"i want it buttoned all the way because it's not fair to see my nakedness." -oct. 4
(naming a new stuffed animal)
"her first name is meleusa and her middle name is gabzooga and her last name is star. and her very last name is chanca." -oct. 5
(we were making shepherd's pie that eve...)
"are we gonna put shepherds in the pie?" -oct. 6
me: "oh i know what we could have brought to class for C--a cross!"
sp, cheerfully: "we could bring a cross, to die on!" -oct. 8
sp: "i don't want the blanket to get poop on it."
me: "me neither. but it won't. we'll be careful."
sp singing: "oh be careful little blanket what you--get on yourself!" -oct. 9
"i love daddy, but i don't want him to wash my hair." -oct. 10
(talking about thanksgiving.)
sp: "and myself can come."
me: yourself? absolutely, yourself is one of the most important people that should be there, for me."
sp: "and for me." -oct. 15
"some people have to move somewhere where they can have christmas." -oct. 20
sp: "can i have the berries, mom?"
me: "no, they're for my wreath."
sp: "no, i mean for the owl to eat. the fake owl doesn't have any food. ...i guess he'll go out for bugs." -oct. 21
sp: "what did daddy say?"
me: "he said he was gonna do the dishes."
sp: "he's the best man for me ever." -oct. 21
sparrow had a booger on her finger. she held it up to the night light and said excitedly,
"warm it by the light! warm it by the light!" -oct. 21
sp: "i love to go to uncle's birthday, it's fun, and we're gonna have animal cake. we're gonna catch a zebra and put it in the cake."
me: "and what's gonna happen when we cut the cake?"
sp: "there's gonna be zebra pieces in the cake, like marshmallows." -oct. 23
"there's a loooooot of fairies in germany." -oct. 25
"am i ever gonna roll away to heaven?" -oct. 25
"mommy! i don't want to be all by myself with golden and God and the angels." -oct. 26
me: "i have an idea! we could make a lemonade stand and you could sell lemonade!"
sp: "i have an idea! i could sell sucking pigs and you could sell lemonade!" -oct. 27
(we had been reading "farmer boy" by laura ingalls wilder in the evenings)
golden: "bye bye, dad." -oct. 27 (first phrase!)
and "hi, mama." -oct. 28
(sparrow putting on her tiara)
"i'm gonna be the queen of helping."
and later,
"i'm gonna be the queen of not helping." -oct. 29
me: "what should we have for lunch?"
sp: "i'm gonna have apples and hot sauce." -oct. 29
"the mommy got some new children. and she switched her old ones to someone else." -oct. 29 (pretend playing with her teddy and other stuffed animals.)
"mom, are you gonna do the next thing?" -late oct.
sp: "are we gonna be sad?"
me: "no."
sp: "then why is it sadder-day?" -oct. 31
"this 'E' is the duck's uncle! his name is katie. ...he's a girl uncle." -oct. 31
Monday, November 9, 2009
Sunday, November 1, 2009
baby snazz contest!
check it out, you can enter to win 20 pairs of baby leg warmers at babysnazz.com! i love the "baby legs" brand in particular for little ones and melontree is great for toddlers and older children. FUN! perfect for christmas presents, anyone?
Sunday, October 25, 2009
another challenge from the pulpit
the content of today's sermon had to be absorbed, fully absorbed, by squirming little me sitting in the pew without my Bible or notebook (forgot them in the car!); i could not get buried in copious note taking! there was talk of Jesus as flesh, fully man, and then it came around to the fact that the church, we, should look like Jesus. and a very interesting thing was pointed out, which was that Jesus was not out to change the political climate. he chose a politically oppressed time to come into the world, but he operated amazingly well from the margins and did not strive to conquer in political avenues, as the people had expected the messiah to. three common mistakes of the church were pointed out to us in this nice little package:
1. cocoon
2. combat
3. conform
right? sometimes we cocoon ourselves, try to hide from the world, just have a nice clean churchy atmosphere, hedge in our children. sometimes we combat in a way that is not like Jesus. we fight political and intellectual battles. we think we can win people over with logic. we think we can change the climate of our country by convincing enough people of the "right" politics. sometimes we conform to the world, not looking any different than the rest of society at large. all these are wrong.
