Homemade White Bread

This is my recipe for white bread...altered a little from a friend of mine's:

2 cups lukewarm water
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup olive oil
1 egg
4 1/2 cups king arthur bread flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons yeast (I use red star)

I use a breadmaker so I put it all in to the machine, in order, then set it for dough.
You can kneed it yourself as well...just make sure when pouring ingredients the yeast does not touch the liquid until you start mixing/kneading.
Kneed until soft dough is formed and let rise in bowl. Punch down and kneed again and let rise in bowl.
(If using bread maker just watch it on the last rise because it overflows in my machine and I have to stop the last rise 30 mins early to avoid a mess.)
After the last rise, punch down and divide dough in half and put each half in a bread pan. Let rise for 30 mins in bread pans then bake for 30 mins at 350.
I usually let it cool overnight on the stove covered with a towel and then slice it all in the am and store in ziplocks.
Make sure you have alot of butter and enjoy!

Sew Happy

At 32, there is so much that I don't know about myself yet. I'm really liking the woman I'm getting to know though.  It turns out she likes to do crafts, plan a garden, eat clean, work out, attempt to raise egg chickens, and now sew! Yes you read that right, I actually LIKE to sew.

I aggravated my neck/shoulder injuries last week and I was really in need of a decent heat pack.  I drove around trying to find one to buy. I won't even go into the rigamarole that ensued that day. Eventually I got one, handmade, that day. But she didnt even ask me what kind of fabric I wanted, what shape, scent or anything.  I just figured it would be nice. Well I was wrong.  I got it home. I strongly disliked the odd squarish shape and size, the channels that she put in it so there were 3 sections, the so strong tea tree oil scent that after using it I smelled like a hippie who hadn't showered in two weeks, and the ugly hospital white look of it.

So the next day I said to myself "if I know exactly what I want, why don't I just make it myself."  So I did. Here is my first hot/cold therapy rice bag:

Then since I had the machine out and more fabric and more rice I decided to make a couple more for my family:

The little ones are great for little people or foot, knee, elbow, or leg injuries. The large one is great for any injury of the back. The middle size is the one I use for my neck. Although I think I'll make the neck one just a little smaller next time. I like it without channels because you can adjust the rice to curve to your body shape. If you like channels to keep the rice in place you can do that too. 

Bit Bad by the Craft/DIY Bug

I'm not really sure what is going on.  Are pigs flying? Is the Earth off it's axis? Is it some strange phase of the moon?

In that last week, I've made more actual decent looking crafts than I can remember. It all started when the boys and I had an idea to make some birthday gifts for people. Here's what we came up with:

Family Cupcake Liner Bouquet in Fingerprint Vase

Kid Bouquet in Fingerprint Vase with handpainted flowers by kids

Kid Bouquet in Fingerprint Vase with pre-painted flowers

So that was super fun.  It was a day project to shop for the vases at Salvation Army, the flowers and paint at Walmart, get home, prep the vases, cover work surface, help kids make fingerprint flowers, bake the vases (because its enamel paint and has to cure - this is best for glass surfaces so the paint doesn't chip or wash off). Then I printed the pics and cut them out. They painted the natural wooden flowers and craft stick stems, I hot glued everything together and when the vases were cool we put it all together with a little tissue paper. I used cupcake liners as paint cups and when we were finished I put what paint I could back into the bottles then spread the rest over the cupcake liner. I let them dry then glued the faces on and cut the liners with fancy scissors and glued to craft stick stems.  This was really a fun little project for all of us!

Check out my next post for my other craft project of the week :)

Humble Parenting

Many of us complain about the hurt and damage we received from our parents in our childhood. I understand we all want to do things differently and protect our children from those kinds of hurts. But has it occurred to us that there are other hurts and damage that will be done regardless? What makes us all think we are so great at parenting that we will not screw up our kids just as much as our parents did us? We are SINNERS. We WILL screw up. We all need an extra dose of humility. None of us will be perfect parents. None of us will do EVERYTHING right. And ALL of us will look back on some of our decisions and say “man, I wish I did that differently.” My prayer for my kids is that my children will seek God’s healing for the ways that I fail. Because I WILL fail.

Another thought is that many of us judge and say well if I did what THEY do my kids would respond this way, so therefore its wrong. For example I might say if I let my 5 and 3 year old boys eat what they want, whenever they were hungry they would eat every two hours and chose junk food. Well that is because I have trained them to eat what I tell them. They dont have many chances to choose and when they do choose they want something special that they dont get all the time. For someone who has trained their child from the start to chose good healthy foods all the time, who never gave them candy or chips, their child at 5 may be able to be trusted to choose his menu. You get the idea. Its all about the training.

