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!

Thats MY cousin!

So last week my cousin had her track state finals. And I am so proud of her accomplishments! Please, just take a couple minutes to watch her races at the links below. Seriously, you won't be sorry--if nothing else take 30 seconds and watch the hurdles, she really is amazing. She is only a sophomore in highschool. So... with no further ado, I give you the privilege of watching what my friend aptly described as "graceful lightning".

Relay:
http://www.runnerspace.com/video.php?do=view&video_id=12898

100 Meter:
http://www.runnerspace.com/video.php?do=view&video_id=12905

Hurdles:
http://www.runnerspace.com/video.php?do=view&video_id=12918

You can't miss her because she is in a green jersey every time and surprisingly is about the only dark skinned lass out there. And well, to keep it simple, she is the one that is winning! :o)

Como Pelar Un Coco

When I was 16 yr. old and in the Dominican Republic for the summer, my friend and I really wanted to make a coconut smoothie, so we saved up our precious ice cubes and on our day off somehow got our hands on a coconut and a machete. We had no idea what we were doing. By the grace of God we didn't lose any limbs...when we finally got that thing open we were exhausted...and lost almost all the water! I felt like crying!

I hadn't touched one since, but last week I saw some for about 75cents a piece at the grocery store. I don't know how much a coconut should cost but felt like that was probably too good to pass up. Some gals on my Blenderized Diet group are always talking about how great they are for weight gain and brain development, so I got one for Mic.

Someone from the BD group kindly passed me this link with a great tutorial for opening a coconut. (http://www.howtoope nacoconut. com/ ) And so with greater idea and NO machete I set about opening up the coconut yesterday. : ) And below are the pictures of my successful project.

Getting the tools ready

Draining the water...

note to self: next time make bigger holes and use a wide dish, not a narrow jar.
VICTORY!

YUMMMMMM!

"Goodbyes"

Last night we prayed with and said bye-bye to my SIL. Then she got on a bus and was gone. An exciting new "everything" awaits her, so we are happy for her, but sad for us. It may be a long week as we adjust to her absence...my kiddos are so used to running across the patio to visit "Tia Angie" daily for any reason or no reason at all. Have fun, Angie,...we miss you already!

P.S.
And coming soon...PICTURES! : ) (why is emptying that memory card so difficult!?)

Hair Pulling Moments

I can't get my daughter to just use the bathroom straightforward and business like. Either she has an accident else where, doesn't "quite" make it and leaves a puddle directly in front of the toilet, or spends LONG amounts of time wasting water and making a huge soap mess all over the sink and handles. I have guided her through the correct routine oodles of times, made up little games to trigger memory and make it fun. ...and its not working. I really am ready to pull out my hair. But Wednesday took the cake! Upon realizing that she was in the bathroom and all was a little too quiet I made hasty beeline for the door to check the happenings on the interior of our bathroom. She had urinated in the toilet (miracle) and was happily dipping a shoe string in the bowl of pee water and then flinging it around. What!? I was NOT a happy mommy. Even recognizing that there may be humor to this in about 10 years when we re-tell it could not calm me...I was not happy.

And then there is the dear son. I have read and studied extensively on health, nutrition and healthy mealtime habits. I know all about the things that you should do and not do so as to avoid food jagging and picky eaters. Oh, I "KNOW" it "all" (please catch my sarcasm)...but really when it comes down too it, some kids just do not follow the rules. It seems a cruel twist of fate that dealing with a child that does not eat orally is not enough, I was blessed with a number two that does not obey the rule book. "They" say, "just place healthy choices in front of him and he will make healthy decisions". He says, "I'd rather just not eat...and then cry because I am hungry". Seriously, this week has been the culmination of this hair pulling situation. Tell me, what child does not like macaroni and cheese!? I made it lovingly, from scratch, with little bits of hotdog it it and lots of yummy cheese. He would not take a single bite of it. And yesterday, I saw the surely never-before-seen. He refused to taste a MacDonald's hamburger, preferring rather, to go hungry on our outing.

And since I certainly was going to pull my hair out if we did not get out of the house, yesterday we had a little fun! We met two other moms with young kids and took on the children's museum. I had never been there before. I was disappointed that even getting there early on a week day there were still a LOT of people, but we were able to find plenty of great areas appropriate for our kids' age and interest and as school groups entered the IMAX we had some areas a little more to ourselves and really had a great time in general.

In closing I will say that I am well aware that all moms have "hair pulling moments". I'm pretty sure it comes in the official job description. And thank goodness that even though this week in particular I feel like they have been spreading my patience a little thinner than usual, there are still a lot of moments when my kiddos are just cute and loveable and those are the moments I live for. This morning Mic had her stuffed kitty and was singing "head and shoulders" while moving its paws to make it do the motions--to cute. I waited a long long time to hear her sing...and just can't get enough of it!!! : )

...In case your curious...

Well I hoped for a much higher comment number on my playground post...but Oh well, I really enjoyed reading the comments that I did get.
So, just in case your wondering about what I did, I informed the child kindly but firmly that, "Of course she can come up too!" Mic was having one of those "I don't do stairs alone" days, so I proceeded to go up with her and then worked on introductions, small talk and making friends.
...it was very interesting. The child made friends and even actively included Mic in some play for awhile, but then I had to pull Mic from the play for a minute to give her a tube feeding. When we returned it was as though that time of play had never existed and the child was right back to where she started. At that point we moved to a different area of the playground.
...It made me feel sad and angry as I analyzed the other little girls actions. From what I was able to observe, I believe she was acting out a rejection that she is recieving on a daily basis in her home. ...very heartwretching.
...And after reading your comments I also found it very interesting to analyze my own internal reactions in the moment. You see, I wasn't a very "socially apt" child, myself, and really hope my children can have an easier time. I also have fears about Mic and her physical "defects" and find myself subconciously trying to protect her from rejections that she may have to deal with because of how she looks and eats. I don't have any profound conclusions at this point,...I just know that a lot of what we feel and do in "react" moments are affected by things we have hidden within--often things we ourselves are not even very aware of. And I know it was good for me to become a little more aware of some of those things in me so that I can seek the Lord's help in these areas and be more purposeful in my actions next time...
And...thats what happened!...just in case you were curious...