Time can get away from us so fast these days. Upon review of the blog it has been several months since anything was posted, and it would take pages to document all the anecdotes and growth we have seen in the kids. FB has become the crutch to post short updates and pics, and though busy schedules do not allow for daily or even weekly posts, the intent of the blog remains.
As the monsters continue to grow and advance we say goodbye to old challenges and face new challenges each and every day. The days of diapers and toddlers has passed us, and now we toil with the every day sibling arguments, repetitive commands and questions to pick up your room, put your shoes away, did you do your homework, or the all encompassing question when you cannot fathom their thought process, "what is wrong with you"? There are days we labor to remember if we possibly dropped each and every child on their head as a baby. The good news is they can pick up their room, make their beds, clean the dog poop, tie their shoes, play with each other in a civilized manner, and even on the rare occasion show remorse for something done wrong.
The most recent theme being preached continuously around the house hold is simply "do the right thing." They know right from wrong and I know they know right from wrong because it is written all over the face when they are doing something wrong and they are very quick to point out when the other child is doing something wrong. So the edict is do the right thing no matter what. Even when nobody else is around or you are sure you won't be found out, do the right thing.
We happened upon this theme one day when Lily had a friend over and they were playing with my IPad. All the kids enjoy recording themselves singing, dancing or giving a monologue about who knows what. Lily and her friend were recording each other singing a song and as is usually the case each new recording must escalate and out perform the previous video. Some time had gone by and I needed my IPad for something. The IPad was located and it was just sitting there still recording the ceiling with nobody insight. The buzzer in my head dings as if to say something is not right here. So I stop the recording, go to the beginning and view the video. It opens with Lily's friend introducing Lily quite enthusiastically along with the song she is about to sing. The camera pans to Lily who is standing on her head on top of Abby's bed at which point she stands up right, turns around, begins singing a version of a Carrie Underwood song in her best rock-n-roll, and jumping on the bed like its a mosh pit. 3 seconds later the bottom of the bed drops out and Lily is standing there motionless with a look on her face that words are not able to describe. It was that look of desperation on a child's face when they think Daddy may end my life for this one.
The puzzling thing to me was Abby's bed was all put back together as if nothing had happened. Opportunities like this to find out if your child will tell you the truth are like gold. They were busted and they had no idea. The culprits were located and I kindly asked, "Lily, did something happen to the bed upstairs?" Her quick response with lack of eye contact, "no". BUSTED. "Lily, I'm going to ask one more time, did something happen to the bed." This time in a dejected tone, "yes.........how did you know?"
And so the evidence was presented and they got to listen to my lecture on "do the right thing", even when you think nobody will find out. After the long arduous process of listening to my lecture, we replayed the video about 10 times and laughed harder and harder each time.
The funny thing about kids getting older is they actually listen to you sometimes, and they love to point out when Daddy is not doing the right thing. It's forced me to take stock and make sure I'm doing the right thing. Nothing is worse than a gloating 7 year old little girl who just called you out for not doing the right thing.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Lawson Boy (still eating 3 breakfasts a day)
Friday, November 22, 2013
Saturday, July 27, 2013
Lily Gives Me Hope For the Future
It has never been my intention to use this forum as my personal soap box, but every once in a while some things need be said because the way some people raise their kids in an apathetic manner really grinds my gears at times. This whole idea of fairness and trying to equalize the playing field for our children is just another symptom of the demise of our society and acceptance of mediocrity. Despite the degradation of the morals and work ethic over time there is still hope for our kids future. The evidence is clear and bubbles up in our kids will to succeed, to be better than the kid next to them in class or on the field, and the desire to the right thing. It's our duty as parents to encourage that.
Let me digress for a second and share a quick store about Lawson Boy. Parenting is not easy and we have to make difficult decisions every day that we know our kids are not going to like and will only lead to griping, whining and possible temper tantrums. Many times we have to let our kids learn the hard way. We were coming out of church one day and as we exit the doors Lawson's modus operandi is to take off running. This day it just so happened a friend of ours was next to him and challenged him to a race as they exited the doorway. Standing out in front watching the race it was apparent that Lawson was about to take a header off the curb. As he was running, he was more intent on watching his opponent to size up his competition. My warning to watch out for the curb fell on deaf ears, so I let it happen. Sure enough, the boy ended up with some scrapes on his knees and a bruised ego. Now every time we exit church, Lawson runs over to the curb and stands there with his arms out to make sure nobody else falls off the curb. While I would never purposefully put my kid in harms way, sometimes you let minor things happen so they can learn a lesson. Daddy gave him fist pumps for the cool scrapes on his knees, but he was more interested in mommy's comforting after that little fall. The kids have begun echoing my motto for them, "if you ain't got bumps, bruises and scrapes, you ain't playing hard enough."
Back to my evidence of hope for our future. Lily just finished first grade and over the past year in addition to obviously attending school she played soccer, basketball, performed on the cheer leading squad, and is taking gymnastics. A year and a half ago when we started signing her up for all these activities, my thought was that is way too many activities. A year and a half ago, she also expressed to us she wasn't sure if she wanted to continue playing soccer. After some prying we learned that she did not feel as if she were as good as some of the other girls. Our message to her was and has always been the same since she started playing. I don't care how many goals you score or if you are best player on the field, you work harder than everybody else and hustle and the skills will come. Somewhere along the way this year it sank in with her. Instead of not wanting to play, she asked me to work with her to make her better. Nobody out hustled her on the soccer field, and nobody got by her in basketball without a fight for the ball. Some of her friends are doing back hand springs and she wants to learn so she can perform them as a cheer leader. I went to watch her practice at gymnastics and even when her coach was working with another girl, Lily kept practicing her drills over and over and over with determination to get better each time. Coming off the field after a game and receiving praise for a game well played, she looked at me and said, "but we lost". There is not a scoreboard at their field and nobody tells them what the score is. They know what the score is.
