things I love: a family update

     When I started this blog, a lot of it was dedicated to my kids. We were in their first years of life and everything was new!
     "Look! They just learned to sit up!"
     "Here are their first words."
     "Oh my goodness, look how much they've grown!"
     "We have a crawler on our hands...."
     "Watch this video of the first time (okay...ALMOST the first time...) they took steps!"
And on and on.
     There's this funny thing that has happened as they have gotten older. Continuing to publicly celebrate firsts starts to feel braggy. Over these years, several friends have had children who haven't or probably won't get to their firsts as quickly as mine. Some of them may never get to do these things for a first time. I've worried that me being excited about my kid doing something for the first time might make them feel like they're missing out or like I think my kid's better than theirs. Sometimes we act as though saying one kid's awesome at something implies that all other kids aren't awesome at that. Especially as they get older, kids start to reach milestones at very different times because they have very different strengths.
    What my friends of kids with special needs have taught me is that this is not a competition. They have gracefully demonstrated that we can be excited for my kids when they learn to walk and be (probably 10 times more) excited when theirs learns to walk. We can affirm how awesome it is that my kid does x thing and how awesome it is that their kid does thing y. One of us saying, "My kid just sounded out her first word!" means neither, "Your kid is dumb and you suck as a parent because your kid hasn't yet..." nor, "I should feel less excited because your kid learned this a long time ago." Even kids of similar ability focus on different things. I'm pretty word-oriented; I've taught my kids about words. My adventurous friend has kids who can climb trees and swim. Another friend has a kid who can name and recognize all the presidents. When I would find these things out, I used to panic. "Crap! Should I have taught them that, instead?!"
    (Okay, sometimes I do still worry that perhaps skills that can save your life -- like swimming -- may have been more important. But then I decide my kids can just stay away from bodies of water where they can't read the signs designating depth and such for a few more years. See? Different abilities are fine!)
   I say all this because I still want to celebrate my kids' achievements, especially if they've been working hard on them. They may be getting older and their firsts may come in a completely different order than others, but that's fine. My kids can be awesome like they are and your kids can be awesome like they are. This should be obvious to us all, but we need to be reminded. (At least I do!)

So here are some of the firsts in our family, not for those keeping score, but for those who enjoy celebrating.
- Israel went quiet in his reading for quite some time, refusing to try to read out loud if he thought a book might be hard. But today he started reading a chapter book out loud to me for the first time without freaking out. It said things like, "Buster wedged himself into Arthur's seat. 'My fault?' he said, 'You're the one who called Francine a marshmallow.'"
-  At the beginning of the spring, Eden forgot that she had ever peddled at all and refused to try a bike -- even with training wheels! (This, though I have a picture of her independently riding a tricycle at some ridiculously young age. So frustrating when you know they can do something and they won't....) I remember a spring day of her screaming like she was being tortured as I held onto her and moved her bike in a circle around a small parking lot. But yesterday, Eden tried out a bike without training wheels. I had to hold on the whole time, but she tried it without screaming bloody murder. She's super proud of herself.
- Eden asked to read to me today. She ASKED. I've been teaching her to read here and there for over a year now, and she's proud once she's finished a book, but getting her to pay attention and read from start to finish has been like pulling teeth. Today, though, she ASKED to read to me on her own. She reads sentences like, "I forgot to close the gate and Glory got out." (Thanks, Starfall!)
- Israel and Eden both put their faces under water for the first time, which was a tremendous act of courage for them. (For Iz more than for Eden, whom I believe is only "afraid" to do it because he is.) We're working on not running out of the water to immediately wipe faces with towels. We'll get there....
- The kids rode their first adult roller coaster. No big drops or upside-down stuff, but fast and crazy, anyway. They LOVED it. They want to do it again and again. I can't wait to take them to Kings Island and let them ride the big rides, though they probably aren't quite tall enough to do it now. But it won't be long, because...
- Eden just grew 3 inches in 6 months and is now taller than 75% of the kids her age. WHAT?! She used to be shorter than 97% of them!
- I'm getting size 7 pants for when Israel starts kindergarten in the fall. I'm a bit unsure which part of that sentence makes me feel more uneasy.
- Eden has figured out how to swing herself without needing a push...just this evening! YES!!!!
- Iz gets all happy and puts on an air of sophistication about making his own snacks and helping cook things in the kitchen. He's starting to be a great helper. It's been some time now since he first started getting breakfast for himself and his sister (while I pretend I actually get to sleep in) in the mornings.
- Iz is learning to play piano. He is pretty enthusiastic about it right now and will take "lessons" (about 5-10 minutes of instruction time) as often as I'll give them. He's pretty proud of his songs and will happily play them for you. Right now, he loves playing the Star Wars theme he learned by rote and the 5-finger scale song he learned by reading the music.
- Eden correctly used an apostrophe last week. If you know me, you know this puts joy into my geeky soul. That girl remembers how to spell just about anything I've ever had her write. She can now write "HAPPY FATHER'S DAY" with no assistance from me. I'm realizing she's not as on-her-own-wavelength as I thought she was.
- Pat graduated college for the first time. I'm putting it here not because he's my child, but because it's a case in point that firsts achieved later or through more adversity can be so much sweeter. I did not see a need to throw a party when I graduated college; it was just completing the next-expected life-phase. But boy, did I throw a party when Pat graduated! Pat graduating was AWESOME!!!

     One more thing before I end this post. I learned something new recently. Seeing how my children want to perform for praise, I have wanted to make sure I praise them for the right things -- working hard more than being close to perfect, having a great attitude over winning, kindness over smarts, etc.. I can see how it's especially important for perfectionists and competitive people (No, I don't know any...). We need to encourage and be encouraged to try our best and be our best, even if it doesn't immediately yield perfect results. We need to be able to praise others when they do something we wish we could do instead of merely trying to up our talk or our game. It's also just true that I'm more proud of my kids for working hard to meet a challenge than I am when they do things that don't require much effort on their part.
    But on to that something I learned for the first time. Some friends had posted on facebook about six words you should say today. I highly recommend reading it. I tried it for the first time recently. (I think. I hope I've said this before, but I really don't remember...) Instead of saying how great my kids did at reading or how proud of them I am for learning that song, I said things like, "I love playing piano with you," or "I love listening to you read." My kids' responses were very like the ones in the article. (Go on. Read the article. It's well-said there, so I don't want to repeat it poorly here.) Both gave me big, not-arrogant smiles. One of them gave me a hug and a kiss.
     I'm proud of them for what they've done and how they're growing, but also I just love watching them as they do it. So I'm writing to celebrate things I love seeing my kids do. I love watching my kids grow and learn and change. (Not to say it isn't bittersweet when I remember back a few years or that part of me doesn't wish I could freeze them in time at this point or that one.) As I'm writing, I'm looking up at the Duplo structure Israel built and put on my mantle to show to anyone who comes in. It's not the tallest one or the most complex or the best representation or most imaginative, but I love listening to him talk about it and display it. It makes him happy...and me, too.

the difference it makes

     This week, the kids visited the dentist for a routine cleaning. Pat was able to go with us for the first time ever. As things got started, I tried to prepare him for what was going to happen. "Israel does great," I said. "He thinks going to the dentist is a special treat." And sure enough, he climbed into the seat happily, laid right down, and watched the kids' programming on the TV screen over his head while waiting for the hygenist to come. Teeth cleaning? Loved it. X-rays? Cool. Sealant? Awesome. There's a kid to make you proud at the dentist.

     It's almost as though someone in the cosmos didn't want me to become too conceited during trips to the dentist, as though I had done all the right things to have the kid who is enthusiastic about dental care. Because of this, I was not only given that child, but I was also given THAT child: the one who totally freaks out the whole time. Eden always talks it up about how she's going to have courage or how she really likes the dentist all the way there, but when it comes time to deliver, it's a whole different kind of delivery. And sure enough, she was doing just great in the waiting area and all. "Does it usually start out worse than this?" Pat asked.
     "Nope." I said. "It always starts out fine. But just wait. I have never been here when I have not had to hold her legs down the whole time and she screams so loud and high that it'll make your ears bleed." The lady sitting down to do her job nodded in affirmation. "You've heard it, then?" I asked.
"Yes, I think so."

