A few days ago, I described how my sons were helping me out with laundry. Tonight I folded as I talked with my mom on the phone. G wanted to help "ball socks" (he can't), so I'd roll a pair at a time, then send him to deliver it. By the time he returned, I had another folded pair waiting for him. After he delivered all of Daddy's socks, I sent him to his room with a full basket of his laundry.
I took a break in conversation with Mom to review laundry-delivering procedures. I reminded him that he was not to dump the entire basket on the floor of his room. I reminded him that socks, underwear, shirts, and pants had their own spots. He was to put them where they belonged. He agreed.
G took a considerable amount of time putting his laundry away. He returned with an empty basket. I asked if he had put everything where it belonged. He admitted he had not. I handed him a pair of socks and made eye contact. I maintained eye contact as I explained that he was going to put those socks and all the other socks in the sock basket. I told him to return to me afterwards. He did.
I then handed him another pair of socks and a pair of underwear. "Put these in the sock basket, these in the underwear basket, and all the other underwear in the underwear basket."
I was proud of myself for walking him through the process. I was also proud of how I ran my boy's energy out on a rainy day.
At bedtime, I noticed a pair of clean undies on G's floor. I returned them to an all-too-empty underwear basket. Then I noticed the rest of the stack of clean underwear spilling out of the top of his dirty clothes hamper. Underneath them was the entire stack of clean clothes--socks, shirts, and pants--that I'd sent him to deliver.
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
A Hearty Breakfast
B likes buying breakfast at school. I've funded breakfast at school for most of the year. Last week or the week before, I discovered he goes there for cinnamon rolls. B spends $1.25 each morning for an individually packaged cinnamon bun and a carton of milk. I take that back. On Fridays, he spends the $1.25 on a chicken biscuit and a carton of milk.
Now, I support a healthy breakfast. However, for $2.50, I can buy an entire roll of store brand cinnamon rolls and bake them for my boy. I'll save $2.50, even if I allow him to continue feeding his chicken biscuit addiction. Last night, I baked up the first batch. This morning, I directed B to the Rubbermaid. Of course, G wanted one, too.
G eyed the contents of the box, then looked up at me and asked, "Mama, are them snails?"
Now, I support a healthy breakfast. However, for $2.50, I can buy an entire roll of store brand cinnamon rolls and bake them for my boy. I'll save $2.50, even if I allow him to continue feeding his chicken biscuit addiction. Last night, I baked up the first batch. This morning, I directed B to the Rubbermaid. Of course, G wanted one, too.
G eyed the contents of the box, then looked up at me and asked, "Mama, are them snails?"
No, son, our budget does not support escargot.
Before we'd departed, each boy had eaten a cinnamon roll and a half. This may put a damper on my budgeting. G also asked for milk, so I poured some in a cup with a top and straw. He insisted on the "Transformers cup". I told him he could use the Transformers cup, but would have to drink it quickly since we were leaving, and he couldn't take an open-topped cup with him.
"Why not?"
"Because I don't want it to spill in the car."
"I have more?"
"No, you don't have long. Besides, the less you have, the less you can--" clink, swish "--spill." Mop, mop, mop.
Monday, May 6, 2013
G's First Experience with Gum
On Friday afternoon, B came home from school with a goodie bag from a pizza party at school. G looked longingly at the bag and asked for a piece of candy. Usually B does share. I'm torn about whether or not to make him share something he's earned--like candy for memorizing Bible verses or the goodie bag for earning good grades on six tests' worth of 9 Weeks Tests. Luckily, G had his heart set on gum, and babysitter/godmom had a canister full of the same gum. She offered him a piece.
I have never given G gum. I rarely chew it myself. I tell students to spit out gum so often, it feels wrong to chew it myself! Godmom and I tried to explain that he would chew the gum, but not swallow it. She took the extra precaution of hacking through the Double Bubble with a kitchen knife so that his first serving would only be a third of a regular serving. After grilling him one more time about what to do with the gum, she handed him his first piece.
