A good friend of ours happens to be the Creative Director at our church and he asked if he could borrow a couple of my boys for a little Mother’s Day tribute he was cooking up to show in church on Mother’s Day. Lets just say that our boys had a little too much fun with this and it is all I can do to keep my middle child from waltzing out of the house wearing a “wife beater” and a fedora. Oh my…
I do believe this is a hopeless cause. At least right now it is. Yes he just turned two on Christmas Eve but I have had boys potty trained before their 2nd birthday (especially those who were cloth diapered like this one) so why not at least begin introducing it, right? Of course, those early trainers of mine were not exposed to drugs in utero so they didn’t have the same challenges as this one. My JJ has sensory issues. Big time. He is terrified of everything. I’ve sat him on one of those fun little cushioned Diego potty inserts (that’s all my boys ever used….we never did the separate tiny little potty on the floor beside the real potty deal) and he freaked out so badly, dug his fingernails into my back, and I thought I may have done permanent damage to his heart and lungs from the intense palpitations and screaming.
So my sweet friend who happens to also be parenting drug babies suggested I buy one of these dreaded potty things that you have to clean out after each use. Gross. I have bought one before. It was my car potty but I always lined it with a plastic Wal*Mart bag or something with a folded up paper towl in the bottom (to absorb Le pee pee) so I could easily toss the contents and never had to clean it out. It is ugly and boring and was only used when my 20 month old River decided he needed to use the potty full time and so I bought an ugly $8 potty from Target to keep in my SUV so when he yelled “Pee Pee” every 10 minutes or when his potty watched beeped alarming him it was time to have a pee even if we were on the go we could easily “go” without me having to drag three little boys into a nasty public restroom somewhere. Yes, this was the best idea I ever had and maybe it wasn’t even my idea but I am claiming it as one of the highlights of my toddler parenting era.
So that ugly, boring potty is down in the garage somewhere and I was eyeballing a real fancy potty at Target the other day, one that I was sure that if I owned then my 2 year old would definitely pee and poo in without any trouble just because it was so fancy but that fanciness came with a $30 price tag. The only problem was that I couldn’t find anywhere on that thing the hidden plumbing that surely came along with a piece of plastic that cost $30 that a baby poops in that is nothing more than a luxurious plastic bowl you’d otherwise eat popcorn out of. I passed.
A few days later I was in Wal*Mart again and a little unsupervised child had taken every single one of these froggy potties and had lined them up on the floor b*utt to n*ut (can I say that on my blog?) like a giant caterpillar made out of frogs and was jumping over them while his mother was two isles down looking at diapers or something. I thought those froggy potties were cute, too, but still didn’t want to even pay $15 for a piece of plastic that my baby would poo in.
I promise I am getting to my point here…
So the boys and I were out running a few errands yesterday and one was to Good*will (because Habitat for Humanity is closed on Wednesdays) and I had the entire back of my large SUV packed full of junk to give away. So we stopped by Good*will to drop off all my junk and I decided to pull around the front and pop in the store for just a second (which I NEVER do) and whaddya know….right there in the children’s section was a froggy potty which looked brand new like it never saw a drop of pee. I am sure it did but you know that nine times out of ten people buy those things and then never use them. That’s what I have always thought anyway which is why I never used them with my boys and only bought the little insert to prevent their tiny little buns from being flushed until their tiny buns got a little bigger. So I paid $3 and walked out of that store with a like-new froggy potty which will very likely never see a drop of pee but it is so incredibly cute to see my naked JJ sitting on it with those froggy eyes glaring out between his knees (that is once you get past the creepiness of those froggy eyes glaring out between his knees which I had to do). So what do you do with a potty that you bought second hand that may or may not have ever seen a drop of pee or poo? Why you run it through the high temp wash, tough scrub, sanitize, heated dry cycle in your dishwasher, that’s what!
