their favorites

The children's ride to AWANA--our children's director--was on vacation this week, so they had to miss tonight's class.  Anticipating deep disappointment, I planned an upbeat day--dancing, painting, lots of stories, and their all-time favorite activity.

What, pray tell, is their favorite activity?

Mixing up a batch of sugar cookie dough, rolling it out, using cookie cutters, baking it, and finally, the decorating.  Just the thought, or mention, of this activity gives them jolly ants in their pants.  They run around like wild hooligans, cheering.

The mess, ladies.  The mess!  We do it about four times a year, which I know is shameful, considering all the other batches of cookies we manage to whip out no problem.  I. just. can't. stand. the. mess.  It entails wiping up everything and sweeping after the dough part, followed by wiping up everything and sweeping after the decorating part.  Followed by managing the entire load of dirty dishes generated.  There is usually a meal in between, so two clean ups it is.

Drop cookies are my friend.

Is four times a year enough?  I tell myself they wouldn't enjoy it nearly so much if it occurred more often.

 Mary had us reading The Gingerbread Man several times this week, so we decided to use the gingerbread man cookie cutter.  Here we have some colored frosting, to give him a "fancy suit of clothes".  The boys, at 6 and 8, can manage this whole operation themselves, except for creaming the butter and sugar, which Momma still does--at least until we get an electric mixer

 Paul is proud of his painting.  He mostly experimented with color mixing.

 Swing dance party.

 Every child instinctively knows how to boogie--and loves it.  Ever notice that?  By the way, this Momma can still boogie with the best of 'em!  

 Here is my sweet Mary, showing off her favorite fall book--Too Many Pumpkins, by Linda White.  I love, love, love this story!  Rebecca Estelle, the main character, just hates pumpkins, because as a child money was scarce and her family once went a month with only pumpkins to eat.  After that month, things improved, and she vowed never to eat, or think of, pumpkins again.  But one fall day, many decades later, the pumpkin truck dropped one in her yard, and it smashed into smithereens.  I won't tell the rest of the story, so as not to spoil it.  But oh, it is wonderful.  If you haven't read it, get it on your next library visit.

 A few weeks ago we went to an apple farm, during their apple harvest festival.  We enjoyed a nice hayride and picked out a couple pumpkins.  Not this large, however.  :)

I leave you with a funny literary passage.  Who can guess the name of the book?

"I just don't get it." she grouched.  "How could anyone forget the Easter Bunny? The Easter Bunny brings candy right to your door."


Lennie did a frown at her.  "He doesn't bring candy to my door, Lucille." he said.  "The Easter Bunny is a different religion than me.  I'm Jewish."


Shirley nodded.  "I'm Jewish, too, Lucille," she said.  "I've never even been to an Easter-egg hunt before.  What do you wear to something like that, anyway?"


Lucille stood up and fluffed herself.  "Well--since the Easter Bunny and I are the same religion--I'm going to wear a fancy Easter dress, Shirley," she said.


Shirley thought for a minute.  Then she nodded.  "Hmm.  Then I guess I will wear a fancy Jewish dress," she said.


Lennie's eyes lighted up.  "Really, Shirley?  You mean we have our own clothing line?" he asked.  He smiled.  "Then I think I will wear some fancy Jewish pants," he said.


My friend named Herbert tapped on his chin.  "Let's see.  Since I'm Pressed-byterian, I guess I should wear Pressed-byterian pants," he said.  


He turned and looked at me.  "Pressed-byterian means we iron out our wrinkles, I think," he said.


Just then, Sheldon slapped the table with his hand.  "Hey, I know!  I will wear a fancy turban!  A fancy turban is religious clothes, right?"  He asked.  "I love fancy turbans!"


So, did you guess the book?  Or the book series?

Answer:  Junie B., First Grader,  Dumb Bunny, by Barbara Park

Barbara Park could write stand up in her next career, no?

giving thanks

I'm thankful for....

...four sweaty heads to shampoo (having Indian summer here) The boys usually shampoo their own, but I wanted to love on all four sweet heads tonight.