We need to stop comparing. "Each one should test their own actions. Then they can take pride in themselves alone, without comparing themselves to someone else." Gal 6:4

And stop judging how God made each one of us different. "But who are you, a human being, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, ‘Why did you make me [OR THEM] like this?' Does not the potter have the right to make out of the same lump of clay some pottery for special purposes and some for common use?" Rom 9:20-21

Luke 18:9-14 "To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’ 13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ 14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Child Training Bible

I received my Child Training Bible materials last week.  If you haven't heard of the Child Training Bible is a wonderful tool to help children and parents walk in the ways of the Lord.  Please check out Mindy's site for more details about this tool.

I finished putting my CTB together today while on vacation.  I chose the Zondervan NIV large print pew Bible.  The words are nice and big, so the kids can easily read it.  It was so wonderful just reading through the scriptures for each topic as I tabbed and highlighted the verses.  I then found some of my favorites that weren't on the list and tabbed and highlighted them accordingly.

After I finished I was able to use the CTB for my own Bible study time.  It was fantastic!  It was refreshing to only have the Word in front of me and not a bunch of notes and comments.  Those things are certainly useful but at this time in my walk, the pure Word is speaking to me in amazing ways and I am loving it! I am so looking forward to continuing to use this tool for our whole family's growth.

My biggest concern now is that every 5 mins I will be having a "Bible moment" with my kids because there is just so much there that we need to work on!  I think I need to pray for wisdom on that front ;) Perhaps focus on an issue a week for a while.  We'll see how God leads that.

If you don't have your CTB yet, seriously consider this amazing tool.  Not saying this because I have too, only because I am just so in love with it!  Thanks to Mindy for sharing her family's tool with the world.  We so greatly appreciate it!

Fruit of the Spirit lesson

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

Yesterday I was feeling the hankering to do a little school with the boys. When I say this I mean like creative lesson planning and activities around a specific theme. I don't often have this kind of hankering because it requires effort and some planning LOL. But it really is so much fun. So while they watched their spanish lesson on DVD (La Clase Divertida), I got online and googled "fruit of the Spirit preschool" and found a ton of great resources.  Here is where I got a lot of stuff. I had planned in September that our Bible focus this year would be the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23). I would teach them each fruit and use different bible stories to illustrate each fruit in action. Great ideas, but it never really happened. So yesterday we made this cute little fruit basket craft which was very simple but involved scissors and glue which my boys love. And Luke actually really enjoyed coloring his fruit and basket. He colored everything himself except the bottom part of the basket. He's really improved at coloring in the last month!

Josh loves "scissoring" he had fun cutting up the watermelon and his basket page LOL. I glued it back together for him :) I also helped him color.

What was nice was that while we were coloring we talked about each fruit. I tried to define them in a way that a 2 and 4 year old can grasp (not easy BTW!). It was a bit easier talking about examples of how to show the fruit. We talked about a few of the bible stories I had wanted to use for love. I just told them the stories as we colored and cut and glued. For the idea of "Love your Neighbor" I told them the Good Samaritan (based on Luke 10:25-37). For "Love your enemy" we did David and Saul (based on 1 Samuel Chapters 18 - 24). Then we learned a new song - the fruit of the Spirit song:

We watched the video and then I quick looked up the chords and we sang and played it together. We've been singing the song a lot since yesterday and Luke has almost all the fruit memorized already! Looking forward to our next fruit lesson!

10 Things You Should Know Before Getting a Puppy

awww...look at the cute little puppy

1. PUPPIES AND LITTLE KIDS DON’T MIX. If you already have children, do not get a dog until your children are potty trained (school aged would be even better). At first the little puppy will be cute but soon he may be bigger and stronger than your children and he won’t know any better than to knock them down, nip at them and scratch them. They think your kids are their brothers and sisters and they play with them like they are dogs. If your kids are little, they do not have the capacity to assert themselves as the alpha dog and your puppy will walk (or jump) all over them. If you don’t have kids yet and are thinking about it, get a puppy first, its good preparation. Just make sure you read all this and everything else you can about them before you buy one. If you have children who are 4 or older, they can be a big help with the dog. They still may not be able to assert dominance over him but they can help with letting him out, feeding him, watering him, and training him. 

about 5 mos later

2. PUPPIES ARE DIRTY. If you think it will be great to have a “vacuum cleaner” to pick up all those crumbs your kids leave under the table, keep in mind your vacuum will make ten times the mess of your kids between his toys getting chewed into pieces, stuffing all over the house, muddy paw prints adorning your floors (and pee and poop and puke) and did I mention dog hair that requires vacuuming or sweeping everyday (or a very conscious effort to ignore).

ahhh...the mud...

