Somewhat Hazy Thoughts on a Somwhat Hazy Day.....

We are enjoying some real heat the last few days, with the temperatures in the plus 30s, thanks to the humidity. What? You say you aren't enjoying the hot, sticky weather?? One second.......

There. NOW are you enjoying the heat we are having??! :o) Those wintry pictures were taken in March, which is really not that long ago. So go, revel in the 35 degrees Celsius, because before we know it, the snow will be flying!

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I've been thoroughly loving the World Cup Soccer (or Football) games. It probably helps that "my" country has advanced to the quarterfinals.

While I love watching the game, no matter who is playing, I have to admit that it is the very beginning of the match that I most enjoy - and that is, listening to all the different national anthems. My! There are some really peppy anthems out there! I have no idea the words, it's just the variation in tunes that I find interesting.
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Someone is 2.5 years old today. Sob!!! I do believe this deserves a post all on its own, considering I could write a book on this boy of ours!

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Just after one year of age, it became apparent that Keziah was allergic to peanuts. She was tested and due to the little hive that came up and the fact that it is only peanuts (she can have all other nuts), the allergist said she would most likely grow out of it. So, with her being almost 5, we thought we'd do a little test. Well, it became very clear very quickly that she has not done enough growing yet. After 3 hours of sneezing, coughing, wheezing, crying, sore stomach, hives on her neck and eyes half-closed, she finally threw up. And just as quickly as the symptoms came on her, they left. And she was much better. So no peanut butter for this gal! (later that night she told me she felt she had all bumps in her throat. I have never told her this, that that might happen!! Scary stuff! So the Epi-pen will be ordered)

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We've been taking Lincoln into church once a Sunday lately. He is actually doing pretty good, sitting for more than an hour, thanks to those two fingers of his! He's gone 3 or 4 times so far and I know he is improving because I am coming out of church with more and more candies still in my candy bag :o)
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In the last few weeks, I've seen quite a few of these being ridden:

Um. Why?! Why in the world would you ride a tandem bike??! I know Archie and Veronica always did, but that was in the comics!! Maybe I am missing something, that maybe being behind someone, staring at the butt of the person in front of you is actually quite fun! I don't know....but I highly doubt it. If there is a very good reason why you would ride tandem, do share. But as for now, it will stay off my bucket list.
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It is 2 years ago today that Keziah had a very large part of her birthmark removed. It was quite the dramatic and long day - 7 hours of surgery! And then when she got out, we walked right by her in the Recovery Room, not recognizing her without a big part of her birthmark! This girl has been through a lot in the last 2.5 years, but we have so much to be thankful for! And the best part?! She is no worse for wear!!!

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Tomorrow is our country's 147th birthday!

We will be celebrating it first thing in the morning by doing a 5Km run. The exciting thing is that this time, Keziah will be doing the 1 Km run for kids!! Wish her all the best!! She's been practising :o)

And that is enough thoughts on these hazy, lazy days.

Fun in the Sun......Or not.

Last week Saturday, we kicked off the summer by going on our first camping trip of the year. We love going at this time of the year because the parks are fairly quiet - the public school system always has an extra week of school than us.

We enjoyed the last 5 days camping with my sister and her family. My parents came to visit us as well, and decided to stay in a hotel with a very large play area and pool. And so we stormed the hotel and took over the pool. Little did we know that we would actually be stormed out of the pool!!

And it's a good thing we enjoyed that because while eating lunch, it started to rain. And rain, and rain, and rain. And then it rained some more that night, the next day, and night, and then it got cool.

The next nice day was the day we left. And so not much time was spent building sand castles and swimming in the lake. But really, who needs a beach when you have so many other things to do, like biking with dad?

Who needs a beach when your cousins are around to explore mole holes?

Beach? Why, when there are puddles to play in near the campsite?

Why head to the beach when there are catfish to feed?

And a Visitor Center to explore?

Why waste time at the beach when you can find firewood abandoned by people who just couldn't handle the rain?

