So....we were having a nice little family walk around the neighborhood yesterday afternoon. The weather was in the low 70's and sunny. We thought it would be nice to take the dog with us.
The kids have revamped their 'save the dog' efforts (since I'm forever threatening to give her away) and volunteered to be the walkers. That's all fine and good in theory...but when a 50 pound person tries to walk a 50 pound dog...watch out. Bennett spent most of our 'walk' being dragged through the grass - literally on his behind or on his stomach. He refused to let go of the leash. He's sticking by his motto which again, was borne out of his desire to 'save the dog': if we act more like the dog, maybe she'll like us more and listen to us. Doesn't work.
Several times Chuck had to run full speed for 50 yards or so to save Bennett from being dragged out to the street. We finally relented and told him to take a break and actually enjoy the 'walk 'part of our walk. Daddy would use his strong muscles to walk the dog.
I guess being pulled through the grass by your dog on a beautiful, sunny day energized him. The kid is never at a loss for words. (I think he was mistakenly given the women's allotment of words for one day instead of the men's.) Anyways, he was talking about everything and nothing when all of the sudden he stopped short. He put his nose in the air, took a deep whiff and in the manliest man voice he could muster he pronounced, "I SMELL BEEF!"
Of course he did. He couldn't have smelled hamburgers on the grill or a nice juicy steak. He immediately honed in on the source and it was beef. I guess his whole 'acting like the dog' thing works after all.
My dear, sweet Romeo (Bennett) just came up to me with stars in his eyes and the cutest grin ever to tell me how much he loved me. But not only did he tell me how much he loved me, he even spelled out what he thought of me. He said, "Mommy, you are B-Y-O-O-T-F-O-L-E !" How did I get so lucky?! He swaggered away with pride bursting through his chest. He knows he just made his mommy's day. I sure do love my little speller!
With one look at this picture, I think it's easy enough to deduce what tonight's theme was. And, I think it would be safe to say, that Chuck and I had WAY TOO MUCH FUN dressing up for this one. As predicted, the boys both incorporated the use of their bathrobes into their costumes (for the 3rd time!) and Chloe is still in pink - even though she's not a princess. Chuck out-did himself this time - I'm so proud of him!
The other evening, close to bedtime, Gavin tentatively asks me a question. "Mom, are you doing okay? Because it seems to me you're a bit snappy." How observant you are my son. Well, I guess one could say I might be a bit on the 'snappy' side. Here are a few reasons that might help explain this little 'attitude problem' of mine - explain...not justify.
1. For starters, there were no less than 37 reasons that I was frustrated with our dog.
2. I was already at a level 6 in the 'highly irritable phase' scale for the day and was not doing a good job of 'hiding it' - obviously. (Some might refer to this phenomenon as pms).
3. It was bedtime and yet the loft appeared to still have the entire contents of Toys R Us strewn randomly around making the 'clean up phase' longer than expected, thus delaying bedtime.
As if his observation wasn't enough, he had to go and give me his reasoning as to why he thinks I might be behaving in such a manner. "Mom, is it because we didn't give you enough computer time today or are you mad at Elizabeth (the dog)?" Well, I'm glad he narrowed it down to two things for me.
Oh...definitely the dog, honey...definitely the dog! So, after excusing myself to go do some soul searching while Chuck supervised the 'clean up party', I came down stairs to sulk. Why are kids so good at making complicated things seem so simple? I thought my frustrations were warranted and everyone around me should shape up or ship out. And look what ended up happening...I'm the only one who got 'shipped out'.
Of course, no less than 20 minutes passed (miraculously, it didn't take too long to shove the massive amounts of toys under beds and into closets), before I headed back upstairs to justify...uh, I mean apologize for by snappy behavior. With my tail between my legs, I asked if they would forgive me for taking my 'snappiness' out on them, that I was wrong to do so because it didn't show them love. They all gave me huge smiles and said, "Sure, Mom." and then thought no more of it. All was in the past...that little snappy episode...it never even happened in their little world.
Oh to have the forgiveness, trust and love of a child.
Yesterday, Bennett came running into my room, ready to claim the coveted 'next to mommy spot' for cuddle time. It seemed he had a question looming on his mind all night and couldn't wait to ask me. This was it: "Mommy, in heaven are we going to have those yellow lines around our body and be all glowy?"
I couldn't tell if he thought this was a good thing and wanted to have yellow lines around his body and be glowy or if it was a bad thing in his mind (like maybe be a hindrance to heavenly play or something), so I told him that since I've not been to heaven yet, I wouldn't be able to accurately answer his obviously well thought out question. But I told him that if he's seen that in pictures (where else would he come up with such descriptive ideas?) that it was what other people only imagined it to be. Then we came up with our own imagination of what it will be like.
