JJ continues to be a child that brings us much joy and delight. He is infinitely precious, funny, smiley, cuddly, loving, and silly. Of course, he is a momma's boy and with that comes lots of extra opportunities for me to feel treasured by him:) He is at the fun stage where he loves to pull everything he can reach out of drawers, off the table and counters, and use "stepping stools" out of whatever he can find to get himself higher...and create a bigger mess:) Some of his favorites are pulling out the kitchen chairs and getting on the table, and pulling the cushion off of my glider rocker so he can get is little knee up and climb into the chair and feel "big." He LOVES to laugh. He will look at someone and start giggling just to get them to laugh so he can laugh some more. His giggle is adorable and he can go on for a long time. He emits joy and it is hard to not stop, smile, and engage him. He is an amazing gift!
He is also at the age where he is wanting a bit more independence. Thus, pointing and "insisting" on getting his way is a new tactic. He wants to try to feed himself with a bowl and spoon, which is very messy but cute:) He will run to something that he knows he is not supposed to do (like climb the stairs without us with him), then do is slowly while watching us to see what we will do. He thinks the mouse on the computer and the on/off switch on the power strip to my computer are especially fun things to explore!
JJ continues to be sickly and we appreciate that he continues to be such a joy and so much fun despite his frequent illnesses. After we started the supplements with him he did improve. He only got sick about once a month and they did not include the high fevers. However, he HATES taking the supplements and it is always a major fight. A week before Christmas I weaned (at 15 months) and he has not been well pretty much since then. We had him on antibiotics for congestion/lung congestion right after that. He always has head congestion (without a runny nose) and I don't know that he has ever not had that. Then 3ish weeks ago he came down with the stomach flu after 3 days of increased head congestion, we all ended up with it and he ended with another bout of it. His congestion increased after that and he did not want to eat for about a week. We took him to the chiropractor and his eating improved significantly, but the next day a fever started. After 4 days of fever, poor sleep, and much grumpiness he was again started on an antibiotic and today will be day 4 on it. Grace and Faith are also on antibiotics for the lung crud. We have seen a decrease in clinginess, fever, agitation, and the terrible coughing fits that often resulted in his bottles being all over me instead of in his stomach.
During this last bout we "wore" him a lot in my Ergo carrier. It got to the point that if he was not in it and saw it, he would drag it to us and indicate he wanted it put on and to be worn:) He is so cute:)
He continues to drink mostly from a bottle. He does not like cups and with the problems we chronically have with his weight (he has lost another 1/2 lb since his last weigh in 2 months ago) we don't even fight it. We do whatever it takes to get food into him. His appetite is just not strong at all and he has no interest in eating if he is not hungry. Mostly his eating involves him seeing me eat and climbing up on my lap to feed him from my fork and plate. He has no "favorite" foods that will work all of the time to get into him...except ice cream:) Again, with his weight issues (He is 17 months and 21 lbs 0 oz - with the biggest problem being the weight loss when he is sick, and obviously he is frequently sick) we just do what we can to get food into him. We are VERY excited when he has actually drank enough the previous evening to wet the bed in the morning. It doesn't happen often but that is kind of our benchmark on if he is finally drinking "enough" and that is usually when we see actual weight gain with him.
His sleep is much improved over a few months ago. He continues to wait until around 11:30 to want to sleep. He always goes to sleep in my arms in our bed. Then we transfer him to his bed. It is a good night when he sleeps 7 consecutive hours in his crib:) Then he usually wakes and wants to cuddle up and fall back asleep for a few hours.
JJ shows significant fear in most situations. He is always with my husband or I (or brief times with Beautiful). He is scared to death of church nursery or any separation from us. That is OK. We don't push it. When a possible separation is impending it is clearly a fear response from him and not a "I want my way" temper tantrum. So, we continue to keep him with us all of the time and hope over time he understands that he is safe even without us. It is amazing how separation issues occur for adopted children even when they are adopted at birth...
JJ is totally different on every level from our other 5 kids. There are plenty of trials with his frequent colds/coughs/congestion/fevers. However, he is amazingly precious and I adore him. I could not imagine life without this precious gift that is...my son:)
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Sunday, February 5, 2012
More Home school suggestions!
