A Baby Shower Devotional

Tonight, the ladies of our church will be getting together to have a baby shower for a young woman expecting her second child!  I love baby showers!  (Big surprise huh?!)

I’m giving a short devotional that I hope will be an encouragement to the new mother, and I thought I’d share it here.  Please be patient with some grammatical errors, as these are simply notes and not a complete, thought-out essay!

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First some funnies:  These questions were asked of elementary-aged children.

How did God make mothers?

• “He used dirt, just like for the rest of us.”
• “Magic plus super powers and a lot of stirring.”
• “God made my Mom just the same like he made me. He just used bigger parts.”

What ingredients are mothers made of?

• “God makes mothers out of clouds, angel hair and everything nice in the world and one dab of mean.”
• “They had to get their start from men's bones. Then they mostly use string. I think.”

Why did God give you your mother and not some other Mom?

• “God knew she likes me a lot more than other people's moms like me.”

What kind of little girl was your Mom?

• “I don't know because I wasn't there, but my guess would be pretty bossy.”
• “They say she used to be nice.”

What's the difference between moms and dads?

• “Dads are taller and stronger, but moms have all the real power 'cause that's who you got to ask if you want to sleep over at your friend's.”

What does your Mom do in her spare time?

• “Mothers don't do spare time.”
• “To hear her tell it, she pays bills all day long.”

What would it take to make your Mom perfect?

• “On the inside she's already perfect. Outside, I think some kind of plastic surgery.”
• “Diet. You know, her hair. I'd diet, maybe blue.”

If you could change one thing about your Mom, what would it be?

• “She has this weird thing about me keeping my room clean. I'd get rid of that.”
• “I'd make my Mom smarter. Then she would know it was my sister who did it and not me.”

A Mother’s Influence

Children are very observant! And sometimes we don’t realize what they are observing until we see it or hear it come out of their mouth! Oops!

As parents, we are the strongest influence in our child’s life. God gives parents the primary responsibility for the raising of a child!

Dueteronomy 6:5-7

And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
(Deuteronomy 6:5-7)

Our children will have many people that will influence them over their lifetimes. Friends, Sunday School teachers, television, and so on, but we the parents, and more specifically tonight, the mothers, will wield a much stronger influence than any of these.

We can influence our child for good, but we can also use our influence for the bad. In Scripture we have examples of both.

Let’s start with the bad: 2 Chr. 22:2-3

Forty and two years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. His mother's name also was Athaliah the daughter of Omri. He also walked in the ways of the house of Ahab: for his mother was his counsellor to do wickedly.
(2 Chronicles 22:2-3)

Throughout the history of Israel’s and Judah’s kings, the mothers are rarely mentioned. But here we are told of King Ahaziah’s mother Athaliah. The Bible says she counseled him to do wickedly! We can read more about that in the chapter and in 2 Kings, and we find that Athaliah eventually kills the rest of the household to set herself up as queen, but the point here is that Athaliah, because of her own ambitions and priorities, was a wicked influence on her son.

I certainly hope that you (mother) will never counsel your children to do wickedly, but let Athaliah serve as a reminder to us that we can let our own plans and desires get in the way of the godly influence we are supposed to be. Watch your priorities!

Now the good: 2 Tim 1:5

When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother Eunice; and I am persuaded that in thee also.
(2 Timothy 1:5)

Timothy’s mother Eunice (and grandmother) had a profound effect on Timothy’s life and future service! As best we can tell Timothy’s father was a Greek and unsaved, and therefore had very little positive influence on Timothy’s spiritual development, yet we read in 2 Tim 3:15 that Timothy knew the Scriptures from the time he was a child! And because of that, he was saved and followed God his whole life. He became very dear to the Apostle Paul.

(Mother), as you prepare to have your 2^nd child, remember that you will wield an incredible power! You will influence your children, make no mistake about that! But what kind of influence will you have? What will you teach them?

I strongly believe that parents are parents from Day 1, and parents are teachers from Day 1. Granted, in those early days, you are simply teaching them to eat and sleep, but you are teaching nonetheless. But as our children grow, we have an incredible responsibility to teach them to “love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.”

So (mother), I encourage you tonight to renew that commitment within you to teach your children to love the Lord, and use your influence in a godly way! I know the ladies here will rally around you to help you in that journey! We love you, we love (first child), and we love this new little one. So ladies will you please join me in prayer as we ask the Lord’s blessing on (mother), her family, and the new baby?