Oh yea. I bet you had no idea this holiday even existed. Well, it doesn’t. I just created it. This morning my JJ brought me a toy that he broke. He always brings broken toys to me. I guess that’s a good thing. Nonetheless, I returned the favor with a large sigh. More broken toys. Usually I just throw them in a pile. That hasn’t been working well for me. I’ve been a mother for 10 years and have maybe taken the time on three separate occasions to fix broken things. My poor kids will place broken things on my desk where they will pile up and they will ask me repeatedly when am I ever going to glue their things. Well, today I did. At least a lot of it. I recently gave what I think to be good advice to my favorite sister-in-law, Aston, who is a new mom….”Fix it AS it gets broken! Don’t do what I have always done and pile it up somewhere until you have so much that you actually have to label a box full of items ‘Broken – Needs-a-Fixin’ because it only grows and grows and grows.”
So I recently bought super glue (that’s always been my excuse…not having glue) and this morning when my JJ brought me his broken wooden pot and it’s handle without thinking to much about it (thus talking myself out of it) I grabbed the super glue and got to work. We all know that whenever you try to seal up a tube of super glue it never seals well enough to keep it from drying out so I kept gluing. And gluing. Next thing I knew I was in the basement looking for my little box labeled ‘Broken – Needs-a-Fixin’ and took it upstairs and it was like Christmas all over again.
I have another favorite coffee cup with a freshly secured handle!
We can play that game with the little animals now that our whale has his tail and our camel has his ear!!
I can hang that sweet ornament on my Christmas tree again next year!
I can actually stop open my bedroom door with my turtle door stop!
My River’s lego guy, Twitch, can hear and smell again with his antennae!
JJ can cook me up some stone soup in his pot!
And there’s more but I used up my brand new tube of glue so I am back to being out of glue. Good excuse to pile up some more. 
It’s here, folks. The long anticipated Christmas shopping post. As we approach this holiday season we see ad after ad for Christmas gifts pour in to our homes via television, newspapers and internet. {Doing away with our television was one of the very best decisions we ever made} This felt like a good time to suggest to you a better way. If you are reading this post then you have a) a computer with internet connection and b) you can READ. So you are already richly blessed. What more do you need?
Before the holidays last year I read a blog post somewhere about a family whose tradition is that they give only four gifts to their children:
Something they WANT.
Something they NEED.
Something to WEAR.
Something to READ.
I thought it was brilliant. Since Jason and I became parents, we have had a very real problem with accepting a truckload of gifts for our kids from everyone under the sun and even ourselves. Our children have so much and it has never been a goal of ours to teach them that life is all about taking and getting and always longing for the next big thing. It is no secret that I struggle with anxiety and over the last several years I have become increasingly anxious about the holiday spending, not because Jason and I are spending too much, but because I find myself needing to make a trip to Earthfare for groceries and end up stuck in traffic at Turkey Creek for hours because of all the mad shoppers out spending hundreds and thousands of dollars on complete crap that no one needs when there are so many better things we could be using our money for. It smothers me and I cannot breathe. It makes me so sad that this is how most of the world is.
So we introduced the idea to our kids and I won’t lie, they were just a little surprised when they learned they were only getting four gifts. They had obviously been spoiled in past years but it is important we all understand that it is ok to disappoint our kids when it comes to issues like this that we know will ultimately create a better adult and it is never too late to start a tradition like this. The closer we got to Christmas, the more excited they became trying to guess what they were getting. I have always let them pick out their own wrapping paper that I wrap only their gifts in so we’ve never had the need for tags but then I tagged their gifts last year with the WANT/NEED/WEAR/READ tags. It was an amazing time and lesson for us all and we are doing it again this year and every year going forward. The other day the boys made out their lists with some suggestions (because Jason and I will make the ultimate decision on what they get). You know your kids are well provided for on the inside and outside when they cannot think of one single thing that they NEED. On Wheat’s list beside his NEED he put “Nothing!!”. On Lake’s list beside NEED he put “money to donate”. They all put down that they wanted a new pair of gloves for their WEAR (River specifically wants a pair with rubbery grip stuff in the palm so he can grip things…lol).
Christmas is about our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. He was born into this world and would later give His life for me and for you. Why would we want to taint such a day with selfishness and greed? We can give to others. We can use our hands to serve others. It is our duty as Christians to do this in His name.
“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45
Would you consider doing something different this year? You WILL be blessed!
