Kids Say the Darndest Things...

Recently I've been amused by the things my kids say...

When they've locked their car door and I ask them to unlock it (the driver door is unlocked, don't worry!), I hear " I did it for a reason!!"

When they've watched a little too much of PBS's Sid the Science Kid, I hear "Mom! I took my shoes off in the name of science!!"

But today, I hit the moment I was hoping would never happen. As a mom, I've always wished that my children would learn whispering and empathy before they learned to ask about everything, but I believe that's not the case for any child. We had gone to HEB for our weekly shopping trip (you know, the usual meat, fruit and four gallons of milk trip), and we were checking out. The man sacking our groceries is frequently working, and is extremely friendly. The only thing of note, is that he only has one hand. He is actually quite talented at working with both his right and and his left handless arm, and I'm always in awe of his dexterity (you see where this is going...)

I asked the man if he would give the kids an HEB sticker (the ones used for large items that aren't bagged) since I forgot to print them extra produce stickers and "price them" like I usually do. Naturally, he uses the handed arm and the handless one with ease and gives each kid a green sticker. I make sure the kids use their good manners and thank him, and head off with my basket of groceries. As were rounding the end of the checkout counter, behind the nice man, Claire asks in what is quite possibly her loudest speaking voice, "Why that man doesn't have a hand?"

I answered "I don't know" fairly quietly, so she asked again. I'm sure the man hears that all the time, and I love the innocence of my children, but I don't look forward to the rest of these uncomfortable encounters!

Anyone else have an embarrassing story to share along these lines?

~Kim

MOPS LOVE MEET

Love was in the air for this MOPS session held on Feb 11^th.

The Care Team announced we have 5 rockin' rollin' babies born and a lot more coming up. Dinners are always welcome for our tired moms. If meals can be delivered to their homes GREAT, if not please let the care team know and a meeting point can always be arranged.

Finance: Dues of $50 due for this semester. Please make checks payable to CUMC.

Fellowship: Mamma Mia is coming up and for those that signed up and have not paid $47 is due.

Prayer Devotional: Charlotte lead us with an inspired LOVE theme reading from 1 Corinthians 13 where the Word reminds us Love is patient and Love is kind. Charlotte shared the Hebrew word for love which is 'Ahava'

Family Fellowship: Gymtex on Sunday 2/20 from 4pm-5pm. For groups less than 14 it will be $8 and for more than 14 will be $7. Afterward everyone is invited to Skeeters for dinner. Spread the word, if you have a meal and at check out mention “MOPS” 20% will be donated back.

Crawfish Broil April 9^th at Susan Bourgeois house at 4pm. Details to follow.

Mommy Saver Cards – all unsold cards are due back. Any cards that were sold the funds are due by next meeting.

Hospitality: Please email your “Moms Favorite Things” to Lauren Merkel.

Publicity: We are in the process of interviewing moms with their own businesses. If you run your own business email Cory.

We listened to Nicole Cole a leading speaker on how to put that spark back in your marriage and have fun with it. She shared ideas from recreating date night at home with candles, rose petals and removing ALL pictures of your little angels from your bedroom, to changing ones attitude! She gave a lot of good ideas as well as adding humor.

Thanks to Chemistry for being the hosting table. Our next meeting is Feb 25^th. Geology will be hosting.

Meeting Recap 7 Jan

Today's meeting was a lifesaver for me!

Not only did Charlotte remind us that it's ok to have foreign substances in our hair, but Addie's mom/Cori's MIL Alice led us through how to play with our kids.

First of all, many thanks to Charlotte for her devotional today. Her prayers for our friends and loved ones was especially meaningful to me today, and I hope to all of you as well. Here are the verses she included:
Romans 12:2

Phil 4:8

Psalms 27: 4-8

As for playing with our kids, we learned a great deal about how to get them messy! And not to worry about it afterwards (that's the part I need to get better at!). After each table played with soap, cornstarch (yea for easy cleanup!), water, and an electric skillet, we all went home with recipes for disaster - OOPS! I mean "messy fun" :)

She also introduced us to several books that add a lot of fun and humor to the act of reading to our kids, and teach valuable lessons that we might otherwise be embarrassed to teach:
Take Me Out to the Ball Game
Everyone Poops
The Gas We Pass
The Holes in Your Nose
The Soles of Your Feet
All About Scabs
Your Belly Button
The Paper Bag Princess

Bev Bos, one of Alice's child development mentors (or recipient of her self-proclaimed stalking!) has a website with lots more good information: www.bevbos.com

As the meeting was coming to a close, Alice threw some more ideas at us - using milk tops for magnets or bingo, using a flyswatter in a pan of bubble solution, and barefoot sensory walks with spaghetti, rice, beans, shaving cream, etc. The possibilities are endless!

