Couldn't Make It Up If I Tried...

So Boo was talking on the phone this evening with her Granny and the conversation led to how excited they both were about Granny and Papa's trip at Christmas. Then Boo proceded to ask if Granny would be here in time to see her in the Christmas play at church. Boo became very animated and started tell dear old Granny all about it. Granny then asked Boo what part she was going to play, to which Boo proudly responded, "I'm going to be an illustrator."

Not sure how that quite fits in the Christmas story or where she even heard the word, but it made for a good chuckle.

Ring Pops

The Official Sponsor of Boo's Summer

The things warm fuzzies are made of...

Here's our big girl waiting in front of Old Faithful last month.

Grandma is here! Yeah!!! And shortly I need to create a post on all the wonderful and helpful things that 80 year old women can do, but that's for another day. That said, her presence made it possible for me to take only one child with me as I went to pick up pizza for dinner this evening.

Soaking up every moment of her time alone with Mommy, my four year old quickly announced as we pulled out of the driveway that she would be moving just down the hill from us when she's grown up. As the discussion progressed I found out that she plans to have a red house with blue curtains and a room with green sheets and yellow paint. I'm assuming that the Queen of Pink has decided that pink is not a mature color. Who knows? Anyways, apparently she will be taking her hamster with her because she will be able to take care of her all by herself which led to a discussion of how she plans to have a counter in her room for Little Leighla. I've decided not to tell her that apparently hamsters only live 2-4 years.

The whole moral of the story is that I was excited to hear what my little gal is thinking and was grateful for the opportunity to listen instead of automatically tuning out the "noise" in the backseat. I often think about the kind of people my kids will become, but now it's even better to hear her thoughts on the matter. I recently read an article that challenged parents as to whether they consider their children as God's gift to them or whether we consider them our gift to God.

Quick Notes

On May 17th, one of those things every mom hopes for happened. The girls played nicely together. It's not that they are in the habit of being mean to each other, it's just that Bella really hasn't been old enough to carry on many activities that would hold the attention of a 4 year old for more than 2 minutes. But on that evening, I just enjoyed folding my laundry and watching them sit at the head of my bed and play baby dolls together.

On May 18th, I was reminded that we need to further explain that more than one person can have the same name. When we leave town, Boo is always quick to ask are we back in (?) when we return. That's why I was so shocked when she hollered, "Are we still in Africa?" from the back seat as we left Bible Study that night. One of our friend's daughters is named Jennifer and apparently she confused that with the orphan in Uganda that we pray for every night named Jennifer.

It was also around this time that Bella became more sturdy on her feet. In fact she was walking by the time she turned 10 months old. Her pride in this new found power was exhibited though every time I tried to place her on the ground. Instead of just letting us sit her down, she would rigidly place her two cubby little legs down like tree trunks so she could stand.

And lastly on Wednesday May 21st, I realized just exactly what was important to Boo. Normally this child doesn't get up in the mornings till 8 or 8:30, but we'd been observing that she seemed to be getting up early every Wednesday to watch one of her favorite shows at 7:30. Our hypothesis was confirmed when she got up at 5:17 that morning wanting to know if Clifford Puppy Days was on yet.

We're weak and they know it...

Here's Boo in April, apparently doing an impression of

her Daddy when he was little. Although I'm informed

that his antics involved rolling up both his pants

and sleeves of his church clothes during the service.

So it was during that same week that I was sick that Boo took the opportunity to inform me that I hadn't slipped anything past her. Both of the girls and I were playing in our toy room on May 8th when Hurricane Bella started her usual destruction. And being foggy-headed from the immense sinus pressure, I have to admit that I wasn't particularly understanding of a big sister that had just lost her entire tea party with one swing of Bella's arm. Trying to quiet the blood-curdling squeals, I started to explain in a calm voice that the toys belonged to all of us and not just her.

Being just as coy, Boo decided to quiet down and snuggle into my side. Then in the sweetest voice she asked me, "Mommy, do you remember when Baby Bella was still in your belly?" And being the sucker I was, I sweetly responded yes and pulled her even closer. That's when she announced, "They were all my toys then."

