Because we take such good care of our people:
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
Life After Death
Our Grandma Phyllis passed away peacefully last week. She lived with us for almost 3 years and even though we have been preparing our kids for the inevitability of this, we have been concerned that this major change in our household and lives would really upset them.
So far, these are their reactions:
Grady: "Dear Jesus, please help me to be a good boy today and please help Jesus to help Grandma have a nice time in Heaven. Amen."
Emma: "Mom. Can we eat outside for dinner tonight because we usually can't because Grandma is here and it's too cold for her to eat outside but since she died and is in Heaven she won't be too cold and we can eat outside. Please?"
and "Mom. I'm really, really, really glad that Grandma is in Heaven because she loved God and now she doesn't have to be really old and sick anymore."
So yeah, I guess their mourning has been a bit less traumatic than we thought it would be. Oh to have such peace like a child!
{one of the ways that we prepared our kids (mostly emma) was by reading a little book called "What happens When We Die?" published by Moody Press. it's a very matter-of-fact yet comforting book about a child's reaction and questions when a bird dies. I would recommend having a copy around the house if you have kids}
So far, these are their reactions:
Grady: "Dear Jesus, please help me to be a good boy today and please help Jesus to help Grandma have a nice time in Heaven. Amen."
Emma: "Mom. Can we eat outside for dinner tonight because we usually can't because Grandma is here and it's too cold for her to eat outside but since she died and is in Heaven she won't be too cold and we can eat outside. Please?"
and "Mom. I'm really, really, really glad that Grandma is in Heaven because she loved God and now she doesn't have to be really old and sick anymore."
So yeah, I guess their mourning has been a bit less traumatic than we thought it would be. Oh to have such peace like a child!
{one of the ways that we prepared our kids (mostly emma) was by reading a little book called "What happens When We Die?" published by Moody Press. it's a very matter-of-fact yet comforting book about a child's reaction and questions when a bird dies. I would recommend having a copy around the house if you have kids}
Thursday, May 19, 2011
Friday, May 6, 2011
Why we plant a garden
We plant a garden because our 3.6 year old boy will eat anything that grows. Seriously, if it is in a garden, ripe or not, he will pick it and eat it. Lettuce, kale, chard, radishes, tomatoes, strawberries, cucumbers, hot peppers, onions... you get the idea.
He was hungry before bed tonight so I said he could eat more lettuce that we picked today, so after he brushed his teeth he stuffed a handful of lettuce in his mouth and climbed into bed. Weird? Yes.
The other day Emma and I went to the farmer's market and I bought a bunch of radishes as a surprise treat for Grady. He was SO excited and promptly went to work eating through the bunch.
Often times when I'm chopping onions for dinner, he'll reach up onto the counter and help himself to a handful of raw onions as a snack.
Tonight (and most nights) he'll announce that he doesn't like the dinner that I made. So I've learned that if I explain the ingredients that are in it, he'll usually end up eating it and enjoying it. But when that fails, I'm not above using a little good old fashioned bribery:
Grady- "Noooooo, I don't like this. It is not my favorite dinner. It will NOT make me strong!"
Me- "Well, if you don't eat it, you won't get any artichoke.
Grady- "I don't want any noodles. They're mushy"
Me- "You have to eat them if you want any artichoke"
Grady- "I want the heart part. With barbecue sauce*."
Me- "Sure. You can have as much artichoke as you want if you eat your dinner first."
Grady- silently stuffing his face with dinner....
*And yes, I know that barbecue sauce isn't a normal accompaniment to artichokes, but that and Italian salad dressings are the only condiments that his dad will eat so they're the only condiments that Grady will trust.
He was hungry before bed tonight so I said he could eat more lettuce that we picked today, so after he brushed his teeth he stuffed a handful of lettuce in his mouth and climbed into bed. Weird? Yes.
The other day Emma and I went to the farmer's market and I bought a bunch of radishes as a surprise treat for Grady. He was SO excited and promptly went to work eating through the bunch.
Often times when I'm chopping onions for dinner, he'll reach up onto the counter and help himself to a handful of raw onions as a snack.
Tonight (and most nights) he'll announce that he doesn't like the dinner that I made. So I've learned that if I explain the ingredients that are in it, he'll usually end up eating it and enjoying it. But when that fails, I'm not above using a little good old fashioned bribery:
Grady- "Noooooo, I don't like this. It is not my favorite dinner. It will NOT make me strong!"
Me- "Well, if you don't eat it, you won't get any artichoke.
Grady- "I don't want any noodles. They're mushy"
Me- "You have to eat them if you want any artichoke"
Grady- "I want the heart part. With barbecue sauce*."
Me- "Sure. You can have as much artichoke as you want if you eat your dinner first."
Grady- silently stuffing his face with dinner....
*And yes, I know that barbecue sauce isn't a normal accompaniment to artichokes, but that and Italian salad dressings are the only condiments that his dad will eat so they're the only condiments that Grady will trust.
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Cinco de Mayo
Lest you think we've fallen off the face of the planet, I'm here to assure you that quite the opposite has happened. We've been swallowed whole by life and all my energies are being spent elsewhere. But, here we are on this very important National holiday and I thought I'd celebrate by sharing 5 fun facts with you:
1. 6 years ago I was pregnant with a baby girl. I was really hoping that she would be born on 5 de Mayo so her birthday could be 5-5-05. She didn't oblige but I love her anyway. And in 11 days, she'll be 6!!!!