Really, what would you choose - the beach OR visiting friends that live on a goat farm?! I know what Lincoln would choose again. Keziah? Well, I'll let the pictures tell you what she thought:

For Keziah, I think she much preferred the beach this time. Good thing they had a trampoline to enjoy!

And lastly, why go to the beach when camping means TREATS!! Sure, you can eat treats at the beach, but I think you will agree that eating treats around the campfire is a whole lot less sandy :o)

And yet, despite all the fun we had away from the beach, we couldn't go home without hitting the beach at least once. We lasted all of 20 minutes - enough time to play in the sand a bit and even take a dip in the freezing lake (we heard the last bit of ice had finally melted the week before....).

While the rain didn't dampen our holiday, we do look forward to going camping again later this summer, with the hopes that we will see the sun a wee bit more than this time. But a fun time was still had by all!

Review - She's Gonna Blow

Well, after a miserable meltdown way back when, I dug up the book that had been sitting on my shelf for two years: She's Gonna Blow by Julie Ann Barnhill. It was high time I read it. Yet, knowing myself, I knew that to actually stick to reading the *whole* book, I had to commit to it in a way that would hold me accountable. No better way than promising to my readers of a weekly summary to get me finished!! And boy, am I so glad!

So, what is my take on this book?

Would you be surprised that I think everyone should read it? :o) From mothers, to fathers, to leaders in the church, to those who work with kids. It is eye-opening, soul-searching and heart-wrenching. It is encouraging, funny, real and helpful.

In today's day and age, where we can so easily present ourselves and our families in such a way that gives off the perception that we have it all together (via Facebook, Instagram and blogs), this book brings everything back to reality, and that is, no one has it all figured out. No one has it altogether, no matter how hard they try. That is because we all, every single one of us, have a sinful nature. We are not perfect in any aspect of our lives, including our parenting, no matter how hard and good we are at fooling others.

I loved how Barnhill used the imagery of a volcano, sticking to that through all the layers of blowing up. I loved how she made me think of things that I never thought of before, like the spiritual damage my blowing up does to my children. Sure, I knew about the physical and emotional, but the spiritual?  That was a new thought to me, one I am so thankful for.

I loved how honest Barnhill was, how sincere and straightforward she was throughout the book, sharing her experiences of parenting. While the chapters were long, it never felt long.....until I had to summarize it :o)

I loved how she really stressed that we need each other, stick to each other to encourage, help and share in what can sometimes feel like a burden of parenting, to be real with each other.

But most of all? I absolutely loved how Julie Ann Barnhill brought it all back to The Word. That she has the Bible listed as the only bedrock we can anchor our parenting in was so true and such a wonderful and encouraging reminder. She brought it all back to God, the Creator of you and me, as well as our little (or big!) charges.

I remember a number of years ago, I had attended a Teacher's Conference, where there was a speech done by one of our ministers. I don't remember the whole speech, but one thing he said has stuck with me since that day:

"Your students are not just your students, but are your brothers and sisters in the Lord."

The same with our children. They are not little and we get to do whatever we want to them just because we are bigger. No, in the family of Christ, my son is my brother and my daughter is my sister. I don't know about you, but when I think of this, it totally changes my attitude towards them. It reminds me that in the eyes of God, I am no "higher" on the totem pole than my children. Just because God has given me a position of authority, that doesn't mean I am any better or more important in the His family than His son and daughter that He has given to me for a time.

So, do I recommend this book? Absolutely not. Just kidding!!!! Yes, I highly recommend this book. It is not just a book for moms with young children, but for moms who have children of all ages, all stages of parenting.

But what about you? Did you enjoy it? Were there things in the book that you agreed/disagreed with? Did I miss something? Would it be a book that you recommend?

 I hope the book was beneficial to you, that you were able to glean a lot from it. I think reading this book came at perfect timing as school is about to be out for the summer. While at first, the thought of no schedules is so welcoming, can I guess that by week 3, a volcano will be blowing in full force? And maybe not the first time in three weeks?