3. PUPPIES ARE EXPENSIVE. Be aware of the cost of a dog. First you have to buy the puppy. This can be anywhere from free to thousands of dollars. We paid a lot for our dog because we wanted a reputable breeder and a health guarantee. If you care about the future of this dog and you are looking to have a dog in his forever home this is the best way to go. You know what you are getting into and its guaranteed. However you will pay for it. Now this cost of the dog covers his first shots, maybe a little food, treats, collar and leash. You will then need to purchase a crate. If you want him to be comfortable you will get him a bed. Some advice – do not buy the cheap beds with stuffing in them. Find an old blanket that has no stuffing and that cannot easily be torn to pieces. I went through 3 beds, I think, and 3 blankets before I found one that he didn’t shred within a week. You will need toys unless you don’t mind all your shoes, carpets, children’s toys, furniture and anything else he can reach becoming his toy. Advice – don’t buy any toys with stuffing. Chew toys are great, especially nylabone and kong. And the skinzeez are great but even those he eventually gets the squeakers out and shreds the skins to bits. (Hence number 2 above). If you want the dog to obey and housetrain, you will need treats. A grooming kit will come in handy. At the least, you will need nail clippers and dog wash. You will need to buy anther collar because most likely your dog will grow out of his puppy collar. Then it’s likely you will need a prong or slip collar (I suggest prong), then you will need a bigger prong or slip. You might need to buy a few different leashes. Also some type of fencing is often needed. Maybe a doghouse and a run. We also bought a static training collar. And obedience class. Then there’s the vet. The first six month of vet bills are hefty. Also you have to consider flea and parasite control. These are imperative. Right now we are not treating fleas in the winter but we will again in the spring. Ongoing costs will be toys, treats, food, vet, flea and parasite control, grooming. And lets not forget replacement costs of the things your dog will wreck. You can see a list below of just some of the things I’ve had to replace. Perhaps, if you do as suggested in number 1 you will be able to monitor your dog better than me and this will not be as much of a problem for you. Understand that the bigger the dog the more expensive he will be. Everything goes by weight. Bigger dogs eat more, poop more, and require more medication. Here's an estimate of costs based on my actual expenses:

INITIAL COSTS	MIN	MAX
dog	0	2000
crate	25	200
dog beds	25	200
baby/puppy gates	20	100
toys	50	150
grooming kit	20	50
treats	15	50
dog dishes	10	30
chews	10	50
dog wash	3	5
Vet -first exam	60	90
Vet second shots	50	100
lyme	25	50
vet third shot	71	150
rabies	16	30
second lyme	25	50
parasite control	20	40
nueter	250	500
collars/leashes	25	50
fencing	25	500
training collar	150	300
grooming	35	70
poop scoop	20	20
puppy class	100	300
	1050	5085

REPLACEMENT	EST
shoes	150
laptop cord	75
childrens toys	60
throw rugs	70
phone cables	40
blankets	50
clothes	50
books	20
	515
YEARLY COSTS	MIN	MAX
parasite control	45	68
flea control	40	142
food	210	468
toys	20	100
treats	40	80
vet	60	120
grooming	10	300
	425	1278

We had better gates for the dog than for the kids!

4. PUPPIES TIE YOU DOWN. Forget your social life for about 6 mos. Yes, you may be able to leave him in the crate for little bits at a time, like to get groceries. But you will not just be able to go anywhere for hours at a time, unless everywhere you go is dog friendly. It is nice to take your puppy lots of places but again if your kids are little, just think of it like bringing another baby with you. You really need a doggie diaper bag. You need to bring a leash, treats, bowls, food, water, toys, bags to clean up after him. It’s just another thing to add to your list that makes getting out the door even harder. And people get sick of hearing “um…is it okif I bring my puppy?" No its not, if they wanted a puppy there they would have one of their own!

Taking care of a sick dog is no fun

5. PUPPIES CHANGEYOUR LIFE. You and your kids will not be able to do all the things you are used to doing for a while. If you are pre-children, forget long video game sessions, nights out on the town, or leaving your stuff anywhere you please in the house, for just a few examples. That puppy will require your attention and really doesn’t care how far your getting in Call of Duty, who will be at the wine bar, or how much your iPad costs. If you don’t give him what he needs, he will destroy your stuff if its in reach and looks chewable. And if you leave him unattended too much in or out of the crate you are coming back to a mess. For those of us with kids, beware, some of their favorite activities may be put on hold for a while. For example, my boys like to play with a hotwheels racetrack. If they play with it when the dog is around it doesn’t last long because the dog thinks the cars are fun to chase and play keep away with. Often I hear from my kids, “MOOOOOOM!!! CAN YOU PUT THE DOG OUTSIDE, HE’S BEING ANNOYING!?” Don’t get me wrong, playing with our dog is lots of fun but sometimes my kids just want to play kid things, without a puppy thinking he’s IT and his way of tagging is knocking them to the ground. By 6 mos he outweighed both my boys. There are ways around this that we have learned. But again it requires serious effort on the part of the dog owner. We’ll get into that next.