G took it, popped it in his mouth, and concentrated on chewing. Ten seconds later, he said, "Now I spit it out?" We assured him he could chew it until he got home. He looked a little unsure, but seemed to go with it.
I loaded him in the car and watched him chew from my rearview mirror. His chewing looked funny. His furrowed eyebrows told me he was really concentrating. His lips were closed, and his dimple was in full effect. When you chew gum, are your lips closed? You're not supposed to smack gum, but he looked just like he was chewing food, which somehow looks different from chewing gum.
As soon as we got home, he wanted to spit it out. I walked him to the trashcan. Perhaps we should have described how "spitting" out gum is different from "spitting" in general. He hocked up quite a bit of saliva and spat. The gum did not come out.
It was stuck behind his teeth. He showed me where, and we took turns trying to pull it away. It was stringy and it clung to his teeth. We opted for a toothbrush. Using the toothbrush was an endeavor. It took several minutes to get it all.
Then he asked for another piece of gum.
I have never given G gum. I rarely chew it myself. I tell students to spit out gum so often, it feels wrong to chew it myself! Godmom and I tried to explain that he would chew the gum, but not swallow it. She took the extra precaution of hacking through the Double Bubble with a kitchen knife so that his first serving would only be a third of a regular serving. After grilling him one more time about what to do with the gum, she handed him his first piece.
G took it, popped it in his mouth, and concentrated on chewing. Ten seconds later, he said, "Now I spit it out?" We assured him he could chew it until he got home. He looked a little unsure, but seemed to go with it.
I loaded him in the car and watched him chew from my rearview mirror. His chewing looked funny. His furrowed eyebrows told me he was really concentrating. His lips were closed, and his dimple was in full effect. When you chew gum, are your lips closed? You're not supposed to smack gum, but he looked just like he was chewing food, which somehow looks different from chewing gum.
As soon as we got home, he wanted to spit it out. I walked him to the trashcan. Perhaps we should have described how "spitting" out gum is different from "spitting" in general. He hocked up quite a bit of saliva and spat. The gum did not come out.
It was stuck behind his teeth. He showed me where, and we took turns trying to pull it away. It was stringy and it clung to his teeth. We opted for a toothbrush. Using the toothbrush was an endeavor. It took several minutes to get it all.
Then he asked for another piece of gum.
Friday, May 3, 2013
Laundry Helpers
By the time I finish folding everything on the "Laundry Couch", it's usually time to refill it with a load or three of clean clothes from the dryer. If my boys didn't help me put the laundry away, there would be a serious bottleneck in our system.
B was my first laundry helper. When he was four, he asked if he could "deliver" folded piles of laundry. He'd drag a full laundry basket behind him, beeping when he backed up. His "crane" would drop each pile to the appropriate location. Then he'd bring the empty basket back with the robotic announcement, "Delivery. Complete."
Tonight, I handed each son a laundry basket full of his clothes to deliver. B hanging up shirts in his closet when G breezed past me. "Whoa, boy! How'd you finish so quickly?"
"Oh, yeah, sorry," said G. He uses the phrase frequently.
B was my first laundry helper. When he was four, he asked if he could "deliver" folded piles of laundry. He'd drag a full laundry basket behind him, beeping when he backed up. His "crane" would drop each pile to the appropriate location. Then he'd bring the empty basket back with the robotic announcement, "Delivery. Complete."
Tonight, I handed each son a laundry basket full of his clothes to deliver. B hanging up shirts in his closet when G breezed past me. "Whoa, boy! How'd you finish so quickly?"
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| I am so glad I lovingly folded each of those items. |
I decided to pick my battle and allow him to put the clothes in their appropriate places unfolded. I did not want to battle the Redhead nor the laundry. I have loads to do tomorrow, and I'm not about to keep folding over and over!
