:P
Outside My Window...
Abundant sunshine. Finally. The temperatures will stay cold, high of 45 today, but at least the sun will help to dry the massive pools of melted mush. Numerous times yesterday we thought it was raining what with the melting snow and constant dripping.
I Am Listening To...
My children arguing. sigh. I'm not sure how to conquer this beast. It's been assaulting our family for a good while now. The constant bickering and picking is wearing me down. Is this normal? Am I too uptight about it? Any advice?
I Am Wearing...
Black loose yoga pants, white hoodie, orange crocs. Comfy clothes for me today.
I Am Thankful For...
The time I was able to spend with my friend Lisa last night. I held her precious baby, read stories to my beautiful goddaughter, (and her sister) and got to have some much-needed Mama chat time. It was so lovely.
I Am Pondering...
Schooling options, and what is best for each one of my kids.
I Am Reading...
The Edge of Sadness, Character Building, and In Conversation With God. The first two are for my book club. The last is my spiritual reading. Still trying to get up earlier in order to spend some quiet moments in prayer before the day begins. Guess I know what my Lenten sacrifice will be!
From the Kitchen...
Cupcakes last night, and some sort of sweets for tomorrow. Probably cinnamon rolls for the morning and cake for dessert. Not too much, though, since we need it out of the house before Wednesday.
I Am Thinking...
About Lent. And how much we need this time. To dig in and make commitments and follow through. Our apathetic natures yearn to be whipped into shape. And for the best reason of all... for He who died for us. It's beautiful and inspiring. But of course it is. This is our Faith.
I Am Creating...
An integrated education for all the kids. Taking what we have and adding to it. More writing and memorization, less busy-work. We'll see if this great experiment works out.
On My iPod...
The new BNL single. Sorry, but I am a die-hard fan as you know. You'll find it here.
Towards Rhythm and Beauty...
Plans for our new master shower are taking shape. Sometimes I feel paralyzed with all of the choices! Sounds crazy, but I am grateful that our budget restrains me. At least it lets me know what is reasonable and what is not. I'll be trying to blend what we have with snazzy updates.
To Live the Liturgy...
Mardi Gras and Lent. Lots of dialogue in the next few days. The older kids need a good kick in the pants. Don't we all?
:)
I Am Hoping and Praying...
I am hoping for a fruitful Lent. I am praying for a dear friend who moved to Italy with her family (husband and two adopted children) right before her miracle baby was to be born (she had been infertile for years...) Her precious boy died in childbirth. She is an ocean away from family and friends. But her faith and our prayers are holding her up. And many people are flying over to be with them. It is gut-wrenching and wondrous to witness this communion of graces. They are an amazing family.
In the Garden...
Still some snow. But the pansies are holding on. No plans yet for anything else. My neighbor is too busy clearing away the debris from his yard.
Around the House...
Day off today for President's day, and we're taking full advantage. We have a crazy sports and scouts-filled week.
On Keeping Home...
The arrival of Lent is perfect timing. With all of the activities coming up, we'll need some major amounts of discipline and scheduling to ensure somewhat smooth sailing through our weeks.
One of My Favorite Things...
The smell of a newborn. Scarce around here these days, but I got a good dose of it last night.
:)
A Few Plans for the Rest of the Week...
Basketball practices and games, soccer practices, hockey practices and games, scout meeting, scout dinner... about 14 events to cram into 5 days. hahahahahahaha. See y'all on the other side. Maybe.
:P
A Picture Thought I am Sharing...
A ton of Robins (and other birds) descended on our backyard yesterday afternoon.
They were in our trees and all over the lawn.
Our cat thought he had died and gone to cat heaven. (We kept him inside... he knew he wouldn't be able to catch them anyway...)
I have never seen so many robins in one place. Any ideas what was going on?