Smart Kid

Contrary to what it might look like in this photo (taken in April), Bella is not impressed that she was born into a household with an extra pint-sized policeman. She's a bright little gal that is always trying to figure out how things work and so we weren't surprised when she found a solution to her problem the second week of May. It was around that time when she figured out that her sister couldn't pick her up if she held her arms straight up in the air. It was also during this week that she managed to figure out how to open up all of the closet doors and cabinets in the house. I was really sick for the second time this year, but I guess it's like they say, "No rest for the weary."

A picture is worth a thousand words...

I don't think we need to feel sorry for the little one.

Seems like she has everything figured out.

This was taken two weeks ago when we went to visit some dear friends over the Memorial Day weekend.

Too Big for Her Britches

This was originally posted May 21st.

I'm grateful that our oldest daughter has a birthday next week. I never thought I'd hear myself saying those words, but I'm getting really tired of being outwitted by a 3 year old. Today we were out running some errands in the car and it was one of those rare times when we weren't listening to Veggie Tales CD's or watching a movie on the DVD player. In fact I was pleasantly surprised that Boo didn't seem to mind me listening to Country Music. And then it happened, after two hours of being out and about and within 3 minutes of arriving home. A squeaky little voice from the backseat pondered aloud, "I don't think these songs are about Jesus, are they?"

Here she is enjoying the "Best Birthday Gift Ever." Thanks Grandma!

It's Finally Here

The waiting is finally over. After months of anticipation, Daughter #2 finally cut her first tooth on Monday, May 12th. It seems like she's been teething forever, but I'm actually grateful that the Good Lord decided to make her wait to achieve this milestone. I'm afraid there may have been much bleeding as many times as she falls and bangs into stuff. That said, she's officially taken 2-3 steps on her own this week. Watch out world! The Bear is loose.

As good as it's going to get...

We happen to live in a region that doesn't have very many trees and if you couple that with the fact we live in a newer subdivision, our kids don't really get a chance to get out and play in the Autumn leaves. Apparently ignorance is bliss though, because our soon to be 4 year old was incredibly happy to play in the piles of dead grass leftover from dethatching (sp?) the lawn this weekend. The $2 work gloves made for a very happy and proud helper.

I knew this would happen...

One of the reasons I was incredibly hesitant to start a blog was the fact I KNEW I'd drop the ball at some point. Well if you haven't noticed, that point came in mid March and I've been trying to get back on my feet ever since. The girls became sick in the middle of March and about the time we thought life was going to return to normal, dear hubby and I both fell ill. Poor him, he lost his voice on Easter and couldn't speak until he turned up at a conference a few hours away to give a scheduled presentation on the following Wednesday. We then had my grandma here for five weeks (which was WONDERFUL) and two days after she left I became sick again. Needless to say, it's been a busy spring.

On a lighter note, it's funny how being a parent changes all things. Apparently blowing my nose was a huge source of amusement for our 8 month old. And who knew that having a stuffed up nose would be so disasterous when it came to not being able to smell dirty diapers? I think the answer to that question is our parents. Just another bitter issue to talk about with the therapist.

What I accomplished today...

The last few months have truly been a series of one step forward, two steps back movements. And it's been HARD. It's made me question who I am and if I'm really doing a good job of being a wife, mother, friend, etc. More often than not, it's just doesn't seem like I'm good at this. Which then makes me crabby and impatient and thus perpetuates the cycle. That said, I've been trying to evaluate areas where I personally need to grow and change and also what my goals are and should be. I haven't had any major epiphanies, but this is how this evaluation is playing out in real life.

Both of the girls are sick and the baby kept me up most of last night. Poor thing is running a fever, has a river of snot flowing out of her nose, and has a horrible cough. Needless to say, she wants to be held all of the time. Big sister chose to not use the potty and managed to leak out of her Pull Ups right as the baby was getting comfortable nursing. Did I mention she had just used the potty not too long before that?

So I gave up. I decided the goal for the day wasn't to "get something accomplished." Instead we all got cleaned up and had movie day on the couch, complete with popcorn. Sure beats getting crabby.


My biggest accomplishment today was getting two sick and tired kids to take a nap in my bed. So there I was sandwiched between them with Daughter #1's right arm stretched across my neck from the left side and Daughter # 2 curled up in my right arm pit. And as I laid between them listening to them breath through their clogged up noses, I felt blessed. Blessed that I had the time to be there with them. Blessed to have a husband that understands. Blessed that he wouldn't mind picking up pizza on the way home.

