Minivan Moments

My Grandpa Don passed from this earth yesterday morning.  He was a lively fellow with a quirky sense of humor and a real love of life.  I got to know my Grandpa Don when i was 18 years old and moved in with my Nana and him in Jacksonville, Florida.  I learned a lot about the way God works, i discovered peace in the midst of chaos and turmoil, and i found a gentle spirit and a perseverance that i had never witnessed before. Those days, weeks, months, that i spent with my Nana and my Grandpa were among the most stable in all my life up to that point.  It became a turning point for me, a landing zone, and a launch pad.  I became a stronger young lady for those times spent with Grandpa and Nana; i became a more understanding and accepting person; i began walking a path that led me to Christ. Sadly, i never shared these thoughts or expressed my gratitude to my Grandpa Don... or to my Nana, for that matter.  Yesterday, i lost the chance to thank him for the c...

I've had an A-HA! moment.  I discovered something that fascinates me, so naturally, i must inform the rest of the world!! My kids have had to help with household chores since the age of 4, and as they age, they are required to help with more and more disgusting complicated chores.  My son has a difficult time with doing chores, and he pouts a LOT .  Since i believe he has a condition that lends itself to this behavior, i am trying new techniques for eliminating it... so far, we've improved, but we haven't abandoned the pouting altogether... yet. Today, i stumbled upon a way to get him involved in the cleaning with more eagerness, though i am certain it is just a passing fancy that will not stay around....  Cleaning supplies.  Honest. You see, over the course of the kid's life, he has not been trusted to handle anything more toxic than the vinegar bottle we generally clean with.  Those other chemical-based cleaners i have up high are the Big Guns, and w...

I have begun making hats and headbands just for fun, and i discovered i could be good enough to sell them... so i went out and invested in some cuter yarns, some flowers, and some add-ons, and i am going to make them available to the general public!  Yay! Keep in mind, the hats take on average 2 hours to make, unless they are really simple and really small.  The headbands obviously use less yarn and take less time to crochet, but they have time-consuming and expensive decorations. Okay, here are the ones i did this weekend - some are for sale, but some are already taken but don't worry!!  I can make whatever you like if i don't still have it. :^) Teddy Bear Hat in gender neutral cream of thick and soft 100% acrylic yarn. $12 - $15 depending on size (this one is toddler size, age 1 to about 3) Newborn hats in blue and pink, coordinated for fraternal twins in this photo. $10 with no embellishments $12 - $15 with embellishments $20 for a matching/coordinating pair ...

Okay, i'm not a potty mouth as a rule, and i often cringe at the colorful language in our everyday lives.  If i could slap my hands over my children's ears to save them from ever hearing the expletives uttered by unthinking adults, i surely would.  However, 3 kids times 2 ears apiece, divided by my 2 hands doesn't equal successful mathematics, so i will continue to educate them about the choice each of us has with our words. That being said, there are days i think like a sailor - those are the days that i seem slow-witted because everything i want to say is being dredged through my child-friendly filter.  Now, however, with online chat and text-messaging as a regular method of interpersonal communication, there are handy abbreviations for all those devilish adjectives... and i feel proud to have learned a new language at such a ripe age! This morning, my sleep-deprived brain was unable to properly filter a colorful reaction to a seemingly-unreal scenario - but it's ...

When i try and it does no good, i am tired - of trying. When i give and it doesn't get returned, i am tired - of sacrificing. When i pray and i feel no relief, i am tired - of hoping. When i hurt inside and i can't make it stop, i am tired - of hurting. Life is so hard, but i have to trust that God knows what He asks of me. One thing i am sure of: when i think i absolutely cannot take any more, i think of Jesus and all He suffered for me... and i pick myself up out of the Self-Pity Pit and keep trusting God. I may be losing some of the battles, but i know how the war ends... and that helps.

In the child development world, we have numerous terms that apply to various stages and developmental milestones, as well as terminology for skills that are learned and mastered.  One such term is "fine motor skills," which basically means a child can use his/her hands and fingers to do smaller tasks.  These skills change and grow as the child changes and grows, which is why fine motor skills are delineated according to which developmental milestone rather than age (we know children mature at different rates, so saying a child should be able to do peg puzzles at a particular age is vague and unhelpful since some will do it earlier, others later, and the rest fall somewhere in the middle - thus, there are averages in place for us to "get an idea" of where our children lay on the spectrum, but we mostly think of it in terms of developmental ability rather than age level). ( i say all this because i tend to talk like everyone knows these terms, and i am frequently re...