So what is my point other than to brag on Lily? The point is they know the score and they want to win and that will not be discouraged in my kid. Here is what can safely be said about the individual who decided to not keep score and badgers the coach about equal playing time. Their kid probably sucks. Life ain't fair, but every kid has their own talents. Find out what those talents are and encourage them instead of trying to teach my kid mediocrity. We have to stop catering to our kids and giving them everything they want. There is nothing wrong with wanting to provide the best for our children. The best is not simply handing things over to them. The best means they earn it and we spend the time to teach our kid the right values and work ethic so they can best be prepared to go out and provide an even better life for their children.
Whether it is learned or she was born with it, Lily has figured out at an early age how to succeed. She is willing to put in the effort and work hard to do it and that gives me hope.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby Chloe, and Lawson Boy
Let me digress for a second and share a quick store about Lawson Boy. Parenting is not easy and we have to make difficult decisions every day that we know our kids are not going to like and will only lead to griping, whining and possible temper tantrums. Many times we have to let our kids learn the hard way. We were coming out of church one day and as we exit the doors Lawson's modus operandi is to take off running. This day it just so happened a friend of ours was next to him and challenged him to a race as they exited the doorway. Standing out in front watching the race it was apparent that Lawson was about to take a header off the curb. As he was running, he was more intent on watching his opponent to size up his competition. My warning to watch out for the curb fell on deaf ears, so I let it happen. Sure enough, the boy ended up with some scrapes on his knees and a bruised ego. Now every time we exit church, Lawson runs over to the curb and stands there with his arms out to make sure nobody else falls off the curb. While I would never purposefully put my kid in harms way, sometimes you let minor things happen so they can learn a lesson. Daddy gave him fist pumps for the cool scrapes on his knees, but he was more interested in mommy's comforting after that little fall. The kids have begun echoing my motto for them, "if you ain't got bumps, bruises and scrapes, you ain't playing hard enough."
Back to my evidence of hope for our future. Lily just finished first grade and over the past year in addition to obviously attending school she played soccer, basketball, performed on the cheer leading squad, and is taking gymnastics. A year and a half ago when we started signing her up for all these activities, my thought was that is way too many activities. A year and a half ago, she also expressed to us she wasn't sure if she wanted to continue playing soccer. After some prying we learned that she did not feel as if she were as good as some of the other girls. Our message to her was and has always been the same since she started playing. I don't care how many goals you score or if you are best player on the field, you work harder than everybody else and hustle and the skills will come. Somewhere along the way this year it sank in with her. Instead of not wanting to play, she asked me to work with her to make her better. Nobody out hustled her on the soccer field, and nobody got by her in basketball without a fight for the ball. Some of her friends are doing back hand springs and she wants to learn so she can perform them as a cheer leader. I went to watch her practice at gymnastics and even when her coach was working with another girl, Lily kept practicing her drills over and over and over with determination to get better each time. Coming off the field after a game and receiving praise for a game well played, she looked at me and said, "but we lost". There is not a scoreboard at their field and nobody tells them what the score is. They know what the score is.
So what is my point other than to brag on Lily? The point is they know the score and they want to win and that will not be discouraged in my kid. Here is what can safely be said about the individual who decided to not keep score and badgers the coach about equal playing time. Their kid probably sucks. Life ain't fair, but every kid has their own talents. Find out what those talents are and encourage them instead of trying to teach my kid mediocrity. We have to stop catering to our kids and giving them everything they want. There is nothing wrong with wanting to provide the best for our children. The best is not simply handing things over to them. The best means they earn it and we spend the time to teach our kid the right values and work ethic so they can best be prepared to go out and provide an even better life for their children.
Whether it is learned or she was born with it, Lily has figured out at an early age how to succeed. She is willing to put in the effort and work hard to do it and that gives me hope.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby Chloe, and Lawson Boy
Tuesday, July 2, 2013
Summertime Fun
There is something built into our human nature that just will not allow us to be content with where we are at in life. The kids are constantly talking about what they are going to be able to do when they grow up or when they are in charge. We look at all the fun they are having this summer playing outside, going to the pool, VBS, camps, and we find ourselves green with envy longing for those days again when we ran wild and did not have to bother with the job, mortgage and everything that comes with being an adult. It brings back memories of running through the neighborhood all day long and only coming home when we were hungry or it started to get dark outside.
Not being in school, Abby, Chloe and Lawson are pretty much on vacation year around right now. Lily however is taking full advantage of her vacation. She spends the night with her friends or has friends over to our house so often I actually have to put pants on in the morning for fear of who is going to come running through the house. She has been to 3 different VBS already and has a basketball and cheer camp lined up over the next couple weeks. We are going to drop off Abby, Chloe and Lawson with mama and papa for the week so we can relive the glory days of only have 1 kid. Now that she is pretty self sufficient, it is almost as good as a vacation. The peace that comes with knowing a little person is not going to crawl in your bed at 2:00 in the morning is quite glorious.
