Godfather & Godson

I love this picture of Mr. Bananas with his Godfather.  It was taken on Labor day when we celebrated family birthdays.

I love that my brother-in-law takes a special interest in his Godson and spends time with him whenever we get together. Our family is so large that I think it can be easy to get lost in the shuffle during family gatherings, but I don't think that will ever happen to Mr. Bananas. His Godfather always makes the time to scoop him up and spend time with him

I know that my BIL will continue to be there for Mr. B. throughout his life.  When Hubby and I choose the Godparents for our children, we want to know that they are willing and able to pray and be there for our children.  If this picture is any indication, then we know that J. was the perfect choice for Mr. B. He will be there to celebrate and rejoice with Mr. Bananas as he celebrates each spiritual milestone.  I'm also confident that he will be there to answer the inevitable questions that will come up as Mr. Bananas tries to figure out where he stands in his spirituality.  There will be times that our parental answers will not be enough, and our children will want to seek them out on their own. My hope and prayer is that the Godparents we chose for our children will be able to advise our children when they need or want someone other than Mom and Dad.

As a side note, another reason this picture is special?  A year before this picture was taken, I was told that I might be losing this baby. My brother in law and sister in law (Mr. B's Godparents) stopped what they were doing when I texted them and they took the time to pray for their future (though not known then) Godson. For that he is one very lucky baby.

Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

A Visit from the Tooth Fairy

Boogie's first lost teeth!

Boogie's first week of kindergarten ended with a bang. Boogie loved kindergarten and I loved all that he was learning. He came home with so much enthusiasm.  At the end of the first week, Boogie came home with two missing teeth and a letter to the tooth fairy from his teacher.

Boogie's front two bottom teeth had been very loose. They were ready to fall out and we bided our time.  The first one fell out sometime on Friday while he was in school. He gave it to a friend on the playground so that he could swing.  She promptly lost it. He proceeded to pluck the second one out of his mouth.  He was very upset that he lost the first one and didn't have it for the tooth fairy. He told his teacher who then wrote a note to the tooth fairy verifying that Boogs lost his tooth and then lost it on the playground.  He asked the tooth fairy to give him double the rate even though he only one to put under his pillow.

I did a quick Facebook survey trying to gauge how much the tooth fairy gave for missing teeth. It appears that the going rate was around five dollar. FIVE dollars!  There was no way that the tooth fairy was going to give up $10 for a couple of missing teeth. She was generous enough to leave a $2 bill for the first tooth and two $1 coins for the second tooth.

Boogs wanted us to take a picture of the tooth fairy and asked that Daddy and I dress up in animal snuggy-type blankets to keep watch.  We did catch a quick pic of the elusive fairy ;)

The Tooth Fairy!

Mommy dressed "incognito" with a lion blanket hoping to catch a picture of the tooth fairy.

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Kind. Smart. Important.

Two weeks ago a friend of mine and I went to see The Help.  If you haven't had a chance to see it yet, do so. It was a great movie.  The Help is the story of an aspiring author who decides to write a book from the African American Maid's point of view in the 1960's.  The characters were inspiring.  I appreciated their stories, their frustrations, their challenges, and their successes.

One of the things that struck me from the get go was what one of the maids (Aibileen) says to her little charge.  She started her morning routine with telling the little girl: "You are kind. You are smart. You are important."

Of all the messages shared by the movie, this is one that hit home.  (Again, it goes back to my love language of affirmation.)  But isn't Aibileen's message to Mae Mobley also a reflection of how "The Help" is viewed by their employers?  That They aren't smart or important? Isn't it interesting that Aibileen tells the little girl that she is kind first?  To be kind is the most important trait?

How often are we told something positive about us? How often do we share something positive about another person?  As a mother I want my children to know that I love and appreciate them. I want them to know that I'll always be there for them and that they are never a burden to me. Granted, there are days that I become frustrated and there are days that I wish I had a little "me" time. I think that's normal. There's never a day that I wish I was working.  But I know that if I was working outside the home, I would be wishing that I could be home with my kids every single day.

I decided to follow Aibileen's cue and tell my kids that they are "kind, smart, and important." I've also decided to add, "God loves you and so does Mommy and Daddy."  How's that for affirmation?

So Wanted

A year ago I was celebrating Labor Day with my side of the family when my husband and I made an unexpected trip to Urgent Care.  I was 3 1/2 months pregnant.  After being seen, I was told that I may very well lose the baby that I was carrying.  I was given the signs to look for in case of a miscarriage, placed on immediate bed rest,  and told to call my OB in the morning.  I was terrified. So was my husband. As we waited to be seen I had texted my prayer warriors. I knew that these ladies would do nothing but pray, send loving thoughts, and check in on me. Exactly what I needed.  They sent back lots of loving words while we waited.