Siblings and Babies

A common question when bringing a new baby into the home is, “Are any of the other children jealous?”

Thankfully, I have always been able to say no!  We have brought six babies home since our first, and we have never had any negative reactions. 

When we brought Tank home a couple months ago, Twinkle (22 months old) was a little unsure of him.  She kissed and ‘held’ him, but we could see in her face that she didn’t quite know what to think of the little guy.  However, after just a few days, Twinkle was all smiles for Tank and loved to help Mom take care of him. 

That is the worst reaction we’ve ever had!  I feel bad to hear parents talk about the aggression and jealousy their older children exhibit.  I certainly can’t presume to know exactly why some kids act out while others don’t since all children react differently to different things.

Let’s just be honest.  For us, having babies is a ‘normal’ event!  I believe there’s a balance between fostering excitement over the upcoming arrival and living your normal life, acting as though a new baby is a natural part of your family’s life.

I’ve never banned my children from being near the new baby.  I try to use “yes” statements ('”be gentle,” “use a soft voice,” “touch his arms and legs”) rather than “no” statements (“don’t grab,” “stop yelling by his ear",” “don’t poke him in the eye”).  Of course, all of the above have happened many times- the words and actions!

As the baby grows and gains more muscle control (mainly of his head!), I try to allow the older siblings to carry him around as much as possible.  Obviously, you must use some discretion here and err on the side of caution!  My three-year-olds are not allowed to hold Tank without some help, but my five-year-old is perfectly capable of picking him up safely and loving on him for a few minutes!  I believe this helps to foster a bond that would be difficult to attain if they were never allowed to touch him!

While our routines may be thrown off for a while, and everyone needs to pitch in to keep things running, we also try to remember that the world does not revolve around the new baby.  Life still goes on for all of us.  My older children are still just as important as they ever were.  They get just as many hugs and kisses (and probably more!).  We try to talk with them as much as usual!

Most importantly, though, is that I hope we’ve encouraged the belief that every new baby is a gift to our entire family.  He is special, and it’s our special opportunity to care for him.  I try to never ‘blame the baby’ for aches and pains during pregnancy or for my lack of sleep during those early months.  A baby is only ever a good thing!

I see the love my children have for their new brother in different ways. 

Twinkle gets upset if anyone else gets Tank’s diapers because she has claimed that as her job!

Minion 1 and Minion 2 want to kiss him constantly, and they laugh at nearly everything he does.  In fact, they think his cry is hilarious!  Okay, that may actually be a little disturbing!

Sweetheart Girl is a little mother in every way and delights in being allowed to do anything with or for Tank.

I love to hear McAwesome talk to him in a sweet ‘babytalk.’  He has always been so patient with all of our babies.

Finally, a conversation with Hero this morning is what prompted me to write this in the first place.

We caught a little clip of 19 Kids and Counting this morning.  Hero asked, "Are they godly?"  I told him yes, they are devoted Christians.  Then he said, "Oh, no wonder God has blessed them so much with so many kids!"

I'm glad he gets it :)

A Conversation with Awesome McAwesome

Awesome McAwesome has a bad habit- he bites his nails.  In fact, I can’t remember the last time I had to clip his nails!  The problem is that I don’t ever see him do it.  Here is how our conversation went last week:

Me: McAwesome, when do you bite your nails because I never see you do it?

McAwesome: Umm, usually on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.

Me: No, I mean when during the day, silly?

McAwesome: Oh!  Well, usually about 16 times in the morning, 10 times in the afternoon, and 30 times at night.

There’s a little insight into how my boy’s mind works…slightly scary, huh?!  He’s so funny, and  we really never know what he’s going to say next!

So about a week and a half ago, I posted a little calendar on the fridge, on which he gets to mark each day that he doesn’t bite his nails.  It’s really based on the honor system- but if his nails don’t grow, I’ll know he’s been lying!  If he makes seven days, he earns a little prize.

He’s already made his first seven days (and his nails are a little longer!).  He’s working on his next seven days now- and he says his nails are sooooo long, it’s getting really hard not to bite them!  In reality, his nails aren’t quite long enough to warrant clipping them yet!

I hear conflicting reports on whether it takes 21 days or 28 days to make or break a habit, so I’m just going to shoot for a whole month!

Happy Two Weeks!

Tank is two weeks old today!  Already!  It’s funny how in one way it seems like he joined us only a couple of days ago, but in another way it’s already beginning to feel like he’s always been a part of us.

