i fixed the problem with the picture displaying
Monday, June 15, 2009
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Buckin' Bronco
Our buckin' bronco is a pint-sized rocking horse. Apparently, Cora found out that with carpet, you can get rocking horses to do a lot more. She likes to ride hers through the living room and office. It slides nicely across the carpet as she rocks and jumps at the same time.
Last night, Geron and I were watching with amusement as she showed us her new trick, that is, getting the horse to rock her across the room. At one point, she got a little carried away and jumped the horse right out from under her. She flipped off the back and the horse went sailing over her head, landing down just shy of the dining table. Geron was able to keep his composure and asked her if she was okay. I, on the other hand, was shaking on the loveseat with laughter.
She's going to have to take the rocking horse out to the corral and work on taming it. It's still a little wild.
Last night, Geron and I were watching with amusement as she showed us her new trick, that is, getting the horse to rock her across the room. At one point, she got a little carried away and jumped the horse right out from under her. She flipped off the back and the horse went sailing over her head, landing down just shy of the dining table. Geron was able to keep his composure and asked her if she was okay. I, on the other hand, was shaking on the loveseat with laughter.
She's going to have to take the rocking horse out to the corral and work on taming it. It's still a little wild.
A Tea Party
I think Cora might be british, or maybe just a girly girl.
Now that Cora and Cohen have their own rooms, I've been able to put all of their toys out where they can get to them. Many of Cora's baby toys have found a new home in Cohen's room...had a little bit of drama when she'd find one that she recognized and asked "Is this mine?" Explaining that it is a baby toy and that Cohen would have more fun with it than she would has helped a little.
But Cora's had enough fun discovering girly toys she loves and has developed some new favorites. Namely, her plush tea set from Granny. Every morning she's up and ready for a lovely cup of tea. And when anyone comes over, she has to offer them some cotton tea and cupcakes as well. OH, and the teapot doesn't even have tea in it, it's full of macaroni. (What's up with that?) It's gotten to the point that I had to put the crazy thing away for awhile. I mean, we were having tea practically 14/7 (she was asleep the other ten hours.) I think I'm going to follow some advice from some other moms I know and rotate the toys every few weeks or so.
In the meantime, pray for us. Today, she found her doctor kit.
Now that Cora and Cohen have their own rooms, I've been able to put all of their toys out where they can get to them. Many of Cora's baby toys have found a new home in Cohen's room...had a little bit of drama when she'd find one that she recognized and asked "Is this mine?" Explaining that it is a baby toy and that Cohen would have more fun with it than she would has helped a little.
But Cora's had enough fun discovering girly toys she loves and has developed some new favorites. Namely, her plush tea set from Granny. Every morning she's up and ready for a lovely cup of tea. And when anyone comes over, she has to offer them some cotton tea and cupcakes as well. OH, and the teapot doesn't even have tea in it, it's full of macaroni. (What's up with that?) It's gotten to the point that I had to put the crazy thing away for awhile. I mean, we were having tea practically 14/7 (she was asleep the other ten hours.) I think I'm going to follow some advice from some other moms I know and rotate the toys every few weeks or so.
In the meantime, pray for us. Today, she found her doctor kit.
Monday, June 8, 2009
Single Mommies, How do you do it?
Geron is gone for the week, so I am attempting the life of a single mom. I know single moms have WAYYYYYYYYYY more responsibilities to handle then I do for this short week, so let me say "Hats off to you who do it on a full-time basis. I bet your prayer life is incredible!
Today, I braved McDonalds with Cora and Cohen. I couldn't believe how good Cora was being while we waited to order. She stayed next to me the whole time. I noticed her watching the people around us. A lady with a rather large derierre approached the counter next to us. Cora just observed her for a minute and then it happened. Her finger went up, pointed and she exclaimed "That's a butt!" I tried to stifle what could easily be explosive laughter and looked around to see if anyone else had caught what she'd done. Fortunately, noone seemed to notice, and more importantly, the lady herself didn't hear. Woooo! We're off the hook. Yes, I immediately told her that we don't point at or talk about bottoms in public and HOPE that does the trick for future opportunities to do so. I ordered two happy meals, no special requests, filled drinks and headed to the play area. Cora ate like a bird and then wanted to play. A little girl about a year younger than Cora came in and played with Cora for the longest time. (Thank you, Jesus, for friends) Cohen got a kick out of watching them play and laugh, and babbled and giggled up a storm as he watched. He also ate, like a horse. Thankfully, Cora only asked to go potty once...having a friend kept her from getting bored and needing to take the regular 4 trips to the potty. When she finished playing, we both had ice cream cones and headed home for nap time. AND FOR ONCE IN A BLUE MOON, THEY BOTH NAPPED AT THE SAME TIME! AWESOME!!! (Thank you, Jesus, for naps.)
