not to us

(Just imagine me saying/chanting that title in the spirit of "Weapon of Choice" by FatBoySlim.)

Now, on to the important stuff...and the not-so-important stuff.  :)  This is shaping up to be one of those rambly, train-of-thought types of posts.  I'll try to start with the important things, so I don't lose you too soon.  ;)

First up - I've been invited to go on a mission trip to Uruguay in March.  In order for me to go, we'd need to have someone who could be responsible for Ruby and Burke the week of March 5 - March 9.  (There's a high probability that Mike will be traveling a lot during the first quarter of the year, so we would need someone who would be able to keep Ruby and Burke overnight, if needed.)  If you have any suggestions, let us know.  (Obviously, we're looking for someone that we know and trust.)  I'd really appreciate prayers for guidance about whether to go on the trip or not.

You can also pray specifically for Mike and me as parents.  We seem to be dealing with a resurrection of sorts...the resurrection of the Terrible Twos and the Terrifying Threes all combined into some horrifyingly scary edition of the Frightening Fives.  You may think I'm exaggerating wtih all the terrible and the terrifying and the scary and the frightening, but y'all.  I've been reduced to tears on multiple occasions in the past three weeks.  (Honest, gut-wrenching, I'm-failing-as-a-parent tears...)  So if you'd pray for me, that'd be great.  And parents of children who are five and older, if you've got similar experiences or any advice, bring it on!

In the "pros" column, we are seeing a lot of bright spots in Ruby's development, too.  She can now spell and write several words other than her name without any help.  She's recognizing a few sight words without prompting.  She got a kid's camera for Christmas, and she's got quite an eye for a five year old.  :)  There are times when she makes incredibly mature decisions, and she's beginning to show a concrete understanding of faith in Jesus Christ.

Being a parent is a rollercoaster of emotions: insanely proud in one moment and crippled with doubt in the next.  I wouldn't trade a second.

Burke is turning into quite the little talker.  He's constantly making up some sort of pretend circumstances for playtime.  He's Perry.  Or he's Phineas.  Or he's a baby.  Or he's a cat who says, "Memow."  He uses his blocks to make towers, monster trucks, guns, racetracks, or some other totally boyish contraption.  He loves to wrestle and climb.  He's been 100% potty-trained for many months now, and he just seems like such a big boy.

And now for the random:

Ruby and Burke get a little stopped up every now and then, if you know what I mean.  It happens most often when we go to grandparents' houses...mostly because we're out of the norm and the kids get a lot of snacks that aren't necessarily fiber-filled.  ;)  Last week, my mom gave Ruby and Burke some "poop candy."  Magic words for prunes.  She refrigerated them and cut them up into quarters.  Call something candy, and my kids are very willing to give it a try.  Amazingly, they'll gladly eat two prunes and beg for more, if the prunes are chilled and cut up.  

Let me just say that my kids are regular beyond regular now.  We had to cut them back from 2 prunes/day to 1.5 prunes/day.  They are now down to 1 prune/day in order to ward off panicked cries of, "I've gotta go NOW, Mom!!!"  ;)  If your kids get stopped up, try some chilled Sunsweet Prunes cut into quarters.  

Just be careful if you call them poop candy.  Because when you walk by prunes in the grocery store, your kids are very likely to scream at the top of their lungs, "POOP CANDY!!!  Mom! Mom!  Can we get some more?!?!?"  ;)

Lastly, I ate a salad for dinner.  I didn't want to, but I did.  Baby steps, people.  Baby steps.

Goodnight.  :)

Ruby has finally gotten old enough to realize that Meijer, Target, and Walmart all have toy aisles...sections, actually.  Everytime we shop at one of those stores, she asks to take a stroll.  Occasionally, she gets her wish.  :)

Ruby always wants to go down the "girl" aisles.  Barbies, babies, dress-up clothes...  It's all familiar to her. The colors are varying shades of pink and purple with an occasional pop of teal or orange.  The categories of play are all some sort of role play: Princess, Mommy, Cook, Beauty Consultant.  She knows what to expect, and she knows the "rules" of the game.

Burke has started to take an interest in "boy" toys.  Bright lights, loud sounds.  It's all good, as far as he's concerned.  :)  Cars, balls, trains, blocks, Legos...  It's a whole new world.  He loves the displays and the "Try Me" buttons.  He's excited to explore and charged for the challenge.  He has no idea what to expect, but he assumes it'll be fun.  

Ruby is learning from her little brother.  She had no idea that pulling a lever and seeing a Hot Wheels shoot to the top of a track could be so much fun.  She never realized that they make MegaBloks and Legos in pink and purple.  She didn't know that boys like to dress up, too!