Not the best pic, but you get the idea ;)

6. PUPPIES NEED EXERCISE. The only way to keep a dog out of trouble is good obedience training and proper exercise. We’ve found that if we spend lots of time training and playing, he will tire out and then just sleep. This allows my kids to play and run and do what they like without his interference. If you aren’t able to do daily walks (or runs) you need to spend a good 30 mins or more playing with your puppy every day. I suggest more as they grow. Great ways to exercise your dog include, fetch, training commands sit, stay, come; hide and seek (throw the ball and have the kid run with the dog for a few games of fetch, then when you throw the ball again have the kid hide and when puppy comes back with ball tell him to find kid), keep away (once they have learned who’s boss and will drop it when told), tug of war (again after they will drop it for you), walking, rollerblading, biking, running laps around the house with your 4 year old (once they are out of the nipping stage), Frisbee, trampoline (kids jump on it, dog jumps under it), there are lots of other games and training activities you can do with your dog, google it J

He was still running after a steep one mile hike at 5 mos old

7. PUPPIES NEED TRAINING. You will have to put significant time into training your dog. Even the smartest dogs take time to train. Early on you will need to spend at least 30 mins a day training your dog if you want him to obey. You need to be committed to this and find time in your schedule to make this work or else you will soon be calling the breeder or a shelter to give away or back an unruly dog. (And just think of all the money you wasted.) Every breed and every dog is different. There are tons of different training techniques out there. Before you even get a dog, spend some time researching training techniques and decide what you like but be willing to try a few different things. Certain things work better for certain dogs. Breed also comes into play. Some dogs need more correction, some only need praise and pets, while others are very food motivated. You have to be willing to try different things and figure out what works for your dog. 

Dogs (and little boys) love to dig!

8. YOU WILL WANT TO GIVE UP YOUR PUPPY. Know that somewhere between 5-12 mos your dog will go nuts and you will want to get rid of him. He will be going through the naughty adolescent phase. Sort of like a 2 year old and a 13 year old all rolled up into one naughty little four legged sneak. He WILL NOT listen and you WILL NOT catch him. This is why we invested in a static training collar. Its not for everyone, but it works for us.

Taking a napkin right off the table (not the only thing he's taken off the table)

9. PUPPIES ARE STRESSFUL. You are adding stress to your life by getting a dog. Yes, you are getting a wonderful pet and a great experience for your kids and your family and you will have sweet and lasting memories. But right now you will have significant stress and this puppy (aka baby) will run your life for a while. If your kids are already a handful adding a dog is not the solution. It may distract them from killing each other for a few weeks but soon enough the newness wears off and you have 3 little tornados tearing up everything in their paths, including each other.

Does this look easy? Its not.

10. DOGS ARE THE BEST PET YOU COULD OWN. Last but not least, and probably most important, dogs are amazing and wonderful pets. They are loyal, they love their family and they really will do anything to please you (as soon as they figure out what you want, and how to communicate with you.) You just really have to put the time and effort in to making a cute puppy a great pet. Apuppy is not just something you get to show off and pet and play with. There is a TON of work involved in raising a great dog. Just as there is in raising great children. But once you are ready for the responsibility of a puppy and you really put in the effort, you will have a wonderful companion, great stress relief, a best friend for your kids who will never forsake them, and someone who will ALWAYS be happy to see you. Just don’t make the mistake of taking on a puppy lightly or else you won’t have one for very long.

All in all...he's worth it. And we love him. Even if he is annoying ;)

Why we homeschool

So my last post was maybe a bit harsh. I was venting and I apologize if I offended anyone or put anyone off. The thing is homeschooling is hard enough as it is. To add being criticized and judged for how we school just makes it all the more difficult. I think all homeschool parents are probably harder on ourselves. Always wondering if we are doing a good enough job, should we be doing some other curriculum, or are we pushing too hard, or going too slow, or making it too easy. So to be questioned on top of that by often complete strangers can be frustrating.

Regardless, I feel it best to share the joys of homeschooling here, rather than the difficulties. One of the main reasons we choose to homeschool is so that we can be the main influence on our children's lives during their formative years. This is a time for us to shape them and develop their character and love for Jesus and we want to spend every moment we can doing that. Additionally we are able to tailor their education to our beliefs and their level of learning. To see your child learn something and get excited about it is just the most precious gift. If circumstances were different, we may not be able to homeschool, but praise God He's blessed us with our own business and a flexible schedule that allows us to school at home. 

When we married, my husband said that he wanted to homeschool and I said "NO WAY!" I couldn't imagine being a teacher to my children. Now I wouldn't haven't it any other way and I couldn't imagine sending Luke off to kindergarten next year. Its just not for us. 