...four squeaky clean bodies with smiling faces

...a baby who never tires of naming body parts and learning new names, like chin, shoulder, elbow, eyelash, eyebrow

...my toddler asking to nurse after she gets a boo boo or falls

...93% lean ground turkey for its $1.98 a pound price.  We eat it most nights, with a baked chicken and also pancakes breaking up the week.  I'm pretty sure one can never run out of things to do with ground turkey and left over chicken.  Just tonight, I jotted down three new ground turkey recipes.  Turkey and chicken don't have much iron, so I try to find ways to add beans or pasta.  Frugal recipes seem to rely on a lot of canned soups as add ins.  I don't buy canned soups and prefer not to use canned broth either.  I guess I'm learning to enjoy the challenge of eating well on a budget.

...books, books, and more books--I can't take my children to see the world, but we can sure read about faraway places, and imagine.

...My Paul telling me how he imagines in his mind what story settings look like.  Visual learners turn everything into a picture in their minds.  I remember him telling me all about Heidi's loft bedroom, with the hay-filled bed and the starry sky window

...My Mary's enthusiasm for Geo Trac train track formations.  She works diligently, making different shaped tracks every day.  The boys started designing their own around age 3 also.  Trains are wonderful toys!  

...talking with my children about the Lord, and about how to live for Him, day in and day out.  Both boys expressed sorrow recently that men have to leave their families so much to go to work.  My boys want to be with their kids--a lot!  Yeah for them!  I was reading about the Duggars' emphasis on fathers working at home, whenever possible, so they can be around to lead their families.  So today, we discussed possibilities for family businesses--things the boys can do with their families, in or around the home.  Peter is interested in farming, and Paul is still thinking about it.  I'm proud of their family-oriented spirits!

...my dishwasher

...my washer and dryer

...that I have clothes to fold--right now.  A houseful of precious people to love means nightly folding.  Praise God for the precious people!  Okay.  For the folding too.

...for four seasons, all of which have unique beauty

...for playdates

...for homeschooling

...for an ample backyard

...for my oven and crockpot

...for oatmeal

...for sticky little hands grabbing my aged face, and looking at it with all the joy in the world.

...Goodnight, friends!  I'm thankful for you, too!

"To the end that my glory may sing praise to You and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to You forever."


Psalm 30:12

blessing list

Tonight I'm thankful for....

- our cozy dinner party for my aunt and uncle, held here at our house.  The fellowship was wonderful, the food was good, the house was clean and comfortable, the kiddos were charming.  Making it all happen exhausted me, but at least once every six weeks we need to have someone over.  I know that offering hospitality is important for even the busiest of families.  There will come a time--sooner than I want!--that the kiddos grow up a bit and the house cleans up easily, making dinner parties more common around here.   I know a clean house is not supposed to be a part of hospitality, but it sure helps guests feel comfortable when there's no distracting mess and dirt around.

- the classic story Robin Hood.  It reeks of burly testosterone, unlike Heidi--which the boys nevertheless loved anyway.  (Peter is after all, a major character in Heidi.)   But like Heidi, Robin hood is centered on honor and good character, providing powerful modeling that children will remember.

- the Junie B. Jones stories.  No, Junie is not exactly a role model, and arguably this isn't the best literature, but it's laugh-out-loud funny and my boys are consuming a chapter book in a day and a quarter for the first time in their reading careers.  At nearly a book a day, they'll be through all 26 of these in no time, and then they'll hopefully move on to something even better.  Amelia Bedelia is insanely funny as well, but the reading level is even lower on those.  The boys might choose more humor or go on to something different, like mystery.  (My own reading craze started with Nancy Drew novels in the fourth grade.)  My task is to expose them to lots of classics during school hours, while keeping a close eye on their pleasure reading, making sure I don't go overboard in my censoring.

- two giggling girls, sweet and soft

- two active boys, sweaty and strong

- the story Duck On a Bike, by David Shannon.  My Mary has me read it daily now.  It really is a very charming story and the illustrations are amazing!  I love the varied farm animal personalities Mr. Shannon skillfully paints--with amazing eye detail. How do you paint a personality, you ask?  I don't know, but David Shannon does just that.  All the personalities come through in the eyes, somehow.

