Chuckles

For the past day, I’ve been writing down some of the things M&M have said that have made me chuckle. Here goes…

Maggie:

“Let me drive the four-wheeler. Miller’s pretty much a bad driver.”

Said during snack time: “Mama, why do you keep eating more cookies?”

Said while playing with Miller, head bowed and all: “Dear Jesus, please help stop this bad day I’m having. Please help Miller stop snatching from me. Amen.”

Miller:

“Mr. Jeff needs to fix the TV.” (He corrected himself. He started off saying “Daddy” and changed it to “Mr. Jeff.”)

“That was the goodest pizza I ever had.”

Said while pushing Maggie around on the ottoman (a favorite activity around here):  “You are getting heavy, Maggie.”

Also…Jeff was awakened in the middle of the night by Miller sitting happy as a clam in the middle of the couch flipping through a book and talking about it. (I was awakened by the subsequent crying when Jeff put Miller back to bed. What a mean Daddy to make him go back to bed instead of reading all night!) Poor kid is so tired now he’s struggling with nap time. Here’s to a good night’s sleep! :-)

Luke 6:31

"Do to others as you would have them do to you."

A simple, clear command. So important for all of us at every age and in every walk of life. And sometimes such a struggle. And very, very applicable to life with my two-year-old and four-year-old right now.

I LOVE having them just two years apart. It is so rewarding to hear them playing and being sweet to each other. Just this morning they were walking down the sidewalk holding hands.

But the BICKERING…argh! Lately, nearly every time one of them has a toy or a book, the other wants it. Sometimes they will ask nicely for it and the other one will refuse to share it. Then a fight ensues. Sometimes they will choose to snatch instead of asking nicely. Then a fight ensues. Sometimes they will share with conditions (“You can play with it for ONE minute”—i.e. one second.) Then the conditions expire and a fight ensues. You get it.

SO, today we memorized Luke 6:31. Do I expect Miller to “get it” right away? Nope. But I surely do want our kids to start understanding this at a young age.

I don’t want to make it sound like life is “so hard” around here or like I don’t enjoy it. I love these children more than I think they could ever understand (maybe one day when they have little ones of their own, or maybe not even then!), and I love staying home with them. I wouldn’t trade this time with them for anything. The bickering is just a struggle. I’m trying to view it as a chance for GROWTH and LEARNING. (Right?)

On a funny note, Maggie told me this morning that Miller was “not obeying the Bible” because he took two books from her. Oh, dear! J

College Town

For six years, we've been talking about visiting Tuscaloosa on a weekday so we could eat at our favorite restaurant from 2001 to 2005--City Cafe (only the best "country cookin'" place EVER). Well, Friday was Jeff's last day of summer before school starts Monday, and we finally decided to make the trip.

We were excited about showing Maggie and Miller where Mommy and Daddy went to college, and I just KNEW they would like City Cafe as much as we do. I was totally right. In the middle of lunch, Maggie said, "We need to move here to your college town." Ha!

After lunch we took the kids to the "big field" (the quad) to play and look around. They got to run around playing hide-and-go-seek and tag, look around inside the library, and hear Denny Chimes chime. Sounds simple, but they had a great time, and so did we.

Here are some pictures from our "college town" trip.

 Can't even believe how big my "baby girl" is

 Miller's "happy face"

 Miller's "surprise face"

Prissy little lady!

Thought for the day

Over the past few years, we've had some friends and family go through some really tough times. When I pray for them, the words "comfort" and "peace" always flow, but honestly, sometimes I have to pray that God give them the things only HE knows they need.

I always have a song stuck in my head, and I'm always humming or singing (much to my family's dismay, I'm sure. I know they get tired of it!).

One song that has been on my heart big time lately, as evidenced by my humming it constantly, is this one...

I need Thee, oh, I need Thee;
Every hour I need Thee;
Oh, bless me now, my Savior,
I come to Thee.

Isn't this so true?

Sometimes, "Lord, I need you," is the only prayer I can offer. Sometimes "Lord, they need you," is the only prayer I can offer. And I am so joyful to know that He DOES answer prayers.

Gyro Bowls

We always see this infomercial on TV for gyro bowls--these really complicated looking snack bowls that are supposed to keep the food from being able to fall out even if they are dropped, thrown, etc. Miller really wants one. He just saw the infomercial for the millionth time and said "Gywo bowls! They SO cute." Oh, dear...

Exterically Funny Kids...

Maggie and Miller have been making us laugh constantly. Their ways of saying things are so…unique.

Maggie was telling us a story yesterday about our friend Colby having a blister on his foot and said, “I mean, like, he was crying exterically.”

She also was so excited to see the “mapingos” (you know, “those birds that stand on one foot”?) at the zoo yesterday and told Jeff when we got home that she also saw a snake and a “pasta” (opossum). ?

She’s becoming more and more expressive (which we didn’t think possible) and is always making us giggle.

Miller’s new expression is “So-and-so is my favorite…” used in the following scenarios: “This is my favorite toy.” “You are my favorite friend” (said when I bought him his “favorite toy” at Target yesterday). “This is my favorite show” (said of Justice League—really??). “Batman is my favorite superhero.” You get it. He has quite a bit of favorites.

He asked me to put a bobby pin in his hair last night and then said, “I’m a pretty princess. I like this.” He’s still very into all things pink and princess-y, but he’s also really starting to get into superheroes, cars, trucks, bulldozers, and the like, and his love of all things pirate has grown immensely.

In other news, Mags learned how to swim this week! She’s been trying all summer, and a couple of days ago, it just clicked. That was a big goal of mine for her this summer, and I’m proud of her. The best part was seeing how excited she was when she realized she did it.

I’ll have to write down some of the “exterical” things M&M say this week so I can post them soon…

Blast from the Past...

We kept Emma Clare, a long-time friend of Maggie's, last night, and I was thinking how much she and Maggie have grown. Emma Clare is two years older than Maggie--She's six and going into the first grade. Here is a video of the two of them playing a looong time ago (four years??). What's funny is that as much as they have grown, their cute little personalities are much the same...