Here are pictures of the fun we had!
Goop:

Rubbings:













Rubber Band Stamping:













Rainbow Stew in the Electric Skillet:













Paint:


















Toothpaste:













Soap:













Water:













Books!













See you next time!
-Kim

Christmas is over, and I couldn't be happier.

Look, I love Christmas as much as the next girl. Actually, that's not completely true. I'm not much of a fan of the blow-up yard art (much to my husband's chagrin), or the kitchy decorations (much to my Mother-in-law's chagrin). But I like the idea of Christmas.

That being said, I'm so super glad Christmas is over. The stress, the negative balance in my bank account, the cookies that are just asking to be eaten, the feeling that I HAVE to keep my house clean so relatives don't think I live in squalor. It's all a little much.

So you can imagine my joy when I pushed loveingly shoved ushered JR out the door on Tuesday and strapped Claire into the carseat for the ride to school. I had the whole house to myself! Just me, and the piles of laundry, the wrapping paper that still hadn't made it out to the trashcan, the neverending dirty dishes in the sink (even though the dishwasher is dirty, OMG WHY can't you just LOOK to see if they're CLEAN or DIRTY before you just THROW THEM IN THE SINK?!?! Ahem. But I digress).

I had a few hours to myself. I could clean how I wanted. I could crank up Vampire Weekend and jam. I would get SO much done.

Yeah, or I could watch 4 hours of Hoarders (seriously. Have you seen this show? Totally addicting.) and walk around Walmart for an hour and half with a loaf a bread and Beauty and the Beast.

So I didn't get much done on my first day back. But you know what? I don't care. I was alone. Blissfully alone. And sometimes? That's better than being productive.

. . .

Don't forget our meeting tomorrow. This one's going to be good. My lovely, talented, crazy-for-blow-up lawn decorations Mother-in-law will be here to talk about how to play with your kids. I'm looking forward to it.

See everyone tomorrow! Happy New Year!

[cori]

Meeting Recap 3 Dec

Friday was the first meeting I'd attended in over a month, and I was so happy to be there! This will be a short recap, as I'll be doing another one for this week's meeting.

The main announcements revolved around the mission committee. Kathleen thanked everyone for helping to pass out food at the Thanksgiving Food Fair, and reported that we distributed over 175 items to the food pantry. I know those who participated made a great difference to a lot of people.

In addition, we're on par to break last year's "Change for Change" record, as we've already collected about $100, and we will be continuing this ministry next semester.

Charlotte gave us a wonderful message about remembering what Christmas is all about. Sometimes we get caught up in the superficial parts of Christmas, and it's important to remember the birth of our savior foremost in all of it. Thank you Charlotte!

Lastly, Jenny led us in a great craft, as we covered composition books for ourselves and for children who will greatly appreciate a place to put their thoughts. Here's a note from her, in case you haven't already seen it...

"Hi Ladies,

I hope that you enjoyed the craft friday. The notebooks you made to donate are so cute! I know they will be appreciated! If you did not have time to make a beaded pen for yourself and you want one, please let me know which paper you used and I will make you one and bring it to the next meeting.

If you were not at the meeting, we covered composition books with scrapbook paper. We made 2 each - one to keep and one to donate. If you missed it but would like one please let me know by Tuesday. Otherwise all the extras will be donated.

By the way, when your kid goes to Kindergarten and they have to use the primary ruled (w/ the dotted line in the middle) composition books and spirals this is a great way to make them pretty b/c they don't make pretty ones w/ primary rule! It is also a great teacher or hostess gift.

