Marblehead, Ohio

The whole family got geared up and loaded into my parents' 12-passenger van (affectionately known as the Swagger Wagon) for our long-weekend trip to Ohio. I love how little Joe looked with his giant Boy Scout backpack and stack of books for entertainment. 

Our first day in Ohio, the "big kids" (aka the marrieds) explored Marblehead with Mum while Dad took the littles to Cedar Point. While exploring a lighthouse keeper's home, we stumbled on a Civil War reenactment. I had to laugh—I don't go looking for reenactments, but somehow reenactments always find me!

Next we headed into the very pretty town of Sandusky, where we visited a few parks and the local maritime museum. We learned that Sandusky was a major point of passage on the Underground Railroad—its code name was "Hope." Townspeople often hired runaway slaves to help them earn money for their journey North, local lawyers defended them in trial, and sailors and captains gave them transport to Canada. The town has a proud history of freedom, displayed in park statues and museum exhibits.

We could see Cedar Point across the water and we joked that we could see Caroline on top of the tallest rollercoaster. We stopped at Toft's Creamery for some of the best ice cream of my life before meeting up with the rest of the family.  The day ended with Mum's famous pulled pork sandwiches around the bonfire and a family singalong. It was perfect.

House Becoming Home

Frank and I finally opened our joint bank account on Saturday. We had been putting it off because of the bar exam. What a great feeling!

We also got new phones on Saturday—our first time having smart phones, and iPhones to boot. I'm so excited to discover the seemingly-magical world of iPhones. I've already been a lot more active on instagram since getting the phones (my username is tessciv if you want to follow :) ). Any favorite apps to recommend?

Most of my photos will probably be from my iPhone instead of my camera from now on. Ironically that probably means they'll be better quality—my camera is a dinosaur.

On Saturday night we babysat for my parents and had Joseph and Angela over for a sleepover. They were so excited.

I love this age. A little sassy, but so sweet and eager to help.

They gladly borrowed our slightly-too-big-for-them aprons and did the dishes:

Best helpers ever.

They got into our books while Frank and I were finishing up cooking:

This photo is awful and blurry, but it's my favorite picture of the night. Because you can see a tiny glimpse of the home I'm trying to create. Shelves of books, a map on the wall, the red couch I've wanted since I was a little girl, and a family learning and growing together. It's still very much a work in progress, but I love seeing how we're getting a little closer to it, day by day. (And I love that we get to borrow those two little ones to be a part of it every now and then.)

It Was the Happiest Day of My Life

On this day eleven years ago, my baby brother Joseph was born.

I was twelve and a half years old, and it was the happiest day of my life.

For years and years, my four sisters and I had prayed for a baby brother. Every penny tossed into a wishing fountain, every wish made on a star, all were for that one purpose—"I wish for a little brother."

Family lore includes many stories of this deep desire we all shared. There was the time that Dad asked us, jokingly, "Which would you rather have for Christmas: a puppy dog or a baby brother?" We all solemnly answered, "A baby brother," except for Caroline, the very littlest. She piped up, "I'll take the dog!"

I think my parents found out that Joseph was going to be a boy, but they didn't tell us until he was born. In fact, Dad played a trick on us. When he came to pick us up from school to see Mum and the new baby, he held up a pink card that said, "It's a girl." He meant it as a joke, but he didn't expect our reaction: we ran back into class and declared, "We have a new little sister!" Dad quickly cleared up the confusion—"No, it's a boy!"—and we ran to class again with the second announcement. Some of our friends thought our mom had had twins again!

We were so happy that day. I remember we danced and sang in the hospital room around Mum's bed. The nurses must have thought we were crazy, but oh, how we rejoiced.  For us those words from Scripture came alive—"For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given." No Hallelujah Chorus was ever sung more happily.

Joseph was the first baby I ever fell in love with, the first little one I had the privilege of helping raise. Now he is a big eleven-year-old, his top interests in life Madden football and playing soccer. But to me and his other sisters, he will always be that sweet baby we loved so much.

Happy birthday, my little Joe. As I always tell you, you're the best brother in the world.