Father's Day was very special for me this year, one that won't be forgotten. Lily made the most important decision of her life and prayed to accept Jesus into her heart. We had been talking about it lately and she decided she wanted to go down front at church to let everybody know. Pastor Mark's son is the same age as Lily and he sits on the front row during the service. When he saw Lily coming down front, he came over and gave her the biggest hug you can imagine. It took every ounce of macho in me not to cry like a baby. We are so proud of Lily and the decisions she makes that will continue to form her into a Godly woman one day.
Then we have Chloe who we hope makes the same good decisions one day, but for now will just have to continue trying to steer her in the right direction and pray for her. She is our entertainer and comedian, but the great thing is she does it without trying. We were talking about twins and how special Abby and Chloe are to have each other, and Chloe randomly asked, "are there twins in China?" Abby responds, "what is China?" Chloe very matter of fact explains, "China is the place with all the chopsticks."
In previous blogs, my suspicions have been documented that Chloe might be pathological. The first sign is her ability to lie to your face without blinking or hesitating. Now we have this anecdote as further evidence. Apparently Chloe was not happy with the way Abby was treating her. The reasoning for her ill will escapes me now, and is really irrelevant. Whatever the reasoning, Chloe went about and plotted her revenge. Once satisfied that her plan was fool proof, she began to call out in a soft gentle voice, "Abby, oh Abby, come here." She repeated this a few times and because Abby is no dummy, she did not go. Finally Kasey went to see what it was that Chloe needed from Abby. What did she find, you ask? She found Chloe standing next to a pillow with a plastic bat in her hand. "What are you doing?" asked Kasey. "Abby made me mad, so I'm going to hit her with the bat and she will fall onto the pillow." Now that my friends is sinister genius. Hit her hard enough to knock her down, but cushion the landing.
The most recent lesson we have learned about Chloe is that when she wants something and she does not feel you have put forth a concerted effort on her behalf, she will take matters into her own hands. She told us she would like to get her hair cut. We did not provide a satisfactory answer or solution to her wants and desires.........so she did. Age old question - is lying acceptable at any time? My answer - I would rather tell my daughter she looks beautiful, then tell her she looks like an androgynous midget heading to a gay pride rally.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Iron man Lawson
Not being in school, Abby, Chloe and Lawson are pretty much on vacation year around right now. Lily however is taking full advantage of her vacation. She spends the night with her friends or has friends over to our house so often I actually have to put pants on in the morning for fear of who is going to come running through the house. She has been to 3 different VBS already and has a basketball and cheer camp lined up over the next couple weeks. We are going to drop off Abby, Chloe and Lawson with mama and papa for the week so we can relive the glory days of only have 1 kid. Now that she is pretty self sufficient, it is almost as good as a vacation. The peace that comes with knowing a little person is not going to crawl in your bed at 2:00 in the morning is quite glorious.
Father's Day was very special for me this year, one that won't be forgotten. Lily made the most important decision of her life and prayed to accept Jesus into her heart. We had been talking about it lately and she decided she wanted to go down front at church to let everybody know. Pastor Mark's son is the same age as Lily and he sits on the front row during the service. When he saw Lily coming down front, he came over and gave her the biggest hug you can imagine. It took every ounce of macho in me not to cry like a baby. We are so proud of Lily and the decisions she makes that will continue to form her into a Godly woman one day.
Then we have Chloe who we hope makes the same good decisions one day, but for now will just have to continue trying to steer her in the right direction and pray for her. She is our entertainer and comedian, but the great thing is she does it without trying. We were talking about twins and how special Abby and Chloe are to have each other, and Chloe randomly asked, "are there twins in China?" Abby responds, "what is China?" Chloe very matter of fact explains, "China is the place with all the chopsticks."
In previous blogs, my suspicions have been documented that Chloe might be pathological. The first sign is her ability to lie to your face without blinking or hesitating. Now we have this anecdote as further evidence. Apparently Chloe was not happy with the way Abby was treating her. The reasoning for her ill will escapes me now, and is really irrelevant. Whatever the reasoning, Chloe went about and plotted her revenge. Once satisfied that her plan was fool proof, she began to call out in a soft gentle voice, "Abby, oh Abby, come here." She repeated this a few times and because Abby is no dummy, she did not go. Finally Kasey went to see what it was that Chloe needed from Abby. What did she find, you ask? She found Chloe standing next to a pillow with a plastic bat in her hand. "What are you doing?" asked Kasey. "Abby made me mad, so I'm going to hit her with the bat and she will fall onto the pillow." Now that my friends is sinister genius. Hit her hard enough to knock her down, but cushion the landing.
The most recent lesson we have learned about Chloe is that when she wants something and she does not feel you have put forth a concerted effort on her behalf, she will take matters into her own hands. She told us she would like to get her hair cut. We did not provide a satisfactory answer or solution to her wants and desires.........so she did. Age old question - is lying acceptable at any time? My answer - I would rather tell my daughter she looks beautiful, then tell her she looks like an androgynous midget heading to a gay pride rally.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Iron man Lawson
Saturday, June 1, 2013
Abby Breaks Chloe's Arm
Lily will be seven years old next week, Abby and Chloe are 4 1/2, and Lawson is is only a couple months from being 3 even though he is as big as a 4 years old and people are beginning to ask if we had triplets. Total their ages, round up slightly and that equates to 19 years of childhood experience. Up until the last year we have been mostly accident free, but to reflect on this past year and the number of ER visits we have taken, it may be fiscally wise to start budgeting for these ER trips or start investing in the clinic we attend. The list to the best of my recollection includes multiple ear infections, busted up chin for Lily requiring glue, laceration under the eye for Abby requiring glue, and the latest is a broken arm for Chloe.
