Backfire

Ked has suddenly begun to make a battle of bedtime. Last night, in an effort to soothe him, I brought the stereo into his room, and turned on the CD of the Church's primary songs for children. It only sort of worked--he fell asleep at 8, but woke me up at 10:30, then 12: 30, and on though the night. . . but that's beside the point.

Well, today for his nap, he requested the songs again. He was quiet for 10 minutes or so, and then I suddenly heard him yelling and making a ruckus. I open the door to see what was the matter. I was surprised to find him with an exuberant smile, singing and jumping up and down on his bed to the song, "Jesus Wants me for a Sunbeam." When kids sing it, they always emphasize the "beam!" and jump up at the same time. I'd already learned to always sing this song first when I put him down to bed, because if I wait until he requests it, he gets all riled up again. Now I know to choose one of the other CDs that does not include this song next time. . .

This is Your Work

I once heard a religious educator share the following experience.  He was loaded down by stacks of paper work on his desk when a young woman came in, obviously in need of a listening ear and counsel.  Stressed about all the work he needed to get done, he felt an impression come to his mind as he remembered what was most important, "THIS is your work."

One day, I was on my hands and knees, talking to and smiling at my little baby Tyndale who was laying down on a blanket and cooing and smiling back. My two-year-old Ked had climbed up on top of me, ready to ride me like a horse. I kept thinking about how I needed to get back to work, when the phrase, "This is your work," came to my mind.

A little while later, I took Ked to the back window, hoping to find something to distract him after he'd been grumpy and crying ever since he awoke from his nap. Thankfully, a couple of squirrels were putting on a great show collecting walnuts. I pointed them out to Ked and explained what they were doing, and we watched for several minutes. Again, I kept thinking about my list of things to do and that I needed to get back to work. And again the phrase, "THIS is your work," came to my mind.

A while ago, I heard Julie B. Beck explain the differences between necessary and essential when it comes to raising families.  There are a lot of things I need to do that are necessary. But there are things that are too often given up that are essential!  "Maintenance parenting" lets go of that essential part.  I'm grateful to understand that the spiritual and emotional nurturing of these little boys is essential, as well as the physical and mental. Now I just need to remember that, and make it a part of my natural disposition!

And now I feel like a hypocrite, since my boys are clamoring for my attention as I write this. Gotta go!

Can you see the squirrel holding a nut in the tree? I took this a day or so after I wrote this post, when I noticed a rainbow out the same window where I took Ked to look outside.

my boys and man

In the beginning, Ked was often either really jealous of Tyndale or just much too rough with him. So you can imagine how this reading scene warmed this mother's heart! Ked was even holding the book the right way so that Tyn could see the pictures. 11/15/2100, Tyn 3 months

I love the easy-smiler stage.

"I cook"

Ked loves to be in the kitchen. Sam has been very good about involving Ked in the food-making process, and I'm trying to follow his lead. Sometimes it's really fun (when I am patient), and I'm quite impressed with what he can do. Other times it drives me crazy, because he will move a chair all around the kitchen trying keep up with me, usually depositing the chair in the exact location where I need to be--in front of a drawer or cupboard I need to get into or in front of the counter where I'm working. Not to mention the dozens of messes and disasters I've had to clean up after allowing him to be a little too involved. . . but I guess even that's worth it, to see him so engaged in working and learning! 9/25/2011

I dump it

One of Ked's favorite phrases. And why I shouldn't ever leave him alone. . . These dumping instances happened the same day. (And there were probably more in between.)

"I dump it."

9/23/2011

Appeasement

For awhile, Ked would get really upset every morning when Sam would leave for school. This is how Sam appeased him. He loves morning rides with Papi!

9/21/2011

Tight Squeeze

Sometimes I look at all the single college students who live around us and their big SUVs, and I think, "Maybe we should be cool and get a big car too."

Thanks, Mom, for the picture, and thanks, mi Samor, for letting me drive!

(8/14/2011)

Keeping Score

Since it's November, let's talk a little about gratitude.

In a Relief Society lesson at church a couple of weeks ago, a friend shared something loosely paraphrased in the following:

You can't "keep score" in your roles as husband and wife. Each has different responsibilities and capabilities, and you can't count up what you do and compare it to what he does. Instead, you actively support each other and appreciate what each does.