     At that moment, I realized I had never had the opportunity to look any of the other adults in the room in the eye during my daughter's trips to the dentist. (And there was always more than one, with different people holding various limbs, astonished by how one flailing toddler/preschooler was nearly stronger than all of us combined.) After the ordeal, I never had the desire to look them in the eye, but bowed my head in shame and left as quickly as possible. I had never seen her face.
     Since I had parental back-up this time, I decided to take the time to get to know her name and face. Her name was Abigail. "Look, Eden! She has the same name as your friend!" I tried to chat it up about this wonderful discovery, hoping to provide some sort of connection or distraction for my daughter. I was glad to have Pat with me so I would not have to bear this experience alone. He had no idea what was coming. Abigail and I braced ourselves. So did Eden.
     And then the craziest thing happened. My daughter shut her eyes tight and stiffened up and just took it. No screaming. No kicking. Just one little girl deciding to take it. She let Abigail clean her teeth. She let the dentist look them over. She took the floride with no problem.

     I could not believe it. "Pat will never believe the horror stories now," I thought! Abigail gave me a look that said, "Of course it won't happen now that she has an audience." "Write it down!" I said. (So I am.) Incredible. I could tell she still hated it, but WOW! What a difference in how she dealt with it!
     On the way home, after praising her over and over, I asked her what the difference was. "Why did you decide to have courage this time?"
     And, sure enough, it had everything to do with Pat: "Because Daddy was there."

     I'm not gonna lie: part of me is a little mad that none of my pep talks or soothing words ever did anything to help the horrible situation of Eden at the dentist. Pat didn't do anything special. He offered no reasons why it was going to be okay. He just sat there and held her hand. (SO much better than having to hold her hand AND her leg! I may be a tad jealous.) But another part of me understands: sometimes we just want our Dad. It is easier to find our courage when we can see our Dad there with us. No words from anyone else can take the place of that.

on worms and little girls

not my picture, but it seemed a good illustration.

Life seems more full of great (or, you know, not-so-great) moments these days than trains of thought, but there is a very sweet moment I have to share from today.

     Eden and I were walking home and she happened upon a dead worm on the sidewalk. It was hard and flat. And dead. She picked it up, turning its two dimensions around, trying to figure out why it wasn't the way it was supposed to be, I guess. I didn't wait for her to ask.
     "It's dead," I told her.
     "We can put it in the shade," she said, since that's what we do with worms when we dig them up. We bury them in our compost pile. It makes for all kinds of small "good" in the world. I've taught her well.
     "No, don't touch it. You're going to need to wash your hands. It's dead."
     I took her hand to keep walking so she wouldn't stick her dead-worm-toting fingers straight into her mouth. She made some other hopeful sort of suggestion.
     "No, it's DEAD," I said, again. "It's not going to come back alive again. Dead things don't come back alive."
     "But people come back alive," she said in her matter-of-fact way.
     We just finished learning the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the grave. And we talk about Jesus giving us new bodies when these die. And I've made up and taught the kids a song on the verse "All things are possible with God." I guess me saying that dead things don't come back alive sent these recent contradictory snippets running through both our minds. However, it's not generally the way things work. The girl is going to have to know that. But in a way that doesn't cancel out the truth of all those things I've taught her. How is it God works, anyway? I don't really know. What can I say?
     "Well, people only come back alive because Jesus makes them."
     We kept walking. Eden made another effort: "We could put water on it."
     I realized I had two choices. I could proclaim to her that there is never any hope for dead, dried-up things. We could leave the worm there and it would most certainly stay dead. Or we could take the worm back to our yard, stick it in some wet dirt, and let the conversation continue on its own without me having to drill into her the ugly truths about dead worms and dead things in general. I went with Option B.
     We went back to the worm. Eden remembered exactly where it was as I was still searching for it. Looking at it, I had to admit that, though it was completely dried up, it wasn't completely hard and flat. It had one little spot on it that looked like it might bend instead of break if you forced the issue.
     I let her pick it up again and I carried it home in a discarded McDonald's cup. We put it in the peat moss under our apple tree, poured some water on it, and buried it with a thin layer of the watered ground. Water. Shade. That's all we could do. I put the cup we had used to carry it home upside-down over it to mark the spot so we could check on it later. I didn't want the false hope offered by a bird finding it first or something.
     After naptime, I decided to have the first look. I took the cup away and the worm was gone. I dug around and spread out the dirt. Yep. Gone.
     What happened to the worm? I guess I can't say for sure. There's always some chance I'm wrong, but I told Eden it crawled away. (Wouldn't you know she was sad about this, crying that she wanted to keep it?)
     There are plenty of unpleasant things I'm going to have to teach my kids. Plenty of unpleasant things and downright horrible things I've already had to tell them about the world. But on this day, in this moment with my sweet little girl, she has taught me well.

Good

Earlier I posted snapshots of things that are good about the yard next door. Here are some "snapshots" of things that are good about my kids. These "pictures" were taken today. :)

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First thing this morning, Israel lets us know he figured out to pray for Jesus not to let Satan in anyone's hearts. Two days before, he showed up inches from my face to wake me up: "Mom, I asked Jesus and he got rid of all my sin. I'm not going to sin anymore!" Tonight, it was praying for Jesus to heal everyone who was sick: very sick, not very sick, and in car accidents. He will be so happy for Jesus's second coming. I hope it's not too rough for him in this in-between time.

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Before we could eat breakfast this morning, the kids had to go have blood drawn. (Nothing alarming, just checking cholesterol, since high cholesterol runs in the family.) Israel was frantically trying to talk us out of it: "I'm growing good!" He responded quite like I expect most kids respond, though he calmed down just in time for the needle, a point on which I congratulated him. But not Eden. Eden was happy! Last time she had a doctor's appointment, she stated that getting the flu shot had "made her happy." She liked it! I thought surely such parenting bliss would be short-lived. But, no!
"They're going to take blood out of you and give you a shot. Do you want to climb in the chair by yourself?"
"Yes!" She climbed up and plopped both her arms out in the right place, veins up, like she had done this a million times. (It was her first time for a blood draw like this.) She didn't say anything else.
"Okay." The two nurses (I guess they routinely call for back-up with small children) looked at each other, astonished. I just laughed. "They're going to give you your shot now and we'll see your blood. Do you think it's polka-dotted?"
"No."
"Striped?"
"No."
"Well, we'll see." I sat by her to prop her up and make her tall enough to do this on her own. She watched them stick the needle in and watched the vile fill up. "What color is it?" I asked.
"Pink!" She said, still watching. She did the whole thing without wincing once, hopped down, and said she liked it...again.

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We went to exchange a duplicate birthday present this morning, too. I told Eden she could choose what she wanted to get. In addition to wanting pretty much every greatest-thing-ever they had, she wanted to use some of the money to get a particular airplane for Israel. I let her, admiring her generosity. When we got to the check-out, the total was a few cents over the money we had from the exchange, so I told Israel to give the clerk his quarter. (A nice old stranger had given each of the kids a quarter at the grocery store earlier, which was also pretty cool.) In return, he got two dimes. He was pretty amazed at the apparent 2-for-1 deal. "I'm going to save these for college!" he said.

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Tonight at dinner, the kids both ate really well. Israel asked for one of the two "extra" corn muffins. Pat checked with me. I said I would like to have one of them later. He gave Israel the other.
After dinner, I half-heard Eden say something about wanting another corn muffin, too. I mostly disregarded her, because she never asks for seconds and she wasn't actually talking to any of us, anyway. She went in the kitchen, brought out the last muffin, and put it in front of me. "You can have it," she said.
"Don't you want a muffin?" I asked.
"You can eat it," she said, pointing to it again.
"But don't you want some?"
"We can all have some of it!"
She and I shared the muffin. I can't believe that she was willing to give me all of it when she wanted some, too!

