What I've always wanted

I sat on the floor one morning, madly stuffing tissue paper into a gift bag so that we could get ready and out the door in 20 minutes.  I was already feeling the time crunch and my mental to do list was flying through my brain when I felt my 14 month old son climbing on my back.

My sarcastic self said "Great, just what I've always wanted.  A baby climbing on me when I'm already running late." 

He poked his head around and into my face, cocking his head to the side and giving me his "Ain't I adorable?" look with those soft brown eyes. 

Yes...this is just what I've always wanted.

I remember announcing to my students that I would not be returning to teach at their school next year.  I was very early in my pregnancy with my daughter, but felt that telling them why was important. 

One 9th grade boy asked "For real?  You're going to leave your job and money just to be at home all day?" 

Before I had a chance to respond, a female classmate shot back with "Are you serious?  Stay here with us when she could be home with her own kids?  Makes perfect sense to me." 

I laughed and assured them that yes, I loved getting to teach them, but as this girl pointed out, I wanted to be home with my kids and enjoy every bit of motherhood.

Days as a homemaker can be rough sometimes.  I'm in a particularly rough season right now, when the kids are coming faster than I could've imagined, and pregnancy is no fun.   

But we're not just home to keep the kids from killing themselves.  We're shaping hearts, training behaviors, and hoping to lead our little ones into lives that honor the Lord.  You can't put a price tag on that.  I know that I'll probably see more fruit from my labor in 10 years than I will in the next 10 months, but I still need to keep plugging away, doing the things that God has called me to do, training my children, loving my children, and not ignoring problem behavior in my 3 year old, but addressing them as matters of the heart. 

In 3 months, I'll give birth to my third child.  We'll have 3 kids, ages 3 and under, and we'll finally have more kids than available bedrooms, filling up this 3 bedroom house and then some. 

I'm about to have what I've always wanted: a house full of kids.  I'm prepared for one of the most exhausting years of my life, full of joy, but empty of rest. 

And I can't wait.

Little Green Backpack: Give me your two cents

Hey moms, I'd love your two cents on this one.

I ordered a backpack for Andrew, my 1 year old.  With a 3rd baby due to arrive in just a few short months, I love the idea of Andrew toting around his own diaper bag. 

I did the same thing when I was pregnant with Andrew.  Izzy had her own little backpack, which she loved.  It contained all the usual trappings of a diaper bag:  A diaper or two, maybe a change of clothes, a sippy cup, and a snack.  We still use her backpack now, to keep toys on car trips or as a "busy bag" when we go places.  My sister bought an adorable Stephen Joseph backpack for her, and even at three, Isabelle loves getting to carry her backpack.  I love having one less thing to carry. 

So here's the Little Life backpack I ordered for Andrew. 

You can probably tell already what the problem is:  It's too small.

Designed to look like a turtle's shell, it's completely adorable.  It has a small hood that looks like a turtle's head, for when it rains.  It also has a "leash" attachment that I can clip onto the backpack so that I can keep up with my little toddler, who will be 18 months old when his new little brother arrives. 

But what can it hold?

• Andrew's Epipen set and Benadryl, which he must have with him at all times (thank you, peanut allergies).
• A short sippy cup.
• Two diapers.  Disposable, not my usual cloth diapers.

I'm bummed.  I love this little backpack.  But I'm afraid it doesn't meet our needs.  And the tether/leash option is something you don't find with other backpacks.  What's a mama to do?

So weigh in, por favor.  Too small or just fine? 

I'm afraid I already know what the answer is, but I just don't want to have to return the thing.

Stretching Ourselves Through Service

I volunteered out of necessity and "What else am I gonna do on Wednesday nights?"  But the result was joy.

I told my pastor that I wanted to help out with AWANA, the Bible memory program that our church has for kids on Wednesday nights.  He said "You'd love working with TNT."  TNT is for the older kids, 3rd grade until the kids hit youth group.  He was right, I would enjoy it. 

"But I think I heard they need workers for Sparks," was my reply.  Sparks is for kids K-2nd grade.  He said yes, they surely do, so he put me in touch with the Sparks leaders.

Cheryl immediately asked if I wanted to be a teacher or a helper, although I'm sure she already knew the answer.

