When I Was a Child, I Spake as a Child

Those of you with children of your own will understand what I'm talking about when I say that each day is full of surprises.  That is one of the reasons I started this blog, so that I could record some of those surprises in a way that I would really remember those moments.  Take today for example: Nina will not stop trying to crawl (though I do my BEST to make her stop!), Maya brought home kindergarten graduation invitations (*sniff), and Maxwell decided to test the door-stopping ability of the van by shoving his finger in at the last moment before it slid closed.  And yes, it closed on his finger while the Kroger employees on break outside watched the whole thing unfold.  Seriously...who can take all of that, and still be emotionally stable?

What I want to point out is that our kids are constantly doing things just for us - to show us in their own little way that they love us - and those are the things that go unnoticed by us busy parents.  Whether it is picking those "precious" dandelions and bringing in the bouquet to be put on display on the dining room table, requesting "girl time" alone just when you need to start preparing supper, or just looking up at you and giving you a smile that could light up the world, our kids are showing us they love us.

One day soon, I will stop and realize that Maya is sending out college graduation invitations, Max has learned that dandelions are just weeds, and Nina will be too busy to stop and give me a smile.  I hope I will learn to accept these token of love, instead of getting too busy with the less important things in life that take up so much of my time.

Dream a Little Dream

So, after 6 years of marriage, I found out that my hubster isn't as intrigued as I am when I talk about my dreams.  Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, and tell him everything that just happened in the most recent dream.  Last weekend, I realized that my details have been falling on deaf ears.  He's all, "Hello?! It's a dream! Of course you were fishing with a kangaroo...dreams are SUPPOSED to be bizarre!" 

(Eye roll.  Don't insult my dreams.)  

Well.  OK then.  I'll share my fascination with other, more interested, listeners.  My kiddos.  :)

Maya, Maxwell, and I have our fair share of wacky dreams, and we all love to talk about them.  I think it develops imagination, helps the kids become more aware of themselves and their surroundings, and it encourages them to share their thoughts and ideas with me.  Mostly, I just love to talk about dreams.

My strangest dream ever happened when I was in high school.  In it, my entire biology class took a trip into the woods and climbed a rather gigantic hill.  When we were almost to the top, we started sliding in this thick, green goo which sent several of my classmates slipping and sliding out of sight.  I awoke just as I was pulling on the root of a tree, trying to take the last step to the top.

Do I want to know what this dream means?  Not in the least.  I will tell you one thing I learned from this dream, however - I dream in COLOR!  (I always wondered if I dreamed in color or in monochrome, and I'm extremely happy to know that my dreams are just as vibrant as my taste in wall colors.)

In conclusion, you should know I enjoy talking about dreams.  I enjoy hearing about dreams.  And I do not believe that some people do not have dreams.  My theory is that they're just not that interested in remembering them.  

What is your most vivid dream?

  

My Mom is on Facebook!

Where did you hear your latest bit of news?  Facebook?  Twitter?  MySpace?  Currently, others’ life experiences happen right before our eyes.  Did your co-worker recently take a vacation?  Look for her uploaded pictures.  Is your cousin’s birthday today?  Look for that reminder when you log in.  Is your best friend dating a new guy?  Check him out on her profile page before being shocked by his tattoos and piercings.

 

Because of these instant life updates, and because the fastest growing number of Facebook users are women over 55 (source here), our friends’ feeds are becoming more and more sparse.  Maybe you haven’t noticed, or maybe you’re one of the users who are taking advantage of the privacy settings that allow users to decide which friends get to see what.  Either way, our friends’ updates are becoming less divulgent and more filtered.

 

Take a look at some of your friends online.  Has she untagged herself in that unflattering picture you took with friends recently?  Has she made it impossible for friends to post to her page?  Then, yes, you *could* assume that her mom has made the leap to Facebook, and she has made the lunge for the Privacy page.

Making a Fashion Statement

In a society where kids all wear polo shirts, flip flops, and super-short skirts, I happily allow my 4-year-old to wear whatever he wants to wear most days of the week.  (Excluded are Sundays, due to church services.)  Occasionally, he leaves the house in a super-hero costume, or wearing the random fedora he might find lying around the house to our Wednesday night church service.  Once, we went on one of our regular walks around the neighborhood while he was wearing a fireman hat, a batman costume, and riding a stick horse.

At this point, I urge you to think about this: Your child was once a baby.  Do you remember those days of diapers, bottles, bibs, and booties?  Now think about the times in between those ages.  How many do you remember?  How many does your child remember?

As the parent of a kindergartener, I find that there are very few things I can control now that she is in someone else’s care for the majority of the day.  And, along those same lines, there are very few things our children are allowed to control.  So take a minute and decide…is it that important that your child is wearing those name-brand clothes you pick out, or can you let go and let your child express himself however he wants? 

Give it a try…I have found that this decision is less painful, and more entertaining than it previously appeared.