And just as I don't want to be judged, I don't judge others for sending their kids to school whether public or private. Everyone has to do whats best for their families. And I know plenty of amazing kids who have been in school and been amazingly successful academically, socially, and spiritually. Its all about what God wants you to do...not about what's BEST. And who knows...we take this homeschooling journey one year at a time. We listen for God's will and make our choices based on that. Luke may be in school in two years or he may be doing homeschool in college. We'll see...God is in control.

Skipping Kindergarten

So we homeschool. We have home schooled since our kids were born. I incorporate "school" into everyday activities we do all the time. I'm not here to brag. Just to kind of get this off my chest. My children are gifted. I don't say that to make myself feel good or to show off. I didn't create them, God did. However, I have been their teacher. And God has given me the wisdom to provide them with excellent preschool "curriculum" formed and adapted right in my own brain from his excellent hand.

If my four year old were tested I'm certain he would test out of kindergarten, save for coloring in the lines & tying his shoes. I see no need to spend money and time on curriculum that will bore us both. My two year old has now shocked me, recognizing over half the alphabet and suddenly wanting to gain every little bit of knowledge that he can.

So I'm not doing curriculum this year, I'm not doing curriculum next year. And when we get to "first grade" we'll see if we are doing curriculum that year. But for now, I'm fairly sure that what we are doing is working just fine. And when we get to first grade, if there are gaps, I'm sure the school will fill me in. I really don't think we have anything to worry about.

I didn't think I could homeschool. Then when I decided to homeschool, I didn't think I could do it without curriculum and someone telling me how to do it. Now I know that God gave me these kids and told me to be their teacher, so He will be the one to tell me how to do it. I'm not saying I'll never use or need curriculum...in fact I use a spanish curriculum and a handwriting curriculum right now. But I don't feel the need to sit down and do boring bookwork day in and day out with my children who absolutely love to learn in every way they can. Perhaps I can't "get away" with this forever. But we certainly will try to get away with it as long as we can. If school was always this much fun, I'd never wanna stop learning. And I hope that will be the case for our boys too.

Discipline

Hebrews 12:1-12

1Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.
4In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:
"My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline,
and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
6because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son."[a]
7Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? 8If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. 9Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! 10Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. 11No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.
12Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.

THE SPANK...

We are all fleshly creatures and it is easily seen in my son that our sinful nature rears its ugly head at a very young age. Every morning he asks for his gummy vitamin. Often Daddy gets up with him and gives it to him. When Luke and I are in the kitchen later in the morning and Daddy has gone to work, Luke asks for his gummy again. He knows he already got one, he knows he only gets one a day but he still asks. Is it a sin to ask? No, but it shows his fleshly selfish desire ruling in his life.

Now, I don't spank for this particular behavior. I spank for direct disobedience and it is always done in a controlled manner - the same way every time - taking Luke to the discipline spot, giving him the spank, explaining why he was spanked and asking for an apology, extending forgiveness, reconciling via hug.

I don't believe in smacking my kid around and I do my best to never discipline out of anger.

We spent much of the time between 10 and 14 months training Luke with spanks. Now an actual spank is a rare occurrence and we are complimented endlessly on how well behaved he is for a 2 year old. He is not afraid of us, and he doesnt cower when he is disobedient. He has just been trained to listen and obey just like God trains and disciplines us see verses 5-7 above.

I believe that many old testament verses state young children are best disciplined through physical means:
Proverbs 13:24
He who spares his rod hates his son, But he who loves him disciplines him promptly.

Proverbs 23:13
Do not withhold correction from a child, For if you beat him with a rod, he will not die.

Proverbs 22:15
Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of correction will drive it far from him.

That does not mean time outs or other approaches don't work. But I believe discipline must begin when disobedience begins and the best way for a child to understand and internalize the discipline at that young of an age is through a spank. I believe a 9, 15, 18 month old child can be disobedient. "Children obey your parents." It is our responsibility to teach our children how to obey. I believe a spank does that.

As parents we have a model to follow when it comes to raising our children. That model is God's relationship with us. I know I have received earthly punishments/consequences for many of my sins - God allows those punishments/consequences, I think that is what the Hebrews passage is referring to. Young children don't have an understanding of earthly consequences not to mention heavenly ones and the best way to get through to them is via a spank. This is in order to protect them from experiencing those negative consequences/punishment later in life.

Jesus said "be perfect as my heavenly father is perfect". It is my responsibility to train my child to strive for what Jesus expects from us. We are also to make every effort to be found spotless and blameless on the day of Christ's coming (2 Pet chap 3). I am training my child to be spotless and blameless and feel as said for his age a spank is the best way to do that.

Spanking is not the only way to discipline a child. And when my child is at an age where taking away privileges or doing time out will make sense to him, I will probably use those methods as well. But for the very young, I feel a spank is the best form of discipline that God has given us.