I was a teacher by trade.  Teaching is both my spiritual gift and my professional gift.  How could I be anything but a teacher?

So I ended up teaching second graders.

I learned that teaching second graders is not my calling. 

My husband and I spent all of our kidless years working with the youth group at our church.  I also taught high school English for 4 years.  I have had a great time getting to know Sarah, my 16 year old helper on Wednesday nights, and sharing in her excitement when she shared Christ with one of the kids in our class.  

But second grade is not my calling. 

The curriculum is mapped out nicely, and it's fairly simple to figure out what to teach every Wednesday night.  The leader handbook gives great ideas for making the lessons come to life.  Still, I'm not crafty.  Yarn, pipe cleaners, and glitter glue do not fit my personality.  But a cup of coffee does, so I find that my personality is geared towards older students.  I also had no idea that I would have a surprise pregnancy and end up feeling miserable for the entire second semester of teaching Sparks. 

Did I mention yet that second grade is not my calling?

Pregnant and tired, I recruited a friend to help out with some of the teaching on Wednesday nights.  When she teaches, I watch her and think of how gifted she is, and how perfect she is for this role.  Her tone is always tender, always kind, and during game time, I've seen her correct a child by being humorous and chasing him.  He responded to her correction much better than he did mine.

Second grade is Terri's calling.

But I loved it. 

I learned how much fun these kids are, and was reminded once again, that just like anyone else, these kids just want someone to listen to them, to show them that their ideas, their stories, and their emotions are valid.  Even if their prayer request is for their sick dog, it's important that we pray for that sick dog.

These kids want love, and I love them.  So does God. 

I absolutely loved sharing the Gospel with them.  I would come home, excitedly jabbering to my husband about the neat question that one of the kids had asked.  It was so fun for Terri, Sarah and I to clear up their ideas about salvation.  That no, going to church will not save you, and that trusting your life to Christ does not mean you will be sinless.  Trusting your life to Christ means that you've accepted His gift of salvation, that His blood now covers your sins, past, present, and future.  And I get to walk with Him every day of my life, learning what it means to obey Him. 

Every week was fun, and I didn't dread it.  I enjoyed it.

It wasn't a mistake for me to serve out of my area of giftedness.  God wants to stretch us, to challenge us, and to use us in our weakness.  He definitely did that for me this year. 

Will I do it again next year?  No, I can't.  I will have a 4 week old nursing baby boy when AWANA begins again, and the logistics of all of that just won't work out. 

But I will miss my kiddos, and I look forward to getting hugs from them on Sunday mornings and watching them grow in Christ.

What Moms Should Know About Febrile Seizures

I'm sitting on the couch one evening, having a little chat with my mom, while my 2 year old lies on the floor and watches Peter Pan.  Something on the floor catches my eye, and I'm stunned. 

I see my daughter, completely unconcious, twitching, shaking, and drooling on the floor.  Her whole body moves uncontrollably. 

I'm paralyzed, and all I could do is shout, "Mom!" as I point to Isabelle. 

My mother springs into action, cradling Izzy's head in her lap for several minutes as Isabelle finishes her seizure.  My husband grabs the ear thermometer, which registers a temp over 103.  Fifteen minutes prior, it was 101. 

We debated whether to call 911 or not, but ended up jumping in the car and heading to the local ER.


What I just described is one of the scariest scenes a parent could witness.  Even medical professionals say that watching someone have a seizure is a terrifying and helpless feeling, especially when it's your own child. 

That said, it's completely within the range of "normal," and febrile seizures are typically harmless.  Knowing how to handle them before they happen to your child can help you to respond appropriately and have a little less fear, should this ever happen to one of your children.

What is a febrile (fever) seizure?
A febrile seizure occurs when a child has a rapid increase in body temperature.  In Izzy's case, her temperature jumped from 101 to 103.5 in a span of 15 minutes.  The seizures often happen before you even realize that your child has had a fever.  As our pediatrician explained, while drawing out a graph representing the trend of a typical fever, a febrile seizure usually happens during the onset of a fever, as it is rising.