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I love seeing the generous side of my daughter. I love the thoughtful side of my son. I love watching them learn how to interact with the world and with faith. I love when they succeed. Just like me, they often don't, but we celebrate when these things happen.

two lines of reasoning

Me: "If we're lucky, we'll leave and go to camp tomorrow."
Israel: "I'm not lucky."
Me: "You're not?"
Israel: "No. Are you lucky?"
Me: "I don't know."
Israel: "Dad's not lucky. Eden's not lucky. I'm not lucky. You're not lucky."
Me: "Wow."
Israel: "So does that mean we're going to camp right now?"

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Me: "Eden, you're a pretty cool kid."
Eden: "No."
Me. "Yes you are! You're a cool kid and I like you!"
Eden: "No. You do not like me at all because...that's my purple."

Yes, she knows what color purple is. No, we had not been talking about anything purple and there was nothing purple in the room. But here is a picture of my silly little girl and some of "her purple."

recording small voices

The kids love to make up songs these days. They both really love to sing a song they know with different beginning sounds. Eden will sing, "Blah, blah black bleep," and Israel sings, "Pah, pah pack peep, pa poo pih-pee pool!" Sometimes the songs get more creative than the kids are aware.
But they also love making up songs about whatever is going on...or whatever is not going on...and for Israel the songs often involve bodily functions. Gross. (I asked when boys grow out of that phase and I was told they don't.) These made-up songs have no real melody line, and at times I've mistaken them for yelling in the house (which results in me stifling their creativity often). But I know this is one of those things that will not last forever, and I wanted to at least take a stab at doing some sort of recording of it.


Eden loves to perform. (Here she is conducting her and Israel singing "on stage" at Natural Bridge.) She will sing a song for you about anything you name. On the drive down to Kentucky, Pat was making up a story about a deer that got lost in the woods. The story took place before the fall of mankind and Pat said the deer could sing a song then that no one has heard since.
"Israel, do you want to sing the deer's song?" I asked, trying to take up more time.
"There's not a deer song," he answered, factually.
"Sure there is. Eden? Can you sing the deer's song?"
Without waiting a second, she jumped in singing something like, "And the deer! It has a deer...because...because it has a deer...!"
"See, Israel? That's exactly how it goes."

Israel sings songs about anything and nothing, but for better or worse, the other three of us are almost his only audience. This morning, he took his (stringless) toy guitar to the couch, sat down, and was singing this worship(?) song for Eden. I will not remember the words entirely, but it went something like this:

Jesus, some people don't love you.
And I want you to know
that some people don't love you.
And whenever somebody doesn't love Jesus...they can sing this song.
because they don't love Jesus....
But I try to love Jesus
because I try not to disobey.
But sometimes I am not obedient.
But I try to be obedient because I love Jesus.

His song had more lines to it, restating the same ideas different ways, as most of his songs do. I wish I had caught it on tape, because I had quite a good laugh from him preaching to himself and Eden from behind the "guitar." Oh, the things that go on in the mind of my little Wrestles-with-God!

on stuffed animals

This morning I had the kids come "snuggle" with me in bed. (A morning "snuggle" is what I call it when the kids come crawl all over me with no regard for which part of me is lying under that part of the covers.) Eden had my old teddy bear. She hugged him for a minute and then grabbed his front paws. "Look at your hans! Say, 'Ta-da!'" and she made him throw his hands up in the air. (As far as he could, anyway.) She repeated the process for his feet. She made me "nug-guh" her Pig-pig and then traded and had me "nug-guh" my old bear.

Israel entered the room with his "Ellie." (Ellie is a stuffed animal formerly known as Cookie Monster.) These days, she sports a cloth diaper and infant pajamas, which look really funny hanging off her stubby limbs. He went back to his room and returned with a rabbit and then started to go get some more.
"That's enough stuffed animals," I said.
Israel got visibly upset. "But...Ellie is not a stuffed animal!"
He came up into the bed with the two...er...one stuffed animal and I told him I needed a hug this morning. Usually, it merits the best 3-year-old squeeze a mom could ask for...and a kiss on the cheek, too. This morning, I was presented with Ellie's wide-open black felt mouth and outstretched arms (which are default for her). I told Israel her hugs just aren't as good.

At bedtime, Israel piled all his stuffed animals on his pillow in a semi-circle around his head. He made sure a choice few of them were covered up and looked around at them all before settling among them under the covers himself. Eden had her favorite "Pig-pig" and a rotation of other special animals. It's anyone's guess which one she really wants on any particular trip to bed, but once it's found, she lays it beside her and is perfectly ready for sleep. Of course, blankets are part of the ritual here, too. For Eden it means knowing whether she wants to be covered up or not. For Israel, it's always the same: sheet, baby quilt, favorite fuzzy blue blanket on top. These things have become such habits they remind me of the way a dog circles before laying down or a cat kneads her bedding before laying down.

This morning, Israel would not stop asking me about it until I told him that Barker Bear is STILL my favorite stuffed animal. In a 3-year old's world, everyone has to have a favorite stuffed animal, I guess. Having something you take care of must be a way of letting people know you'll do your best to take care of them, too.

The last 9 months

This post is mostly for Grandparents, but you are welcome to it. It's a repeat of a post-style I did in January, which is the life of my kids as captured by my facebook posts. It was prompted by one of those days parents have when they feel like their children' childhoods are slipping right through their fingers. Enjoy as much or as little of it as you want! (And please excuse the font issues; I have fixed it and fixed it and saved and re-saved the changes, but they keep being jacked up!)

Sept. 4, 2010 This morning, Pat let Israel help him make our own crushed red pepper. Before he washed his hands, Israel picked his nose. It's a fun morning.

Sept. 3, 2010 Eden finished drinking her milk, handed me the cup, saying urgently, "ah duh coffee, more pease, waduh ice in!"

Sept. 2, 2010 Israel, pretending, looks up at me and asks, "Hey, horse! Do you want to eat this field?" And he KEEPS repeating to Eden: "Hey, horse...you must be tired. I read you a story. Now it's time to go to sleep. Hey, horse..." I don't think Eden is a very compliant horse. ‎"Hey, horse, it's nice and cozy up here...."

Sept. 1, 2010 Israel, out of the blue: "It's sorta buggy outside, so we might want to watch Sesame Teet." He likes experimenting with conditionals.

Aug. 31, 2010 Today, an older lady in Aldi complimented me over and over about how well-behaved my children were! I'll take that over "cute" any day! So cool to have someone else affirm your kiddos!

Aug. 30, 2010 Israel has more stamina learning his letters when he's "teaching" them to a stuffed animal.

I recommend the walking path at Heekin for preschooler biking adventures.

Aug. 29, 2010
Eden, singing: "Now I know my ABCs. ABCD,XYZ."
Israel: "You cannot sing that because you do not know how it goes."
Eden: " [some word] WANT to sing A,B,C!"
Israel: "But, you do not know how it goes!"
Eden, singing: "A,B,C,D, Now I know A,B,C. A,B,C!"

Aug. 27, 2010 Eden is crying in bed and I heard Israel say, in his best impersonation of his mother, "I don't want to hear it!"

Aug. 27, 2010 Eden: "Hey, Mom! Cacka gums!" Me: "Cracker gums?" Eden: "Yeah." Me: "What's that?" Eden: "Um...beans! Look a dat!"

Had fun with the kids at their first trip to the dentist. Israel LOVED it!

Eden handed me her empty cereal bowl and said, "More, please." Then she lightly pushed on my arm and said, "Later! Bye!"

Aug. 26, 2010 Tonight, Israel seemed to be experiencing growing pains in his leg and said of Pat's kiss: "It didn't work." It's a sad night in the McCrory house.

Aug. 25, 2010 Israel: "I do have more reasons."

Aug. 23, 2010 I put Eden in her crib and she says, "Kisses." So I give her a kiss. "Thanks," she says. As I leave the room, I hear Israel trying to sing "This little light of mine" to Pat. "It just gets too hard for me," he says, "and I can't remember it." This continues to be a week when I'm amazed how fast my kids are growing up.

My kids did a great job at the library today! They were so well-behaved I had to tell you about it. They cleaned up after themselves, said "please" and "thank you," and shared with each other. It's nice when they act like you've taught them to. I know it doesn't always happen, but it's SO NICE when it does!