You know how everybody always talks about how they have the kid in their family that should have broken every bone in their body because of the stunts they pulled, but never did? Then there is the kid that always played safe, but seems to have multiple mishaps. Well our family is the same way. Chloe is the last child expected to have a broken bone. My money was on Lily or Lawson simply because Lily in now involved in several sporting activities, and Lawson is Lawson which lends itself to possible injury every day.
The popular question is, how did it happen? The simple answer is monkeys jumping on the bed who didn't listen to their daddy. In her defense, it did appear to just be a awkward fall. Abby was standing on the bed, and Chloe pulled her shirt to bring her down and Abby fell on Chloe's hand. They called it a buckle fracture, meaning the ends of the bone buckled like a coke can and you could see the bend in the bones on the X-ray. And oh how Chloe is milking this thing for all it's worth. If she has said my arm is broken once, she has said it 100 times. She also likes to remind Abby that it is her fault her arm is broken. Abby was walking in the general vicinity of Chloe (maybe within 3 feet), and Chloe tells her, "Abby, be careful, don't break my bones." We thought that Abby would feel really bad, but quite the opposite. In fact she takes great pride in announcing, "I broke Chloe's arm."
Not only is Lily about to turn 7, but she also just finished up the first grade. She is growing up so fast and while sometimes you want to slow the hands of time, we thoroughly enjoy watching her grow and mature. Jealousy even starts to enter the equation when thinking about the fun summer ahead of her. She has several friends close by and it makes me think about all the fun we used to have riding bikes around the neighborhood, going to the swimming pool, and just looking for mischief. It will be interesting to see how the twins handle it since Lily will want to spend more time with her friends cutting into sister time. She is still a great big sister and does more for those girls than she should really have to as an almost 7 year old. She has earned the time to go hand with her friends and just play and be a kid.
We have reached another milestone which gave me great joy. After 7 long years, we no longer have a crib in our household. Yes, Lawson now has a big boy bed complete with Spider man bedspread and sheets. When the 2 of us went to pick out his bedding your would though he was shopping for candy. Lawson Boy was so excited to pick out his bedding and at one point he was torn between his favorite 2 characters Spider man and Lightning McQueen.
Kasey will soon need to write about the girls recent trip to the happiest place on earth.....Disney world. Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Mo (Kasey's mom), and Lauren made some wonderful memories on their girl trip. Lawson is still too young so we had our own boy's weekend at home full of baseball games, movies, and eating out every meal like men do. Truth be told, there was no desire on my part to ever go to Disney world, but after seeing how much fun they had, my heart has changed and look forward to going with the whole family in a few years.
While in Florida, Kasey was diligent in keeping us abreast of the happenings. The greatest stories were told at Mo's expense. Obviously you do quite a bit of walking while there, so Mo rented a scooter to avoid fatigue. Bad news for Disney world. Mo didn't just crash one scooter, but she crashed her replacement scooter, had to been by paramedics, lost said second scooter, and got completely lost from everybody else. These really are not laughing matters, but laugh and laugh and laugh is all I did.
One final anecdote before signing off. Actually it is a word of warning based on a lesson we learned the hard way. When Abby tells you she does not care for something at dinner, it would be wise to not make her eat it. One of my favorite veggies is roasted brussell sprouts and Kasey was nice enough to prepare them one evening. Abby made it clear she did not care for them, but we have a rule that you must at least try it and I was enforcing this rule. Abby slowly put the sprout in her mouth......little gag. "Abby, swallow that", I say. At this point she has a horrible look on her face.....bigger gag. "Stop it Abby". And then as if only to spite me for not believing her.......she chundered her previously chewed meal all back on her plate. Point made, Abby will never have to eat brussell sprouts again.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Spidey Lawson
You know how everybody always talks about how they have the kid in their family that should have broken every bone in their body because of the stunts they pulled, but never did? Then there is the kid that always played safe, but seems to have multiple mishaps. Well our family is the same way. Chloe is the last child expected to have a broken bone. My money was on Lily or Lawson simply because Lily in now involved in several sporting activities, and Lawson is Lawson which lends itself to possible injury every day.
The popular question is, how did it happen? The simple answer is monkeys jumping on the bed who didn't listen to their daddy. In her defense, it did appear to just be a awkward fall. Abby was standing on the bed, and Chloe pulled her shirt to bring her down and Abby fell on Chloe's hand. They called it a buckle fracture, meaning the ends of the bone buckled like a coke can and you could see the bend in the bones on the X-ray. And oh how Chloe is milking this thing for all it's worth. If she has said my arm is broken once, she has said it 100 times. She also likes to remind Abby that it is her fault her arm is broken. Abby was walking in the general vicinity of Chloe (maybe within 3 feet), and Chloe tells her, "Abby, be careful, don't break my bones." We thought that Abby would feel really bad, but quite the opposite. In fact she takes great pride in announcing, "I broke Chloe's arm."
Not only is Lily about to turn 7, but she also just finished up the first grade. She is growing up so fast and while sometimes you want to slow the hands of time, we thoroughly enjoy watching her grow and mature. Jealousy even starts to enter the equation when thinking about the fun summer ahead of her. She has several friends close by and it makes me think about all the fun we used to have riding bikes around the neighborhood, going to the swimming pool, and just looking for mischief. It will be interesting to see how the twins handle it since Lily will want to spend more time with her friends cutting into sister time. She is still a great big sister and does more for those girls than she should really have to as an almost 7 year old. She has earned the time to go hand with her friends and just play and be a kid.