If you checked out the ipad apps State the States and/or State the Countries you will LOVE Presidents vs. Aliens! It is made by the same developer? Author? What do you call people who make apps??? Anyway, it is focused on learning the presidents of the USA, their nick names, the order in which they were president, famous quotes, famous historical events during their presidency, etc. I love it! Oh...I mean...it is very educational for the children lol!!! It is very user friendly. Instead of stacking states when you answer a question correctly such as "which president was nicknamed Young Hickory" or "which of the 4 shown presidents was from the Republican-Democratic party?" you get to launch the head of the president into a bunch of alien heads - winning the round when all of the alien heads have been knocked down:) Pretty creative:)
Highly recommend it! I am learning way more from this game than I ever learned about the Presidents in school...and hope my kids learn a lot too lol!!!
I also want to highly, highly, highly recommend Navigating The Worldviews of Egypt by Isaac Botkin and David Noor. It is part of the Navigating History Project that Vision Forum has in their curriculum section. I don't think anyone can go wrong with any purchase by Vision Forum - I love their conservative, Biblical, and challenging perspectives. I love their mission. I love their products! The book and accompanying DVD's discuss the mysteries of Islam, the Early Church, and Egypt. It explains Islam very well as well as the early clashes between Islam and the Early Church - and how that has resulted in what it looks like today. It is a high school level course and expects a level of deep thought on these topics. However, I think that in light of the state of the world today...we should all have some deep thought on these topics.
Highly recommend it! I am learning way more from this game than I ever learned about the Presidents in school...and hope my kids learn a lot too lol!!!
I also want to highly, highly, highly recommend Navigating The Worldviews of Egypt by Isaac Botkin and David Noor. It is part of the Navigating History Project that Vision Forum has in their curriculum section. I don't think anyone can go wrong with any purchase by Vision Forum - I love their conservative, Biblical, and challenging perspectives. I love their mission. I love their products! The book and accompanying DVD's discuss the mysteries of Islam, the Early Church, and Egypt. It explains Islam very well as well as the early clashes between Islam and the Early Church - and how that has resulted in what it looks like today. It is a high school level course and expects a level of deep thought on these topics. However, I think that in light of the state of the world today...we should all have some deep thought on these topics.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Homeschooling: via ipad2???
I had read an article a while back discussing the benefits of the ipad and other electronics (beyond computers) for home schooling. While they were talking about the benefits to missionaries not having to haul books across the world or having books shipped there every year, I thought about how the ipad could benefit me here in the US. My brother very generously blessed me with an ipad2 for Christmas and I have been having fun discovering the options of apps for educational use. I am writing this post for 2 reasons:
First - to see if any of you also do this and have suggestions of apps/ipad curriculum
Second - to share with you the fun...ahem... educational experiences I have been having:)
I found a website called http://appsforhomeschooling.com/ that reviews educational apps. They had a top 10 list for 2011 and I ordered several of them. While her own children are 8 and under, she does review some apps for older children. I was very excited about things like teaching Shakespeare's MacBeth and Romeo and Juliet via the ipad, as well as algebra! Lectures and interactive teaching are at the students fingertips.
Some of my favorite apps I have discovered to date:
1. Stack the States. This is a geography app that teaches state facts, shapes, and of course location in a very fun and competitive way (I love playing this game;)
2. Stack the Countries. This one teaches country facts, shapes, and location. I am working to master my geography on this game. Buddy loves to play these geography games too and they are much more fun (and educational I believe) than more traditional methods of teaching geography. (I love playing this one the most!)
3. Simplex Spell 1 - this is an interactive spelling app that the little ones are using to learn phonics and learning to spell. I love how they can use this app independently freeing me up to work with another child yet they love it and are learning:)
4. I am so incredibly not artsy or even enjoying anything that has to do with art. So, a free app that that I discovered is Scribble Press that allows "creations" with the touch screen. I think JJ will enjoy it as well as the little ones.
5. Discovery Kids: Sharks - a "unit study" on sharks. Unfortunately there is evolutionary language but the kids learn to discriminate between sharks, location of sharks, and what they eat as well as other fun facts.
