Kids Say...

A conversation that took place at dinner tonight:

Matt: Riley, I hear a lot of playing at the table. I should hear a lot of nom-nomming. Eat up. (makes loud smacky chewing noises)

Tyson: Dad, you shouldn't chew with your mouth open. That's what they call 'chewing like a cow.'

Matt: Did you just correct an adult?

Tyson: um... (looks at me for rescue)

Matt: Ty, you could have at least said it nicer. That sounded very rude.

Tyson: Okay. I'm sorry. (brief pause) Dad, could you PLEASE not CHEW like a COW?


Well, at least he said "please," right?

Tantrum, Explained

How do you know that your three year old's tantrum was likely caused by a too-busy day and an overtired kiddo?

You send him to his room, and later find him like this:

Greetings

Well, I added another goal to my 2012 list.

I will send special occasion and birthday cards, in the mail, to the people we love.
Because I sorta forgot several people, sent out several late, and just generally mucked it up last year.

Once upon a time, I loved making greeting cards for people. Store-bought cards are fantastic, but I really like sending a birthday wish that has a little extra love and time put into it.

Over time, life got busy, "need to's" got in the way, and I stopped making them. I turns out, that I still love making these personalized greetings. I recently had a few minutes an made a couple of cards for January birthdays.

How do you wish the ones you love a happy birthday?

Let's Take a Walk, part 2

Yesterday I posted some of the pictures that Riley took on our Photo Walk. Today I thought I'd share some of my photos from that walk.

It's rare that we get even one January day with weather nice enough to be outside (without being bundled like a polar bear), but we've had nearly a week of these lovely days!

Let's Take a Walk

Every now and then, we like to take what we call a "Photo Walk." We get our cameras and set off into the world to find some interesting things to capture. The only rule is that you can't set up photos ops. You can only take pictures of things you find, exactly as you find them. As we are walking and clicking, we talk about finding beauty in the world, about this beautiful world God has created and whatever else comes up.

I love going through the photos later and seeing what the boys found interesting or beautiful on our walk.

Riley and I took one just around our neighborhood today, and I'm sharing some of his photos here. Check back tomorrow for some of my photos.

How do you find beauty in your world?

Happy New Year

Well, I might be a little late on this, but I think I have updated and revised my goals for 2012 about a bajillion times. My list is done, and I am posting it because I need the accountability. I'm planning to post monthly updates on these goals.

Without further ado:

I will continue to center our family on Christ.
We've come a long way, but still have far to go.

I will improve consistency with routines in our home.
By this, I mean that I often forget to do things like pay allowances, do monthly chores, support my kids to follow their own routines, and the like.

I will improve the beauty of our home.
Did I mention that after 11 years in our home, we still have a bare light bulb and shades but now curtains on the windows of the master bedroom?

I will read three books on ADHD.
Can you ever really learn enough about your kid's disability?

I will prepare emergency supplies and plans for our home and family.
It's been months since we did a fire drill, tornado drill or watched Safeside Sally talk about stranger safety. Also, if I do get stuck in my car during a blizzard, I will have to crawl into my guitar case to keep warm and sustain myself on Extra sugar-free gum.

Write at least 3 blog posts each week.
Writing is good. Pictures are good. These things are especially good when I post them where family and friends can see them.

I will lose 10 pounds.
Why not? I lose my car keys all the time! Seriously, I accidentally gained a few pounds since miscarrying a month ago. You know, because I've been eating my way through the grieving process the way corn worms eat through a big juicy cob. I feel icky and I'm pretty sure that's not helping me get through this.
Since I'm a music therapist working in special education, I do, of course, have benchmarks for each goal. I don't think I'll bore you with all of those, but you can be sure I'll be posting about each as I complete it!

So, what are your goals for 2012? Leave them in the comments or link to your post. I would love to see what everyone is doing!

Hustle and Bustle

The hustle and bustle seems to be going on all around me right now. But it just doesn't feel like Christmas to me. This may be due, in part, to the fact that it has not snowed yet here in St. Louis. And we're experiencing balmy temperatures in the mid to upper 40's (maybe even a 50 this weekend???).

But there's more to it than that. I'm just not really feeling it this year. I think I fell off my horse. My Christmas horse. Or maybe it was a reindeer. Whatever, I fell off this year. Here's why I say this:

~I haven't baked one cookie, brownie or other holiday treat.

~I got as far as putting up and decorating the Christmas tree with my family. All the other decorations are still in their boxes. In my garage. Where they will stay. (Except for the stockings, which will probably be located at 2am on Christmas morning following a frantic search through lights, tinsel and fake evergreen stuff. And only because the children will be disappointed if they're not filled.)

~I have been playing Christmas music in our home, but instead of working with the boys to come up with a fantastic playlist, I'm letting Pandora Radio do that for me.

~I haven't sent any Christmas cards out yet. Given that Christmas is in four days, I'm thinking I won't be sending cards this year.

~I haven't done any Christmas crafting (which is like Santa going on the Atkins Diet & giving up cookies).

~I just started a couple of hand knit gifts for family members. Three days ago.

Yikes. Our Christmas isn't exactly a Hallmark Holiday Feature, is it?

I'm still adjusting to life as the mom of a baby who is already in Heaven. Emotionally and physically, since my body seems to be slow on the uptake (especially in the waistline area). Family stuff and work are keeping me overly busy, and there's just not enough time, energy or me to add all the holiday hustle and bustle. In years past, I would have been completely freaking out wrought with guilt over these holiday transgressions.

But this year I'm not. I think I'm finally getting some perspective. Out of necessity, I'm weeding out the superfluous stuff and just going with the stuff that is really important. And I am so. not. stressed. about it. I am chill.

I stumbled upon a great blog post this morning that perfectly sums up my thoughts and feelings.
Hop on over to Life as Mom and see if you can find some helpful perspective in amongst all this hustle and bustle.

Are you cutting back, giving up, or altering any of your usual holiday activities?