If you follow me on Facebook, then you likely saw my post from several weeks ago that read:
My sweet Lake…he is so vain. I have wondered for a long time how much of it was truly how he felt and how much was just his perfectly timed comedy he likes to share with me and Jason. I do know for more than a year now (since he began taking gymnastics from our friend Matt) that he really likes being strong, bragging about his strength and showing off his muscles. It is quite hilarious. So lately I have had a few talks with him about vanity. I just thought maybe since the cockiness has intensified a little that it was time he was told that isn’t really the way God intended us to act. I know when I bring him down a notch, he listens. In fact, he has strong convictions about things and if he learns that he is doing something wrong, most of the time he corrects it quickly. Love this boy’s heart.
So that was probably a couple weeks ago or more that I began calling him out here and there about his attitude and he has indeed changed it already. My mom got the boys a new step-by-step ‘how to’ drawing book yesterday and they all spent at least two hours at the table drawing. The drawing below was one he did and I nearly fell over laughing when he brought it to me.
{Click on the drawing to enlarge}
I was a mess yesterday. That isn’t good for me or my family. When I am down, everyone suffers. It was just a bad day. I wish I handled disappointing news better but I haven’t found a way to just yet. So late in the afternoon I began picking myself up and decided to go to The Well. The Well is my church’s Wednesday night service. I have been attending Two Rivers Church for more than 8 years and have never been to The Well (although in fairness it was only started a few years ago, I think). I love it. It is largely 2 or more hours of worship through song, dance & prayer. Childcare isn’t available so my kids go with me. They love it, too, and I love seeing them get a different taste of all the many ways we can worship our God. River & Lake especially love waving the banners.
So last night I went in prepared to just try and relax and to clear my head of all my frustrations and worry I had been moping in all day. After the worship team glorified God through some amazing song we entered into a time of prayer and listening. I found myself sitting on the floor reading my Bible. I ended up in the book of Matthew, chapter 6. It was for me. Especially for the day I’d had.
I journaled a lot that I wanted to read over the coming weeks to remind me once again that every detail of my life is in His hands and that He is in control. I forget this every day.
I KNOW that the same God who created life in me can be trusted with the details of my life.
I KNOW that worrying about the future hampers my efforts for today.
I KNOW that worrying is more harmful than helpful.
I KNOW that God does not ignore those who depend on Him.
I KNOW that my worry shows a lack of faith in and understanding of God.
I KNOW that there are real challenges that God wants me to pursue and that worrying keeps me from them.
I KNOW that living one day at a time keeps me from being consumed with worry.
Lord, help me to trust You,
the same God who created my life,
with all the details of my life.
I know You will not ignore me
if I depend on You.
Give me a stronger faith
and understanding of who You are.
Help me to focus on today
and worry less about tomorrow,
living one day at a time.
Amen.
We went on a very short hike with friends this past Saturday during the warmest part of the chilly afternoon (which was only about 47 degrees). Our friends, two families, have seven boys between them so with our four boys we had eleven. Love it. This hike might have been a mile long and on the way out we (when I say ‘we’, I mean the 11 boys) picked up NO LESS THAN a dozen bags of trash. It was devastating. The bluff we hiked to is a little known treasure (and one of the few) in Lenoir City and it was ransacked by the careless. Our friend snapped a pretty cute little family photo of us being silly.
If you like adventures, check out our friend’s web site HERE or click the link on my sidebar called Adventures Beyond. We love this family!
{Click the image to enlarge}
A few weeks ago we camped at Melton Hill. I am just now figuring out a decent way to post pictures without my JJ’s face being exposed so pardon me if you get overwhelmed by photos of the Baileys in the coming weeks. I am behind. Terribly.
If you are from around here, you know that Melton Hill is close to our house. We’re lucky. Although we largely enjoy finding new and remote areas to camp when you do put forth the effort (huge effort) to go, we opted to stay close to home this time for many reasons. Our little J was one very big reason we decided to. He did not do well the first night and I almost tossed him into the truck several times to take him home to sleep. It was awful. But we made it through the night and was very sleep deprived the next day but managed. The kids had more fun than they could handle….especially because all their cousins were there. Even our little precious Carsadilla (my niece, Carson) was in town from Chattanooga for her very first camping experience. She did great, of course. We highly recommend this spot in the campground, too. It was perfect for our family of 21!