Aug. 22, 2010 Eden is going around the house pointing out everything. "Yook at dat kidd-uh cat!" and then she pointed to the box of cereal: "bay-suh ban!" This morning comes the sudden realization that she's saying a lot more than I expect/understand to be words most of the time. and, "Ee yike ih song!" Me: "Do you like that song?" Eden: "Yeah."

Aug. 21, 2010 Me: "Israel, you are SOOO cute! Who made you so cute?" Israel: "Daddy." (big smile and giggle)

Aug. 19, 2010 Israel just asked Eden if she would babysit his "Ellie" (cookie monster doll).
This morning, my mom and I were discussing Israel's crazy ability to dribble milk off his bottom lip.
Me: "I think he has my lips." [Israel smiles.] "Yeah, when he smiles, he barely has a top lip. Must be my lips."
Israel: (in silly voice) "I don't have your lip!"
Me: "Well, whose lips do you have?"
Israel: "I have MY l...ips! YOU have YOUR lips!"

Aug. 18, 2010 Eden got so mad in the bathtub tonight, she made herself puke. Oh, Eden.

Aug. 16, 2010 "I realized that I cannot sleep when there are shadows in my room." -Israel
The real kicker is that there ARE NO SHADOWS IN HIS ROOM. There were sometimes, but there are not.

Aug. 14, 2010 "Tinkle tah ow I watuh we are. Abuh da kie...." Name that song as sung by Eden McCrory.

Aug. 12, 2010 Mommy's sentence of the week: "I didn't ask you what you WANTED to do, I told you what to do." Israel's sentences of the week: "But, but, but I was just..." (or its cousin: "But, but, I don't WANT to...") and "Mom! Sorry for disobeyin'!" It's the beginning of another stage, I guess.
Yeah, Israel has also started "reasoning." "If I do that, I will get a pankin'. If I don't do that, then I WON'T get a pankin'? If YOU do that, then I will give YOU a pankin'." We are still working out the bugs. Today, he said he was "pretending" when he said he would spank me (for doing something with my food at the table?) If it weren't about disobedience, these conversations would be pretty funny. Let's not get our kids together for awhile. It could be dangerous! :)

Israel is attempting to free-style these days.

Aug. 9, 2010 Favorite Israel moment of the weekend
My mom: "Israel, do you want to say the blessing?
Iz: "Blessing."
My mom: "Do you want to say the prayer?"
Iz: "Prayer."
...Me: "Israel, do you want to pray?"
Iz: "Jesus, thank you for the food. Aaay-MEN."

Aug. 8, 2010 paid a visit to my sister-in-law's kindergarten room this evening with Israel. Her room was the most fun-looking there, but Israel was mostly impressed with the potties that were "just his size!"

Aug. 6, 2010 were finally able to take the kids with us to Raven Run today! Israel LOVES hiking!

Aug. 4, 2010 We were found outside at Minnetrista when the thunderstorm suddenly hit. Yea for an unforgettable moment!

Aug. 3, 2010 Eden is throwing her obligatory fit about our horrible cooking.

Israel, out of the blue during dinner: "Mom, you're married. Where is your weddin'?"
- We were married before you were born. [pointing] There are pictures of our wedding.
"That was your weddin'? I like your weddin'."
- Thanks. We do, too.
"I like your dress. And I like you, too. And, Daddy, I like you, too!"

Aug. 2, 2010 The kids sit on the counter while I make chocolate chip cookies. Before each ingredient, Israel asks, "Can I pour it?" After each mix, he asks about the beaters: "Can I lick it?" It's easy to make a kid happy.

"Mom? Can we have cookies now?"
-Not yet, but I like your enthusiasm.
"I like YOUR tu-tsie-stats!"

Jul. 31, 2010 The kids had a great time with the Jones kids. I could not believe how quiet it was with 4 under 3 in our house! Yeah for good kids, books, and play dough!

Making playdough for my kids took about 5 minutes and made me feel like super-mom. Happy rainy Saturday to us!

Jul. 29, 2010 I'm in an epic struggle with a 1-year-old over 1/8 of a green bean. ‎45 minutes after is started, the battle ended...and we both won! WHEW!

Jul, 26, 2010 Israel asked to see the GAP mailer that came in and started "reading" it to Eden at dinner. "It, it, it makes you fee bettuh, it gives you a feeling in your heart...." Ummm...?

Israel and Eden are playing together in a cardboard house and pretending it's raining inside, holding their hands up to catch it. Days like this, I'm glad they're so close in age!

Jul. 25, 2010 When I finished getting Eden dressed, she stood up, looked in the mirror, and said, "I coot!"

Jul, 24, 2010 Why was Papaw a firemen?
-You'll have to ask him.
I will have to ass kim?
-Yes, you will have to ask him.
[visibly upset] But, but, I thought you said I have to ask Papaw!

Jul. 23, 2010 Israel is learning to set the table. I can tell him to go in the kitchen and get a fork for "Me, you, and Daddy," and he goes by himself, gets the right number of forks, and puts them in the right spot! I'm amazed and surprised! I can't figure out why that's possible since he can't reliably count objects yet. I mean, he can count to 12, but can't always count, say, four fish or whatever. I'm a little puzzled.

Proof that kids can remember more than we expect them to: Israel came up to me out of the blue carrying the green goggles I last saw this winter and said, "Mommy, are these the snowman's eyes?" And they were!

Jul. 22, 2010 After reading "Where the Wild Things Are..."
"But why didn't he want to stay with the wild tings?"
"Because he wanted to go home where his mommy loved him and made good things to eat."
"But why she make good tings to eat?"
"Because she's a mommy."
..."But...YOU make good tings to eat!"
"Why, thank you, Israel."
"You make good tings to eat...like...BOCK-EE (broccoli)! Bockee is a good ting to eat!"

Jul, 21, 2010 I walk in the bathroom to check on Israel, who had just finished going potty like a big boy and found Eden standing facing the toilet, shirt pulled up, pulling her stomach out.

This morning, Israel was talking to an imaginary person and they were shooting off "fireworks." After lunch, I asked him if he could flap his wings like a bird and he smiled at me and said, "I don't have any wings." I guess someone bumped his imagination switch.

Warning to all parents of 1-year olds: Suddenly, your one year old will be approaching 1-1/2 and I don't care what they tell you...s/he will turn into a tantrum-throwing toddler right before your eyes! Just when you think you know a person! Geez! :)

I had a lady in the store yesterday tell me she was impressed with how "alert" Eden was. It's a great compliment for and INFANT.... What on earth will people do when I'm insisting that she "use her words" and tell her she "knows better?"

Jul. 20, 2010 After Israel incorrectly corrected my song lyrics, I said, "Goodnight, Mr. Argumentative." Israel said, "No, I not argumentative, I'm just Izzo."

Jul. 17, 2010 Okay. The ride home summarized. Adult: "Look at the mountains!"
I -Deeja, do YOU like the mountains?
-Yes, I like the mountains.
I -She said, "Yes, I like the mountains." ...Daddy, do YOU like the mountains?
-Yes.
...I -He said, "Yes." ...Eden, do YOU like the mountains?
- ...YEAH!
I -She said, "Yeah." Papaw, do YOU like the mountains?
- No. (Being ornery.)
I -Huh?
- No.
I -Huh?
- No.
I- Huh?

Eden kept interrupting saying (far less understandably) "Ee, MOUNTAIN! Look! LOOK! LOOOOK! (Adult: "What is it, Eden?" Ee, MOUNTAIN!"

Conversation with my kid:
Iz - Why you say we made it?
Because we buckled up in time.
(Repeat many times.)
Iz- Why you buckle up?
...Because you told me to.
Iz- Why did I tell you to?
I don't know. Ask yourself.
Iz- Izoo, why... Mom, why I tell you to?
Ask yourself.
Iz- I can't do that

Israel: "We goin' tuh to see the fwans right now. They are veey boo-fuhl!"

Jul. 10, 2010 Israel, with stickers all the way up his arm: "I'm Mike and I'm havin' a hard time. Mom, can you help me because I'm Mike?"

