All Things Weasley

We adore the Weasley Family from the Harry Potter Books, and we take delight in being compared to their family. Once the twins were born, the comparisons between the two families increased exponentially. And then there is our camping tent, which is an enormous two room Columbia and is referred to within our camping community as -- I'm certain you see where this is going -- the Weasley Tent.

Scott came upstairs the other day to walk into our bedroom where he found the pictured plates and bowls exactly as you see them here. I had carried them upstairs and simply set them on a chair in our bedroom before walking away. I truly cannot count the number of times I have walked passed them and not really noticed anything about the stack other than to think: those really need to be listed on Craigslist so we can get rid of them. Then, Scott came in one evening, paused, and then knelt down to really study the discarded dishes. His observation caused quite the bubble of mirth from both of us: "That is a tower of bowls in the Weasley home if I ever saw one!"

He's right, of course. Bowls would be stacked in just this manner in Molly Weasley's kitchen. And, of course, the shelf wouldn't truly be able to hold much more than the weight of a feather but for the magic used to strengthen it. The description of the Weasley home is really nothing like or own home. There is no pile of Wellingtons just outside the front door. We tend towards flip-flops and Crocs or snow boots. We also do not have an infestation of garden gnomes. We are simply overrun with Voles, one of whom ran across my foot two days ago while waiting for a Rutherford Straggler to come out of the house on the way to swim practice. (Eww.) We also lack the precarious leanings of a home obviously held together by magic. But after fixing two toilets this week as well as battling an invasion of ants I would give just about anything for a bit of magic to hold our house together!

I think that which appeals to us about the Weasley family is their obvious closeness and their devotion to one another. They fight evil together (Mostly. To be called Percy is the ultimate insult here in Rutherford-dom.) and watch over one another. They laugh together, learn together, work together, and play together. In all ways their unique largeness as a family resonates with what we actually experience around here. In my opinion, it is the ability to write such utterly believable characters which makes JK Rowling's books so wonderful.

Ever since Scott snapped the photo of our Weasley dishes, I have found myself noticing other "Weasley-Inspired" objects scattered through our home. Unfortunately, I haven't located any of Ollivander's wands, though. That would really be helpful.