I am probably breaking many privacy rules here but I can’t resist nor can I figure out how to place a simple little black bar across the eyes of our little one like they do when people are in witness protection. Is it really that big a deal? If I really thought it was then I would also have to be willing to admit that I think more than three people read my blog and I don’t think that is the case. My boys are just too cute in their Star Wars themed costumes not to share with the world (or my three friends that I am too lazy to email photos to). I especially like that in OUR house, Anakin has dreadlocks underneath his jedi hood. From left to right: Obi Wan Kenobi (Wheat), Anakin Skywalker (Lake), Jango Fett (River) and Yoda (our little J…”Pooped in my diaper, I did.”)
If you’ve ever wondered how many footsteps a 19 month old active little boy can take in less than two minutes….I think I have the answer. It’s easy to know when you’re on your hands and knees on hard, bamboo floors with Chlorox wipes scrubbing up every one of those footprints. More on this in a moment…
Let me begin this post by talking for a second about how uncanny it is that nearly every single time I try to stop and eat a meal it gets interrupted. Each day, on average, I probably sit down to eat a meal a full hour after everyone else. That’s because I begin preparing a meal and kids begin eating and then I feed the little ones because most of the things we eat they cannot feed themselves and they have a habit of cramming too much into their mouths the things that they could eat independently thus getting choked so I still end up feeding them the finger foods. So by the time they all finish and I clean up the table it is at least an hour later. Ironically, this is also when little babies like to poop….shortly after a meal.
So today I sat down with my sandwich and iced tea at my computer hoping to upload some photos. I hadn’t taken two bites of my sandwich before hearing “MOM…POOP!!!” So I assumed one of the boys just picked up on the odor but not today….River pointed out to me that there was actual poop on the floor. So I stood up and looked, quickly spotted the little drop of poo, and then began noticing all the little drops, smudges and smears of poop in circles all over the living room & dining room floor. Apparently, a little bit of poo plopped out of little J’s diaper, he stepped in it, and proceeded to carry on as usual running around doing this or that.
So bring about the panic. I hate poop. To me, it represents everything bad in the world. And not only that but it smells like crap, too. I plucked the culprit up and took him into the empty bathtub and sat him in it and handed him a bath toy. I came back out and grabbed the other baby, inspected him, and placed him in a secure place where he couldn’t get into any poo since he passed his inspection. I instructed the three others in the living room not to dare get off the couch lest they end up in a bleach bath and then grounded. I yell down the hall to the remainder of the kids (I have lost count by now) playing Legos in their room that they are hereby quarantined until further notice. I go back to the bathroom, lay the boy down in the still empty tub and give him a “pre-bath” using wipes and then run a bubble bath. While he plays, I go back and check on the living room and make sure no one has left their assigned spot. All is well so I returned to the bathroom, scrubbed the child, got him out, diapered him, dressed him, tossed him into the bed for a nap and returned to the living room. I spent no less than 30 minutes on my hands and knees with a full container of Chlorox wipes scrubbing up now dried poop footprints off the floor, one by one, until it shined.
Incidentally, I am and have always been a largely conservative person when it comes to laundry. If we aren’t leaving the house, my little ones will be running around in nothing but diapers most of the day. In the last couple of months I have learned that if there is any “spillage” out of the diaper, it is less likely to end up on the furniture, or your lap, or any other surface when they have clothes on. Yes, it will end up on the clothes, but that is as far as it will go by the time you smell it. Needless to say, I’ve been clothing them a lot more as of late but apparently fell short today. He was only wearing a t-shirt and a diaper when all this went down. Shame on me.
So back to the footprints. How many do you think a little one can make in under two minutes? About 50. And that’s only with one foot. Today I am thankful for the blessing of hard wood flooring and Chlorox wipes, clumpy poop instead of diarrhea, chocolate, tired little ones who have now been asleep for an hour and 45 minutes and a mom who is never so grossed out that she can’t ultimately return to her sandwich and eat it without thinking about what her hands have been doing. And more chocolate.
