Tuesday, January 3, 2012

For mothers of boys:


I saw this on Pinterest and NEVER want to forget it!


27 RULES for MOTHERS OF BOYS Above all...Share the Bible with your son. Show him GOD's love daily and be a Christian example to him. 1. Teach him the words for how he feels. Your son will scream out of frustration and hide out of embarrassment. He'll cry from fear and bite out of excitement. Let his body move by the emotion, but also explain to him what the emotion is and the appropriate response to that emotion for future reference. Point out other people who are feeling the same thing and compare how they are showing that emotion. Talk him through your emotions so that someday when he is grown, he will know the difference between angry and embarrassed; between disappointment and grief. 2. Be a cheerleader for his life There is no doubt that you are the loudest person in the stands at his t-ball games. There is no doubt that he will tell you to "stop, mom" when you sing along to his garage band's lyrics. There is no doubt that he will get red-faced when you show his prom date his pictures from boy scouts. There is no doubt that he is not telling his prom date about your blog where you've been bragging about his life from his first time on the potty to the citizenship award he won in ninth grade. He will tell you to stop. He will say he's embarrassed. But he will know that there is at least one person that is always rooting for him. 3. Teach him how to do laundry ..and load the dishwasher, and iron a shirt and cut the grass and hang a picture and change a tire and fix the chair. He may not always choose to do it. He may not ever have to do it. But someday his wife will thank you. 4. Read to him and read with him. Emilie Buchwald said, "Children become readers on the laps of their parents." Offer your son the opportunity to learn new things, believe in pretend places, and imagine bigger possibilities through books. Let him see you reading...reading the Bible, the paper, reading novels, reading magazine articles. Help him understand that writing words down is a way to be present forever. Writers are the transcribers of history and memories. They keep a record of how we lived at that time; what we thought was interesting; how we spoke to each other; what was important. And Readers help preserve and pass along those memories. 5. Encourage him to dance. Dance, rhythm, and music are cultural universals. No matter where you go, no matter who you meet - they have some form of the three. It doesn't have to be good. Just encourage your son that when he feels it, it's perfectly fine to go ahead and bust a move. 6. Make sure he has examples of Godly men who are powerful because of their brains, their determination, and their integrity. The examples of men with big muscles and a uniform (like Batman and Tim Tebow) will surround your son from birth. But make sure he also knows about men who kick a$s because of their brains (Steve Jobs), and their pen (Moses, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John), and their words (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.), and their determination (John the Baptist), and their ideas (The Wright Brothers), and their integrity (Officer Frank Shankwitz), and fearlessness (Neil Armstrong), and their ability to keep their mouths closed when everyone else is screaming (Jackie Robinson) and their driving skill (Jeff Gordon). 7. Make sure he has examples of women who are beautiful because of their brains, their determination, their integrity and their Christian example. The examples of traditionally beautiful women (like Cinderella and Princess Jasmine) will surround your son from birth. But make sure he knows about women who are beautiful from the inside out because of their love of GOD (Mary, Ruth, Mother Teresa), brains (Madame Marie Curie), and their pen (Louisa May Alcott), and their words (Eleanor Roosevelt), and their determination (Anne Sullivan), and their ideas (Lottie Moon) and their integrity (Annie Armstrong), and fearlessness (Ameila Earhart), and their ability to open their mouths and take a stand when everyone else is silent (Corrie Ten Boom). 8. Be an example of a beautiful woman with brains, determination, and integrity. You already are all of those things. If you ever fear that you are somehow incapable of doing anything - remember this: If you have done any of the following: a) grew life b) impossibly and inconceivably got it out of your body c) taken care of a newborn d) made a pain go away with a kiss e) taught someone to read f) taught a toddler to eat with a utensil g) cleaned up diarrhea without gagging h) loved a child enough to be willing to give your life for them (regardless if they are your own) or i) found a way to be strong when that child is suffering...you are a superhero. do not doubt yourself for one second. Seriously. 9. Teach him to have manners because its nice. and it will make the world a little better of a place. 10. Give him something to believe in--GOD--- Because someday he will be afraid, or nervous, or heartbroken, or lost, or just need you, and you won't be able to be there. Give him something to turn to when it feels like he is alone---JESUS CHRIST--- so that he knows that he will never be alone; never, never, never. 11. Teach him that there are times when you need to be gentle like with babies, and flowers, and animals, and other people's feelings. 12. Let him ruin his clothes Resolve to be cool about dirty and ruined clothes. You'll be fighting a losing battle if you get upset every time he ruins another piece of clothing. Don't waste your energy being angry about something inevitable. Boys tend to learn by destroying, jumping, spilling, falling, and making impossible messes. Dirty, ruined clothes are just par for the course. 13. Learn how to throw a football or how to use a hockey stick, or read music, or draw panda bears (or in my case alpacas), or the names of different train engines, or learn to speak Elvish, or recognize the difference between Gryffindor and Slytherin, or the lyrics to his favorite song. Be in his life, not as an observer but as an active participant. 