What are the consequences?
Febrile seizures are not connected to epilepsy, and few children with febrile seizures will go on to become epileptic.  Fever seizures affect 2-5% of all children, and child who is prone to these seizures will generally outgrow them by the age of 5.  These seizures do not cause brain damage or any other longterm problems; the only danger is the safety of the child during and after the seizure.  In the words of my pediatrician, the greatest danger to the child are parents who do not put the child in a carseat on the way to the emergency room.  A child who is completely unconscious should still be latched in safely, in the event of an accident.  Even I, Mrs. Safety, debated for half a second if I should put Izzy into her carseat, since she was a limp rag.  But I latched her in anyway.

How should a parent handle a seizure?
There's not much you can do besides protect the child's head.  Roll them onto their left side and keep all objects away.  You can hold your child's head in your lap gently or rest it on a pillow, while you allow her body to do what it needs to do.  The child should not be restrained.  If you think about it, time the seizure.  Izzy's lasted several minutes and was within the range of normal.  Do not give medication or put anything else in your child's mouth.  Conventional wisdom used to say that you should stick a spoon or other object in a person's mouth during a seizure to keep them from swallowing or biting their tongue, but that is no longer advised.  Do not put anything in someone's mouth during a seizure.  

After the seizure is over, the child should be brought to the emergency room if it is her first seizure or if her temperature is extremely high.  Otherwise, your child will simply need lots of rest and you'll need to work at keeping her temperature down.  Of course, you'll need to treat the illness that caused the temperature to begin with, be it a cold, flu, or a simple virus. 

For more information on Febrile Seizures, check out this fact sheet from the NIH.  As always, I am not a medical professional, and you should always follow the advice of your own doctor over anything you read on the web.

Prevention?
There may not be a thing you can do to prevent a febrile seizure.  The seizure usually occurs during the onset of a fever, and fever medications are effective later on, so they may not prevent a seizure.  However, it is possible that medication can help, so our doctors & nurses at the ER, as well as our pediatrician, have all advised that we medicate fevers promptly. 

I'm a big believer in the good of a fever.  A fever is your body's natural response to illness and it's your body's way of making itself very uncomfortable for germs.  Fever one of your body's defenses against the germs that are attacking it.  By medicating every fever, we keep our bodies from doing what they should do.

However, as a responsible parent, I should not willingly put my child in a situation where she could have a seizure.  It wears her body out, which I'm sure is also not good for fighting germs.  Upon the advice of our doctor, we medicate fevers early, whenever it reaches the point of being a true fever (above 100). 

I do the same for our son, Izzy's younger brother.  There's a bit of a hereditary component to febrile seizures; not only has my doctor warned us of this, but I've seen it in my own family as well.  Three of my siblings had one or more febrile seizures at some point in their lives, and while I did not, one of my children has had one.  Consequently, I know that my other children could have them as well.

Do know that bathing causes a change in body temperature.  Two of my siblings had febrile seizures when my mother took them out of the bathtub.  Needless to say, I do not bathe my children when they have fevers.  It's not worth it.  And as one ER nurse practioner pointed out to me, if a child is left alone in the bathtub and has a seizure, he or she could drown.  

Because my siblings had febrile seizures, my mom warned me about these when I was pregnant with my first child.  She told me to expect them, explained how to handle them, and the result is that while I was definitely terrified while watching my child, I knew that she would be OK.  I was more concerned about the cause of her fever, which turned out to be a simple fever only virus.

That's the main reason I wanted to tell you about febrile seizures.  If you know about them ahead of time, you'll be better prepared and possibly a little less frightened if your child ever experiences one.

Izzy, checking her toy's temperature with our temporal scanning thermometer.

  
Has anyone else experienced febrile seizures?  I'd love to hear your experience. 





  

Our Resurrection Sunday, 2012

I know that I posted several times about our Easter preparations, so I thought I'd share with you about our Resurrection Sunday Celebration.  But since my mom wrote about it on Facebook (something she never, ever does!), I thought I'd let you hear about it in her words:


What a wonderful time we had this past weekend with our grand-kids. It started with getting to Texarkana on Good Friday, just in time to leave for communion service at Fellowship Bible Church, Damian & Gabby’s church. Gabby, Isabelle and Andrew were waiting for us on the front porch, Damian was already at church because he was playing bass guitar during the service. Izzy was jumping up and down as we pulled in the drive. I rode with them to Church, so I could visit a few minutes on the way. 