The Good, The Bad, and The Funny...

Observations from the week of March 10th

The Good...

It's interesting the perspective that parenthood adds to our own comprehension of how much God loves us and is patient with us. The following verse is one I learned a long time ago, but I'm enjoying understanding it more as I watch our three year embrace the truths she's learning in our new church home.

Matthew 18:4 (King James Version) Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

I'm always a little amazed when I hear Daughter #1 joyfully exclaim, "I want to go to the Golden Palace and Streets of Gold where God and Jesus live." It's incredible to watch her wholeheartedly embrace going to heaven. She's not bogged down by "the cares of this world" like I so often am.

Last week I was talking to a friend about the faith of little children and I liked an observation she made. God hears all of our prayers, but answers those of little children in a quick manner as He knows that little children need to meet Him and trust Him. God also knows when we as adults need to learn patience.

The Bad...

Let's just say it's been a hard week, Dad's in the hospital, sleep deprivation, etc. On Tuesday, I really felt like the tiny thread that my sanity ever so carefully dangles from was worn and about to give. Then I had the pleasure of looking at this precious face, completely oblivious to all that was going on around her. She truly is our little bundle of joy.

The Funny...

About two weeks ago Daughter #1 almost had the potty thing down completely, only to "regress" here recently. On Wednesday she pretty much refused to use the potty except for one time. Upon sitting on the little potty, she proceeded to create Lake Urine (1 foot x 1 foot) on the bathroom floor. Lesson of the Day ~ Specifically tell your little ones to pee with their knees together. Just another one of those little things I'm sure her grandparents conveniently forgot to mention. :)

This Week's Mantra: Of all the things I've lost, I miss my mind the most.

Eternal Perspective

Happy 80th Birthday Grandma!

• The last month to 6 weeks have simply not been easy. I've joked about Groundhog Poo before, but the truth of the matter is that dealing with poo on such a regular basis is really starting to wear on my moral. Between potty training and leaky diapers, I'm constantly wondering what God is wanting me to learn from all this. Add an overflowing toilet on my birthday and I all but felt defeated.
• That said I LOVE being home with my girls and revel in the opportunity to share these quickly fleating days with them. Even when I feel I need a break, it's really not from them and it's hard to tear myself away. So I'm left to wonder over and over again, how these accidents can happen so often and what I could do to have a better attitude about it. But just trying to see the bright side of things only seemed to make things worse when the inevitable disaster occurred.
• This past Sunday at church our pastor used the analogy of his now well fed and spoiled former farm cat that no longer has any desire to chase mice to emphasize the point that as Christians our treasure is in heaven not here. That cat wouldn't chase mice because he knew he had a good meal waiting for him in the house. That's where his treasure was. I've frequetly thought how things like obsessing over my house (not the home, but the house itself) have kept me from focusing on storing treasure in heaven, whether that is teaching my girls or opening my home, etc.
• How that relates to poo is the perspective. Before thinking this through today, I thought maybe I might only be learning to love more by taking care of my girls in all their poo glory. I'm sure my Grandma took care of a whole lot worse as she nursed my Grandpa during his many years of illness. I know she's not perfect, but she's always been a great testament of love to me personally. Then I got to thinking of my Great Grandma and how grateful I was that she loved and nursed a little preemie baby girl so that I would have an incredible Grandma. From what I've heard about her, I'm sure she didn't consider her tasks noteworthy and yet I'm still reaping the benefit 80 years later. It definitely gives me a little more motivation to think about the long term perspective and in light of eternity the poo REALLY doesn't matter.

Sisterly Love

This pic was taken last week during a

much friendlier encounter with the toybox.

Just so you don't start feeling overly sorry for Daughter #1 after reading the last blog, let me relate an event from Tuesday. Before we go any further, let me preface this story by saying I don't condone, encourage, or support the following behavior. I'm just relating the facts.

I had to check on the laundry and I left the two girls in the toyroom by themselves for no more than 2-3 minutes. I returned to hear a muffled cry and started looking for Daughter #2 thinking that she was playing in the corner. I then realized the pleas for help were coming from the toybox. Apparently the baby had been "getting into" Daughter #1's tea party table (something she takes very seriously) and the only reasonable solution seemed to be to pick the baby up and put her in the toybox and close the lid.