When we went to Target last week, she asked if we could take a stroll through the toy section.  

Then she asked if we could go down the boy aisles first.

I want to be more like Burke.  I want to joyfully, whole-heartedly, excitedly jump into new adventures without any fear.

I want to be more like Ruby.  I want to enjoy the comfort of the familiar and be willing to consider the possibility that something new could be just as good.

Or maybe even better.

And if it turns out that something new is something good, I want to own it and embrace it even if it's "for boys."

They teach me more and more every day...even as we walk down the toy aisle.

I pray that I can grow up to be the kind of person my children are.

Burke is obsessed with is belly button.  Obsessed!  

Sometimes, he'll hold my finger and rub his belly button with my finger.

Every once in a while, he wants to see my belly button.

Just now, while I was holding him, he started to lift up my shirt to see my belly button.  When I showed him where it was, he got a really sad look on his face, poked his finger in the hole, and said, "It's gone.  It's all gone!"

I started laughing really hard, and he started crying.

You see, Burke and Ruby both have half-innie/half-outtie belly buttons.  So, when he plays with his own belly button, there's an actual "part" of his body in the hole.

I have a complete innie belly button.  It's just a hole in the middle of my stomach.

So, poor Burke thinks my belly button is missing...and he's quite distraught about that fact.

I tried to console him, but I don't know how to explain innies and outties to my two-year-old.  Any tips?

Our weekday getting dressed routine is surprisingly...well, routine.  :)  At least in some ways...

It always starts out the same, pajama-clad kids bundled under blankies on the couch.  A momma checking e-mail, Twitter, and blogs on the computer.  When the morning movie ends, we turn off the electronics and Momma says, "Let's go upstairs and get dressed!"

And so we do, two kids and a momma make their way up the stairs.  Somewhere between the couch and the third stair, we transform.  These three innocent beings become the Burkster, the Rubster, and the Momster.  It starts with a tingle in my toes.  The tingle travels to my arms.  In no time, I find myself growling and roaring and yelling, in a half-panicked voice, "It's the MOMSTER!"

The momster tickles and hugs and kisses and steals the kids away to her cave (a queen bed fitted with soft sheets and a snuggly down comforter.)  The kidsters start to fight back with their own tickling fingers and kissing lips and hugging arms.  After a few minutes, the tingling stops, and I go to take my shower.

The kids play upstairs while I shower.  Sometimes, I find them having a picnic when I get out of the shower.  Most of the time, however, I find them on Ruby's bed, reading books together.  We go ahead and put our clothes on, and, inevitably, we play another around of "Momster!"

Today, the routine varied.  I went straight up and took my shower.  When I got out, I found the kids, stripped down to their nappy/underwear and socks, sitting on Ruby's bed...reading books.  They had *my* blanket on the bed with them...and I felt that playful spirit seep into my bones.

"Hey!" I said in mock-irritation. "That's MY blanket!!"  I grabbed it and *ran* to my bedroom.  Of course, they chased after me.  I jumped into my bed and pretended to sleep, complete with fake snores.  Two littles jumped in with me and the oldest said, "Let's play SLEEPOVER!"

So they brought some of their stuffed animals and blankies into my bed and we pretended to sleep.  Except it was nothing like sleep.  It was a lot of Burke crawling around and making noise and Ruby saying, "Burke!  GO TO SLEEP!"  "BURKE!  BE QUIET!"  

Finally, I said, "Ruby, just pretend you can't hear him."

"But I can't do that!  I have ears!" she replied.

Oh, of course...

At one point, they decided to go get more blankets and stuffed animals out of their rooms.  So I snuck into my bathroom to hide.

When they came back, they were astonished.  "Mom!  Where'd she go?" said Ruby.  "She go?" added Burke. 

They left to search for me, and I got back into bed.

They came back.  "Here she is!  How did that happen?"

They left.  I hid.

They searched.  I came back.

Finally, Ruby said, "Burke, I'm going to go get more blankets and stuffed animals.  You stay here and watch Momma."

:)  She's something else, that girl.

When she came back, we snuggled together.  We ticked and kissed and hugged and I might have even gotten kicked in the nose one or twelve times.  But it's all good, because those giggles and those smiles and those little arms around my neck...  Man, that's what dreams are made of.

So, today, as I sort and wash and dry and fold and carry up the stairs and put away...as I feel the urge to grumble about the laundry...

I choose to be thankful for clothes and thankful for laundry.  Because clothes and laundry mean that yesterday, we got dressed.  And today, we got dressed.  And, tomorrow, we get to do it again.  

I can't wait.  :)