6. I have downloaded several math apps - Rocket Math and Math Bingo are probably the most fun so far drilling math facts again independently of me sitting with flashcards, etc. I am currently checking one out called Splash Math: Grade 1 that I am having Faith check out to see how useable it will be for us.
Part of my dilemma is having 3 children the same age with a very wide ability range. Using the apps allows them to move forward at their own pace, learn some independent study skills and feedback, and not having me rushing off or being distracted by someone else's need. I have thought about the independent software curriculum for the older two for next year...any thoughts on that would be appreciated too:)
Finally, as we are studying biology this year I got "Frog Dissection." Of course, being in the home of a taxidermist we get to "dissect" animals hands on as frequently as we like. But that doesn't necessarily give the labels and other educational pieces that are helpful. So, we will be enjoying dissecting a frog...without SMELL or MESS!! That makes it a major success to me lol!
Most of these apps were free or $.99. There are more expensive ones that are more involved such as language arts and higher math. The other benefit is that the ipad is portable, allowing the children to do school anywhere (just what they wanted, right?!?!?)
Please let me know if you use any educational apps and what you think of them!
As an aside, I love the speaker on the ipad2 allowing me to listen to sermons in a room while working on something (or as I commute to work) and not needing headphones - something the smaller ipods didn't allow as much unless plugged into a dock.
First - to see if any of you also do this and have suggestions of apps/ipad curriculum
Second - to share with you the fun...ahem... educational experiences I have been having:)
I found a website called http://appsforhomeschooling.com/ that reviews educational apps. They had a top 10 list for 2011 and I ordered several of them. While her own children are 8 and under, she does review some apps for older children. I was very excited about things like teaching Shakespeare's MacBeth and Romeo and Juliet via the ipad, as well as algebra! Lectures and interactive teaching are at the students fingertips.
Some of my favorite apps I have discovered to date:
1. Stack the States. This is a geography app that teaches state facts, shapes, and of course location in a very fun and competitive way (I love playing this game;)
2. Stack the Countries. This one teaches country facts, shapes, and location. I am working to master my geography on this game. Buddy loves to play these geography games too and they are much more fun (and educational I believe) than more traditional methods of teaching geography. (I love playing this one the most!)
3. Simplex Spell 1 - this is an interactive spelling app that the little ones are using to learn phonics and learning to spell. I love how they can use this app independently freeing me up to work with another child yet they love it and are learning:)
4. I am so incredibly not artsy or even enjoying anything that has to do with art. So, a free app that that I discovered is Scribble Press that allows "creations" with the touch screen. I think JJ will enjoy it as well as the little ones.
5. Discovery Kids: Sharks - a "unit study" on sharks. Unfortunately there is evolutionary language but the kids learn to discriminate between sharks, location of sharks, and what they eat as well as other fun facts.
6. I have downloaded several math apps - Rocket Math and Math Bingo are probably the most fun so far drilling math facts again independently of me sitting with flashcards, etc. I am currently checking one out called Splash Math: Grade 1 that I am having Faith check out to see how useable it will be for us.
Part of my dilemma is having 3 children the same age with a very wide ability range. Using the apps allows them to move forward at their own pace, learn some independent study skills and feedback, and not having me rushing off or being distracted by someone else's need. I have thought about the independent software curriculum for the older two for next year...any thoughts on that would be appreciated too:)
Finally, as we are studying biology this year I got "Frog Dissection." Of course, being in the home of a taxidermist we get to "dissect" animals hands on as frequently as we like. But that doesn't necessarily give the labels and other educational pieces that are helpful. So, we will be enjoying dissecting a frog...without SMELL or MESS!! That makes it a major success to me lol!
Most of these apps were free or $.99. There are more expensive ones that are more involved such as language arts and higher math. The other benefit is that the ipad is portable, allowing the children to do school anywhere (just what they wanted, right?!?!?)
Please let me know if you use any educational apps and what you think of them!
As an aside, I love the speaker on the ipad2 allowing me to listen to sermons in a room while working on something (or as I commute to work) and not needing headphones - something the smaller ipods didn't allow as much unless plugged into a dock.