For those of you who asked here are the supplies we used:
- Composition books (available at Target, Wal-Mart, etc / 25 cents before school starts)
- Scrapbook paper and felt (Hobby Lobby, Michaels)
- Adhesive and Terrifically Tacky Tape (Hobby Lobby, Michaels by adhesive in scrapbook dept)
- Beads for pens - "Tiny Glass Marbles" (scrapbook dept of Michaels/ $1.99 for 2 vials and will make alot)

Remember to let me know if you want a pen or composition book if you missed it!
Jenny"

Congratulations to all the newly announced pregnancies, and prayers that Constance's induction went well today.

See you all on Friday! I hear it's a meeting not to be missed :)

Kim

Meeting Recap 19 Nov

I'm so glad we had such a great turn-out for our meeting on Friday. The Moms Panel is always really helpful and this year was no exception. Buckle up ladies, this is going to be a long post.

. . .

Shannon Schlachter, Stacy Johnson and Christina Moreland were our panelists this year. Between the three of them, they have over 100 years of parenting experience (that may be an exaggeration).

Two words of wisdom from our esteemed panel were thus:

1. Never forget an anniversary and,
2. Let your children fail.

As the wife of someone who HAS forgotten an anniversary, I think this is very true. Even if there's no celebration, do SOMETHING. If you get a chance, ask Addie Delahoussaye (admit it, you're impressed that I know how to spell her last name) what she and her husband do for their anniversary every year. It's pretty cool.

As for the second piece of advice - I know this is hard. I don't want my kid to ever struggle with anything. I want her to be good at writing and reading and eating with a fork. I want her to be GOOD at everything, and I don't want her to ever feel the frustration of not getting something right the first time. But I know that's just silly. As someone who didn't have any major struggles with school, or making friends (or eating with a fork), I found myself lost when I couldn't find a job and the person with whom I spent most of my time pooped standing up in the corner.

Needless to say, I didn't handle it well.

But I've learned perseverance, patience, and another word that starts with P that I can't think of right now. It's important to learn how to fail, and even more important to learn how to pick yourself up after.

. . .

One of the first things we talked about was when we should stop taking responsibility for everything our kids need to take to school. Everyone agreed that teachers really help parents make that decision. Some 1st grade teachers require students to hand in their folders themselves. We can help ease that transition by handing folders to our kids, who then will hand it to teachers. It was also mentioned that by second grade, kids are given a lot more responsibility. Encourage them to take responsibility for their homework. They're told that they're in charge or getting forms signed, homework finished, etc, so hold them to the teacher's standards.

. . .

Scheduling was another topic that was brought up. How many activities are too many? In addition, how do you stay organized?

Christina said that in first grade, her kids get to pick 1 activity. In second grade, they get two. Shannon suggested that having her husband coach her son's baseball team helps them keep the number of practices down. She also insisted that you only volunteer for things that involve your kids. Christina mentioned that carpooling makes everything easier.
I think this is very dependent on your family. We only have one kid, so Claire could go to more activities than a family with 16 kids. It also depends on the timing of the activity. If soccer practice starts at 6, but it's important that your family sits down to eat together every night, soccer might not be the best sport for your family.
Look at the start times of all the things your kids want to do. Don't be afraid to tell them no. And don't hesitate to talk to coaches if they're insistent on practicing 5 times a week. These kids aren't in the majors. They're just having a good time.
That being said, I think extra-curricular activities are SO important for kids. Growing up, we were expected to do SOMETHING after school. It almost didn't matter what it was. You know, as long as it wasn't taking Dealing Drugs 101 or pole dancing lessons or something.

. . .

Having a three-year old is hard enough. Dealing with one who says "No" to everything is cause for a raise. So how do you handle a three year-old who refuses to agree with anything?
My new favorite quote? "God grant me the peace to deal with my blessings." Listen, I'm the first to tell you that kids kinda suck. They want things, SO BAD, but they can't articulate what they want. Everything is unfair and grounds for tears. Sometimes, you just can't convince them that playing with knives is unsafe. This is, obviously, a time where it's NOT a good time to "Let them fail" because you might end up with "Let them learn how it feels to get stitches."

