Ruby and Ivy, and Elijah, too.

Elijah's Got Da Moves...video proof

Miss Ruby Likes Ice Cream

For You, Bethany

Baby Ivy
in the outfit you gave her.

Mercy and Grace

Thank you, Lord,
for your mercy and grace.

Mercy---the withholding of what I deserve,
and grace---the giving of what I don't deserve.

Come Back

People often comment after church "Your kids sit so WELL!!!" This is sometimes followed with, "How do you make them do that????"
Such was the case on Sunday.

From the (visiting) pastor's wife.

They have one little boy who is not quite three and he won't sit through a service. While he is quiet and not disruptive, it is because he is allowed to run around in the back during church.

She was seriously looking for some advice, seeing as all of our kids sit quite well through the hour+ service. Sometimes, ok, oftentimes, people are not really asking me, they're just commenting. She was asking, so I tried to answer.

I said, first off, that our kids have been in church from the Sunday after they were born. Seriously. Unless they were born on like a Thursday or Friday. Then I gave myself another week.

Second, I told her that my older kids do help, but like her, I have been on my own at many a service when Dennis has been unable to come with me. (She's "on her own" because her husband is up front preaching.)
That being said, her ratio is 1:1. Mine is now 8:1. There should be no reason why that little guy can't sit through church...
(Ooops! Did my little old church lady did just pop through?)
I told her that I just expect it from them. We will sit through church. That's that.

I don't bring a ton of stuff for them to do. It just ends up all over the floor and the pew anyway. They may write with little notebooks or look at one of the 3 or 4 books from the diaper bag, but that's about it.

I also don't do "children's church" or utilize a nursery. The only time I go out is to feed a nursing baby. I believe families should worship together. Even if all you (the grownup) get out of the service is an out-of-breath feeling of survival after the benediction, your efforts will pay off over time.

I read of a family, the Jeubs, who practice sitting for church at home. I mentioned this to that Pastor's wife. They do a trial run using their couch as the "pew" (or if your church uses chairs then "the chairs".) They practice being quiet and sitting still.

I felt like I didn't answer her question very well "on the spot." But that afternoon as I was washing dishes I had a sort of revelation.

You have to come back.

There are certainly times when you must take your little one out of the sanctuary. But I think the key is to come back.

Otherwise it sure doesn't take long for that little guy to realize that all he has to do is squirm and voila! It's play time!

If you need to take them out to make a correction, then remainder of the correction is to come back in for the rest of the service.

I think now that I'll have a better answer when people ask me how/why the children sit so well.
First: Expect it of them.
Second: Practice at home, if needed.
Third: Come back.

And now you have my unsolicited opinion on that...

I Can't Remember Why They're "Not S'posed Ta"

Tell me again why we're not supposed to let kids blow bubbles in their milk with a straw? It couldn't possibly increase their chance of spilling any more than simply having their arm within 12 inches of the glass, could it? This morning I caught myself about to say "no" and then thought "why not?" This could revolutionize the way kids drink milk around here...

Yeah---She Can't Even Walk

You know how little boys
will say that they want to marry their
mommy or their sister
when they are grown up?

Well, tonight Christopher and Elijah
were having this type of discussion...
who would marry Mommy, Linnea, Ruby, Ivy...

Christopher said maybe he should marry Ivy.
Elijah got just incredulous and said,
"You can't marry Ivy! She can't even walk!!"

Miss Ivy Smiles

I was bored today
while waiting in the Fleet Farm parking lot
for Dennis to get his errands done
so I took some pictures of Ivy
with Dennis' cell phone.

This was too funny not to share!

Having a Big Fight Right Before Church

I'm so glad this
doesn't just happen
in our house.

Having a Big Fight Right Before Church

Something to think about
for tomorrow morning--
and on Mother's Day besides!

How Smart Are You??

How smart are you?
1. How do you put a giraffe into a refrigerator?
Stop and think about it and decide on your answer before you scroll down.


The correct answer is: Open the refrigerator, put in the giraffe, and close the door. This question tests whether you tend to do simple things in an overly complicated way.

2 . How do you put an elephant into a refrigerator?

Did you say, Open the refrigerator, put in the elephant, and close the refrigerator?

Wrong Answer.

Correct Answer: Open the refrigerator, take out the giraffe, put in the elephant and close the door. This tests your ability to think through the repercussions of your previous actions.

