What Was That Again?

Honor, Ariana, and Samuel all have some sort of either cough or runny nose, so, to make sure we didn't pass around something contagious, Daddy stayed home from church with them, and I took Connor to church with me.

On the way home from church, I asked Connor what he learned today...

Connor: "We learned about how Jesus fed 5,000 people."

Mommy: "Oh. He is a great provider, isn't He?"

Connor: "Yeah. Hey, Mom, look at this! C.S. Lewis!"

Mommy: "Connor, I can't look, I'm driving. Just read it to me."

Connor: "Okay!...

C.S. Lewis once commented that the problem with people was not that our desires were too strong, but that they were too weak. He said it this way:

'We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambi...'

Mommy: "What was that? Read that again..."

Connor: "'We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex...'"

Mommy: "No, Connor, that can't be right. Read it again. Do you mean 'success' or 'searching?'"

Connor (scanning the page): "No. Those words aren't in here."

Mommy: "Can you read louder so I can hear you to figure out what it is you are really trying to read?"

Connor: "'WE ARE HALF-HEARTED CREATURES, FOOLING AROUND WITH DRINK AND SEX AND..."

Mommy (stopping at the stoplight): "Let me see that!"

'We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex...'

Oh."


So, I just made my six-year-old son read the word 'sex' over and over again because I was certain they wouldn't put that in a 1st grade children's church take home paper... I was wrong. Oops.

Thankfully he didn't ask me to clarify what any of the words meant...


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FYI, here's the rest of the quote:

We are half-hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased. (The weight of Glory and Other Addresses, Eerdmans, 1965, pp. 1-2)

In the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 hungry people we sometimes conclude that that Jesus can merely meet our physical needs -- even in miraculous ways. And it is true that Jesus alone is able to meet those needs. However, in the Gospel of John, Jesus goes on to reveal a much deeper need and desire that sinners have, namely, the need for true spiritual happiness. This is the need He came to fulfill. Jesus came to satisfy hearts that are hungering for true and lasting joy. It is the kind of joy that can be found only in Jesus Himself!

It Only Takes a Little Encouragement

DAY 1

♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫

Mommy:

"CONNOR! You can whistle!!! That is so exciting!!! I am so proud of you! Daddy, Listen! Connor can whistle! Isn't that wonderful??? Now, Connor, all you have to do is practice and pretty soon you'll be whistling tunes like Mommy and Daddy!"

♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪



DAY 3

♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫

Mommy:

"Connor, honey, you are doing really well with practicing, but that's enough whistling for now. Focus on your schoolwork."



DAY 5

♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪

Mommy:

"Connor, go downstairs to practice your whistling. But you're doing great. Go downstairs...now."



DAY 7

♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫

Mommy:

"Okay, Connor, that's enough whistling."



DAY 10

♫♪♫♪♫♪♫♪♫

Mommy:

"KNOCK IT OFF ALREADY!... but good job, Son."


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Which is why I don't anticipate bagpipe lessons anytime in the near future...

Hmmm...What Would be an Appropriate Greeting?

Today we are blessed to celebrate a friend's birthday. The kids are excited since they get to eat cake. Daddy's excited since Mommy is getting "good" steak for dinner in Mr. C's honor. He and his wife will be coming over later this afternoon, so I thought it would be nice if we all made him a birthday card.

Here is where I need say: Connor is 150% ALL BOY.

Samuel chose blue construction paper. Honor chose yellow construction paper. Ariana chose purple constuction paper (although I think it looks more blue). Connor...chose baby pink construction paper. Sigh.

Samuel immediately set to work coloring every last surface with scribbles. In its own way, it is very sweet.

The other three wanted to write something. I told Ariana how to write Happy Birthday Mr. C. She wrote it...then colored over it so that the card now reads "Happy Birth" and "Love, ARIANA." Then she stuck hearts all over it. Very sweet.

Honor is little Miss Perfectionist. She used three different sheets of construction paper because she kept misspelling "candles." Finally she actually asked me how it was spelled. Honor wrote on her card "Happy Birthday" on the front with a picture of an apple tree and a sticker of sleeping Beauty. On the inside she wrote "Blow out your candles, Mr. C. Love, Honor" and drew a very nice picture of our friend blowing out his birthday candles with presents all around the table. Very sweet.

Connor is ALL BOY.

On the front of his card, Connor drew a picture of two people in a heart: "Look, Mom! It's me and Mr. C. hugging!"...

On the inside he wrote "Dear. Mr. C it's your b-Day. Happy B-Day. love Connor" ...then he drew a picture of our friend and him at the dinosaur museum. The dinosaur is saying "Roar!" and the caption says, "← means hello".

On the back of the card, he drew a picture of an ocean with the Christian fish in it. Inside the fish he wrote "Jonah"...Jonah in the whale...

But remember...Connor is ALL BOY.

Periodically he would show me the progress of his card as he was making it, but he didn't show me everything. Apparently he felt the need to add some final touches to the front of the card....









It really is a touching sentiment...

Goin' to the Chapel...

As I've mentioned before, at breakfast time, we are reading through "The Chronicles of Narnia." We are currently on "The Horse and His Boy."

"'I desire and propose, O my father,' said Rabadash, 'that you immediately call out your invincible armies and invade the thrice-accursed land of Narnia and waste it with fire and sword and add it to your illimitable empire, killing their High King and all of his blood except the Queen Susan. For I must have her as my wife, though she shall learn a sharp lesson first.'" - The Horse and His Boy pg. 93

Mommy: "So, who can tell me what happened in yesterday's chapter?"

