Tree & Boys

 

I have loved trees for a long time and when I found this very interesting one a few weeks ago just couldn't pass up capturing it in a photo. And since I have loved my boys for a long time...I all the more could not pass up capturing them in the tree for a photo. I love the roots around the tree and found myself thinking about how much I want the lives of my boys' to be rooted deeply.

 

 

 

 

Great tree, right? Great boys, right? Great pictures, right?

"Don't Cry Over..."

So the saying goes...."don't cry over spilled (or is it actually spilt) milk"...

For some odd reason today we had numerous spills - none of milk - but several of Mango juice during lunch today. Several. And I was kind of impressed with the calm response of the parents....ha,ha. I rather, channeled my frustration into promising my boys that today was the day they were learning to mop a floor. :)

But, back to the above quote. I understand it. But I guess I am asking if it is okay to have permission to cry over the expensive bottle of perfume that your husband bought you for your 10 year anniversary...that you yourself clumsily knocked off the counter and saw smash to the floor and spill in an unrecoverable puddle on the tile. Yes. True. And. Yes, I did mop the floor myself. The nicest smelling mop job I have ever done :(

Just So You Know....

Hey you. Just wanted to let you know that I have a good little mountain of great pictures and updates floating around in my head - spring break, easter, Mimi's visit, kids, Reece's birthday, etc.. The problem: I have had limited computer access due to the fact that my husband is working hard on a Master's class (come on, right - priorities - Masters class or blogging???) I hope to get caught up this week. Time will tell :) Take care.

Is This True Or What??

I am not sure how long this video has been circulating in cyber space (I tend to be a little late or behind the times with lots of this stuff)....but have you seen this? It is called "The Mom Song" - all a Mom says during a 24 hour period. I laughed and laughed and then felt a little bad for kids who get told a lot of stuff in a short period of time. Reminds me to a little more patient tomorrow with by crew - even though they are hyped up on Easter candy from Mimi - oops, I mean the Easter Bunny...have been out of any routine for a week (since we are half way through our 2 week Easter break)...and just simply put...they are little boys! Anywho - enjoy this if you haven't seen it...or watch it again if you would like another laugh. Here's the link:

A Tribute to Tanner

Our good old dog, Tanner, died unexpectedly last night. We are still in shock, I think, and feeling pretty sad. He died at home and we are thankful that it happened quickly and hope he wasn't in too much pain. We aren't really sure what happened - it came out of the blue that he looked like he had eaten too much or had digestion issues...I gave him water in the evening and he was wagging his tail...that is the last time I saw him alive.

Even though our dogs are approaching 10 years this summer and have been with us since our first year of marriage, we never would have thought that Tanner would go before Addy. He was always a tough dog and almost nothing rattled him - while Addy is the more fragile one and we can see the years in the white around her face. But, now Addy is alone and she will miss him greatly...

Through the years and from the beginning, Tanner was full of energy - a lot of it - and he loved to play, endlessly. Early in our marriage we felt it was time to get some pets and when this little yellow lab that looked nearly white began to tug on Benjy's keys, he stole our hearts and we took him home. Tanner was my first pet as an adult - living away from my parents home. Tanner and Addy have travelled Canada, the USA, and Mexico with us. We had two litters of puppies with them. We spent some quality times with them in the park near our apartment when we lived in Louisville - chasing squirrels. We spent the evening walking and watching them play the evening I went into labor with Reece and they forever fell lower on the priority list in our family. He has escaped and been lost on the streets, sometimes more than once, of every city we have lived in - always coming back safe and sound. He got into lots of trouble, getting into the house and digging in the trash and chewing things up. He had a guilty look on his face and hung his head in shame when he did something wrong. He slobbered immensely, especially when playing fetch - which he could have done continually if you would play with him. Tanner was a big dog. And a really good-looking dog. He was a good, loyal friend to us - even when we didn't give him the attention he likely needed and deserved. We still wonder what really happened to him and how it happened so fast. We will miss him a lot and are thankful for the good years we had with him.

We laid him to rest out in the country - outside of the city life he was always stuck with. With his ball beside him and with some sad hearts to have to say good-bye too soon.

Jesus & Batman

I believe that just like it can be a struggle for us as adults to relate to, understand, and walk alongside the truth that Jesus is real....it can be a really tough concept for kids to comprehend.

