Monday, October 21, 2013

Thorns and Roses

Good and bad, good and bad. Every day. One of the neat tricks up our family's collective sleeve is "Thorns and Roses." During dinner, instead of listening to the boys drone on an on about Soul Split, or watching Isaac stuff broccoli in his diaper (both equally entertaining) we play a game called "Thorns and Roses." One by one, we tell our thorn for the day, and our rose. Only rules: the events have to be from that day, and you have to participate, and you have to listen politely. We learn a lot about each other this way. And dinner is that much less chaotic. Which is like saying the hurricane was only a small one. Better than nothing.  


As part of his homeschool, Joseph has been finding recipes
and cooking them for us.
Piggy Pot Pies!



Thorns and Roses 
(and pictures)

AnneMarie: My rose was saying riddles on the boat ride. My thorn was when Jude hit me on the head. 

Did I mention Joseph shaved his head bald with Jude's help.
Why? That's what I want to know.

Joseph: My rose was making Piggy Pot Pies. My thorn was that I fished for two hours and didn't catch anything.

Did I mention Peter is now either a gangster...

Or a real estate agent
Peter: My thorn was that I had to work today. My rose was that I got paid for it. (He just got a job being a sign holder! Talent!)

Jude still exists
Jude: [editor's note: Jude is usually banned from playing, or if he plays is usually excused from the table for the rest of the meal because (insert reason.)]My rose was that I pooped. My thorn was that it was in my pants.


Us: Isaac, what is your thorn?
Isaac: Six Forns
Us: What is your rose:
Isaac: Four rosey-poos


Obi: My rose was getting the beach path cleared off. My thorn was that I couldn't fix the scooter. (His answers always reflect what he did and did not accomplish.)


Me: My rose was seeing the Hunter's Moon set over the Gulf this morning. My thorn was yelling at everyone. (Ouch.)

This is actually last month's moon. So beautiful.
Daddy Daughter Dance
Momo: My rose was going on the boat ride. [We met an interesting guy who is all the more interesting because he owns a boat he can't wait to bring people out on.] My thorn was that my basket I tried to make didn't work and all the things I put in it just fell out over and over. [Cries softly thinking of it.]


Hope your day is filled with more roses than thorns!

Oh! And here is where we found the recipe for Piggy Pot Pies!

We did make a couple of changes to the recipe. Obviously, we baked them in muffin tins, which, in our opinion turned out really well. The recipe called for 1 lbs. of frozen chicken chunks. We boiled about two lbs. of chicken breast instead. We did use a bag of frozen vegetables instead of the fresh ones. Also, they created some pretty elaborate piggy faces that Joseph was not that interested in. He made simple faces of his own design and we think they turned out pretty cute.

12 comments:

  1. We do this too, but we call is High Low, the kids love it, even though a lot of times they say they have "No Low" and I'm always pushing them to dig deeper!

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  2. most endearing is this post....xxo

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  3. And I love this...for real.

    So much more meaningful than our, "Tell us all about your day!"

    Thanks, dear Bloggy friend. : )

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  4. What an awesome name for this game! We played a version of this growing up but I have yet to start it with my kids. Heaven knows I need more peace at the dinner table, so thank you!

    Um.... Joseph cooking dinner!?mill be right over. Jude! Oh, Jude. I love you, man.

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  5. Um...keep reminding yourself that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, since the Donaldson family dinner will now be featuring Rose and Thorn.

    I foresee my The Jude being banned as well. *sigh*

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  6. I can't help it, I truly wish we were neighbors - although the neighborhood may not be so happy! I love the piggy pies and the thorns and roses discussion for dinner. We do something similar, but I like your twist on this and will be giving it a try -thank you!

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  7. I've tried this before with my family but they never seem to get into it. I think I just really need to insist and make it a thing we do every night regardless. And please share the recipe for the Piggy Pot Pies. They look delish!

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    Replies
    1. Oh! Good idea, give credit where credit is due, I'll come back and put this in after bedtime tonight.

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  8. Piggy Pot Pie looks delish..I want some. Actually, I was a Joseph who will cook dinner for me.

    And, We are now going to be copying the Es family and playing Thorn and Roses at dinner as well. I forsee a major new fad starting among all the catholic blogging families who will now be playing Thorn and Rose everynight.

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  9. I love family traditions! And the pot-pies..yummy!

    Wish we had dad/daughter dances around here. Those are such a blessing and little girls always remember that.

    beautiful moon

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  10. Very cool. My cookbook stand that you gave me has always held my favorite cookbook, nourishing traditions. Tonight, it was replaced by Disney princess cookbook. There are some good recipes in there!

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  11. Love this! I ask the kids about the best and worst parts of their day but I might need to institute a "Thorns and Roses" policy just to get Andrew to actually talk about HIS day! Husbands are always the toughest nuts to crack :P

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