Connor: "Queen Susan ran away."

Mommy: "Yes. And was Prince Rabadash happy about that?"

All: Nooooooo!

Mommy: "So, what is he going to do about it?"

Honor: "He's going to go get her and marry her."

Ariana and Honor both burst into giggles.

I think that we are one day going to have to have a LONG talk about "bad boys" with those two...

To Weed or Not to Weed...THAT is the Question

"What is a weed? A plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered." -Ralph Waldo Emerson.

In our basement, we have a walk-out patio. Runnign along the wall, there is a place to grow flowers, which we primarily use to grow Cat's Claw, a vine with beautiful yellow flowers that grabs onto walls with little "hands"--hence the name (I will get the whole wall covered this year...I promise!).

ANYWAY...

I have planted various flowers in the "children's garden"--zinnias, sunflowers, peonies--but only one plant has thrived and continually returns...the dandelion. And it is my children's favorite flower. "Oh look how BIG the pretty yellow flowers are getting, Mommy!"

And although I know that dandelions are technically weeds, I can't help but like them too. They are strong and courageous--popping up in the most dedicated landscaper's garden. They are "sunny" and friendly. Their seed pods provide hours of entertainment for children (at least in Iowa--here we don't get fields full of the cottony goodness). I honestly don't understand why my parents go out of their way to rid their lawn of the yellow decorations. They brighten up everything.

So, while the dandelions are not an intended addition to the children's garden, I am not going to be quick in removing them. Perhaps the Cat's Claw will overtake them soon and do the dirty work for me...

Can You Guess...

...what's been playing on my Napster lately?

It's Not Healthy

This goes along with my last post....

On the car ride home from Chuck E. Cheese, Honor and I had the following conversation:

Honor: "What are we having for dinner tonight?"

Me: "When we get home, I am fixing Daddy and the other kids leftover ribs and macaroni and cheese."

Honor: "Mmmm! I LOVE ribs and macaroni and cheese!"

Me: "You already ate two pieces of pizza and a piece of cake! You don't get any more dinner."

Honor: "But MOM! That's not healthy food! I need to eat healthy food!!!"

Yes, because macaroni and cheese is so much healthier than pizza...

Scrambled Eggs

Honor got to go to her first birthday party as just a "friend." We have been to many other birthday parties, but they have always been family or friends of the family. This was Honor's first party where only she was invited because it was her friend. (Well, I went too, but I wasn't invited...) Her party was at Chuck E Cheese and Honor had a blast playing games and eating all the food she wanted--not to mention having Mommy's undivided attention for two and a half hours....well, four if you count driving time and the time it took to pick out the present/card (which she did all by herself--with my veto power).

This evening we were all cuddling on the couch watching a movie. Honor snuggled up on my lap, refusing to make room for her sister on my other side. Thankfully, Ariana didn't mind...this time.

Kissing her on the forehead, I said in a teasing voice, "you got a little spoiled today, huh?"

I'm not sure Honor knows what "spoiled" means. Honor replied, "Yeah. I really want to get spoiled for breakfast tomorrow!"

I'm sure Ariana does NOT know what "spoiled" means. Ariana piped up from my other side, "Yeah! I LOVE spoiled eggs for breakfast!"

mmmmm...yummy!

Facing Realities

This is verbatim the conversation my family had in the car while driving home from church.


Connor: ♫♪♫ Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound...♫♪♫ That's your favorite song, isn't it, Mom?

Mommy: Yep.

Connor: Mom YOU sing a song.

Samuel: ♫♪♫ Pizza Maker is greaaaattt! I love Pizza Maker! ♫♪♫

Connor: That's not a song!

Daddy: It is if he sings it. If it is sung, then it's a song.

Samuel: ♫♪♫ Pizza Maker is great. And I Love Santa Claaauuusss. ♫♪♫

Ariana: ♫♪♫ I Love Santa Claus because he gives presents.♫ ♪♫

Honor: Santa is dead.

Connor: No. That's St. Nicholas.

Ariana: ♫♪♫ I'm talking about the new one... ♫♪♫

Samuel: ♫♪♫ Yeah, the new Santa Claus. ♫♪♫


My life is sort of a Broadway musical. A VERY random musical.

Creativity

Ariana: "Look, Mommy! I made this pretty!"

Ariana hands me a coloring book with a picture of a cake. The entire page is colored purple.

Mommy: "Yes, that is very pretty, but Honey, you really need to practice coloring IN the lines."

Ariana: "I will...someday."

That's my girl.

Prince or Princess

I'm so glad that my girls will always have dance partners in the form of their brothers. It is so sweet when little boys dance with little girls. This evening I caught Connor and Honor twirling around the living room--with Connor actually using some pretty fancy dance steps to spin her around!

Later Samuel was chasing Honor around, begging her to dance with him. Eventually she consented and they did the awkward side step that I remember from Y-Camp dance night. After a while Honor got bored and began walking away. Samuel followed closely on her heels. "Where are we going?" he chirped. "To a ball???"

Fast forward to bedtime. I was sitting in the room while Connor and Samuel were getting their pajamas on. Samuel pretty much dresses himself nowadays, but he occasionally needs help getting his shirt off. I usually lift it most of the way off, but let him get his head out himself. Tonight he left the shirt up near his forehead so that the arms were dangling.

"Look at me! I've got long hair!" Then he ran up to Connor and held out his arms. "Dance with me...I'm a girl!"

It's a good thing he is going to be big enough to be a linebacker...