Kid Christmas Survey

I've worried that having our kids write out a wish list fostered the wrong focus on the season. Yet, my better half felt differently, because he wants to give them specific gifts they want. This year we came up with an idea my husband & I both loved...a Christmas survey!

We printed out questions for everyone like, "What's your favorite Christmas tradition? What is one new thing you'd like to do this year? What are some things you'd like for Christmas?" 3 lines were provided to answer the gift question, so we have a few ideas, but are not building expectations they they'll get everything they can imagine. Plus, we like to surprise them with gifts not on their list too.

The last question was "who do you think we can help this Christmas and how?"
It was good to hear what makes Christmas feel special to them so we make sure we do those things.
And I like that their lists were not just about gifts, but about memory-making and serving others.
Hope your Holidays are sweet & filled with what matters most!

Fall Festival Games

Hope your fall has been fun! I can't believe it's November.
I've been helping to get a few games together for our school's upcoming fall festival.
Like this, for instance...

We have a duck race where kids use squirt bottles to squirt their floating racer towards the finish line. This is my favorite game to compete in...I mean, ahem, to "test out" to make sure it's fair and that each squirt bottle has comparable stream strength.

Soda bottles make great bowling pins.

And we put together some obstacles and targets for mini golf.

The windmill box turns the ball 90 degrees. Plus we have a ramp for hole 7. With a ramp and a windmill, that's legitimate put-put, right?

The best part about this is how much fun our kids have trying out the games! It's been fun to have them help me.

Camping with kids

Miss H recently turned 9.
To celebrate, we rented a cabin from the forest service & had a fun camping adventure in the mountains.
It surprised us what entertained the kids that weekend. For HOURS they played with the janitorial mop bucket on wheels, taking turns riding in it down the cabin porch ramp. They also liked searching the area for animal bones. They found a book about insects on a bookshelf in the cabin which came in handy for a science project D was assigned. It was a really fun get away.

I used to love camping as a kid... the smell of pine trees, napping in a hammock, enjoying nature & drinking hot chocolate in the mornings. Camping was simple, relaxing, & fabulous.
Then, we became parents.
Camping was no longer simple OR relaxing.
I noticed this taking D camping at age 2. You have to stop little ones from eating bugs or stumbling into the fire. You have to be vigilant so they don't drown in a creek, sit on a cactus patch, fall off a cliff, or try to chase a skunk yelling "come back kitty". You need so much more stuff. Kids don't sleep well, so neither do you. And no more naps in the hammock to compensate for the less than optimal sleep. There's no time for that because you are busy trying to convince your children that even though the outhouse is scary & stinky, they can't just hold it for the whole trip.
CABINS ARE THE WAY TO GO WHEN CAMPING WITH KIDS! There was a shower and a real potty. We had actual mattresses & everyone had their own bed. You can still smell the pine trees and hike with beautiful scenery, but when you make your hot chocolate in the morning, you can heat it up in the microwave rather than chop wood and start a fire.
Marvelous.
We're doing it that way again.
For gifts, she picked out these cute boots & a top. It's fun to shop with her.


For her school birthday celebration, Miss H wanted to do a minion craft, so we decorated yellow water bottle labels. This was a fun, cute, quick project that complied with the school's new "no treats" policy. I think it worked out well.

You can see the baby's growing. She's taken a few steps. Her giggle is adorable.
Life is good.

Balancing Act

The baby is a month old & the older kids have started school. We are still trying to figure out how to juggle it all. Life is a balancing act for EVERYone in EVERY season of life isn't it? But we are willing to sacrifice some sleep & serenity because we know we are really lucky to have a new baby & to be parents. Here's the rundown on everyone...

Our kindergartener really loves school (esp. riding the bus with his big sister!) Speaking of which... she just turned 8 & will be baptized soon.

She is so smart & sweet. We had a party for her.

The baby is catching up on her growth (part of the reason for inducing, besides being breech and on blood thinners, was concern that she wasn't growing well at the end of the pregnancy. As it turns out, the placenta was small and not functioning optimally-- a condition linked to my clotting). But she's been thriving since birth and is now in the 10th%.
Still tiny, but it's an improvement. We got a kick out of the fact that her size and coloring are so similar to the baby doll!

D is sure enthralled with her. He put her picture in his locker. (I can still hardly believe he's old enough to have a locker.) I've been dreading the middle school milestone somewhat. But now that it's actually here, I'm excited for him.
He's learning clarinet in band and running cross country. He's a pretty confident kid, which is half the battle in the middle school years. That gives me hope that he'll get to enjoy this stage of development.

With the other kids in school again, I get to spend a little more time with this little girl. I love hearing her voice as she speaks or sings. She's a cute mimic. She's observant and bright & really good at puzzles.

Hope this fall brings blessings to you as well.

So lucky

I just feel so lucky today to be a mom...especially to these great kids.
They fill our lives with joy.
There's a bumpersticker that says, "If you think my HANDS are FULL, you should see my heart."
I like that sentiment.

Heaven

Our faith teaches that marriage can be eternal. And what will we do for all eternity? We will learn to be like our Heavenly Father. We will create life. We will have children. In the celestial world, I can create as many babies as I want.
I know of many great women who can't get pregnant or can't stay pregnant or who aren't married but long to have a family.
I love the babies I have. I miss terribly the ones I don't.

...As many babies as I want...that does sound heavenly...

NOT a pushover parent

I recently read this parenting book that critized parents who end their instructions with "OK?". Those parents were pushovers, the book asserted & need to just state their expectations, not make it seem like there is another option if the one the parent stated is not ok with the child.

Well, I say "OK" a lot. But, I don't think I'm a pushover. I don't say "OK" asking the child's permission. It's just that "OK" is quicker than saying, "I've now finished explaining my expectations, now please acknowledge that you heard and understood them."

Still, the doubts lingered... Afterall, I've never had my parenting philosophies published. Do my kids think I'm asking for acknowledgment or permission? Should I stop saying ok? Am I a pushover parent?

Yesterday morning, however, the 1st grader woke up early & headed downstairs. I explained, "the dishes in the dishwasher are clean, so you can get yourself a drink. Also, you can watch a video, but make sure the volume is low, OK?"

His response? "Yes, sir."

Thank you, child. Can I kiss you?! You just validated that I'm NOT a pushover parent. Now, let's see if we can teach you how to salute? ...

Machiavelli Mom

What I worry about most with baby #3 is that as parents, we will be outnumbered. Having studied political science, we understand that demographics can affect the balance of power. The more the peasants outnumber the ruling elite, the greater risk of revolution & chaos.

What, then is our strategy for maintaining authority and order? Well, Machiavelli would recommend a careful balance between being merciful, but firm and being generous, but not overly generous thus breeding greed among the subjects. So, we appease them enough to avoid a complete revolt, but don't appease them to the point of undermining our authority.

So, in philosophical terms, we have a sound strategy.

However, I still worry about how to appease 3 crying children when I only have 2 arms to hold them with. Good thing lollipops are effective at appeasing the oldest... I may have to offer that when my arms are full. More cavities to fill, perhaps, but hopefully most revolts may be circumvented. We'll report on our efforts to maintain the balance of power after baby is here. In the meantime, wish us luck!