So, for the rest of the week, I am planning a movie day, fun at the park day(carousel ride and playing in the fountain--I also plan to bring a youth along on that trip), maybe a zoo day, and who knows what else. Any suggestions out there? If you think about it, pray for us as we're daddyless this week. And pray for daddy and his buddy Stan and the kiddos at camp.
Today, I braved McDonalds with Cora and Cohen. I couldn't believe how good Cora was being while we waited to order. She stayed next to me the whole time. I noticed her watching the people around us. A lady with a rather large derierre approached the counter next to us. Cora just observed her for a minute and then it happened. Her finger went up, pointed and she exclaimed "That's a butt!" I tried to stifle what could easily be explosive laughter and looked around to see if anyone else had caught what she'd done. Fortunately, noone seemed to notice, and more importantly, the lady herself didn't hear. Woooo! We're off the hook. Yes, I immediately told her that we don't point at or talk about bottoms in public and HOPE that does the trick for future opportunities to do so. I ordered two happy meals, no special requests, filled drinks and headed to the play area. Cora ate like a bird and then wanted to play. A little girl about a year younger than Cora came in and played with Cora for the longest time. (Thank you, Jesus, for friends) Cohen got a kick out of watching them play and laugh, and babbled and giggled up a storm as he watched. He also ate, like a horse. Thankfully, Cora only asked to go potty once...having a friend kept her from getting bored and needing to take the regular 4 trips to the potty. When she finished playing, we both had ice cream cones and headed home for nap time. AND FOR ONCE IN A BLUE MOON, THEY BOTH NAPPED AT THE SAME TIME! AWESOME!!! (Thank you, Jesus, for naps.)
So, for the rest of the week, I am planning a movie day, fun at the park day(carousel ride and playing in the fountain--I also plan to bring a youth along on that trip), maybe a zoo day, and who knows what else. Any suggestions out there? If you think about it, pray for us as we're daddyless this week. And pray for daddy and his buddy Stan and the kiddos at camp.
Thursday, June 4, 2009
All I needed to know in life, I learned from my daughter's pooped stained walls.
We are finally out of the old house and into the new. It's been a hectic couple of weeks trying to get everything packed, moved and unpacked. Apparently, one of our kids has been lacking for attention in this move and decided to go about getting it in a new way.
Sunday morning, Cora had a bit of an accident on the floor outside her bathroom. She hadn't been up long, so she still had her pull-up on when the poop occurred. She left us a nice poop stain on the carpet. Geron was quick to help me get my wits about me and clean it up. And he helped get it up, too. Everything appears to come have come out nicely, but this was only the tip of the iceberg.
TUESDAY brought a whole new side of Cora. Around 12 or so, I laid Cohen down for a nap and then got Cora ready for her nap. When I thought she was settled, I went to the kitchen and began unpacking a mountain of boxes. Much was getting accomplished in about 45 minutes, and then I heard the cough. Thinking that Cora was waking up from a short nap, I went to her room to check on her. As I opened the door, I was hit with the biggest shock of my parenting life...POOP! Poop was on the floor, smeared in a two foot mess. Poop was smeared on the walls in a finger paint design. Ballerina Bear, a favorite toy that had been put away for some time, had poop all over her pretty head. And Cora was laying in bed, with the covers pulled up to her shoulders, looking at me, just looking. I saw her shorts and underwear laying on the floor beside her bed. There was no poop in them. Dare I pull the blanket back to see what mess was underneath? Slowly, I slid it back and found a practically clean bottom, a little poop on the legs and fingers,and a smudge on her nose... YUCK!