so here's the one that hit home the most for me: COMBAT. NOW it makes sense why my pastor has been (eerily, i thought) silent on the subject of our so obviously non-christian president. i, on the other hand, have not been silent. i like to get agro about it, because it upsets me, frankly, that he seems to be on a fast track to bulldozing the best ideals that any country could hold, as outlined in our constitution. i realized awhile ago that it does no good to merely change laws, if people's hearts are still inclined toward wickedness. that is like forcing a child to act good but not addressing the heart, attitude, and needs. however, it grieves me immensely that many Christians voted for this man who openly supports abortion, thinks it a priority to speak on the virtue of leaving abortion-survived babies out to die alone, and is taking our country in a direction opposite of the freedom-championing land we have been for so long. i still think it is a priority to oppose this kind of politics, for the sake of our children. a comment the pastor spoke today was that once the church started operating out of the framework of "christendom" in constantine's time, that led us into the dark ages, and that the church has always operated most powerfully from the margins, as did Jesus. well... i wouldn't go so far as to say that the dark ages were caused because the church held influence over politics. on the contrary, it was because the church ended up submitting itself to politics. francis schaeffer points out that every time a new society is formed on inspiration from the Bible, it is a society that is freer and fairer, and has a higher standard of living than the old one. so it is not bad at all to have a Christian-based society, as it ends up being better for all people in it, whether they believe or not. and THAT is exactly why it is so hard to see it go under the current administration. so, i don't think it is bad to try to stem the political tide, it is just not our primary goal. heart-change, grassroots change from the inside out, is. without alienating people or shouting or frowning. when people encountered Jesus, they didn't feel they had to walk on eggshells. they fell at his feet! (i have a feeling, however, that some people will take this sermon to mean that christians should not vote or become politicians because Jesus was not a politician. which is NOT a proper way of thinking! Jesus was also not a husband or father, yet we don't say it is bad to be a father or husband. the point is not so much the avenue we take in life, as the attitude: humility.)
coming home from church, i realized that this sermon is for once enormously relevant for me as a woman, a stay-at home mom, because ALL of these points can be and should be primarily lived out in the context of home and family. (side note: i have lately found that church preachin' doesn't often hit home in the life of the stay-at-home mother. no, it can be super resonant and good, but the fact is that male pastors don't truly KNOW the soul and marrow of a woman's life. Which is why the Bible instructs older women to teach younger women. i have been so much edified recently by a cd series by nancy campbell, called GRACE. wow, those talks get me going and amped about my life and calling as i listen to them while chopping vegetables, stirring soup.) so this sermon, though the pastor did not necessarily mean for it to translate like this (hee hee!) was directly for mothers. the three common mistakes the church makes are first failures in the families that make up the church, and here i will take more time to explain.
cocooning--we all know the Christian parents who overly shield their children from the world... it is a sad sight, and stunts their development into responsible, critically-thinking Christians, as well as insulting their intelligence. however, let me make it clear that home schooling is not necessarily borne of overprotection. as the pastor was talking about cocooning, i specifically examined myself and what i have learned about culture, christianity, homeschooling, and education in general. parents need to choose their child's school environment based on what is BEST for the child. i personally believe that in the early years, anyway, children are designed to be CLOSE to their mother, until their worldview is established and the Biblical framework can be engraved into the little heart. also, so that they may have constant supervision in learning good behaviors without too much interference from outside sources at a tender age. i believe this tender age can vary from child to child. sparrow definitely still needs a few more years at home next to me! i may be ready to send her to a good school in several years, depending on what is available. however, judging from the crowd-control that public schools tend to spend so much wasteful time in, i would rather choose a private school of some sort. and since... we probably will never be able to afford that, at THIS point, i believe that homeschooling is truly going to be the environment that offers the most opportunity for my daughters' growing, thirsty minds.
i believe in a "liberal" education, however: that they should be introduced to different ideas and people, so that they might learn to think, and to think critically. i am NOT going to saturate these little ones with exclusively Christian workbooks and curricula, but will seek the BEST materials in every subject and allow their minds to handle all sorts of ideas. for all truth is God's truth, and excellence glorifies God. Not to mention that they will likely get bored with excessive Christian lecturing. the world and life God meant us to experience is EXCITING! and they should experience the richness of all of His creation, not feel as though they are being hedged in by paranoid, predigested drivel. When they come into contact with God's word directly, they will respond to it. i have been reading susan schaeffer macauley's "for the children's sake," and completely agree that we should not set up too many interpreters between God's word and the child himself. not only is it condescending, but it can be distracting, or even mundane. God's Word LIVES, and it will speak for itself.
i think that many Christian parents of today make the opposite mistake: sending their children TO school outside the home as a reaction to "churchianity," or even believing that they need to send their little ones out there to witness, to "see what the real world is like," or to "get socialized." it is equally wrong to send your child to a school just because you think they should be out in the world for some reason or other, as it is to keep them at home as a reaction to the evil in the world. one MUST choose the BEST education for the individual child. speaking of socialization, the idea that little ones won't be emotionally healthy unless they are frequently in large groups of other children--is bunk. this does not come from the Bible, nor from proper research. children, as they grow older, may come into contact with all kinds of people at their parents' dinner table or at extracurricular activities. but to think that a toddler needs to be socialized! i have been reading laura ingalls wilder with sparrow. did that family feel the need to go live in a city so they could socialize their children? No! but look at how amazing those girls turned out, along with many, many other home-taught families over the years, who had no access to daycare or preschool, but instead had firm, loving, God-fearing parents. healthy social interactions and habits are grown out of a good home life first of all, with a strong family dynamic in a secure environment where healthy communication habits are emphasized, and preference for others is taught by living it out on a daily basis.