I remember coming home and talking with my husband about how I was praying for grace to give in to God's calling.  If I was meant to have this baby, He would make it happen. If not, I prayed for the grace to let this baby go.  It was a difficult choice. I had wanted this baby so much before conception.  Having Bug made me realize that I could handle more children and I desperately wanted another one to round out our lives.

So as each day passed in my pregnancy, my husband and I rejoiced in another day closer to full-term.  It came to be that we were blessed with Mr. Bananas. I was also blessed with the love and support of family and friends who stuck by me 100% of the way. A year after I thought I was going to lose my precious baby I was taking him with me to celebrate the birthdays of our beloved extended family.  Praise God!

James 1:17

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above...

Almost Wordless Wednesday--Cousins!

One of the cool things about having our Filipino relatives move near us is that my kids can get to know and spend time with cousins on my side of the family. My cousin S celebrated her 18th birthday on Sunday. We celebrated by going out to lunch and then an ice cream cake back at our house.

Here is a sweet picture of Bug with her Filipino cousins. I love this picture.

Celebrating S's 18th birthday.  S., SL, and Bug

Kindergarten!

It's official. I am a mother of a kindergartener.  Boogie started his first day of kindergarten yesterday. Overall, I'd say the day went fairly well. He had been anxious the weeks leading up to it saying that he didn't want to go to all day school. He said he would miss us. He also figured out that Daddy has off every other Friday, but he would still have to go to school.

Hubby took the day off to walk Boogie to his first day of school.  It was nice to have an extra pair of hands as we learned a new routine. I woke up Boogs. I could tell he was excited and nervous.  I was giddy and so excited for him. I knew that he would love it.  During breakfast we all broke out into dancing as some good songs came on the radio. It was nice to do something fun and silly before gearing up to go to school.

I strapped the baby in a front carrier and Buggy, Hubby, and I took first day of school pictures and then walked Boogs to school. We got there in time for Boogs to line up briefly before being asked to go into the classroom.  And then we left. And just like that, I was the mother of a kindergartner.

Hubby and I decided to devote most of the day to our sweet Bug who seemed kind of lost without her favorite playmate. When we went to the gym, the childcare folks said that she was weepy and kind of forlorn.  We took her to lunch, played with her, and spoke with her, pouring a ton of love on her. She totally needed it and we were happy to oblige.

We picked up Boogs at the end of the day and we were shocked to find out how much energy he had. We were convinced that he would be exhausted and fall asleep in his dinner. But no joke he came home and bounced around for 4 hours!  Through dinner, through some errands, and before bedtime. Where did he get his energy.  We took him to his favorite restaurant for dinner where he ate like a horse.  I think Hubby and I are still trying to figure out what happened. But when he went to bed, he was asleep in minutes and didn't get up until morning. He was undoubtedly exhausted.

I am very pleased with whom he was placed for kindergarten. I think the teacher will understand him and appreciate his humor, intelligence, and energy...or so I hope.  It was a wonderful beginning to his academic career. I am so appreciative of the men and women who choose to become teachers and do it well. We give them our most precious and valuable possessions, our children. Thank you! A special thank you to my MVMS peeps (current and former). Even though Boogs isn't in your school, I value that time that I was able to work with you. You are what keeps me hopeful that there are incredible teachers who love what they do. Thank you!

Earthquakes and Hurricanes

We experienced an earthquake on Tuesday. Not so unusual if you live on the West coast, but um, we live on the East coast. I was visiting a friend. She and I were in one room looking through maternity clothes that we had shared.  Our kids were playing in different parts of the house. The big kids had been playing upstairs. When the earthquake first started, we looked at each other. First we thought that the kids were jumping around on the top floor. And then the whole room started to shake and swear the walls were swaying. Okay, okay, it felt like the walls were swaying.  We bolted out of the room looking for all of the kids. Thankfully all of them were safe. A little scared, anxious and worried, but safe.

Now it looks like, four days later, that Hurricane Irene is on its way.  I'm in denial. Just like I was with the past two blizzards. I feel like we have everything that we need to carry on in case of power outages.  But I know that I'll panic sometime tonight and insist that one of us goes to the store to pick up some last minute items. I'll fill up all of our bottles/containers with water. I'll insist that we fill up the bathtub with water. I'll make Hubby go out for bread. Now I'm reading on FB that friends are suggesting that everyone fill up on gas, and take cash out of the ATM.  I wasn't going to go that far. But should I?

