Armies everywhere used to march into battle with their standard bearer (the guy with the flag) right up front.  He was the visual proclamation of who an army was. He was absolutely essential in warfare, and darn near a required part of battle  He did not fight the battle himself, rather his job for the army was to bravely march forward announcing to everyone who saw him “this is who we are and what we stand for, by golly!”  There... Read more

Women are not sexually attracted visually.  We don’t see a beautiful man and think nothing but lustful thoughts for the rest of the day.  There’s a reason why there are no truly viable female alternatives to Playboy and the rest.  We just don’t work that way.  Men are attracted through their eyes and women through our brains.  Ask Cyrano de Bergerac and he would tell you, women need words, action, and a lot more words. This makes it difficult for... Read more

1. I picked up the baby yesterday morning. She studied my face for a moment. Her eyebrows raised as if to say “Hey…I know you!” and then she smiled with the whole of her face. What a happy morning. She knows who I am and she likes me! 2. The renters in our OKC house are insane with their expectations.  They want everything done yesterday, call or text a dozen times a day (on Thanksgiving) until they’re done, and complain... Read more

Whenever #7 and I leave the house to run errands, I do most of the running and she rides along happily in her sling.  She snuggles in and snoozes while the grandmothers we pass sigh in appreciation and a bit of envy at the sight of the little pink bundle which I am privileged to get to carry.  But yesterday…yesterday three different women at different times came up to me to take a peek and all three jumped when #7... Read more

When you’re not cool enough for 7 on Friday. 1. It’s still Christmas, y’all.  Are you still celebrating?  We’re taking a vacation from school until after the Feast of Epiphany on the 6th of January.   We’ve invited the neighbors for dinner on the 6th to celebrate the 12th day of Christmas.  I’m working on a menu but am having a hard time finding partridges or calling birds.  Do you have any menu suggestions? 2.  This Advent, I had the... Read more

A very merry Christmas from our house to yours! L to R: #4, #6, #1, #7, #5, #3, and #2 and the obligatory baby photo: #7 in her Christmas dress Read more

Sweet #7 is warm and snuggly and wonderful to hold and cuddle.  Her siblings fight with each other for the chance to let her curl up in their arms and nap.  She has no idea who they are. She looks long and hard at each face with a definite “Who the heck are you?” look snarling across her delicate features.  I’m not sure if she has bad eyesight or a short attention span (Squirrel!), but she can’t seem to place... Read more

Because my life isn’t interesting enough for seven on Friday with Jen, and because I count LarryD among my close friends. 1. The Computer Guy wass hunting this week in West Texas in a remote area with no cell phone access, so of course this is the moment when our 4 year old trips over a toy an whacks his head on the wall splitting it open. Head wounds bleed. A lot.  I’d heard that, but didn’t understand the truth... Read more

I’m not sure how she can be a month old already, but the calendar says it’s true. Read more

12 years ago this Friday, our #2 was born.  We had what we were told was the perfect family, “one of each,” and we readily agreed.  As the final lines of a poem which was penned by a coworker of the Computer Guy’s ended: “….Oh what joy,  you have a boy!  And so what fun  now that you’re done!” We were done.  We were certain of it.  There was a boy for him and a girl for me, and what... Read more