This all followed what appeared to be Daughter #1 putting Daughter #2 in a headlock earlier that day. When I called the eldest by name LOUDLY, she replied, "I'm just hugging her."

T-R-O-U-B-L-E

When Daughter #1 was born I felt like I had just fallen in love all over again. Before having another child, I think most parents contemplate how they will ever be able to love another child as much as their first. All I can say is that Daughter #2 has totally captured my heart and has me wrapped around all ten of her tiny little fingers. So I thought I'd take a moment and list a few reasons why this child knows my number and how she keeps me on speed dial.

She has two smiles.

One exudes complete joy and the other one spells T-R-O-U-B-L-E!

Double-edged sword - She loves to play with my hair. Back in the middle of February both girls were sick, and playing with my hair was one of the ways the baby soothed herself. She could be feeling miserable and then suddenly relax just by reaching up to hold a lock of my hair. She's also realized though that this is a great way to get mom's attention and has no reservations about pulling it when she's feeling mischievous.

Another way she soothes herself is by resting her head on my chest over my heart. She completely melts like butter when she does this and so do I. I love holding my babies!

Two weeks ago, Saturday February 16th, was a momentous day for her. Her parents eventually realized that they were no longer able to impede her improving mobility and we finally installed a baby gate at the top of our stairs and lowered the crib. With her increasing mobility also comes an increasing appetite, and I had forgotten how she used to open her mouth like a little baby bird when she was hungry until she recently started doing it again.

Can't go under, can't go over it, might as well go through it!

Another interesting aspect to meal times is that her improving coordination has led to flailing arms and feet when she gets excited resulting in oatmeal in mom's eye.

And back to the title TROUBLE, the incident went along like one of the many tales I've heard from my Pops of how his little brother seemed to always incite some type of trouble at bedtime. Since she had made it perfectly clear that she wasn't interested in cooperating with our feeble attempts to get her to sleep, we decided to go ahead and place Daughter #2 in her crib. Well, the two girls share a room and needless to say she wasn't interested in sleeping in there either. The only logical thing to do would be to incite a riot with her older sister resulting in Daughter #1 getting in trouble for not laying down and Daughter #2 getting her picture taken for being so cute. Looking back I can clearly see the injustice and will promptly add more money to Daughter #1's savings account to pay for future therapy bills.

Too Much To Remember...

Got lots and lots I want to write about, but just haven't had the time. So just a quick note to self:

All the little reasons I adore my baby girl and howI LOVE the way she literally melts when she falls asleep on chest.

The new tricks she's learned this week from big sister and Daddy like jumping on the bed and clapping.

The Great Toilet Revolt of my 2008 Birthday

Why I ENJOY being home with my babies and why I want to enjoy it even when we're still stuck in Groundhog Poo.

And lastly Prince Charlie. Prince Charming can't compete with this guy.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

Last weekend our three year old was sick with a fever and feeling lethargic. I was amazed how quickly she bounced back on Sunday, but by Monday the baby was feeling a little warm and had a stuffy nose. Daughter #1 quickly pointed out that the baby must have caught her choke (what she calls a cough) and warm beaver.

Hidden Talents

I'm constantly finding myself thinking and rethinking how I behave as a parent and the effect that has on our daughters. One thing I've frequently been pondering lately is the difference in how I parent the two. At the moment Daughter #2 seems to get away with murder just by blinking her big blue eyes and giggling or crying (whichever she deems most appropriate at the time). This doesn't surprise me one bit as I've watched my younger sister (and parents) behave the same way. What does surprise me is that my sympathies don't always seem to lie where I would assume they would, which is with Daughter #1. Maybe that's because she's a self proclaimed "Daddy's Princess."

That said, I've been trying to pay more attention to Daughter #1 this past week and found that she has a few very bizarre hidden talents. We'll get to those later. What I've also discovered is a very sweet, helpful little girl whose probably needing a few more cuddles than she admits. I've always thought of her as an independent little gal whose had a mind of her own ever since she was a tiny baby, and somehow I've seemed to fail to appreciate her sensitive and caring side.

Here she is making Valentine's Day cards.

As promised, Hidden Talent #1 is that she always seems to have a song in her heart and can delightly "rearrange" lyrics to make them more appropriate for whatever task is at hand. Just this week, the "Bare Necessities" from Jungle Book became the "Recycling Necessities of Life."

