New Hobby

I've taken up a new hobby in my spare time.  HA!  That made me laugh just to type it.  No, what I really mean is...I've found a new hobby to play at while neglecting other things I should be doing.

I received a couple of beading books last year for Christmas (2009) and finally got around to trying out a few things in time for January birthdays 2011.  Whaddaya think?

Hope you like 'em, 'cause that will cure my craft craving for at least six months.

Shoe Trend

This is the latest trend in footwear at our house.  Be sure to note that daughter shoes only come in various shades of pink.

Have I mentioned lately what an awesome man I married?

It's That Time Again

Beware!  Or be joyful.  The wonderful little thin mint fairies knocked on my door this past weekend, selling their deliciously addictive wafers.  And I for one am joyful!  Nothing quite like a refrigerated box of thin mints to keep a pregnant mommy's sanity from inching too close to the point of no return.  Thank you, cookie fairies.  Come again soon!

Look Who's Two!

So, I'm a little behind with this one...what's new?  We celebrated C's second birthday two weeks ago with a double party at her cousins' house.  Grandma didn't get the pink memo or else she would blend into the decor.

Elmo was a big hit with the birthday girl.  Fortunately, he has an off button.  Nobody to blame for that one but myself.

Seems too soon, but she's definitely rounding the corner out of toddler and into preschool territory.  Her vocabulary has exploded and it has been so thrilling to listen to real conversations between my girls as they work out a conflict or make up a pretend world together.  Granted, we still have to remind her to use her words instead of resorting to tantrums.  But the words are there and coming more fluently.  The last couple of days she has been so endearing, asking "Mommy, it okay I (fill in blank with innocuous play idea) now?"  Who doesn't want to grant the every wish of a 2-year-old who asks permission to do things?  She likes to argue, too, just like big sister who is teaching her most of her words.  Getting them bundled up to go out a few days ago, I pulled a hat onto A's head only to be told by little sister, "Achooilly, Mom, that my hat."

She's taken to singing, which is always a hoot.  Her favorite tunes are from Mary Poppins.  She'll waltz around the house singing, "spoonful of sooger....medsin down, medsin dow-own, medsin go down."  Or she might wake up in her bed singing, "go fly a kite, up the height, go fly a kite soaring."  She also likes the ABC song, but insists on singing it at the top of her lungs; more of a shouting really.

I'm not impressed with the recent napping developments.  She's decided that falling asleep on her own is no fun anymore and I have to stand by her crib, hand on her back for a good ten minutes or so to get her to fall asleep for nap time.  Otherwise, she'll play for over an hour in there, talking to Elmo, kicking the walls, shouting her ABC's.  I'm of the opinion that she's too young to give up napping, but I'd be fine if she would play quietly.  I can handle an afternoon grump if I've had my nap, but keep me from my nap and we've all got problems.  I'm trying to convince us both it's a phase and we'll go back to the usual routine before baby brother arrives.

She's a real snuggle bug, always wanting snuggles when anything is wrong, or even if she's just cold.  Her "hold you, Mommy" has changed to "hold me" but the pitiful look is the same.  So sensitive to the least little reprimand...that big pouty lip makes it hard to scold her.  She loves to pray at meals and bedtime, always the same as her first prayer when I was away for an evening, "Dear God, Mommy back soon, Daddy back soon, A back soon, amen."

Two years already.  Yet, it's hard to remember life before you, baby.  May God continue to fill your heart with song, your mouth with truth and our family with your sunshine.

It's a Boy!!

Looks like I'll be taking suggestions for a new blog title.  We're adding a blue arrow to this crazy train.

We found out this morning and could barely believe it.  But pictures don't lie and this baby definitely has outdoor plumbing.

As soon as we were done with the ultrasound, J and I went over to Target to pick out a little boy outfit.  I suggested maybe a little toy, too, to show our girls.  He knew immediately which little action figures he wanted to start collecting.  Never mind that it will be three years until the baby is playing with them..."by that time, we'll have the whole set," he said.

C still doesn't really understand what's going on, but A was thrilled.  She had decided awhile back that a baby brother would be fun since we already had a sister.