Overall, we’re both doing well.  We had jaundice issues once again (it’s a blood-type thing), but that’s under control.  Thankfully, we were able to treat him at home with a portable bililight blanket rather than have to go into the hospital like we did with Twinkle.  He’s slow to gain weight like he should, and I’m doing everything I can to build up my milk supply so that we can successfully breastfeed…we’ll see…

The other kids love him!  Hero, McAwesome, and Sweetheart Girl kind of know the ‘new baby drill’ by now, and they are very patient with not having me be able to do everything the same way as before.  They always want to hold him, and McAwesome has been known to say, “He’s eating again?!”

Minion 1 and Minion 2 don’t care to hold him so much.  They prefer to give him a kiss (as I remind them again not to push on Tank’s head!), and see if he’s awake or asleep.  I’m not sure what the fascination is with that, but apparently it’s their job to tell me if his eyes are open or not- even when I’m holding him, and I can see very well on my own!

Twinkle tells me when he’s eating (thanks, Twinkle), and brings Tank his blankets.  I guess since she is somewhat attached to her blanket, she wants to make sure Tank has his!  It’s very cute!

Everyday I feel better, and if we can get Tank’s feedings under control, I feel like we’ll soon be on our way to our new routine.

To tell the truth, the first couple of months are not my favorite part of child-rearing, but these newborn days fly by so quickly that I’m trying to savor every bit of it.  There’s just something about having a newborn in the house that brings out the best in all of us.  Not that we’re all smiles all the time, but the reminder that God has blessed us once again is hard to ignore!  And babies just smell sooo good!

Introducing!!

Tank!!

Tank made his entrance at 10:49 p.m. on Saturday, October 8, 2011!!  He weighed in at a whopping 8 lbs. 6 oz. and is 19 1/2 inches long!

My labor was (blessedly) very short.  I woke up Saturday morning with my usual, occasional contractions that had no rhyme nor reason to them.  The only thing different was that I had them first thing in the morning, whereas they usually came on midday or early evening.  Because I did notice that difference, I did pay attention to them, but sure enough, as the day progressed, they disappeared!

With church the next morning, I decided to head upstairs early, so a little after 8:30 I went into the kitchen to make myself a sandwich before going up.  As I opened the fridge door, my water broke!!  Contractions started within 20 minutes, we had a 45 minute drive to the hospital, and about 40 minutes later Tank came into this world!

Welcome Little One!

Peace, Be Still

Mark 4:35-40  And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side.  And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships.  And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.  And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?  And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.  And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?

This was the main text of a session that I recently attended at Spiritual Leadership Conference at Lancaster Baptist Church.  The topic was surviving the storms of life, and, as usual, I was reading the notes ahead while I waited for the class to start.  As I read this very familiar passage, something stood out to me that I had never seen before.

Jesus calmed the storm before He taught his disciples a lesson. 

No kidding, huh?!

But I believe God was teaching me a little parenting lesson at that moment.  As you can guess, with six young children in the house, there is no shortage of storms in our home.  Someone hurt, something broken, etc. and the kids are frantic.  I realized that far too often, I am trying to scold and/or teach while in the midst of the storm.  And, big surprise, that’s when my volume level rises!  Soon I’m nearly as frantic as the kids, and when everything finally does calm down, I have to repeat everything I just said because no one could focus before!

Maybe this is overly simple, but I’ve been trying to watch myself very carefully these past few weeks.  And I’m making a point to be very quiet, soothing when necessary, until the storm has calmed.  Then we can all focus on what needs to be said.

After all, God speaks to His children so often in that still, small voice.  Why shouldn’t I strive to do the same?

Loving Lullabies

*Yes, I know I haven’t blogged in a while…we’ve been sick, busy, out of town, etc., and when I’ve had a few moments to myself, I just haven’t felt like blogging!*

Last night, I experienced one of those ‘I’m so glad I’m a mother, otherwise I would have missed this’ moments.  It happened again tonight, so I thought I’d better write it down, so I would remember how special it was to me!

When I put the Minions to bed, I sing to them.  4-5 nights a week, they do not want to go to bed, and 99% of those times, singing their song calms them down so they can sleep. 

