Birthday Party #2

My niece on my husband's side also had a birthday Saturday, so we celebrated hers on Sunday. She turned 11--practically a woman! Happy birthday, sweet niece. The only celebration we missed was for my brother, who shares a birthday with 2 of my nieces. He was celebrating in Georgia this year, but we missed him! Happy birthday to you, little brother.

Little Sissy got a new My Little Pony as a late birthday present. She thought she should ride it since she just rode a pony at Eckert's.

Birthday Party #1

My sister will probably post more pictures of Sis' 9th birthday party, but it was super cute. Kudos to my sister for planning a birthday party right after a vacation to Disney. My niece is a budding artist, so it was an art theme. One of my favorite things was the paint palette with skittles. So clever. Happy birthday, sweet niece!

The birthday princess herself

My nephew drawing the Batman logo

Thanks for the new lip gloss, Aunt YaYa!

All the artists

Little Buddy hanging out with PaPa

A Day at Eckert's

Our 2nd attempt, but we finally had a successful apple picking experience. We were going to IL anyway for 2 nieces' birthdays, so we spent Saturday morning at Eckert's in Belleville. They have so many fun things to do--for a price, of course. The girls got to ride ponies and a few rides before we loaded up on the wagon to go out to the orchard. My niece even got to ride a camel!

The slide of terror

Back up and ready to go again!

Somehow I seem to old to be in a little cup with preschoolers.

Little Buddy sleeping in the shade of the apple trees.

All of the Brimm cousins (except the sleeping one)

The 8th Day

So I've been thinking about Big Sissy's question about what God did on the 8th day. This is referring to the 7 days of creation. He spent 6 days creating the world, rested on the 7th day, and then what? I really don't ignore her--I just make fun of myself because she's WAY smarter than I am. So today I finally answered her. She's just going to have to get used to mommy needing some time before I answer her questions. Here's my preschool-appropriate answer.

Q: What did God do on the 8th day?
A: He enjoyed the things He had made.

Sounds simple, I know. So, you might ask, why did it take 2 days for you to come up with that? Well, because I want to be accurate. It isn't as though God made the world and then sent us off to fend for ourselves. He is not now lounging on some sort of "cloud recliner" trying to think of what He can entertain himself with next. The truth is that He's still working. He's doing what God does: creating, renewing, restoring, loving, intervening, forgiving, refreshing. But He is also delighting in His creation. He keeps putting new rainbows in the sky. He keeps making newborn babies. He keeps bringing the flowers back around in the springtime. Even in my little blog--my own creation--I read old posts again and again because I enjoy remembering fun things in my life. A painter enjoys looking at his art and remembering the inspiration behind it all.

Most of all, God delights in us. Of all of His creation, only humans are made in His image. That means we have glimpses of His character in ours. We can create masterpieces because He creates masterpieces. We can love because He first loved us. We want justice because He made us like Him, and he is just. Just as I delight in my children so much that I want to share their cute antics with all of you, He delights in you. A parent enjoys watching his child and seeing himself in the child's personality. God does that with us. Even though we are so often like a rebellious toddler--wanting things our own way and making a mess of it all--He sees Himself in us and sees what we can be when we grow up. More like Him. And He is patiently teaching us and drawing us to Him. And delighting in us in the process.

More Conversations with my Little Thinker

Today at naptime:

C: Mommy, do you know what God did on the seventh day?
Me: What?
C: He rested.
Me: That's right. He rested. Just like you need to do now.
C: What did He do on the 8th day?
Me: Ummm...I think He...oh, look. Something shiny!

At bedtime (while on the toilet):
C: Mommy, do you think I would get sick if I ate my poopy?
Me: Gross!!! Yes, you would definitely get sick. That's really, really gross.
C: What if I drank a whole cup of spit-up?
Me: Gross. Yes, you would get sick from that. That's super gross.
C: What if I ate worms for supper instead of spaghetti?
Me: I don't know if you would get sick from that, but I don't think you would like it.
C: OK. I just wondered.

