Good Gifts

Matthew 7:11 So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.


This verse kept popping in my mind over the last few weeks. Saturday was Brody's 5th birthday and this year I really struggled over the gift. Last year, we didn't even buy gifts, we just decided that the party and the cake were a lot to do and explained that to both boys. Well, this year since we are in a new place we were putting new plans in place. I wanted to take the boys each a on a train ride for their birthdays but that fell through. Then I had this totally brilliant idea to get Brody a little cage pet such as a guinea pig or hamster since he can't have a real sheep. Bryan and I went to Petsmart and he was not the least bit interested in that idea. I even tried to bring it up at home later on in the week and he still would only say he wanted a sheep. He did say once..."We can get a monkey, but then we would need 5000 bananas." So, there went that idea. I thought and thought and spent hours on the internet, then we decided to just take him to a toy store and see what else interests him. I do have to show what was on his birthday list....nothing but sheep. For some reason we were really hoping to get him something different, after all he does have a lot of sheep. Now, don't get me wrong, he LOVES all his sheep and takes great care of them, but we couldn't help but think he might be missing something else that he would really love.

Well, as a backup, I called the toy store ahead of time and asked if they had a black sheep, which he really wanted, and they did. He did walk around the store and found things that interested him, but when he spotted a puppet lamb and a black sheep puppet, that was it. The passion and excitement when he found these were undeniable. So, I sent them down the aisle, and was real sneaky to purchase them both and hid them in a shopping bag under my purse. Then we saw a whole lot of sheep and lambs and Bath & Body works and I managed to sneak one of those too! After talking to my dad that night, I realized he changed his mind about getting him a new sheepie shirt which was a big one so I set out to find that too. I spent a more time online searching for the right design only to realize I could not get his size! I was successful in tracking down a local shop that had one transfer of a sheep and all different sizes of shirts. So, the next day we were off to the store for the mystery errand, and I was just praying for that one transfer to be cute. Well, it was and they made it up right there for me and I got it out to the car without them knowing a thing! This is what I ended up with for the gift from mommy and daddy...

Somehow I just didn't feel like it was enough and I don't know why. Then we were driving home from picking up the cake and Brody said to me, "mommy my cake is an awesome present too". I just love how grateful he was for everything he got. I could of given him one of the three and he would of been thrilled with it. He was running around later in the morning after opening his presents and out of the blue he calls me and says, "thanks for the sheepie shirt". This experience has just been such a reminder of how much God loves me and wants to give me good things because I know how desperately I wanted to give my little boy something special. I wanted him to know how much he is loved and how wonderful he is. My gift has no lasting value but what God offers us is so much more. Now I want to show more gratitude and be as thankful as my little boy turned out to be at just 5 years old.

Thank you for the reminder Brody and Happy Birthday!

Who Could Resist?

Today I had planned a day at home because this week somehow has made it's way to the errand running hall of fame and we decided we needed a day home. However, as the day progressed, the sun got brighter and brighter and there was not a cloud to be seen... so the boys and I decided to walk to our favorite park and enjoy the beautiful fall crisp day! As we walked, we got warmer and warmer and had a great time on our big adventure! Hillview is our favorite park for many reasons including....

• It has a REAL merry go round
• The trees are absolutely amazing
• Walking trail for mom
• The playground has toys for big kids
• This is where Brody learned to ride 2 wheel
• This is where Connor mastered the monkey bars
  

Those last two items are really big ones and just another sign how fast my boys are growing up.

Brody was scared at first and he thought it would be easier than it turned out to be, but after just two days was out on his own! He was so proud of himself and we were so proud of him. I'm proud because it was harder than he expected and he worked through that and showed true perserverance.

You know, I can't think of anything that Connor has really struggled doing with his little hand. Of course we forget all about it, but those darn monkey bars were a big challenge for him. He never gave up and one day he just took that chance and went for it which showed real courage. I didn't have my camera that day so this is a different park, but now he can enjoy them anywhere!

