MrsMommyCEO

Compassion

Lately I've been praying for God's guidance in my parenting. I've noticed in my children, an attitude of entitlement which I do not like... however it's one that I think is very easily adopted by them because of the environment that they grow up in.

At dinner at our house, I'm often heard saying the cliched, "Do you know that there are children that don't even have food?" And the answer is that they don't. They don't know, their minds cannot even comprehend that reality and I believe that no matter how much I talk about it, I don't know that I will ever be able to truly impress upon them how very blessed they are.

So I prayed for guidance. And it came in the form of The Pioneer Woman. Recently she and her children became involved in the Compassion child sponsorship program. Her children each had a sponsored child and just this month, two of them were able to visit those children in the Dominican Republic. Reading her stories, hearing her children's experiences and seeing the photos touched me very deeply and I realized that this was something that I could do for my children, and even more importantly for those children in need.

We have decided to sponsor two children. Two boys, ages 5 and 6, one from the Philippines and the other from Western Africa.

I am eager for this experience, not only for my children, but also for myself. For as much as I try to teach my children about the blessed life that we lead, I myself am guilty of forgetting also... When we get so wrapped up in material things, when we lose sight of the things that are truly important, when we take for granted the basic necessities of life that are not a given to all people.

I pray for these two little boys, that they will benefit from whatever aide we can give them and that we are able to touch their lives as much as I'm sure they will touch ours.

Odds and Ends...

What a weekend, I feel like I have so much to catch up on!

First... can we just stop and talk about how awesome the Eagles were on Sunday? I'm still reliving moments of the game in my mind and I'm just blown away! The experience of being there and seeing it all live, feeling the intensity and the adrenaline... it's amazing! I'm also really grateful for the time that my husband and I get to spend together, just the two of us. It's something that we don't have very much of and I think right now it's very much needed.

I also have a few new pictures to share! Wesley started school last Tuesday, and other than the exhaustion of going back, he's doing really well...

 

Nathan is also gearing up for school to start on Monday. It's so adorable, he met his teacher the other day and he keeps forgetting her name and calling her Miss Marigold, from Blue's Clue's... it's hilarious! I remind him that her name is Miss Sherri at least 10 times a day. He's very excited though, which is making me a little less nervous!

 

And then there is my little man, my sunshine, who is suddenly standing, cruising, clapping, waving, and doing so-big! I'm so proud of him! And his front teeth are FINALLY coming in, so he'll no longer be my little vampire!

 

And of course, I missed Sweet Shoppe Saturdays in all the hubbub of our first soccer games, so here are some new pages using releases from this weekend...
 
Scary Moon Cat by Lauren Grier

 
Cheeky Girl by Zoe Pearn

 
Cheeky Boy by Zoe Pearn

And now I'm off to get some sleep... or maybe watch some Monday Night Football! LOL

ADL Part 1: Quiet Morning

8:30: Wake up and realize that I'm so grateful that my 8 mos slept in. We were up late last night at the fireworks and then I had a few hours of work after that.

It's very quiet in the house because the older boys are still sleeping, after not getting to bed until 10:30. So Logan and I head downstairs for a bottle for him and coffee for me... realize that I neglected to set up my coffee last night and have to stand and hurry the coffee pot along while juggling a hungry baby.

After Logan's morning bottle, I plop him in the saucer and do my morning survey of the kitchen and living room. It's not bad this morning because we weren't home yesterday, so I quickly tidy a bit and then head for my laptop to get it connected.

While Logan plays I make my morning rounds... our credit card processor to see what's come in over night, my bank account to see what's cleared there, bloglines, and finally SSD. I leave SSD for last because I get sucked in there and will forget the others! LOL!

My email is done receiving and I'm delaying looking at it until I have the boys up to help me entertain Logan because I don't like to get interupted. I finally hear them starting to stir around 9:30 am, so I'll start to dig out my inbox soon.

In the meantime, I'm suddenly remembering why it's both exciting and tedious when babies start to crawl. Logan finally got the hang of it over the holiday weekend and he is now all over the place. Just this morning I've had to rescue him from under the end table, he got his legs stuck under the buffet, and he's already avalanched a huge pile of Wii games all over the floor. As I type he's headed for the canned sodas next to the fridge.

To be continued...

8 Months

I find it amazing how quickly time passes these days. I remember when Wesley was this age, I was so anxious for him to grow up, encouraging him to meet the next milestones, etc. However, looking back on that time I often feel like I may have missed things in my hurry to have him do things.