 

 

As we pulled into the parking lot at Church, Izzy squealed with delight, “Church, Church” she yelled. She didn’t want to go in the nursery because Pa-Pa, NaNa, Uncle JJ and Uncle Ry-Ry were going in the service, so she came in with us. She would point every time she saw a Cross on the big screen and say “Cross, Cross”, then it was “Jesus, Jesus” and “look, it’s Mary.”  She was so happy. I couldn’t help but wonder why aren’t we as adults giddy with excitement at the sight of the Cross and of Jesus. If we could only have the unbridled excitement of a three year old, and so happy to be in church and not because it’s something we do as Christians, but because we genuinely want to be there. 
 

When we got back to Damian and Gabby’s house, I noticed something on the coffee table that Gabby and Izzy made earlier in the week. It was a tomb with a cross on top. It had a white pipe cleaner figure that represented Jesus, and brown pipe cleaners that were other figures. When I was in the other room, I heard Gabby telling Isabelle it was time to put Jesus on the Cross, and then it was time to put Jesus in the tomb. Izzy protested “No Mommy, No!” Gabby insisted that Jesus had to go in the tomb because he died. Izzy again protested even more loudly “No Mommy, he is not dead!  Get him out!” Gabby again told her he had to stay in the tomb. 

 

 

When I walked out and looked at the scene on the coffee table, all of the brown pipe cleaner figures appeared to have their faces down on and around the Cross in the middle. I whispered to Jerry, "that looks sooo sad." Jerry replied “that’s the point”. I just wondered if my little grand-child was really ready to learn this. 

 

 

Then on Sunday morning, Gabby and Damian woke up Isabelle, and Gabby said “let’s go check on Jesus.”  Izzy went into the den to see Jesus standing on top of the hill with his hands in the air and all the other figures around them with their hands held up. She ran through the house yelling "He’s alive He’s alive, Jesus is alive now! Aunt Ni-Ni wake up, Jesus is alive, Uncle Ry-Ry, he’s alive, Uncle JJ, did you hear the good news? Jesus is alive. Pa-Pa get up and come see, Jesus is alive!" I was already up with them. What a way to start off our Lord and Savior’s Resurrection day!

It was a really sweet weekend.  Our church's communion service and Sunday service were perfect bookends to start and finish in a way that honored the Lord and reminded us of the purpose of Good Friday and Easter Sunday.  All of the hands-on activities that we'd done over the course of the week built the perfect setting for Isabelle's wonder and joy in Christ's resurrection.  During the Sunday morning worship service, I felt overwhelmed at all that Christ did for us.  Teaching Izzy about our Savior helped me see the events in a new light, like it was the first time I was hearing of it too. 

 

 

I also felt, once again, amazed at all the incredible things God has done in our family over the past year.  And it's not just the incredible healing of our son after his lung surgery, sparing his life and giving him perfect healing.  It's the hearts that have grown closer to God this year, and some in my family who have come to know the Lord for the very first time this year.  The spiritual healing that God has done in our family will last for eternity.  God is so, so good to answer prayers that we've been praying for years.  Sometimes, when I prayed them, I wondered if He would ever do this mighty work.  But He did. 

 

 

We had a precious time celebrating our Savior's death and resurrection, and I hope that your family did too.

The Latest Izzy-ism

I'm busy packing, cleaning, and trying to squeeze in a tired mommy nap, so I'll share our Easter highlights with you next week.  For now, here's what I call an Izzy-ism, the latest funny thing Isabelle has done or said. 

We were driving home last night when my 3 year old daughter's tiny voice interrupted NPR's piano puzzler with a request.  "Mommy, sing the Fatman song." 

Fatman song?  What Fatman song?

I asked Isabelle to repeat herself several times, but it was very clear that she was saying Fatman.  Had she asked me to sing "Blue Skies song," "Wonderful Cross," or "Wheels on the Bus," I wouldn't have been surprised and I would've immediately burst into song. 

But Fatman song? 

My husband and I just looked at each other in confusion. 

We don't even use the word "fat" at our house.  Where in the world could she have heard a fatman song?

