Merry Christmas!

Christmas Pageant group picture.  Dark church.  Cheap camera.

Salt dough ornaments.  Still have to put on glitter and some sequins and some paint accents.  

I had a very successful Goodwill visit.  New-looking books to give as Christmas gifts, costing only $.50 cents each.  They got a few in their stocking tonight (they never questioned where I got them), and more in a box under the tree for tomorrow.  Many are classic novels the boys will need in the next few years.

I worked out a tradition to adhere to in regards to presents:  something for their spiritual growth, something for homeschooling, and something they can do together as siblings and/or that we can do together as a family.  So all in all, three to four presents, although only the spiritual gift will be individual--the rest will be shared, like the brand-new looking dinosaur monopoly game I found at Goodwill for $1.50!

New giant-print Bibles for the boys, and the Jesus Storybook Bible for the girls.  The Bible covers didn't fit, unfortunately. :(  The Christian bookstore, believe it or not, had only one Bible cover and it was for a woman.  They also had no giant-print Bibles.  I had to get the boys' Bibles at Walmart, of all places!  And the covers.

The bookstore did have an Interactive Nativity Set put out by Family Life Today.  It teaches the meaning of Christmas, much like Resurrection Eggs teach the meaning of Easter.  I can tell you more tomorrow, after the kids open it.

 
Paint is dry (used poster paint), some have glitter glue coats, but need paint accents and sequins, etc.

Today, Daddy had time to replace our wonderful Harry the Hamster, who met with an untimely death last week.  Meet Peter's gerbils, Freddy and Teddy!  They like people and are not nocturnal.  They are friendly pets, especially when they have a friend in their cage.  They sleep on top of each other, all cuddled up.  Cute.

But a little rat-looking compared to Harry the Hamster, if you ask me.  These little guys stand on their back legs like kangaroos.

Husband doesn't have much time off (not even all of Christmas day).  I'm trying to put together a nice celebration, nevertheless.  We used the Bibles to do our own Christmas Eve service, as husband's schedule didn't allow us to go to the 6:00 PM Christmas Eve service at church.  The candy canes, put in the stockings, helped keep the girls quiet and still for a short time during our home service.  Emphasis on short.  We also had prayer and sang some Christmas carols together.

I thought of another tradition this week.  I want to ask each child, each year, what they think the meaning of Christmas is, and record the answers in a Christmas Memory Book, along with what we did that year to celebrate. It would be so neat to see how the answers change over the years.

We didn't have any family to see on Thanksgiving, and the same this year for Christmas.  I have aunts here, but they have big families of their own, and our family of six takes up a lot of room.  My closest aunt goes to Florida at the beginning of December now, so that doesn't help.  They used to have us over for Christmas dessert.  Things are a little lonely this year, but I reminded the kids how full and wonderful their holidays will be when they grow up and have four siblings and the siblings' families to share them with.  Boy, that filled their eyes with joy!

Merry Christmas, Dear Friends!  Love you!

salt-dough ornaments

I found this post detailing an easy salt-dough ornament project, but the author didn't mention what kind of paint she uses.  Have any of you made these ornaments lately?  I have some puffy paints and some tempura in the house, but nothing else.  Would one of those work?  Hoping to do this tomorrow with the kids.

Thank you!

P.S. Did one of you pray for my Beth?  She took her medicine nicely this morning.  I was so relieved!!  I immediately thought that maybe someone (besides us) had prayed.  Thank you, if you did!  It worked!

P.S.S. I checked the Internet briefly and found another link.  This mom has some neat ideas for decorating the salt-dough ornaments.  Here is a comprehensive link on salt-dough crafting.

but it is good, no?

This Mommy is at the end of herself.  Nothing I've planned  is coming to fruition, in terms of baking to bless others, and getting the house spiffy and comfy for Christmas.

Each child has consuming issues right now.

Grace.

When I get to the end of myself, He carries me.  

Slows me down.

I give it all to Him readily because is there any other choice?  Keeping the joy means giving Him the angst.

Beth is on a second round of antibiotics for a UTI--my first child to have one.  I always wipe her properly as I've done all the others.  I just don't understand why this is happening.  No family history of diabetes and if it were a congenital problem, she would've had trouble before now.

Unfortunately, the antibiotics upset her tummy and cause looser stool, which in turn makes it harder for bacteria to stay out of the urethra.  Sorry for the detailed unpleasantness, but I'm discouraged!  This second antibiotic tastes badly--just getting her to take it depletes much energy.  She had a coughing fit this morning and spit it all up.  And the pharmacy said, of course, you'll have just enough.

Today, day one of a cold for Beth.  More reason to sleep poorly and keep Momma red-eyed.

The more children under your roof, and the closer their ages, the more you say goodbye to your own agenda.  I'm still getting used to it--this lack of control, this utter reliance on grace.

But it is good, no?  Children bless in unexpected ways.

What better way to grow in depth and fortitude, than to need to love more deeply--selflessly--everyday?

heart murmurings

Time to count some blessings and give thanks before bed.  Feeling frustrated tonight over a myriad of problems I can't solve.  Husband is still gone so many hours, he can't run interference with the children for me, allowing me to finish the bedroom shuffle job I started about twelve days ago.  House is in flux and my nerves are frazzled, which doesn't surprise me considering they've actually studied this and found that visual clutter upsets a person.

My gratitude list:

- Miss Beth amused herself with the tea set she got for her birthday (pouring water back and forth and making a sopping mess of the table.  Oh well :), so that Momma could peel at the sink--apples for applesauce and potatoes for mashed sweet potatoes, to go with the chicken already in the oven.  Mashed sweet potatoes and homemade applesauce are two of my favorite foods.  I savored dinner tonight.