3. The Lion King is hosting an animal conference. All the animals
Attend .... Except one. Which animal does not attend?


Correct Answer: The Elephant. The elephant is in the refrigerator. You just put him in there, remember? This tests your memory. Okay, even if you did not answer the first three questions correctly, you still have one more chance to show your true abilities.

4. There is a river you must cross but it is used by crocodiles, and
You do not have a boat. How do you manage it?


Correct Answer:? You jump into the river and swim across. Have you not been listening? All the crocodiles are attending the Animal Meeting.
This tests whether you learn quickly from your mistakes.
According to Anderson Consulting Worldwide, around 90% of the
Professionals they tested got all questions wrong, but many preschoolers got several correct answers.. Anderson Consulting says this conclusively disproves the theory that most professionals have the brains of a four-year-old.

Tick Removal

The woodticks have been terrible here this spring!
YUCK!!!

My aunt sent me this.
Worth a try!

A School Nurse has written the info below-- good enough to share --And it really works!!
I had a pediatrician tell me what she believes is the best way to remove a tick. This is great, because it works in those places where it's some times difficult to get to with tweezers: between toes, in the middle of a head full of dark hair, etc.
Apply a glob of liquid soap to a cotton ball. Cover the tick with the soap-soaked cotton ball and swab it for a few seconds (15-20), the tick will come out on its own and be stuck to the cotton ball when you lift it away.
This technique has worked every time I've used it (and that was frequently), and it's much less traumatic for the patient and easier for me.
Unless someone is allergic to soap, I can't see that this would be damaging in any way. I even had my
doctor's wife call me for advice because she had one stuck to her back and she couldn't reach it with
tweezers. She used this method and immediately called me back to say, "It worked!"

Wordless Wednesday

School-Homing: Hmmmmmm....

an article from The Onion

Increasing Number Of Parents Opting To Have Children School-Homed

MARCH 29, 2010 | ISSUE 46•13

Parents of school-homed children say they relish the extra time they are able to spend away from their kids.

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WASHINGTON—According to a report released Monday by the U.S. Department of Education, an increasing number of American parents are choosing to have their children raised at school rather than at home.

Deputy Education Secretary Anthony W. Miller said that many parents who school-home find U.S. households to be frightening, overwhelming environments for their children, and feel that they are just not conducive to producing well-rounded members of society.

Thousands of mothers and fathers polled in the study also believe that those running American homes cannot be trusted to keep their kids safe.

"Every year more parents are finding that their homes are not equipped to instill the right values in their children," Miller said. "When it comes to important life skills such as proper nutrition, safe sex, and even basic socialization, a growing number of mothers and fathers think it's better to rely on educators to guide and nurture their kids."

"And really, who can blame them?" Miller continued. "American homes have let down our nation's youth time and again in almost every imaginable respect."

According to the report, children raised at home were less likely to receive individual adult attention, and were often subjected to ineffective and wildly inconsistent disciplinary measures. The study also found that many parents expressed concerns that, when at home, their children were being teased and bullied by those older than themselves.

In addition to providing better supervision and overall direction, school-homing has become popular among mothers and fathers who just want to be less involved in the day-to-day lives of their children.

"Parents are finding creative ways to make this increasingly common child-rearing track work," Miller said. "Whether it's over-relying on after-school programs and extracurricular activities, or simply gross neglect,† school-homing is becoming a widely accepted method of bringing children up."

Despite the trend's growing popularity, Miller said that school programs are often jeopardized or terminated because shortsighted individuals vote against tax increases intended to boost educational spending.

"The terrifying reality we're facing is that the worst-equipped people you could possibly imagine may actually be forced to take care of their children," Miller said.

Parents who have decided to school-home their children have echoed many of Miller's concerns. Most said that an alarming number of legal guardians such as themselves lack the most basic common sense required to give children the type of instruction they need during crucial developmental years.

"It's really a matter of who has more experience in dealing with my child," Cincinnati- resident Kevin Dufrense said of his decision to have his 10-year-old son Jake, who suffers from ADHD and dyslexia, school-homed. "These teachers are dealing with upwards of 40 students in their classrooms at a time, so obviously they know a lot more about children than someone like me, who only has one son and doesn't know where he is half the time anyway."

"Simply put, it's not the job of parents to raise these kids," Dufrense added.

Though school-homing has proven to be an ideal solution for millions of uninvolved parents, increasingly overburdened public schools have recently led to a steady upswing in the number of students being prison-homed.

Elijah's Got 'Da Moooves

Some More Food for Thought

Could big families actually HELP the environment??