Imitating

Parenting has a way of giving us unique glimpses of how the Lord must view us at times.
Yesterday morning I got quite a kick out of watching Mic help me give her a tuby meal. There are a lot of "details" about the process which I have not even tried to explain to her becasue she would not comprehend, yet what she does is imitate my movements, sometimes with such uncanny perfection that most details are covered.
The Lord calls us to be imitators of Christ.
I couldn't help but think of how much I lecture my daughter sometimes...and how ineffective it is. We are wired to imitate and learn well by watching and copying.
We cannot imitate that which we are not watching.
The Bible tells us to "fix our eyes on the author and finisher of our faith.
Mic just gave me another clear, hands on example of how important it is that I pay attention to what I am focusing on as I go about my day to day. So I ask myself and you, dear friend, where are our eyes fixed today?

(Referneces: Eph. 5:1-2, Heb. 12:2-3)

Chocolate vs. Margerine and Green Juice

Oh, my...a week ago yesterday since I last posted. Sorry! I try to keep it to at least once a week or more! What can I say? Busy sounds lame, but its the truth! : )
So, Little Miss "I hardly eat anything orally" has decided that chocolate is the over ruling exception and she is now officially an addict. A few days ago she was begging for chocolate for breakfast and I gave my good little mommy speech about how "chocolate is desert, not breakfast". That morning about the only thing she ate orally was a dab of straight margarine that she picked off of the top of her bread. ...Hee, hee, I'm a little undecided here...did I win or did I lose!? :o)
Potty training. This topic is so depressing that I'm not even sure I should bring it up. But I am in a real dilemma. We travel in a week. We will be guests in other peoples homes for 5 weeks. And none of them have cement floors like I do, nor a couch that is already so peed on that it just doesn't matter. I have tried everything, I've tried getting really mad (not hard to do when frustrated), I've tried the "calm mommy" approach, correction, rewards, consequences, pressure, no pressure, reminders, no reminders, praise, indifference, lectures...seriously, I don't think theres anything that I haven't given a fair trial. We are tallying about four wet accidents a day and roughly 4 messy accidents a month. And going on about 10 months since we kissed diapers goodbye because SHE SHOWED ME SHE WAS READY! BIG SIGH....That, is not potty trained. So, what to do? If I use disposable pull ups for just one day she visibly drastically digresses. I can't imagine using them (or paying for them) for five weeks. I also can't imagine cleaning urine or worse of off someone else's beautiful carpet. WHAT am I going to do!?

I'm trying to think of something happy and inspiring I can write about to end this little blog entry and all that comes to mind are Little D's temper tantrums which are anything but happy and inspiring! LOL

Oh wait, I got one! The other night for supper I was feeling inspired to make juice. This was my concoction:
6 oranges--hand squeezed
3 guayabas--with the seeds removed
a handfull of beautiful fresh parsley leaves
a serving sized spoon of sugar (if you are avoiding sugar you could use honey)
about a cup or cup and a half of water.

Whirl everything except the orange juice in the blender until completely liquefied. pour in pitcher, add orange juice and icecubes and serve. my oranges added a LOT of pulp. You kind of had to chew, which doesn't bother me, but some people might not like since its supposed to be a "drink". It turns out a beautiful, or "gunky" green color--it all depends on your perspective! : ) And I am curious. I am trying to remember if this is something I could have had and enjoyed before I lived in Mexico for several years......I'm not sure......so I'm curious if this actually appeals to anyone else or if it just sounds gross. Anyhow even the little boy "who will touch no vegetables" enjoyed half a glass! : )

Rant and Irony

So... I decided it was time to look for pair of presentable maternity pants as I'm pretty lacking in that area. And what a surprise was to be had! Apparently, maternity clothing is a dying market. Every department store I have visited in the area unapologetically informed me that they no longer carry maternity clothing as the blouses in style now are loose anyway and will work just fine. Have you ever heard the like!? I had to bite my tongue to keep from asking if they just expect us pregnant gals to go naked from the waist down or what. We did find that the little overpriced boutique style maternity shops are still in business--thank God for clearance racks!

Often times I feel like my children are a psychological study and my job is to discover what makes them tick. The latest irony. Toy structures at restaurants and fast food joints. Twice recently we have gone out as a family with the main motivator being play, and "eat" coming in very secondary. The scenario goes something like this. As the car pulls into the parking lot my children spy the play structure and loud cheering and happy sounds erupt from the back seat of the car. As we enter the building the excited words "play" and "toys" are heard repeatedly. As we enter the play area and pick a table the children begin to quiet and press in towards my legs and at the suggestion that they go check it out clinging and protest begins. I, quite frankly, was not a clingy child, not even remotely. In fact, I was probably a little too extreme the other way. I've given this several laps through my brain, but the truth is that I truly do not "get" this!

And in closing, a few more fun pics! My MIL crocheted a dress for Mic. The Sunday her aunt left it was complete and ready to wear. Mic LOVED it. I think that because it fits her a bit long, she feels like a princess in it.

Dancing
Proud with Auntie and Grandma

A Potpourri

First things first, thanks for taking time to pray for us. We got a good doctor yesterday, and while, of course, it wasn't all that pleasant (what blood draw is?) overall it went pretty good, despite the loud wailing on Mic's part. She spent more than five minutes searching for a vein topically and trying different tricks to get it full, but when she did finally go for it she got it on the first try. That made me very happy! Thank you, Lord!

And below I give you a random mix of pictures from the last memory card unload. ...Enjoy!

For about two days of 90 degree weather this is the way Mic INSISTED on dressing herself. ...silly girl!

Peace. I love watching my children sleep. I know this almost looks posed but it wasn't, thats how he went to sleep...doggy and all!
Brushing teeth.

We made Tia Angie a goodbye BBQ--Yum!

The 16 week bump : )

Prayer Please

Tomorrow morning will be Mic's blood work for the Endocrinologist. Remember? The labs I said would probably get done in Aug. or Sept. Well, apparently the doc felt these were important and despite being officially "booked" through August, he worked her in for June. I didn't expect or even ask for that...wonders never cease!
I have a few specific prayer requests concerning this event. Would you be willing to help lift us up?

• No rain!!! We'll be out the door about 4:45am and due to the case of the disappearing electrician, we still don't have wipers...the weather is looking pretty iffy as of now. We did one trip in the dark/rain combo last month--it was really not good...
• That they find her (tiny, well hidden) vein on the first prick.
• That Mic can stay calm during the whole thing. Because of the nature of what was ordered I'm pretty sure they are going to need several vials, my worst fear is that she will fight it and it will turn into an awful ordeal.
• That the Lord put us in with just the right Doc, one who has a "soft touch" and knows what he is doing...please, please, no kid doctors.
• That *I* can stay calm too. Oh, on the outside I'll be fine, but needles near me or my children have a way of turning my insides into jello and making me all shaky.

Thanks so much...I knew I could count on ya!