Friday, December 9, 2011
biochemistry and other random updates:)
Beautiful started Basketball for a home school team. Her first game was snowed out last night:( She spends a lot of time on my itouch texting friends, listening to music on her ipod, and in general being a teenager:)
Buddy is LOVING the snow. He takes Superman out for snowball fights and we went sledding last weekend. We are also enjoying playing board games:) He discovered Larry the Cable Guy on netflix. I had heard something negative about him in the past so never allowed it to be watched. However, watching a grown man with a voice like "Mater" is irresistibly hilarious lol!!
Superman is enjoying the snow too. He and Buddy spend hours and hours together building huge lego "bases" and making totally creative things.
Grace just had her second retest. Her numbers continue to improve and she was able to be taken off of 6 of the supplements. We have added one more to see if we can get increased focus and decreased hyperactivity. We have added back all foods (except meat) and for the most part are having good success. The foods like peanut butter and cheese that she is not supposed to have we are allowing in small quantities without any known adverse effects. We have always reduced sugar with the kids like juices due to cost and the adverse affects of sugar. However, I am now discovering that this practice has been bad. All of the kids have had low sugars (including myself!) and we are seeing improvement with adding juices and more fruits into the diet.
Faith's congestion is still present but not to the degree that it was. Her biochemistry numbers were significantly improved on her retest as well and one supplement was stopped. We are hopeful for increased healing of her body and for the breathing problems to be gone. She originally had high blood sugars, but once we properly hydrated her they are low too.
JJ has had the most improved symptoms and the least improved biochemistry on the retest - go figure! He slept through the night 5 nights in 1 week, then went 2 weeks very grumpy and not sleeping through the night again. In talking with a friend we figured out it was probably due to weaning him. So, I stopped that and...his is back to his cheerful self AND sleeping through the night! However...he is sick again. With the congestion he is still eating and has not spiked a high fever. So, despite being sick he does appear to be on a better trajectory than he went on all summer when the congestion would start. He is just the sweetest little kid!!! He drags out all of my lids, bowls, containers, food out of the cupboards and stacks them, or carries them around the house, or puts them in a box and pushes them around the house. Since starting the supplements and his appetite increasing his weight has gone up almost 2 lbs and he has grown almost 2 inches! That means that he can drag things out of high drawers, things closer to the center of the table, and can get his leg up to climb on things that are higher than he could 2 months ago lol!
I, too, have had low blood sugar. I am realizing now all of the long lasting implications of this. First, it makes me have headaches. When I have headaches I am grumpy (sadly true) and I eat more. I now weigh more than I ever have except when pregnant:( I have enjoyed a week of being headache free now that I am understanding the correlation between when and what I need to eat (increased juices and fruits) to stave off the headaches. Apparently once those blood sugars level off I should be able to lose some weight too as my metabolism will increase. Bonus! I keep getting told that my "numbers" indicate that I need more rest. Go figure...
I am mostly done with Christmas shopping. Beautiful is a little harder to shop for but she has kindly given us a list of wants:) Now to finish end of year tax preparation, paying bills, menu planning with all of the foods we can and cannot eat, home school, cleaning, work, projects, cleaning, Christmas program, basketball stuff, and have I mentioned cleaning? At the end of the day I mostly feel like I cleaned up messes all day.
I am considering a "good to have done" but not "urgent" task to complete this weekend. We'll see if I can make some progress on it or not:)
Buddy is LOVING the snow. He takes Superman out for snowball fights and we went sledding last weekend. We are also enjoying playing board games:) He discovered Larry the Cable Guy on netflix. I had heard something negative about him in the past so never allowed it to be watched. However, watching a grown man with a voice like "Mater" is irresistibly hilarious lol!!
Superman is enjoying the snow too. He and Buddy spend hours and hours together building huge lego "bases" and making totally creative things.
Grace just had her second retest. Her numbers continue to improve and she was able to be taken off of 6 of the supplements. We have added one more to see if we can get increased focus and decreased hyperactivity. We have added back all foods (except meat) and for the most part are having good success. The foods like peanut butter and cheese that she is not supposed to have we are allowing in small quantities without any known adverse effects. We have always reduced sugar with the kids like juices due to cost and the adverse affects of sugar. However, I am now discovering that this practice has been bad. All of the kids have had low sugars (including myself!) and we are seeing improvement with adding juices and more fruits into the diet.
