Thankful

This has been a hard year for so many in the world - and on a day when those of us in America celebrate a day of thankfulness I am pondering all the things I am thankful for today.

We have been so very fortunate this year - Mike's business has remained steady and we have experienced none of the struggles that so many of our friends and family have. We're not bragging - we're thankful. We have done what we can to help those less fortunate when we can.

I am thankful for the health of my children - we have had a pretty sick-free year so far and that makes me rest a little easier (although both have colds at the moment).

I am thankful for my husband - who loves me unconditionally, loves his children and is working so hard to be a good father. He is a great provider for us - enabling me to stay home with our children - raising them and loving them every moment of the day.

I am thankful for family - close by and far away - who love and support us in our day to day life - in being the best parents we can be, respecting us for how we choose to live and love, for just being there when we need them.

And last, but most important - I am thankful for my God and Savior Jesus Christ. I would be nothing without Him and owe all that I am to His love and patience with me each and every day.

I hope this Thanksgiving you are thankful for many things - trying not to concentrate too hard on what you don't have - and thinking of those less fortunate and doing what you can to help.

In all things give thanks!

Christmas Jammies!

Madeleine and Wyatt were so excited to get a special package in the mail yesterday with their new Christmas jammies! Their Grandmomma has been sending them special Christmas jammies each year and they love getting them! Maddie has penguins and Wyatt has snow men!

They wouldn't both look at the same time, but the pictures are cute, just the same.

Thank you Grandmomma! (I went ahead and washed them and let them wear them so we can get plenty of use out of them!)

Maddie gets up every morning and asks if it's Christmas yet... soon my sweet little girl!

Moving Away!

Preschoolers are funny people - they are like little sponges soaking up whatever they hear and see. They often incorporate things they've heard or seen into their conversations. Someone - like a teacher or mother or close friend/family member who spends a lot of time with them can easily recognize when they're talking about something that they may have picked up on elsewhere.

Last night - Madeleine went to visit with her Great Grandma Hinze - she's in town visiting for the holidays and Mike took the kids over to see her. At some point during the evening Maddie said something "odd" - per Mike's retelling of the story.

She told her Gran that she either would never be coming back over to see her - or that this was the last time she was coming over.

That's pretty harsh.

And for someone who doesn't get to spend a lot of time with her - it's probably even more harsh. Maddie has a very complex personality and she's sharper than a tack. She picks up on everything - whether it's a little snippet that someone said 3 weeks ago or an argument between mommy and daddy or even between other people or a conversation she had with her friends at preschool.

So when Mike came home and told me this - I actually wasn't surprised.

Why - you might ask?

Because she had told me the same exact thing - right before he got home. I had intended to discuss it with him before he left - because I figured it was going to come up - she's a rather determined little girl.

However he came home later than anticipated and I was scrambling to get the kids dressed and myself out the door to band practice - because I'm on to lead worship with other band members this weekend (4th week in a row...)

So before you start thinking - oh how horrible - what a terrible thing for her to say! Let me explain the "rest of the story."

With Maddie - there is always a "rest of the story." If you simply take what she says - that she will never be going over to see them again - one would automatically jump to the conclusion that either she'd overheard a conversation between her father and myself - or that she'd been told this.

Which is not true in the least.

If whoever had heard her say this had simply asked her "WHY?" - you would have eventually gotten a logical explanation.

This was MY conversation with Maddie before she left with Daddy and Wyatt yesterday:

Maddie: This is the last time I'm going over to see my gran and grandpa.

Me: Why would it be the last time?

Maddie: Because we are moving away.

Me: We are? Where are we moving to?

Maddie: To (something that I can't even pronounce) just like Samina.

(Samina is a girl in her preschool class. I happen to know that at the end of the school year they are moving back to MINNESOTA because her dad is getting out of the air force. Samina is one of Maddie's best friends in school - she adores her (and her pink cowboy boots) and obviously in Samina's house they are talking about the move in order to prepare the kids)

Me: Oh - to Minnesota?

Maddie: Yes, to Minnesota - like Samina.


You see - there is a perfectly logical explanation for something that probably sounded terrible to her grandparents. She had incorporated a conversation she'd had with a girlfriend at school - who is moving away - She wants to go with Samina because she will miss her and in her little preschool mind - it was the last time she'd go over there because she thinks she's moving away just like Samina.

And for the record - Maddie has been telling all of our friends and family that we are moving away - I've gotten a few curious looks and phone calls.

There is always an explanation - most times logical - although I will admit that she is her own person - incredibly smart and sensitive. She makes up her own explanations for things all the times - gets wild notions of her own and is gently redirected when she says something that is may be inappropriate.

You have to know Maddie's personality - and you also have to understand that after all she is only three years old. She has an enormous vocabulary - but doesn't understand the meaning of all the words she "knows."

However if you just ask her questions about what she said - she's very honest with you and will explain her reasoning. She's not trying to be hurtful and she is most certainly never coached to say things.


The things she says are truly innocent - because she is after all - just a young child.

I regret not being able to tell this story to Mike before he left - because he didn't know how to handle it when it happened. He works so much of the day that his time to just sit and talk with Maddie or even just pick up on the things she's chatting about is very limited. Through no fault of his own - other than his gender I suppose - he is also quite handicapped when it comes to paying attention to little details and often misses this kind of thing entirely - because he's just not in tune with the mind and ramblings of preschoolers like I am.

I'm sorry that she said this - to someone who she loves and who loves her. I'm sorry I wasn't there to be able to quickly diffuse the situation and hope that it doesn't blow up in our faces. That would be terrible and sad.

