Natasha was telling me this morning about her dreams, and I managed to record this much:
“I had a dream about you got married in that big dress. It was pretty pretty. And I was not there, and Melody was not there. Only Dad was there.”
Category Archives: Cute stories
Night-time Prayers
Thank you, God, as this day ends
For my family and my friends.
Taking time to sit and pray,
Thank you God for this great day.
This little prayer, followed by some episode-specific praise, comes at the end of each Boz story. The girls have been watching their Boz DVDs back to back for a couple days, now.
Tonight Natasha sat up in bed with her fingers interlaced and said, “I’m going to pray tonight.”
That was just the coolest to me. I thought to myself, “This is why you buy Christian movies: to let the kids see the type of “normal” you want them to internalize.”
This self-initiation was mostly so exciting because we’re about as consistent with bedtime prayers as we are with bedtime teeth-brushing. Neither is every night.
It wasn’t so much the repeating of the formula that was neat to me (though that was sweet in its own way) but the practice of adding something unique of their own at the end.
Natasha’s latest (as I wrote that last line): “Thank you for rocks and neat toys to play with.”
Natasha is Four!
Well, we didn’t get around to making a cake today, like we’d planned, but now think I’d like to do a cat cake (the kind you make with two 9″-rounds), so I’m glad we didn’t make it yet.
We aren’t having a party until Sunday (if that– depends on the flooring, and we still haven’t invited anyone but Mom and Dad. The floor situation has made the atmosphere here just generally stressful.) but we’ll probably just make cupcakes for that, and use whatever left-over cake we have.
I wanted to do something special on her birthday. We were going to start reading, but she was up late last night, and wanted to nap, so we put that off for a day too.
Mom and Dad called at bedtime to sing “Happy Birthday” to Natasha. She wasn’t sure how to respond, really, but passed-on a coached “thank you” quite smoothly. Then Mom asked her how it felt to be four, and whether she was growing.
“I been trying to,” she answered seriously, “but my skin won’t grow.”
Christmas Eve Service
A family from our church did a “special” for the service tonight, with their pre-school son playing along on his 1/4-size cello. Natasha was riveted.
After it was over I asked her if she’d like to learn guitar to play like Beren does (the idea of early lessons has been batted around) and she responded with a delighted “Yes.”
Potluck Sunday
At our church we have a potluck the first Sunday of each month.
Elisha will be six months old this week, and for the first time since before he was born I brought something substantial and homemade. (I was very proud of myself).
Natasha asked that morning (yesterday) what I was making food for.
“For the potluck,” I told her.
“Mom,” she said (in the voice she uses when I tell her carrots are purple), “It’s potluck: the foods at the church today!”
So we talked about where the food comes from. Reminded me how long it’s been since I participated in the bringing.
~~~
After eating, a number of the men went out and started a pretty impressive fire to burn the brush that’s been cleared as part of the building project over the last however long. It had been announced in advance, and the kids were encouraged to go roast marshmallows and stuff.
I was inside talking with one of the other women when Jay brought Melody in. Her bare hands were *red* from the cold and they, along with her face and the front of her coat, were sticky with marshmallow guts. Continue reading
First Wedding
Our family went to a wedding tonight, and on the way home we had a genuine (as in, exchanging ideas not just continually repeating the known) conversation with Natasha.
She talked about how pretty the bride’s dress was, and how the bridesmaid dresses were “just a little bit pretty.”
And at least twice (maybe three times) she used the phrase, “When I get married…”
She says when she gets married she wants a pretty dress with flowers on it (like Heidi’s), and she wants little flowers to hold– and some big ones. The bride tonight had big ones (lilies). You get to hold flowers when you get married…
It was such fun to talk about something. Many times one of the girls will want to talk, and what is most likely to make me impatient is their not having anything to say.