My little 4 year old Chase is absolutely fascinated with superheroes right now, and most specifically Batman. Sadly for him, he has a Mommy who doesn't think that a lot of those kind of movies are appropriate for little ones, so although he has not seen many superhero movies, he has a very vivid imagination and has figured out that Batman has power and can beat the bad guys. He has a little neighbor friend, Hector, who has a lot of superhero toys so I am sure he has learned lots of this stuff from him. It is fun to watch him play...and since the majority of his superheroe influences come from little Mexican boys...he pronounces all of their names in an accent that originates with a spanish speaker trying to prounounce an english superhero name. Rather humorous.

The other day Chase came marching into the house to announce to his family that he was changing his name. "My name isn't Chase anymore. I am Batman." He was completely serious. And he has followed through with this idea...I heard him yesterday playing with Reece and correcting him as to who he is. And Reece, being the smart boy he is is manipulating this piece of information to get Chase...I mean, Batman - to bring him the things he wants. Apparently, the boy is much more cooperative when he is called the right name - maybe I need to learn from this and start requesting obedience from....aaahheemmm....Batman. And just this morning I quietly explained to Chase that before he was even born, Daddy chose his name, it was special and Daddy had wanted him to be called Chase. He conceded to go with..."Chase Batman Lambert Brednich".

I realize that this phase of his childhood will pass so I am going to enjoy Chase as he thinks about capes and beating the bad guys and flying through the air. Yet in all the fun of it we felt we had to confront this situation....

A few nights ago, for some reason (which I am sure had something to do with Chase boasting about how Batman is the best in the world) Benjy casually asked Chase who he thought was stronger...Batman or Jesus. Without hesitation, Chase responded - Batman! Listening from the kitchen, I was somewhat saddened by his answer, taking it as a reflection on the job we are doing as parents. But Benjy, without being at all rattled, scooped Chase up into his knee and asked him if he wanted to hear a story. He carefully continued on, telling Chase in great detail about the time Jesus encountered the wild, crazy man who was full of evil spirits. Little Chasers eyes were as round as saucers as his Daddy shared about the amazing power Jesus had - simply with his words - to send the bad out of him and make him new and right again. Benj summarized the way Jesus didn't use his fists, or didn't need to fly through the air, or even need a side-kick to fix things. Jesus' power was in His words and it came from God.

As you can guess, before Chase was released from his Daddy's knee, a small question was re-phrased to him. "Now Chase, who do you think is better and stronger? Jesus or Batman?" Chase looked up and said, "I think God, Jesus and Batman" :)

I write this to remind myself of the incredible challenge we have to make Jesus real to our kids. It isn't easy. It is easy to let time pass and priorities to get jumbled and for the fun and attractive and popular things to grab the attention of our kids while the Bible and the reality of a Jesus that matters to them in their little stages of life is placed in the shadows. I am motivated again to not let myself become lazy and hope that some Bible stories on Sunday and throwing in a few bedtime prayers and an occasional squeezed-in devotional time before school - that these things will be sufficient to provide spiritual formation for their little souls. I don't exactly know what spiritual formation means or looks like - or if what we call it matters - but I do believe it is my highest calling as a parent - to represent Jesus in the flesh to them (whoa - that requires some repentance on a daily basis!)and to help them learn and trust His goodness. I need to pray for them about this much more than I do and to be much more intentional in this area.

Do I think Chase is headed down a dangerous path because he thinks Batman is pretty cool? No. In fact, I kinda think I might make him a Batman cape as a suprise. But I guess I do owe a thank-you to Batman for reminding me of some important stuff this week.

Flapping Your Gums?

So often, the funny stuff about parenting comes from the kids...but not always.

The other day we were all in the van and we hear the familiar sounds of squabbling siblings. The warning to please stop teasing one another was sent out...several times....increasingly less calm each time. We are noticing lately that our eldest son sometimes does not realize that he should just receive instruction and not respond. Perhaps innocent on his end of things, the continual talking or questioning can come off as disrespectful when the parent(s) is somewhat agitated :) So...Benjy firmly tells Reece to make sure he is listening and to repeat the statement back to him as evidence that he got the point. I am in the passenger seat, watching this all unfold, and in full agreement with my sweet husbands' parenting technique...until...Benjy begins, "Reece I want you to quit teasing your brother and to quit flapping your gums when you are told something" At firsthand, I thought nothing of it b/c it made sense to me....until Benjy requested the repeat from Reece. The slow, methodical repetition of Reece's words made it apparent that he did not at all understand what he was supposed to say.... but also knew he was in deep trouble if he didn't repeat it. So Reece carefully says he is not to tease anymore and....I...am...supposed to....stop....flapping.... my.... g - what does that mean anyway??

I was laughing so hard in the front seat....(to myself, of course! ha!)