We have reached another milestone which gave me great joy. After 7 long years, we no longer have a crib in our household. Yes, Lawson now has a big boy bed complete with Spider man bedspread and sheets. When the 2 of us went to pick out his bedding your would though he was shopping for candy. Lawson Boy was so excited to pick out his bedding and at one point he was torn between his favorite 2 characters Spider man and Lightning McQueen.
Kasey will soon need to write about the girls recent trip to the happiest place on earth.....Disney world. Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Mo (Kasey's mom), and Lauren made some wonderful memories on their girl trip. Lawson is still too young so we had our own boy's weekend at home full of baseball games, movies, and eating out every meal like men do. Truth be told, there was no desire on my part to ever go to Disney world, but after seeing how much fun they had, my heart has changed and look forward to going with the whole family in a few years.
While in Florida, Kasey was diligent in keeping us abreast of the happenings. The greatest stories were told at Mo's expense. Obviously you do quite a bit of walking while there, so Mo rented a scooter to avoid fatigue. Bad news for Disney world. Mo didn't just crash one scooter, but she crashed her replacement scooter, had to been by paramedics, lost said second scooter, and got completely lost from everybody else. These really are not laughing matters, but laugh and laugh and laugh is all I did.
One final anecdote before signing off. Actually it is a word of warning based on a lesson we learned the hard way. When Abby tells you she does not care for something at dinner, it would be wise to not make her eat it. One of my favorite veggies is roasted brussell sprouts and Kasey was nice enough to prepare them one evening. Abby made it clear she did not care for them, but we have a rule that you must at least try it and I was enforcing this rule. Abby slowly put the sprout in her mouth......little gag. "Abby, swallow that", I say. At this point she has a horrible look on her face.....bigger gag. "Stop it Abby". And then as if only to spite me for not believing her.......she chundered her previously chewed meal all back on her plate. Point made, Abby will never have to eat brussell sprouts again.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Spidey Lawson
Saturday, April 27, 2013
Proud Parents
Sometimes it feels like we never stop correcting, repeating, teaching and disciplining our kids. No matter if you have one kid or 4 kids, it seems like a constant chore to get your message through to your kids. It seems like forever ago, but back in the day when we just had Lily we spent a great deal of time working on her manners and correcting her to say please, thank you, yes sir, yes ma'am, and above all don't say "yeah". Not sure why, but that word coming from a kids mouth grinds my gears and makes me want to drop kick them right on the spot. To this day, we still remind and correct Lily along with the other 3 monsters proper manners and how to speak to others politely. Maybe someone else can explain this to me, but there is this phenomenon that happens when other people are around your kids versus when they are at home with you. Just when you start to think that you may have dropped every one of your children on their heads and have blocked it from your memory because what you are telling them does not seem to be sinking through their thick skulls, somebody compliments your child for being so well behaved. After a moment of slack jawed bewilderment, you ask, "you must be kidding, my child?" Then you realize that the little monsters really do hear and listen to you, they just dont' want to give you the personal satisfaction or make your job as a parent any easier along the way.
While it can be a chore, nothing makes you prouder than hearing another parent tell you how polite your child is. We are proud of all our children, and Lily being the oldest having endured our repetitive corrections for the longest time is truly one of the most well mannered kids I know. This year she has taken home from school the award for "Most Respectful", and just yesterday she took home the Pride Award for "Most Dependable". These are 2 qualities that will serve her well throughout her life. Her receiving these awards, and hearing compliments from others reminds us that after a long day of constantly correcting, we make the effort to tell each of our kids how proud of them we are. Those words of praise always seem to sink in much quicker than the rules and demands. While putting Lawson down for bed and loving on him, he will put his head on your shoulder, pat your back, and say "Daddy, I so proud of you".
We are proud of Lily for her awards, her good grades, and nothing makes me swell with pride more than watching her play soccer or basketball and give it her all. She may not have the best skills in soccer or basketball, but she I'll put her determination up against any other kid. When she comes off the field, she is spent from giving it her all. She was playing defense in a game a few weeks ago and the other team was coming up the field with Lily and the goalie as the last line of defense. Lily started to inch closer and as soon as saw the ball get a little too far from the other player she took off in a blur to attack the ball. It happened in a flash, but when the encounter ended all that was left was Lily standing over the other girl on the ground as if to say, "don't come in my house". At least that's the way I saw it, and so did the other dads because we were high fiving like it was the Superbowl. And don't try to post up on her on the block in basketball. She is not afraid to throw an elbow in your chest to get in front of you.
We are proud of Abby and Chloe for finally achieving the goal of neither of them wetting the bed for a week straight. The amount of sheets we have washed since they went to big girl underwear is staggering. Whenever a child is in a confrontation, it's hard not to jump right in and solve the problem for them. It actually entertains me to watch my kids try to resolve issues, especially when it involves somebody elses child. A little boy was picking on Chloe one day, and Abby walked up and stood next to Chloe and they both proceeded to give kid the riot act. That kid backed down so fast, and Abby and Chloe just gave each other look that said don't worry, I got your back.
Lawson doesn't need us to be proud of him though we certainly are. He is most often proud of himself for his antics that he needs very little encouragement. He will be walking by one of the other children and purposefully bump into them while saying "sowwy" at the same time. Then he just looks up with a big grin on his face and could care less if he is about to get in trouble. Clearly we are in for another ER visit soon, because his favorite line right now are the famous last word, "hey, watch this!"