Remember this book, what you've read. But before you pick up the book again to brush up on the strategies, consider your time in God's Word - because as schedules go out the window, this is often the first thing to go out with the schedules. I encourage you to pick up *that* Book first, and then She's Gonna Blow.

Lastly, I really enjoyed doing this Book Talk and it was successful because I actually finished the book. I am thinking of possibly doing another one come the Fall. If you have a book to recommend for this, please let me know! (and no, it does not need to be a parenting book :o).

Until then, it'll just be regular blogging for awhile......take care, and thank you so much for joining me on this journey!

A Special Day

When Nathan and I started to date, you couldn't have found a more opposite couple. He hardly said a word in public and I, well, let's just say silences made me uncomfortable. I loved sports, especially hockey and football.  Nathan liked baseball.  He could drink a pot of coffee and I couldn't stand even a drop. When going out for supper, he would order the most exotic thing on the menu (even eating a whole fish head!!). Me? Just chicken please. Without the claws or head, thanks. Speaking of meats, I much preferred them on my plate and not moving. Nathan? He was drawn to animals of all kinds while they were alive.

Another big difference was in the area of kids. Kids were my life - the kids I babysat, the kids in my church, the kids I met on the street. Kids were everything - which is why I ended up at college getting my early childhood education.

As for Nathan .....I don't think he knew they existed. Kids? What's that? Huh? He never babysat, he never noticed them, he never clued into their presence.

That was 19 years ago.

While we are still opposite in many ways, including above mentioned, there is one thing that has changed drastically.

The change slowly started to happen over time, starting with the births of our nieces and nephews, as well as our friends having children. That is when the exposure started for Nathan.

However, while exposed to this phenomena of children, Nathan:

• had no idea what to do with kids and all that came with them.
• he would throw up watching our friends lick the spoon that was in their child's mouth;
• he could put his arm up a cow (his old job) yet couldn't be in the same room if a diaper was being changed
• in his mind, any child with a snot nose, goobers, sticky fingers, poopy diaper, or any of the like could not be anywhere near him

And yet, this man prevailed and came to see what fun these little packages bring to a life. And now I am privileged to witness this man, who couldn't keep his supper down due to particular smells that came from kids, be the most fantastic daddy to our children. I am in awe. What I see him do with Keziah and Lincoln, how I see him interact, play, love, and teach them, makes me a big mush for my husband every time I see him with our two blessings.

My heart feels with joy when I come home from church and find him at the table doing a craft, taking directions from his 'teacher' daughter:

He has the patience of Job, not minding at all that the kids are in there to help him put things together, even encouraging them to join in:

And he lets the kids do things that mom wouldn't normally allow.....like ride bikes in the house!

We just recently learned that while he is amazing as a father, he needs to work on his staring contest skills with Keziah, 'cause right now she has won every single time :o)

Yes, my children are blessed to call him 'father'.  And I am so blessed to witness him in this role.

The days leading up to it, we were busy making some things for him to hang in his office:

"My dad is 10 years old.
My dad loves to go on his motorcycle.
My dad's job is to work in the office.
He has black hair that's brownish and green eyes.
His favourite food is cottage cheese.
My dad is smart because he knows how to keep  me safe.
My favourite thing to do with my dad is snuggle."

We praise and thank God for Nathan, and pray that our Heavenly Father will continue to bless him in his role as earthly father. Keziah and Lincoln know without a doubt that their father loves them, because he spends time with them. And that is how kids spell love: T-I-M-E.

 

(Yes, he can now lick a spoon that was in his child's mouth, wipe a nose and get this - he has changed his fair share of dirty diapers!! However I do believe that out of all of us, he was the most thankful when Lincoln was trained back in the winter. While he changed a dirty diaper here and there, it never was easy on this grown man; there were lots of gagging sounds coming from the room, sniffing as his eyes were watering, and never enough wipes for him, always using half the wipes from the container. But he *did* it - something he thought he would never succumb to doing. Thank you, my love :o)