Tangram Battleground

We received a bucket of tangrams this summer from generous friends. My thought was to use them for math and for the littles to use as an activity one day during our school session. I suspected that O and R would enjoy them, but didn't foresee this: a long wall, cannons, and gun set up for battle. O definitely has an engineer's mind!

(I also like to take pictures of creative works like this so that we can preserve the memory and still preserve my sanity, too. This kind of project can easily take over our living space and lead to conflict when the littles come around to admire/knock down. What a fun collection I will have of projects over the years!)

"Early" Toilet Training

This is a post that I should put a lot of time into. There is a wealth of information out there on toilet training. I would like to cite those good articles and sources... but quite frankly, I just don't have the time nor desire to do all that work. I'm busy with other things. . . such as taking my 2 year old to the potty.

T has been wearing underwear successfully for the past 3 weeks (prior to his second birthday). Both of my bigger boys were in underwear between 18 months and 2 years and they were in underwear all of the time- day and night- with rarely a wet accident. (No accidents involving solid waste.)

Most people don't ask me about this, but they do seem surprised. My theory is that people don't really want to know HOW I do this. . . because they are not ready to put forth the effort. I'm convinced that toilet training is mostly about the parents.

I don't like changing dirty diapers (especially after the first 6 months or so). I don't like washing and folding and dealing with the cloth diapers all that much, either. And I love the feel of a little bum in my hand. So, I have incentive.

Then, I read that worldwide, most children are toilet trained by 18 months. I thought about babies in Africa and the Native Americans. I read about the steady increase in the age of children who wear diapers in the U.S.A. and its connection with the ease and availability of disposable diapers. I read the disposable diaper's package and found out that the fecal material was supposed to be dumped in the toilet before disposing of the diaper (and I didn't know anyone who was doing that)... and I thought, "WHY dump the matter there? Why not just HAVE it there and be done with it?"

I have friends who have used infant awareness (or elimination control method) with their babies. I didn't want to do that with my 3 week old babies (the mental picture was wrong for me). Then I had more children and I didn't want to take the time to do it (while the house was falling apart around me). I don't see myself as extreme, but I want to be practical and I see advantages to having my children toilet trained at a young age.

Most of the time, I think the wait for toilet training is connected with a mother who doesn't want to take the time to take the baby to the toilet. I would rather take the time to go to the toilet and save myself the diaper change. I also want going on the toilet to be NORMAL to my children. When we introduce the potty at age 3, I'm not surprised that children balk. Why, all of a sudden, are we changing things on them? They were accustomed to soiling themselves (after all, that's what we allow/train them to do). "Start as you intend to go" is a motto I love, and I think it applies well to toilet training.

So, I came up with my own strategies that seemed to work for our family. Here are some of my tips:

1)Take the baby to the potty whenever you can tell he is going to the bathroom. Then he can continue the process on the toilet. (You can tell when they are grunting and making faces!) As he is on the potty, make a sound to signify using the toilet. We make a psssss sound, like running water. This becomes a verbal cue.

2)Take the baby (I started at 6 months or so) to the potty at regular times. My children would be on the potty first thing in the morning (when I'd change a diaper anyway) and always before their bath (when the water was filling). Not only did I use a verbal cue, but I added a hand gesture.

3)Take the baby (I did this around age 1) potty whenever you would be changing their diaper. This is more often in the morning and less in the afternoon. It doesn't take too much attention to figure out how often or regularly your child needs to use the toilet. Use the verbal cue and gesture.

4)Celebrate when they use the toilet correctly! Words of praise mean a lot to a one year old and your baby LOVES when you clap for him. Later, I used the JuicePlus gummies as a (healthy) reward. Recently, I would reward T for staying dry AND for going on the potty; that seemed effective.

5)Allow the baby's bum to be diaper free sometimes. Not only is this good for air circulation for rashes or eczema, it is just healthy for the skin to breathe. It's also an opportunity to catch them in the act and use the verbal cue and practice walking to the potty.

6)Make it fun! T thinks it's fun if we RUN to the potty. So, when I see him start to fidget or grab at his shorts I make it a game: "Let's run to the potty!" or "Let's race to the potty!"

7)In general, don't ASK if they want to/need to go potty. This is a waste of time because they will (almost) always say "no." But you know, or you can guess when they need to go. Don't ask them; tell them: "It's time to go to the potty now!" I expect obedience in this as I do in all things. They don't have to actually eliminate, but they will sit on the potty when I ask them to.

Honestly, it has so much to do with the child. "They" say that girls are generally easier to train, but my L will STILL be the one to willfully choose not to use the toilet. She knew the same things as the boys knew at age 2, but had a defiant streak.

