I Am Mom! Hear Me . . . Cheer!

At bedtime my children and I always read books. The boys each pick a book and we read it together.  I don't know how it happened, but a couple of nights ago instead of reading books we ended up watching the musical numbers in Pete's Dragon (One of the boys' favorite movies).  The boys knew every word and were happily singing along.  "Mom, listen! I love this part!"  "Watch, mom!  This is my favorite!" They were both in their pajamas and all snuggled up with me.  I loved every minute of it!

One thing I have learned as a mother is that sometimes it's good to mix things up. Another thing I have learned is that it's important to take time to have fun with your children.  Sure you want to teach them right from wrong and prepare them for adulthood, but they are only children for a brief amount of time and I want them to have so many fun memories that they have story after story to share with their children someday. Pretending to be pirates while we brushed our teeth, making yogurt covered blueberries while pretending to be a on a cooking show (goofy accents included, of course), singing along to musicals, making robots with their dad, and hunting ghosts, monsters, and aliens with water guns.

Parenting isn't always easy, but that doesn't mean it can't be fun!  We don't have our kids on a strict schedule.  (I heard that! Why are you gasping??)  They go to bed AROUND the same time each night and yada yada, but they have never really been on a schedule.  As babies and toddlers they didn't go down at a certain time for a nap--we just put them down when they were tired.  We didn't give them a bottle as babies every so many hours--when they were hungry they told us and we fed them.  We are doing this now with Kaitlyn. Every child is different and every parent is different and THIS is what works for US.  We encourage imagination and creativity. We encourage questioning everything in life and coming up with your own opinions.  We like cookie cutters for cookies . . . not for life! And you know what?  My children never threw tantrums in public and they never talked back to us.  They are respectful of other people. They are well behaved and well rounded children--and I would like to think that as their parents we had some part in that. ;)

And the biggest thing I have learned?  Cheering is the best medicine for anything your child is going through.  What an amazing feeling to cheer for your child.  I'm not just talking about in sports, either. I am referring to  cheering them on as they try their best in every day tasks. I want my children to know that I'm rooting for them no matter what they are doing--and the feeling you get when their faces light up because they know you believe in them is the best feeling in the world.

So, to all the proud moms out there--let's hear you cheer!!

Wake Up Call

Last week an old college acquaintance suddenly passed away and a friend's father passed away.  Death always makes you stop and think. Jacob and I were both raised in church and we were raised to pray before meals thanking God for the many blessings He has given us.  It's funny how life can catch up with you and God gets put on the back burner.

Every evening I have the boys each pick a book to read before bed.  One night last week Logan brought me their Children's Bible which is full of bible stories and said, "Mom, we haven't read this in a while."  He was right. So, we started again from the very beginning and made a deal to read one bible story every evening before bed along with two books that the boys pick out. The boys, Logan especially, liked this idea. Jacob and I talked and we are going to start praying before dinner and also teach the boys to not only pray but to be thankful for all they have.

Last week was like a wake up call. We aren't kids anymore and we're raising three beautiful children. I AM thankful for these three little blessing and even more thankful that they are healthy and happy.  Sure, there are medical issues but nothing life threatening.  We need to remember to thankful every day because things could have easily been different. We want our children to grow up in church like we did and we want them know God.  I want to raise them to be thankful, to be giving and caring, and I want them to have that sense of peace and comfort when some one they know is called home or when life just doesn't seem fair. My grandfather passed away over a year ago and Logan still talks about him quite a bit.  He always, "I'll see Great Grandpa Jack someday when I get to heaven."

Life is a journey--and I want my children's journey to be beautiful!

MUSIC!

In my house we listen to music all the time.  If we're not watching TV then there is music playing.  We are big fans of music!  I love so many different kinds of music and I'm not that picky about it.  Music is music and I love most of it.  I especially like music that has a great beat, sounds extra heavy, or has a catchy tune. It is always exciting when we discover new music.  I have already posted about NERO and I apologize for posting two entries in a row pertaining to music.  I want to share two other bands/musicians I have discovered this week.

The first one is Childish Gambino, who is actually Donald Glover (Troy from Community). I remember the day after we had Kaitlyn, Nov. 15th, 2011, and I was laying in the hospital holding her and we were watching Conan and Donald Glover came out and started rapping and singing to this really fun, electronic-type music.  I loved it!  Then, we came home and I forgot about it . . . until this week when I heard another song by him. I went online and looked him up and listened to other songs.  A lot of his lyrics are really clever . . . and some are really vulgar, but I love his sound!

The second band I want to blog about is an Icelandic Folk Indie band called Of Monsters and Men. I love their accents and their cool musical sound. I discovered them through a friend and loved them the minute I heard them. They have a really great sound and incorporate instruments that aren't really used in America anymore--accordion and trumpet are used in nearly every song along with guitars and drums.  It makes for a really cool sound!!

Here are some songs by these two.  Enjoy!