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Daredevil Lawson Boy
While it can be a chore, nothing makes you prouder than hearing another parent tell you how polite your child is. We are proud of all our children, and Lily being the oldest having endured our repetitive corrections for the longest time is truly one of the most well mannered kids I know. This year she has taken home from school the award for "Most Respectful", and just yesterday she took home the Pride Award for "Most Dependable". These are 2 qualities that will serve her well throughout her life. Her receiving these awards, and hearing compliments from others reminds us that after a long day of constantly correcting, we make the effort to tell each of our kids how proud of them we are. Those words of praise always seem to sink in much quicker than the rules and demands. While putting Lawson down for bed and loving on him, he will put his head on your shoulder, pat your back, and say "Daddy, I so proud of you".
We are proud of Lily for her awards, her good grades, and nothing makes me swell with pride more than watching her play soccer or basketball and give it her all. She may not have the best skills in soccer or basketball, but she I'll put her determination up against any other kid. When she comes off the field, she is spent from giving it her all. She was playing defense in a game a few weeks ago and the other team was coming up the field with Lily and the goalie as the last line of defense. Lily started to inch closer and as soon as saw the ball get a little too far from the other player she took off in a blur to attack the ball. It happened in a flash, but when the encounter ended all that was left was Lily standing over the other girl on the ground as if to say, "don't come in my house". At least that's the way I saw it, and so did the other dads because we were high fiving like it was the Superbowl. And don't try to post up on her on the block in basketball. She is not afraid to throw an elbow in your chest to get in front of you.
We are proud of Abby and Chloe for finally achieving the goal of neither of them wetting the bed for a week straight. The amount of sheets we have washed since they went to big girl underwear is staggering. Whenever a child is in a confrontation, it's hard not to jump right in and solve the problem for them. It actually entertains me to watch my kids try to resolve issues, especially when it involves somebody elses child. A little boy was picking on Chloe one day, and Abby walked up and stood next to Chloe and they both proceeded to give kid the riot act. That kid backed down so fast, and Abby and Chloe just gave each other look that said don't worry, I got your back.
Lawson doesn't need us to be proud of him though we certainly are. He is most often proud of himself for his antics that he needs very little encouragement. He will be walking by one of the other children and purposefully bump into them while saying "sowwy" at the same time. Then he just looks up with a big grin on his face and could care less if he is about to get in trouble. Clearly we are in for another ER visit soon, because his favorite line right now are the famous last word, "hey, watch this!"
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Daredevil Lawson Boy
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Trouble
Lots going on these days, but this video gives a pretty accurate description of the things that make me smile around here.
Okay, one quick story before the video. Lily was eating her breakfast this morning and mumbles something under her breath in what can only be described as a sassy tone. "What did you say Lily?"
"I SAID, ARE YOU GOING TO PUT SOME PANTS ON BEFORE MY BUS GETS HERE?"
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Trouble
Okay, one quick story before the video. Lily was eating her breakfast this morning and mumbles something under her breath in what can only be described as a sassy tone. "What did you say Lily?"
"I SAID, ARE YOU GOING TO PUT SOME PANTS ON BEFORE MY BUS GETS HERE?"
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Trouble
Friday, March 15, 2013
Too Many Stories To Tell
Yeeesh, it has been almost 2 months since the last post.....what a slacker. Every day just seems like a blur and its hard to keep up with everything the kids say and do. If it seems my thoughts are jumbled and incoherent it's because I'm just going to start typing and see what I can remember over the past 2 months.
Since it is not really clear who all reads this and there may be some newcomers, it bears repeating every once in a while. The genesis behind the blog is simply to create a journal that Kasey, the kids and I can look back on at some point and remember the different seasons of life. Through that process, if others get a good laugh or learn something from our many blunders, all the better. Recently, my role in my company has changed, and for the better. The experiences were invaluable and will help to make me better at what my current role, but most importantly my schedule is more flexible for me to spend time with Kasey and the kids. To even have breakfast with the kids over the past year and a half was an anomaly. Forget about the occasional lunch with Lily at school. Now all those things are routine and quality of life has increased exponentially for me.
When a parent goes to school to have lunch, the child is allowed to invite one friend to join them. So Lily invited a little girl from her class that also plays on her basketball team, Reagan. As a side note, Reagan is welcome to our house anytime, which cannot be said about all her friends. Those 2 cracked me up telling me about all the other kids; who is good, who gets in trouble, who bully's, but they wouldn't admit to me who they thought was cute. They kept telling secrets to each other wondering if they should tell me about something that happened, and eventually they would be convinced to go ahead and tell me. It was just fun to watch them and find myself a little jealous about all the fun they will be having over the next several years with little worry about the responsibility that comes with being an adult.
Since it is not really clear who all reads this and there may be some newcomers, it bears repeating every once in a while. The genesis behind the blog is simply to create a journal that Kasey, the kids and I can look back on at some point and remember the different seasons of life. Through that process, if others get a good laugh or learn something from our many blunders, all the better. Recently, my role in my company has changed, and for the better. The experiences were invaluable and will help to make me better at what my current role, but most importantly my schedule is more flexible for me to spend time with Kasey and the kids. To even have breakfast with the kids over the past year and a half was an anomaly. Forget about the occasional lunch with Lily at school. Now all those things are routine and quality of life has increased exponentially for me.