She's even told my mother - her Mimi, who she adores and I often think would rather live with sometimes (because she gives her candy and has tea parties all day long) that she is moving away - but we all know she is playing out conversations she's had at school and instead of reprimanding or assuming the worst we often play along and dream with her about where we'd go.

Spend some time with our family and you'd see for yourself - it's a crazy world inside our house - full of fairies and princesses - imaginary trip to wherever we want to go. We love and encourage our children - feeding their imaginations while keeping them grounded with one foot in reality.

Sibling Wars

It's started already - at the young ages of almost 4 and just shy of 2...

I swear they do it deliberately - Maddie will take Wyatt's Thomas blanket just to make him cry - he's screaming no and she just keeps on.

He follows her around the house screaming at her and the "Mine" game is quickly getting out of control.

Wyatt is cranky anyways - obviously still not feeling quite right. 

It makes for a rather tense morning - to constantly be defusing time bombs and trying to comfort a very unhappy little man.

I had great hopes for what I would accomplish this morning to include straightening up the house and making it to the grocery store.

Say a prayer for my sanity, please!

Thanksgiving '08

We watched a very moving video this morning at church - I wanted to share it with you. I am reminded that no matter what my circumstances - your circumstances - I should be thankful that God is in the middle of it all.


You'll need to click here:Thanksgiving 08

Mae - a good dog. August 2008- November 22, 2008

This morning our doberman Mae passed away. She turned 10 years old this past August and had a good life. We rescued her about 5 years ago from a local vet. Mike had always wanted a red dobie and one day I was taking our cat in to be groomed and there were three dobies wanting homes and 2 were red. The female - Mae - and I bonded instantly and she was our dog from that moment. We went through some tough times with her as she was full of parasites and had some rather bad habits, but eventually we settled into a happy life together.

She was a wonderful dog - intimidating to look at, but she must have considered herself to be a cat because she had the playfulness of a kitten. She would have let anyone into the house - except a stray cat or squirrel! She often frightened trick or treaters when she'd stand at the door with her ears at attention. Unsure of other children - she was protective and loving towards our two little ones. She was always on guard and always with them when they were infants and I felt safe leaving her in the room with them - I never once feared she would harm them.

We decided when Wyatt was a few months old that Mae should go live with my parents and my sister Natalie. Natalie and Mae were best friends - from before we even rescued her. She knew Mae when her original owner was still living - he died of cancer. There were other dogs for her to play with and more attention than what we could give her with two children under 2. She loved it at my parent's house - because she had visited many times. She settled into a fun, lazy life with Bonnie and Mia - and later Daisy the beagle puppy. She loved their cats: Ace, Crystal, Noel (who is missing for several weeks now...) and Gucci kitten (who wyatt calls Goopy!).

This morning Mae came out into the kitchen breathing hard and having a hard time standing. She began to lose control of her body functions and went down into the sunken fireplace area - a place where she never spent much time. She died peacefully - with my mom, sister and Maddie talking to her. My sister told her she was a good dog and that it was ok for her to go - and then she died.

I arrived not long after Mae passed away - Mike and Wyatt came about a half hour later. My brother and his friend came soon after that. Carefully we placed her on a plastic shower curtain and then wrapped her in a blue comforter and her favorite yellow blanket.

I went into the wooded area of my parent's yard and found a dead sapling and made a cross to mark her grave. The camellias are blooming on the side of the house and I decorated the cross with white flowers and one lone pink camellia that had bloomed. I also picked a branch of white ones for my sister.

Mae was Natalie's baby. Even though we were all expecting her to pass away soon - it is still a shock and Natalie has taken it very hard. They had such fun together - going to the dog park, cuddling in bed. Mae would drag all of Natalie's clothes onto her bed and sleep with them - moping terribly if Natalie was gone overnight.

We all know that Mae is in a better place where she is free from the physical pain and sickness that she had in her life - but her presence in our lives will be sorely missed. She was a great dog- gentle and sweet. It's funny because she never jumped up on people (only on beds and the couch) and other than a single lick - kiss - she was not one of those dogs who licked you incessantly.

We love you Mae and miss you already.

Mary Poppins

It was 2 years ago that I was on bedrest - pregnant with Wyatt. Maddie was 20 months old - 2 months younger than my little boy is now. We spent a lot of time in "mommy bed" back then - playing games, watching movies, reading books, etc.

One magical night - during ABC's 25 days of Christmas nightly movies - Mary Poppins was on television and Maddie was captivated by it.

I've always been in love with Mary Poppins - I love Julie Andrews and hope to continue to share her musicals with my family as they grow.

Maddie was instantly in love - requesting the movie so frequently that we broke down and purchased the movie - newly released as a remastered edition (with a price tag to match!).

Now almost 2 years later Wyatt is equally enamored with the fairy tale of Mary Poppins. It's a popular request in our house - at least once a week for sure.

Last night - after close to 24 hours of being sick (he vomited for about 8 hours straight in the night - every 45 minutes poor boy!) - he came into the living room and said "Poppins!"

I opened up the dvd book and pulled out the Mary Poppins one - and he was instantly excited.

This morning - it's just me and Wyatt so far - Maddie is still snoozing. We came into the living room to watch Noggin (or Nagunk as he calls it!) and out of the blue he says, "POPPINS!"

"You want to watch Mary Poppins," I asked.

"YES!" he replied enthusiastically.

I love that my children appreciate the classics of my own childhood. I can't wait to share Bednobs and Broomsticks, The Sound of Music, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and so many more.