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| G puts his socks in the sock basket in his dresser. |
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Third Time's a Charm
I called Cassie Thursday morning to remind her that C's book bag was still I'm my car. I'd taken him to soccer practice the night before. I knew it wasn't a big deal since he had a field trip that day. I was wrong! His soccer bag with his street shoes were also in my car. All he had were cleats.
The plan was for me to drop the bags at the sitter's house. Cassie's kids go to the same sitter, and she'd pick up the bag when she dropped off K. C would change shoes on the van on the way to school.
I forgot to drop off the bag.
I called Cassie when I got to work and noticed the bag underneath my bags. I immediately called her and told her to stop at my school. I'd leave my car unlocked and she could get the bag,
After morning duty, the office paged me. My sister was in the office. Apparently after I hung up with her, I locked the car behind me as a force of habit. I hadn't answered her text, so she'd gone looking for me.
Oops! Glad Cass was chaperoning so she could bring him his regular shoes!
The plan was for me to drop the bags at the sitter's house. Cassie's kids go to the same sitter, and she'd pick up the bag when she dropped off K. C would change shoes on the van on the way to school.
I forgot to drop off the bag.
I called Cassie when I got to work and noticed the bag underneath my bags. I immediately called her and told her to stop at my school. I'd leave my car unlocked and she could get the bag,
After morning duty, the office paged me. My sister was in the office. Apparently after I hung up with her, I locked the car behind me as a force of habit. I hadn't answered her text, so she'd gone looking for me.
Oops! Glad Cass was chaperoning so she could bring him his regular shoes!
Sunday, April 21, 2013
The world has changed
If you are OCD or ridiculously type A, you should NOT read this post. Seriously. You also should not go to bookstores. I'll give you a moment to turn back and pretend you never saw this. You aren't missing anything, just a boring post about the nutritional content of water. I promise.
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OK, are all the OCD people gone now? No? Well the, have you looked at your sock drawer today? I think you should go reorganize it. Again. Some elves may or may not have snuck in while you were sleeping and mixed the white socks with the argyle. Elves are jerks like that.
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Ok, now that they are gone, let's get on with the blog.
Catina and I were lucky enough to go shopping yesterday without any kids. We were able to look at things we didn't need and discuss purchases. We were able to finish a sentence without interruption. It was awesome.
Then we stopped by the bookstore to buy some journals, and I decided to grab a cheap book on Honduras. After we realized this store did not have any books on Honduras, we snapped a few pics, and hightailed it outta there before we could be tempted to organize the whole section. Apparently geography has changed a LOT since I was in school. Or perhaps the employees at this particular store failed geography miserably.
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OK, are all the OCD people gone now? No? Well the, have you looked at your sock drawer today? I think you should go reorganize it. Again. Some elves may or may not have snuck in while you were sleeping and mixed the white socks with the argyle. Elves are jerks like that.
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Ok, now that they are gone, let's get on with the blog.
Catina and I were lucky enough to go shopping yesterday without any kids. We were able to look at things we didn't need and discuss purchases. We were able to finish a sentence without interruption. It was awesome.
Then we stopped by the bookstore to buy some journals, and I decided to grab a cheap book on Honduras. After we realized this store did not have any books on Honduras, we snapped a few pics, and hightailed it outta there before we could be tempted to organize the whole section. Apparently geography has changed a LOT since I was in school. Or perhaps the employees at this particular store failed geography miserably.