Hidden Talent # 2 - She demonstrated this week that she does have the ability to fall asleep in a room with a crying baby. Now that's impressive.

Playing with the New Strawberry Shortcake that she earned by using the potty.

And lastly, Hidden Talent #3 is that she apparently is able to pee horizontally out of her little potty chair (past the splashguard) and onto the floor a foot in front of her.

Note to Grandparents: This is NOT something that is open for discussion or to tease her about when she's older. I was just shocked that it was even physically possible and then a little ticked that nobody (meaning you Our Dear Parents) never fully explained how many gross things kids do.

Random Thoughts

Let's just say that I was doomed after all of that talk about shining the dull side. Last week was one of those weeks when I wasn't feeling very blessed. It really felt like I would take 1 step forward only to fall about 5 steps back. To top things off, Thursday was Valentine's Day and Thursday was probably the hardest day of my week. Doesn't conger up all those warm fuzzy feelings of love now does it? But it did make me think of the verses in 1 Corinthians 13 that describe the attributes of love. Just the first alone will give me plenty to work on for the next several weeks. Love is patient or Love suffers long.

I say all that as I think of how my 3 year old frequently says, "I want to listen!" as we chastise her for not behaving. Lately she has been having trouble obeying simple rules and we have stepped up efforts to enforce the rules as I've realized I'm starting to sound like that other mom that always annoys me by saying, "No, no. If you do that again, you're going to get in trouble." (Side note ~ as we stepped up the discipline, I've also made an effort to make sure she gets some extra loving and one on one time as well.) But how often does God feel the same way about us? I don't know, but I often feel like I'm quick to say "I want to be a good wife" or "I want to be a good mom" only to NOT really want to put in the effort that it geniuinely requires.

One of my uncle's favorite sayings is "Same Stuff, Different Day." (Edited Version) I don't particularly like the saying, but it has been running through my mind quite frequently as we deal with poo disasters on a very regular basis. I've decided that the person who first coined the term must have had small children. I wanted to thank my Pops for making me laugh in the midst of all this mess on Thursday when he quite accurately decided that I must be stuck in "Groundhog Poo."

Notes to Self

1. Continue to learn to trust your judgement. You are not stupid and lazy as you have a tendency to tell yourself. If you're too tired to go to the store, don't drag yourself and your babies there as you will find the only person in the store leaking bodily fluids and only stress yourself out more. Your husband didn't seem to mind the fact you ordered pizza that night.

2. If the chaos around you seems to be too much to bear, go do something fun with your babies. Believe me, the chaos will still be waiting for you later. And you can get more accomplished during a few hours in the middle of the night than you can during the course of a regular week. Tap into that.

3. Make a note of things not to do to annoy your own daughters when they are grown and have their own babies. Remember that what is helpful to you may not be helpful to them.

Out of the Mouths of Babes....

I'm finding more and more pleasure out of the things that our three year old says.

GRUMPY - Just today her daddy asked her to pick up the baby's toys in the living room while I was in the other room changing the baby's diaper. When I returned to the living room, I put the baby down and proceeded to hand her some toys.

3 Year Old - I just picked up.

Me - And then I went and got out more toys. How does that make you feel?

3 Year Old - "GRUMPY"

I just had to giggle. We all know that she hasn't realized yet that it works the other way around also.

Now why didn't Fisher Price think of that? - On Friday dear daughter wanted to know if we could get her a "play bathroom." She wanted a pink one. When I explained that they didn't make such a thing, she rightly noted, "But I have a play kitchen."

Failed Safety Inspection

Ever since our little one became mobile at 5 1/2 months, she's been conducting impromptu safety inspections throughout the house. This mostly involves banging her poor little head on the nearest door or wall. On Wednesday afternoon her careful analysis led her to conclude that the EDGE of the hall bathroom door will IMMEDIATELY put a large purple welt on a baby's head and give her mom a small heart attack in the process.

The ensuing conversation with the doctor's office went something like this:

ME - I'm pretty sure everything's fine, but just wanted to contact you about my six month old before closing hours. You know how babies reach the stage where they are mobile, but don't have any common sense.

NURSE - Uh huh? I guess she's rolling around lots.