While I’m placing their blankets over them, I sing:

Minion 1, you are my Minion 1

You make me happy when skies are gray

You’ll never know, dear, how much I love you

Please don’t take (kiss) my Minion 1 away (kiss kiss kiss)

Obviously, I use his real name, and I then sing the same with Minion 2’s name in place of Minion 1’s.  The kisses are their favorite part because they change based upon their moods!  The crankier the boy, the crazier the kiss.

Well, last night after I sang, Minion 2 says “My turn, Mommy!”  And he began to sing:

Mommy, you are my Mommy… (complete with kisses)

And my heart cried, “Aaaawwww!”

Tonight, Minion 1 was the first to sing to me.

__________________

I’ve had six children now, and lullabies didn’t automatically work their magic for every one of them, but nonetheless, I sang to them.  I love lullabies!  In the middle of the night, they entertain me as much as they soothe the baby (sometimes much more so)!

Obviously, in a family our size, a lot of things get passed down, reused, and recycled, but one thing that each of my children has received is their own lullaby.

Luke- Edelweiss

Jackson- All the Pretty Horses

Kate- Hush, Little Baby

Minion 1 and Minion 2 - You are My Sunshine (sunshine is replaced with their names)

Twinkle- Jesus Loves Me

I didn’t do it on purpose to start, and I never specifically planned out which song each child would get, but somehow, as I would hold each baby in my arms, these are the songs that poured out.  And, somehow, they just seem to fit each one, and these are the songs that will remind me of their baby days (and nights!) no matter how old they may be!

Pictures That Make Me Smile

One of the gifts I’m making for the twins is a matching game with pictures of our family.  So today I went through all of our pics from this year, and I came across several that just made me smile!  Don’t get me wrong- I love all the kids pics, but sometimes you get some that are just a little extra special!

We took the kids bowling for the first time ever, and Hero never could bowl without his mouth open!  Most of the time his tongue was hanging out!

Sweetheart Girl had so much fun tossing leaves, and the delight on her face makes me smile :)

Twinkle has been the happiest baby, and every morning we woke up to this face (but maybe not this hair!).  She’s almost one year old now, so her grin has changed a bit, but she still always smiles at us in the morning!

Awesome McAwesome accepted Christ on Father’s Day this year.  I love this pic of my husband baptizing his 2nd son!

This was the Minions’ 2nd birthday, and I just love the mischivious grin on Minion 1’s face.  He’s wearing orange.

Come on, this one’s obvious!

Sweetheart Girl’s first time singing in Patch the Pirate Club.  Tell me she’s not the most adorable sailor ever!!

This one was taken about 4 hours after Minion 2 fell and knocked his tooth out of his mouth!  It’s a miserable story, but he’s a trooper!

Twinkle spent at least a month doing this constantly!

They’ve only done this twice!

This picture makes me smile because of the story behind it.

The ‘men’ were out chopping down a tree, and McAwesome didn’t want to help.  This is his pathetic ‘Please let me in’ look.  I didn’t let him in.

Sweetheart Girl loves her boots!

There’s a story behind this one, too, but suffice it to say, McAwesome wants a mustache ;)

Minion 1’s arm around Sweetheart Girl makes me smile a mile wide!

Because Daddy-man and I so rarely get a picture together…though neither of us actually like the way we look in this one…

On the other hand, I actually like the way I look in this one…if I could photoshop the red nose :o)

And, finally…

This one was taken on my hubby’s cell phone camera and is a bit blurry, but if I could be left with only one picture of Twinkle, this is the one I choose!  Daddy-man and I smile and laugh every time we look at this face!!

Successful Outings with a Large Family- Part Two

Mom, can I have this, puh-leeeeeeeease?!

I need it!!!!!

I want it!!!!!

Waaaaaahhhhh!!!!!

Ugh, my head hurts just thinking about this!  I think every child is going to ask for things at times.  They don’t understand the value of a dollar (or $50, for that matter), they don’t understand a budget, etc.  But I definitely cannot handle my kids asking for stuff every time we go to the store!  We certainly discuss how to be good stewards of the funds God has given us, how to choose to spend wisely, and the like, but when it comes down to it, I employ this next strategy to keep the “Can I haves” and “I wants” at bay.

Tip Number Two for a Successful Large Family Outing:

DEFINE THE TRIP’S PURPOSE

Before we go into the store, I tell my kids exactly what we are looking for, and I tell them that we are not buying them anything.  I like to give them things on my list to look for, and I try to let them make choices whenever possible.  For example, if I know I am going to buy juice, I’ll allow Jackson to choose what kind we get.  I find that giving them a job and a purpose gives them less reason to focus on the things they want. 