speaking of healthy family life, this brings me to my next point: the "combative" problem as arising out of improper home life. not only the obvious point that if one's family models arguing and negotiating, the child will learn to be argumentative and try to negotiate his way through life. this, i believe, also happens when the child is given too much free reign in the home, where mother tries to cater to every desire as far as she is able instead of using the home as a training ground for learning self-control and submission. (i was one of these mothers! perhaps still am too much, if i think about it.) it IS right for the child to learn the benefits of submission by submitting to parents "because this is right" (eph. 6:1). they can experience God's blessing this way, and when they interact in the real world, not feel like they always need to conquer by arguing or striving. personally, in my home growing up, i know we were allowed to get away with much too much back talking and arguing our position. and i KNOW that being combative is still one of my biggest challenges. in fact, when i got home from church, i facebooked two friends in particular with which i have displayed this attitude in politics recently, and apologized. i had to get humble, knowing the Bible is right: you cannot win hearts by striving, even with pristine logic.
as for the conformity problem, the family and home is also the best place to stay that tide. a child wholly accepted, known, and loved for who he is at home obviously feels less need to go find his identity in the world somewhere. however, even many lovely Christian homes and families these days are modeling conformity to the world, not only in their time spent at the TV or sending mother out to work. but i'd like to ask this question: what about our fertility? why has the Christian world followed the secular world when it comes to family planning? if true social change is to be from the bottom up, grassroots, heart-change, can you imagine the kind of impact we could have had by now if we had all allowed the Lord to give us the families He wanted us to have? We would be sending out many more warriors equipped to minister to a hurting world! perhaps the reason why only 15% of non believers think that the Christians they know are significantly different from anyone else is because we have followed society in what they have decided about how a family should be planned, limited, controlled. this matter affects everything in your life! when you say "yes" to God, not knowing how many children he might give you, or when, it forces you to live in a much more dependent way, with urgent faith for God to provide for those He gave. (and He WILL provide, that is a scriptural promise. first he blesses the offspring of the womb, THEN the fruit of the field and livestock...) You give up control. Life becomes a daily mission of self-sacrifice, and self-sacrifice is THE characteristic the Lord wants to build in us, is it not? (God give me grace in this!)
So go my thoughts in recent sermons...
1. cocoon
2. combat
3. conform
right? sometimes we cocoon ourselves, try to hide from the world, just have a nice clean churchy atmosphere, hedge in our children. sometimes we combat in a way that is not like Jesus. we fight political and intellectual battles. we think we can win people over with logic. we think we can change the climate of our country by convincing enough people of the "right" politics. sometimes we conform to the world, not looking any different than the rest of society at large. all these are wrong.
so here's the one that hit home the most for me: COMBAT. NOW it makes sense why my pastor has been (eerily, i thought) silent on the subject of our so obviously non-christian president. i, on the other hand, have not been silent. i like to get agro about it, because it upsets me, frankly, that he seems to be on a fast track to bulldozing the best ideals that any country could hold, as outlined in our constitution. i realized awhile ago that it does no good to merely change laws, if people's hearts are still inclined toward wickedness. that is like forcing a child to act good but not addressing the heart, attitude, and needs. however, it grieves me immensely that many Christians voted for this man who openly supports abortion, thinks it a priority to speak on the virtue of leaving abortion-survived babies out to die alone, and is taking our country in a direction opposite of the freedom-championing land we have been for so long. i still think it is a priority to oppose this kind of politics, for the sake of our children. a comment the pastor spoke today was that once the church started operating out of the framework of "christendom" in constantine's time, that led us into the dark ages, and that the church has always operated most powerfully from the margins, as did Jesus. well... i wouldn't go so far as to say that the dark ages were caused because the church held influence over politics. on the contrary, it was because the church ended up submitting itself to politics. francis schaeffer points out that every time a new society is formed on inspiration from the Bible, it is a society that is freer and fairer, and has a higher standard of living than the old one. so it is not bad at all to have a Christian-based society, as it ends up being better for all people in it, whether they believe or not. and THAT is exactly why it is so hard to see it go under the current administration. so, i don't think it is bad to try to stem the political tide, it is just not our primary goal. heart-change, grassroots change from the inside out, is. without alienating people or shouting or frowning. when people encountered Jesus, they didn't feel they had to walk on eggshells. they fell at his feet! (i have a feeling, however, that some people will take this sermon to mean that christians should not vote or become politicians because Jesus was not a politician. which is NOT a proper way of thinking! Jesus was also not a husband or father, yet we don't say it is bad to be a father or husband. the point is not so much the avenue we take in life, as the attitude: humility.)