14. Go outside with him turn off the television, unplug the video games, put your cellphone on the charger, even put your camera away. Just go outside and follow him around. Watch his face, explore his world, and let him ask questions. It's like magic. Teach him to appreciate God's earthly wonders...the sunrise, the stars, and the dandelion. 15. Let him lose Losing sucks. Everybody isn't always a winner. Even if you want to say, "You're a winner because you tried," don't. He doesn't feel like a winner, he feels sad and crappy and disappointed. And that's a good thing, because sometimes life also sucks, no matter how hard (as moms) we try to make it not suck for our kids. This practice will do him good later when he loses again (and again, and again, and again, and again.....) Instead make sure he understands that - sometimes you win - sometimes you lose. But that doesn't mean you ever give up. 16. Give him opportunities to help others There is a big difference in giving someone the opportunity to help and forcing someone to help. Giving the opportunity lights a flame in the heart and once the help is done the flame shines brighter and asks for more opportunities. Be an example of helping others in your own actions and the way your family helps each other and helps others together. 17. Remind him that practice makes perfect. This doesn't just apply to performance-based activities (like sports and music) but also applies to everything in life. You become a better writer by writing. You become a better listener by listening. You become better speaker by speaking. Show your son this when he is just young enough to understand (that means from birth, folks - they are making sense of the world as soon as they arrive), practice trick-or-treating at your own front door before the real thing. Practice how you will walk through airport security before a trip. Practice how you order your own food from the fast food cashier. Practice, practice, practice. 18. Answer him when he asks, "Why?" Answer him, or search for the answer together. Show him the places to look for the answers (like his dad, or grandparents, or his aunts/uncles, or his books, or valid internet searches). Pose the question to him so he can begin thinking about answers himself. Someday, when he needs to ask questions he's too embarrassed to ask you - he'll know where to go to find the right answers. 19. Always carry band-aids and wipes on you. especially the wipes. 20. Let his dad teach him how to do things ...without interrupting about how to do it the 'right way.' If you let his dad show and teach and discover with your son while he is growing up, some day down the road (after a short period of your son believing his dad knows nothing), he will come to the realization that his dad knows everything. You will always be his mother, but in his grown-up man heart and mind, his dad will know the answers. And this will be how, when your son is too busy with life to call and chat with his mom, you will stay connected to what is happening in his life. Because he will call his dad for answers, and his dad will secretly come and ask you. 21. Give him something to release his energy drums, a pen, a punching bag, wide open space, water, a dog. Give him something to go crazy with - or he will use your stuff. and then you'll sorry. 22. Build him forts with him. Forts have the ability to make everyday normal stuff into magic. Throw the couch cushions, a couple blankets, and some clothespins and you can transform your living room into the cave of wonders. Dig a trench, cover it with straw, have him use his imagination. For the rest of his life, he'll be grateful to know that everyday normal stuff has the potential to be magical. 23. Take him to new places Because it will make his brain and his heart open up wider, and the ideas and questions and memories will rush in. 24. Kiss him Any mother of sons will tell you that little boys are so loving and sweet. They can be harsh and wild and destructive during most of the day. But there are these moments when they are so kind and sensitive and tender. So much so that it can cause you to look around at the inward, reserved grown men in your life and think, 'what happens in between that made you lose that?' Let's try to stop the cycle by kissing them when they're loving and kissing them even more when they're wild. Kissing them when they're 2 months and kissing them when they're 16 years old. You're the mom - you can go ahead and kiss him no matter how big he gets - and make sure he knows it. p.s. (this one is just as important for dad's too). 24. Teach him that family is of major importance. At the end of the day, that is what you come home to---that is who will love you (even when they don't like what you did or said) and always be there in spirit---if not person---to support him along his way. Extended family provides a living history to your son....always show respect for your family in front of your son. Teach him that family is love. 26. Teach him it's okay to wear pink, to know the difference between blue and periwinkle, and to appreciate the fine arts. Museums, art galleries, and paint chips are all ways to explore a little more 'refinement' and things your future daughter-in-law will thank you for as well. 27. Be home base You are home to him. When he learns to walk, he will wobble a few feet away from you and then come back, then wobble away a little farther and then come back. When he tries something new, he will look for your proud smile. When he learns to read, he will repeat the same book to you twenty times in a row, because you're the only one who will listen that many times. When he plays his sport, he will search for your face in the stands. When he is sick, he will call you. When he really messes up, he will call you. When he is grown and strong and tough and big and he feels like crying, he will come to you; because a man can cry in front of his mother without feeling self-conscious. Even when he grows up and has a new woman in his life and gets a new home, you are still his mother; home base, the ever constant, like the sun. Know that in your heart and everything else will fall into place. Adapted from Pinterest, courtesy of many wise contributors