Food Battle - 1 year later

A year ago I began a food battle with Luke. You can read about it in my previous posts.

Tonight Luke ate four large bites of chinese beef & broccoli with white rice all mixed together. On the first bite he made a face but the rest he did well. It only took him about 10 min. We have come a long way from where we were a year ago. Other shocking things that he will eat now include tacos (all those things mixed together:-0), tilapia, hamburger, grilled chicken, LOVES cooked green beans. He still loves his staples of grilled cheese, PB&J, pizza and pasta. But just saying that makes me remember when getting him to eat plain pasta with butter was a fight. I had to turn spaghetti into pasta snakes and elbows into pasta rhinoceros.

So I just want to encourage anyone who is struggling with a picky eater. Just try to be consistent. Make them try just a little each time. It really is true that it takes them 10 times to like something new. They have to take the time to taste it and chew and swallow. Then if they don't want more thats ok. But next time its two bites, and so on.

With Luke there are still certain food that he just despises, and I respect that. I've learned what they are and I don't make him eat those things. I can tell by his behavior when he tries something new whether it really turns his stomach or he just doesn't want to try it.

Anyway, be encouraged. This was a kid who only ate fruit, cheese, bread, annies mac & cheese, grilled cheese, PB&J, and pizza. Now we can go anywhere and eat whats being served. Even if its only a little bit, It can be done without having to bring him a special meal or ask for PB&J. That was my goal. And I'm so grateful that God has given us the strength to follow through.

CHRISTmas

Tonight I did something very simple yet very special. The boys each have their own nativity sets. One is little people and one is just a porcelain set. When decorating for Christmas they couldn't wait to find their "stables" and play with them. So I put all the train track and trains away and flipped over the board that sits on the train table. It's just plain wood on the other side. I called it Israel and put their "stables" in the desert. Since then they have been playing with them on and off. Josh asked tonight if I would play with his stable with him and I said sure bring it over. Then I asked Luke to get his beginners bible. As I read, the boys and I acted out the Christmas story with the figurines. They loved it. Luke wanted to keep going and we went as far as choosing the disciples before it was bath time.

It was awesome to watch the boys get so excited about the bible. It reminds me how simple it can be to make God's word come alive for them. 

It also saddens me to think how many children have no idea what Christmas is really all about. It's so simple to share this Christmas treasure with our little ones but so many let their own sin and distance from God get in the way. I'm so blessed that we are able to raise our boys in the LORD from the start. And I'm praying that we can keep Christ in not only CHRISTmas but in everyday of the year.

My favorite room

It's a place I can go daily and just sit and relax. Maybe read a book or post a blog entry or pray. A place where I can usually be alone in quiet solitude. Yes I'm talking about the bathroom. Who knew at 31, my bathroom (or any bathroom) would be my favorite room in the house. But really just to sit - its so nice. Some days it's the only sitting I get to do. Don't get me wrong. I love playing with my kids in the living room or reading a story in their bunk bed or sitting down for a meal in the dining room together. But there is just something about that quiet solitude of the bathroom...that is until someone needs me...that I just really appreciate today ;)

Leap Frog Review

We bought this tag reader pen and a number of books last year for Christmas for Luke. It was about $40 at target. I think each book that goes with it is about $10. He loved it. It reads to you and you can play games and sound out words. Its a very neat product. And if you only expect it to last six months then its a wonderful product. In June we had to have our first one replaced because it just completely stopped working. I was impressed that they would just send me a replacement and was a happy, satisfied customer. My kids continued to use the pen and it worked well. Until recently (about 5 mos after it was replaced). This time it still worked but the games did not. You could click on the game button on a page, the game would start but then nothing worked after that and to do anything you would have to restart the pen. So I called customer service again and tried to explain the problem to someone. After a number of attempts to explain he finally got it...the games don't work. He told me to clean the camera, I said I did that and I reloaded the entire thing. Well 10 mins later I find out there is nothing they can do for me since they already replaced it in June.  I said so you sell me a bad product, you replace it with a bad product and now there's nothing you can do. "Well we can offer you 15% off your next leap frog purchase." Is it just me or is that comical?

So needless to say I'm not going to be investing much in leap frog products anymore. Very disappointing as I really like educational toys.

Bounce Around Indoor Play Center Review

I guess I had high expectations but I was really disappointed in Bounce Around, located in Clifton Park, NY.  They had 7 inflatables (bouncy bounces) of different varieties – slides, a toddler farm area, character themes, etc.  Then they had a number of arcade games which took tokens and gave prizes or tickets redeemable for prizes.