coming home from church, i realized that this sermon is for once enormously relevant for me as a woman, a stay-at home mom, because ALL of these points can be and should be primarily lived out in the context of home and family. (side note: i have lately found that church preachin' doesn't often hit home in the life of the stay-at-home mother. no, it can be super resonant and good, but the fact is that male pastors don't truly KNOW the soul and marrow of a woman's life. Which is why the Bible instructs older women to teach younger women. i have been so much edified recently by a cd series by nancy campbell, called GRACE. wow, those talks get me going and amped about my life and calling as i listen to them while chopping vegetables, stirring soup.) so this sermon, though the pastor did not necessarily mean for it to translate like this (hee hee!) was directly for mothers. the three common mistakes the church makes are first failures in the families that make up the church, and here i will take more time to explain.
cocooning--we all know the Christian parents who overly shield their children from the world... it is a sad sight, and stunts their development into responsible, critically-thinking Christians, as well as insulting their intelligence. however, let me make it clear that home schooling is not necessarily borne of overprotection. as the pastor was talking about cocooning, i specifically examined myself and what i have learned about culture, christianity, homeschooling, and education in general. parents need to choose their child's school environment based on what is BEST for the child. i personally believe that in the early years, anyway, children are designed to be CLOSE to their mother, until their worldview is established and the Biblical framework can be engraved into the little heart. also, so that they may have constant supervision in learning good behaviors without too much interference from outside sources at a tender age. i believe this tender age can vary from child to child. sparrow definitely still needs a few more years at home next to me! i may be ready to send her to a good school in several years, depending on what is available. however, judging from the crowd-control that public schools tend to spend so much wasteful time in, i would rather choose a private school of some sort. and since... we probably will never be able to afford that, at THIS point, i believe that homeschooling is truly going to be the environment that offers the most opportunity for my daughters' growing, thirsty minds.
i believe in a "liberal" education, however: that they should be introduced to different ideas and people, so that they might learn to think, and to think critically. i am NOT going to saturate these little ones with exclusively Christian workbooks and curricula, but will seek the BEST materials in every subject and allow their minds to handle all sorts of ideas. for all truth is God's truth, and excellence glorifies God. Not to mention that they will likely get bored with excessive Christian lecturing. the world and life God meant us to experience is EXCITING! and they should experience the richness of all of His creation, not feel as though they are being hedged in by paranoid, predigested drivel. When they come into contact with God's word directly, they will respond to it. i have been reading susan schaeffer macauley's "for the children's sake," and completely agree that we should not set up too many interpreters between God's word and the child himself. not only is it condescending, but it can be distracting, or even mundane. God's Word LIVES, and it will speak for itself.
i think that many Christian parents of today make the opposite mistake: sending their children TO school outside the home as a reaction to "churchianity," or even believing that they need to send their little ones out there to witness, to "see what the real world is like," or to "get socialized." it is equally wrong to send your child to a school just because you think they should be out in the world for some reason or other, as it is to keep them at home as a reaction to the evil in the world. one MUST choose the BEST education for the individual child. speaking of socialization, the idea that little ones won't be emotionally healthy unless they are frequently in large groups of other children--is bunk. this does not come from the Bible, nor from proper research. children, as they grow older, may come into contact with all kinds of people at their parents' dinner table or at extracurricular activities. but to think that a toddler needs to be socialized! i have been reading laura ingalls wilder with sparrow. did that family feel the need to go live in a city so they could socialize their children? No! but look at how amazing those girls turned out, along with many, many other home-taught families over the years, who had no access to daycare or preschool, but instead had firm, loving, God-fearing parents. healthy social interactions and habits are grown out of a good home life first of all, with a strong family dynamic in a secure environment where healthy communication habits are emphasized, and preference for others is taught by living it out on a daily basis.
speaking of healthy family life, this brings me to my next point: the "combative" problem as arising out of improper home life. not only the obvious point that if one's family models arguing and negotiating, the child will learn to be argumentative and try to negotiate his way through life. this, i believe, also happens when the child is given too much free reign in the home, where mother tries to cater to every desire as far as she is able instead of using the home as a training ground for learning self-control and submission. (i was one of these mothers! perhaps still am too much, if i think about it.) it IS right for the child to learn the benefits of submission by submitting to parents "because this is right" (eph. 6:1). they can experience God's blessing this way, and when they interact in the real world, not feel like they always need to conquer by arguing or striving. personally, in my home growing up, i know we were allowed to get away with much too much back talking and arguing our position. and i KNOW that being combative is still one of my biggest challenges. in fact, when i got home from church, i facebooked two friends in particular with which i have displayed this attitude in politics recently, and apologized. i had to get humble, knowing the Bible is right: you cannot win hearts by striving, even with pristine logic.