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

Tour de France

Okay so it only took me 2 months to post this. But everyone has been asking to see pics.

here you go, starting downstairs:

jiovan and Corbin's room. Those doors open and it goes out to a deck/balcony)
another view of J&C's room
Downstairs bathroom
Our bedroom (doors also open going to balcony shared w/ j&c)
another view of our room
our bathroom
balcony shared w/ jiovan and corbin
view from our room out the doors
laundry room (go through and there is a door to the babies' room)
babies room (that door goes outside to where we hang clothes)
another view of babies room (that door on the left is a storage closet)
another angle of babies room
area where we hang clothes
outside shower for after we go to the sandy beach
(this only has cold water and they babies HATE it)
this is right next to where we hang clothes and it goes up to the front of the house
this goes down to the back
two outside storage rooms. (dirt floors.)
front of the house
looking at the front door
(the wood doors to the right open to the living room. Open to glass doors)
kitchen
again, the kitchen
going out of the kitchen
view from kitchen window
just out of the kitchen . door to left is the front door. the door straight ahead is the 1/2 bath and the suitcase is our "baby gate" to the stairs. We have tried a couple different baby gates but they aren't big enough. this suitcase works perfect for now.
living area
living area going out to the upstairs balcony
balcony
and another view of the balcony.


*** not pictured : 1/2 bath upstairs. I will post later there is just a toilet and a TINY sink.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Here's to a new Country.

So we made it to France with the 4 boys. Traveling with four wasn't too bad other than in Paris we had to pick up our luggage and recheck it with a new airline at the same time checking in our double strollers as well. so now we had loose 4/5 year old kids and each of us carrying a twin, backpack, and a duffle bag. amazingly it wasn't as bad as you would think. all the boys slept most of the first 10 hr plane ride and was entertained by the dvd player the rest of it the other two plane rides were not too long. and we got here about midnight (france time. which is 8 hrs ahead of home). We had to take a couple cars one for bags and a couple for the family. but we got here.
(the view from the balcony)

This time we have a house...well i guess more like a condo. but its a lot bigger than i was expecting. It is two levels, on the first floor is the living area, ½ bath, kitchen and an AMAZING balcony. On the balcony theres some lounge chairs, bbq and table. you look out to lush green trees of many kinds with a row of rooftops poking through just before the ocean. Part of the ocean goes to the horizon the other part you can see the another part of the island. At night it is also gorgeous looking at the night lights over there. Downstairs there is three bedrooms, Jiovan and corbin sleep in one, it has two beds and french doors that go to the downstairs balcony that is shared with the Master bedroom. The master has its own bathroom with a pretty good sized tub. Then the babies sleep in the other room. It has two beds with a matress under each of them. The babies sleep on the matress on the floor since they should still be in cribs. In that room there is a door to go outside to a little patio where you hang the laundry to dry. Next to the patio is a little outdoor shower. As you go into the babies room is a small room that holds the washer. It is a very small washer and the wierdest one I’ve seen to date. After you open the lid at the top you have to also open the drum of the washer. Then you pour the soap/bleach/softener into the lid. It seems to work well And I actually like hanging the clothes out on the line to dry. Possibly better than having a dryer. Next to the laundry room is another bathroom that has a toilet and shower. All the doors are heavy dark wood doors. Its all furnished and the people who own it left most of there stuff here which i wasn't used to and it was hard to feel at home at first but now it's starting to feel normal.

we live right next to the ocean but right in front of us is too rocky but the sandy beach is to the right about 1/2 mile and there is a beach that had really fine rocks to the left about 1/4 mile. We've been to both and LOVE the rock one because it doesn't hurt your feet and the clean up is SO EASY you can just brush the rocks off. The boys love going to the beach and are always asking when we can go next. I'd be going quite often if it wasn't for the babies.

