More Blessings (trials)

Crashed on the couch tonight.

He is almost too big for this swing, but it is my life-saver some nights.

Kids are a wonderful blessing. To hear them laugh, or smile at you when they wake up makes everything worth it. Watching them sleep is so peaceful. Getting them to sleep at the same time can be a rare occasion.

Last night I was up until 2 a.m. with James. This little guy just wouldn't stay asleep. So after many verses of I am a Child of God, and other songs, he just wouldn't quit crying. I was out of ideas. So I pulled out the laptop and started to watch one of the conference sessions I missed last month. James quit crying instantly. No joke. And then he fell asleep in my arms. Since I was fully awake at this point, I watched to whole session. Loved it. Heard what I needed to hear. Woke up 5 hours later with so much energy I got a lot of things done today. I guess I need to watch conference more often.

These last couple of weeks have been very stressful for our little family. And our kids were not immune to it. Kaylee was wired. She didn't do well in nursery. James wouldn't take any naps. Kaylee tried to do everything she knew she wasn't supposed to. This week things are calming down. James is taking naps again. Kaylee is starting to go to primary with us. Kaylee is doing much better on her potty training. 4 days dry now. For her that is big. So here have been some of our blessings.

Sunday night I was asleep on the couch with James watching ( ha ha) the news with Jess. There was a loud bang out front. Jess went out to investigate. Another car hit the tree across the street and then the streetlight in front of our house and took off. This time the cops caught the driver down the street. She had left her bumper, mirror, taillight, clothes, and of course some beer along side the road. This is the second accident here in the last year and a half. But this time the car didn't hit our house, and the cops were able to catch this person. We appreciate little miracles. And I know we were watched over again.

I was talking to my sister on the phone the other day. Kaylee was watching a show. I was trying to multi-task and clean out the junk drawer at the same time. I checked on Kaylee quite often. She was always behaving, until she brought some scissors to me. She told me she cut her shirt, and her hair, and the curtain in the front room. This may have been in a matter of two minutes. I was not impressed. I put her in time out. When she finally got out, I asked her why she was in time out. She said because she had cut brother's blanket and Daddy's blanket. Sure enough, she cut those too. She got to go right to her bedroom and take a nap, and she knew she was in trouble and didn't make a noise. Blessing out of this. I think I can fix the blankets. The fabric for the curtain only ended up being $2 so I was impressed with that. Now I need to figure out how to fix it. That will be a fun weekend project.

I am also very thankful for how my parents raised me. My brother was born when I was in Kindergarten. That means 4 children 5 and under. I don't know how my parents did that. We were brought up in the church with Dad always in a bishopric and across the country from any family. My mom amazes me. Lately, my mind has been challenged with right and wrong on issues within close friends and family. I have no doubt on where I stand on these issues. And I think I owe that in most part to my parents. As these few months play out, at least I know what to hold onto, and I can go from there. It makes me realize more and more what a big responsibility we all have in raising our children right in a more and more wicked world. Thanks for the firm foundation Dad and Mom.

Overall, this week has gone a lot smoother than the last. Our kids are little troopers. James is 8 months old now. Every night when I am feeding him in his highchair, he will just look at me with his big blue eyes and smile. It makes me wonder how thin the veil must still be for babies. He seems to just look at his parents and say everything will be okay. And that is the truth. We will be okay. Later, we will look back, and think that was funny or something. But it is my choice how to handle what life throws me, but also continue to remember that these sweet, innocent kids are here for me to teach, but I think they teach me more than anything else.