It also has everything to do with me. Can I be encouraging and excited? Do I huff and puff when there is an accident? Does it bother me to change wet clothes, or do I see the value in moving toward toilet training? Do I have the time and energy it takes to pursue toilet training? Do I have the money and energy not to toilet train? Will it bother me to get up (several times) during dinner when I hear, "Mommy, need go pee-pee!" Am I willing to even get up in the NIGHT again if that same little voice calls to me from the darkened room beside mine? Can I stay the course? (This is the question in SO MUCH of what I do!)

I tell you, it IS so rewarding and fun when your two year old wears unders. It IS so much easier and cheaper and cleaner (kind of!). I love it and it's worth it to me, and so I'm celebrating T's success.

Trial Period

Here, I'm referring to B.

No, he is not in a trial period at work. Apparently, he really has the job and they are "very pleased" thus far with his work. (We are still hoping to hear that he passed the Bar, but not expecting to hear until October.) He is LOVING his work at the firm. It is so fun to have my husband come home at 5:30 with a smile on his face. He has lots to tell us over dinner and he looks forward to going to work in the morning. He is busy and he loves it. What a great thing for our family!

B is going TO trial tomorrow with his firm. This is his first case to take to court (he's done a lot of work on this case even though it's not HIS case) and it's keeping us up late tonight. Woo Hoo! These are the thrills in our new lawyerly life.

It's Confusing

We have started using essential oils around our home, due in large part to a dear friend of mine who is well-versed in the healing power of plants. When the younger two started runny noses and night coughs, I therefore brought out the new oil diffuser and set it up in the upstairs bedrooms.

The really cool thing about the diffuser is that it lights up and you can change the colors of the lights- red, blue, green, white. This, in itself, makes it a sought-after novelty. And come on, isn't it REALLY cool that you can watch water vapor mist into the air, laden with richly scented, healing oils? If I had time, I could just sit and watch the vapor (as the children change the color of the lights over and over again).

The first night, I put the diffuser in L's room. She especially liked it because of the light it provided (she's never been one to feel comfortable in the dark).

Tonight I put the diffuser in the boy's room, where their fan can aid the air circulation.

After the children were all in bed, L came quietly back down the stairs. B asked her what she was doing, to which she replied,
"I'm going to ask Mom if she's going to put the CONfuser in my room."

T Turns Two!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to the littlest Curtis man!

We celebrated today in the usual way: a birthday banner and steamers to decorate, a birthday breakfast (today was waffles with fresh peaches), and a birthday dinner followed by cake and ice cream. Two families that are friends from law school came over to celebrate with us. We are so thankful the Martins and the Leavitts have shared life with us over the past few years. They know all of T's history! We enjoyed watermelon and sweet potatoes because they are some of T's favorite foods. (But we also had spice rubbed flank steak with spicy peach bourbon sauce, salad, and delicious green beans from Mrs. Martin.)

T had a two layer butter cake, frosted with chocolate icing and a train on top. He loves things that GO.

There are so many things I'd like to write about my boy. . . it would be a very long post! I'm so thankful for him, for the JOY he brings to our family. I love all of his talking, his sweet inflections and questions. I love that he still loves to run to me for a hug, or just to wrap his arms around my legs for comfort. (Yes, he still snakes his little hand down my shirt for comfort, too, when he thinks he can get away with it!) I love that he says, "Love ou, Mommy" of his own accord. I love when I lay him down to sleep and he says, "play trains wake up?" as he usually does. I always answer, "Yes, you can play trains when you wake up." Then, he asks me, "R play trains?" I assure him that R can play trains, too. "O want to play trains with me?" He tends to run through the whole list of family members any time something is in question. This week B patched up a hole in the wall of the boys' bedroom. Each time we were near it, T would run down the list: "Owen no touch it? R no touch it? L no touch it? Daddy no touch it? Mommy no touch it?"

I love that T plays with baby dolls with L (4), tenderly carrying them, kissing them, and putting them to bed. Today, he held the doll in front of him and said, "Look, Mom! Baby looking at you!" He has such a sweet side.

I love that T wrestles with the big boys (with abandon!). He can hold his own quite well- and he loves it. "Run into YOU!" he will say, before bowling you over. He's amazingly strong; definitely plays like a linebacker. I've had to ask him to go easy on me. Now he'll say, "May I knock you, Mommy?" or "Shoot gun at you?" (He likes the dart guns that the big boys use.)

