This Takes Sympathy to a Whole New Level

 

 

Yesterday we discovered these lego videos.  I can't even remember what our original reason was for being on you tube, but when my 6 year old saw lego videos, all other interests came to a screeching halt. 

 

I am always a bit leery to open a new video sight unseen in front of my kids.  Experience has taught me that even the most innocent "lego" looking video is not always appropriate from start to finish. 

 

Thankfully, these were fine.  They had us cracking up for a good long time.

 

If you have five minutes to spare, check out it out.  They rest of the post won't make any sense without it.

 

That video was watched at 11:00 a.m. yesterday.

Last night when I tucked in my little guy, he seemed kind of sad.  He's never too thrilled about having to go to bed, but this seemed a bit different. 

We prayed, I turned on his music, and then finally asked him what was wrong.

He sat up and with tears in his eyes (literally), he said this:

"I am sad.  I am sad for that lego guy who was shopping.  It's just not fair that he didn't get to buy any legos like he wanted to.  That makes me very sad for him.  They should have let him buy some legos."

I had absolutely no idea what to say.

Christmas in Pictures

Christmas Through the Eyes of a Child

 

The AGONY of waiting to begin opening gifts...

 

Having the privilege of reading the Christmas story....



 Somehow the Christmas story sounds even better when a child reads it.

 

Stockings....



 Yes, those are Band-aids on my son's pile.  Doesn't every mom put Band-aids in her kids' stockings?  And here in just a second he will be opening tape.  Yes, tape.  That child has emptied my savings account with the number of Band-aids and the amount of tape he uses.  He is addicted.  Now I can watch him waste these items with a bit less rage.

And, finally, the gifts...



 Although I think using his pocket knife was at least half the fun of getting new gifts.

 

 This child is thinking, "I asked for Star Wars, Ninjago, and Super Heros, and you got me this?  Where are all the weapons?!?"

 Is it just me, or does anyone else see extra ER visits in our future?

 

 



 Oh, the joy that iTunes brings.

 Grandma came through with Lego Ninjago.  It's an airplane spaceship flying thing.

And Uncle Rod saved the day with Lego Factory Superheroes.

 

All is now right in his universe.

A Day of Remembrance

One hope that I have for my children is that Christmas will never become commonplace for them.  I have no doubt that they will always love the anticipation of Christmas, the gifts, the family activities, the Christmas lights, and the break from school. 

But my fear is that with all of the things we do to make Christmas "special"...will they remember the Christ child in the manger?

If you ask them what Christmas is really all about, they definitely know the right answer.  They will tell you that it is about Jesus being born into this world.  They know that we are celebrating the birth of God's son.

But is that what they really look forward to?  Is that what they long for about Christmas?

Every year I wonder how I can make Christmas -- the REAL Christmas -- more alive in their eyes, more meaningful, and more personal.

I don't want them to take the birth of Jesus for granted.

Christmas Eve is the day I think about this issue the most.

It is because it is also the day I think about my own children the most.

Do I take them for granted?  Do I rush through each day and each week checking off my to do lists, scrambling to get where we need to go, and wishing they could just.be.more.responsible?  Or do I take the time to cherish the blessing that they are?

Christmas Eve holds a special significance for us, so it has naturally become a day in which I reflect back over our journey of being a family of two to being a family of four. 

While I am thankful that the pain of infertility has lessened over the years, I pray that I never forget the lessons learned, the joys, the sorrows, and the growth we experienced during the process.

I pray that we never forget...
...the pain of miscarrying our first baby in March of 2000.
...the hopes that were dashed when we lost our second in August of 2000.
...the agonizing feelings that came with losing our third in May of 2001. 
...the uncertainty we felt when we were told we were expecting twins in 2002.
...the sadness that came when we lost one of those twins.
...and the miracle of the arrival of the one we didn't lose.

For these things taught me that I am not in control.

I pray that we never forget...
...the feeling of defeat when we miscarried again in 2005.
...the horror of ER visits and emergency surgery.
...the news that two more little twins were gone.
...the desperation of miscarrying one final time in 2006.

For these things taught me the power of prayer.

I pray that we never forget...
...the many prayers that were offered up for us.
...the decision to look into adoption "just in case" God had a baby for us out there.
...the nervous energy once our adoption profile was submitted.
...and the miraculous phone call we received seven years ago this very day that we had been chosen to adopt a baby boy.

For these things taught me that I am loved.

How is it possible that after all of this, after all of the pain and prayers and longing, that I could possibly take the blessing of my children for granted?

And even more than that, how is it possible that I could take the precious gift of Christ for granted, especially at this time of year?

I am full of wonder every Christmas Eve.

Many days I need to be reminded to be filled with that same wonder.

May this Christmas season bring you a longing for much more than gifts and holiday activities.  May it bring a renewed sense of awe for your family...and especially for that baby in the manger.

Hello from Our Little World of Germs

Oh blogosphere, how I have missed thee...

I had very high hopes to get back to this little corner of my world during Christmas break. 

Instead, my Christmas break started with a fever.

Aches.
Chills.
A sore throat.
And a cough that won't quit.