We have staples (toilet paper, peanut butter, crackers, water).  What do you think? Anything else that we  should have. What would you suggest? Are you concerned about the hurricane or are you going with the flow?

Another Milestone

Well it's official. Boogs is growing up way too fast. He came downstairs this morning to announce that he had two wiggly teeth. I took a look and yep, he has two wiggly teeth and another one growing in behind one of them.  I'm not ready for this. I thought I had at least a year or two before loose teeth, tooth fairies, and scrambling for money to be put under the pillow.  This is coming on the heels of prepping him for kindergarten.  Wow. Kindergarten and loose teeth. My life will never be the same.

* Update - The teeth did fall out his first week of kindergarden.  Find out what the tooth fairy paid for his first and second lost tooth, and what the tooth fairy paid for the third lost tooth.

Almost Wordless Wednesday--Lambeau Field

Recently we took a vacation to Green Bay, Wisconsin, home of the most recent Superbowl Champions, the Green Bay Packers. Anyone who knows my husband knows that he is a huge Packers fan.  When the Packers played in the Superbowl I had a lot of Facebook posts from many of our college friends saying that they were thinking of him during the game. For most, my Hubby is the only Packers fan they know.  We have many friends who are Steelers fans and it was a shame we couldn't have held a Superbowl party with them here, but when they are spread all over the country (California, Hawaii, etc.) it was kind of hard to do that. Oh and I was due any day at that point and probably shouldn't have been hosting a Superbowl party.

So on our trip to Wisconsin we had to make a stop at Lambeau Field for a tour.  I am a Packer fan by marriage and even I have to say that the stadium tour was pretty cool.

Hubby, Bug, and Boogs. When we walked through the tunnel where the players go through to be presented, the tour guide played a sound effect that sounded like fans were cheering for us. I told Boogs that people heard he was there and they were excited to see him. It was very cool. He loved it!

What Do You Have to Contribute?

A few years ago about the time I decided to stay home with my kids I was sitting on my couch chatting with a family member.  My husband came up in conversation and she said, "You are very lucky to have him. He's a good man." I readily agreed and quipped, "I'd like to think he's pretty lucky, too." Without missing a beat, she asked, "What do you contribute? What do you do?"  Needless to say, I was crushed. (Goes back to my love language.)  This also came at a time in my life when I was struggling to define myself. Was I working mom? Was I a stay at home Mom? How can I be SuperMom? What did I do well?  Did I do anything well? Was I burden on my husband since we no longer had my income? What did I contribute?

I struggled with these questions for months and years.  Every now and again, it bothers me that I don't contribute financially to our family. But then I look at my three children and realize that sacrificing my income to be there full-time with my babies was the best thing I could have done for our family.  My kids are well-adjusted, polite, intelligent people who will contribute their time and talent to society when the time comes.

It's been about two years since that conversation and let me tell you what I contribute to my family:

• 3 healthy children
•  nourishment through breastfeeding. Yeah that's right. My babies were nourished solely by me the first 6 months of their lives.
• availability
• encouragement
• teachings/lessons:  I teach love, kindness, obedience, how to have a relationship with our Savior, how to be a good wife, mother, and daughter. I am the first example of how to act that my children see and I want it to be a good one.
• How to laugh at oneself. We're not perfect and if we can learn from our mistakes and move on, the better.
• How to forgive.
• How to love.
• A balancing act. I keep us humming along between work schedules, play dates, doctor's appointments, school schedules, vacations, and extracurriculars.
• gifts from the heart. While I don't have money to buy fancy presents, I've learned to make things (such as my afghans) and give them as gifts. My children treasure the blankets I've made for each one of them.
• time. I can't make time stand still, but I sure can do as much as I can with the time I do have. These kids just grow up way too fast and they'll be gone and on their own before I know it.
• friendship.  While I'm still the parent and they are my kids, I also want to develop a friendship. I want my kids to share their hopes, dreams, and future plans. I also want to be my husband's best friend and greatest support.
• How to be a friend. Friends extend outside the family. In order to have friends you need to be a friend. It's a give and take. I wouldn't be where I am now without the love and support of some very good friends.
• All of me. My role right now, in this moment, is to serve my family. I pray that I have the grace to do it and to do it well.
• A healthy environment so that my children are well adjusted, stable, secure, and self-confident. 

It's quite the list. It's not necessarily all-inclusive. I'm sure there's more. But that's it in a nutshell. I have also decided that I will not allow someone else to define me. I will not let anyone make me feel "less than" because I am not a financial contributor to the family income. I chose this role and I'm proud of it. Cheers!

Now may the God of peace---who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood--may he equip you with all you need for doing his will. (Hebrews 13:20-21)