What Do I Know?

Here we have spent who knows how much energy telling our kids to not touch the computer for fear that major destruction might occur....

This week the school invited us to an "open class" to watch the boys in action. It just so happened to be computer class. And. I stand corrected. We definitely are raising kids in a different generation than we grew up in....in their few years of life they already handle with ease and comfort the keyboard, the mouse and all the in betweens.

When they arrived home from school that day, they were both quick to give me the look that says, "see - we know how to use the computer, now can we touch yours???"

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Big Boy

So my baby is growing up. He turns 2 and suddenly thinks he needs to say good-bye to a whole bunch of things all at once....

We have said good-bye to his pacifier and true to the form of all three of our boys -it was a pretty easy transition. Bedtime has been absolutely no problem and just a little bit of trouble at nap time (but that is likely more attributed to the construction zone going on in our house and having to nap in his pac'n'play than not having a paci - ya nice timing eh! - the ripping out of the floors happened with a suprise call from the landlord a few days after the paci went away) Our plan has always been to be done with it when they turn 2 but I felt bad taking it away right around his birthday so I gave him a few more days. Then, without really planning it I tucked him in one night, we said prayers together and he waved bye bye and said ni-ni without it in his mouth...so I took the cue and walked out of the room while the lonely pacifier laid under the crib - tossed aside after that days' nap. I know it sounds silly but I will miss his sweet little expression and smile that always peeked around the sides of his paci. And especially the way he would randomly turn it around in his mouth as he concentrated on something else - that became a special game between Pierce and his Daddy - Piersen would twist it and then laugh as he looked at his Daddy to do the same...I never ever did capture that on video but it was the cutest thing. Sniff, sniff.... :)

 

And he has also has become a big boy - no longer interested at all in sitting in a high chair. He would much rather be right next to the clan - up close and personal at the table. I remember that when Chase hit this stage we used a big Mexico City phone book to prop him up and raise him a bit higher. I guess I have become more creative since that time because for Pierce, we pulled out the extra booster car seat that we aren't using right now. So there he sits, next to us at the table, with his little arms on arm rests and everything. It really is better - except that he is not constrained so that makes it a little trickey if you need to leave the room for a minute. He loves it and seems so grown up.

The other thing Piersen is wanting to say good-bye to is any form of sippy cup - he thinks he is too big for that and has graduated to a normal drinking cup - and he actually does pretty well. We have had few spills at the table - the problem is him trying to hold a cup and walk at the same time - forget that! It is good for him too because he has always been a boy who doesn't drink enough liquids. Now - I feel like he wants to drink all the time and we are continually putting those few sips in his cup at a time.

Cute Kid Conversations...

Yesterday as we were getting ready to start our day at the breakfast table...Piersen found a half eaten cookie that he had stashed somewhere from the day before. I let him eat it (no comments, ha!) Then, naturally, Chase requested one too. So I said he could have ONE before he ate something healthy but that was IT. As could be expected...within minutes, Chase is requesting another one...with his best manners, of course. Here is how it unfolded...

Me: No Chaser. Remember, I told you just one.

Chase: But, Moooommmmm, it tastes so good. Just one more. Please.

Me: Chase, I am not changing my mind. No means no.

A long period of silence from him...as I continue doing stuff around the kitchen.

Chase: Mom, do you like princesses?

Me(a little suprised by the change in theme): Ummmm, yes I guess I like princesses alright.

Chase: Well, then if you don't give me another cookie I am not gonna get you anything "princess-ey" for your birthday!


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After a crazy day of all kinds of things going on, we decide to order pizza for dinner. Benjy asks what kind everyone would like...Reece responds with "macaroni pizza, please". I am thinking he is being silly so as parents often do - we order the pizza we think everyone wants instead of waiting 20 minutes for agreement from the brothers. The next morning, Reece is drawing at the table before school. He begins to draw and cut out pieces of pizza for everyone in the family. He hands a teeny tiny litte paper pizza slice to Pierce and says: Piersen, here is your macaroni pizza. When I look down and see his drawing I finally realize that he is confusing "macaroni" with "pepperoni".


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Benjy, driving the boys to school in the morning, listening to his radio as the boys are on the back bench of the van in an important, intense conversation. Benjy realizes (kind of amazing as he likes his radio, ha,ha) and shares this commentary with me when he gets home...

Reece (adamently): no, no, no

Chase: yes they can

Reece: Dad, Dad...isn't it right that elephants can't fly?

Benjy: well, no Chase they actually can't.

