Barhorst Brewed: July 16-August 13

A lot has happened since my last post. Here is the overview, in no particular order.

The Matthias post is up. It's dated July 11, so you might have to scroll a bit to find it unless you use the link.

Gretchen does not accept "hmm" as a response. If she says "Mommy," she requires art the very least a "What?" in response, and prefers a complete "What do you need, Gretchen?"

Matthias had an appointment on July 20. He's back up past his birth weight, coming in at 9 pounds and 7.5 ounces. He also got a little longer, measuring 21.5 inches. Everything else looked good, and the doctor was very excited that the girls have a brother.

Kaitlyn is suddenly terrified of the chickens that live nearby. She used to love watching them, but then one day she came running around the corner of the garage, a look of terror on her face, shouting about how the chickens were going to get her. Ever since then she has been worried about the chickens chasing her, even when there are no chickens visible.

A common phrase out of Kaitlyn's mouth these days is "I can't do it, I too little." She also likes to yell, "No! Don't ever, ever tell me!" I guess those are better than her phrase of choice a few weeks ago, which was "No, Mommy, I won't do it."

We went to camp during the last week of July. Since it was placed conveniently close to us, we drove in each day rather than staying in the cabins. The plan was to put the kids down to sleep in the Bossard cabin and then transfer them at night. After the first night when the girls and their cousins kept each other awake way too late, Bryan decided it would be a better plan to employ his mother as a babysitter. Each day when the girls got crabby (usually around naptime), Bryan would pack them up and drive them to his parents' house, coming back in time for dinner. We were then able to enjoy games and conversations with all the relatives unencumbered by whiny children. Instead of heading north to our own house to sleep, we went south. It worked so well that Bryan wants to know how often we can host camp and put it near our house without arousing suspicions.

Matthias and Dorothea were baptized on Saturday, July 29. Dad did the baptizing at St. Stephen during a baptismal liturgy. Everything went well. My favorite part was during the actual dunking of the babies: Matthias was first and was calm while we unwrapped him from his blanket and took off his diaper. When the water splashed on his head, he started crying. Dorothea must have been paying attention, because she started crying as soon as her blanket was removed. It's like she knew that she would be suffering the same fate as her cousin. :) We had about 80 people come over to our house afterwards. There was sufficient food (a minor concern, since Bryan didn't believe us when we told him how much to buy the day before; we sent him back for more). People visited through the afternoon, and most were gone by dinnertime. My family stayed around for a few more days, trickling away over the next week.

The day after the baptisms was the parish feast day and picnic. It also happened to be Fr. Mark's last day, so everything was a bit crazier than usual. We brought camp and baptism leftovers to contribute to the potluck, and several of my siblings purchased things in the auction. Olivia also bought something, snagging a pretend pizza kit (with much prodding by Bryan, who made her do all her own bidding).

We have a dining room now. Carroll made us a new table, having it ready for our influx of people just before camp. We asked for it to comfortably seat 4 on the long sides and 2 on the short ones. It is wonderfully spacious and has plenty of room for serving dishes in the middle of the table. Bryan and I went out an bought a light to put in our new dining room. Luckily, all the wiring was already done. He hung it up in the middle of the room on Monday, mom and I rearranged the furniture that evening, and then the night before the baptism he used the chain to secure the light to a hook over the center of the dining room table. It looks quite nice, and I enjoy having a more open space in front of the back door. This past week I was able to fill in the cracks and knots with wood filler (to keep crumbs out), and we plan to add a few layers of semi-gloss (on top of the already existing satin finish) now that the wood filler is done. The next dining room related project is to get chairs and benches since we sent our old ones to join the old table at the Bossard house.

Olivia had a birthday on August 3. She's six now, and seems very old. As is the custom in my family, she received a watch for her sixth birthday. Pink with princesses, the watch is an exciting accessory above and beyond its ability to tell time. She is also interested in the time telling capabilities. She is also the proud owner of several new books, some of which she can halfway read herself.

Our dishwasher decided to stop cleaning dishes right before camp. After things calmed down a bit, we thought about buying a new one, but decided to see if we could fix it first. I used some lime away, baking soda, good detergent (rather than store brand), and several empty washes to bandage up our dishwasher enough that it cleans adequately if it is not loaded too full. We're hoping it will limp along for a few more months before it finally quits on us.

Our van has been leaking power steering fluid and (we suspected) coolant. I was able to take it in to the shop last Thursday and all of its leaks have been stopped. It is much more pleasant to drive now, and we're glad to not have to worry about the engine smoking anymore.

Poor Kaitlyn is more mosquito bite than little girl. Part of her problem is that she likes to be in the baby swing outside. She climbs in and closes the tray and then can't get out. A few times I've found her napping in there, a veritable mosquito buffet.

Pictures:
Such a big boy! Going to church, 5 days old: