ago. You never know what life may bring -- maybe a bunch of babies!)

Sunday morning was like the Amazing Race, trying to get Jon's family out the door at 0800 so they could make it to their church in Florenceville on time. I was out in the yard with housecoat and slippers on, piling the kids into their van, passing them food and bristol board for their on-board crafts. Good thing I live in the city-country here in The Pines.

Well, that's just a brief synopsis of a people-filled weekend here at the li'l ol' house in The Pines.