Palin Power

I'm enamored with Sarah Palin, just like the rest of the world. I am not making my final decision until I watch the debates and read more about all of the candidates, but there are lots of reasons to like Sarah.

*She's down to earth.
*She's been successful in "cleaning up" dirty politics in Alaska.
*She's humorous.
*She has made great reforms in Alaska as mayor and then governor.
*She would be an advocate for families who have children with special needs.
*She's a woman. That's just new and exciting.
*She went to public school, sent her kids to public school, and has a vested interest in education.
*She wants to see resolution to the war.
*She is in favor of the "good guys" having the right to own guns.
*She is knowledgeable about our country's natural resources and has a plan for utilizing them.

The most interesting reason I've heard came from a conservative pastor on an online social network in response to an article written by another conservative pastor: "Wouldn't it be great if she took office and that up-do came in fashion for American women?" Hmmm...maybe not a priority for our nation, but OK. Just another group of people she's won over--not just Republicans, not just women, but all those in favor of women wearing their hair up. Palin Power!

Sister Act

I think the girls are about ready to take their show on the road. Here is their rendition of "Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho." Big Sissy does the singing, while Little Sissy does a little backup singing and dancing. Encore!

Our Messy Boy

Today was Hubby's work picnic with the UPS folks. We didn't stay long because they started eating right about the kids' naptime, but it was fun getting to know some of his co-workers and letting the kids play. I captured two classic shots of Little Buddy, one where he spit up right when I was taking the picture. That's kind of funny on its own, but Hubby's face is even funnier. His look is like, "I'm still smiling, but I'm really grossed out by the warm drippage on my hand." The other picture is of him eating a "baby biscuit." I really think they market the same biscuit as dog food, but it's fun for babies to feel like they're eating real food. They're also good if you want a plaster mold of your baby's face. The goo hardens like concrete on their faces. Perfect for bronzing...

What's Your Pleasure?

I mentioned in an earlier post that Big Sissy gets a "diaper rash" when she eats things with yellow dye in them. For some reason, chocolate also gives her diarrhea. I'm sure she'll appreciate my sharing this information when she's older. Anyway, her favorite treats usually have one or the other. I'm starting to let her understand consequences of decisions, and sometimes it's worth the diaper rash or the bellyache. Her favorite treat is pudding. We get Snack Packs at Sam's--the mother of all things large and cheap. Our choices there are chocolate and vanilla. Last night, after eating a good supper, she asked for pudding.

"What kind do you want?"

"Well, let's see...chocolate gives me diarrhea and vanilla gives me diaper rash. I guess I'll take diaper rash tonight."

Tomorrow's special menu: one cup of bellyache. With a Dora spoon, please.

I'm Taking a Sick Day Today

It's 8:30 in the morning, and so far Little Buddy has spit up all over his clothes and the floor, Little Sissy has dumped the entire contents of her cereal bowl (with milk) all over the floor; and Big Sissy, who has been potty trained for a year, decided it was OK to go poop in her pull-up this morning. Oh, and my in-laws are coming over tonight, and my house is a wreck. I'm going back to bed. Can I get a sub today?

Thank You Joanne Whatever

I have a friend of a friend of a friend with a fairly new blog that I've been reading. One of the first posts I read had a link to a website called Cake Wrecks. I haven't laughed this much in a really long time. I thought I'd share it for your enjoyment. Don't go there unless you have some time to browse and are in a place where it is acceptable to laugh out loud. Thank you, Joanne Whatever.

Out Came the Sun...

and dried up all the rain. Finally. Metereologists are always comparing days, like "It hasn't been this cold since 1942" or "It hasn't rained this much since 1927." I think there hasn't been a day with temperature more perfect since 1999. I don't actually know if that's true, but today has to be in my Top 10 list. Another pefect day was my wedding day. That was in 1999. I was in love, skinny, tan, and wearing a really expensive dress. But the weather was perfect too. I have traded in 3 of those attributes for 3 really great children. Fair trade. So today we are STILL eating turkey and cheese, but at least we got to eat it outside on a perfect day. And I'm still in love.