Each time we visit, the fall colors get more amazing and the boys have enjoyed gathering leaves into piles and having so much fun. Today they made a large leaf pizza...so creative and interesting and OK, I admit it a little strange!

Who could resist soaking up this image of God's artwork when it is so beautifully displayed? Certainly not myself, or Connor, or Brody, or even our dog Jake!

Jack and the Beanstalk

Our absolute favorite book right now is called The Book of Virtues, A Treasury of Great Moral Stories by William J. Bennett. It is not the illustrated version, but the big 818 page black and white type wonderful version. The boys and I read from it everyday and they beg for the stories wrapped up in the chapters on topics such as compassion, courage, and honesty. I have to quote an excerpt from the introduction...

Today, we speak about values and how it is important to "have them," as if they were beads on a string or marbles in a pouch. But these stories speak to morality and virtues not as something to be possessed, but as the central part of human nature, not as something to have but as something to be, the most important thing to be.

So, what does this have to do with Jack and the Beanstalk? Well, let me tell you how I remember the story. Now, I know there are a lot of versions of it out there, but this is what I remember in a nutshell.

1. Jack disobeys his mother
2. Mother gets mad, throws beans out the window
3. Jack goes up the stalk that grows into the sky from the beans
4. Jack meets the giant and steals all his treasures
5. Giant follows him down and is killed when the stalk is cut by Jack
6. Jack and his mom are now rich

So, imagine my surprise when in my beloved new book (thrift store find, by the way) I find Jack and the Beanstalk in the section on courage and right after David and Goliath. What??? Did I miss something? (Sometimes the book does use stories to show what not to do, but I wasn't seeing that here either) Actually, it is all in the story. This version adapted from Andrew Lang gave me a whole new viewpoint and a story I am glad to share with my boys. It starts in the notes that says, "He begins his adventure as a thoughtless boy, but redeems himself through a bravery that rises from a sense of duty to his mother. Courage that leads upward..." Now, that sounds better. What else?

Well, in this story after showing his mother the beans Jack feels terrible and says, "At least, I may as well sow the beans." Yes, Jack you should do that work and reap some benefit out of your mistake!
When he reaches the sky and finds the beautiful community he is confronted by a lady that tells him a legend of a young boy who will come from the valley and challenge the giant and win the treasure for his poor mother. She asks him, "have you the courage to undertake it?" Jack replies, "I fear nothing when I am doing right." Are you seeing the difference???

After Jack's adventure and he is safe down the stalk this story says...Jack's mother was glad to have such treasures, but she was even more grateful to have her son back safe and sound and proud of him for his courage. She tells him, "Now I know you are destined to climb the ladder of fortune, just as you climbed the beanstalk."

This is my favorite part, the ending.

So together they buried the wicked giant and then went inside to count their blessings.

Now that's better. Happy Reading.

Me... Spontaneous?

Yes, it is true. I have branched out and decided yesterday that the boys and I would "fly in our pants" (as Connor would say). We decided to ditch school, (we actually did Math because it is the hardest to make up) and go to the Pumpkin Patch! Yes, the sun was shining and it was a beautiful crisp and cool fall day. I am nervous about the weather so I decided that we should take advantage of every sunny day that we can. The people here in Oregon carry on everything in the rain and nothing is ever cancelled, but the way I figure it we are new here, and we still melt so what the hec!
We went to Bauman Farms in Gervais Oregon and it was a whole lot of fun! We practically had the place to ourselves, one major advantage of home schooling, and the boys had a blast! I have to say it was not like the pumpkin patch experiences we had in California. There was a lot more to do like a corn maze (more on that later) and a barn swing and an obstacle course! They had an animal barn which was fun and they had one sheep which sealed the deal for our little Brody about it being the best ever!