NERO

So, today has been a really weird day.  I am exhausted because the princess isn't sleeping well at night.  I am up and down with her all night.  Logan has an ear infection and pink eye and Jacob is sick with some respiratory thing.  Between being so tired, taking care of sick people, and taking care of two hyper and healthy children a person needs an escape.  So, I grabbed the headphones, plugged them into my lap top, and listened to some music.  I have heard one song  by the band Nero and love it, so I thought I'd check out more music by them. They are a British electronic group.  Why is it that Europe has such great music??  Anyway, I listened to other songs by them and really loved them! They will definitely be added to my iPod soon!

You have probably heard small parts of the song "Promises" in commercials. I first heard this song maybe a year ago and loved it.  If you haven't heard this song you should check it out. Other great songs are "Innocence," "Me and You," and "Must Be The Feeling."  A lot of it reminds me of music I listened to over 20 years ago.

Good stuff. ;)

LIFE

It's hot.

I have a house full of snotty children.

A baby who isn't sleeping!

I don't feel well either.

I was walking through the dining area and stepped on something that felt like a thumb tack.  It hurt.  It went way up inside my foot.  Yup, it hurt.  I got down on my hands and knees and tried to find whatever it was, but could find nothing.  Hmmm . . .

Busting my elbows on doorknobs.  Somehow managing to step foot inside a sit-com and busting my head on the pantry door. (Don't ask.)

It has been one crazy week . . . one crazy month!

The word "bored" is NOT in our vocabulary.

I wonder what stories I'll have to share next week! ;)

Bring it on!

Sisters

When Jacob and I first got married we lived in Chickasha.  He was offered a job at UCO and we moved to the City.  We lived in a two bedroom apartment across the hall from two sweet old ladies. They were sisters and they were so funny together.  I remember taking Alex across the hall to visit them about once a week.  They loved him!

One day while I was there they started telling me about how they never saw each other when they were younger. "We have always been so close," One would say.  The other would then shake her head and raise her hand and say, "In spirit, that is.  NOT in distance."  The other would reply, "YES!"  (Did I mention that they were so funny!)  They went on to tell me that they lived in different states, far away from each other.  "We grew up being best friends and it was hard not seeing her."  They tried to see each other every two or  three years. "It wasn't until we were old and our children didn't want us living on our own that we were brought back together," One would say.  The other would say, "Yes, and now I don't get five minutes to myself because she is always here."  They would slap each other's legs and laugh.

Why am I sharing this? This story makes me think of my best friend.  We don't live in different states, but honestly, at times it feels like we live on different continents with a giant ocean separating us. My husband always talks about how women argue and fight and get mad at each other--I can't argue with that.  It's true.  We do.  We are just a bundle of emotions.  We get our feelings hurt and we can easily get mad at friends we love so much--but a best friend is like a sister . . . just llike these two elderly women I mentioned.  You might get mad but you still love them . . . and you get over it.  You talk about it and work it out and go on loving each other.  (Getting off topic . . .) I am missing my best friends these days.  It is what it is right now and we are doing the best we can to talk, email, text.

BUT--I have dreams of telling stories with her one day when we're old.  Of laughing and slapping each other and picking on each other.
To my Liv--as the saying goes, if it's meant to be it will be.  And, sister, I BELIEVE with all my heart that it's meant to be.  (Otherwise why would we feel the way we feel RIGHT now?  HUH? Yes, I'm asking!)

I want my best friend to know that I love her and miss her.  I want to thank her for putting forth all the effort it takes to have along distance relationship. I also want to thank her for sticking by me, like a sister, even when she wants to smack me!

You're not just my best friend, Liv, you're my sister.

And sisters are forever!

A Brand New Day

She pours herself a cup of coffee and sighs as she looks at the clock. It's 6:10 a.m. The baby hasn't been sleeping well at night and the days have been so busy.  There are so many decisions to make about so many things and too much going on in general.  She isn't bursting with energy--far from it! The house is quiet as the children lay in their beds dreaming.  She hasn't had one moment to herself in a couple of weeks so she decides to take her coffee outside and drink it on the porch.

"Five minutes to myself," she whispers.

She sits on the porch step and cradles her coffee with both hands. The street is quiet.  A slight breeze blows through the trees and they wave as if saying "Good morning."  She takes a sip of her coffee as she tries to sort out everything going on in her world.  Over the past couple of days her stress level has risen and everything going on feels like a huge jumbled mess in her mind. Life was usually one obstacle after another but for some reason her little family has been hit with several things at once and her goal was to just stay busy.

A bird begins to sing as she takes another sip of her coffee.  She feels the tears sting her eyes and tries to force them away. It seems more difficult than usual. She takes a deep breath as the overwhelming feeling takes over.  She lets herself have a much deserved moment of weakness and begins to cry.

She cries for a few minutes as her thoughts race and then, out of the corner of her eye, something catches her attention. Light is dancing through the branches of a little tree.  She stands up and steps into the yard where she sees the sun still low in the sky. The symbol of a brand new day.

She takes another deep breath and smiles.  She turns and walks back inside where she is greeted by smiling little faces.

Time to start a another day.