Jul. 8, 2010 Tonight, we prayed and thanked Jesus for the rain. Me: "Israel, is there anything else you want to thank Jesus for?" Israel: "ME! [squeezes eyes closed and assumes slightly quieter tone] Jesus, thank you for me. A-MEN!"

Me: "Israel, go find the cup of water you brought in the house." Israel: "Mom, I've looked and looked and looked for my cup of water all day and I can't find it."

Israel: "Do you want some lunch?"
Eden: "Yeah!"
Israel: "Well, Mommy's making us some lunch. Do you like quesedillas?"
Eden: "Yeah."
Israel: "Do you like va-ca-tion?"
...Eden: "Yeah!"
Israel: "Well, we have to get ready to go on va-ca-tion!"

Jul. 3, 2010 famee date night!

Jul. 2, 2010 Israel now dresses himself, gets himself glasses of water, and buckles himself in his car seat. Where'd that baby go?

Jul. 1, 2010 I left the dining room to get a towel and return to Israel chewing my cereal and saying, "Mommy, I like it when you share wit' me!"

Jun. 30, 2010 Israel: "When I get little, I can have TWO birthdays."
Me: "When you get older, you'll have 1 birthday. Everyone gets 1 birthday a year."
Israel: "I have TWO reasons for 2 birthdays!"
Me: " What are they?"
Israel: "I CAN have 2 birthdays. That my reason for I can have more cakes!

Jun. 29, 2010 I love it when my son asks me to cover up his stuffed animal, too.

Jun. 28, 2010 At Eden's check-up today, the nurse asked, "Can she let you know what she wants without crying?" Eden has at least a 100 word vocabulary, but I still almost said, "No."

Jun. 24, 2010 My children just came hopping through the house on all fours saying, "Ribbit! ribbit!" Let the joint pretending begin!

Jun. 23, 2010 Actual conversation I just had:
Me: "Israel, go potty."
Israel: "Mom, I just want to cry."
Me: "Well, you can go to your room and cry after you go potty."
Has anyone else ever used crying as an incentive to obey?!?!
He just actually took me up on my offer because he wanted to. "I'm sad." "Do you want to go be alone for awhile and cry?" "Yeah." ???

I was wrestling in the floor with Israel. He "bit my leg." I started demanding to have my leg given back, so he took his time to make a big spit bubble and tried to "put it back." HA! Eww...

Jun. 22, 2010 Israel is getting freckles.

Jun. 20, 2010 We have all taken our first turns going down the (pretty stinkin' fast) slide!

Jun. 19, 2010 I load the dishwasher. Eden starts to unload it.
Me: "No, no, Eden." [puts the item back]
Eden takes it out again.
Me: "Eden, no, NO." [puts it back again]
Eden takes it out again.
...Me: "Eden, NO."
Eden hands it up to me. "Yah weh-cuh. Yah weh-cuh!"

Jun. 17, 2010 Israel to Eden: "Judah and Nomi comin' to your house!"
Eden: "Huh?"
Israel: "Judah and Nomi are comin' to your house!"
Eden: "Huh?"
Israel: "Judah and Nomi are comin' to your house!"
...Eden: "Huh?"
Israel: "Judah and Nomi are comin' to your house!"
Eden: [starts crying]
Israel: "No, YAY!"

Israel comes out of his room: "Hi. I'm Mike. ...Do you want to sing while I pay the dums?"
I sang with him. He kept a really consistent beat, too! It was one cool version of the ABC song.

Jun. 15, 2010 Israel: "What do we do with the hard rain?"
Me: "We stay out of it."
Israel: "We tell it to go away?"
Me: "No, it's good for the plants to help them grow."
Israel: "That nice of the rain."

Jun. 10, 2010 Israel and Eden are running back and forth from the front door to the back door. Israel: "One, two, tee, GO!" Eden: "Tsee, tsee, GO!"

Jun. 9, 2010 Israel and I were counting. I said, "One...." Eden said, "Two!" Israel and I counted to nine and Eden said, "Ten!" Now she is saying, "2,1,2,1,2,1, 6!"

I love the sound of my children reading books out loud to themselves.

Jun. 7, 2010 Israel: "Eden, it's not a 'weese,' it's a 'fing!'"

Jun. 6, 2010 Israel: "Where does Jesus live?" Me: (buying some time....) "Where do you think Jesus lives?" Israel: "Conner Prairie."
What would YOU say? In your heart? In heaven? Everywhere? I opted for "kind of everywhere..." at which point Israel became afraid of Jesus because he thought he must be a giant and called him a "bad guy." (Did I mention we read about David and Goliath and Jack and the Beanstalk?) Geez! I have some bad theology to undo in the morning! :)

Jun. 5, 2010 Israel last night: "Mom, I have fingernails." Israel this morning: "When I have boogers in MY nose, they are...yucky!"

Jun. 4, 2010 Funny thing Israel said today: "We did see horses and cows! It was piddy cool. It poop."

Jun. 2, 2010 Apparently, Eden wants her new hobby to be climbing on top of the dining room table.

Jun, 1, 2010 Kudos to Kim the Aldi lady for telling the other concerned parents that Eden has NEVER acted like that in the grocery store and then helping me carry my larger-than-usual load of groceries out to the car. It was a rough trip, but Kim ROCKS!

May 31, 2010 My kids have been swinging in our back yard!!!!

May 29, 2010 We're setting the last posts in for the swingset! Tomorrow we SWING! (Israel's already asking where the slide is. Again, he is just like his mom.)

May 28, 2010 Israel just told me, speaking of the shredded toilet paper I told him he cannot have, "I will be disappointed in you if you take it from me."

11:42When prompted to say, "Sorry," (a word she can both sign and say) Eden immediately starts to throw a fit. (If she does not say it, she also immediately returns to the wrong she was doing.) This seems like a heart issue. With Israel, the battle is over once he says the right thing as well, but I don't remember how we go...t there. Anyone successfully taught this to their kid?
11:51: She is still in time out. If I tell her I love her and want to play, but that she needs to say sorry, she says "Pay!" and when I say, "But you need to say "sorry," she puts her hand over her eyes, turns her head away, and then starts crying. Oh, the stubbornness!
12:04: ...and...Israel just busted his lip while playing a game with me. He's so tough. HE'S OFFERING HER HIS ICE, saying, "It'll make you feel better!"
12:32: I settled for "Out, please," because it was lunch time. Hope something was learned....

May 27, 2010 Israel just put his shirt on by himself for one of the first times and said, smiling, "I'm poud of me!"

Israel just ate about .50 worth of chapstick. Can you tell I'm on a budget?

May 25, 2010 At the end of a prayer time that went, "Israel, do you know who made x?" "Jesus! Thank you, Jesus, for making x..." Israel suddenly piped up with his own realization: "And Jesus made ME!' [squints eyes closed and smiles big.] "Jesus, thank you for making ME!" I hope he is always that grateful for the life Jesus gives him.

The kids picked a bunch of strawberries from my neighbors garden. YUM!

May 22, 2010 Burris playground = Disney World to a toddler

May 21, 2010 Sophie (our dog) eats the food Eden leaves behind; Eden eats the food Sophie leaves behind....

Parent's confessional: Mistake of the week #1: Saying, "Obey the first time," on the 3rd time. Mistake of the week #2: Israel said, "Are you feekin' kiddin' me?"
Well, that one is mostly his dad, but I'm not innocent in the matter. It gets muttered under our breath when going to deal with Israel doing something frustrating. Israel said it when I told him to go get his shoes, so it wasn't very funny at the end of Defiance Week.

May 18, 2010 Eden just said, very clearly, "Walk! Sie! (outside) Ribwer! (river)" I wonder what she wants to do?

Israel (out of nowhere at lunch): "I want to be a professor!"
Israel has said (awhile back) that he wanted to be a firetruck. HA! He usually says he wants to be a fireman, though. He has also said he wanted to be a dinosaur when he grows up. We're encouraging professor. :)
Brenda Miller added: That's funny, when I was reading him the Richard Scarry book on Monday, he pointed at the picture of the professor and said that's what I want to be...so I said you want to be a professor when you grow up?