ME - No. She's crawling and can stand up.

NURSE - Oh, I guess that makes your life interesting.

And that's exactly why I had to call her in the first place.

Poor Hubby

And this is why I "occasionally" feel sorry for my husband.

Out of the Mouths of Babes....

Let's Send It To Africa - I guess we need to have a little discussion with our 3 year old about stewardship and generosity. Actually I think she frequently excels at these two concepts, considering her age. But she stopped me dead in my tracks as we plowed through the toothbrush aisle at Walmart about two weeks ago. We have friends who are missionaries to Uganda and we've had the priviledge of specifically praying for one of their orphans for a little over three years now. We also frequently go through our things and try to donate anything we can no longer use, including various toys. So that said, I was shocked when we bought her a new toothbrush only for her to suggest, "I can send my old toothbrush to Africa." The sweet thing is that she was sincerely wanting to help someone else.

Say What? - Just today she made me giggle as she tried to sing one of Elvis' classics. It had been background music on one of the videos that we recently rented. Imagine this charming little face singing, "Hunka Hunka Dirty Love!"

Reality Check

Thought for the Day: When Life's Bright Side Doesn't Shine, Polish the Dull Side.

After a few days of this blogging stuff, I've decided that I do enjoy the opportunity to sit and weed through my thoughts. It's been quite awhile since I've forced myself to form coherent sentences.

I've noticed though that most of the posts are somewhat "Fluffy." Normally I am not a fluffy kind of gal, but I've decided to try and apply the above thought since the first time I saw it on a billboard a few weeks ago.

The truth is that my life doesn't always sparkle and shine, nobody's does. In fact, at this stage of my life, children's poo (and I'm not talking about the kind that makes it into the diaper or toilet) seems to a damper on my day more often than not. But I'm choosing to shine the dull side and enjoy the little moments when I see this smile.

Glass Half Full

Or should I say, "Mug Completely Full." We drove my husband to work on Tuesday since he didn't feel like getting stuck in the snow two days in a row. Apparently the parking lot he uses wasn't real high on the Facilities' checklist and he had to spend an hour on Monday digging his car out of a parking space with his boot. In the rush to get two kids and a husband out the door, dear husband didn't get to drink his morning cup of tea. I let it sit all day on the cluttered countertop, not wanting to bring any attention to the fact that I had noticed it. But the full cup of undrank tea made me think how often my husband doesn't "fuss" when things don't go his way. This is totally opposite of the way I tend to handle things, but was an effective reminder of why I love him so much.

And so today dear husband I want to thank you for the scrambled eggs that are just the right size for my sausage biscuits, for the way the girls light up when you walk into the room, and for helping clean the snow off the neighbors' driveways. Love you bunches!

Saturday Morning Guest

I stumbled out of bed about 7 am Saturday morning to get a drink of water out of the kitchen. I had no intentions of staying up. The kids were still asleep and it was COLD outside. Indeed, my nice warm bed beckoned loudly and that's exactly where I was headed when I noticed him. On my way back down the hallway, I noticed a quite unexpected guest on my front porch. It was an owl. I know country folk might not be that excited about my discovery, but this was a real treasure for a kid from the suburbs. My husband thought I was an absolute nutter (to borrow a term from our British friends), but I was thrilled to get an up close and personal view of this Destroyer of Mice. I was only about three feet away from this amazing creature when I took this photo. Just another little moment that I'm glad I didn't miss.

Ready, Set, Go

So after a few weeks of consideration, I'm jumping into the World of Blogging. I'm not so sure how this will turn out, but here we go. A few weeks back a friend sent me the link to another friend's blog. It was a fabulous piece of work with witty writing and awesome pictures. But the most impressive thing it did was make me think. We're not talking about intellectual arguments or lofty ideas, but rather someone who was excited about her life and that of her kids. It made me stop in my tracks and pay attention to the things going on around me.

Suddenly I gave pause to the thought when my three year old suggested that she would prefer for the roads to be pink. How interesting would that be? Before I would of said, "Hmm" and kept driving instead of envisioning the snow covered hills brightened by the Hot Pink strip of asphalt running between them.

Right now I find it hard to believe that our life could be very interesting, much less inspiring. But if I could only have one goal for this site, it would be to encourage you to enjoy the little moments with your babies for they grow very quickly.