:)
7 comments:
Okay-I am not much of a "parenting advice" giver because that would assume I think I am successful at it and really, not so much-:-))). However, I will share something that works for us when my kids get like that-just CANNOT get along. I when it gets like that, I get desperate and I remember this-it works for me-we sit down together and we make a list of the virtues that we think are important to practice: for example: patience, self-sacrifice, generosity, kindness, helpfulness, hope, caring, gratitude, etc.....we write them in big letters and we put the list on the fridge. Then I pick a reward. Could be anything that works to motivate your kids. And we start working to practice those virtues. It just really helps to write them down, have them on the fridge and then when things get ugly, it's easier to gently remind everyone what we are doing and the goal we are working towards....it seems to really help. Anyway, it's just an idea. And it keeps me from having a huge meltdown and screaming at everyone in the house telling them to be PATIENT FOR GOODNESS SAKE AND FOR GOODNESS SAKE STOP YELLING AT ONE ANOTHER AND CAN WE JUST ALL GET ALONG AND STOP THE FIGHTING....because I just don't know how helpful it is for me to be SCREAMING at my kids that they need to be GOOD or I am going to KILL them....(ha ha)I think the virtues thing works better. ;-))) mcm
I have never seen so many robins in one place. Any ideas what was going on?
Migration. That's the only time you will see so many robins together. Once they get where they are going, they don't like to be so close together.
We had some Cedar Waxwings the other day freezing their tail feathers off in the snow covered trees.
Thanks mcm for your words of wisdom. I hate "rewarding" behavior that I think should be expected, and that is why I always hesitate to do so... and then, by the time it's all out of control and I am SCREAMING AT THEM TO STOP SCREAMING AT EACH OTHER... I decide to do a reward system. LOL. You'd think I'd learn. After all, we Catholics think of heaven as our "reward" for good behavior on earth, right?
:P
Charlotte, thank you for chiming in about the robins! I did not know that they usually do not tolerate each others company unless they are migrating. Makes sense, though, since I normally don't see more than one or two in our backyard at a time...
So, are they moving further south then? Since we got all that snow?
About the bickering - often it helps to think what makes you crabby and testy (besides hormones). Are they getting enough sleep? Enough protein? Too much sugar? Enough exercise? Enough private, quiet time (especially important to any introverts)? Of course you can't eliminate every physical cause, so then it's time to move on to how to deal with bad feelings. This is especially helpful for girls when they eventually move onto the hormonal stage (I know, you don't even want to think about that). I tell the kids, "O.K., you didn't get enough sleep and you feel crabby, but you have to keep the ugly feelings inside (yes, suppressed emotions can be good). It's not right or kind to make the rest of us suffer because you aren't happy." Or something like that. "Offering it up" works with some kids, but not with others. We're not always successful, but it's a good opportunity to teach charity.
One more thing - the kids might need more down, quiet time. Sometimes a household with too much activity and outside committments is very stressful not just for the chauffering adults, but also for the children swirling around in the whirlpool. A good book on the subject is "Simplicity Parenting: Using the Extraordinary Power of Less to Raise Calmer, Happier, and More Secure Kids" by Kim Payne. Good luck!
I'm no expert, but I think this is actually the start of their moving back home for the spring. You can read more about them here.
Thank you, Kate! Usually, we are so much at home that I think that is the problem! (i.e. we don't get out enough... lol) But I'm not sure that's it. I should add a caveat to my "we have a crazy week" aspect of my post. I'm hoping this is the last week like that. One sport is ending, and the scouts stuff should calm down as well. (whew!)
:)
And maybe the coming of Lent will take care of the "too much sugar"?? Here's hoping!
I'll be on the look out for other triggers. Very good to keep ALL of that in mind!
Charlotte... thanks for the link!
:)
I really encourage you to read the book I mentioned. The author's thesis is that "We are building our daily lives, and our families, on four pillars of too much: too much stuff, too many choices, too much information and too much speed." The author is a family therapist who has had a lot of success with improving children's behaviors and "disorders" by merely getting the parents to simplify their kids' lives and their home lives. It's really a fascinating book and kind of sets a natural groundwork on which to build the supernatural.
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