When a parent goes to school to have lunch, the child is allowed to invite one friend to join them. So Lily invited a little girl from her class that also plays on her basketball team, Reagan. As a side note, Reagan is welcome to our house anytime, which cannot be said about all her friends. Those 2 cracked me up telling me about all the other kids; who is good, who gets in trouble, who bully's, but they wouldn't admit to me who they thought was cute. They kept telling secrets to each other wondering if they should tell me about something that happened, and eventually they would be convinced to go ahead and tell me. It was just fun to watch them and find myself a little jealous about all the fun they will be having over the next several years with little worry about the responsibility that comes with being an adult.
It was my pleasure to escort Lily on our second Father / Daughter dance recently. It was unclear at first whether we would be attending as Lily has this notion that her Daddy is going to embarrass her. After she was convinced that her embarrassment would be limited, she agreed to go and we had a wonderful time. As her father, it is my duty (ha ha, I said doodie) to turn every event into a learning experience. My explanation of why we go on dates and how we will continue to go on dates so she can learn how a boy is expected to treat her once she starts dating was met with no less that 1200 eye rolls. Let's just hope some of it sinks in. Lily got to wear a corsage, and so as not to leave the other girls out, Abby and Chloe received flowers, and Lawson presented Mommy with a rose as well. It was very cute.....see for yourself.
We were all sitting around the other night when it suddenly dawned upon me, we don't have babies anymore. Lily is in first grade acting like she should be going off to college any day. Abby and Chloe have turned into young little ladies overnight, and while they still have the occasional melt down they are learning to figure things out for themselves and at least try to work out their differences. Lawson Boy has turned into an obstinate little trouble maker and it cracks me up way more than it should. It's like looking into a mirror and trying to scold yourself, you just cannot do it without laughing sometimes. The latest lesson that won't sink into his thick skull is "sometimes the answer is no". The boy doesn't take no for an answer, which is admirable to a point. So after the explanation is given that he does not always get what he wants, his usually response is, "Daddy, the answer is YES!" As if that wasn't enough, it is often followed with, "STOP TALKING, go your room or I spank you." Always fun to hear from your 2 year old son.
Friday night pizza night is here, so I better get it going before the boy withers away from lack of food. As if his usual 3 breakfast, lunch and snacks weren't enough.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe and the bottomless pit (Lawson Boy)
Sunday, January 27, 2013
Happy 4th Birthday Abby and Chloe
Just as the process of writing this blog is about to begin, Abby is exiting the kitchen with a very guilty look on her face and something obvious hiding in her shirt. Keep in mind, she knows they are not allowed to take food from the kitchen.
Me: "What are you doing Abby?"
Abby: "Nothing"
Me: "What's in your shirt Abby?"
Abby: "Oh this? (pause) I brought you some crackers Daddy."
Me: "You weren't trying to take them upstairs with you, where you?"
Abby: "Yes, but there for you now."
And that pretty much sums up what we deal with every day most of these past 4 years; a good mix of mischief, cuteness and witty responses or lies depending on how you choose to look at it.
Four years ago God blessed with us with these 2 wonderful tiny little babies. While they do create a great deal of mayhem in our lives and we frequently complain about the craziness that raising twins can bring, truth is we cannot imagine life without them. Funny thing is about 4 1/2 years ago, we were preparing for the fact that both of them may not even live to come home with us. For those who don't know about the challenges during their pregnancy, there is a reason we call them "miracle babies" and what better day to tell their story than on their birthday.
About 15 weeks into the pregnancy, we went for a sonogram with most of Kasey's family in the room while we determined the sex of the baby. The anticipation was great and there was concern of disappointment conveyed by yours truly as my preference for a boy had been made very clear. The process began and the images on the screen started to come into focus. After a few minutes, a comment was made something along the lines of, "you know there are 2, right?" Ha, ha, very funny. After some fun was had at my expense, there is was, the image was clear and I saw 2 babies. Kasey is yelling out, "I knew it, I told my doctor I was having twins." Kasey's brother secured Lily from my arms in fear that she be dropped as the color on my face began to fade to more of a greenish hue. While this tidbit of info was still setting in and weakening my knees, along comes the knock out punch, "they are both girls". Holy *&?*^! is what I start thinking. 3 girls, 3 weddings, 3 college tuition's, not enough guns to wart off all those boys, and on and on my mind raced. As if that wasn't enough, Dr. T asked to clear the room so he could explain some things to us.
Basically we were told that we need to schedule an appointment with Kasey's doctor the very next day. During that visit, it was explained that Abby and Chloe were mono-amnionic meaning they shared the same sac. Kasey's doctor, Chuck, (we have had enough kids that I'm on first name basis with her OBGYN), felt horrible that he missed the twins, but because there was only one sac he assumed one baby. Chuck sent us to another specialist. While his candor was appreciated, he did not do much to make Kasey feel at ease. This guy basically told us there is nothing we can do but spend some time in the hospital moitoring the babies and hope for the best. He told us right now I would say your babies have a 50/50 shot of both living. I still remember walking out of his office that day, and Kasey just began to cry on the sidewalk.
During her 25th week of pregnancy and the day after Thanksgiving, Kasey went into the hospital where she would spend the next 9 weeks. Abby and Chloe would have to be monitored every couple hours to make sure they were not killing each other. Not much has changed really since then has it? They were monitored to make sure one baby was not getting all the blood supply, and to make sure that their umbilical cords were not knotted off. If at any time something happened, Kasey would be rushed in for an emergency C Section.