- for my present circumstances.  I'll come out of this poverty-level living with the ability to live under my means, which is no easy matter in our society.  I want my children to learn two very important lessons:  live debt-free and under your means.  The Duggars and other large families do very well on these two values--even paying cash for homes.  I wasn't capable of teaching this or modeling this before; it wasn't taught in my home growing up.  We've learned enough--the hard way--to model it from here on out.

- my older boy, who walked up to the art teacher tonight and spontaneously thanked her for the art class.  She was touched and hugged him, which he found embarrassing.  Anyhow, I was very happy to hear that he'd made such a gesture.  He was horribly behaved most of the day around here!  I need reminding to look beyond the horror of ADHD and see my son's heart.  Always.  That's who he really is.  Sometimes I want to scream at the level of frustration we all live with due to the condition.  It's hard not to worry about Peter's future, for one thing.  I can clearly see that having ADHD negatively impacted my husband's life.  Will it be similar for my son, or worse, since he has two co-morbid disorders?  It seems cruel to allow such a thing for boys, who are commanded as men to provide for their families.  They must do so while competing with other men who are perfectly normal, neurologically.  I am forced to push my son hard, in love; to do anything less is a disservice to him and to the family he will one day have, God willing.  He must be tougher to accomplish what his peers will find easy.  The only good I can find in all of it is this:  It serves as an hourly reminder that God is in control, not me.


And He doesn't make mistakes.  


"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.  I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well."
Psalm 139:13-14

The Most Important Thing

I found a beautiful guest post on At The Well, entitled The Most Important Thing.  It is short and sweet.

Bright Spots

Two bright spots to record.

After a few days of stress so heavy my chest feels weighted, I sat down to talk with my six-year-old son about his insomnia.  He is like me and sometimes can't stop the darting thoughts.  Nursing my babies always cures my insomnia.  I'm not afflicted right now, thanks to the relaxation hormones released in both mother and baby in the first several minutes of nursing.  There are perks to all-night nursing!

But my son is currently suffering.  Last night he didn't drift off until midnight; AWANA night is the worst for him, making him over-excited, but he is usually asleep by 10:00 p.m. at the latest.

Frequent wake-ups from baby weighted the night as well, amid a houseful of overdue chores needing completion before company comes Saturday night. Then there's this and that bill needing to be paid before such and such date, or no service.  Topping it off, older son appears to have OCD with his ADHD and tics.  In fact, the anxiety we see may be due to his obsessions, rather than to Generalized Anxiety Disorder.  We obtained a referral to a neurologist, who will hopefully clear things up.  The "shoots" and "darnits" in the Junie B. Jones books brought out some very peculiar behavior, similar to what we've seen in other times of high household stress--like when I was experiencing morning sickness in 2008.  OCD commonly occurs with ADHD.  When an OCD sufferer is under stress, the condition worsens.

This morning I'm at the end of myself.  Husband too.  God's grace, at times, is only that which keeps us functioning another day.  Those in countries without food, whose stomachs hunger for ten days, must feel the same.  The Believers among them must define God's grace as the dawning of another day--blood still coursing through their veins.

As I spoke with my son about his insomnia, trying to ascertain if Mommy's and Daddy's stress is the cause, I was dumbfounded by the wisdom he's gathered at such a tender age.

"I understand about the stress, Mommy.  God changes things when it's important to Him."

Is it a tragedy that at six years old he knows so much about God, or is it a miracle?

I say it's a miracle--one for which I'll gladly suffer.  His circumstances forced him to really contemplate who God is, what faith is, and what we're here for.  He knows.

Another bright spot.  When the children's director came to pick up the children last evening, she brought a huge flowerpot of fall mums, as well as a card expressing love and prayers for us during our trial (from the church).

And who has been pining over fall mums the last couple of weeks, besides Momma?

My six-year-old.

We haven't had money for flowers in so long!  Every year it hurts a little to see flowerbeds devoid of life..of color.

The flowers were a message from God, saying this:

"I can't take it all away right now.  But I'm still here.  And I love you.  I know the desires of your hearts."


And the wisdom from my son is also a message.  Nothing is more important to me than the spiritual health and growth of my children.  God is telling me...spiritual growth and maturity come the hard way.  If you truly wish it for them, and for yourselves, than trust me.