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| Next time you go to Mexico, be sure to stop by Beijing and also see the "Top 10 Hong Kong." Not sure if it is the top 10 museums, bathrooms, or bookstores, but you can find out when you get there. |
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| While in Asia, there are lots fun things to do in Chicago, San Francisco, and the Cayman Islands. Not sure if the "New England" book is in the Asia section, but it was definitely not in the United States section. Maybe there is another England? So we should call England "Olde England", New England "The Old New England" and this new one "The Newest England" so we don't get confused. Also, we should stop naming places England. |
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| Kids love Virginia. Which is now in South America. Does this mean my zip code is going to change? |
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| Notice the orange and yellow books about Alaska in the Arizona section. Alaska, Arizona- who doesn't mix those 2 up? It is a common mistake really. |
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| I give up. Seriously, if this is what we consider the Middle East, I will never be able to help my kids with their geography homework. I am buying them each their own GPS so they will never feel as lost as I do at this moment. Help? |
Monday, April 15, 2013
Honduras in Autumn
I have a lot of fears. Some of them are irrational. I'm afraid of squirrels (google "squirrel attacks", it happens), I'm afraid of losing a kid (I constantly count them when we are out in public to make sure they are all there), and I'm afraid of traveling. I want to take my kids to Disney one day, but I'm afraid of being in such a busy place and possibly losing a kid. The very thought of traveling to Florida for a week with my family makes me feel sweaty, my eyes tear up, and the weight I feel on my chest makes it hard to breath. Also, I am extremely uncomfortable with public restrooms- I have to wash my hands several times after using the restroom to feel clean, and I carry hand sanitizer everywhere I go. Oh, I also don't like feet- don't touch mine, don't put yours near me, and let's not even look at them, 'kay?
So when I heard a commercial on the radio the other day about a missions trip with Shoes for Orphans Souls, I was pretty shocked when my heart leapt and I felt this strong desire to go. Then they announced there was a contest to win a free trip. I decided to enter, and will be sending in my submission this week. The winner is announced Friday and I would appreciate your prayers that God's will be done.
I planned to sit back and wait to hear the winner. After all, if God wants me to go, He will give me the trip. I figured by entering, I was doing my part and that I was done. Silly me! I couldn't get this mission trip off of my mind. I kept looking up information about it. I kept thinking of how much I wanted to snuggle these kids, wash their dirty feet, and pray over them. I want them to know how much God loves them, and I want to love on them.
Then the doubts began creeping in. The odds of winning are probably pretty slim. I cannot afford this trip on my own. In the last few weeks, our washer and dryer had to be replaced, the back window of one vehicle had to be replaced, and the alternator on another vehicle blew. I'm still trying to figure out how to pay for all that. Why am I even thinking about trying to pay for a missions trip? I started thinking about how I don't attend church every week. I'm embarrassed to admit that I miss church more than I attend. Surely, there are more qualified, better Christians that should go on a trip like this. Oh, and did I mention that I don't even have a passport?? This is silly. This is crazy. I can't do this.
I had told my husband, sister, and 2 other amazing Christian women about entering the contest and asked them for prayer. I didn't mention that the gears in my head were turning, trying to figure out how in the world I could pay for the trip when I don't win the contest. I didn't dare post on Facebook or tell anyone this desire, this call I felt to go on this trip. See, if I tell people, then I've got to do something. If I put it out there for others to see, this crazy idea, this impossible notion, and then I fail to go- I would feel ridiculous. Yeah, these doubts were getting pretty strong.
Today, I decided to google "The Great Commission" and then I googled "Francis Chan and The Great Commission." Wouldn't you know he preached a sermon on that very passage? (You can hear it at http://www.cornerstonesimi.com/special/media_player.html, the sermon 6/3/12 titled "The Thrill of Obedience.") Wow. It was exactly what I needed to hear to dispel my doubts. God can use anyone and wants to use everyone. If I wait until I'm a "good enough" Christian to share his word or to do what he is calling me to do, I'll never be ready. There is so much more in this sermon that touched my heart, and it was one of those messages that you hear and feel was written just for you. (Don't you love when God does that?)
I called Catina on my way home, and told her how God was working on me, and how I felt that He was calling me to take this trip. While on the phone with her, I checked the mail and found a check for $134. It won't pay for the trip. It barely covers half of the first deposit that is due in 2 weeks. But, it reassured me that God is going to provide a way. I just need to trust in Him.
So that is what I am doing. I am trusting that God wouldn't put this desire in my heart, He wouldn't call me to take this trip if He wasn't going to provide a way for me to do it. I'm praying that while God works out the finances, He will also work on my heart and ready me for this trip. And I am putting it out there, that I am going to Honduras in September, God willing.