Today is day four of this journey of sickness for myself and my six year old, and let's just say I am done.  Or...it may be more accurate to say I WISH I was done.

I have learned/been reminded of a few things about myself and my family the past few days. 

1.  I am a wimpy sick person.  Technically, I have always known this, but it has been so long since I have been sick that I may have temporarily forgotten.  I always aspired to be the mom who could keep the house running while sick, but I think it is safe to say that I did not accomplish that this time around.

2.  My husband is wonderful.  He graciously took a day off of work without me asking him to and took over all household duties in my absence. I'm pretty sure he has cooked more meals in the past four days than I have in the past four weeks. I still have the deep cleaning to attend to once I am up and going (we have company arriving this week), but he has been holding down the fort quite well.

3.  My little guy has an even sweeter disposition when he is sick.  I have no idea why, but he says please and thank you more than normal, which seems odd to me.  However, when he sneezes, everyone within a ten mile radius should take cover for fear of what might come flying their way. 

4.  Apparently his honesty factor cranks up a notch when he is sick as well.  This morning he told his daddy that the coffee cake he made for breakfast tasted like hair. 

{Blank stare.}

Hair?

5.  One other little note about sick little 6 year olds....do not let them watch the cartoon version of "A Christmas Carol" before bed.  They will wake up at 11:30 p.m. hoarsely crying, with snot bubbles coming out of their nose, proclaiming that they "did not like what they watched on TV with mommy".  Tired fathers love dealing with this on top of everything else. 

Speaking of tired...I've been semi-propped up for an hour now...so it's back to bed for me.

Here's wishing you a germ-free Christmas. :)

This Thing Called Parenting

Just for the record, those are not my kids.

But tonight I was really wishing for that cage.

I'm still a bit mystified how it takes 4+ years and a bundle of money for a person to get a college degree, but nearly anyone can choose to be a parent on a whim.

OK, technically, it took us 4+ years and a bundle of money to become parents, too....but that is completely not the point.

The point is, there really should be some kind of lengthy, strict education for this thing called parenting.  That education should be full of all the typical "schoolly" things -- case studies, research, assessments...the whole nine yards.

Then maybe I would know how to react to this --

Tonight my 6 year old struggled to listen.  He wanted to look at books instead of brush his teeth, he wanted to play with toys instead of get his pajamas on, he wanted to watch TV instead of settle into bed. 

Right before crawling into bed he asked if he could read for a little bit for Book-it.  I said yes, just for a little bit.

Two minutes later I walk by his room and he was writing on paper.  I calmly (in comparison to shouting -- it's all relative) asked him what he was doing and reminded him that he had asked to READ.

He told me he was writing a song.

I told him to put it away and READ.

He asked me if he could finish writing the words, "the sun". 

I said yes he could write THOSE 2 WORDS and then he should READ.

Five minutes later I checked on him again. (Yes, I realize I should have stayed right there, watched the two words, pried the paper from his hands, and given him a book.)

I calmly (remember, it's relative) asked him what in the world he was doing.

He proudly handed me his song.

Oh I love you Lorb mor
then the sun and the moon
and the stars oh hou I Love you
mor then the su and t moon and
the stars oh hou I Love you Lord
mor than the sun oh hou I Love you
and the trees and things like
that I Lov you Lord!

Do you think it is possible that he sneakily wrote a song like this because he knew he was not obeying me the entire time?

Never will I know.

I told him the song was beautiful.  I also told him that he still made a poor choice by not listening to me.  Then I told him that he needed to go to sleep.

To which he promptly replied, "Can I read for Book-it now?"

{Sigh.}

December

It's DECEMBER.

Seriously...when did that happen??

I have Christmas letters to write, gifts to wrap, gifts to buy, advent activities to make, cards to send out, and the list goes on.

And to be honest, I love it all.  It may be busy, but Christmas is one of my favorite times of year. 

Five years ago (when I wasn't working full time or taking classes), I started the tradition (calling it a "tradition" was my first mistake - now they want it every year) of making an advent chain for the boys (yes, I was trying to be supermom).  They loved it (go me!), but after about day five, I began to regret my decision (climbing down the supermom ladder).  I planned things like reindeer cupcakes (click here), gingerbread houses and puzzle cookies (click here).  Cute, right?  Only my boys don't always see the need for sticking with it to help with all the details (must be a male thing?).  End result: Frustration.

Five years later, and I am older and wiser.  We still have some cooking adventures, but I only put their favorites on the list, like dipping pretzels and oreos, frosted Christmas cookies, and baking day with friends.  I have replaced reindeer cupcakes with a date with mom for smoothies at The Well, and gingerbread houses for a surprise Sonic run for supper some evening. 

I have also been looking for ideas that don't cost anything extra.  I sat down yesterday with my little friend Google and started searching for ideas. 

I hit the Jackpot here.

This site was just what I needed to fill in the empty spots on my chain.  Now I have some fun things which don't cost a lot and which take very little prep time.

Like...

• Backwards Dinner
• Indoor overnight fort/campout
• Family game night
• Kid's Choice
• Give day
• Treasure hunt dinner
• Food bank day
• Wrap presents as a family
• Impromptu donut run

Add those to my typical favorites, and I am all set!  Bring on the holidays!