However, if you're faced with a non-life threatening situation, have fun with it.
I refuse to take my kid too seriously. She's three. She doesn't know what she's talking about. Kids have short memories (thank goodness), and I can usually get Claire out of a tantrum by just changing the subject. Sure, she's confused for a second, but now she sees how I feel when I hear her talk about how how much milk she should be allowed to have now that she's awake and don't you think it's a great idea to give her an apple and wouldn't it be so much fun to go to the Stomping Grounds since she had four noodles because she could totally get another noodle if she puts her shoes in the shoe basket and did you hear about the time that Jane-Jane SQUIRREL.

I've heard that God gives us the kids we need to have. I think I got hosed since I'm convinced God gave me the kid JR's supposed to have and I'm the one dealing with it most of the time, but whatever. The point of all that is to have fun with your kids. Soon they're not going to want anything to do with you. Enjoy them now.

In related news, someone asked what to do with time-outs don't work. Claire was in time-out for most of last year. But, I used to tell her she was allowed out of Time-Out when she could figure out how to do whatever it was that she was supposed to do. There wasn't a set time for this. In fact, one day she sat in Time-Out for 4 (that's FOUR) hours until she could figure out how to say she was sorry for hitting me. I read an entire book while she was sitting in the corner. To say it was ridiculous is a massive understatement. She hated it, I hated it, but she finally said she was sorry.

For older kids, it was suggested to ask them what's important for them to lose. If they're favorite thing is to play outside, that's the punishment. No playing outside if they get in trouble. Take away TV, desert, electronics. Just remember that you have to be the one to enforce it. So, if the only way you can cook dinner without "help" is if the kids watch Phineas and Ferb for half an hour, think long and hard about using television as a punishment.

. . .

So how do you keep your kids from getting frustrated with they don't get something right the first time?

A lot of people suggested extra work, after homework. Make it a game, and encourage kids to come up with things they can do to improve. They'll be more receptive if they think the extra practice is their idea. I've found the same works for husbands.

Most importantly, be an advocate for your kids. If there's a problem with a teacher, talk to him or her. However, don't assume your kid is right. Listen to their teacher and work together to find a solution.

. . .

A few of the books mentioned during the meeting were:

The 5 Love Languages and

The Five Love Languages of Children by Gary Chapman

Strength Finder by Tom Rath

. . .

I hope everyone got as much out of the panel as I did. Did I miss anything? Let me know in the comments!

See you Friday!

[cori]

Meeting Recap 5 Nov

Hey everyone!

I think we had a great meeting on Friday. I know we only got to two of the Convention Share Sessions, but I'm planning on putting the notes from all three on the Nesting site so everyone can have them available.

Here's what we did Friday:

Kathleen reminded everyone about the Thanksgiving Food Drive to be held at our next meeting, November 19. Don't forget the things EFBHNM needs the most -
Canned meat
juice
jelly
crackers
mac & cheese
flour
rice
corn meal
toddler sized diapers
toilet paper
sample size toiletries

Also, we're going to be going out to EFBHNM on November 22 to hand out Thanksgiving food. I went last year and it's a lot of fun. Childcare is $3/child, and they need a lunch. Let Kathleen know if you're interested in coming and didn't get a chance to sign up. We're meeting at the church at 9 and heading over soon after.

I've had a few requests for the recipes of the things everyone is bringing to the meetings. Post them on the Nesting site (we have a thread for recipes already), and I'll put some on the blog too.

Charlotte talked about Matthew 7.20 at the meeting too. She asked us to think about what we're praying for. Don't just pray for the big stuff, think about the small details too.

My favorite part? "Children are a gift from God. They are His reward."

We started praying for our kids last week too. Colin and Benjamin Shearer; Jackson Dias; Luke and Mackenzie Harrison; Madeline, Chloe and Mason Hill; Kendall, Hailey, Austin and Travis Merkel; Hailey and Mason Nuno; Sarah Steinhaus; Austin Stump; and Aleah and Andrew Thummel.

Don't forget to send me pictures of your kids. I only have about 10 people who've sent them in. I need them asap! My email address is CoriAtkins@gmail.com if you don't know it.

Hope everyone has a great week. See you next Friday!