May 16, 2010 This week, Israel became afraid of the shadows in his room. Tonight, it's the tree shadow on the curtain.

May 10, 2010 We made it to Kentucky. I still can't talk, but Israel managed to fill in the silence for me. When we pulled up in front of my parents' house, you would've thought he was at Disneyworld (or the Sesame street equivalent). "Yay! We at DEEJA'S house!"

Having no voice makes disciplining a 2-year-old pretty difficult and strange.
Brandon wrote: I think it's high time that you develop a glare like mom had when we were little. A glare followed by a fingernail pinch on the back of the arm...
Pat's cousin, Jennifer, wrote: Give him the "eye".
I wrote: Brandon and Jennifer, I TOTALLY just did that after employing other means. You know what happened? He LAUGHED at me! Oh, Pat should be home soon...Pat should be home soon....

May 7, 2010 My kids are going to be foodies! Of the deglace, Israel said, "I like to dip in it. It make me pretty happy." Of the ribeye, Eden said, "More! Meema!" They each had seconds of the perfectly soft gala apples, the green beans with garlic, and the parsley mashed potatoes. Tonight, we ate like kings and queens!

Yesterday, we found out Eden broke 18 lbs.

May 6, 2010 Eden insists on saying, "Hi, Daddy." when she sees me. (Yes, she can and does say "Mommy," too.)

May 5, 2010 Israel has had 3 dry nap times WITHOUT PULL-UPS...IN A ROW!!!

May 3, 2010 Me: "Israel, are you tough?" Israel: "No." Pat: "Israel, are you humble?" Israel: "Yes."

May 1, 2010 Pat and Israel McCrory will now attempt to make a BLT pizza.

I used to work with a man who would cuss out God every time he didn't like the weather. Yesterday, my son screamed, angrily, "WIND! STOP IT, WIND!"

April 28, 2010 Israel had a LONG prayer tonight. He'd pray, say amen, and then say, "I can pray for another person." The last "person" he wanted to pray for was me to go on the elevator. (Where?!) I told him he could thank God for elevators that make him happy, but he didn't need to pray for me to go on the elevator. So he prayed, "H...elp ME to go on the elevator and not be afraid and push the buttons to go up and down. A-MEN!"

We often sing the Johnny Appleseed song with Israel before bed. It ends with "Amen!" (pronounced "ah-men" here). Israel ALWAYS says, "On the bus!" I always just thought it was b/c he wanted the wheels on the bus song (another favorite) to come next. Tonight, I asked him why he says that. He said, "because the men on the bus!"

April 26, 2010 Israel has a new phrase from today that took me forever to figure out. Let's see if you can guess it: "Fing-uh-pah-kuh." (Answer: Swing your partner!)

Once again, Israel finished his lunch and started running laps around the table, saying, "Sophie! Underwear!" ...Why???

April 25, 2010 Israel's throwing a fit about having to put his shoe on by himself (which he's been required to do all week). Lezlie's response: "Dry it up and put it on." Pat's response: "I'm not going to be here your whole life to buckle your shoes." Yup. We are parents.

April 23, 2010 Me, tucking Israel in for his nap: "Israel, are you my snuggle bug?" Israel: "No, I-I-I-I'm not a nug bug. I'm not a bug. I'm just Izzo."

April 20, 2010 The other day, Israel sang, "Head, shoulders, knees, and toes...nipples!" It got a laugh from me and Pat. Now Israel randomly yells, "NIPPLES!" during any song.

April 19, 2010 While getting dressed, Eden said, "Bible...so..." so I started singing "Jesus Loves me," and she insterted some of the right words at the right time! She is 13 months old and I think this is AMAZING!

April 16, 2010 We had a great time being hosted this evening. What a treat to be served dinner...and dessert! Israel (who refused to talk upon entering the house) left saying, "I love you!" and blowing kisses. Eden left with berries on her shirt.

April 15, 2010 Israel said, "When I'm a man, I will shave. I will have hair on my cheek when I get older and I will sleep up there (top bunk)."

April 14, 2010 I can tell Israel to go use the bathroom and change his underwear...and it HAPPENS! It's the small things....

Explanation #1: "Because you could break things and hurt people."

April 13, 2010 Today, Eden started saying "thank you" (DEE-doo!) when she receives something instead of when she hands something to you.

April 12, 2010 I'm hunkered down on the couch. Israel: "Can I come pay for gzou?" Me: "Absolutely." Israel: [squinting his eyes, which is funny since I rarely close mine...] "Jesus, pease help Mommy to fee bedduh. ...Jesus, pease give Mommy some money. A-men!"

April 11, 2010 Israel (spontaneously): "Every day of my life, I. Will. Bless. duh. Lord. For He's...gooooood!"

April 9, 2010 Can YOU explain to me why Israel is running laps around the dining room table, saying, "Sophie! Underweeeeaaaar!"

Eden does not like strawberries. But she does like an egg and cheese burrito with sour cream and Taco Bell's fire sauce.

April 8, 2010 Israel was talking about who has babies in their bellies again tonight with the following conclusion: "I want to be a baby so I can come out of Daddy's belly!" Hmmm....

April 4, 2010 When I was putting Israel to bed, he told me two things: 1.) I don't have to go to sleep right now. 2.) I need to vacuum.

April 3, 2010 Telling Israel about the crucifixion: "The people fought Jesus, but Jesus didn't fight back. We want to be like Jesus." Israel: "He fight forwards?"

April 2, 2010 Israel is actually skilled at helping water the plants in my neighbor's greenhouse. Eden just likes to stand on her toes to look in and watch.

April 1, 2010 I just put Eden in the same dress she wore LAST year.

March 29, 2010 Eden, at her 1-year check-up, weighed in at a whopping 17.25 pounds. (3rd percentile.) What a girl!

March 26, 2010 Israel is eating lunch with his backpack on, asking, "We gonna go to Deeja's house soon?"

March 25, 2010 Our friend is in labor this morning! Israel: She have a baby in her belly? Me: Her baby is coming out of her belly. Israel: She gonna jump? She gonna hop out?

March 24, 2010 I just prayed for Eden and after I finished, she said, "Amen."

March 22, 2010 I think my daughter may undermine the doctrine that it is not for humans to bear offspring better than themselves.

Israel is listening to Mozart and screaming, "Everybody clap your hands in the air!" He's so eclectic.

March 20, 2010 Best event of the picnic: Israel sees our friend's dog run into the river and says something about "fimming." Pat turns around to find Israel, pants and underware at his ankles, saying, "Can you take off my shoe, Daddy?"

March 19, 2010 On our first visit to the White River this year, Eden learned to say "river," "rock," "duck," and "stick."

March 18, 2010 I just put on my logicola t-shirt and Israel said, "Mom, you just look so cool!" "I love you, Israel." "I love you, too, Mom."

March 16, 2010 Events of the day: 1.) I only gave Eden one longer nap. 2.) That meant we could spend the morning at the new Heekin park playground. 3.) Totally unrelated, Eden took a head-over-heels tumble down our concrete steps. Horrifying. Worst fall ever. 4.) She's still amazingly happy, if scuffed up.
She cried a bit over this. Her head is scraped a bit and will definitely be bruised from the outside corner of her right eye to well past her hair line. :( She got ice and tylenol and didn't act like it bothered her past that. I'm curious if it'll be worse tomorrow. [still feeling bad about it]

March 15, 2010 Israel just walked past me, said, "Bye, Mom. See ya!" and blew me a kiss on his way out of the room. He promptly returned and said, "You can come with me."

March 13, 2010 Israel: (with no antecedent, and very matter-of-fact): "I'm just very angry because I'm very sick...because I'm sad...." Me: "You're mad because you're very sick and you're sad?" Israel: "Yeah. I'm very angry because...because...I'm just very disappointed." Come again?!

Israel bowls a 72, which is almost as good as me.

March 12, 2010 I've realized one of my parenting lines is, "Stop making my job hard."

March 11, 2010 We're returning from the largest children's museum in the world. Eden says, "wuh, wuh... ts.ts.ts." about the trains.