Sometimes, I am able to get them a treat (whatever it may be), and I also try to tell them that up front.  I prefer to tell them beforehand, again, to make expectations clear. 

Nothing too earth-shattering here, I know!  It used to be easy to make a run to Wal-mart for a few things, and let them browse the toy section for a while.  It’s not so easy to do that now, especially with twin 2 year-olds!  Now, I am asking for trouble if I don’t make myself clear from the beginning!

BTW, this is extra effective if you make the occasional trip that’s just for fun with few expectations!

Successful Outings with a Large Family- Part One

Wow!  Are they ALL yours?

Boy, are your hands are full.

I don’t know how you do it- I never could!

At least they’re so well-behaved; You’re sooo lucky!!!

We got the stares occasionally when there were only 3 kids.  After that, we had the twins (and everyone finds twins fascinating), so we were stopped regularly with 5 children in tow.  But now there are SIX!  Now, I mentally prepare myself for the craning-necks, the bulging-eyes, and the extra ten minutes devoted to talking to folks about our family when we make an outing.

Ready for the truth?…I love it! 

We’ve all seen ahem…heard the other families in the store.  You know, the screaming children, the screaming parents, the whining children, the placating parents.  Normally, you see that occur with families of 1-3 kids.  Can you imagine if you had 6 children?  Absolute madness!  Now, I understand all kids have their bad moments, but you can tell the difference between bad moments and bad parenting when you walk all the way around the store, meet up with that family again 30 minutes later, and the kids are still screaming!

A large family cannot afford to have that kind of chaos going on.  Not only will we be unable to accomplish anything, we will be displaying a horrible example, and we will open ourselves up to all sorts of comments and judgments that ought not be said of us.  Believe me, carting 6 kids around opens us up to enough comments already- we don’t need to give them more fuel for the fire!  I’ve learned a few things by now that help us to have successful outings.  For me that means no whining, crying, or yelling…on my part :)

I’m going to assume that proper training is going on at home, so I’ll be mentioning practical things that have to do with the outings themselves.  Since most people feel free to make comments about my family, the types of comments I receive are good indicators of how the trip went.

Only once have I gotten a truly rude, ‘it’s none of your business, buddy’-type of comment.  I find that most people are genuinely fascinated and curious, would like to make conversation, and don’t even realize that they sometime make comments that could be considered rude, nosy, or offensive.  I mean, let’s face it- large families are not the norm, and people don’t even remember the days that they were the norm.

While I find the ‘large family comebacks’ that you can find on the internet hilarious (if you have a large family, you’ve read them!), I would never actually say any of those things.  The above comments are the most common I get, and they are perfectly fine with me. I believe a merry heart and a friendly countenance go a long way.  After all, strangers can only go by what they see, (since I’m not likely to take any of them home with me), and I discovered a while ago, that if I look like a tired, haggard mom of six, unruly children, I will be looked upon and treated like a tired, haggard mom of six, unruly children.

Tip Number One for a Successful Large Family Outing:

APPEARANCES MATTER

When I am preparing to take the kids out, I prepare myself, as well.  This means I am wearing nice clothes, my hair is brushed neatly, and I at least have mascara on.  I don’t wear my ‘it’s seen better days so I don’t care if the baby rubs her snot-nose all over me’ T-shirt.  I don’t wear my ‘I just rolled out of bed and threw my hair into an elastic’ hair.  Neither do I get myself into my ‘Sunday best.’   

I find that if I feel put-together, other people see me as a put-together mom.  And it’s a whole lot easier to talk to folks and steer the conversation toward the Lord, if I’m not berating myself in my head for not bothering to wash breakfast off of my face!

The same goes for the children.  Everyone needs to be presentable.  I certainly don’t dress them in trendy, designer clothes unless I found them at the thrift store :)  Sometimes the boys’ pants have holes in the knees (isn’t that trendy?), I don’t iron their clothes or shine their shoes, but the point is that we don’t look like we aren’t taking care of our children.  In case you’re wondering, I have allowed Sweetheart Girl to go to the store in dress up clothes.  That’s cute……right?

No, we aren’t always at our best, but, honestly, I can tell a difference in those trips- even if it’s just in the way I feel.  Quite frankly, if I feel a trip has gone horribly, then it has gone horribly!  And don’t we all know that the one time we go out looking sloppy is the time we see people we know?!