Is There a Barber in the House?

I gave Little Buddy his first haircut today. I didn't plan it. I didn't ask anyone for pointers. I just was looking at him, and the point coming down on his forehead and the hair hanging over his ears were bugging me. So I grabbed the scissors and started snipping away like Edward Scissorhands. One side looks okay. The other side looks...well, let's just say I'm going to give him a black hat and make him a onesie that says, "Born to Raise Barns."

A Little Bit Louder Now

We decided not to send Big Sissy to preschool this year--for a few reasons. I've been doing a little "school work" with her every day just to make sure she's on track by the time she does go to school. I ordered a few books that have simple math (patterns, counting), critical thinking, and practice with sounds. Today we did a new book. I read the instructions, and she did everything perfectly except she was shouting in my ear. I re-read the instructions. It said, "Say out loud the word..." That was her literal interpretation. I think it's good to practice everything at home before it happens in public. That way only the people you love most will be laughing at you. :)

Sandwich Art

We had A LOT of deli meat and cheese leftover from the birthday party. Friday I thought I might scream if I had to eat it one more time. In fact, I REALLY wanted to go to the mall to play and eat at the food court. If you ask my husband, nothing good comes from our trips to the mall. There's no excuse when the weather is decent, says he. So the small voice of conscience (and the attempt at discipline) won, and I decided to be inspired by the monkey sandwiches and try to make something cute with more turkey and cheese. I don't know what this is, but we called her Miss Mousie. She has a Ritz cracker head, mandarin orange ears, raisin eyes and nose, snap pea mouth and feet, pretzel arms and legs, and a broccoli bouquet of flowers. Pretty cute, if I do say so myself. Of course they still just ate her eyes and ears, but we tried...

Theological Quandaries

Big Sissy is starting to ask a lot of questions about God. I feel like I know something about God. I have a master's degree in knowing something about God, but I still feel at a loss about how to explain things to a toddler. I want her to know that God is all-powerful but not exactly in a super-hero way. I want her to know that God is loving but bad things still happen. I want her to understand His grace without taking advantage of it. These are hard concepts even for adults, but here's the way it plays out with us.

Q: Can God lift up our house? Wouldn't that be so cool?

A: (all in my head) I'm stumped because God is strong enough to lift up our house, but if he does, we're probably in the middle of a tornado or hurricane. That's not so cool. But if I say no, then she thinks God isn't strong enough/cool enough to do it. We've already told her that God is bigger and stronger than anything.

Q: God made the doorknobs and the bouncy seat, right?

A: (all in my head) I'm stumped because we've already told her that God made the whole world and everything in it. The doorknob and the bouncy seat are in the category of "things in the world," but God didn't make them. Sure, he made the raw materials and the engineers and gave them their brain so they could figure out how to design them and make a living doing so, but he didn't actually do that. If I say no, I'm contradicting the first premise. If I say yes, I'm not really telling the truth.

Q: Do bugs go to heaven?

A: (all in my head) I'm stumped because I don't believe bugs have a soul, therefore once we squish them that is just the end of their life. But she already knows the 2 alternatives when we die are heaven or hell. If I say no, she thinks she's sending all these bugs to hell. If I say yes, I'm not really telling the truth.

Sometimes when she asks me these hard questions, I just do what any other caring, intelligent, Christian woman would do. I pretend I didn't hear her. I'm praying for wisdom to answer her at the right time and at the right level. Sometimes I just don't know the answers! She's already getting too smart for me.

Eat My House But Don't Eat Me

When Big Sissy was a baby, she was in a music class at Covenant Seminary for seminary students' kids. It was wonderful, led by a very talented lady named Claudia, who I'm sure will be famous one day. Claudia taught us a song, which I think she wrote, about a worm. It talks about biting into an apple, and who did I see? A worm, a worm, a worm who spoke to me. He said please, please, eat my house but don't eat me.