March 11, 2009, I was looking into the eyes of my newborn baby girl. March 11, 2010, I take out the camera at breakfast and she says, "cheese!"

March 10, 2010 I spread out the home-made compost in the garden using my bare hands because it felt so wonderful. Eden also thought the dirt felt wonderful and Israel didn't let it get in his way. Pictures to follow; laundry first.

March 8, 2010 Israel just told "the Aldi lady" on the way out, "I love you. Peace out!"

March 7, 2010 And so Israel's Mulberry Street live basketball network begins.

This morning, Eden prefers Israel's Super Grover and he prefers changing her baby doll's "poopy" diaper.

March 6, 2010 I crammed Eden's feet into my favorite shoes for the last time. Bummer. (She might have to go shoeless tomorrow. I had no idea she was almost out of these shoes!)

We had Eden's first birthday party today! (But I'm holding onto her not being 1 until Thursday.)

March 3, 2010 "Israel, what are you doing?" "Nuffin." "Israel, what are you doing?" "Nuffin. ...I, I, I just was diggin' in my butt, but...I'm alright."

As I was putting egg rolls in the oven, Israel said, "Mommy, you gonna make me very happy." "How?" "Because you gonna make me happy with LUNCH!" (I guess he REALLY likes egg rolls.)

March 2, 2010 Eden now says, "ba" for ball and is trying to figure out how to throw one. Dropping it or pushing on it without letting go is as close as she gets today.

March 1, 2010 Eden has been SO high-maintenence today. I'd been checking fo signs of teeth and thought, "Maybe some are coming in up top." Then, suddenly, her next bottom tooth appeared this evening.

11:30 dance party in our kitchen

Feb. 27, 2010 This afternoon, Eden was able to correctly point out a moon in one of her books. Tonight, I asked Eden to find a truck on a page in another book. While she wasn't able to do that, she did respond by saying, "Vroooooom!"

One kid down, one kid up. Other kid down, other kid up. Today's naptime = fail.

Feb. 26, 2010 I forgot to tell you that Eden said her first SENTENCE yesterday. Two word while talking on the phone: "Hi, Baby!"

Israel last night: "Mom, I don't need any kisses. ...Mom, kiss this cheek. [Done.] Mom, I need two kisses. [Done.] I need two kisses on the other cheek. [Done...] I need a LOT of kisses!" [I kiss all over his face. He smiles even bigger.] "I don't need ANY kisses." [He wipes all over his face, smiling.]

Feb. 25, 2010 Eden now says, "Dance! Dance!" (Okay, it's more like, "Di! Di!" but she "dances" while doing it or claps and so I know what it is.)

Feb. 22, 2010 Pat just gave Israel a wedgie. And I'm telling.

I know I've posted too much today, but Eden's sporting some pigtails! I'll have to post pictures.

Kiddo snapshot 1.) Israel got a spanking and a stern talking-to about why we don't put things in the plug-ins. I asked, "Do you understand?" He said, "Yes," and gave me a voluntary hug and kiss.
Kiddo snapshot 2.) Eden spent 10 minutes throwing a fit rather than using words to get down from lunch. (Did I mention she now says, "All done!"?) Once she calmed down, I got her out and she wrapped both arms around me, laid her head on my shoulder, and patted my back.

Israel is sitting at the piano saying, "1, 2, 3! Why you sad, Baby? Why you sad, Baby? Why you saaaaaad, Baby?" I guess he likes coming up with his own blues songs.

Feb. 20, 2010 We spent the day with Deeja and Papaw and returned home to find our snowman knocked over...again.

Feb. 17, 2010 Israel discovered two things upon returning home. He was excited about the "bicycles" hanging from the house. He cried when he saw some kid ran up and kicked over the snowman.

I am the mother of two toddlers.

Having a 2 year old clean his own room is MUCH harder than cleaning it yourself.

I know it may be gross, but I like burrowing my face into my son's cheek when it still smells like his morning-breath drool.

Feb. 15, 2010 I just told Israel to say, "Yes, please," and he said, "Yes, sir." I never use the word "sir."

Feb. 14, 2010 While I was talking on the phone, Eden picked up a hand-held game, put it on her head, and kept saying, "Hi!"

Okay. Two posts for Israel lovers. Post #1: As I was getting out of the shower, I hear a voice coming from the register in the bathroom. It said, "Israel, did you really drop your drumstick in here?" I heard some scratching, and then, "It's gone, man. It's for real gone. It's not coming back."
Post #2: I came out of the bedroom wearing a long sweater and Pat and I were joking about how all I really needed to put on were some leggings or tights. Israel said, "Mommy, you need to put some pants on. Put some pants on, Mommy."

Feb. 12, 2010 Israel's first time bowling = success

I'm leaving Eden in her baggy pajamas and tousled hair because I like it.

I think taking away books for the day is a strange punishment, but I hope it'll be effective.

Feb. 10, 2010 Israel just asked me if I have a penis. And so the discussion begins. I hope I can keep it at, "So I can't pee standing up!" for many, MANY years. Right now it's the same way he's asking everything else: "Mom, do YOU have coffee?" "Mom, do YOU have a lot of food?" "Mom, do YOU have a penis?"

Okay, today Eden started imitating Israel's "smile," by shutting her eyes tight and smiling and independently said the word, "baby" while looking at a book of baby faces. I'm pretty sure I'll never have to directly teach this child anything.


Feb. 8, 2010 Last night, Israel woke up crying 5 times. (That's the last time we'll EVER keep him up so late.) Today, I told him that if he didn't finish eating his apples, he would have to go straight to bed without playing. He then started asking if he could go straight to bed.

I just received the first Eden-initiated open-mouthed kiss on the cheek.

Feb. 6, 2010 We just returned from sledding down the McCullough hill. It was a first for both kids and a second for me.

I love this snow! Yesterday brought the beginning of a snow fort, a snowman, snow cream, a warm bowl of chili, and hot chocolate made with milk on the stove.

Feb. 5, 2010 Accident #2 today. I'm trying hard not o be too annoyed, but I think I'm not going to offer fluids for 48 hours.

Pat put Israel's old socks on inside-out last night in the dark. Today, Israel examined his socks: "This my new sock. [rubs the fuzzy, inside-out bottom] It, it...it feel. It very 'pecial."

Feb. 4, 2010 Returning from Bracken Library to make a quick lunch, Israel opens the pantry and says, "I have a good idea. We could have some-uh dat...and some-uh dat...and...some-uh dat."

Feb. 3, 2010 Today, all that potty training mess and frustration feel well worth it. I'd do it again.

Feb. 1, 2010 Eden McCrory demonstrates two of her most recent accomplishments: walking and saying her version of the English word, "dog."

Jan. 31, 2010 Eden just walked from the dining room table almost all the way to the corner chair! (That's a good 10-15 steps for those of you who don't know our house.) Israel is stacking alphabet blocks 10 blocks high.

Jan. 30, 2010 Pat: "Do you like my shoes?" (old-school Converse) Israel: "Yeah. They're cool!"

girls at the GAP

I suppose I'm posting about my shopping experiences for a few reasons. 1.) Shopping, especially for summer clothes, has a special way of making women feel really self-conscious. Trying on clothes in front of a full-length mirror is a potentially explosive combination of self-image and money. 2.) I have been studying a lot about females (especially teenagers) and self-image lately for the girls' group I lead. I've been doing a lot of thinking about how we women hand down our standards of beauty to the girls we know. Therefore, I've been doing mental checks on my own standards of beauty to see whether they line up with what I'm trying to teach the girls. 3.) I've still not completely overcome the lie that my body is supposed to fit and look good in whatever fashion says is right instead of the other way around, but I want to include you on one leg of my journey.

So this evening, Pat sent me out and told me to spend whatever it took to buy clothes that fit well and would last awhile. I think that is most women's dream evening, but I met the offer with quite a bit of apprehension. Spending a lot of money makes me really nervous. It's probably one of my better attributes, but it makes it hard to enjoy things that cost a good deal of money sometimes. I made a couple brief calls to see if anyone between me and the mall could come with me, RIGHT NOW, for moral support. Of course, all my friends were being responsible and couldn't go, but I was wished well. Off I went, with Eden in tow so Pat wouldn't be left with both kids, to find a summer wardrobe. (If you missed my previous post, I think I gave it all away on accident.)