Chase (a little disappointed): not even baby ones?

Reece: no Chase. you see anything that is really strong usually can't fly.

(Benjy then realizes that Chase is probably thinking about Dumbo - poor kid - Disney sets him up for a fall again!)

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Tonight the kids were eating some fruit for a snack before bed. They were all in a rather rambuncious (sp?) moods with a lot of noise and laughter filling the room - and definitely in the realm of little boy silliness. Reece, struggling with a cold, laughed as we was about to take another bite of melon, and...let's just say his nose didn't hold it all in like it should have. He ran out of the room to the find a tissue in the bathroom and Chase looks at me with an expression and tone that only he can give as he states: "that kid is gross"!

Can Anyone Relate??

Okay, so ever since I was a little girl I have had a fascination with "school-supply" kind of things - my conscience still won't let me forget about the year I lied to my Mom about "needing" a new eraser - just because I felt like everything in my new pencilcase needed to be new. Sorry Mom. But one of my favorite times of the year would be the end of summer and the days before a new school year - all of the school supplies purchased and labeled and I would lay them out on the floor and pack them into my backpack....then unpack them and repack them again in great anticipation of using them! Very fun. And I love, love, love the smell of crayons. And I love to color (I think it is therapeutic). To me it is nearly a CRIME to break a crayon or rip the paper off of it. So IMAGINE my life with three little boys who think that you are not alive if you have not, are not, or are not planning to destroy something, anything, just because. So instead of a neatly organized crayon box in my current home...I have a box filled to the top with little teeny pieces of all kinds of paper-torn, broken crayons. HELP! :)

So I took matters into my own hands yesterday...I bought "twistable crayons" - which I think is an amazing invention - and we had a short family training on "how to use these twistable crayons" with a visual demonstration! Included: a strong threat of if you are caught throwing or twisting too much crayon to cause breaking - you WILL be banished to only being permitted to use the "broken crayon box".

We have had one day of total success and I am smiling. :)

School Pictures for 2008/2009 Year

Chase - Kinder II

Reece - Kinder III

Little Piersen Turns the Big 2!

Our sweet baby celebrated 2 years of life on March 12th and as always, we snapped lots of pictures to remember the day. We partied with a puppy-dog theme as it seems to be one of Pierce's favorite animals. He does the cutest little barking imitation, and panting, and crawling on all fours, and picking things up with his mouth...ya you get the picture. It was an appropriate theme - let's just leave it at that! We had puppy-dog cake, and doggie bone biscuits (chocolate cookies), and a puppy pinata (although it rained all afternoon and we had use the back-up-dump-all-the-candy-on-the-floor plan) :) Piersen's favorite part was blowing out his little number 2 candle and he repeated the "game" numerous times throughout the day! The cake was a little large to set in front of him so we gave him a bowl of doggie bones instead. This boy loves anything sweet so he was very content to chew on a few of those while we cut cake. We were blessed to spend the afternoon with good friends (but sure missed being with family!) Enjoy a few pics below... (my apologies for not doing a neat little slideshow with the pics - we are having computer issues so I am happy they even got posted!)

Pierce, we wish you another happy year of life in our family. You are an amazing little boy and we cannot imagine life without you. You are such a happy guy and you brighten up our days with your funny ways of laughing, talking, and dancing...you truly bring smiles to so many faces. Your brothers adore you and it is one of my greatest joys to watch all three of you together. Thank you for being just exactly who you are. We are excited to watch you grow and change this year - and hope you know how much we love you through and through! Happy birthday sweet boy.

The party invitation!

The cake!

The doggie bone cookies!

Singing to the birthday boy!

Brothers chewing on doggie bones while they wait for cake!

Digging in!

The big moment of the day...

A big breath....

And it is done...

Thanks friends for all these cool presents...

Pierce with his puppy pinata...

Candy time!

My happy boy!

Retreat!

Last weekend we enjoyed a 2 day escape from the Big City for a church retreat in the mountains! It was a wonderful time together as a Christian family - there were around 28 of us who participated in worship, fellowship, play and of course...eating! We introduced the Mexicans to smores around the campfire and shared great conversation and heard many encouraging words exchanged between everyone. Our boys had a blast being out in nature - finding sticks, rolling down hills, and just being outside. The whole weekend was a lot of fun but my favorite time was when the whole group worked the process of trying to discover our personal passion(s) in life. We individually had to reflect upon and answer several questions and then we collectively shared them. It was a really neat way to get to know one another on a deeper level, and we will now take all of this information and begin to ask God to lead us in discovering ways to use the individual passions of each of us to become an active body of Christ in our community. As a house church, we desire to be instruments in God's hands and want to care about the things He cares about. Please continue to pray for us as we seek to be used to shine the light of Christ in this dark City.