We met that worm today. We tried to meet our friends in IL to go apple picking, but when we got to the friendly neighborhood orchard, they told us that they are not allowing picking this year. I guess it wasn't a good crop. To avoid the akwardness of just turning around to leave since we really there for the experience, not just the apples, we bought a bag of apples that were sitting on the table for sale. Cara suggested that we go get caramels and let the kids make caramel apples as a fun alternative to picking them today. Great idea, Cara. The girls were big helpers, unwrapping the caramels, poking the sticks in, and swirling their apples around in the caramel. Since Little Sissy isn't really big enough to actually eat a messy apple on a stick, Cara used her apple slicer and that's where we met our friend who looked up at her and sang, "please, please, eat my house but don't eat me." OK, he didn't really sing that. He just wiggled around like a worm being led to the apple slicer slaughter. Needless to say, we sliced all of the apples after that. Thankfully the girls were very happy with their "flower apples" and forgot they spent all that time getting them on the stick. Way to go, quick thinking mama. Almost nothing about the day ended like we planned it (no apple picking, no smores, no fire in the fireplace, no rain), but it was a super fun day with chili and sliced apples and apple cake and good friends. I'm happy with the surprise ending.

Gross-eries

Last night was "no coupon Thursday" at Shop 'n Save. We don't miss it at our house. I refuse to cut out a million little coupons, so this is the only way I can consistently get money off at the grocery store--an automatic $10 off if you spend $50. I didn't get there until 10:30 because I forgot it was Thursday, but there was a lady there in her velcro rollers and slippers. No kidding. I guess she forgot too. Apparently she thought she'd be the only one there at that hour. Not so. She glared at me as I passed her. I'm pretty sure I wasn't laughing out loud. I guess she was just mad that I was there. There was also a dad and his son there trying to shop from the mom's list. After discovering that neither of them had brought their cell phones, they had to ask me for help. They said I looked like a professional shopper. I think that means mom--ponytail, no makeup, flip flops. I'm thinking the other lady might have looked even more "professional" than me. I was thinking of asking her about how to get mold out of my shower tiles, but I refrained. She just looked like she would know. Anyway, the list said "choch chips." I know there's not a 2nd "h" in chocolate, but really... They were saying, "choke chips?" "choochoo chips?" I'm pretty sure even my husband could have figured that one out. Boys...

So I was on a mission to find some sort of goldfish cracker-type snack that doesn't have yellow dye. Big Sissy has an intolerance that gives her "diaper rash." She doesn't wear diapers now, but that sounds better than alternative ways of describing it. Anyway...I didn't find the organic ones my sister suggested, but I found some other really gross things. I'm not a health nut. I love snacking, but I do have a sense of what is healthy. I know you really should eat whole foods the way God created them. Processed foods are bad. Lots of fat is bad. Some of the things I saw tonight were just gross. Let's take over-processed food and make it even worse. Some examples are macaroni & cheese-flavored crackers and Burger King french fries/ketchup-flavored potato chips. Gross!!! That makes mac & cheese and french fries look like health food. At least they've only been processed once! What are the grossest things you've seen at the store?

How to Scare a Bug Away--An Experiment

My girls have postulated the theory that since bugs scare them and make them run away, maybe they could scare the bugs and make the bugs run away instead. Here's my interview with Big Sissy, the famous Bug Scarer, on this theory. The interview is 28 seconds long, but I couldn't figure out how to edit the video. Sorry.

We conducted an experiment to test this hypothesis. Here is a spider before being scared.

Here is the same spider after being scared.

The beauty of science is that research is important (and worthy of publishing) even if one's theory proves false. Big Sissy and her assistant, Little Sissy, will be conducting further experiments to confirm these findings.

I'm the Shy One

I've always been the shy one in our family. My older sister used to make our new friends for us. Once I knew them, though, they were friends for life. I hated visiting churches for that reason, but my sister...she was sitting in some other family's pew by the end of the service. I've never been like that. It takes me a long time to get to know people usually. Even in college I hated lunch time because I would go down and look into a sea of unfamiliar faces. If I didn't see someone I knew I would jut go eat lunch in my car. (pathetic, I know) After college, when I moved to Springfield, I decided to just step out of my comfort zone and be social even if it felt awkard. Over time it got better, and I would venture to say that now I rarely feel shy or uncomfortable around new people. In fact, I am energized it by it now (thus the "E" part of my ESFJ personality profile--extroversion).