Friends, I ask that you join me in praying. Specifically, pray that I will have the money to put down the first deposit, then the second, then the third. That I will have the money for my passport. Pray that God will prepare me to show His love, and to be a witness for Him. Pray that my husband and kids will make it through a week without me. Pray that my fear of traveling and issues with germs will stay be manageable. Pray for my safety during this trip.
This will be the scariest thing I have ever done, but I also trust that it will be the most amazing blessing.
So when I heard a commercial on the radio the other day about a missions trip with Shoes for Orphans Souls, I was pretty shocked when my heart leapt and I felt this strong desire to go. Then they announced there was a contest to win a free trip. I decided to enter, and will be sending in my submission this week. The winner is announced Friday and I would appreciate your prayers that God's will be done.
I planned to sit back and wait to hear the winner. After all, if God wants me to go, He will give me the trip. I figured by entering, I was doing my part and that I was done. Silly me! I couldn't get this mission trip off of my mind. I kept looking up information about it. I kept thinking of how much I wanted to snuggle these kids, wash their dirty feet, and pray over them. I want them to know how much God loves them, and I want to love on them.
Then the doubts began creeping in. The odds of winning are probably pretty slim. I cannot afford this trip on my own. In the last few weeks, our washer and dryer had to be replaced, the back window of one vehicle had to be replaced, and the alternator on another vehicle blew. I'm still trying to figure out how to pay for all that. Why am I even thinking about trying to pay for a missions trip? I started thinking about how I don't attend church every week. I'm embarrassed to admit that I miss church more than I attend. Surely, there are more qualified, better Christians that should go on a trip like this. Oh, and did I mention that I don't even have a passport?? This is silly. This is crazy. I can't do this.
I had told my husband, sister, and 2 other amazing Christian women about entering the contest and asked them for prayer. I didn't mention that the gears in my head were turning, trying to figure out how in the world I could pay for the trip when I don't win the contest. I didn't dare post on Facebook or tell anyone this desire, this call I felt to go on this trip. See, if I tell people, then I've got to do something. If I put it out there for others to see, this crazy idea, this impossible notion, and then I fail to go- I would feel ridiculous. Yeah, these doubts were getting pretty strong.
Today, I decided to google "The Great Commission" and then I googled "Francis Chan and The Great Commission." Wouldn't you know he preached a sermon on that very passage? (You can hear it at http://www.cornerstonesimi.com/special/media_player.html, the sermon 6/3/12 titled "The Thrill of Obedience.") Wow. It was exactly what I needed to hear to dispel my doubts. God can use anyone and wants to use everyone. If I wait until I'm a "good enough" Christian to share his word or to do what he is calling me to do, I'll never be ready. There is so much more in this sermon that touched my heart, and it was one of those messages that you hear and feel was written just for you. (Don't you love when God does that?)
I called Catina on my way home, and told her how God was working on me, and how I felt that He was calling me to take this trip. While on the phone with her, I checked the mail and found a check for $134. It won't pay for the trip. It barely covers half of the first deposit that is due in 2 weeks. But, it reassured me that God is going to provide a way. I just need to trust in Him.
So that is what I am doing. I am trusting that God wouldn't put this desire in my heart, He wouldn't call me to take this trip if He wasn't going to provide a way for me to do it. I'm praying that while God works out the finances, He will also work on my heart and ready me for this trip. And I am putting it out there, that I am going to Honduras in September, God willing.
Friends, I ask that you join me in praying. Specifically, pray that I will have the money to put down the first deposit, then the second, then the third. That I will have the money for my passport. Pray that God will prepare me to show His love, and to be a witness for Him. Pray that my husband and kids will make it through a week without me. Pray that my fear of traveling and issues with germs will stay be manageable. Pray for my safety during this trip.
This will be the scariest thing I have ever done, but I also trust that it will be the most amazing blessing.
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