What a beautiful way to begin the day....imagining heaven.
As I came upstairs to play with Chloe this morning, I noticed how cute she looked in her tutu so I told her so. "Chloe, you look beautiful in your outfit today", I said.
In her high-pitched, special voice she uses when she's being a 'real mommy' she properly replies, "Thanks you. I got it on clearance." She says this as if its a normal thing to say. I guess I say that WAY too much if she didn't even think twice before blurting it out. That's a good thing, right?
And as if one cute outfit wasn't enough for today, she had to go and adorn herself in this special get-up. When asked who she is, she looks at me as if I just fell off the turnip truck and with a bit of exasperation in her voice says, "Mo-om...I'm cat woman!". Ohhhh. And what exactly does cat woman do? Well, according to my sources, all she has is a whip and she wields her whip as a handy device to help her climb buildings. Don't worry, our little cat girl only has an imaginary whip - and she uses it VERY well - and not only for climbing buildings!
Evidently, Chloe is doing a great job listening to her brother. Bennett drew her a special picture to tell her so. In case you can't read phonetic writing it says, "Chloe, I command you. You have been great!" I believe he means 'commend you' - but he might also literally mean 'command you' since they've been playing many games where he's the boss. Who knows, either way, their play time together has been successful and garners two thumbs up. Chloe treasures this piece of artwork from her brother. It rests in the coveted spot on her shelf for 'where everything goes that I don't have a spot for' section. It's nice to know, that for one day, all is well in the house with the siblings. Love is in the air. That drawing just wreaks of love. I can only hope that one day I'll get a drawing like this from him too.
We are two peas in a pod, my little girl and me. She wants desperately to be me. She copies everything I do (with the exception on whining - I so don't whine...okay, maybe a little, but not in a high pitched, sing-songy kinda way). She wants to dress like me, walk like me, cook like me, talk like me, read like me. She's 3 going on 30. Even today she asked me when her prince will come. She just doesn't think she can wait any longer.
It's no wonder she thinks I have all the answers to life's questions. I've been writing down several of the adorable questions she's been asking me of late. Thankfully, these are easy ones that I know the answers to. Princess Mommy to the rescue!
*At McDonald's eating a happy meal. "Mommy does this circle meat make little girls muscle's bigger?" Oh yes, honey. Lot's of muscles from circle meat!
*Driving in the car together running errands. A look of deep contemplation etched in her face. "Mommy, why don't Daddy's get wedgies?" Obviously, she's been having wedgie issues. I recently let her in on the technical term for getting your panties in a wad in your behind. Now, I imagine her looking at everyone wondering if they do or don't get wedgies.
*I just finished a rather serious, frustrating talk with another small, boy member of the family (to remain nameless). I was very perturbed by his choices and my countenance as well as my face were reflecting this mood. Chloe, hating to see me upset, came up to me and asked, "Mommy, is there anything I need to say sorry for?" She thought her apology would make me happy again. I informed her that just because I was upset with her brother, does not mean I'm upset with her. You should have seen the look of relief cross her face. Whew!
*I was cuddling her in the morning and her feet were ice cold. I asked her why she didn't have her slippers on. "Mommy, Lava girl doesn't get cold cuz she's made of lava." Duh! I should have seen that one coming. Sometimes I just don't think.
*Upon seeing a messy room she declares, "Everything rat girl sees is junk." Love the superhero theme, but how on earth did you come up with these names?
*I recently showed Chloe that every time she sees a church, she'll see a steeple or cross. That cross should remind us of Jesus and what he did for us and how much he loves us. EVERYTIME since aforementioned educational moment she yells out, "Mommy! A cross! I LOVE Jesus!....and Santa!"