Melody has started repeating the first half of a line, almost like stuttering, while (I assume) she’s figuring out how/what she wants to say, and both girls will ask the same question over and over (I don’t mind loads of questions, it’s the broken record bit that get to me), just to have something to talk about.
I know this is the reason, because if I can find something “real” to get them started on instead they’ll chatter on with both of us being much happier.
~~~
Every time Natasha would say, “When I get married…” Jay would squeeze my hand and just scrunch up his face and grin at me. She sounded so matter-of-fact and grown up.
“I just can’t imagine a little boy doing that,” is what he finally said (in a low voice). “Wow. Girls and their dreams. It all starts so early. I had no idea.”
I have such nice kids.
Melody was such a sweet helper last night.
Elisha has begun actually playing with things: Attempting to grasp, hold and gnarl whatever is in reach. During a family movie last night he played with a colorful squishy block quite contentedly—until it fell. Then he became quite distressed.
Melody realized what had happened and (pitching her high young voice even higher) she gave it back to him with comforting words.
This repeated several times. He wasn’t dropping it on purpose (I don’t think he’s old enough yet to know that game), since he was so obviously still learning how to hold. I had a new appreciation for the unflagging attention of toddlers.
Those who complain about short attention-spans in young children are only sharing/aware of half-truths. What they aught to say is that the child does not stay interested long enough in what the adult wants to do.
If allowed to pick their own activity/book/song their attention span for that one activity almost invariably lasts longer than the adult’s. (We have a “sanity rule” that each book can be read a maximum of three-times in a row. We invoke it almost daily.)
At Elisha’s doctor appt Wednesday (he had a skin infection, we got some ointment for it) we waited an *insane* amount of time, and if I’d remembered to count I would have learned the girls’ actual attention-span for a number of songs and rhymes I usually leave behind after 3 or 4 repetitions.
Side note: Elisha weighed in at 15lbs, 0oz, on Wednesday. On Thursday (his scheduled 4-month appt and shots), barely a week before, he was 14lbs, 5 oz. Can we say, Good-Eater! ?
Puppies
The kids and I went to North Pole to look at some whippets this afternoon.
If you didn’t know, I’ve been doing my homework on different breed types, looking for a good match for our family. There’s a lot of attractive things about the breed, but a couple drawbacks too…
But I found there was this lady with a half-dozen in her home (along with as many shelties!), so we went out to see what they were like in person. (The short conclusion is that they are just what I thought they’d be like, only softer.)
She also had a litter of 4-week-old puppies, and Natasha was just smitten. I wished I’d brought the camera. That first five minutes of her holding the little white dog was priceless. I’ve never seen that look on her face before. Here was a real, live baby that was the same size to her that Elisha is to me. She could hardly stand for me to hold him. She wriggled almost as much as he did, begging, “Can I have a turn now?” before I’d pet his soft head twice.
Very fun.
It never ceases to amaze me that puppies look like puppies no matter what breed they come from. No matter that the parents are long sharp and lean, these babies were still rounded. Maybe not as pudgy as some puppies I’ve seen, but I’d never have guessed their type looking at them.
Kids are so fun
When the kids say something I want to remember, I try to write it down. So here’s a clearing of the white-board:
The girls are playing nicely together and Natasha turns to her sister.
N: You’re a great sister. I *love* you.
M: Yup.
~~~
We harvested from our garden Friday evening and Jay let the girls be the curriers. Melody came running in with a respectably-sized “Cuzinni,” eager to make bread.
~~~
The girls playing house:
M: Mom! [I’ve learned not to answer this call when they play this way]
N: I’m the baby.
M: Oh. Baby!
N: I can’t talk.
They’re prolific speakers…
…But their pronunciation could use a little work.
The ones I can think of just now (can you guess all of these?):
Graham crappers (a snack)
Lellow (a color)
Mook bark (to save your place when you stop reading)
“Muddiddee! I’ve got popsilocks!” (Natasha trying to distribute frozen treats to the rest of the family.)