Last spring I was introduced to a blog called Power of Moms. It as a gathering place for "deliberate" mothers. I would not call myself deliberate. Most days I am simply trying to get through the day without losing my mind. When I came across this group I started to get inspired that I could do better. I started seeing that by changing my attitude I could be a much more effective mother and I could also enjoy my kids more. It has given me inspiration and tools to make changes in my home that will hopefully make a huge difference in the long run.
Through Power of Moms I have also learned about this new book coming out called The Entitlement Trap by Linda and Richard Eyre. I am so excited about this book because I agree with the authors that entitlement is a major problem in our society. I am excited to read this book and get some good ideas of what I can do to help avoid this problem with my kids as they get older. The authors are offering a discount for people who pre-order the book and are also offering a free giveaway for pre-ordering. Just go to http://entitlementtrap.com/giveaway.htm. Check out the book and see if you think it might have some benefit for your family.
Monday, August 22, 2011
Friday, August 19, 2011
Smiles
Yesterday was an interesting day. I'm not sure why, but I noticed a few smiles. Now, I am sure these smiles happen everyday but yesterday they really caught my attention.
The first was Alex's smile. Alex tends to wake up on the wrong side of the bed every now and then. Yesterday was one of those days. He came up the stairs with a growl. Waiting at the top of the stairs to meet him was Ferby, our dog. Alex sat next to Ferby, look the dog right in the eyes and starred at him. After a second, Ferby licked Alex's face. It was so cute to see the smile stretch accross Alex's face. I had the thought This is why we have that dog!
The next smile I noticed was Lauren's. Lately, this smile has been very hard to come by! She has a binky in her mouth at all times! Yes, I know she's 3. I'm working on it! I have been trying hard to take that binky away during the day and yesterday I followed through on my plans and took it away. We had a fun game out and Abby was playing with Lauren. I saw smiles and laughs that I hadn't seen in a while from Lauren. It was so great to see her happy and see her face light up when Abby plays with her. It reminded me that the effort to extract the binky from her mouth is worth it! I also saw great smiles from Lauren at the pool when I was playing with her.
The last smile I noticed yesterday was Tyler's. Did I mention that this summer is getting a bit long for Tyler. He's struggling. I hear him cry because he's board and lonely more than I see him smile these days. Well, we went to the pool yesterday and he loved it! He has learned to swim and he loves doing it. He wanted me to come watch him swim so I packed Lauren over to where he was swimming and watched him. He swam over to me and started tickling my armpits! I don't know why that idea came to him but that was definately his plan the whole time. He wouldn't stop tickling no matter what I said. He thought it was hilarious! And as much as I hated him trying to tickle me (it hurt not tickled!) I LOVED the smile that stretched across his face each time I protested. He was happy and his beaming smile showed it.
It's so easy to miss those moments. Like I said before, they probably happen everyday and I just don't notice. I am grateful that I noticed yesterday though. I have thought over each of those moments and how peaceful and happy I felt right then.
The first was Alex's smile. Alex tends to wake up on the wrong side of the bed every now and then. Yesterday was one of those days. He came up the stairs with a growl. Waiting at the top of the stairs to meet him was Ferby, our dog. Alex sat next to Ferby, look the dog right in the eyes and starred at him. After a second, Ferby licked Alex's face. It was so cute to see the smile stretch accross Alex's face. I had the thought This is why we have that dog!
The next smile I noticed was Lauren's. Lately, this smile has been very hard to come by! She has a binky in her mouth at all times! Yes, I know she's 3. I'm working on it! I have been trying hard to take that binky away during the day and yesterday I followed through on my plans and took it away. We had a fun game out and Abby was playing with Lauren. I saw smiles and laughs that I hadn't seen in a while from Lauren. It was so great to see her happy and see her face light up when Abby plays with her. It reminded me that the effort to extract the binky from her mouth is worth it! I also saw great smiles from Lauren at the pool when I was playing with her.
The last smile I noticed yesterday was Tyler's. Did I mention that this summer is getting a bit long for Tyler. He's struggling. I hear him cry because he's board and lonely more than I see him smile these days. Well, we went to the pool yesterday and he loved it! He has learned to swim and he loves doing it. He wanted me to come watch him swim so I packed Lauren over to where he was swimming and watched him. He swam over to me and started tickling my armpits! I don't know why that idea came to him but that was definately his plan the whole time. He wouldn't stop tickling no matter what I said. He thought it was hilarious! And as much as I hated him trying to tickle me (it hurt not tickled!) I LOVED the smile that stretched across his face each time I protested. He was happy and his beaming smile showed it.
It's so easy to miss those moments. Like I said before, they probably happen everyday and I just don't notice. I am grateful that I noticed yesterday though. I have thought over each of those moments and how peaceful and happy I felt right then.
Friday, August 12, 2011
Bear Lake
We just returned from our 4 day family reunion at Bear Lake. This is an annual tradition with Nate's extended family. In fact, Nate's aunt figured out that this tradition has been going for more than 50 yrs! Nate has a great family. I love spending time with them. I am grateful that my kids are creating Bear Lake memories just like Nate did. Abby and Alex lived on the beach and out on the boats. They also loved spending time with cousins they know and meeting new ones. Tyler and Lauren were a little harder. We rented a trailer so Tyler would have somewhere to hang out with no bugs. It was hard to get him to come down to the beach. Lauren wasn't a huge fan of the beach either but she was easier to get down there. I had my moments of self pity, wishing that my kids were more "normal". But mostly, I just tried to enjoy the good moments with them and ignore the frustrating ones! I loved the few times I was able to sit in the shade by the beach and visit with the ladies! Nate was able to play golf and horseshoes so he was in heaven! It was a great trip all around!
As a side note, please ignore the terrible quality of the pictures. That's a story for another time!
Here are Nate and Tyler after their little game of baseball. It shows the view of the property. It is a great place!
This is Abby with her sand castle creation.
Here is Alex. He was watching Nate play horseshoes at the time.
Here's an action shot of Nate playing horseshoes.
Just a cute picture of Lu.
When Tyler went down to the beach, this is where you would find him! It was his special lounge chair!
Abby with her cousin Renae. She loves Renae!
I am so happy that we already have our week reserved for next year!
As a side note, please ignore the terrible quality of the pictures. That's a story for another time!
Here are Nate and Tyler after their little game of baseball. It shows the view of the property. It is a great place!
This is Abby with her sand castle creation.
Here is Alex. He was watching Nate play horseshoes at the time.
Here's an action shot of Nate playing horseshoes.
Just a cute picture of Lu.
When Tyler went down to the beach, this is where you would find him! It was his special lounge chair!
Abby with her cousin Renae. She loves Renae!
I am so happy that we already have our week reserved for next year!
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