I thought about that a little, and I thought about my last year of marriage to Sam, especially the last few months, and I realized what it would look like if I "kept score."

Sam: 65349857304589

Amber: (some number indeterminably but drastically less)

Nope, I'm not keeping score. Now I just have to hope Sam's not either!

Kentucky visit, Nov. 7, 2011

After lamenting that we were so far away from the temple and how it was tricky to make the trip with two kids, my sister Brandi suggested we drive to her home in Kentucky, just an hour further than to the DC temple. We would stay the night with them and they would watch the kids while we went to the Louisville temple, less than 10 minutes from their home. Deal! We ended up going a weekend when Sam had a field trip at a dam nearby as well.

We always enjoy our visits with Brandi's family. Love her in-law's farm! It was fun with Ked being a little older this time too.

Enjoying otter pops with his cousin Dane.

After taking a joyride in the red car (really jerky, pretty funny), Ked decided he would stick with the manual modes of transportation. Ked, Tyndale, Dane.

I always fail to get decent pictures of the adults, so here's their Christmas picture: Dane, Alan, and Brandi. Great family!

Sam enjoyed helping Alan chop and store firewood. I enjoyed watching him. What a hunk!

It was soooo nice going to the temple together, without worrying about how the kids were. We both were able to focus better and had a great temple experience. Thanks, Brandi and Alan! Thanks, Tyndale, for sleeping like a champ in Brandi's arms the whole time. And thanks Dane, for sharing your toys with Ked.

Ever since we'd taught Ked about temples, he's loved pointing them out in pictures. He also loves to stack up random objects and call them a temple. I was excited to show him a real temple. He was more excited about climbing the little walls and benches in the garden area. Oh well.

A typical Ked pose. We decided to splurge and give him a ride. I think he still enjoyed it.

Funny Ked

Professional stacker for hire! This boy will stack anything and everything. Sometimes I find some pretty funny things stacked up in little piles.

He was actually climbing up and sitting on this stack before he added the two (or three) top ones.

(7/26/2011)

This is not allowed, but I couldn't resist watching. . . I stopped him at this point, though. (7/25/2011)

More recently (26 months), he has been stacking up things and announcing his creation to be a temple.

A little rain won't stop this boy. You can't really tell, but he is soaking wet in the picture above. Which meant I was too. I was in my last weeks of pregnancy, and we had just arrived at the park when it started to rain. He needed the outdoor time, and I needed him to have it too!

(7/25/2011)

I had tried to stop him, but once he started, I let him at it. He got super muddy, and to add to the fun, he produced a dirty diaper just when I was cleaning him up enough to get him in the car. And this is when I had Tyndale with me. It was an adventure. (9/28/2011)

"Mawn Mower"

Ked loves lawn mowers, and can turn almost anything into one. (He's also been known to flip the baby seat in the background upside down to use it as one too, but that's not allowed, since we are borrowing it! Sorry Murphy!) (8/17/2011)

Too true! The thing in his hand is a piece of grout he took out of the fire place. . . (7/22/2011)

Two Years Old!

Fried eggs in his favorite shapes for breakfast. I was hoping he'd be more likely to eat them this way. It actually worked!

I had grand plans of making a train cake for Ked, but Tyndale was four weeks old, and when it came down to it, I was exhausted and short on time. So here is Ked climbing up the oven peering at my half-hearted attempt. Thankfully, he'd recognized it as a train when it was just three plain little cakes. Of course, this is the boy that can take any object and imagine it into a train, airplane, or helicopter. The engine was especially pathetic, so I'm happy it's cut off in this picture. All he wanted were the marshmallows, anyway!

Second-hand trains from the consignment store were all Ked got for his birthday (they are so expensive new!)--wrapped individually, of course--but boy, was he happy about them. Sam and I have noticed that sometimes when Ked is really intrigued by something (or excited), he doesn't show a lot of emotion. He's just kind of sober and thoughtful (or dazed). This was the case with the trains, and he played with them day and night for a few days, even trying to sleep with them. They are still (two months later) something he plays with almost all day, every day.

I love my big two-year-old boy!!!