My Father, the Hero

Well, my dad was my hero already, but he's proved his superman status yet again in my eyes by saving me $2000 dollars and another 2 weeks dealing with an achey firstborn.  When he heard that the children's dentist was going to charge us more than my monthly mortgage payment to do Lorelei's teeth, he insisted he could do it.  The other issue was the local dentist here couldn't even get us into an appt. until April 13th and Lorelei was crying every day, she couldn't even make it through her gymnastics lesson this week, she kept grabbing her cheek, and finally just ran over to me, unable to stand it any more.   It was so sad.  SOOO my dad said, he'd try to get the demarol which is what the kid's place uses to sedate their wiggly patients.  We made the trip to Visalia late Thurs. night, but when we got there, Dad said, he did some research, and there was no way he'd use demarol on her.  He said it slows their heart rate down a lot, and is kind of risky, so forget it.  Lorelei had to do it the grown up with only the shots of novacaine and daddy holding her down basically.

Needless to say, I couldn't even take the stress of it all, so Dan, my dad, and Lorelei went to the office without me.  I stayed back with mom and the other kiddos and prayed.  In all, Dan said, it wasn't easy, it wasn't fun, and by the time 2 root canals were over, if anyone needed sedating it was him and my dad.  In all I'm just grateful, she's feeling better, and now I won't have to start collecting my neighbors' cans out of their recycle bins for spare change.

Isn't it Ironic?

To borrow the phrase from the once angry and angst-ridden Alanis Morisette; Isn't it ironic?

1. To have a father who's a dentist, yet be plagued by cavities and root canals
2. To have a daughter who's inherited those super bad teeth and needs 2 root canals, but refuses to sit still for Grandpa who would charge us NOTHING to fix her teeth.
3. To have to go to a children's dentist who uses special "juice" to sedate the kids and to have to pay out of pocket because why would the daughter of a dentist ever need dental insurance?
4. To set the goal that I would not put anything on the credit card for a long, long time, and then to be given a sheet that estimates $2000 worth of dental work on your not even 6 year old child
5. To walk out of the dental office with a bill in your hand and a smile on your face? Why the smile? Oh, just thinking about all the fun things I'd love to do with an extra 2 grand in my pocket... and hoping that by smiling, I refrain from turning into John McEnroe in front of a bunch of strangers.

"A little too ironic? Yeah, I really do think....."

What's a Blessing?

This morning I read the girls a bible story from The Big Picture Story Bible. We were reading about how God told Abraham he would bless them. I looked up and asked the girls if they knew what a blessing was? They didn't, so I said, it's when something good happens to you, like oh my goodness, I have a house, what a blessing. So Lorelei said, "Oh or like, oh my goodness, I have 4 kids, that's a blessing right?"

Can't argue with that one, can I?

These two bibles in this blurry photo have been my favorite children's bibles of the many dozens I've acquired over the past 6 years. Check 'em out. The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd Jones and The Big Picture Storybook by David Helm. I think I've alluded to them before, but oh well, I'm getting older, I may start repeating myself more.

*Writers Note: For the sake of always presenting a clear picture of my life, I want you all to know, I rarely begin the day reading a bible story to the kids, it's just been as of late, now that I don't have to rush Lorelei to school in the mornings. In my imagined perfect family life, I would though.

Little Lesiw Clips

I just ordered some clips from my friend Rachel's company, Little Lesiw. They're so cute, check out my Morgan, modeling her new bow.

Answered Prayer

The above pic was the cover of her card and below was what was inside.



About a year ago, I asked for prayer concerning my former college roommate Heidi, and the very premature birth of her daughter. Last week I got this card in the mail, and it brought me to happy tears! Happy Birthday indeed!

Delusions of Grandeur?

So a few months ago, my sister gave me the book, Humility by CJ Mahaney, said it was a must read for me, and then last week, my mom gave me this other book on humility and made me promise I would read it.

Hmm. Are they trying to tell me something? Am I Blair from Facts of Life or what?

School's Out! ( Sort of)

I debated about whether or not to blog about this, or how to do so because I want to be protective of my kiddos, but I also want to be real.  The point of my blog is two-fold, it's a fun, semi-creative outlet for me and hopefully it's an encouragement to other friends and moms to know most of our aches and complaints are universal, we are not alone in our daily struggles and survival!  I ended up deciding to mention this because it has been a good learning experience for me, and maybe it will encourage you as you face different little things with your own families.

In short, Lorelei has struggled in kindergarten all year, both socially (she's very shy) and especially, academically.  Now, I've never had a 5 year old before, the oldest of our brood is my little guinea pig, and I was genuinely surprised school was difficult for her.  I had never really considered the possibility before, but as the school year's progressed, she's becoming more lost as the work gets harder.  So when her teacher called, I said, "lay it on the line for me, I can take it,"  (because she was trying to be sooo nice and reluctant to come out with it & I understood this because as a teacher I've made these calls before)!   It turns out, she thinks Lor should repeat kindergarten.  So I decided to pull her out now, so as to give her a little distance between now and the fall when she begins again.  Tomorrow is her last day.

Well, I'm a practical person, not terribly mushy or sentimental about things, so in my mind I reasoned with myself, this is not a big deal, my child is healthy and happy and hopefully will grow up to love the Lord, that is the end goal.  But even as I reasoned with myself, I admit I felt anxious and concerned.  I was worried about how she would take it, & how does this affect the other 3, should I start the twins later?  Had I made a mistake?  Etc.  

Now that I've had a few weeks to process our outcome, I have to say the Lord has taught me this:

1. I need to slow down.  I'm always rushing through each of the stages of my kids' childhoods, hoping that somehow the next phase of life will be easier.  Well, that's just ridiculous, it won't ever get actually easier, this is what the Lord has for me during this season of my life.  I need to be grateful and content in it.  It's ironic that just as I want to push through, the Lord is holding me back, literally!

2. God is good.  We fretted over how to tell Lorelei the news.  Finally we talked with her Sunday night.  Her reaction  -  "okay."  We were like, Okay?  Are you sure?  Does that sound good to you, homeschooling with mom for a few months, and then going back to kindergarten in September?  Yep!  Sounds good.  She didn't even flinch or care.  She's not remotely phased.  I worried about her reaction for nothing!  

3. Lastly, this is such a little, tiny thing in comparison to health issues, and even behavior issues, but all of us moms know how much we can tend to mull over anything that affects our children.  We all need to remember, our kids are not perfect, they will constantly surprise us with their responses and reactions to things, and sometimes those surprises may not be entirely pleasant.  The reminder then is not to tie up our joy or hope in these kids (that would be so unfair to them) and so misguided, our central focus must remain in & on Christ. If it is and they see that, we've done our jobs!  Everything else is just extra.