Faith's congestion is still present but not to the degree that it was. Her biochemistry numbers were significantly improved on her retest as well and one supplement was stopped. We are hopeful for increased healing of her body and for the breathing problems to be gone. She originally had high blood sugars, but once we properly hydrated her they are low too.
JJ has had the most improved symptoms and the least improved biochemistry on the retest - go figure! He slept through the night 5 nights in 1 week, then went 2 weeks very grumpy and not sleeping through the night again. In talking with a friend we figured out it was probably due to weaning him. So, I stopped that and...his is back to his cheerful self AND sleeping through the night! However...he is sick again. With the congestion he is still eating and has not spiked a high fever. So, despite being sick he does appear to be on a better trajectory than he went on all summer when the congestion would start. He is just the sweetest little kid!!! He drags out all of my lids, bowls, containers, food out of the cupboards and stacks them, or carries them around the house, or puts them in a box and pushes them around the house. Since starting the supplements and his appetite increasing his weight has gone up almost 2 lbs and he has grown almost 2 inches! That means that he can drag things out of high drawers, things closer to the center of the table, and can get his leg up to climb on things that are higher than he could 2 months ago lol!
I, too, have had low blood sugar. I am realizing now all of the long lasting implications of this. First, it makes me have headaches. When I have headaches I am grumpy (sadly true) and I eat more. I now weigh more than I ever have except when pregnant:( I have enjoyed a week of being headache free now that I am understanding the correlation between when and what I need to eat (increased juices and fruits) to stave off the headaches. Apparently once those blood sugars level off I should be able to lose some weight too as my metabolism will increase. Bonus! I keep getting told that my "numbers" indicate that I need more rest. Go figure...
I am mostly done with Christmas shopping. Beautiful is a little harder to shop for but she has kindly given us a list of wants:) Now to finish end of year tax preparation, paying bills, menu planning with all of the foods we can and cannot eat, home school, cleaning, work, projects, cleaning, Christmas program, basketball stuff, and have I mentioned cleaning? At the end of the day I mostly feel like I cleaned up messes all day.
I am considering a "good to have done" but not "urgent" task to complete this weekend. We'll see if I can make some progress on it or not:)
Friday, November 25, 2011
Thanksgiving Traditions
Our family enjoy tradition, like most families do. Thanksgiving really marks the beginning of the Christmas season in our family. I am bummed that blogger is not uploading my pictures to show you some of the adorable pics that we got of the kids this year. We made lefse yesterday and Beautiful had lots of fun being the "Flour Queen." This, of course, means that there is a huge mess for me to clean up afterwards...but the kids have a blast:) Today we set up the Christmas Tree. I have been pondering lately how well I know my children. It is amazing how long you can live in close proximity with people and not really know them. I have been trying to "study" my children lately and really know their personalities. I watched them put up the tree and had fun learning more about them.
Beautiful - she really didn't care about putting up the tree at all. She just wanted to have Christmas music on to sing and dance around. Yep, 14 year old girl:)
Buddy - he really wanted the tree up. I was in the middle of trying to get paperwork caught up and he had that tree up before I got done. He was all about getting the lefse going too. He is all about "this is how it is supposed to be so get it checked off the list." I worry sometimes that he doesn't enjoy process, just completion. But, alas, he is just like his mother...sigh...
Superman - he loved watching the ornaments go on the tree. He is very sentimental about the things that have been given to him and they are dear to his heart. I'm sure that has something to do with having nothing from the first 3 years of his life - and being able to remember that he has nothing to remember those years by. All day he couldn't wait to put the ornament on the tree that made last year in preschool.
Grace - she was totally taken in by the excitement and the sparkling lights, tinsel, and ornaments. She was insistent about "helping." Of course, she was singing and dancing with her big sister!
Faith - she was more willing to watch the process and be a part of it. Singing and dancing is also a big part of how she experiences life and she belted out Christmas songs with the rest of us.