- My Paul got a new math book and totally delights in it.  He says during Christmas break, he still wants to do math!

- The underemployment crisis we face takes its toll, definitely.  My husband and I have both aged a lot in the last two years.  But daily, compassion grows in my heart for the less privileged.  I could never, never have known their daily reality without the turmoil, and sometimes hopelessness, of the last 21 months.  The Bible says that the poor have no friends.  What that really means is that the poor are judged for their lack of upward mobility.  I will love, love, love on the less privileged for the rest of my life.  That desire is priceless, and maybe, just maybe, the ongoing nightmare is worth it.

- The three older children have fallen in love, once again, with their Geo Trax train toys.  They have spent hour upon hour over the last three days with their trains, conjuring up scenarios they've been exposed to through the Thomas and His Friends storybooks (we have the whole set of these stories).

- The three older children were in a Christmas Pageant at our church last Sunday.  They did very well, with Paul especially delighting the audience.  Many people came up to us and to the Children's Director telling how Paul had delighted them.  One woman told me he made her cry and that he has a future as a performer.  We were pleasantly surprised by his stage presence, definitely.  Husband and I were in tears throughout the performance.  It was just precious.

My only regret is that often Paul is praised by people in front of his big brother, Peter, which makes existing brother jealously all that much worse.  Peter also put in a very solid performance (both had short singing solos and speaking solos, and were part of the side singing group).  Peter did get complimented also, but not with the same animated praise Paul received.  Pray for Peter, please?  He recognizes that Paul isn't plagued with the OCD fears and other problems.  Although Peter knows he is fearfully and wonderfully made by his Heavenly Father, it's still hard for him to see brother ease through life (in his view)

Trying to finish this up during Beth's nap, which can be pretty short.  She's on day one of a cold.  More another day.

MERRY CHRISTMAS, PRECIOUS FRIENDS!

Harry the Hamster Brings Grace

I was nursing my Beth at naptime when it happened.

"Harry bit Mary and it's real bad!"

Racing out of Beth's room, I brace myself for blood and tears.  Instead, I find a timid Mary.  Too quiet, considering the bite drew slight blood.

"Why did Harry bite you, Mary?"

"I don't know", she answered quiet, not looking at me.

I washed the wound and consulted Google about hamster bites before deciding on ointment or dressing.

"Peter, you didn't leave Mary alone with Harry, did you?"


"Well....yes. I got distracted", Peter admitted.  "But I told her not to touch him!"

Minutes later, applying hydrogen peroxide, I hear Peter say, "Harry isn't moving much."

I finished up and went to check on the hamster, who seemed to be cuddling down for a nap.  Satisfied, I left to interrogate Mary.

A little later, "Something's wrong with Harry!"

Alarmed, I rush to check him again.

My heart beats wild as I watch an obviously wounded rodent.  He depends on us for everything, I lament inside, and we let him down.

Internal despair makes me more insistent with Mary, who is still slow to respond to my inquires.  "What did you do to Harry, Mary?  I think he's dying."


Feeling this was Peter's fault for leaving such a young child alone with his fragile pet (he'd been warned many times), I assured Mary she wasn't in trouble.

"What were you doing when Harry bit you?"


Fifteen minutes later, the truth.  She held him and tried to feed him a sunflower seed--something she'd seen brother do many times.


Harry loves sunflower seeds.  Writing that pains me now.

Harry bit her and she dropped him.  She was standing up at the time, on our laminate wood dining-room floor.

My heart in knots, I check on Harry again.  "No pain for our little friend, Father, please."

Google tells me that, yes, it's common for hamsters to die after falls.  Their bones are so small, a two-foot fall is like a two-story fall for humans.  Oh, Father, he must be in pain.  Take it away!

Heart sick, I tell Peter we were wrong.  "You're not mature enough to have a hamster.  You left Mary alone with him, after many warnings. " 

Harry passes away about an hour later.  Our day goes dark.

In my head I wrestle for hours.

Was I too harsh?  I wonder if we should get another hamster the next day. Peter will miss him dearly.  He's a troubled kid, what with his various neurological challenges.  He needs a pet to help him relax.

Peter and Mary both, at times, held Harry while standing up.  I warned them to sit down, but toddler Beth is a full-time job, taking me from room to room often.  I couldn't stand guard consistently.

And we didn't know the seriousness of falls for these little pets.

My mind searches.  By replacing Harry, am I risking another pet's life?  Isn't that selfish, to want to appease my children, at the expense of a defenseless rodent?  Peter disobeyed.  He needs to learn a lesson and go without a pet for several months.


Toward evening, something happens in my heart.  Jesus.


I always give you another chance, you know.  Why are you without mercy?  Extend it, and grace too. (no punishment, and another pet)

My heart stills, finally.  I know this is the right thing.

Husband calls.

I called him earlier in distress, telling him the dark news.  At that time we both agreed that Peter is too immature to care for a mammal.

But Jesus had spoken to husband, too.

"Honey", he told me, "I think we should give him another chance.  And another and another and another.


I just cry.  "Yes, Jesus told me the same thing."

Peter waits anxious as I hang up.  "What did Daddy say?"


"You're Daddy is a good man, Peter.  He loves you with grace, as your Heavenly Father loves you.  He said it before me.  I think he deserves another chance."

My boy smiles relief.
____________________________________________________

We all miss Harry.  Sometimes we think we can hear his wheel running.  We enter his room, see his empty cage, and the grief comes.  He was just a pet, I know.  We'd known him since November 4th.

He brought more life here.

And in the end, he brought grace.