I'm so thankful that T is maturing in ways that really benefit our family. He is able to sit still for longer periods of time during family worship. He can help set the table. He has learned that obedience is, "first time, right (a)way, with (a) happy heart." He wears underwear and tells us when he needs to use the restroom (even in the night).

Oh, his smile is winsome! His dimple precocious! I can't imagine my days without him, for he is our cheerful, two-year-old T. What blessing!

The Way They Think

At lunch, O (7) says, "Mom, do you want to hear a joke? I haven't thought of the end of it yet." Ummm. . .

Near the end of our first long day of homeschooling, R (5) began to grumble about his work. When I asked him to leave the table and go to his bed he started crying. Then I told him to go to his bed- and he fell to the floor, crying. As I offered my hand to help him up, he continued his resistance (disobedience). We reconvened in the privacy of the laundry room and when he had sufficient self-control we discussed what had just occurred.

I asked if he had obeyed me and his response was, "No."

Did you go upstairs the first time I asked you? "No," he said.

Were you working with a cheerful heart? "No," he admitted.

Did you obey me right away? "No," he answered without hesitation.

"Then, R, you deserve". . . I began, when he interrupted with:

"But, Mom! (I love it when they call me ButtMom- ha!) I COULDN'T go upstairs when you asked me to! I was WAILING so loudly that I SURELY would have woken up L and T from their naps! You wouldn't like that, would you?" Ummm. . .

Easy (Chick)Peasy Hummus

Liv and I whipped up some hummus yesterday. It was hot here, and this was just the thing to hold over every one's appetites until dinner. I've tried many variations of this without resolve to stick to one, but this particular recipe was good enough to share. We love it with crackers and veggies for dipping. Enjoy!



Easy (Chick)Peasy Hummus

2 cans garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
Juice of 1 lemon (a little zest is good, too!)
1/3 cup of olive oil (less if your processor can do it!)
1/3 cup of fresh mint leaves
1 tsp. cumin
salt to taste

1) Put all ingredients in processor and run until smooth.

How Can I Say No?

T (turns 2 next week) is talking up a storm. He has hit the language explosion stage and we are all getting a kick out of it. He amazes us with all he says- not only mimicking, but putting together and expressing his own thoughts and desires. When we went to IL at the beginning of the summer he was repeating words; now he has full sentences such as:

Mommy, don't touch wall?
O will get it?
I need to run to potty.
I read to you?
You read book to me?
Wear special shoes.
Get down, please, Daddy.
L hurt me!
R ride his bike.
Play with trains after rest?

As you see, questions are a large part of his dialogue. He isn't always intending to ask something, but his inflection makes many things sound like questions.

Yesterday T had a bag clip from the kitchen and he was playing with it as if it were jaws closing on B and my legs. He would say "get YOU!" and the clamp the clip together. This was followed by "Open, please, Daddy (or Mommy)?"

"Aw." B said at one point. "How could I say no?" (T is just so cute and delicious to us!)

After a slight pause, T chimed in. . . "No?"

Special Shoes

L(4) will be a flower girl in my sister's upcoming wedding. While we were in IL there was much talk of the wedding, Livia had a special outing to try on flower girl dresses, and we talked about all the special things that come with being a flower girl. She isn't necessarily excited, but she likes the idea that she has an important "job" to do, "laying down the flowers for Aunt Cara to walk on."

One day while we were in IL, my mom came home from shopping and bore wedding clothes for the boys and "special shoes" for L. Oh, how the special shoes were admired. L would carry them around in their box, but if you wanted to see them, she'd quickly unpack them and don them for a little parade. Big deal shoes. (Now that I think of it, I don't know that L (4) has EVER worn a pair of NEW dress shoes!)

T (23 months) loves shoes. He loves to wear his. He loves to put on anyone else's. He's surprisingly adept at wearing very large shoes. This boy is HAPPY when he is wearing shoes. Well, it pained his little heart that he was not allowed to wear Liv's "'pecial shoes." He cried whenever she carried the box through the room.

Of course, a grandma just can't take this. Good Grandma L brought home special shoes for T on her next trip out. Oh, my goodness. He has been wearing the special shoes everywhere! (They may not look so special by Labor Day weekend's wedding.) He wears them so often (and because of how they are made?) that his little feet stink (all the way back from IL to VA I could smell those stinky little toes in their special shoes behind me!).


Here is just one photo of T in his special shoes, sleeping on the floor in WI. (Yes, he insisted on wearing them to BED- and we were okay with that.) If he woke in the night he would notice if they weren't on and he would pointedly ask for "'pecial shoes?" He loves them.

