Sorry Kids Easter is Cancelled

Several weeks ago I bought your Easter gifts and then stashed them.  Well blame it on what you want...new house/new hiding places, too much on my mind, I planned too far ahead...I can't find your gifts.  I have looked in what I consider to be every reasonable location this afternoon but still have not found them.  All I remember was that I thought when I did it, "Oh, now this is a good spot!"

So much for planning ahead; I am back to square one and we are scheduled to leave town for Easter in 31 minutes...but whose counting!

3 Year Old's Perspective of God

The children at breakfast alone this morning...

Enter me: Who threw Cheerios on the floor? 

Caleb: in the sweetest, lispy voice Oh that was me.  God made me.

me: God did not make you throw Cheerios on the floor.

Caleb:  Yeah he did; he used his remote control.

How is one to argue with the remote control capability of God!

God's Word...living and active

This evening while cooking dinner and contemplating Holy Week (what it means for us, all that Jesus endured for us, etc) an old, familiar tune popped into my head.

Hail, Jesus, you're my King

Your life frees me to sing

I will praise you all my days

Your perfect in all your ways

Hail, Jesus you're my Lord

I will obey your word

I want to see your kingdom come

Not my will but yours be done

As I hummed the tune I was struck by how the meaning changed in relation to life's circumstances.  I know the song stays the same - its meaning doesn't change - but it speaks differently to my soul today than it did years ago.  The meaning is deeper; it seems to penetrate further.

Amazing.

God's word doesn't change but it always speaks to us, to our need, to our present.  It continues to amaze me that God's word is living and active and will always speak.  I will never grow tired of it.  (Side note - I have noticed in the past year that I read an author for a book or two and then grow tired of him/her.  I need a change and desire to read something different for a time.)  Correction:  I should not say "I will never" but instead say, "O Lord, please let your word never seem dull within me but for each day ordained may it penetrate and speak and change and challenge."

Family Memo (A.K.A. my rant for the day) and a Caleb moment

I would like to inform my family that it does no one any good for them to wake me up around 3am to tell me they need to go potty if they have already gone in their diaper.  You have on a diaper!  It can wait until the morning.  (Yes, I do understand that you waking up is getting you closer to not having accidents in the night but I don't wet my bed and you have on a diaper so I would rather not be woken up...tonight please tell your father if you want to go potty and get a dry diaper between the hours of 12am and 7am.)

Now on to Caleb's moment from the day...

All four children enjoyed a great deal of time pretending to be a "rock band" today (playing drums, guitar and other instruments as well as dancing and singing) to music from the computer this morning and then again this afternoon.  They listened to some praise music, Christian rap and some of the music from Children's Worship at church.  Caleb's top two picks were B-I-B-L-E by Go Fish and Don't Waste Your Life by LaCrae.  After their concert was over and they were doing their own things I heard Caleb singing while he played.  He sang:

Don't wanna waste your wife, wife, wife...Don't wanna waste your wife, wife, wife...

Unknowingly Witty

Tonight we had spaghetti for dinner.  Hudson ate like a man.  As I was cleaning him up (he actually ate like a messy man) I said, "Hudson, you ate a really good dinner tonight."  Without a moment's hesitation he replied,

"You're welcome."

He turns two on Friday and has already mastered the art of delivery.

Straight from the Reasoned Child

Anna Grace has a knit pants outfit - very cute polka dot ruffle pants with a shirt that has a polka dot pear appliqued on it - that has had her thinking for quite some time apparently.  The last time she put it on she said to herself (I was within earshot), "Oh, I get it; the pear goes with a pair of pants."  Then this morning she calls me into her room, "Mama, I've been thinking.  Do you think they put a pear on this shirt because it goes with a pair of pants?  Because I do; I don't know why they would do it for any other reason."  Everything in life must have a reasonable element/explanation for Anna Grace I already knew.  However today I learned this thought process extends into her wardrobe...I guess I should have realized.

Heaven forbid someone put a pear on her shirt because it is an easy shape to applique or even more crazy someone put a pear on a shirt and then match it with a skirt...Oh my!  She probably would have never been able to wear it because it just didn't make sense!

She Said It

While in the kitchen this afternoon Anna Grace said, "Ummmm, something smells so good."  To which I replied, "That is the soup you said you did not like."  Looking very perplexed at the situation presented to her, she then said, "Oh.  Well I'm still not going to eat it."

~~~~~

And just so you know she does like the soup.  And she will eat it I am confident - the promise of dessert will get her.

I was just wondering

This afternoon while I have been preparing dinner and Hudson has been taking a much needed nap, the Jungle Princess, Thor and Superman (I would share a picture but I am not certain that the Jungle Princess is appropriate for photographs) have managed to defeat Lex Luthor, Black Cat Woman, Hot Pink Cat Woman, and 2 Jokers.

As I washed the last pot I could not help but stop and wonder who has had the most productive afternoon?

~~~

(And yes I know that I am way behind but we are moved so taking some time to catch up seems doable.)

Life Update

I know I am behind on all things related to the blog.  I am going to try and catch up over the next few days.  Before I do I thought giving a fast family update might help.

11/29 - Anna Grace had an amazing birthday party at Homewood Gourmet.  If you are looking for a fun place to have a party and let the children do the cooking I highly recommend this.  It was all taken care of and the children had a blast.  They planned a menu based on her requests and then did the rest - set up, taught the class, served and cleaned up.  All I had to do was invite the girls and bring some balloons - the balloons were technically optional.  There will be more about her party and turning 7 in a separate post.
11/30 - My dad was diagnosed with lung cancer.
12/3 - We received a contract on our house...insisting on a close date of 12/26.
12/8 - My grandmother died (discussed in the previous post)
12/9 - Children's choir performances (another potential upcoming post)
12/19 - We moved out of our house and left for Christmas in Mississippi with my family.  We stayed at my parent's lake house a few nights, with my parents a few nights but most of the time we were with Laura and Heath.  Great fun was had with the whole family.
12/28 - We returned to Birmingham to live with Neal's family until we are able to close on our new house on 1/17 and move on 1/19.

Life has been anything but normal the past few weeks.  We are tremendously thankful to spend time with family making more memories as we "go crazy" (that is what Anna Grace has decided to term this phase of our lives).  It is odd being homeless in a sense but we are grateful for a warm place to call home in the mean time.

God has abundantly provided and blessed.  We shared Christmas trees with the family and kept only two Christmas things with us as we moved from house to house - our advent calendar and our advent devotional.

All four of them worked hard to get the calendar just like they wanted.

Thank you

Thank you to all who have been praying for our family the past few weeks.  Our trip down to Mississippi for the funeral was fast and exhausting but totally worth it.  It is now time to move on to packing as the move date is rapidly approaching.  However before I do, I wanted to share with you some of the possible things small children might say at a funeral...and yes I know because of yesterday's experience.

Dean (as we were turning into the cemetery): This is a nice garden.

Anna Grace (very loudly):  DEAN!  This is not a garden; it is where the dead people are!

Anna Grace (again loudly as the casket was being carried from the hearse to the site):  Is she in that box?!?