We found the staff to be less than friendly – I wondered if any of them even liked kids.  The price was pretty steep - $8.75 for 2 hours of play time

Many of the arcade games were broken and a number of them broke when we tried to play them.  We have visited a number of these types of establishments so I guess you could say we are experienced arcade goers.  Many of the prize games at Bounce Around had very cheap prizes or very difficult to win prizes.  For example there is a dinosaur game made by ICE that you drop the dino to pick up candy or toys that spin around.  All other places have it so chock full of toys and candy that it’s pretty easy to win every time and it takes 1 token.  Here it takes 2 and they are large lollipops that are very difficult to grab with the dinosaur.  Almost all the games took two or more tokens.  Equally disappointing were the redeemable prizes.  They had no candy and the smallest thing was 5 tickets for an army guy or a tiny neon nylon rope ring .  A small bouncy ball was 30 tickets.  This is usually like 5 or 10 tickets other places we have been

As far as the bouncing is concerned the kids (4 and 2) did have fun with it but we found it pretty dangerous as a lot of the sections of the inflatables were not within view of the parents and parents are not allowed on any inflatable.  So if a 12 year old is stomping on your 2 year old’s head in the slide stairway – no one would know until it was too late.  I didn’t find the staff manning the inflatables to be of much help either as they were texting or looking around generally glumly.

I think they had 3 or 4 birthday parties going on at the same time, which is a lot for a place so small.  It really seemed like the owners were generally interested in ripping off kids and I’m really not into supporting that.

Perhaps I was expecting too much as we were planning to go to TreePaad (cheaper and better) but they were closed for a private party.  Needless to say I don’t plan to go to Bounce Around again.

Tree Paad Indoor Play Center Review

I have nothing but good to say about Tree Paad.  We have been there twice and were hoping to go back today but they had a private party so we went to a different indoor play place and were so disappointed that I felt I needed to tell everyone how great Tree Paad is.  Don’t bother wasting your money elsewhere!

Tree Paad is an indoor play center located in Malta NY truly for kids of all ages. 1-12 I think would enjoy it and in fact I’m 30 and I think its really fun.  I think that is one of my favorite things about Tree Paad is that I can do most everything there with my kids.  Other places you go either aren’t big enough for adults or they don’t allow adults.  They charge $8 per kid.  They say on the website it is for 2 hours but both times we have gone they didn’t say anything about a time frame and did not kick us out after two hours was up.  I think the first time we were there for 4.5 hours.  The second maybe 3.5-4.  Actually the first time they only charged us $4 for our 1 yo – the toddler area only price, but they told us he could go in the fort too.

There is a special toddler area for 4 and under.  My 4 yo and 1 yo both enjoy this section.  But the big favorite is what they call Fort Ballocity.  It’s a netted play area with two levels, lots of slides, and then these foam balls all over.  On the lower level you can put the balls into caldron looking machines that eventually blow them up like a fountain or up to the upper level.  Its hard to explain but really cool.Then on the upper level are shooters (we don’t like to call them guns) that you can use to shoot the balls at targets on the netting (or at people below – hehe).  The balls are soft and they don’t hurt.  This section of Tree Paad is where we spend most of our time.  If you are like us and run up to the upper level and then slide down the slides about 25 times with your kids remember to dress in something cool that breathes. Eventually it gets pretty hot in there.

Besides the two main play areas, there is a huge arcade with games that give prizes or tickets redeemable for prizes.  All the games are in good working order and the games with prizes you win almost every time.  The redeemable prizes are decent and are on par with other good arcades in the area.  They have a lot of options to choose from ranging from candy to iPods.

There are a few other pay per play activities that we have not tried yet, including a rock wall, bouncy bounce, jump shot (bouncy house basketball), build a bear type activity, and laser tag.

The staff is friendly and courteous.  And parents seem to keep pretty good track of their kids there.They have a separate birthday party section with a number of party rooms and they seem to keep things organized for the parties quite well, though I have not personally experienced a party there.

I guess there are two things I can think of that aren’t my favorite.  They don’t let you bring food in and their food is not that good.  Also the food staff is not the friendliest bunch.  But they give you wristbands so I don’t see why you couldn’t pack a lunch, eat in your car and then go back in.Secondarily, and I only say this for my husband’s sake, it is incredibly loud in there.  He uses ear plugs when we go.  It doesn’t bother me, but I thought I’d mention it for those with sensitive ears.

All in all, Tree Paad is so worth the money (and the drive – about an hour for us) for a fun filled family day.  We will definitely be going back soon and bringing friends!

Picky Eaters Part 2

We went into this food battle with really no great plan. We took from a few different ideas about eating and then just jumped in with both feet, determined to win. The key behind it all was that L needed to listen and obey about everything. So if we said take a bite, he needed to do it. If we said chew and swallow he needed to do it.

