Baby Boys and Baby Teeth

Today is Karen's baby shower for Jordan, baby boy #3!!!  We are so excited to meet him, and he will be welcomed by some handsome big brothers and a family that has grown very fond of baby BOYS!  

Unfortunately, Sam was still sick today, and I didn't want to take him to Karen's to spread his germs.  So, Amanda and I got together this morning and whipped up something special for baby Jordan for her to deliver this afternoon...our first diaper cake!  Not too shabby for a couple of first-timers.  Enjoy Karen, and we will see you and baby Jordan very soon!

In the meantime, Kayden has been wiggling a loose tooth for days now.  He's been working to "break the roots" one by one, and today was the day he was finally ready to let his momma give it a try.  I barely had time to get out the camera and get this shot...

...before I saw this snaggle-toothed smile! 

 One tiny tug, and that first baby tooth is history!

Take a look at this grown up boy! Where does the time go?!

Just to be sure he didn't forget it somewhere or misplace it, he went 

straight back to his room and immediately put that tooth under his pillow!

COME ON TOOTH FAIRY!

And, what's he planning to do with his money from the tooth fairy????

Put it in his bunk bed fund...Pawpaw would be proud!

Perspective...

In my quest to really "see" things differently this year than I ever have before, I am realizing the importance of perspective.  I can choose to see things from a positive or negative perspective, and it can completely change what I see.  

For example:
After working hard to get the living room picked up, I turn around to find this...
Do I see the brand new mess made for ME to clean up?  Or, do I see an independent thinker
with an interesting plan brewing in that little brain?

Do I see the endless possibilities of how this shelf could topple down on my little man?  

Or, do I see a "make-it-happen" munchkin that thinks outside the box?

Mr. Destructo at it again? Or, an active imagination making a new hiding place?

The truth is, I see both, but I choose to 

FOCUS on the fact that this kid is a GENIUS!

Breakfast Club

Here at breakfast club, we don't just make pancakes...
we make pancakes that make people SMILE!

One Word - 2012

Sam and I were sitting at the dinner table a few nights ago, him eating his macaroni and peas and me daydreaming into space about something I can't even remember now.  He finished eating and signed to me that he was "all done," but I didn't see him.  He probably tried more than once to show me he was finished eating, but I didn't notice.  So, he yelled out with the lungs of his drill-instructor father to get my attention; very effective son. Mind cleared, I looked at him and asked, "What?"  He slowly leaned forward in his chair, looked at me as if I was the one with limited cognitive development, raised his little hands in the air again and signed..."all done." 

I've thought about that incident several times since then, sometimes laughing, sometimes wondering how much I really do miss while I'm unfocused and daydreaming about seemingly unimportant things.  Then I began to wonder how many times God has tried to get my attention, but I didn't see Him...

This brings me to my One Word for 2012.  It's no small task choosing a word since I'm stuck with it for the next 366 days.  To really live with it, allow it to shape my thoughts and actions, guide my decisions, reflect the person I want to be.  This year, my word is SEE.

SEE:  

to perceive or detect as if by sight; 

to be aware of; to give or pay attention;

to discover or realize a usually obscured truth; 

to grasp the true nature of


See all that Michael does everyday to help me get out of the house on time.  Cooking breakfast, packing lunches,  entertaining the "breakfast club."  Realize how blessed I am to have him, and thank him often.


Be present and really see Sam's growth and progress each day.  Focus.  Store up these treasures in my heart.  See the bigger picture of our time spent together going on wagon rides, playing at the park or building Lego castles in the living room floor.  See that my time with Sam is precious and fleeting and should be well spent.  

Be aware of the impact of my words and actions on my students each day.  Did I strengthen souls?  Judge the wounded?  Grasp the true nature of my students.  See them the way God sees them.

Detect the subtle nudges from God.  Recognize when God is trying to get my attention, and give it to Him fully, without the use of talking donkies.  Realize when I am being called to action and respond.  Be aware of those who need my help.  No "walking by on the other side" for me.  

"Oh Lord, open my eyes so I may see." 2 Kings 6:17 

(JPV) Jen's Personal Version

Starting Out Serving...

Sometimes I wonder about boys...

I didn't grow up with brothers, and boys had cooties until I was in 7th grade.  So, I never paid them much attention when I was young.  Now I'm covered up with growing boys who, by the way, respond very differently from girls when it comes to animals.

For example:

We see a goose by the pond at the park...Evan wants to see if he can kick it.

A dog crosses the road in front of our car...Evan says, "Just hit it."

They all LOVE to watch a good animal fight on NatGeo.

Kayden was the one who taught me that if you pull off the front right leg of a cicada, 

his head will fall off.

So, this momma thought it would be a good idea to start off the new year serving...animals.  We worked together and made a "food tree" for the animals at CedarRock to enjoy. 

Cameron was our "taste-tester." He couldn't stop eating

 the peanut butter and birdseed mixture.

Kayden and I strung Fruit Loops and Kix cereal to make "garland."

Pawpaw helped us choose this tree area by the activity barn to decorate.

Everyone was in on it...even my goose-kicker.

And for the top, a nice bagel hung on the tallest branch (we could reach).  

Our finished "food tree" for the animals...

...and the little hands that made it!  

(Yep, that's Cam in the background.)

Here's to being kind and not kicking, hitting, or disassembling animals in 2012.