We Have This Saying...

We have this saying at our church congregation that the kids learn at a very young age. It begins with a question:

What is God's ideal for marriage?
And the kids answer with:
One man for one woman for life.

Which leads me to this morning's conversation with my 4yo.She was looking at a picture of her Nana (John's mom who passed away from cancer in 2005), and the questions began.
Where did this picture come from? Did Papa take this picture? Was Papa married to Nana?

And this is where it got interesting. I explained to her that yes, Papa and Nana were married. And they had 3 kids. Daddy, Uncle A, and Uncle S. After just a split seconds thought, she asks, "So boys can be married to 2 girls?.. cause Papa is married to MeMe now."

And this is where "that saying" she knows so well came in handy and made what could have been a difficult conversation with a 4yo, much easier.

Well Nat, what is God's ideal for marriage?

"One man, for one woman for life."

Right, and since Nana's life here on earth is over, that means what?
"ohhhh, so he could marry MeMe"

Yes, and aren't we glad he did! (Cause we sure love our MeMe) :)

I really didn't expect to have these kind of conversations already, but as I stumble through this most important job as a parent I'm reminded of a couple of things.

We must intentionally teach. A lot of times we don't deal with the difficult things until they arise. So we end up doing reactive parenting rather than proactive parenting. But if we teach them Biblical principles early on, it makes things much easier when harder questions or situations arise. It's true, kids learn some things by accident just based on the situation or happenstance. But it is my prayer that I take every opportunity to instill the things of God into my children.

And speaking of opportunity..
Teach your children of God diligently. When you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you go to bed, and when you rise up. (Duet.6:7)
which seems to translate into ALL THE TIME. It's a tall order. And I don't claim to get it right all the time (or even half the time for that matter!) but it is my duty as a mother. My number one priority to my children.

Their souls depend on it.

These Pics Leave Me Speechless (Almost)

So sweet.

So not a morning person.

Such an entertainer.


I. Love. My. Kids.
I just can't hardly even look at them without my heart melting.
Every single time.

They frustrate me.
They make me want to pull my hair out.
They humble me.
They teach me.
They help me grow.
They make me smile.
They make me laugh.
They remind me of the Greatest Love of All. (John 3:16)

I. love. My kids.
Happy Saturday!

The Oldest. (at only 4)

Lately Natalie asks a lot of questions. And by a lot I mean 5,345,679.
She's so very curious and wants to know, well: Everything.
So herein lies my struggle.
I try to answer everything she asks( within reason and to the best of my knowledge), but this means that lately she thinks she knows it all. Which also means we've had discussions about attitude, tone, talking kindly, etc. These may seem like mature words for a 4 yr old, but she's not shy about asking what a word means until she completely understands your explanation.
So how do I find balance between answering her questions and keeping her humble?

I've often ended her string of questions with "I don't know." "we can find out later" and even, "nobody but God knows Everything". (which is usually followed by why? lol)
I'm struggling with how much info is too much and trying to train/teach her not to be a little miss smarty pants.
It's hard.
The kid is so smart.
She listens so well.

Overheard in the van:
(on the way to Mothers morning out - ironic much?)
Nat- Mommy , there's a big truck beside us. Let's pass it.
*Brief pause as truck is passing us.*
Nat- (excitedly) pass it pass it
Mommy- we can't pass it sweetheart.
Nat - why not?
Mommy- because he's going faster than us.
Nat - well go faster and pass it.
Mommy- we can't pass him Natalie.
Nat- why not?
Mommy- because mommy has to follow the speed limit.
Nat- well why isn't he following the speed limit?
Mommy- I don't know baby, that's something we'd have to ask him.
*Pause*
Nat- how are we Gonna do that?
Mommy - How are we gonna do what? (thinking the convo was over)
Nat- how are we gonna ask him why he's not following the speed limit?
Mommy - (stifling a chuckle) We can't baby. We can't.
Nat- but mommy you just said we would have to ask him, so how we gonna do that while we're driving?
Mommy- We're not. Were not gonna be able to ask him. Sometimes we just don't know why people do stuff.

And if I have this conversation wrong or left out any part of it; if I read it to her- she'll be sure to let me know.

Lord, give me patience. But I need it right now. :)