as for the conformity problem, the family and home is also the best place to stay that tide. a child wholly accepted, known, and loved for who he is at home obviously feels less need to go find his identity in the world somewhere. however, even many lovely Christian homes and families these days are modeling conformity to the world, not only in their time spent at the TV or sending mother out to work. but i'd like to ask this question: what about our fertility? why has the Christian world followed the secular world when it comes to family planning? if true social change is to be from the bottom up, grassroots, heart-change, can you imagine the kind of impact we could have had by now if we had all allowed the Lord to give us the families He wanted us to have? We would be sending out many more warriors equipped to minister to a hurting world! perhaps the reason why only 15% of non believers think that the Christians they know are significantly different from anyone else is because we have followed society in what they have decided about how a family should be planned, limited, controlled. this matter affects everything in your life! when you say "yes" to God, not knowing how many children he might give you, or when, it forces you to live in a much more dependent way, with urgent faith for God to provide for those He gave. (and He WILL provide, that is a scriptural promise. first he blesses the offspring of the womb, THEN the fruit of the field and livestock...) You give up control. Life becomes a daily mission of self-sacrifice, and self-sacrifice is THE characteristic the Lord wants to build in us, is it not? (God give me grace in this!)
So go my thoughts in recent sermons...
Saturday, October 24, 2009
two favorite eliots... feeling poetic tonight
one of my favorite verses from TS Eliot, from "the rock:"
What life have you if you have not life together?
There is no life that is not in community,
And no community not lived in praise of GOD.
Even the anchorite who meditates alone,
For whom the days and nights repeat the praise of GOD,
Prays for the Church, the Body of Christ Incarnate.
And now you live dispersed on ribbon roads,
And no man knows or cares who is his neighbour
Unless his neighbour makes too much disturbance,
But all dash to and fro in motor cars,
Familiar with the roads and settled nowhere.
Nor does the family even move about together,
But every son would have his motor cycle,
And daughters ride away on casual pillions.
and here, more choruses from "the rock:"
IV
There are those who would build the Temple,
And those who prefer that the Temple should not be built.
In the days of Nehemiah the Prophet
There was no exception to the general rule.
In Shushan the palace, in the month of Nisan,
He served the wine to the king Artaxerxes,
and he grieved for the broken city, Jerusalem;
And the King gave hom leave to depart
That he might rebuild the city.
So he went, with a few, to Jerusalem,
And there, by the dragon's well, by the dung gate,
By the fountain gate, by the king's pool,
Jerusalem lay waste, consumed with fire;
No place for a beast to pass.
There were enemies without to destroy him,
And spies and self-seekers within,
When he and his men laid their hands to rebuilding the wall.
So they built as men must build
With the sword in one hand and the trowel in the other.
V
O Lord, deliver me from the man of excellent intention and
impure heart: for the heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately wicked.
Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite and Geshem
the Arabian: were doubtless men of public spirit and
zeal.
Preserve me from the enemy who has something to gain: and
from the friend who has something to lose.
Remembering the words of Nehemiah the Prophet: 'The trowel
in hand and the gun rather loose in the holster.'
...
it goes on, but that last one is one of my favorite lines in poetry of all time! so poignant and well-said. i love the biblical/historical reference. beautiful Eliot to deepen one's evening...
What life have you if you have not life together?
There is no life that is not in community,
And no community not lived in praise of GOD.
Even the anchorite who meditates alone,
For whom the days and nights repeat the praise of GOD,
Prays for the Church, the Body of Christ Incarnate.
And now you live dispersed on ribbon roads,
And no man knows or cares who is his neighbour
Unless his neighbour makes too much disturbance,
But all dash to and fro in motor cars,
Familiar with the roads and settled nowhere.
Nor does the family even move about together,
But every son would have his motor cycle,
And daughters ride away on casual pillions.
and here, more choruses from "the rock:"
IV
There are those who would build the Temple,
And those who prefer that the Temple should not be built.
In the days of Nehemiah the Prophet
There was no exception to the general rule.
In Shushan the palace, in the month of Nisan,
He served the wine to the king Artaxerxes,
and he grieved for the broken city, Jerusalem;
And the King gave hom leave to depart
That he might rebuild the city.
So he went, with a few, to Jerusalem,
And there, by the dragon's well, by the dung gate,
By the fountain gate, by the king's pool,
Jerusalem lay waste, consumed with fire;
No place for a beast to pass.
