I Signed Up for THIS??!

Today, L was being a bit feisty. Of course, it was only today. He's a perfect little angel all other days...He went to play with friends and had such a blast. Then we came home to fix lunch.
"L, please pick out the color plate you want for lunch."
"NEVER!"
I fix lunch. He feels he can pick out his plate. He accidentally gets two. Not what his plan was. He throws one down in the middle of the floor in disgust (thank heavens for plastic!).
Sweetly, "L, Put your plate away, and then you can have lunch."
"NEVER!"
He comes scowling to the table for his lunch. The extra plate still lies in the middle of the floor. Sweet sternness, "Please put the plate away, and then come eat lunch."
"NEVER EVER!"
Sweetness gone, firmly stern in it's place. "L, you won't get lunch until that plate is put away. Just put it away and come eat."
"NEVER EVER AGAIN!" comes out a bit loud--dare I say, screamed?!? Other things are tossed off the table (again...thank heavens for plastic) O.K, sweetness so out the door. L gets a trip to the chair for cool down time which then progresses to his bedroom as the carrying on goes into full tantrum mode.
So think I, "I signed up for this? I'm suppose to know how to help this little guy get through this. In every instance? This is Motherhood?"
Then out comes little feisty man still upset, but less so. He plops himself down by that darn plate. He glances at me. I pretend I'm just eating my lunch though I'm secretly watching this intriguing little being out the corner of my eye. He makes sure I'm not watching and puts the plate away. He runs over with a big grin, picks up the other things he threw in his anger. We hug, great, big, full-of-love hug. We smile at each other. We talk about our different feelings and what helps with those feelings.


So, yes, I signed up for this. This is Motherhood. I don't have all the answers, or even very many, but I'm trying again and again, each and every day. HE is worth it. Every bit!

Hope

Meet Hope. I've been working on Hope for some time now, and I can proudly say--she is done! My good friend and sewing buddy taught me how to do all the fancy stitches, turning a plain piece of cloth into a sweet little angel. I have enjoyed going over to her house SO much. I have learned new sewing skills (didn't have too many prior), and even more than that, I've been able to chat and be uplifted. I've looked forward to those nights. If I would have seen Hope before and been told to sew, I would have been...well...without hope! But with a patient teacher, some perseverance, and a bit of work, I now have Hope. It feels great to accomplish something I thought I couldn't do. YAY for HOPE! She will soon be gracefully perched on our Christmas tree, reminding us that with faith and trust in the Creator of all we can hope for all good things.

"Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment. We develop ourselves and others when we take unorganized matter into our hands and mold it into something of beauty...remember that you are spirit daughters of the most creative Being in the universe. Isn’t it remarkable to think that your very spirits are fashioned by an endlessly creative and eternally compassionate God? Think about it—your spirit body is a masterpiece, created with a beauty, function, and capacity beyond imagination.

But to what end were we created? We were created with the express purpose and potential of experiencing a fulness of joy. Our birthright—and the purpose of our great voyage on this earth—is to seek and experience eternal happiness. One of the ways we find this is by creating things."

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf, 2nd Counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Happy Halloween

X started out his Halloween day with his first field trip of his school career. He and his fellow kindergarteners went to a park for a "Science Day." T accompanied and had fun being one BIG kindergartener. They gathered leaves (for the "science" part of the trip), played in a sand pit, drew with chalk, took a bathroom break, ate lunch, pelted bread at/fed some ducks, played on slides, threw things that rolled (that "science" part again), took a bathroom break, and came home. T said while they were pelting/feeding the ducks the little boys wanted to get in the water. The teacher patiently explained if they did that they would be slopping around in wet clothes and would get cold. Sound reasoning, right? Until one little guy spouted, "Well, then, how 'bout we take our clothes off?!" Clothes remained on, little folks stayed dry, and all had a great day!




Then little, eager trick-or-treaters gobbled their dinner of gooey worms (spaghetti), goblins ears (apple slices), and witches' fingers (baby carrots), so they could don their costumes. B was our "smartie pants," A our flying bat, X was a two-legged walker or AT-VT something, something from Star Wars (go ask one of those Star Wars junkies--I've got a few in our household!), and L was "Frank" (YES! we've got our use out of that costume!). We went to church to join in the trunk-or-treat, then came home to do a bit more begging around the neighborhood. It was a highly successful Halloween if you meaure success by amount of candy. Of course, the "candy police" are making sure that candy really is as yummy as it looks by tasting a few samples.