So, I was most excited about the corn maze, not remembering ever being in one myself and as we were running to the entrance heard comments like..."this is so cool", "this is the best ever", "look there it is, THE corn maze". The boys quickly appointed Connor to take the lead, which was probably a good call since mommy can't get anywhere without Lola our GPS, and off we went! We did stop for a photography lesson as I wanted a picture with me in it to capture our fun day and I figured what a great place to start! Of course I checked my watch and was having fun for about 4 minutes. I can't believe that there are NO signs for us parents that don't like to feel lost and confused! After about 10 minutes, we decided to give Brody a chance to get us out, all the while, mommy is pretending to have it all together and only feeling a little out of control! As you can figure out by my presence on my blog, we did manage to find our way out. After 18 minutes on our adventure these were some of the after comments..."I hate the corn maze", "that is crazy", "that was no fun", and "I don't ever want to go back in there"!

I couldn't help but relate to my real life a little bit right now. Sometimes I feel I am just winding down a path that God has sent us on here in Oregon, not clearly seeing the signs, and sometimes feeling overwhelmed and lost, but trying to have fun along the way. Some people love that kind of adventure but I have never been one to enjoy life outside my comfort zone. However, when we did get out without any emergency assistance, I was able to look back and say, that was a little fun! I am grateful that I can trust in God and His plan for our future and hopefully one of His goals for me is a little more spontaneity!

The day ended with fresh apples, yummy apple cider and even apple cider doughnuts!

Since daddy missed the fun, we brought him a Marionberry pie and I know today I was blessed beyond measure.

Bottle Rocket Science

OK, I have to admit, I stink at Science!!! I have been taking the easy way out with our curriculum. I flipped the extra bucks to have a DVD of all the science experiments scheduled throughout the year. So, basically you watch this guy "do" all the experiments! Well, we were watching the video on Friday, just like the log says. However, I realized that by watching them, it was making me totally lazy to actually perform any myself. So I changed our plan a few months ago, and started planning a few of them throughout the week then watching the little clips on Friday. I have to say we have had a few freak incidents of success. I actually grew mold on wet bread, although it took 2 more days than they told me it would. We also successfully knocked over a tower of sugar cubes that soaked up red water! The boys were so excited especially after some of our failed experiments like sprouting beans. So today, I jumped right in on a Monday and planned to make a rocket balloon! The antcipation was growing all morning and Connor and Brody worked through the school day just to get to the fun part!






So, I pulled out all the required items, set up the scence and then went to simply blow up the balloon. I'm not sure what kind of balloon that is, but trust me is not one that blows up with the usual method of a human blowing air in the hole! As I sensed the excitement leaving the school room, I told Connor to run and get another balloon! That one did expand when blowing air into it as it should and we and hooked it right up to our perfectly made contraption. Brody went to pull the plug and of course it went nowhere! Leave it to the brains of my youngest to suggest an air pump for the original balloon still trying to blow life into this experiment! So, out to the garage we go, find the pump and after many failed attempts, I successfully inflate the balloon! Afer furiously trying to attach the clip to keep the air in, we are ready to give it a go. I have to say God in heaven must of been feeling sorry for me or more for my boys because it worked! That balloon shot across the string just like it was supposed to. So, after 3 turns of watching our miracle machine in action, the boys were off playing with the other balloon that failed with our rocket. They spent a complete hour blowing air into it and watching it fly! Then after I tied it, they played with it for another hour. So, all was not lost and I hope and pray they have some very important life long lessons learned. For instance...



Something about how air moves things which was the original objective

We all can't be good at everything

Working together really is better

Mommy might be lame in Science but she is not a quitter

Sometimes the most fun can be found in our failed attempts at success








That is Connor's "we did it" celebration! All was worth it! Later on this week I think I will attempt the Wind Winch, wish me luck.....I'm not sure why but I think I will need it!

My first Blog!

Well, here it is, my first posting. I have been thinking about this for awhile and came up with the following reasons to start a blog....

1) I type much faster than I write
2) There is so much I learn about my friends when I read their blog
3) I figured this is a great way to capture all those little things I want to remember

You know I have those perfect images in my head of sitting up and writing in a journal all curled up in a blanket recording my deepest most innermost thoughts, but then I woke up and realized that just doesn't happen with my life. I've always heard how mentally healthy it is to get your thoughts down in writing and really, who doesn't desire more mental health?