Large Gap in Priorities...And Rightly So!

My sweet siser in law lead me to this poem and it makes me smile as I think about how much more enjoyable (and eternally lasting) it is to spend quality time with my little ones than be worried about things that need to be done around the house. Both are necessary but the gap between where they fall on the priority list is amazing. I hope this inspires you to set aside what you were going to do in the kitchen/laundry room/bathroom - let your house be shocking and instead go be with your baby(ies)....

Song for a Fifth Child. (by Ruth Hulbert Hamilton, 1958)

Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,
Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,
Hang out the washing, make up the bed,
Sew on a button and butter the bread.

Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?
She's up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I've grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue,
Lullabye, rockabye, lullabye loo.
Dishes are waiting and bills are past due
Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo.

The shopping's not done and there's nothing for stew
And out in the yard there's a hullabaloo
But I'm playing Kanga and this is my Roo
Look! Aren't his eyes the most wonderful hue?
Lullabye, rockaby lullabye loo.

The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow
But children grow up as I've learned to my sorrow.
So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!
I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep.

Making Fun Out of the Simple Things...

I believe my goal was to shoot this video to capture how well Pierce is getting around and pretty much running. Instead, the young child is distracted by a toy car on the sidewalk and like any good boy will do...makes a game out of the simplest things. Apparently he thinks it is pretty fun - watch how he laughs at himself - too funny!

Another Chaser - Funny

I have got to record these things when they happen so they are not forgotten....

Chase is in the bath for the second time of the day. He has been playing for a while so I pop in to check on him. He looks like he just got caught...not because he is doing anything wrong...but because he hasn't yet washed his hair (a constant battle with him).

Me: Chaser, don't worry, you don't hafta wash your hair tonight.

Chase (suprised): What?!?!

Me: Ya, you don't need to wash your hair.

Chase (thrilled): Is it Christmas time???

Figuring Out Trikes and Bikes...

 

Ahhhh. A life with boys. Always full of movement - their little selves - or the things they like to ride upon! Often...the faster the better. The crazier the better....

 

Pierce's little legs can reach the pedals. Sort of. Just not quite comfortably enough to began the motion of his trike. But. If I am pushing him on it, he is all in. The faster we go the harder he laughs. A very frequented phrase in his limited vocabulary is "GO". It used to be that we would say, "ready....set...." and he would finish it off with a strong "GO". Now he has advanced to a "grunt...grunt...GO" all on his own! Very cute (if I do say so myself).

 

 

These pictures captured yesterday demonstrate the pure glee of "little boy independence with moving objects!" Notice what is NOT attached to the back tire of this little bike. Yep. You guessed it! He really is growing up. He has grabbed on tight to this new found freedom and doesn't seem at all shaken by the frequency or the severity of the crashes. He has already advanced in skill and confidence in just one day! His Daddy was thrilled to be a part of this milestone (remember, he was out of town when Reece took the plunge) - and was sending Chase off with speeds I thought were a little advanced for him this early in the game...but what do I know?!!? His big brother was quick to give him "pointers" on how it all works (even though there was slight protest to the truth that Chase is a little younger than Reece was when he went training wheel-less). Chase was quick to proclaim to his Daddy to "never, never, never put those back on my bike again. Never!" And little brother...well, he can be seen in the video below, showing off that he is practically running these days! Always a handful of milestones - especially those involving action - in our little family!

 

That one was just to show that parenting is all about modeling your expectations - ha,ha! Enjoy this live footage!

How Far Is Too Far?

I think sometimes we have gone too far in this post-modern age. Everything goes. Everyone can think what they want to think. We pump our kids full of self confidence and "you can do anything" to the point where they don't even realize that sometimes you lose...sometimes you fail....not everything is always "ok". We tell our kids they can be anything they want to be - the sky is the limit (ha - no pun intended with what you are about to read!!) But maybe sometimes it is just too tough to confront it. Here is a perfect illustration. Tucking Chase in to bed a few nights ago....

Chase: "Mommy what are you gonna be when you grow up?

Me: "Well, I am kind of grown up and I am a Mommy. I really love being a Mommy. What do you want to be when you grow up Chaser?"

Chase: "I want to be a spaceship!" (with great wonder in his eyes!)

Me: "Really. A spaceship. That's awesome!?!?!" (I just didn't have the heart to crash his dreams!"