We're still waiting for them to get us the car that will fit all of us. (It's a little more difficult in Europe to do this since the average size car is the size of a mini cooper) so I haven't been to the grocery store yet or anything so I haven't had to talk/try to talk to anyone yet. We'll be starting french lessons as soon as we get a regular schedule down. Jiovan and Corbin started school today and will be there from 8-4. It is so hard to have them go knowing that none of the other kids will be speaking English. Jiovan says he's just not going to talk to anyone. I know it'll be good for them and they will learn quickly, but it's still REALLY weird to be here with just the babies.
Vic left on an away trip on Saturday and everything went well until my dear little corbin decided he should stick the little had to the lego guy in his ear. I was in the shower when Jiovan came running in to tell me Corbin stuck the lego hand in his ear and then pushed it in with his finger. So I told corbin to come in my room and put his ear on the bed and NOT put his finger in his ear until I got out. So I hurried to finish showering all the while thinking what the heck am I going to do if I can NOT get it out?! I have the number of a english speaking guy "in case of an emergancy". but really, call him over a lego hand in a child's ear?! Luckly the I could see the very end of it and was able to reach it with tweezers.

The babies have learned to crawl onto the couch now which wouldn't be a big deal if they a) knew how to get down feet first instead of head first and b) the floor wasn't all tile. I swear they are going to knock a few screws loose if they don't figure it out quickly.

I have been really "states sick". It's hard to leave the comforts of the states. The 24 hour stores, the dr's, the teachers, my family. people who speak english. Just the regular ol stuff that I grew up with knowing... but it seems like it wont be too hard to enjoy here.



Tuesday, February 8, 2011

I finally did it.

I finally took the time to do it. I went private. I hate private blogs because I always forget to check them. But I know people who create open blogs to let people know of updates. Maybe next year right?

Right now I'm in Spain visiting Victor for a couple weeks while my Mom and family take care of all the kiddos back home. I am eternally in debt to them for this. It was a necessary trip though.

The babies are doing great. They have started eating baby food (total nightmare if you are not fast enough). Though they are doing great with it. They are able to roll around now. This does create a problem when one rolls just right to kick the other in the head. It's amazing how often this actually happens.

Jiovan is still doing his pre-school. He's such a smart little boy! And it is amazing the things they start to do at home when they are in school. He is a perfectionist and is ALWAYS still working on his stuff when it's time to go. 99% of the time we are finishing his work when we get home. I'm so proud of him and how well he is doing though. 100% worth the time and money spent going to this pre-school. Talent sprouts is the best there is, I'm sure of it :)

Corbin I think needs a little extra attention now that Jiovan is in school and the babies have been born. Maybe he's having an identity crisis. Middle child syndrome. He is my snuggle bug and love him to pieces. He can't wait to start pre-school. I just hope we'll be somewhere that he can go though I highly doubt it.

Victor is doing great with his Volleyball here in Teruel, Spain. they are in the top 3 and I'm sure they are capable of taking another championship.

I have started working 2-3 days a week at the day care at Desert Palms. I thought it would give me something to do, a little extra cash, and a distraction from having Vic gone. I was wrong. It is just tonz more work to get all the kids ready and out the door to get to work and I'm always getting off right at bed time. But the extra cash is good and has really helped even though it is very little.

All in all we are doing pretty good. Everyone is healthy and I could not be any more grateful for that.


Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Christmas

Best present by far was Vic coming home for about 5 days!
couldn't have enjoyed it more!










My parents gave the babies Johnny jump ups and they LOVE them!! (i love them too)

The twins blessing

Vic came back from Spain for only 5 days so we were unable to have the traditional Sunday blessing for the babies so we just got my family together and did them at my grandpa's house. It was short and sweet and very casual.
My family. I can't believe how big my older boys are getting!


My siblings. Not too often are we all together.

the whole gang... minus Scott. It is finally not MY husband missing from the picture!


my awesome sisters. really couldn't ask for a greater family.

Great grandpa Mont, Grandpa Mac and Grandma Mac.