It was a glorious hour of shopping. I only went to GAP, and I really don't know why I ever go anywhere else. Their clothes fit me. Okay, not ALL their clothes fit me, but I can always find something for my shape there. And pretty much only there. I am sure I don't agree with a lot of GAP's practices, but I have to hand it to them for making lines of clothing that are actually designed around a few common female shapes (with an "s"). Thanks, GAP.

Eden sat in the stroller and happily played with her butterfly while I gathered my initial pile of shorts. One thing I don't like about GAP (and virtually ALL women's clothing brands that I know of) is that you can never know what size you wear. So I grab three sizes of everything I like. My time in the dressing room proved this to be the best practice, since the two times I only grabbed the middle size, once I needed the size bigger and once I needed the size smaller, requiring an extra trip out with the stroller. I can't prove it, but I know several women who will back me up, that companies manipulate their sizes so that, from time to time, we can be really happy about fitting in that smaller size and will impulse buy to celebrate our "accomplishment." It makes shopping take a lot longer. I'm sure that has its advantages for stores, too. So I can get pretty angry shopping for that reason, but there was Eden in the dressing room, smiling at and playing peek-a-boo with her reflection in the mirror. So who's to get angry while in a dressing room with that? Besides, I found a few things that looked pretty good. Good enough for a closer examination.

Eden had been taken out of the stroller for fussiness and had been happily dancing to the 80s music playing over the speaker, so I grabbed her hand and we walked together down to the three-way mirror. This is a brave endeavor because I wasn't quite sure how the clothes looked from behind the double-stroller in the small dressing room. I had to parade my guess down to the other end of the dressing room (the mirrors close by were blocked) to find out. But here I had a grand realization. I was glad Eden was with me. Here is why.

Having Eden with me on the walk down the lane, past the helpful clerks, was a distraction. For me and for the people I met on the way there. Eden is unbelievably cute and this fact was the topic of all conversation with anyone we met. So she was helpful in that way.

She also was helpful because she required me to talk my way through the whole process. She gets fussy if she starts to feel left out, so the time went much more smoothly if I narrated what was going on. "This is a skirt, Eden. It's blue. I'm going to put it on, and...well, maybe I'm not going to get it on, either." And here I had to make a decision. What to say about the thing that just didn't go on right at all? My first thought was, "Mommy can't fit into that one, Eden. It looks bad. Let's put that one back." But then I said, "This one is not made for people shaped like me. Hopefully when you're my age, someone smart will figure out how to make clothes for people this shape." It's oversimplifying the whole thing, but she's 1 and doesn't have a clue what I'm talking about (probably). But I want to practice what I will say. And if the size of clothes you've been trying on successfully all night suddenly can't fit over your hips, then it's a problem with the clothes and not your hips! I want my daughter to know that. Clothes are made to fit people, not the other way around.

But she also was helpful because, no matter what I tried on, she looked at my face and gave me the same wonderful smile she always gives me. Eden thinks I look great in everything because I am her mom. Eden, in many ways, reminds me that I am beautiful. Beautiful in ways that have nothing to do with whether the clothes at the GAP look good on me. Having her there was a reminder that my body has done something really amazing in bringing another life into the world. That means things don't fit the same anymore, but her life has done far more to add to my beauty than it ever took away from it. Our bodies are beautiful more because of what they have done (creating beauty, providing for others, showing kindness, etc.) than because of what number some company assigns them.

I went home with a bag full of clothes that fit. That was amazing and made me nearly giddy happy, mostly because it was so unexpected. But my best trophy was going home with my wonderful daughter, a little more confident that we can both appreciate the beauty of real people when we see it.

treasuring

Eden is now a year old. A whole year. One. When people ask how old she is, I no longer say x-number of months; I say, "She just turned a year." And then it will be, "About a year and a half." And then, "Just about two."

On the same day, Israel hit the two-and-a-half mark. And just before that, I hit everyone's favorite age: 29. (I plan to only spend one year here, though.) It's enough to make a girl feel like the pace of her life isn't in her own control.

Plus, Eden is in the changes-with-each-passing-day stage. I said about a month ago that Eden had made it to "toddler" earlier than I expected. She walks, she talks, she throws fits; she can still fit her size three month onesie. (Okay. The arms are a little short.) The other day, I took out the camera to catch her saying and signing the word, "more." She turned, looked at the camera, and said, unprompted, "Cheese." (More or less...but those of us there knew exactly what she had said!) She says all kinds of things, its seems, and I know it grows exponentially from here as she tries to say everything she hears. For my own records, and to amaze and astound the rest of the world, here are the things she says that I understand:

"Hi!" (especially when pretending to talk on the phone)
"Bye, bye."
"nie, nie" (for night, night!)
"more" verbally and with a sign
"please" verbally and with a sign
"TI, ti!" for "thank you!"
"Mommy"
"Daddy"
"baby"
"Dah!" or "Doggy"
"Ca..." for cat
"Ah nuh!" with a sign that means, "All done!"
"Buh-bwye," which she says for butterfly at the end of the Very Hungry Caterpillar book.
"huh-gy" which she also repeats during a reading of said book
"yeh I duh" which is copied from a book that repeats the line, "Yes, I do!"
"bah" for ball
"buh" for book
"mee-muh" for "banana." She's a creative one. :)
"no..." seems to mean "nose" these days
"No, no!" (Self-explanatory.)

She chuckles when you ask her if she's funny. If she can tell you're asking her a question, she often responds, "No." She's learning to hold up one finger when asked how old she is. She can blow you a kiss, punctuated with a "Mmmm-WAH!" She comes to me with her arms up and gives me hugs while patting my back. She swats at her brother if he's in her way. She laughs if you do it back. She is perfect. And less of a baby each day.

I'm in the wow-is-this-really-the-last-time-I'll-hold-my-baby? stage. So I experiment to find out. Israel is fascinated with babies these days and asks if I have one in my belly (like his babysitter does) and where my baby is. I told him he was my baby and he said, "I'm not a baby." I almost said, "You are, too!" but that would undermine some of our potty-training slogans. So I modified the "big boy" from potty training to "little boy" upon completion of potty training, phase 1 . That makes one little boy and one little girl, whose hair is long enough to require fixing and who thinks she is every bit as old as her brother.

Pat found a bink in the car this week, stared at it, and said, "The days of this thing are numbered." But the days of that thing have been over for some time. They're gone. Eden never really took it anyway and I rushed Israel out of it so I could stop having to put it in his mouth during the night. We won't be needing that anymore. I've given away many things we "won't be needing anymore." Like the exersaucer. And the swing. And the bassinet and the floor mat Israel spent hours and hours on. And the size 4 diapers. (I think Eden will be 6 before she'll need that size!) We didn't even need a carrier for Eden at the Children's Museum! She walked most of the time! The days of so many things are gone.

I often think of the times in the Bible that talk about how Mary "treasured these things" or "pondered them in her heart" or something like that. And I hope I've treasured enough. I try to take snapshots by writing down the words my kids can say. I know the list will seem funny and short in a matter of months. I recently realized that Israel no longer tells me "huh moh-nih" for "good morning" and someday Eden will not play peek-a-boo by putting her hand on the side of her head and saying, "Bee!" And I'll miss it. In some ways I miss it already and I hope writing it down somehow bottles it up and saves it. It's a careful balance to strike between enjoying the moment and saving it for later. Do I run and get my camera when Israel is pretending something really funny or do I get in the floor and pretend with him? How should I treasure these things? Hope you don't mind as I fluctuate between trying to catch it all and trying to just participate in it all.

All that said, here are a couple of captured treasures from life these days.

Eden is the one who initiated this particular action. She is one crazy baby!

This one is a bit longer for those itching for an Eden update. This is a couple of weeks old, but you can get a bit of an idea of what she's doing these days. I wish I could've gotten her to dance for you! It's too cute. Perhaps I'll have to cue the music at a later date.