Finally, one of us asked her to sing the "Fatman song" because we just didn't know it.  She promptly began singing

"Nananananananananana FATMAN!!"

I know my kids aren't the only ones who are busy being adorable this week.  What hilarious antics are your kids up to?  Please share.  Moments like these are what we mamas live for.

Planning Intentional Easter Activities, Part 2

Yesterday, I shared with you our plans for a Christ-centered Easter.  Here are a few more details on the activities we've done thus far:

Resurrection Rolls:  When Isabelle woke up this morning, she saw me in the kitchen and immediately asked "Whatcha cookin', Mommy?"  I was putting dishes away, but I decided on the spur of the moment to make Resurrection Rolls with her for breakfast.  Check yesterday's post for the recipe.

The results?  She absolutely loved them, and I thought they were delicious, especially with my morning coffee.  That's regular coffee, not decaf.  I like to live on the edge. =)

Playdough Mountain:  So after building, baking, and displaying the mountain, what in the world are you supposed to do with this thing? 

Map out some of the basic events of Holy Week!  There's not a lot of clarity on what happened each day, but a few days before his death, Jesus was probably teaching in the temple.  Before Izzy's naptime today, I read to her a story of Jesus teaching to his followers.  We use My Favorite Bible for nightly stories and devotionals with Isabelle, so I read a story from this book. Was it the exact story Christ would have told?  Not likely, but the idea was there.

Pipecleaner Jesus, teaching the multitudes.  My husband spent some time after dinner yesterday figuring out the best way to make pipecleaner people, and then he made Jesus and the crowd.  Thanks, honey!

Tomorrow, Jesus will be teaching again.  On Thursday, he will share the Lord's Supper with His disciples.  On Friday, of course, He will be crucified.  Saturday, we'll have to wait, and on Sunday, He will stand triumphant over the grave.

In Noel Piper's book, Treasuring God in Our Traditions, she emphasizes that you can use this activity for as long as it is taken seriously.  Once the children start treating it in a silly manner, it's time to put it away.  This is, after all, the crucifixion. 

The Jesus Film:  On Sunday, on a whim, we watched Campus Crusade for Christ's The Jesus Film.  We fastforwarded over anything that seemed scary or inappropriate for a young child, specifically, the possessed man and the beatings of Christ. 

This was one of the smartest ideas we've ever had.  Isabelle loved the movie!  She wasn't glued to it the entire time, and she didn't pick up on all that was going on, but she understood so much of it.  She was excited to see a real-life Zaccheus, and then she grabbed a blanket and pretended to be him.  Blind Bartimaeus was one of the high points for her, and we then had to use a scarf and pretend to be Bartimaeus, something we've done before after reading the story.  It was incredible to see how much of the New Testament she's familiar with, and how excited she became at seeing it played out before her very eyes.  I think we'll make this one a tradition.

Resurrection Eggs:  So I must confess that until today, I hadn't pulled out the eggs.  Why?  Isabelle loves playing with the eggs, so I resorted to hiding them a while back to keep them "special" for Easter.  As it turns out, I hid them so well that I couldn't find them, until today!  Whew!

Decorations:   A couple months ago, I decorated my fireplace mantel with Spring and Easter in mind.  I wanted to be purposeful with how I decorated, so here's a glimpse of part of my mantel. 

The plaque says "He is not here, for he has risen, as he said.  Matthew 28:6"  I opted for birds instead of the traditional bunnies.

 

Planning Intentional Easter Activities

Not all Easter activities are created equally.  When I was planning our week's activities, here are some questions I kept in mind:

1. What will it teach my children? 
2. Is it age appropriate? 
3. How much energy, effort, and money does it require?  
4. And most importantly, will it honor God and foster a love for Christ?  If the answer to this question is no, then it's not worth my limited energy and time.

I'm a tired pregnant mommy with limited energy, but this holiday is the most important holiday of the year for a follower of Christ.  To simply gloss over Resurrection Sunday or rely on others to teach the true meaning of Easter to my children would be foolishness on my part.  I go to a great church, but it's not their job to disciple my children.  That responsibility lies squarely on the shoulders of my husband and I. 

