to bed...or not

Owen has been awesome in transitioning to his big bed. He does, however, like to climb out of it if he's not quite sleepy enough, and continue his play-time. This is how I found him the other night when I went to check on him...

A glimpse of our time camping...

It's fun as the kids get older to play ...how shall I put it...more enjoyable games with them.

Generous friends bring their kayaks and let the group use them. A highlight for Jaedon.

This year there were some very creative people organizing mass-chaos for all to enjoy. I thought it was a blast. One day there was a chili dog eating contest (pic. below). I'm proud to say my hubby took 4th (out of 10). It was awesome.
There were also beach Olympics including a 3-legged race, a shaving-cream filled balloon pop, a sponge relay and holey-bucket race. Team B-Rad (that'd be us minus Owen) came in dead last and had a marvelous time doing so.

And this... is approximately the amount of sand we managed to drag home too.
=)
Good times.

Definition-

I have a question for you.
What is a best friend?

I just recently went to a wedding ceremony of a friend of mine. Couple that with the time I've been spending reading/scanning/skimming of several marriage-related topic workbooks in preparation for our fall Young Marrieds class and the idea of friendship in marriage has stuck out to me.
Is Brad my best friend?
Do I treat him like I treat my other friends? Do I confide in him? Do I look to him for refreshment, encouragment, advice and laughter? Do we have fun together and enjoy each others company?

These are some questions that have challenged me lately.

Amusing cousin times-

Amusement parks for me is anything but amusing. I don't do rides, crowds, heat and waiting and frankly- banging my head against a wall for awhile sounds more appealing. So imagine my dear husbands *shock* when I suggested that we go to an amusement park in PA called Knoebles Grove while we were there in June.
I was secretly hoping and thinking that Jaedon, who has always been a bit nervous of even sitting on someone's shoulders, would have inherited my dis-love of rides and he and I would hang out in the kiddie world with Owen for the day. No such luck. Much to his Daddy's delight both he and Seth couldn't run to the next ride quickly enough! Now to add to that 2 cousins, and aunt and uncle who are having just as much fun as they are and you have the makings of a perfectly dizzing, memory making day. I had just as much watching my family enjoy themselves and who knows- maybe next year I'll let them talk me into the "Big Splash" ;-)

A Re-Post on being a "yes" mom...

I got this from a blog I read : www.jillsavage.com- I hope you enjoy it.


"Last week my boys ran inside and said, "Mom, mom...it's so hot outside! Can we see if it's hot enough to cook an egg on the sidewalk?"

The practical side of me started to say no, but then I caught myself. What would it hurt for them to try it? Why couldn't I say yes? Is it "wasting" an egg, or simply using it for a different, but just as valuable, purpose?

After that quick argument in my head, I finally said, "Sure. If you want to try it, go ahead! Just make sure you wash off the sidewalk when you're done." They got an egg from the refrigerator and ran out of the house to try their science experiment.

Over 24 years of mothering, I've finally learned how to be a "yes" mom more than a "no" mom. It wasn't an easy transition...but it was an important one. For years my interactions with my kids looked more like this:


"No, you can't fingerpaint." (It will make too much of a mess.)

"No, you can't bake cookies today." (I just mopped the kitchen floor!)

"No, you can't have a friend over today." (I don't want to go anywhere today and I'd have to go get them.)

"No, you can't play in the sprinklers." (I'm not in the mood for wet swimsuits, towels, and grass tracked in the house.)

"No, you can't go out and play in the snow." (I don't want to deal with the snowsuits, boots, gloves, scarves, and hassle of it all.)


Over time, however, I started paying attention to the "no's" and my reasoning behind them. It usually had something to do with my selfish reasons. I didn't want to deal with a mess. I didn't want to be inconvenienced. I didn't want to have more work to do.


That's not fun to admit, but it was true. My selfishness was robbing my kids of some of the joy of just being kids!


I remember one afternoon many years ago when a couple of the kids asked, "Can we blow bubbles in the house? I initially said no because bubbles have always been an outside activity. But then I thought about my answer. Why couldn't they blow bubbles in the house? We even have the bubble cups that don't spill! Why do I always say no so quickly? Finally, I called my kids back into the kitchen and said, "Yes, you can blow bubbles in the house. Have a blast."


And they did.

And I started being more of a "yes" mom, than a "no" mom that day.


Now I'm not talking here about permissive parenting. I'm not talking about the times that we need to say no because our kids really do need us to set boundaries. I'm talking about the times that I say no out of selfishness, or default, or habit.

So what about you? I'm going to declare July as "yes" mom month. Would you like to join me? I want to hear your "yes" mom stories!

The more who share, the more we are all encouraged!

I can't wait to hear your "yes mom" stories!

Stop number 1 on Operation Vacation-

I was very impressed with the Buffalo Zoo. It was small- which is one reason I liked it- but had a TON of really cool animals- giraffes, zebras, lions, tigers, elephants- not just one of the "big ones" like a lot of zoos. They're exhibts were so close too- I loved being able to see the animals up close. Two thumbs way up!

9 years and counting

I enjoy anniversaries.
I like hearing about other peoples anniversaries and hearing their story.
I love celebrating ours- even if it seems down scaled to some - it doesn't matter to me.
It's a precious time to remember a precious time.
This year we watched (a bit) of our wedding video. Jaedon watched it with us and was in and out of interest but thought Brad looked just the same and I sounded different. (maybe because I wasn't yelling in the video?? =P j/k)
I enjoyed hearing again the charges made to us by the godly men we had directing our service- reminding me of the purpose, the key and the call in marriage.
I appreciate and needed the reminder-

So for our first anniversary Brad intended to take me out to eat at a fancy restaurant in Grand Haven.
Well, it was closed on Sunday...
which began our tradition of going to Pizza Hut every year- much more our speed anyway ;)
The past few years we've made it a family affair- which is, of course, a huge hit.