JJ - He just could not (and can not) get enough of the ornaments. He wants to be right there in the tree touching and exploring this new sight! He is very, very curious:)
I was thinking last night as I was playing the piano with my family gathered around singing Christmas Carols about the many things of which I am thankful. I am so glad that my Grandparents paid for me to take piano lessons, for my parents making me keep taking piano lessons, for my wonderful piano teacher, and for the gift of a piano as a wedding gift from a dear friend. I am so thankful that all of my family WANTS to stand around the piano and sing. I am blessed by a cohesive family unit that, despite time constraints, varied personalities, and plenty of us to go around, we actually want to spend time together:) I love our family:)
Beautiful - she really didn't care about putting up the tree at all. She just wanted to have Christmas music on to sing and dance around. Yep, 14 year old girl:)
Buddy - he really wanted the tree up. I was in the middle of trying to get paperwork caught up and he had that tree up before I got done. He was all about getting the lefse going too. He is all about "this is how it is supposed to be so get it checked off the list." I worry sometimes that he doesn't enjoy process, just completion. But, alas, he is just like his mother...sigh...
Superman - he loved watching the ornaments go on the tree. He is very sentimental about the things that have been given to him and they are dear to his heart. I'm sure that has something to do with having nothing from the first 3 years of his life - and being able to remember that he has nothing to remember those years by. All day he couldn't wait to put the ornament on the tree that made last year in preschool.
Grace - she was totally taken in by the excitement and the sparkling lights, tinsel, and ornaments. She was insistent about "helping." Of course, she was singing and dancing with her big sister!
Faith - she was more willing to watch the process and be a part of it. Singing and dancing is also a big part of how she experiences life and she belted out Christmas songs with the rest of us.
JJ - He just could not (and can not) get enough of the ornaments. He wants to be right there in the tree touching and exploring this new sight! He is very, very curious:)
I was thinking last night as I was playing the piano with my family gathered around singing Christmas Carols about the many things of which I am thankful. I am so glad that my Grandparents paid for me to take piano lessons, for my parents making me keep taking piano lessons, for my wonderful piano teacher, and for the gift of a piano as a wedding gift from a dear friend. I am so thankful that all of my family WANTS to stand around the piano and sing. I am blessed by a cohesive family unit that, despite time constraints, varied personalities, and plenty of us to go around, we actually want to spend time together:) I love our family:)
Sunday, November 20, 2011
His Grace is Enough
I have been contemplating grace lately - I am thinking about how I am feeling a lack of grace from people coming my way...and how I have been less than gracious to others.
Lately I have felt misunderstood. Our choices, as expected, look different on the outside to people who do not understand, or take the time to understand, our family. This has felt lonely. I have felt very few people pressing in to really "know" our family (nor have I had the time to cultivate relationships at this season of life). However, God has gently reminded me that many, many times my husband and I have not shown others grace either. Most poignantly I recall our dear friends whom we misunderstood both in their Faith and in their family size. They, I know, felt misunderstood by us. Yet, they were our biggest cheerleaders when we came to faith and have always been supportive of our family being larger than "2.2 children." They handled our lack of grace towards them maturely, and now it is my turn to handle this well.
I've had this blog post rolling around in my head for some months now, and decided to finally take the time to share it.
When people don't understand why we would have SIX! children...His grace is enough
When people don't understand why "only six???"...His grace is enough
When I think "what was I thinking?!?!?!?!...His grace is enough
When people don't understand what parenting children with prenatal "stuff" is like...His grace is enough.
When I am heartbroken and at my wits end about how to parent/teach children who have prenatal "stuff"...His grace is enough.
When people don't understand what parenting children who have seen terrible things is like...His grace is enough.