With this being my third time around, I've learned to relax. I enjoy each day and each little joy for everything that it is. Instead of trying to rush you into things, I have found that there is so much more pleasure in watching you discover things on your own. I'm so proud of the little boy that you are becoming and you are doing it all on your own!

This month Logan has mastered sitting on his own and changing from laying to sitting all on his own! He is by far my most content baby and he loves to sit and play with toys, watch his brothers, or listen to music. He is incredibly aware of everything around him and he is already an excellent listener.

We just recently tried his first finger food, banana puffs, and he did so well with them. I'm a bit of a wimp when it comes to babies learning to eat table food because I do not like the times when they gag while they are learning to move food around their mouths... but so far there has been only minor gagging incidents... YAY!

Logan also took his first dip in the pool this month. He really enjoys the water so we are hoping to spend lots of time there this summer.

As I've been known to say, he is just the most delightful baby. He's very easy-going, very calm and content. He loves to play and talk, he's adorably michevious and quite the little charmer. He has an amazing sense of humor and it takes nothing to make him laugh and giggle!

Lazy Days of Summer

It seems that summer is finally here and I can't tell you how much I'm enjoying it. The kids and I are just kicking back and relaxing and it's been so wonderful.

I've also managed to accomplish a few things, like finishing the tile in the downstairs bathroom and painting the back door, so that feels really good too! I don't know why it's so much different having Wesley home, but it just is. I want to say that life is less scheduled, but that's not true at all because I am a clock person all year round. I live my life on a schedule, so we are always still on it, even with him home. I think it may be just that there is less on my schedule. Mornings are less hectic because there isn't a rush to get everyone breakfast, get lunch made and bookbag packed. Afternoons are better because naptime isn't interupted by having to get Wesley off the bus, there is no homework, and I'm able to start dinner later because bedtime isn't quite so strict. It's just a nice change of pace and I feel like I'm almost more productive because I feel like I have so much free time.

The boys have also been enjoying the pool as much as they can and I completely forgot last week that I had promised to share a few pics...
 
And I really need to teach my husband how to use my camera. I completely forgot that it was set on manual settings and had him take photos... you have no idea how many blurry shots I have. He's so intimidated by my camera, I'm amazed he even picked it up in the first place!

Logan absolutely loved the water and I can't wait until I can take him back in. The water temp drop signifigantly with the rain we've had and it was too cold to take him in this passed weekend. I hope it's up again soon because he was just too cute!

Not much else to report! Here's a few new pages though...

Using Eva Kipler's new Happy Dance!

 
Using Surf's Up by Zoe Pearn, Mini Hangy Alpha Thingy and Sunshine Playtime by Traci Reed

 
Using Country Fair by Dani Mogstad

Happy Father's Day!

I hope that all the Daddys out there had a wonderful day!

Even though my husband doesn't read my blog (not sure he even knows it exsists come to think of it), I thought I would write him a little note....

Ron,
Thank you for being the amazing parent that you are. There are a thousand things about you that I didn't know, until I saw you become a Daddy. I didn't know how silly you could be, how much you love to wrestle, how good you are at video games, or how sweet you look napping with one of the boys. I didn't know any of these things when I married you and as I've discovered them, I've fallen even more in love with you.

I love that you are a different parent than I am. I love that our perspectives are not the same and that we have different ideas of what is best. Although it's frustrating at times, I know that ultimately it is good for our children and for our relationship that we learn to communicate and compromise in determining what is ultimately best for them. Neither of us is shy about expressing our opinions and I truly belive that we create a good balance for our children because of that. We are not as strict with them as I would probably be and we do not allow all the goofiness that you would like. We have a solid routine, which is not your strong suit and we occasionally break it, which is not my strong suit.

I love that together we are building a family, that we are two parts of a whole... and it is truly a beautiful thing to me, to watch you with our children, to hear you laugh and play together. My heart is so overwhelmed with love, when I get to watch you love our children... there is nothing more special and no better memories to me.

I love you and I hope that you have a wonderful day!

TGIF

It's been a bit of a long week around here and we've just been trying to get through it.

Wesley finishes school next Tuesday and we are all very ready for summer vacation to begin. He's had a wonderful year and he's really enjoyed first grade. I think he's hitting a bit of burn out though and really needs a break to just relax.

He's really become a "kid" this year. Kindergarden was just like preschool and I still though of him as my sweet little boy. But this year, I see the influence of friends on him and it's interesting. He's picked up some slang that I don't love and he's also a bit more obnoxious then I ever knew him to be... but that's just what's going to come with age. He's still the sweet, goofy, lovable little boy that I always knew... I just have to dig a bit deeper sometimes I pull that out.