I have never had so many emotions rush forth at once as they did that terrible Tuesday. I was shocked, I was angry, I was confused, I was humored, I was disappointed....you name it, I was it! At first, I thought, I've got to clean this mess up. How will I ever do this? How much money will I have to pay to have the floor repaired? I'm going to have to paint! I called Geron and had him thinking something much worse had happened. One of my piano parents called--a mother of four. I told her what was going on and that I'd have to get back to her. Her response "Been there, done that." At that point, I started to calm down and see some humor in it. I called my friend Keri, also a mother of four, and said "I need your help. How do you get poop off of hardwood floors and off the wall?" She gave me some advice and also helped me to relax. When I got off the phone, I began cleaning and then realized "Cora still has poop on her body." So, I stopped mid clean and took her to the bathroom. I asked her what she'd done and why she'd done it. She had an obvious answer for the first but didn't seem to understand the second. I said "I'm going to have to spank you,Cora." And I did. (Later on, someone told me I should have made Cora help me clean it up, but I didn't want her touching it again. NEXT TIME, HOPING THERE IS NO NEXT TIME, I wil.) After cleaning Cora, I took her back to her room and sat her in her rocker while I cleaned the rest of the poop. Cohen woke up during the cleaning, so I sent her to entertain him. At some point, it dawned on me that if there was poop on the wall and the door frame, there was probably poop on the door, too. I closed the door and found some more finger painting. Cleaned it up. Took all the rags and threw them in the washer, threw the sheets in and Zoe, her favorite sleepy time toy, too. Ballerina Bear, unfortunately, had met her demise and went to be with the other teddy bears who've passed on from this world.
Poop. Lots of Poop.
Being a parent who tries to see the lesson in things, I prayed and asked God to help me see what was going on here. Maybe some lack of attention, stress from the move, adjusting to a new house, etc. I was so thankful that I had taught Cora a BIble verse last week because when I would start to feel angry, Cora would pipe up "For God so loved the world..." She knows the whole thing. After the first time she said it during an angry spell, I requested she say it during other times to immediately calm me down. Thank you, Jesus, for your Word.
SO, I got to thinking, we learn a lot about God's love for us through our parenting. I learned so many lessons on Tuesday. When we do something to mess our lives up, and get the yuck all over us, we can't clean ourselves up. We have to let God do it. And He doesn't want us to be dirty. He loves us too much to let us stay in the "muck". He longs for us to know how much He loves us and wants to spend time with us. He wants us to see our children the way He sees them, in need of love and a feeling of value. God wants us to make a mark on the world, but one that brings Him glory.
To look at her room, there is no evidence of poop having happened. I want to leave evidence that love has.
Sunday morning, Cora had a bit of an accident on the floor outside her bathroom. She hadn't been up long, so she still had her pull-up on when the poop occurred. She left us a nice poop stain on the carpet. Geron was quick to help me get my wits about me and clean it up. And he helped get it up, too. Everything appears to come have come out nicely, but this was only the tip of the iceberg.
TUESDAY brought a whole new side of Cora. Around 12 or so, I laid Cohen down for a nap and then got Cora ready for her nap. When I thought she was settled, I went to the kitchen and began unpacking a mountain of boxes. Much was getting accomplished in about 45 minutes, and then I heard the cough. Thinking that Cora was waking up from a short nap, I went to her room to check on her. As I opened the door, I was hit with the biggest shock of my parenting life...POOP! Poop was on the floor, smeared in a two foot mess. Poop was smeared on the walls in a finger paint design. Ballerina Bear, a favorite toy that had been put away for some time, had poop all over her pretty head. And Cora was laying in bed, with the covers pulled up to her shoulders, looking at me, just looking. I saw her shorts and underwear laying on the floor beside her bed. There was no poop in them. Dare I pull the blanket back to see what mess was underneath? Slowly, I slid it back and found a practically clean bottom, a little poop on the legs and fingers,and a smudge on her nose... YUCK!