Tonight I was chuckling to myself at proof of this change in my personality. Last week I took Big Sissy to the 3-year-old choir at First Baptist. We don't go to church there. We visited there once, and never went back because it's huge. But they do have great programs for pre-school aged children. As I was dropping her off I saw a flyer for a women's Bible study during the kids' choir time. I wasn't able to check it out because Big Sissy was needing her mommy in a strange place, so I ended up staying with her the whole time. Tonight I dropped her off a few minutes late, helped her go potty (she does that a lot when she's nervous), then I walked upstairs. The Bible study started last week, and they were already going this week, but I walked in anyway. I don't know what made me do it. I think desperation for mental stimulation that I talked about earlier and a need for external motivation to do Bible study. Everyone was going around the room saying how long they'd been at that church and why they were at that Bible study. When it was my turn, I said, "I don't go here and I'm not sure what this Bible study is, but is it OK if I join you?" People laughed, and I was so proud of myself for doing it. There's hope for my kids, too. They won't always need their stuffed animals or their mommy to go to a new class. I can finally go to a class without my mommy or my sister. I have to be patient and remember it's part of the maturing process.

No More P's Please

I'm feeling inundated with "P" acronyms lately. Today the PAT (Parents as Teachers) educator called to get us signed up, and she was telling me about PALS (Parents Active in Lending Support). Already I'm immersed in PBS kids, PB&J sandwiches, and lots of talk about peepee. Next it will be PE and PTA, and then before you know it...PMS. No more P's please!!!

You Got to Be You

Our new MOPS year started today (Mothers of Preschoolers). I'm really glad. It's been a fun summer, but I'm ready for some stimulation--mental challenges and good conversations with other adults. This is the longest I've ever gone without being in school, and my brain feels a bit mushy. Somehow it's hard to get disciplined to do the study that I want to do without getting graded on it. This year I'm a discussion group leader. I'm really excited because it's been a while since I've been involved in ministry. I was feeling a little insecure about my leadership style while we were there, however. My job is to make each person feel connected and cared for, and to make sure there is plenty of discussion. I can be a talker, but I really wanted the group to take on a life of its own while I subtly interjected conversation topics. At the end, people were asking, "Who is our leader anyway?" I think that's the way it's supposed to be, but I suddenly felt like all the other super-extroverts were probably better leaders, etc.

While we were sharing our "adventures in mothering," I learned of one mom who was diagnosed with a brain tumor this summer and is undergoing chemotherapy and radiation with kids who are 5, 3, and 2. Another mom is fighting the potty-training battle with a strong-willed child. We are all moms going through life together, and I get to be in a position to care for and minister to these women. I have to trust that God gave wisdom to the committee who "invited" me to take on this role. They knew me before they asked me to do it. I'm really excited to get to know and love on these women. Strangely enough, I felt encouraged on the way home while we were listening to The Little Mermaid soundtrack. The song, "You Got to be You" was on, and I'm reminded that Stingrays got to sting, flounder got to play, I've got to lead with my own style...I got to be me...

When I was but a schoolboy I dreamed I would grow tall
And man, it made me crabby That a crab could be so small

With this I tell my teacher She say, "But don't you see?
Each and every creature Is exactly how they should be"
She said we all are special
From jellyfish to king
We all do different things
And with that she start to sing

You got to be you
I got to be me
It's simple but true
What else could you do
Who else could you be
You got your own style
Now let it come through
And remember no matter what
You got to be you

Skatefish got to skate
Stingrays got to sting
Catfish got to purr
And Sebastian got to sing
Seahorse got to ride
Flounder got to play
And whale got to make the trouble
All the livelong say
So why should you be gloomy
That you're too big or small
The sea is very roomy
And there's plenty room for us all
You heard my little story
Now let it be your guide
Just treat yourself with pride
You'll be more than satisfied

Sing it with me now...you got to be you...I got to be me...