Did I mention he's goofy?

In scrapping news... I've had the privledge to work with a bunch of tomorrow's new kits and WOW... The talent these ladies have continually amazes me. How they do it week after week, I have no idea!

How about a few layouts to kick off the weekend???

Hope you all have a wonderful Friday! I'll be back tomorrow for another Sweet Shoppe Saturday!

7 Months

I love to watch you.... eat, sleep, play...anything. You have an adorable way about you that fascinates me. This month you have become very curious about the world around you. You are noticing the little things, like grass tickling your feet, the sound of Daddy's mower outside, and how soft it feels to rub your blankie on your face.

You are very active and you seem to be in a very big hurry to get moving. You are my first baby to move around by rolling. You have learned quickly that repeatedly rolling to one side will take you somewhere new... like the kitchen floor, which you love. You have also mastered using your arms to spin yourself in a full circle. Both of these movements are hilarious together, because you use them so well to get around.

I'm so thrilled that you have also mastered sitting on your own, because this makes playtime more fun for you and for your brothers. You love to sit on the floor with a basket of toys and just play. Your favorite toys right now are your Fisher Price Animals (Boat and Train) and any and all linking rings.

You are also quite the little eater and I've yet to find a baby food that you do not like. You are incredibly interested in real food and I think we'll start some small finger foods in the next month or so.

It's obvious to all of us, that you are also developing some separation anxiety issues. You are a mommy's boy through and through and if Mommy is anywhere near you, but not holding you, you cry. We manage okay during the day, as I'm able to calm you and reassure you that it's okay to play while mommy is 3 feet away doing dishes. However, whenever another person is involved, you become very insistent that you want Mommy... NOW! It's a phase of course, but it does have it's really exhausting moments.

You are truly a wonderful baby. You are joyous and happy almost all the time and it just makes every moment with you so precious!

Delightful

I find it so fascinating how much different my children are. They are in some ways, polar opposites of each other. Wesley is my mini-me, he is my worrier, my thinker, my helper. Nathan is very much like my husband, very charming and funny, a bit of a clown and very headstrong. Logan, he is just delightful. I call him that often, because that really is the best way to describe him. He is joyful and happy, he's sweet and loving, he's a cuddler and he literally just takes my breath away.

I've always heard other parents say they had "easy" babies and I can remember thinking "What does that mean" or more importantly, "How do you get one of those?" LOL! And now I know what they mean, now I know what an easy baby is and it's wonderful. Of course it's no less work, but it makes you enjoy other aspects of parenting and bond a little differently.

Logan and I play together more than I ever did with my other children at this age. He loves toys and is so content to sit with me and just play. I love to watch him, to show him new things or how things work. I love to play with stuffed animal with him and put on little puppet shows. He also loves to play peek-a-boo and to sing and clap with me.

He's such a blessing, and because of the strong anxieties that I had while I was pregnant him, I often catch myself watching him and thinking that I cannot belive he's even real. He's just so precious and he is such a blessing, I thank God for him constantly.

Of course I love all my children, but it really is true that I love them all differently. I love Wesley for what he teaches me about myself. I love Nathan for the humor and the joy that he brings to my everyday life. And I love Logan for the sunshine that he is, that truely lights up my heart.

 

My Gift...

My oldest son is gifted. And I think I've known that since he was less than a year old. He's always been so inquisitive, so complex, so challenging. And at first I thought I was wearing Mommy goggles, I thought that I was seeing my wonderful normal little boy differently than other children because he was mine.

It turns out, I was wrong. Wesley is incredibly gifted, mommy goggles or no, he's amazingly intelligent. But more than that, he's a beautiful person. He is very compassionate, patient, kind, and loving. As his 1st Grade teacher said to me over the weekend, He really is the whole package.

So I consider him my gift, He was given to my by the grace of God to teach me as much as I can teach him. We learn so much together because we are so very alike. We have the same quick temper, the same perfectionism, the same love of reality TV, the thirst for knowledge, and the same joy in reading. Through Wesley I have learned so much about myself, because in order to teach your children how to be, and to set a good example, you must eamine yourself and your own habits.

We've been invited to the end of year School Board Meeting, where Wesley will be recognized for his excellent academic achievements. I am so proud of him, so proud that he is my son and so amazed that he is who he is, in part because of me.