So let me encourage you fellow moms!  Don’t allow yourself to play the sloppy mom card!  Take the 5 minutes you need to make yourself presentable.  After all, we say that the Lord has given us our large family.  Some say that everyone should welcome many children into their own families.  Let’s not give them one more reason to disdain that thought.  Let’s show them that it can be done, and with joy!

Too cute!

I got all of Twinkle’s hair into a ponytail!!  Absolutely insane! 

I love this girl!!!!!

Ready to be Grossed Out?

I love new moms! Hey, I used to be one!! Now, I wouldn't exactly call myself a veteran- after all, my oldest is only eight, and I know I've yet to experience a lot of things- however, six kids into it, I would say that I'm pretty experienced with the baby-preschool ages!

New moms take joy in every new moment of their babies' lives. From the first coo to the first steps, every accomplishment is AMAZING! And it is every new mom's right (not really, but you know what I mean) to take personal credit for what their babies can do! First-time moms spend every available moment they have teaching, nurturing, and encouraging their little babes to do the next 'thing,' achieve the next milestone. I think this is why firstborns are stereotypically 'ahead' of the averages. Moms, by sheer determination to see their children achieve, who have nothing else vying for their attentions, gently 'push' their little ones along. When you have the second, third, fourth, etc., guess what happens?!? You have less time to spend with that newborn!! I think that's when you learn to relax, enjoy, and savor each moment. Don't get me wrong here- I'm at baby number six, and I still think every accomplishment is AMAZING! If you're a mom of more than one, and those milestones are no big deal, I think you've lost the wonder of what it is to be a mom. Find it again!!!

All this to say, there is one fault that nearly every new mom has. In fact, a lot of moms share this same fault (I did...ahem...do?). It's the "I would never..." fault.

"I would never give my child candy for lunch."

"I would never lose my temper."

"I would never allow my child to leave the house wearing dress-up clothes."

And on and on they go...

I'm learning that the Bible gives clear instructions on raising children in the areas that have eternal importance. We are to raise them to know the Lord, to discipline the wayward child, to train them up in the way they should go (BTW, every child is different, so you must seek wisdom in this area), to provoke them to love and good works and not to anger...

Here are parenting issues NOT addressed in the Bible (aside from always doing what is best for your child- again, prayer is key in each of these areas):

Co-sleeping/family bed vs. cribs
Bottle feeding vs. breastfeeding- breastfeeding is best, of course, but still not a Biblical issue
Cloth vs. disposable diapers
Natural birth vs. hospital/medical interventions
The appropriate age to potty-train

And on and on they go...

Again, some of these choices are definitely preferred over the others, however there's no 'sin' involved in these issues. New mom's are notorious for the "I would never..." fault! Didn't we all have it all figured out when we had that first baby?! We read the books, the experts, and we knew what was, clearly, the only real choice!! But, guess what?! Life, and reality, happens! You find that what you thought was a big deal, really isn't. You find out that this battle isn't worth the effort. You find out that what worked for your genius firstborn, your second child couldn't care less about!

Here's my "I would never..." confession of the day:


"I would never sit a potty seat in front of the television in the living room!"

Seriously, that's gross!! I've always thought that was gross, and I still do!! However, the proof of my hypocrisy is right there...

I'm still not sure the twins are ready to potty train, but we're giving it a shot. They HATE the toilet and have screamed every time I've ever tried to put them on it. I bought these little potties several months ago ($4 at IKEA), and just brought them out today. Minion 1 (in orange) and Minion 2 (in brown) sat in the bathroom for while with the faucet running and full cups of water, but...nothing. However, since they were still willing to sit, I decided to try this out. Normally, the TV is not out in the living room, but we brought it out to watch a game last weekend, and it's still sitting there, so I've allowed the kids to watch more shows than usual.

The above blank and mindless stares are exactly why I don't like them to watch TV...

We'll see if my hypocrisy pays off!!

Chili Champion

Yesterday at church we had our 3rd Annual Soulwinning Kickoff/Chili Cookoff. It was a great Sunday with good attendance, especially from the Spanish ministry. The Spanish ministry is growing by leaps and bounds! The need is so great in our area- there are no fundamental Spanish works, and the two Southern Baptist Spanish works have recently shut down. Thank God for leading my husband and Pastor Eli to begin a Spanish work at our church!

