G's Survey about Mom

Ask your kid the questions and write them down exactly how they respond.

1. What is something mom always says to you?
Be quiet. Don't ask me any questions.

2. What makes mom happy?
A hug.

3. What makes mom sad?
Not listening

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
I don't know, but you have a funny face.

5. What was your mom like as a child?
I don't know.

6. How old is your mom?
36

7. How tall is your mom?
I have no idea.

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Knit

9. What does your mom do when you’re not around?
Take care of C

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
A knitter

11. What is your mom really good at?
knitting

12. What is your mom not very good at?
I don't know.

13. What does your mom do for her job?
Take care of us.

14. What is your mom’s favorite food?
I have no idea.

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
When she makes things for me.

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
a queen

17. What do you and your mom do together?
cuddle

18. How are you and your mom the same?
Our hair; we're beautiful.

19. How are you and your mom different?
I don't know.

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
Makes things for me, and is loving to me.

22. Where is your mom’s favorite place to go?
the beach

G seemed to really find this difficult. ah well ...

G's Deep Thought for the Day

Yesterday, G asked me as we were driving home after school: If God wants us to praise him, then how come he just doesn't make everyone praise him?

I just love it when my kids ask questions that show that they are really thinking. No matter how I answer her questions, I'm glad that she is trying to figure things out.

It is still Beautiful if it isn't perfect.

G
I have been really pondering this quote from a favorite blog of mine lately. I think that it is a matter of choice to look at a scene in all of its imperfections and choose to concentrate on the beautiful.

We've had a lot of snow this year. Last week, we got another 8 inches. N and G went outside to make a snow lady. (All major characters are girls to G.) When they came back in, the snow lady was made, but it was far from perfect; Short and fat with no neat round balls. Evidently, the snow was too dry and it wouldn't pack into balls so they mounded it into a big heap and then carved out the figure. Mismatched hat and scarf with carrots for the whole face completed the character. G loved her snow lady, but N was very disappointed in the snow. It just wasn't the picture perfect snowman.

I smiled when I saw the lady. She was beautiful. She represented a father spending time outside with his daughter. She graces our front yard like a snow Michelin tire. Why look at what she isn't when there is so much to appreciate in what she is. Our short and fat snow lady is absolutely beautiful.

Out of the mouth of babes

I conducted a New Year's Interview of my kids, and it was fairly enlightening.

C says his favorite toy, book & animal is FROGS.
G's favorite TV show is iCarly.
Their favorite restaurant is Denny's? Who knew?

Here is where I got the idea, and I plan on saving these and comparing year to year.

In fact, I think I'm going to have them sign their names so we can compare their autographs from year to year.

Gap Tooth Smile

Overheard Today

C, I'll always be your best friend.

Awww...

(C & G were playing.  I'm not sure what they were playing, but from the other room, G says, "C, I'll always be your best friend."  I'm hoping that this means that it is sinking in to some extent that brothers and sisters are around more than friends.  Friends come and go, but if you can get along with your family, they'll be around your whole life.  The key is to know how to get along.) 

Yippee!!!

G and I got our hair done yesterday. G has a cute chin-length bob. My hair is a shag and I'm trying to grow it into a long shag.

Oh, and I've been invited to the beach for a week. So the kids and I will be having a great time. Poor N has to work. :-(

Just one of the lessons I've learned from G

On the train coming home from NYC, I realized how friendly I found most of the people in NY (although we didn't have to drive anywhere. Typically, I find people in Baltimore friendly until I get behind the wheel of a car. Back to the topic ...) The people were friendly because I was friendly and I talked to them like they were people. G is really the one responsible for teaching this to me. Ever since G was born, she has liked to be talked to. In fact when she was newborn, the only I could get her to stop crying was to talk to her. She is a chatterbox, and really always has been, but she really likes to be talked to and she likes explanations even if she can't always understand. It was hard for me to learn to keep up the running commentary when she was a baby. Now it is easier because she just keeps asking me questions. I think that G feels the most loved when I talk to her, share things with her and so forth. I am learning that others like to be talked to as well. Out and about in NY, N and I found many friendly people and we wouldn't have known that they were friendly if we didn't talk to them, usually we talked to them first. Of course, part of talking to people is listening to them when it is their turn to talk.

Now I just need to continue to talk to G and help her to understand that sometimes Mom needs a break from the talking and the listening.

Magic Thinking Take 2

I don't think I communicated what I intended.

G does ask questions about magic, but I am more concerned about my own desire to have things instantly. I understand that G is just imagining and experimenting. I think it is great that she uses her imagination and I think this will only help her problem solving skills in the future.

I am more concerned about the adults who seem to have Magic Thinking. Instead of using our imaginations to help fuel problem solving. We just get bogged down in the "Why isn't this happening faster?" Well, things that take work and time end up being more meaningful than things that happen instantly. Life becomes more meaningful when we are able to slow down and add purpose. Weight loss lasts longer when it slowly comes off. Handmade heirlooms take time to create. Gourmet meals are slowly simmered and they are made to be savored.