Please understand I am not saying take a bite of liverwurst or brussel sprouts. We are talking about foods like hamburgers, carrots, pasta. Basic stuff that kids usually eat. He likes to hold food in his mouth for a looooong time. The first meal was homemade macaroni and cheese. It took him about 2 hours to eat 8 pieces of mac and some lettuce. We left him at the table and played Wii and told him he could play when he finished. He did finish and then played Wii. So the next night we tried the same thing. This time it was 2 or 3 bites each of steak, potatoes and carrots (or some similar veggie). He spent about an hour at dinner and didn't finish before bedtime. Then he got up at 7 and was given his dinner to finish for breakfast. He finished it at 11!

I started to get really impatient and that is when we started disciplining. We would tell him to swallow and he wouldn't listen and obey so we spanked him. It was so frustrating. But he had gotten away with not eating for so long that he put up quite a fight. There were times when we literally had to hold him down to get him to swallow the food. And again we are talking about things like child size bites of chicken. It was soon clear to see that it wasn't just about the food. L did not want to submit to our authority. He was testing in alot of other ways too. The very same week he had the biggest meltdown I've ever seen from him. Kicking and screaming, grabbing my arm and pulling on me because he had to go to his room for not obeying. He really wanted to have something to control and he thought food was going to be it. 

It was a very difficult few weeks between the discipline and the long meals. One thing I did was after he had been chewing on one bite for like 5 mins or longer I would count to 10 and if he didn't swallow he would have to go to the couch to lay down or have a spank. This was a good motivator because it gave him a limit and a consequence. 

I pretty much fixed him foods he liked for breakfast and lunch, if he finished his dinner. If not, he got his dinner for breakfast until he finished. I never gave him huge portions and told him he had to eat it all. It was usually 2 or 3 bites of something and 1 bite of things that were very new or different. I also limited juice and milk. I switched him to a regular cup and he got 8 oz of juice or milk, then 8 oz of water, then 8 ounces of juice or milk. He doesnt like water that much so it took him a while to get through the water to get his next cup of something he liked. This kept him from filling up on liquids. Also very limited snacks. If your kids are like mine they are hungry every two hours. So if we had a snack it was a set time, at the table and always healthy. 

I have found that what they say about children and new foods is true. It can take them 10 times to like something. Its very much a process that requires baby steps. Luke now gobbles up lettuce. The other day I was cutting a carrot for salad and he asked for it and took 3 bites of it. He didn't want more after that but just the fact that he asked and ate it with no prompting tells me we are really getting somewhere.

One thing that is really important and that I should probably put at the top is to praise. When they do try something new it has to be a HUGE deal. High fives, rewards, telling them how proud you are. Another thing is to make it fun. We count our chews and make the food disappear. Trying to keep a smile and a positive attitude no matter how frustrated you are with them. I think this really has to be combined with the discipline to ensure the child doesn't have a fear of dinner for the rest of his life ;)

The discipline may not be for everyone, but it worked for us. And I think it worked because L was trying to assert control over anything he could and this was an area we needed to show him we were still in charge. That we knew what was best for him and we were going to teach him how to eat whether he liked it or not.

I spent a lot of time in prayer agonizing over what we were doing. It felt awful watching him cry and beg and plead to not eat something. He would have raging fits or just cry like we were torturing him. I would lay awake at night practically crying myself wondering if we were doing the right thing. I mean, the results were NOT instantaneous. 

It took about a week of very serious discipline with mealtime. After that, once he knew he had to swallow, once we confirmed our authority, we backed off a little with the consequences. It didn't change what he had to eat and its not that we didn't discipline him anymore for difficulties eating, it just got a little easier. When I would tell him he had to take a bite of something, he would put up a little fight but I would just have to look at him and he would say "ok I will eat it".

And once he starting getting used to the foods, they were less scary. Every time he "survived" a green bean, it got a little easier to eat the next one. Now its been a month or so, and I can very easily tell which foods really do bother him and which ones he likes but just wont admit. So I can always figure out what to give him more of. And I wont force him to eat more that one bite of something I can tell he truly dislikes. I still often have to put the food on his fork for him or even feed him. But this is getting better too.

Some people may think how we did this was too harsh. If you've ever done any research on picky eaters, everyone says "don't fight the food battle", "you can't force a child to eat", "you shouldn't spank for not eating". But if you think about it, there are many things we force children to do. Lots of children don't like to go to school, they don't like to read, or tie their shoes themselves. They don't want to wait to cross the road and they don't want to eat their veggies. If they had it their way they would be eating candy and drinking soda in front of the TV all day. I'm constantly telling L, "you don't have to like it", "you can't always have what you want". And when he says he doesnt want it, I remind him, "did Jonah WANT to go to Ninevah?" We as parents are placed as an authority over them to teach them what we have learned about life. To help them to be healthy and safe, not always happy.