Bombay Salad

We tried a new salad for lunch today and it received high reviews. (Everyone liked at least SOME of the things in the salad and thus it was a success.) B and I especially enjoyed this as a light lunch after church on a sweltering day. I think this is perfect for hot summer days, using up random pieces of produce, and would be ideal for a more sophisticated picnic.


Bombay Salad
1 cup quinoa
1 and 1/3 cup water
1/3 cup apricot preserves
1/4 fresh lime juice
2 tsp. curry powder
2 tsp. olive oil
1 garlic clove, crushed
1-2 cups diced chicken
3-4 cups cut fruit (grapes, mango, pineapple, papaya, peach)
1-2 cups chopped spinach or other greens
1/3 cup slivered almonds, toasted
salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook quinoa according to directions and allow to cool. (Using less water than it calls for results in dryer quinoa.)
2. Combine apricot preserves through garlic clove in a small bowl. Whisk until blended.
3. In a large serving bowl, mix quinoa, diced chicken, spinach, and sauce.
4. Add cut fruit and toasted nuts; stir gently to mix.
5. Garnish with lime slices and fresh mint sprigs, if desired.

Notes: I used mango, small (uncut) grapes, and a peach. The mango was especially delicious. I also used spinach, which turned out well. The salad was beautiful. (I have pictures to prove it, but left my camera cable in IL... so it may be awhile before I add them.) It was also delicious and easy to prepare. Enjoy!

BIG News of Provision

If I was more savvy and had more time on my hands, I'd insert a drumroll HERE.

B has a job.

He took the Bar Exam; we'll find out the results in October. (I have no doubts, but what do I know?)

He has done some work over the past 9 months for a firm here in Lynchburg, which started as a connection with a neighbor who had more work than he could possibly do on his own. We see God's hand of provision: He placed us in THIS house three years ago according to His mercy and good plan. Said neighbor has been instrumental in recommending B for a job (when there wasn't even a vacant position to be filled).

Next Monday, B will start work in Lynchburg, VA.

We won't be moving. Praise God!

We will be entering a new phase: the scraping-by phase, which will hopefully be followed by the paying-off-debt phase.

We are SO VERY thankful, especially at a time when so many people lack means of income. The Lord has always provided for our family, and once again we see His provision. Thank you for your prayers and encouragement.

Hallelujah!

My Desires

This morning I was reading from The Valley of Vision (Puritan prayers), and the prayer on "Desires" really caught my heart.

Now that we are home and I feel submerged in the daily demands of our family life, I'm looking for perspective. The only right perspective I can have, I've decided, is that my life is not my own. In a world awash with "I deserve it" and "I need some time away" and "I need a vacation" and "I have to take care of myself first". . . the Word of God stands starkly apart.

"May I seek first thy kingdom and its righteousness.
May I value things in relation to eternity.
May my spiritual welfare be my chief solicitude.
May I be poor, afflicted, despised and have thy blessing, rather than be successful in enterprise, or have more than my heart can wish, or be admired by my fellow-men, if thereby these things make me forget thee.
May I regard the world as dreams, lies, vanities, vexation of spirit, and desire to depart from it.
And may I seek my happiness in thy favor, image, presence, service."

Family ReUnited

This was taken last weekend. After we picked up B at the airport on Friday, we attended a wedding on Saturday. We had much to celebrate! Praise God for reuniting our family!

Next Time I Consider Leaving for Two Months...

Remember:
1) Mold growing in the shower
2) Dust on everything- including the vacuum
3) The sadly wilted and scorched garden
4) Dead mint in the windowsill
5) Jungly bushes (which took an entire day to cut back)
6) Black moldy cherries in the fridge (I mistook them for blueberries)
7) Extra elbow grease required to scour sinks, tubs, and toilets
8) Musty basement smell
9) Profuse spiderwebs
10) Loads of laundry (sheets, towels, clothing)

And Don't Forget:
1) How good it feels to be back home

A Healthy Reason for Alarm

I have been disturbed by our president's healthcare bill. Even though I don't watch t.v. or read the newspaper, or even follow news on the computer, I know enough to be very concerned. The best information I have found has come from Focus on the Family from Liberty Counsel. Because I know this is confusing to most of us and also because I think it is difficult to find trustworthy sources of information, I am sharing this from a Liberty Counsel email:

"We recently saw an overview of the healthcare bill being debated in Congress (HR 3200). We found the overview so alarming that we doubted its accuracy, so the staff in our D.C. office compared it to the voluminous bill.

What they found astonished us so much that we had to share it with you today. You can read our updated and revised overview of HR 3200 and you will be alarmed, too.