There were enemies without to destroy him,
And spies and self-seekers within,
When he and his men laid their hands to rebuilding the wall.
So they built as men must build
With the sword in one hand and the trowel in the other.
V
O Lord, deliver me from the man of excellent intention and
impure heart: for the heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately wicked.
Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite and Geshem
the Arabian: were doubtless men of public spirit and
zeal.
Preserve me from the enemy who has something to gain: and
from the friend who has something to lose.
Remembering the words of Nehemiah the Prophet: 'The trowel
in hand and the gun rather loose in the holster.'
...
it goes on, but that last one is one of my favorite lines in poetry of all time! so poignant and well-said. i love the biblical/historical reference. beautiful Eliot to deepen one's evening...
Thursday, October 22, 2009
all's golden
golden is hilarious and is making so much progress in life! she is fascinating to watch in her bilingual development.
her most recent favorite activity is... reading books. i was a little concerned for awhile that she would not get the literary immersion sparrow has gotten, as i didn't spend much time reading with golden so far, but still spend lots of time reading with sparrow. my other concern was the fact that i don't have that many german books, so i try to translate them as i go along, but my grammar is not the best, so i was fearing that she would get corrupted language skills. which is still a legitimate fear, but the former has been debunked. golden makes SURE we read to her now! all this started about 3 or 4 days ago, when she began this little process: she brings you a book, then she wiggles herself onto your lap, nay, she pushes into your lap with her rear and commandeers it, and she doesn't just hold the book herself. she clocks you in the face with it, as she holds it up for you to take, so you MUST engage with her; she's not going to look at the book by herself. she does this at the most inconvenient times! when you are making the bed, when you are trying to have a conversation. but how can you say no to such an insatiable, sincere little mind? so golden's reading times take place throughout the day. her favorite book is goodnight, moon, and maisy mouse books are not far behind. even the childcare worker at mops yesterday commented on golden's reading love and described her lap-wiggling to me.
speaking of childcare workers, they all seem to love her. whether she is at mops or sunday school, i always get comments that she was good, she plays happily, she entertains herself, she's a joy to be with, etc. last month i was helping clean after mops when one of the nursery workers from last year came up to me and said, "you're golden's mom, right?" "yes." "oh, how's she doing?" she gushed. "i always loved sitting with her so much; she was such a delight, such a joy..." "she's good, thank you! she just learned to walk. she is in the boat room right now, if you want to go say hi!" "oh, could i? thank you!!" and the lady walked in eagerly. how sweet!
golden's longest word to date is "ballon" (balloon, of course, pronounced "ball-ong" in german, like the french.) she looooooves balloons, like most babies, but being able to say the word is so cool, that she just says it all the time now, whenever she sees something looking remotely globe-like. she can say just "ball" too, but of course ballon is better. she pronounces it more like "blong," and it elicits such enthusiasm in her that it makes all of us laugh.
one of her favorite english words is "hide," which she pronounces like "hi," except she says it in a loud whisper, and you know in context that she is saying "hide," since she says it when she covers herself with a blanket and waits eagerly for her daddy to come find her!
speaking of which, she used to say heiss (hot in german) the same way, but in the past few days, she's been adding the ss on the end there! we got in the car today, and it was quite scorching; she whimpered a little and said "heiss." wow! so cool that she can communicate with WORDS that I taught her!
"hi" and "bye" are perfectly clear, and she says "hi" to everyone--i LOVE that innocent stage, and it grieves me when strangers don't notice or don't respond to that tender expectant, enthusiastic greeting. to be greeted by a baby is such a blessing. fresh, innocent, full of heartfelt love and goodwill toward the world.
she is getting her M-O sounds down now, and says "mao" for meow when we encounter a cat in life or in books, and she also says "mo" for moo and mond (moon). oh, yesterday she was sooooo excited to see the real moon up in the sky that she squeezed me, really squeeeeeeeezed me as i held her on the way to the car, excliming "mo! mo!" and wildly doing her moon sign.
oh, yes, the funniest thing: recently my milk hasn't been coming as fast when golden nurses. mostly due to her not nursing that often! anyways, since she has to be so patient for it, i started lifting up my palms and shrugging my shoulders, saying "wo ist die milch?" ("where is the milk?") when she lets go in frustration. so now she has made it a tradition: every time she nurses, she lets go and shrugs with her palms up, looking puzzled into my eyes! sooooooooo cute, it's a miracle i haven't eaten her all up.
she is so sweet with her sister, too, and rarely picks fights or gets contentious with sparrow. she has a little sign for "sister," where she rubs her (own) cheek. when sparrow is nearby, golden will rub her (sparrow's) hair or her face. the other day they were supposed to be settling down in their own beds for nap time. i heard giggling in the monitor, and when i came in, i found sparrow in golden's crib, under a blanket, and golden sitting on top of her and jumping up and down! too sweet to elicit punishment.