2. Yesterday one of my best friends in the whole world woke up in excruciating pain and had to go to the hospital for an emergency surgery. Thankfully, I just happened to be home at 7am when they called and asked if I could watch their two girls indefinitely. So, I have 5 kids right now. (Their mom is better now and coming home from the hospital today).
3. Last night when I was attempting to feed 5 kids dinner, the firetrucks and paramedics showed up to our house again. I wonder what they thought about the pregnant lady who followed her 5 kids out to take a picture with them!!!
4. We have been raising 5 baby caterpillars for the last several weeks. About a week ago, they formed into chrysalises and today, the first one emerged as a butterfly. Pretty awesome!
5. We have approximately 5 weeks left in our first year of homeschooling. And we survived. And Emma still loves me. And we're gonna try it again next year. Phew!
!Feliz Cinco de Mayo!
1. 6 years ago I was pregnant with a baby girl. I was really hoping that she would be born on 5 de Mayo so her birthday could be 5-5-05. She didn't oblige but I love her anyway. And in 11 days, she'll be 6!!!!
2. Yesterday one of my best friends in the whole world woke up in excruciating pain and had to go to the hospital for an emergency surgery. Thankfully, I just happened to be home at 7am when they called and asked if I could watch their two girls indefinitely. So, I have 5 kids right now. (Their mom is better now and coming home from the hospital today).
3. Last night when I was attempting to feed 5 kids dinner, the firetrucks and paramedics showed up to our house again. I wonder what they thought about the pregnant lady who followed her 5 kids out to take a picture with them!!!
4. We have been raising 5 baby caterpillars for the last several weeks. About a week ago, they formed into chrysalises and today, the first one emerged as a butterfly. Pretty awesome!
5. We have approximately 5 weeks left in our first year of homeschooling. And we survived. And Emma still loves me. And we're gonna try it again next year. Phew!
!Feliz Cinco de Mayo!
Thursday, April 21, 2011
How to make my day
Tell me that I'm 6 days farther along in my pregnancy than I thought I was. As in, I'm one week closer to being done with 24hr nausea. And one week closer to not ever being pregnant again. Oh, and of course, one week closer to meeting my fourth (and final) child.
Oh, you didn't know I was pregnant? Well, the cat's out of the bag now. Gonsalves baby number 4(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) is coming sometime early in November.
[Lucky for you, you don't need to worry about calling me crazy, because that's already been established in several of my earlier posts.]
And let me tell you- my kids are EXCITED about having another sibling, although Emma is a bit concerned that all of the names have already been taken so our baby won't have a name. Grady tried to quenched that concern when he decided that we'd call it "Baby Lying in a Manger" (since I told him that we wouldn't be calling it Baby Jesus.) And Landon, well, he doesn't really care- though I'm sure he will once he's bumped out of the baby spot!
Oh, you didn't know I was pregnant? Well, the cat's out of the bag now. Gonsalves baby number 4(!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) is coming sometime early in November.
[Lucky for you, you don't need to worry about calling me crazy, because that's already been established in several of my earlier posts.]
And let me tell you- my kids are EXCITED about having another sibling, although Emma is a bit concerned that all of the names have already been taken so our baby won't have a name. Grady tried to quenched that concern when he decided that we'd call it "Baby Lying in a Manger" (since I told him that we wouldn't be calling it Baby Jesus.) And Landon, well, he doesn't really care- though I'm sure he will once he's bumped out of the baby spot!
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Pay Back
Earlier this week Grandma fell and the firefighters and paramedics had to come to her rescue. My kids are normally freaked out by this- especially my worry-er Emma, but this time, they really just wanted to take pictures with the fire truck and ambulance. Rather than having them hovering around the action, I obliged and took some pictures of them and the neighbor kid.
So today, instead of being stuck inside our messy house on this dreary, rainy day, I bribed my kids to clean up with the incentive that we'd bake cookies and take them to the fire station.
It was a brilliant plan. The kids put away their laundry, cleaned their rooms, made their beds, and cleaned up and vacuumed the toy room. We'll go visit the fire station every day if I get these results!
Once we got to the station and delivered our cookies and thank you notes, we got a tour of the station and the kids got to pose for a picture inside the firetruck for a change. Then, right when they were explaining to us what happens when they get an emergency call and showing us our house on the map, a real call came in and we got to watch them get ready for it and rush out the door! I thought it was pretty exciting, but Emma was kind of upset because she was asking them questions about the call that they got and they didn't have time to answer her. And Grady was disappointed because he didn't have a chance to see an axe before thy left. Oh well, maybe next time...
ps, I just looked at the pictures of the fire trucks and realized that they're different trucks. I'm pretty sure we took cookies to the wrong fire station! Woops! Hmm, I wonder how I can figure that out!
It was a brilliant plan. The kids put away their laundry, cleaned their rooms, made their beds, and cleaned up and vacuumed the toy room. We'll go visit the fire station every day if I get these results!
Once we got to the station and delivered our cookies and thank you notes, we got a tour of the station and the kids got to pose for a picture inside the firetruck for a change. Then, right when they were explaining to us what happens when they get an emergency call and showing us our house on the map, a real call came in and we got to watch them get ready for it and rush out the door! I thought it was pretty exciting, but Emma was kind of upset because she was asking them questions about the call that they got and they didn't have time to answer her. And Grady was disappointed because he didn't have a chance to see an axe before thy left. Oh well, maybe next time...
ps, I just looked at the pictures of the fire trucks and realized that they're different trucks. I'm pretty sure we took cookies to the wrong fire station! Woops! Hmm, I wonder how I can figure that out!
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