Several new people signed up for soulwinning training, and we're excited to see more people involved in the Lord's work! The Soulwinning Kickoff is the main event, of course, but as a 'hook' (that sounds worse than it is!), we also have a Chili Cookoff. You know us Baptists have to bring food for everything!! We had 17 chilis entered this year (wow), and the winner of the coveted Golden Ladle.......... ......................drumroll, please................................

HERO!!!

He's soooooo humble about it, too! Okay, if you believed that, you don't know Hero very well. He really did make his own chili. All I did was lay out the ingredients, help him drain the beef, and stir the bottom of the pot. He even added 2 secret ingredients.....dare I tell?.....okay, I've been given permission to spill the chili beans (get it?).....brown sugar and cinnamon.

See the cute chili peppers on the apron? The apron will be passed on to next year's winner (assuming Hero doesn't win again- he's sure he will), but he will keep the ladle. The previous two winners have worn their ladles with pride! No, really, they've worn them as ties!!

Now that I've realized I have a gifted culinary artist in the house, I may never cook again....I'm sooooo disappointed. And if you believed that, you don't know me very well!

Good job, Hero!

A Morning at the Park

Last night was a bit rough.  Twinkle woke up, and while I was only up with her for about 20 minutes, it took me a while to fall asleep again.  Then Sweetheart Girl woke up because she was cold and couldn't get back into her sleeping bag (she was on the older boys' floor), and after that it took me forever to get back to sleep!  Needless to say, I was not ready to get up this morning...thankfully, my wonderful husband let me stay in bed.  Not only did he get the kids breakfast, he even got them going on all their morning chores!  What a man!

Of course, he had to leave eventually, and I was up, but hardly awake.  Since most of the kids were already dressed, I decided we needed a break.  We went to the playground.  We'll call it P.E.  We had a good time, but even though we were there by 8:00 and left at about 9:00, we were all a mess of red faces, sweaty hair, and tired little bodies!  Here are some pictures:

Then the older kids decided that Twinkle needed to have some fun, too!    

Notice that while she started with a smile (with Hero), by the time Sweetheart Girl got to her, she was a little unsure of this whole slide thing…

Then they went to play Air Baseball with some new friends.

  Look!  We do have grass in Tucson!!  (pay no attention to the brown spot right next to Sweetheart Girl)

Here’s some family trivia.  So far, all of my children have been afraid of grass when they reached the toddler age…

Ready to go home!

Failing the Struggling Learner?

This morning, I caught the tail end of a news story about a school (in New Jersey?) that will no longer give Ds to their students.  They can get an A, B, C, or F.  Below 70% is a failing grade.  The principal said he was tired of giving students passing grades for doing almost nothing.  I (for the most part) say, "Good for him!"

There's no doubt that our public school system is failing our children.  There's no doubt that "academic education" is far from their first priority.  You can find many articles and e-books at http://thehomeschoolmagazine.com/ that show the history of the school system and its main goal to win the hearts and minds of our children in order to produce "good citizens" that don't question the government.  Our very own Declaration of Independence tells us that we must hold our government accountable!

That being said, I myself grew up in public school since the middle of my 1st grade year, and I did all right, as will many kids in public school today.  My parents worked hard to keep on top of what was going on and help us navigate that tricky road that wants to veer off (that's putting it mildly!) the True Path.  I was blessed to be one of those students that always did very well with little effort.  I mean, I worked hard on my papers and homework, but rarely did I truly struggle to understand my lessons.  And I thank God for enabling me to do so, but I understand that most do not have the same experience I did.  Many will struggle to achieve Cs and will work as hard as they possibly can for a B.

Enter yet another advantage to homeschooling!  

I can take as much time as my children need to fully understand their subjects.  I don't have to assign a C or D letter grade at Christmas break because I'm forced to move on to the next lesson.  I can decide that even a C is unacceptable and keep working to find new ways to help my student 'get it.'  I can wait for that little light bulb to come on!  Even better, I can choose to give no grades at all!  (Our state makes that possibility very easy- I realize others are forced to require more.)

I can help my struggling learner in a way that a school teacher can not, even if they wanted to, because I have great advantages.  I have TIME!  I have a LOVE for my child that wants to see them succeed, one that even the most loving of teachers don't possess.  I have FREEDOM to choose when to push and when to back off and pursue something else for a while.