I'd like to take a minute to discuss my daughter's purses and the contents that lie therein. She is 3. She has 3 purses. Each purse holds a unique set of items. It appears that she can pick a purse pursuant to whatever mood she may be in on any particular day. I have never shown her the contents of my own purse. However, she is aware that I carry gum, money and keys since those items are forever coming in and out of my purse. Unfortunately, I do not own as many purses for as many years old that I am - that would be cool. I guess that habit might have to stop around 20 years old or something reasonable like that. Here we have purse number one:
Let's call this "The Princess Purse". You will see that there are times when you just can't have enough lipstick and you're not sure exactly which one you might need at any given time. Mind you, they are all clear, shiny and sparkly. But the packaging is quite different, as are the fragrances. The princess tin container is secretly housing two more variations of sparkly, princess lipgloss. Having a red permanent marker is always a plus for any three year old. I love the one earring...even I have that problem in my purse. A princess compact is perfect for double checking your princess perfect lips after multiple lipstick applications. And throwing on a good beaded necklace can dress up any outfit when you're in a bind. Let's move on to purse number two:
I like to call this "The Practical Purse". This is her oldest and most favorite purse. This one dates back to when she was at least one. This is her 'real mommy' purse. Notice the hand-me-down cell phone (that doesn't work), two sets of keys in case you loose one, gum, a blush brush, tic-tacs (evidently she hates bad breath), her Daddy's business card (never know when an opportunity might arise to do a little networking). A baby brush comes in handy if you have baby fine hair. A purple pencil is a must because there are always your ABC's to write down anywhere, anytime. And extra lego pieces...well, you just have to be prepared for anything. And lastly:
Here we have "The Personalized Purse". This is a treasured birthday party gift bag. It appears that we like to fill this one with....I don't really know any witty way to describe this one. It is what it is. Evidently she finds a need to carry these things around with her at random times. I'm sure some of the things in my purse may leave one speechless at times too. I just thought it was so funny to see her feminine personality take shape without so much as one lesson in how to organize or fill your purse. Some things are just inherent.
Today I decided it was time to paint upstairs. So, in typical fashion I just did it. I tend to make quick decisions. As I was slathering the first layer of "Earthy Ocher" on my wall, Gavin comes up to me and says, "Mom, I hope one day I can find a wife as good as you."
"How sweet, thank you Honey. But do you mean as good a painter as I am?"
"No, I mean, someone as nice and loving and kind and as smart as you. You're a good Mommy. You know how you taught me that phrase 'a jack of all trades and a master of none'? That's you Mom. I think you know a little about everything. Look at what a good painter you are."
His timing is always impeccable. My heart was heavy today. I was in one of those moods where I felt all I've been doing lately is playing 'the bad guy' as the parent and constantly correcting, scolding and disciplining. And then BAM, out of the blue Gavin showers me with love and encouragement.
It's nice to know what your children are thinking. They don't have to like me...but it's nice to know they do. They just better be careful not to ask me too many questions that go beyond the scope of my wealth of knowledge. Afterall, I only know a little about a lot.
Don't let the sweet, calm face on the left fool you. It was her that created the distorted, freaky face on the right. Can you imagine waking up in the morning to find your doll like this? Chloe is going to have doll issues for years to come.
This is what my firstborn looks like just days shy of turning 9 years old. I'm still in shock that I'm old enough to have a 9 year old. I remember turning 9. It's so much fun though! I love our conversations, his sense of humor, his thought process, who he is maturing into and his sensitivity. This is such an awesome age. I'm so thankful for the opportunity to be his mom. God knew I needed him - he's taught me so much, ever since he was a baby.
Being the first, he's been my guinea pig, but he can even find the humor in that too. He's very patient with me and highly sensitive to my needs. He hates to see me sad and will do anything to help me feel happy again. He even finishes my sentences for me. I love watchin
g his imagination and intelligence grow. I love how he consumes books and especially history (my favorite topic). He learns more than I can keep up with. Since he was a baby he has been highly driven. This made him very difficult as an infant - highly needy. But now I see why. He doesn't need pushing or prodding (only when it comes to cleaning his room). If he wants to know something, he finds out, he asks, he looks it up, he figures it out. I admire that in him. Thanks to his Daddy, he's becoming a huge computer whiz. He even teaches me things on the computer. He just can't get enough. Sometimes when I look at him now, I see this little baby and have to shake my head and refocus in order to see the big boy he is now.
He's taught me what the love of God feels like, he's shown me compassion when I didn't deserve it and forgiveness without hesitation. His love is unconditional. His trust in me is limitless. He thinks I'm the funniest person on earth and thankfully, he laughs at all my jokes. He treats me like a lady, thanks to his Daddy's beautiful example. I can barely remember life before him and I couldn't imagine my life without him. I'm a better person because I've had the chance to be his Mommy.
This morning, we had a rare cuddle time alone since Chloe and Bennett were still sleeping. He had alot on his mind to share with me. He says, "Mom, you know, I'm not a very good conversationalist." I told him that I understood perfectly because I'm not either. He went on to explain that he doesn't always know what to say to people. Ha! I know that is a gene I passed down. I encouraged him that if he was ever stuck about what to say to someone, just ask the person about themselves - people love to talk about themselves. I also told him that sometimes its okay to not talk and just sit and enjoy each other's company, just being together. Thank God for families and the only safe place to be yourself, whether that be when you feel quiet, silly, talkative or down.
Happy Birthday, Gavin. I love you as far away as Pluto is and back again!