I have never had so many emotions rush forth at once as they did that terrible Tuesday. I was shocked, I was angry, I was confused, I was humored, I was disappointed....you name it, I was it! At first, I thought, I've got to clean this mess up. How will I ever do this? How much money will I have to pay to have the floor repaired? I'm going to have to paint! I called Geron and had him thinking something much worse had happened. One of my piano parents called--a mother of four. I told her what was going on and that I'd have to get back to her. Her response "Been there, done that." At that point, I started to calm down and see some humor in it. I called my friend Keri, also a mother of four, and said "I need your help. How do you get poop off of hardwood floors and off the wall?" She gave me some advice and also helped me to relax. When I got off the phone, I began cleaning and then realized "Cora still has poop on her body." So, I stopped mid clean and took her to the bathroom. I asked her what she'd done and why she'd done it. She had an obvious answer for the first but didn't seem to understand the second. I said "I'm going to have to spank you,Cora." And I did. (Later on, someone told me I should have made Cora help me clean it up, but I didn't want her touching it again. NEXT TIME, HOPING THERE IS NO NEXT TIME, I wil.) After cleaning Cora, I took her back to her room and sat her in her rocker while I cleaned the rest of the poop. Cohen woke up during the cleaning, so I sent her to entertain him. At some point, it dawned on me that if there was poop on the wall and the door frame, there was probably poop on the door, too. I closed the door and found some more finger painting. Cleaned it up. Took all the rags and threw them in the washer, threw the sheets in and Zoe, her favorite sleepy time toy, too. Ballerina Bear, unfortunately, had met her demise and went to be with the other teddy bears who've passed on from this world.
Poop. Lots of Poop.
Being a parent who tries to see the lesson in things, I prayed and asked God to help me see what was going on here. Maybe some lack of attention, stress from the move, adjusting to a new house, etc. I was so thankful that I had taught Cora a BIble verse last week because when I would start to feel angry, Cora would pipe up "For God so loved the world..." She knows the whole thing. After the first time she said it during an angry spell, I requested she say it during other times to immediately calm me down. Thank you, Jesus, for your Word.
SO, I got to thinking, we learn a lot about God's love for us through our parenting. I learned so many lessons on Tuesday. When we do something to mess our lives up, and get the yuck all over us, we can't clean ourselves up. We have to let God do it. And He doesn't want us to be dirty. He loves us too much to let us stay in the "muck". He longs for us to know how much He loves us and wants to spend time with us. He wants us to see our children the way He sees them, in need of love and a feeling of value. God wants us to make a mark on the world, but one that brings Him glory.
To look at her room, there is no evidence of poop having happened. I want to leave evidence that love has.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Moving
It's Siberia... apparently my little praise and worship songs aren't a big hit and now i'm gonna pay for it in frozen wasteland that is Siberia.
Just kidding. We are moving though, but it's just a couple of miles away. Across the street from Lydia's School.
A couple of months ago, the little lady who owned our house went to be with Jesus. She lived with constant pain, and couldn't even get out of her house anymore. She had a long life and was miserable here. She lived next door and we got to know her pretty well over the last several years. She was more than a landlord in many ways.
Anyway, Her properties are being sold and that includes our house. We were given the opportunity to purchase it, but it's really smaller than what we need now. So we have been looking for a new place really since she passed away. We wanted something close by to our places of employment, affordable & clean(believe me these rarely go together), and at leas three bedrooms. Our family has doubled in the last couple of years, and we needed something larger. After much prayer, searching Craig's List, and a lot of driving driving around we have finally found our new home, and it's really just what we needed.
I'll put a few pictures up when I get a chance. Saturday is the big day for the move. Check out our excitement from a few years back when we last moved.
Just kidding. We are moving though, but it's just a couple of miles away. Across the street from Lydia's School.
A couple of months ago, the little lady who owned our house went to be with Jesus. She lived with constant pain, and couldn't even get out of her house anymore. She had a long life and was miserable here. She lived next door and we got to know her pretty well over the last several years. She was more than a landlord in many ways.
Anyway, Her properties are being sold and that includes our house. We were given the opportunity to purchase it, but it's really smaller than what we need now. So we have been looking for a new place really since she passed away. We wanted something close by to our places of employment, affordable & clean(believe me these rarely go together), and at leas three bedrooms. Our family has doubled in the last couple of years, and we needed something larger. After much prayer, searching Craig's List, and a lot of driving driving around we have finally found our new home, and it's really just what we needed.
I'll put a few pictures up when I get a chance. Saturday is the big day for the move. Check out our excitement from a few years back when we last moved.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
a special day
Nine years ago today was one of the best days of my life. I married my best friend. We've had many good days since then and she has given me two beautiful children. We are gonna go out and celebrate tonight. First real date since Cohen came along.
Here are some old pics from the early days.
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