her most recent favorite activity is... reading books. i was a little concerned for awhile that she would not get the literary immersion sparrow has gotten, as i didn't spend much time reading with golden so far, but still spend lots of time reading with sparrow. my other concern was the fact that i don't have that many german books, so i try to translate them as i go along, but my grammar is not the best, so i was fearing that she would get corrupted language skills. which is still a legitimate fear, but the former has been debunked. golden makes SURE we read to her now! all this started about 3 or 4 days ago, when she began this little process: she brings you a book, then she wiggles herself onto your lap, nay, she pushes into your lap with her rear and commandeers it, and she doesn't just hold the book herself. she clocks you in the face with it, as she holds it up for you to take, so you MUST engage with her; she's not going to look at the book by herself. she does this at the most inconvenient times! when you are making the bed, when you are trying to have a conversation. but how can you say no to such an insatiable, sincere little mind? so golden's reading times take place throughout the day. her favorite book is goodnight, moon, and maisy mouse books are not far behind. even the childcare worker at mops yesterday commented on golden's reading love and described her lap-wiggling to me.
speaking of childcare workers, they all seem to love her. whether she is at mops or sunday school, i always get comments that she was good, she plays happily, she entertains herself, she's a joy to be with, etc. last month i was helping clean after mops when one of the nursery workers from last year came up to me and said, "you're golden's mom, right?" "yes." "oh, how's she doing?" she gushed. "i always loved sitting with her so much; she was such a delight, such a joy..." "she's good, thank you! she just learned to walk. she is in the boat room right now, if you want to go say hi!" "oh, could i? thank you!!" and the lady walked in eagerly. how sweet!
golden's longest word to date is "ballon" (balloon, of course, pronounced "ball-ong" in german, like the french.) she looooooves balloons, like most babies, but being able to say the word is so cool, that she just says it all the time now, whenever she sees something looking remotely globe-like. she can say just "ball" too, but of course ballon is better. she pronounces it more like "blong," and it elicits such enthusiasm in her that it makes all of us laugh.
one of her favorite english words is "hide," which she pronounces like "hi," except she says it in a loud whisper, and you know in context that she is saying "hide," since she says it when she covers herself with a blanket and waits eagerly for her daddy to come find her!
speaking of which, she used to say heiss (hot in german) the same way, but in the past few days, she's been adding the ss on the end there! we got in the car today, and it was quite scorching; she whimpered a little and said "heiss." wow! so cool that she can communicate with WORDS that I taught her!
"hi" and "bye" are perfectly clear, and she says "hi" to everyone--i LOVE that innocent stage, and it grieves me when strangers don't notice or don't respond to that tender expectant, enthusiastic greeting. to be greeted by a baby is such a blessing. fresh, innocent, full of heartfelt love and goodwill toward the world.
she is getting her M-O sounds down now, and says "mao" for meow when we encounter a cat in life or in books, and she also says "mo" for moo and mond (moon). oh, yesterday she was sooooo excited to see the real moon up in the sky that she squeezed me, really squeeeeeeeezed me as i held her on the way to the car, excliming "mo! mo!" and wildly doing her moon sign.
oh, yes, the funniest thing: recently my milk hasn't been coming as fast when golden nurses. mostly due to her not nursing that often! anyways, since she has to be so patient for it, i started lifting up my palms and shrugging my shoulders, saying "wo ist die milch?" ("where is the milk?") when she lets go in frustration. so now she has made it a tradition: every time she nurses, she lets go and shrugs with her palms up, looking puzzled into my eyes! sooooooooo cute, it's a miracle i haven't eaten her all up.
she is so sweet with her sister, too, and rarely picks fights or gets contentious with sparrow. she has a little sign for "sister," where she rubs her (own) cheek. when sparrow is nearby, golden will rub her (sparrow's) hair or her face. the other day they were supposed to be settling down in their own beds for nap time. i heard giggling in the monitor, and when i came in, i found sparrow in golden's crib, under a blanket, and golden sitting on top of her and jumping up and down! too sweet to elicit punishment.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
september speaks
"my horsie says 'criminal.' it bit my finger, it's very naughty, and it is big and wild." -sept. 5
"i'm so happy cause i love my horsie. and it's OLD." (we found an old rocking horse and took it home) -sept. 5
(thomas drinking bubble water)
sparrow: "that will burn your eyes out."
me: "what?"
sp: "that. the bubbly bubbly." -sept. 5
and here's a cute one from golden:
i was showing golden a pillow and saying the german word for it, "kissen."
she leans over and gives me a kiss! -sept. 5
"did you hear that mom? my fart was really loud! it scares people." -sept. 7
(rolling a toy dump truck around the floor.)