When I have no idea what the best parenting intervention is for kids who have deeper wounds than I can comprehend...His grace is enough
When people think we need to be more strict in our parenting...His grace is enough
When people think we need to be less strict in our parenting...His grace is enough
When people don't understand what parenting our teen/preteen is like...His grace is enough
When I don't understand our teen/preteen...His grace is enough
When people think we need to be in a certain Christian "box" that we are not maintaining...His grace is enough
When I feel inferior because I can no longer maintain my previous beliefs about the "Christian Box"...His grace is enough
When people look disapprovingly at us because we don't put the baby in the nursery at church because every time he goes he gets sick...and he never wants to be away from us...His grace is enough
During long nights when he doesn't want to be away from us and sleep by himself...His grace is enough
When people think "Oh no..."they" are coming with all those kids this is going to be hard"...His grace is enough
When I think "Oh no...we can't possibly do that because of the children's misbehaviors"...His grace is enough
When I have said "don't do _____________!!!!" for the 5987th time and it happens again 2 minutes later...His grace is enough
When God has told me "Don't do that" for the 5987th time and I do it again...His grace is enough
When others "talk" about how I need to be doing "more" in ministry, etc...His grace is enough
When I feel like there is not enough time to do well all of the things I want to do well...His grace is enough
When I am overwhelmed and climb into my hole and am totally unproductive except for replenishing my brain...His grace is enough
When I think about the trajectory that each of my children are on and worry...His grace is enough
When I think about the trajectory of this culture/world and the logical conclusions...His grace is enough
When other accuse me of the good I should have done and didn't...His grace is enough
When I know the good I ought to do and don't do it...His grace is enough
When I contemplate the endless array of decisions that need to be made: keep foster care license of not, go on a family vacation or not, to do housework or to just "be" with the kids, to cook something healthy for supper or to eat left overs, put money toward retirement...or college fund, read a book or take a nap, go on a date with my husband and regroup or save the headache of coming home to chaos, spend time with a friend to get a bit of replenishing or with a child and pour out more of myself I am in need of being reminded that His grace is enough.
Because His grace is enough... "I" am enough for I am a child of God, created in His image for His glory. While I am a pathetic vessel riddled with pain, insecurities, selfishness, and sin I am enough for Him. I am loveable...I am loved. Not because of who "I" am but because of who "He" is...because...His grace is enough!
Lately I have felt misunderstood. Our choices, as expected, look different on the outside to people who do not understand, or take the time to understand, our family. This has felt lonely. I have felt very few people pressing in to really "know" our family (nor have I had the time to cultivate relationships at this season of life). However, God has gently reminded me that many, many times my husband and I have not shown others grace either. Most poignantly I recall our dear friends whom we misunderstood both in their Faith and in their family size. They, I know, felt misunderstood by us. Yet, they were our biggest cheerleaders when we came to faith and have always been supportive of our family being larger than "2.2 children." They handled our lack of grace towards them maturely, and now it is my turn to handle this well.
I've had this blog post rolling around in my head for some months now, and decided to finally take the time to share it.
When people don't understand why we would have SIX! children...His grace is enough
When people don't understand why "only six???"...His grace is enough
When I think "what was I thinking?!?!?!?!...His grace is enough
When people don't understand what parenting children with prenatal "stuff" is like...His grace is enough.
When I am heartbroken and at my wits end about how to parent/teach children who have prenatal "stuff"...His grace is enough.
When people don't understand what parenting children who have seen terrible things is like...His grace is enough.
When I have no idea what the best parenting intervention is for kids who have deeper wounds than I can comprehend...His grace is enough
When people think we need to be more strict in our parenting...His grace is enough
When people think we need to be less strict in our parenting...His grace is enough
When people don't understand what parenting our teen/preteen is like...His grace is enough
When I don't understand our teen/preteen...His grace is enough
When people think we need to be in a certain Christian "box" that we are not maintaining...His grace is enough
When I feel inferior because I can no longer maintain my previous beliefs about the "Christian Box"...His grace is enough
When people look disapprovingly at us because we don't put the baby in the nursery at church because every time he goes he gets sick...and he never wants to be away from us...His grace is enough
During long nights when he doesn't want to be away from us and sleep by himself...His grace is enough
When people think "Oh no..."they" are coming with all those kids this is going to be hard"...His grace is enough
When I think "Oh no...we can't possibly do that because of the children's misbehaviors"...His grace is enough
When I have said "don't do _____________!!!!" for the 5987th time and it happens again 2 minutes later...His grace is enough
When God has told me "Don't do that" for the 5987th time and I do it again...His grace is enough
When others "talk" about how I need to be doing "more" in ministry, etc...His grace is enough
When I feel like there is not enough time to do well all of the things I want to do well...His grace is enough
When I am overwhelmed and climb into my hole and am totally unproductive except for replenishing my brain...His grace is enough
When I think about the trajectory that each of my children are on and worry...His grace is enough
When I think about the trajectory of this culture/world and the logical conclusions...His grace is enough
When other accuse me of the good I should have done and didn't...His grace is enough
When I know the good I ought to do and don't do it...His grace is enough
When I contemplate the endless array of decisions that need to be made: keep foster care license of not, go on a family vacation or not, to do housework or to just "be" with the kids, to cook something healthy for supper or to eat left overs, put money toward retirement...or college fund, read a book or take a nap, go on a date with my husband and regroup or save the headache of coming home to chaos, spend time with a friend to get a bit of replenishing or with a child and pour out more of myself I am in need of being reminded that His grace is enough.