God is good, all the time!

If I Had a Nickel

Have you seen this hilarious video?

I'm only four years into being a mom and already, I sooo relate.  Wish I could cash in on the following phrases I say at least eleventy-seven-thousand times a day:

• Turn your volume down.
• No taking.
• Use your words.
• Are you sharing?
• Eat.
• Choose to obey.
• Obey right away.
• I can't understand you when you whine.
• What are you supposed to be doing?
• Wait nicely.
• No fingers in noses.
• Stop picking your nails.
• Put your knees down.
• That is not a jungle gym.
• Stop stretching out your shirt/pants/socks.
• Do you have stinky pants?
• Don't bang the table!

I know the list will only change as they get older; I will always repeat myself.  But I am really ready for them to hear some of these already!!  Sheesh!

Make it Stop!

I've said for a long time that my four-year-old has the mouth of a teenager.  The sass and backtalk that she reserves for her mother keep me awake at night, scared of the potential for venomous growth by the time she is 16.  You don't believe me because she is all smiley and cute to everybody else.  I know this is my payback for all those horrible things I said when I thought my mom couldn't hear.  (I'm so, so sorry, Mom.  But please, is there any way to make it stop?)

She has mastered the art of dramatic over-generalizations.  For example, I will say, "Please put your shoes and socks on so we can leave."  To which she will reply, "Okay.  I'll put my shoes and socks on and never, ever play again for the rest of the year!"  Or I'll suggest, "Don't lean into your sister's seat like that if you don't like her smacking you in the head."  She will counter with, "Do you only always want me to sit up straight like a robot and never, ever move?!"  (To which I will answer, "yes, please" which probably doesn't help.)  Or how about, "You have lots of stuffed animals; there is no need to fight over that particular puppy dog."  "Then I'll never have a turn, and she'll always have it and I'll never see it again ever!"

I kid you not.  I have added no extra "never/ever/always/only" for effect.  I really don't know where she is getting this, but more importantly, I don't know how to make it stop.  It's constant throughout our day, so pervasive that her little sister has started mimicking her to make her angry, "never, ever," with scrunched up nose and forceful voice.  I've started asking her if she is telling the truth, speaking with respect and love.  She always answers no, but I don't know how long it's going to take to break this really nasty habit.  And what kind of consequence do you give for dramatic sarcasm?  Help, Lord Jesus, help!!

What Are You Up To, God?

There is a memorial service today for a local father of four boys ranging from age five to twelve.  I didn't know him very well, but had the opportunity to be glancing friends with his wife over the last 18 months.  She passed away three months ago.  I've been wrestling with this tragedy for the last few days, knowing God is sovereign.  Yet in my finite understanding, I can't help but ask, "Why? What?!"

To my knowledge, this couple did not have the personal relationship with God that I cherish.  It was my desire to share His love with this mom who God introduced me to.  We came from very different backgrounds, had vastly different life experiences, and as a result went about doing life in different ways.  I struggled to find common ground.  It wasn't natural, easy or comfortable.  I confess I did not pursue her the way Christ pursues me.  And I don't know what to do with that.

I don't profess to be the lynchpin that failed; I know God wasn't dependent on me.  But I think He's okay with me feeling the sting of regret.  Why do I hesitate to share the most important thing in my life?  The relationship that defines my core values and influences every decision I make?  Why do I hide my light under a bushel?  Why am I afraid that my God will offend?  Or that He cannot redeem any misrepresentations I may make?

I will pray for those boys for the rest of my life.  I think about them every night as I go to sleep and will for a very long time.  I don't know what God is up to in their lives, but they are seared into my heart.  I pray somehow they will know God's love despite their tragic childhoods, that they will be protected from the enemy who wants to use this to drive them away from their heavenly Father.  I pray God will overwhelm them with believing friends and neighbors who will share His healing love.  I pray I will see them one day in heaven and rejoice at how much greater my God is than my faith.