You can also read the text of HR 3200 - directly from a government website - to see for yourself how dangerous this government healthcare takeover would be.

Of course, it is not enough to be alarmed and do nothing! Congress is going on recess soon, but you can be assured that the liberals behind this bill will not be at rest. They will hold public meetings and try to convince their constituents that government healthcare is the only option.

It is time to visit the Senators and Representatives in their local offices in your state. Take copies of our document on HR 3200 with you so they can understand your concerns.

Read more about the consequences of this bill in Matt Barber's article "Is There a Co-Pay with Forced Abortion?" Barber is Director of Cultural Affairs for Liberty Counsel and Associate Dean with Liberty University School of Law.


Read more about the specific threats this health care plan poses on our Liberty Counsel Group Discussion Board. But here are a few examples:


• Sect. 123, Pg 30 of HC bill - THERE WILL BE A GOVERNMENT COMMITTEE that decides what treatments/benefits you get.

• Sect. 142, Pg 42 of HC Bill - The Health Choices Commissioner will choose your benefits for you. You have no choice!

• Sect. 152, Pg 50-51 in HC bill - HC will be provided to ALL non US citizens, illegal or otherwise

• Sect. 163, Pg 58-59 beginning at line 5 of HC Bill - Government will have real-time access to individual’s finances & a National ID Health care card will be issued!

• Sect. 163, Pg 59, lines 21-24 of HC Bill—Government will have direct access to your banks accounts for electronic funds transfer

• Sect. 312, Pg 145, Line 15-17 of HC Bill—An Employer MUST auto-enroll employees into public option plan. NO CHOICE.

• Sect. 401.59B, Pg 167, Lines 18-23—ANY individual who does not have acceptable HC, according to Government, will be taxed 2.5% of income.

• Sect.59B, Pg 170 Lines, 1—Any NONRESIDENT Alien is exempt from individual taxes. (Americans will pay for alien healthcare.)

• Sect. 1121, Pg 239, Line 14-24 of HC Bill—Government will limit and reduce physician services for Medicaid. Seniors, low income and poor are the ones affected.

• Sect. 1121, Pg 241, Line 6-8 of HC Bill—Doctors, it does not matter what specialty you have; you’ll all be paid the same. “Service categories established under this paragraph shall apply without regard to the specialty of the physician furnishing the service.”

• Sect. 1122, Pg 253, Line 10-18—Government “validates relative value unit’s” (sets value of Doctor’s) time, professional judgment, methods etc. Literally, the value of humans.

• Sect. 1145, Pg 272—Treatment of certain cancer hospitals – Cancer patients and their treatment are open to rationing!

• Sect. 1156, Pg 317, Line 13-20—“PROHIBITION on Physician Ownership or Investment.” Government tells Doctors what/how much they can own.

• Sect. 1156, Pg 317-318, Lines 21-25, 1-3—“PROHIBITION on Expansion of Facility Capacity.” Government is mandating hospitals cannot expand (“number of operating rooms or beds”).

• Sect. 1177, Pg 354—Government will RESTRICT enrollment of Special needs people! “Extension of Authority of Special Needs Plans to Restrict Enrollment.”

• Sect. 1233, Pg 425, Lines 17-19—Government will instruct and consult regarding living wills and durable powers of attorney. Mandatory!

• Sect. 1233, Pg 427, Lines 15-24—Government mandates program for orders for life-sustaining treatment (i.e. end of life). The Government has a say in how your life ends.

• Sect. 1233, Pg 429, Lines 10-12 “Advanced Care Consultation” may include an ORDER for end of life plans. AN ORDER from GOVERNMENT!

• Sect. 1233, Pg 430, Lines 11-15—The Government will decide what level of treatment you will have at end of life according to pre-set methods (not individually decided).

• Sect. 1501 (beginning), Pg 659-670—Doctors in Residency – Government will tell you where your residency will be, thus where you’ll live.

• Sect. 1711, Pg 764—Government will require Preventative Services including vaccines. (Choice?)

• Sect.1751, Pg 800 Sec 1751—The Government will decide which Health Care conditions will be paid. Say “RATION!”

• Sect. 1904, Pg 843-844—This Home Visitation Program includes the Government coming into your house and teaching/telling you how to parent!!!

• Sect. 2002, Pg 858—Government will establish a Public Health Fund at a cost of $88,800,000,000. Yes that’s Billion.

• Sect. 3121, Pg 935, Line 1-2—Government will develop “Healthy People & National Public Health Performance Standards.” They will tell me what to eat?

• Sect. 2521, Pg 1000—The Government will establish a National Medical Device Registry. Will you be tracked?"