"mom, move your glass! the truck is not watching where it's going!" -sept. 9
radio: "march of dimes, march for babies."
sp: (excitedly) "we gotta march for OUR baby!" -sept. 10
"not occation, vacasion." -sept. 10
(that mix-up is even hard for me to pronounce!)
(we call boogers "boogies" at our house)
sp: "what about a boogie on a board?" -sept. 14
one day in the car sparrow sang a song consisting of the phrase "what's going on out there" repeated over and over and over... then she explained it all to me:
"i'm singing a song right now. it's about a little bird that's lost in a forest, and there are wild things, and they want to eat the bird."
then she proceeded to sing "what's going on out there" for another full ten minutes! -sept. 16
(reciting psalm 84:11)
"no good thing does He withhold from those who...are up there!" -sept. 19
(it really says "from those who walk uprightly)
me: "we have lots to do on thursday."
sp: "are we gonna thurs?" -sept. 21
me: "what sound does the letter B make?"
sp: "zzzzzzzz zzzzzzz zzzzzzz." -sept. 21
family napping together in the bed.
sparrow: "we're all mixed!" -sept. 27
sparrow cutting paper, a cd is playing in the background
sp: "hey the lady in the CD doesn't know that i'm cutting." -sept. 28
and also "hey that girl in the CD sounds like a boy." (hah! it WAS a boy for all we know!)
me: "you've gotta get on your own bed because mommy needs to sleep next to her husband. when you have a husband you'll get to sleep next to him too."
sp: "i want a thomas one." -sept. 29
"i want to marry you and daddy and golden AND my husband. then we'll both have husbands." -sept. 29
"i'm so happy cause i love my horsie. and it's OLD." (we found an old rocking horse and took it home) -sept. 5
(thomas drinking bubble water)
sparrow: "that will burn your eyes out."
me: "what?"
sp: "that. the bubbly bubbly." -sept. 5
and here's a cute one from golden:
i was showing golden a pillow and saying the german word for it, "kissen."
she leans over and gives me a kiss! -sept. 5
"did you hear that mom? my fart was really loud! it scares people." -sept. 7
(rolling a toy dump truck around the floor.)
"mom, move your glass! the truck is not watching where it's going!" -sept. 9
radio: "march of dimes, march for babies."
sp: (excitedly) "we gotta march for OUR baby!" -sept. 10
"not occation, vacasion." -sept. 10
(that mix-up is even hard for me to pronounce!)
(we call boogers "boogies" at our house)
sp: "what about a boogie on a board?" -sept. 14
one day in the car sparrow sang a song consisting of the phrase "what's going on out there" repeated over and over and over... then she explained it all to me:
"i'm singing a song right now. it's about a little bird that's lost in a forest, and there are wild things, and they want to eat the bird."
then she proceeded to sing "what's going on out there" for another full ten minutes! -sept. 16
(reciting psalm 84:11)
"no good thing does He withhold from those who...are up there!" -sept. 19
(it really says "from those who walk uprightly)
me: "we have lots to do on thursday."
sp: "are we gonna thurs?" -sept. 21
me: "what sound does the letter B make?"
sp: "zzzzzzzz zzzzzzz zzzzzzz." -sept. 21
family napping together in the bed.
sparrow: "we're all mixed!" -sept. 27
sparrow cutting paper, a cd is playing in the background
sp: "hey the lady in the CD doesn't know that i'm cutting." -sept. 28
and also "hey that girl in the CD sounds like a boy." (hah! it WAS a boy for all we know!)
me: "you've gotta get on your own bed because mommy needs to sleep next to her husband. when you have a husband you'll get to sleep next to him too."
sp: "i want a thomas one." -sept. 29
"i want to marry you and daddy and golden AND my husband. then we'll both have husbands." -sept. 29
five verses
recently i dug through a box of memories and found in my mother’s old purse a few verse-memorization booklets. i remember my mother using these, flipping through them on errands or in the car, and reciting “do not let this book of the law depart from your mouth!” i got them out and set them aside, and when i opened the first one to get started on my own memorization, a cannonball struck me, for these vulnerable words were the heading of the uppermost verse, the last one she had flipped to for comfort and encouragement: “Assurance of Salvation.” with 1 John 5:13 staring out at me. there were three of these booklets, one with one clear pocket, and two with two clear pockets each. and here is where i will remember the five last verses of my mother’s heart, a strong, amazing woman, but dying of breast cancer:
“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that you may know that you have eternal life.” 1 John 5:13
“God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them.” Hebrews 6:10
“‘though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken nor my covenant of peace be removed,’ says the Lord, who has compassion on you.” Isaiah 54:10
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” Philippians 4:6
“Turn to me and have mercy on me, as you always do to those who love your name.” Psalm 119:132
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