There are tons of fun Easter activities out there, but many of them aren't going to further our goals of imparting a love for Christ in our children.  If I'm going to spend time and effort on something, I want it to be worthwhile.  Whether the activity is fun or not is also important, but let's face it:  for a three year old, almost anything is fun, if she's with her mommy or daddy.

We've gotten many of our ideas from Noel Piper's book, Treasuring God in Our Traditions, which is now available free for downloading on the Desiring God Website. 

So without further ado, here are the activities we're working on for Holy Week:

Act Out Jesus' Triumphal Entry:  We did this yesterday evening, on Palm Sunday.  It took about 5-10 minutes and was loads of fun for Isabelle.  I had collected large clippings from plants my husband had trimmed, and since they somewhat resembled palm fronds, we used them to reinact Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. 

Izzy and I waited in the kitchen for Jesus (my husband) to appear.  I whispered to her that Jesus was coming and got her very excited.  As soon as he walked in, we started waving our palm branches and shouting excitedly, "Hosanna in the Highest!"  "Save us now! Save us now!" "Hooray, it's Jesus!" We also threw our coats on the ground and let Jesus walk on them with his imaginary donkey.

Make a Playdough Mountain:  Like many of these ideas, the playdough mountain came from Noel Piper's book, Treasuring God in Our Traditions.  The mountain serves as one location to reinact the events of Holy Week using people made out of pipe cleaners.  Jesus will even hang on a cross, which is placed on top of the mountain.  Then He'll be buried in the tomb, which will be covered by a large rock.  On Sunday morning, Isabelle will wake up to discover that Jesus is alive!! 

Isabelle and I did this one yesterday afternoon as well.  It was very simple to do and took about 20 minutes, start to finish, before baking (which takes 4+ hours).  I'm sure having a stand-up mixer to do the kneading for me really saved time.  I thought this would be a great hands-on activity for my 3 year old, but I was wrong.  My girl does not like to get her hands dirty, so she refused to touch it.  But she did enjoy making sticks and rocks talk to each other while I shaped the mountain.

I had an abundance of whole wheat flour and thought this would be perfect for making the mountain, and indeed it was.  Noel Piper recommends painting or coloring the mountain with markers, but our mountain has such a nice sandy color and texture that there's no coloring required. 

Resurrection Rolls:  A college friend, Liz, shared this idea with me on my blog a couple of years ago, when I was soliciting ideas for a Christ-centered Easter.  You can find in-depth instructions here, but essentially, you'll use a marshmallow to respresent Jesus.  Roll the marshmallow in butter (embalming oils) and cinnamon (spices used in burial), and then wrap the coated marshmallow in crescent rolls (burial cloths).  After you bake it, you'll break open the roll to discover that the cloths are empty; Jesus is alive!!

Jesus, the Lamb of God:  We'll scripture about Jesus being the Lamb of God, who takes away our sin, and then make a simple lamb out of contruction paper and cotton balls. 

Resurrection Eggs:  Like the playdough mountain, the eggs are a part of our daily activities.  They'll simply be sitting out at all times for Isabelle to play with.  She's great at putting the little pieces back where they belong, except for the donkey, which she adores.  I'm sure I'll find him hiding out with Winnie the Pooh or Strawberry Shortcake.

Lamb Cake:  My husband requested that we start this tradition a few years ago.  My mom found a beautiful lamb-shaped cake pan, where the lamb sits upright in a very serene manner.  The cake is a simple but intentional dessert to remind us of the meaning of Easter.

Worship Music:  This task belongs to my husband.  He's creating an Easter Sunday playlist to create a joyful attitude in our home when we wake up on Resurrection Sunday.  Bonus points for songs with the "He's Alive!" message.

We have a few other things that we may or may not do, depending on my limited time and energy, but these are a few activities that we'll be sure to include this week. 

Izzy with our uncooked playdough mountain.

Our cross, wrapped with twine and a little dab of Tacky glue to hold it together.

Our playdough mountain, prior to cooking.

The cooked playdough mountain, ready for the pipecleaner people to join in reinacting the events of Holy Week.  I couldn't decide how to "present" the mountain, so I'm settling for a metal platter on the coffee table.  If the kids want to play with it during the day, they're welcome to do so.

What will you be doing this week to teach your children about the death and resurrection of our Savior?