I want to teach G to think outside of the box and encourage her creativity, but I also want to teach her the value of working on a project over time. Of course, the latter lesson might just happen over time

How do I explain ....

that some names are not acceptable? My sister, Beth, gave the kids these long horn stuffed animals. They are so cute, and the kids have to know where they are at all times. C calls his "Big Horn" or "Long Horn", but G wants to call hers .... HORNY. She explained this to me while we were waiting for C to get out of school, in front of about 10 other Moms who were trying very hard not to burst out laughing. I calmly said that "Cutie" was a much better name. "Cutie" is what she was calling it the day before. Anyway, G did drop it for a while, but she tried to argue with me on 2 other occasions that it should be called HORNY. I finally had to say, "Enough already; the absolute final answer was that NO she couldn't call the cow HORNY. " OH, what to do ... what to do ...

C is so excited about his birthday, and I found the perfect place for him. I have rented "Pump It Up", and I invited his preschool class and some friends that I've made at MOPS. Pump It Up is a place filled with giant inflatables, and you only pay for the kids, even though adults can play on the inflatables too. They have slides, bouncers and climbers. I am going to attempt a "Thomas the Train" cake that I saw on a kids tv channel, called Sprouts. You make a track out of cookies and crumbs, and the train is made out of cake baked in mini loaf pans. The face of Thomas is a vanilla wafer. It looks cute and fairly easy. The only catch is that 2 of the kids coming are allergic to peanuts and tree nuts so I have to make sure that all of the cake, candy and cookies that I use are allergy free. C has been getting really excited about the Cars characters and dinosaurs although he still loves Thomas the train, and there is lots and lots of Thomas the train stuff that he doesn't have. He has plenty of clothes, but he goes through about 3 pairs of pants a day because he is really interested in water here lately. I can't seem to keep it out of it. He is still in 3T pants. The 4Ts are just too big around the waist and too long. He can't seem to where his pajamas either without getting them completely soaked or smelly, but he does where 4T in the pjs.

About my hair, I went to this place that I had been before. She does do a good job on my hair. She evened it out, and it is growing out nicely, but it is still too short for me. It doesn't really look short because I have this thin layer of shoulder length hair. Its my layers on top that are really short. Anyway this place is kind of on the expensive side and they are always trying to sell me all of their services and products. It is a full service salon with all kinds of services. I get kinda tired of the sell thing. I just want to relax and enjoy my time. I might keep trying other places until I find someone who is more reasonable in price and won't butcher my hair. I much prefer having to go back because they didn't cut enough.

I have been recovering (catching up on the housework) from being away at my mom's, and last night G started vomiting. She hasn't vomited at all day today, but she is really grumpy and lethargic so I don't think she is quite herself yet. She doesn't really have a fever either. Anyway she hasn't been warm enough for me to take it.

Just another evening in the H's House

Well, I've been working on the computer trying to balance the Christmas bills. N had to go into work today because this is crunch time at work, and I will need to go see my mom at the end of January by myself.

G is running around crying: it's a cry that alternates between "I can't find the remote. The world is coming to a horrible end because the remote is missing." and "Oh my God, I'm going to throw up because C has pooped in his diaper again. Please Mom change him IMMEDIATELY."

For a few seconds there was a small silence, like the eye of a bad storm, and then came:
"uh ... uh... uh... MOM, C IS CUTTING YOUR YARN!!!"

Personally, I think the world froze as I ran to the couch to see C with a little pair of scissors cutting a string of yarn that was attached to something I was knitting. At that moment, I could definitely understand child abuse. I had to hold myself back from picking him up and shaking him violently. I know the yarn isn't worth him having brain damage, but for a minute there it was a close call. Anyway, I discovered that the damage is repairable and we have all calmed down. C has survived the day with only the typical bumps and bruises.

What happened to the trees?

I can't believe that the month of October is almost gone. My month has been spent with one after another of us getting sick. I hope next month is more relaxing.

Driving in the car, watching the weather change with a 3 year old is so cool. G is in awe of everything and she is constantly asking me "What's that?"

A few weeks ago, we were in the car driving, and she says "MOM!! What happened to the tree? Is it sick?"

Then I got to explain what Fall is all about. It just amazes me how children slowly wake up to the things around them. Each season it is all new to them. Adults just take the miracles all around us for granted. I must say that I love watching the world through my children's eyes. They are so cool.

Little Tidbits to Remember

After a long & tiring day, Grace climbed into my lap for a rock, a lullaby, and a prayer. Usually I pray, but lately, I have been asking if she would like to pray. For the first time last night, she prayed ...

Father in Heaven
Take care of Mama
Amen

my heart just sighed ...

how amazing ...