hello 2013!

i got this amazing journal for Christmas and i'm so excited to start using it. it's not your typical journal with blank pages waiting to be filled. it's a daily journal, where i can write a sentence or two about something that happens each day.  i made the journal at papercoterie.  yes, i made my own gift that my man gave to me, but it was really what i wanted!

i love that it also has pictures of my family throughout it.

on Christmas day, we share with each other the gift we are giving to Jesus for the following year.

my gift to Jesus is...playing with my kids more.
it's not always easy for me.
lots of stuff competes for my attention...laundry, cooking, cleaning, emails...the list could go on and on.
but this year, i want to capture moments with my kiddos more often.
try not to say..."maybe later" or "just a minute" when they ask for my time because often times it doesn't happen.  i know i won't get it right all the time but i'm going to work hard to make it happen most of the time.

i'll also be documenting it in my journal.  i'm going to try and also take a picture to go along with each of the days.   by the end of the year, i hope to have a journal filled with memories and 365 pictures to go along with it.

lessons learned

this morning i woke up with a headache but was bound and determined to go workout. i really didn't want to, but i needed to.

while on our way to the rec center, my little guy told me he had to go potty. i told him he could go as soon as we got there. i wasn't worried, because he has been potty trained for over a year now and doesn't have accidents. plus, he told me he could hold it until we got there, so we continued to drive on. once we arrived at the rec center, i pulled him out of his seat and realized he had gone potty in his car seat.

i wasn't happy. i was quite angry.

here i was at the rec center with no change of clothes, no wipes, no nothing.  i haven't carried extra clothes or wipes for over a year, because we never need them.   that was my fault.

so back in the car we went.  back home...no workout...and a huge mess to clean up.  we got home, i gave him a bath and cleaned up the mess.   we talked about if you really have to go potty you can always ask mommy to stop the car, so that you can go.

i knew that i wanted to turn the situation into a teachable time.  i decided that since we were not able to go to the rec center and i missed my class, he would have to come with me to the park and join me for a little workout.   i knew that it really wasn't going to be a workout for me, nor too much fun but i knew it would reinforce a lesson he needed to learn.

 once we got to the park, we set out for our 1.4 mile walk/jog.  he was fine at first, enjoying the duck swimming in the lake and talking to me as we maintained a quick pace.  within a few minutes, it quickly turned to a lot of crying and not so much fun.  he started complaining and that's when i got to start using my love and logic skills...

"it's too windy."
"i know buddy, i don't like the wind either.  too bad, i couldn't have worked out in the nice warm rec center and you could have played in the playroom."

"i'm tired."
"i know, it can't be easy keeping up with mommy.  it will soon be over."

"i want you to hold me."
"i wish i could hold you, but i really need to workout and i'm too tired to hold you since i used most of my energy cleaning up the mess."

i kept a quick walking pace.
he never stopped. (which i was really surprised at)
he pretty much ran the entire 1.4 mile.
there was lots of crying.
and snot all over his face.
he was thrilled to be back at the car and was proud of himself that he had made it back.
in the end, i know he learned...he told me, "next time, i will ask you to stop and i can go potty."

i learned too...i really do need to have extra clothes, wipes, etc. just in case.

two lessons learned.

our little guy

we are going on two months of having our little guy and it's hard not to post tons and tons of pictures of him. believe me, i've been taking enough! i guess, it will just have to wait until november, when his adoption will be final.

i thought i would share some things with you...

he has a love for eating...i'm out eaten by him every morning.

he has a love for cars, trucks, and trains. everything has a sound effect!

he is a cuddle bug!

he loves being outside.

he has come so far since we got him...he would scream and cry on the swings and slide at the park. not now...he can't get enough of them!

he has a high piercing cry and tears that can flow instantly.

he was very quiet when we first got him...not anymore...lots of chatter!

he loves riding on the back of daddy's bike.

he's a great sleeper...sleeps from 8 to 8. i know, some of you might want to kill me for saying that. i have a feeling he might be a night owl like his momma eventually.

he can give some mean looks...we call it mean muggin' when he does it.

he quickly learned what "uh oh" meant...time out.

he has the nicknames...bud, bugaboo, jojo, bubba, and waterworks. i'll let you figure out who gave what names to him.

he has grown up so much in just the short time we have had him!

passing on a spiritual heritage...

This is a special basket of books that I keep in our family room. They are books that I use to teach my little lady about different character traits, bible stories and it is the things we use to grow her spiritually. These are just things I've gathered over the years, and we use them often. We use it for devotions, preschool lessons and also to reinforce acceptable behavior. I was asked by one of my friends to give her a list of the different books we used in teaching our little lady about God, I thought I would post it, so that others may find it useful.
Day By Day Begin to Read Bible by Karyn Henley
The Beginner's Bible by Zonderkidz
The New Bible In Pictures for Little Eyes by Kenneth N. Taylor
The One Year Devotions for Preschoolers by Crystal Bowman
Big Thoughts for Little People: ABC's to help you grow by Kenneth N. Taylor
Cookies: Bite-size Life Lessons by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
God, I Need to Talk to You About....(Paying Attention, Bad Manners,Lying, Disrespect, etc.) by Dan Carr or Susan K. Leigh (These are the little paperback books in the pictures.)
The Berenstain Bears and the Truth
The Berenstain Bears Say Their Prayers
The Berenstain Bears Go to Sunday School
The Berenstain Bears Forget Their Manners
The Berenstain Bears Count Their Blessings
I've gotten most of the books off of Amazon and some at Christian bookstores. If you have a special book you use with your kiddos, will you please share it here. I would love to here about it!