Fun With Our Sons: Thankful

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Thankful

I should probably back up a bit before moving full steam ahead into Christmas. With all the goings-on around here I don't want forget to be thankful.

Today I'm thankful for my family. The ones at home, and my big extended family all over the country. I am blessed beyond the beyond. On Thanksgiving we celebrated with Derek's family, gathered around his mom's big table. We each shared something we're thankful for, and then we drew names. I drew Derek's name, and shared what I love about him and a blessing for him this upcoming year. Secretly I'd hoped to pick his name. :) I hope he's able to work for the Lord, and not for the recognition of man. I also hope for great joy to be evident in his life. Braylen and Kaleb's aunts drew their names, and blessed them (and me!) with words of encouragement for them to grow in wisdom and stature. Even Braylen's upcoming middle school years were mentioned. Big changes ahead for him this next year. Aaron drew my name--how sweet. He loves his mommy and wants me to live for Jesus.

Blessings

More blessings

Now it's December, and we're gearing up for Christmas. Our tree is up and the house is decorated. Like others I know, I went with the "less is more" philosophy this year. Most of my decorations stayed in the totes. I'm trying to be less busy with busywork. I'm trying to do things with my family that really matter. What do the kids like most right now? To read chapter books at bedtime and play games with their parents. So we're reading the Santa Paws books and resurrecting our games. Kaleb's struggled with some health issues recently, so decorating our tree wasn't much fun for him this year. Thankfully Derek came up with a way to include him.

Yep, he carried Kaleb on his back like that while he put his ornaments on the tree. What a great dad! Our tree is in our family room for the first time, and I like it a lot. It's just too big for our little living room. Especially with bigger boys running around the house these days.

In the next few weeks we'll do lots of fun things and go lots of fun places. 2010 is almost over. That's hard to believe. For the opportunities I've been given and the people I'm blessed to have in my life, I've loved this year. I'm thankful for the chance to spend a week with my side of the family this Christmas season. Now all we need is a white Christmas. :)

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What I've Learned While Raising Boys

You know you're a Cub Scout mom when you end up teaching the salesperon which neckerchief slide goes with which age level.

The boys want to be just like dad, but they want to snuggle with mom.

Snuggling and cuddling can quickly turn into a tickling match with daddy, but mommy avoids the tickling to keep snuggling longer.

A carpeted floor always turns into a wrestling mat.

I don't care how old (or how young) you are; if you are male, you will wrestle on the carpeted floor.

I've never heard the words 'belch' and 'fart' more in my life. Nor the sound effects those words represent.

They'll carry toads and eat dog food. Hand them a toilet brush and they think it's gross.

Why mop the boys' bathroom floor when I can wait for them to do it for me? Three showers later, a towel makes a nice mop.

Courtesy flush=an adult walks by the boys' bathroom and flushes the toilet. Courtesy flushes are standard around here.

Hearing me count to 5 changes my child's behavior, if only for a moment.

I get more practice counting to 5 than I did when I was learning how to count.

Pull-ups should never go in the dryer.

Vacuuming the pull-up pieces out of the dryer at midnight is not unheard of.

Rocks, cars, coins, chapstick, crayons, army men, kleenex, and stickers are all washable, but shouldn't be.

If I want a child to be sick, give him clean sheets.

Band-aids really do make it all better.

My camera batteries will die at the worst time. Like they did at my wedding and the birth of my first son.

When I get mad at my son for spilling his drink, I'll spill mine that same day.

Just when I'm ready to sit down with my lunch, my kids need cleaned up from finishing theirs.

The game "I Spy" works great in a restaurant; not in a moving car.

Dandelion bouquets should be checked for ants before gracing my kitchen counter.

I should always accept a dandelion from my son with delight, for someday they will just be weeds in my yard.

I really do have eyes in the back of my head.

The messier the better--living room, kitchen, toy room--for it means my kids are here with me.

I never turn away a hug from my son--soon enough he won't offer them to me.

Things are always better in the morning.

I can never find the scotch tape in my kitchen drawer, but my son has at least 3 rolls in his desk.

My 5 year old can remember attending a funeral when he was 3, but he can't remember to flush the toilet or shut the front door.

I shouldn't be surprised that my 5 year old thinks I was friends with Mary, mother of Jesus, when he thinks 7 year olds are big kids.

Hiding a purchase from an inquisitive child looks like shoplifting.

The number of bathrooms in a home should equal the number of children. All 3 bathrooms have been used at the same time more than I ever would have imagined.

I'm a selfish, self-centered person. God's cure for that? My 3 blessings.

They really are little for just a little while. . .