Because His grace is enough... "I" am enough for I am a child of God, created in His image for His glory. While I am a pathetic vessel riddled with pain, insecurities, selfishness, and sin I am enough for Him. I am loveable...I am loved. Not because of who "I" am but because of who "He" is...because...His grace is enough!
Friday, November 18, 2011
JJ's Funniest Temper Tantrum...to date
In hindsight this was the funniest temper tantrum story our family has experienced - proving that even the 6th child can do something new lol!! However, at the moment we were kind of in shock as to what was going on. Our bathroom is kind of triangularly shaped. JJ has a preference for items in each corner...my husband and I can only cover 2 corners at a time! JJ really, really likes the toilet brush. Do you have a kid like that? Beautiful was our only other kid who liked the toilet brush. I remember once we left her with my mother and strongly suggested she watch her closely but, "if you can't find her...look in the bathroom." Sure enough, mom lost her...and she was in the bathroom.
But I digress. At 11:30 last night we are getting ready for bed and JJ was as energetic as he always is at that time of night. I sat JJ down in the bedroom and he made a BEE LINE for the toilet brush in the adjoined bathroom. My husband anticipated this and got to JJ at the time he had lifted the toilet brush above his head. Well, Beautiful had just cleaned the bathrooms yesterday so we had a wet mess. My husband grabbed the toilet brush and said "no." He then proceeded to grab a towel to clean up. This all took about 2 seconds and I was coming around the corner to help.
At that time JJ was in the "inhale deeply so you can let out a really loud scream to make absolutely sure that the whole house knows how you have been wronged by having your favorite toy taken away from you" phase. He was doing this while running across the bathroom. I came around the corner with the odd thought "why isn't he screaming - he always screams when he is mad?" in time to see him run into the wall and fall flat on his face on the rug. My husband and I are pretty sure that he essentially held his breath so long that he fainted. We picked him up and he didn't even have the loud, long scream. He looked a little dazed so I just sat and held him. Today he has a bit of a scratch on his forehead where he ran into the wall.
So, while I know it must have been a bit traumatic for him, having his favorite toy taking away and being utterly misunderstood about the fun one can have with a wet toilet brush and all, in hindsight it was pretty funny!!
But I digress. At 11:30 last night we are getting ready for bed and JJ was as energetic as he always is at that time of night. I sat JJ down in the bedroom and he made a BEE LINE for the toilet brush in the adjoined bathroom. My husband anticipated this and got to JJ at the time he had lifted the toilet brush above his head. Well, Beautiful had just cleaned the bathrooms yesterday so we had a wet mess. My husband grabbed the toilet brush and said "no." He then proceeded to grab a towel to clean up. This all took about 2 seconds and I was coming around the corner to help.
At that time JJ was in the "inhale deeply so you can let out a really loud scream to make absolutely sure that the whole house knows how you have been wronged by having your favorite toy taken away from you" phase. He was doing this while running across the bathroom. I came around the corner with the odd thought "why isn't he screaming - he always screams when he is mad?" in time to see him run into the wall and fall flat on his face on the rug. My husband and I are pretty sure that he essentially held his breath so long that he fainted. We picked him up and he didn't even have the loud, long scream. He looked a little dazed so I just sat and held him. Today he has a bit of a scratch on his forehead where he ran into the wall.
So, while I know it must have been a bit traumatic for him, having his favorite toy taking away and being utterly misunderstood about the fun one can have with a wet toilet brush and all, in hindsight it was pretty funny!!
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