I Want to Be Loved Like That

Tonight Little Sissy was throwing some bath toys back into the bathtub. Since she is always holding Lamby, he accidentally got thrown in too. We told her he was going to have to get a bath in the washing machine and get dry since he was all wet. At first she said OK, but then a few minutes later she started asking for him. We explained again that he was all wet, and she went over and gave him a kiss and put him back. At bedtime we told her again, and told her to pick another friend to sleep with. She picked Dora and Boots--the bath toys that had gotten thrown in with Lamby. I guess they reminded her of Lamby. I said no because they're hard--not cuddly--and asked her to pick a soft sleeping friend. She thought and thought and then..."Ummm...how 'bout Lamby."

No, how about your new monkey?

How 'bout Lamby.

How about your bear from Miss Marlene and Jessica?

How 'bout Lamby.

After many tears and throwing of monkeys out of the bed, we finally threw wet, nasty Lamby to her in her bed. "Thank you," she said, relieved, and drifted off to sleep. Flawed Lamby is better than no Lamby. I wanted to love and be loved like that.

Labor Day--Sunday

Sunday night at church we had a "shindig." We ate fried chicken and watermelon, and The Babe led us in some fine square dancing. The kids had a great time on the waterslide, the inflatables, and the treasure-filled sandbox.

Labor Day--Saturday

Saturday we went to the zoo. I didn't take any pictures, so I thought I'd share some of our best zoo photography so you can see what we usually see at the world-famous St. Louis zoo--the backs of animals. We did see the tiger cubs, though. They are adorable. They're out from 10 until noon, so you should go check them out.

.

Labor Day--Friday

Labor Day weekend--Hubby took Friday off, so we got to do lots of fun things. On Friday we took the kids to get their pictures made. As always, we didn't get many good ones of all of them together, but we got some great individual shots. After supper and naps, we went to the "World's Fair" in my hometown. I didn't take any pictures there since we weren't there long, but my sister got some great shots of her kids there. Take away most of the rides except the ferris wheel, insert pictures of my kids, and add funnel cake and you can pretend they're my pictures.

Here are some pictures of my kids to insert into the B-Town homecoming scene. These are some we didn't order but they make me laugh.

The rest are ones I do like.

Things I Love

I love Sarah Palin. I was waffling, but she won me over. McCain is a smart man.

Big Sissy started choir tonight at First Baptist near our house. I love it too. It's a whole choir of just 3-year-olds...amazing. They also go to "small groups" for Bible stories, crafts, instrument time, snacks. It's like Sunday School, preschool, and Kindermuzik all rolled into one.

What else do I love?

The sound of leaves crunching under my feet.

Bonfires and roasted hot dogs and smores.

Good coffee with flavored creamer.

Freshly-waxed eyebrows.

Long walks.

Spending the night with people and staying up late talking after the kids are asleep.

Swimming.

New school supplies.

Getting new pictures of people I love.

The smell of new books, leather interiors, and clean laundry.

A clean house.

Corporate worship, good music, inspiring sermons.

Hugs.

Kind words and big smiles.

Real letters in the mail.

Family time.

Unexpected checks in the mail.

Christmas lights.

Frozen lemonade on a hot day at Silver Dollar City.

Happy Birthday, Little Sissy!

I have lots of picture posting to do to catch up on our Labor Day weekend, Little Buddy's dedication, etc. But for today I just want to wish my sweet little girl a Happy Birthday! Baby girl, you are so special to us. You have such a cute personality and make me laugh with your funny expressions, the way you mimic things you see and hear, and your loving ways. I adore you!!!

Here are some highlights from the celebrations:

The adorable monkey cake that Nana made

Pin the bananas on the monkey game

How old are you?

The balloons attached to bananas

The fun bubble machine from JJ

Monkey suckers with Asher

REALLY big Curious George balloon

Reading Pigeon Wants a Puppy with Mommy and Sissy