All Clear

I think we are safely out of the stomach bug war zone.  We sheltered in place all day Saturday and Sunday, hoping that we would contain any fallout if the rest of us were going to get sick.  So far, so good.  And praise God for that because we were getting a smidge stir crazy.

I failed to mention in my previous post how thankful I am for the heroic captain God has posted at the head of our family.  J was so awesome that night.  He came home immediately when I texted him with the crisis.  As soon as he got home, he checked on our little sickie then came to scrub the carpet with me.  He was up bringing fresh supplies every time I got up with A for the rest of the night, always compassionate and gentle.  He did all the grunt work the next day to get that bunk bed really clean, not to mention the disgusting nightmare it took to get the tub clean.  He really was our hero!

I failed to blog in a timely manner that we just celebrated our 13th anniversary at the end of December.  I'm so, so, so grateful to serve in the trenches of parenthood by your side, J.  You make it all bearable, even joyful.  I cannot fathom doing life with anyone else.  God knit us together in His perfect plan and I pray He continues to conform us more to His image every year we are together.  Love you more than much.

Not What I Had Envisioned

This time yesterday, when I was thinking through my weekend, I could not have envisioned what I've been doing.  I turned my light off last night about 10:30 pm.  J came in at 11:30 pm to tell me he was headed up to a local coffee shop to play dominoes.  Count with me...one hour of sleep.  I woke up at 12:30 am to the sound of A crying and coughing in her bed.  She runs to my room to tell me she's throwing up.  Oh, joy.  So concludes hour two of sleep.

Bless her little heart, she was so proud of herself that she only threw up on the ladder of her bunk bed.  Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we had sickness from a height.  That equals distance.  And contrary to her understanding, ladders do not in and of themselves contain liquids.  However, toy baby cribs situated below the ladder full of Littlest Pet Shop pets do.

It was 2am when J and I finally crawled into bed after cleaning it all up.  About 15 minutes later, she started again.  Fortunately, she was on the floor in our room in a sleeping bag and we were well-armed.  So, we rinsed and repeated for a few hours.  I was wide awake by this point and didn't drift off to sleep until sometime after 5am.  C decided to scare the living daylights out of me by waking up crying and coughing at 6am.  I ran to her room expecting the worse, but she was just ready to get out of bed.  I told her she had to stay in bed until the sun came up, sang her a song and tried to catch a few more winks.  We'll be generous and add another hour to the sleep count.

C really was done sleeping at 7am, so we got up and watched Mary Poppins.  A woke up around 8am and we started the movie over again.  Never enough Poppins.  After the movie, I thought it was a good idea for A to have a bath.  Into the tub they went.  Meanwhile, J was disassembling the top bunk so I could get at the final crevices.  We got that done and I turned to wiping down all the hard surfaces in her bedroom.  I was wiping down a drawer handle when I heard, "There's poo poo in the tub!"  I totally ignored that announcement.  J just froze.  I thought surely if I ignored it, it would cease to be true.  Not so.  I guess C was feeling left out of all the laundry and disinfecting.  Two girls out of the tub, one husband standing in dismay looking at said contaminated tub.  We both look at each other and bust out laughing till we're crying.  (As I'm typing this, he said, "You know it's been a long night when you laugh at the word 'contaminated.'")

I ushered the girls to my shower, praying that C didn't pee along her naked way.  I got to the bathroom behind them and she's standing over a puddle.  Seriously?!  I asked her if she peed on the floor and she said, "No!" like that was the most incredulous thing I could ask.  I realized she was holding a dripping rag from the bathtub and chose to believe she had wrung it out.  While we were waiting for the water to get warm, she squeezed the rag again and says, "I pee-peed again."  Oh, isn't that so funny?!  No wait, there's more...

I wash C's hair and get a big glob of shampoo in my palm to start on A when C starts making moves like she's got business to do.  I whisked her out of the shower and onto the potty and tried to convince her to finish there.  Nothing doing.  I go back to the shower only to discover that A has commandeered the hand-held shower and is creating a lake on the bathroom floor.  Will the mopping up never end?!!!

We are attempting lunch now.  Here's hoping the second half of the day stays drier than the first.