We've Come A Long Way!

Xander can be a bit of a 'scaredy cat' -- one of the reasons we plan to skip Halloween this year since he freaked during LibraryHour when approached by a pint-sized fireman. I kept reassuring him that no one was going to hurt him...not Curious George, or the fairy with the pink glittery wings, or the elf with the funny pointed hat... but he was not buying it.

Although he was mostly okay with the vacuum, previously whenever I picked up the dustbuster he would either (a) quickly exit the room or (b) cling to my leg with a death-like grip and spin around excessively to keep his eye on 'that' thing.

Not any more. Now (as this poor/blurry picture shows), he's into helping. And, who would pass up help from a little person who fits so perfectly beneath the table...that's where most of the crumbs go anyways, right?

Papa (Grandpa), Tractor and Mower Go!

This is where I spent last Monday thru Wednesday, driving the tractor & auger wagon for my dad as we harvested beans before the rain started AGAIN.

FUNNY NOTE: When my dad looked from the cab of his combine & saw only my red shirt lying in the field (while taking this picture) he was worried that his 'city-fied daughter' might have fallen out of the tractor :)

Xander has spent this week 'reminding me' about papa, the tractors (which sound like 'brrruuummm') and the fact that he misses sitting with grandma on the mower ("momma. mower. go! go!")

A Little of This. A Little of That.

We hosted a CookOut with some 'downstate' friends a couple of weekends ago. I accidently deleted most of the pictures (oh, HOW frustrating) but this one of my sis (Brenda) holding a bundled Xander and her son, Isaak, during the hayrack ride survived. What fun!

Parenting with COURAGE...

I attended a MOPS meeting this morning and found the speaker, Mike Murphy, a family pastor at a local church to be both encouraging & challenging.

His topic was entitled, "Raising Right Side Up Kids in an Upside Down World" and the parenting trait that kept coming to the surface throughout his presentation, at least for me, was: COURAGE.

I recall having the following Mark Twain quote posted on my door in college, "Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear...not the absence of fear." The quotation challenged me to step outside of what was comfortable/familiar/safe in order to walk down the path God had called me to.

Mr. Murphy quoted words by Amelia Earhart, "Courage is the price that life exacts for granting peace" and continued by describing that parenting required:

(1) the COURAGE to be rejected by others. "Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising that tempt you to believe your critics are right." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

(2) the COURAGE to quit rescuing your kids from the consequences of their actions. "It is easy to dodge our responsibilities but, we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities." -- Josiah Charles Stamp

(3) the COURAGE to not be your child's best friend but be their best parent.

(4) the COURAGE to allow your child to feel pain & disappointment. "Success is not measured by what you accomplish, but by the opposition you have encountered and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds." -- Orison Swett Marden

(5) the COURAGE to be out of step with culture in order to be in-step with God. "Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow.'" -- Mary Anne Radmacher

To all the readers of this blog parenting children & those that will do so someday, I wish you God's grace to parent each of your children with COURAGE.

A Muddy Adventure!

Xander is sleeping off a hectic weekend so I thought I would post a few pictures from our Friday adventure at Apple Holler orchard. It was a cold & drizzly day (wow, that sounds like the first line of a mystery novel...) but we bundled up the kids and picked a 1/2 bushel of apples with grandpa & grandma and the (S) family.

Oh...there's a good one WAY up there. No worries...grandpa will help reach it.

I think his older cousin is explaining to Xander the proper way to eat a freshly-picked apple :)

Jared nabbed this apple with his mommy's help. What a team! Here's Jonah is 'cleaning' off his boots in a muddy puddle. All boy! So fun!

We just might have tasted as many apples as we brought home. Yummy! Yummy!

Men!

On this dreary, windy, rainy day...I thought this might make you chuckle.

The phone rings this afternoon, during naptime, nonetheless. I answer to hear my husband's voice saying, "Three words. Fresh. Apple. Cookies."

To which I replied in my best rendition of my oh-I-love-you-honey-and-LIVE-to-meet-your-every-want-and-desire voice (does such a voice actually exist?!?). "Three words. I. Was. Sleeping."

Cookies are in the oven. :)

Yummy Applesauce...

Xander and Blake made some applesauce today. It was great fun seeing them 'working' in the kitchen together. Here are a couple of shots from the day. NOTE: Sorry for the grainy photographs; my photo filter is doing some strange things tonight. It's not your computer :)

Look, Mom! Dad let me stand on this chair and PLAY in the water

(errr...I mean, WASH the apples).

Yummy! Yummy! 12-quarts of apple goodness.