Many school teachers are wonderful!  They truly have a desire to see their students do well, but they don't have the advantages that I do.  They are bound to a system.  They are pressured by requirements and standards that set up struggling children to fail.  They are obligated to 20-30 students (more in jr. high and high school) and cannot possibly meet the needs of each one!  Their hands are tied- and those are the good teachers!  We won't even discuss the teachers that are there for a paycheck (or worse), and wish they could get it without the kids!

I realize that I am just at the beginning of our homeschool journey, and there's a possibility that I am being a bit naive, but I'm just guessing that out of my six children, one is bound to not easily excel at academics, and I'm okay with that.  I know it will be a struggle.  I know that there will probably be tears and frustration, but I can take peace in that I know that I will not let that child get lost in the struggle.  I will not give up on him.  He won't have to worry about his teacher (mom!) failing him.

A VERY Happy Father’s Day

Yes, I know we're almost two weeks past Father's Day, but it was a great one for our family, and I've been waiting on pictures to post about it.

Forgive me, but I'm going to pass over all the normal Father's Day stuff (love you, honey!), and talk about the two things that made this day extra special.

First, we had Twinkle’s Dedication.

A Baby’s Dedication is very different from infant baptism.  The Bible is very clear that baptism is an outward profession of one’s decision to trust Jesus as Savior.  It doesn’t ‘wash’ away any sin, only the blood of Jesus can do that!    A baby can not make any such decision.

Basically, a dedication is all about the parents!  Dad and Mom publicly declare before the church their promise to God that they will be faithful to raise that baby as a gift from the Lord, to rear him in the ‘nurture and admonition of the Lord,’ and to live as an example of a faithful Christian, so that when that baby is old enough to understand the gospel, he will decide to, by grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9), accept Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. 

Every Christian parent ought to dedicate their child to the Lord.  We have Hannah’s example in 1 Samuel, and we also see an example of this when Joseph and Mary brought Jesus to the temple when he was eight days old.  Now, it may not be a big, public church event, but all parents ought to declare their intentions to the Lord in their hearts.

Baby Dedications have always been special events to me, wonderful memories tucked away in my mother’s heart.  Hero and McAwesome were both dedicated in South Carolina by the same pastor that dedicated my husband as a baby (Herp spit up on him!).  Sweetheart Girl was dedicated by our pastor in Sierra Vista, the same man who married us!  Our Associate Pastor Eli was licensed and ordained recently, and we’ve asked him to do the twin’s and now Twinkle’s dedications.

So that was the first exciting thing that happened.

We went out to lunch and did normal Father’s Day stuff.  The kids gave Dad their gifts, and he gave the appropriate ooos and aaahs.  We attended church that evening, then came home and got the kids into bed.  They were having a hard time falling asleep, and sure enough I heard Hero and McAwesome calling for me.  I went into the room, and McAwesome said something that I cannot for the life of me remember, but I know I didn’t quite understand what he was trying to say.  Then Hero asked if McAwesome was one of the kids that had gotten saved at VBS the previous week.  No, he wasn’t.  Hero was a bit incredulous- he’s been praying for McAwesome since he became a Christian two years ago.

McAwesome then cried out in frustration, “Well, how do I know if I’m saved!?” 

Well, now, I can hardly tell them they should be sleeping by now, so I told McAwesome to come with me, and I took him into my bedroom and we went through the Scriptures.  McAwesome understood everything.  He knew what sin is, and he readily admitted that he was a sinner.  We went through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, and how only through Christ can we get to heaven.  McAwesome mentioned hell all by himself, and said that he deserved to go there.  Okay, long story short, when I asked McAwesome if he wanted to ask Jesus to be his Savior or if he wanted to wait, he said he wanted to do it then. 

I was blessed to be the one that led our oldest son Hero to the Lord- it was a Thursday night and Daddy-man wasn’t home.  But this night, Daddy-man was home, so I thought he should get to pray with McAwesome.  I brought McAwesome out to the dining room, and Daddy-man went over things one more time with him, then he helped McAwesome pray. 

My McAwesome is SAVED!! 

McAwesome is always willing to be vocal about not wanting to do something (he’s not a people-pleaser), so I didn’t worry too much about him praying just to make mom and dad happy.  Plus, this is hardly the first time it came up, but he’s just never seemed to fully understand and he’s never wanted to before.  But McAwesome’s also not a talker, so I wondered what type of evidence we might be able to see.  However, he’s told many people on his own that he’s a Christian now, and he’s already mentioned wanting to get baptized.

What a way to close out Father’s Day 2010!