Those 9 weeks were some of the most memorable weeks of my life. Lily and I spent so much time together during that time frame and she was such a trooper. We went to the hospital almost every night and not once did she cry or make a scene when we left Kasey there. This time frame may be where she mastered her art of stealthing into our bed, as I woke up most every morning with her curled up next to me. Abby and Chloe did great, and aside from the occasional technical difficulties of finding their heart beats, it was pretty smooth going. Kasey became fast friends with all the nurses and if memory serves me correct, Kasey knew all the good gossip around the prenatal unit. We snuck Kasey out of the hospital for 2 hours on Christmas so she could at least open gifts with us. That may have been the toughest day for Kasey through the whole thing. We had so many sonograms those 9 weeks, that we were actually able to pick up on some of Abby and Chloe's characteristics. Chloe could sense when the sonogram was happening and it was if she was trying to push Abby aside so she could get in the picture. We have a sonogram picture of the two of them actually holding hands in the womb.
Me: "What are you doing Abby?"
Abby: "Nothing"
Me: "What's in your shirt Abby?"
Abby: "Oh this? (pause) I brought you some crackers Daddy."
Me: "You weren't trying to take them upstairs with you, where you?"
Abby: "Yes, but there for you now."
And that pretty much sums up what we deal with every day most of these past 4 years; a good mix of mischief, cuteness and witty responses or lies depending on how you choose to look at it.
Four years ago God blessed with us with these 2 wonderful tiny little babies. While they do create a great deal of mayhem in our lives and we frequently complain about the craziness that raising twins can bring, truth is we cannot imagine life without them. Funny thing is about 4 1/2 years ago, we were preparing for the fact that both of them may not even live to come home with us. For those who don't know about the challenges during their pregnancy, there is a reason we call them "miracle babies" and what better day to tell their story than on their birthday.
About 15 weeks into the pregnancy, we went for a sonogram with most of Kasey's family in the room while we determined the sex of the baby. The anticipation was great and there was concern of disappointment conveyed by yours truly as my preference for a boy had been made very clear. The process began and the images on the screen started to come into focus. After a few minutes, a comment was made something along the lines of, "you know there are 2, right?" Ha, ha, very funny. After some fun was had at my expense, there is was, the image was clear and I saw 2 babies. Kasey is yelling out, "I knew it, I told my doctor I was having twins." Kasey's brother secured Lily from my arms in fear that she be dropped as the color on my face began to fade to more of a greenish hue. While this tidbit of info was still setting in and weakening my knees, along comes the knock out punch, "they are both girls". Holy *&?*^! is what I start thinking. 3 girls, 3 weddings, 3 college tuition's, not enough guns to wart off all those boys, and on and on my mind raced. As if that wasn't enough, Dr. T asked to clear the room so he could explain some things to us.
Basically we were told that we need to schedule an appointment with Kasey's doctor the very next day. During that visit, it was explained that Abby and Chloe were mono-amnionic meaning they shared the same sac. Kasey's doctor, Chuck, (we have had enough kids that I'm on first name basis with her OBGYN), felt horrible that he missed the twins, but because there was only one sac he assumed one baby. Chuck sent us to another specialist. While his candor was appreciated, he did not do much to make Kasey feel at ease. This guy basically told us there is nothing we can do but spend some time in the hospital moitoring the babies and hope for the best. He told us right now I would say your babies have a 50/50 shot of both living. I still remember walking out of his office that day, and Kasey just began to cry on the sidewalk.
During her 25th week of pregnancy and the day after Thanksgiving, Kasey went into the hospital where she would spend the next 9 weeks. Abby and Chloe would have to be monitored every couple hours to make sure they were not killing each other. Not much has changed really since then has it? They were monitored to make sure one baby was not getting all the blood supply, and to make sure that their umbilical cords were not knotted off. If at any time something happened, Kasey would be rushed in for an emergency C Section.
Those 9 weeks were some of the most memorable weeks of my life. Lily and I spent so much time together during that time frame and she was such a trooper. We went to the hospital almost every night and not once did she cry or make a scene when we left Kasey there. This time frame may be where she mastered her art of stealthing into our bed, as I woke up most every morning with her curled up next to me. Abby and Chloe did great, and aside from the occasional technical difficulties of finding their heart beats, it was pretty smooth going. Kasey became fast friends with all the nurses and if memory serves me correct, Kasey knew all the good gossip around the prenatal unit. We snuck Kasey out of the hospital for 2 hours on Christmas so she could at least open gifts with us. That may have been the toughest day for Kasey through the whole thing. We had so many sonograms those 9 weeks, that we were actually able to pick up on some of Abby and Chloe's characteristics. Chloe could sense when the sonogram was happening and it was if she was trying to push Abby aside so she could get in the picture. We have a sonogram picture of the two of them actually holding hands in the womb.
So the plan was to take them at 34 weeks or 6 weeks early. Chuck said they could spend as much as 6 weeks in the NICU just depending on how well they ate. That day 4 years ago came and Abby arrive first the smaller of the 2 white as a sheet and barely a peep. Chloe came out screaming bloody murder and red as a beet. We got to see them all of 2 seconds before they were rushed away into a room with 8 to 10 people waiting to care for them. It only took a few minutes before they allowed me into the room and asked me what their names were. "Which one came out first, and is she smaller?", I said. They confirmed that baby A was smaller, so I confirmed that was Abby and baby B is Chloe. They were the tiniest little babies I had ever seen both weighing about 4 lbs. Chloe to this day is still the first one to try new things, and she came home a day before Abby after only 10 days in the hospital.
Happy Birthday to my sweet little twin baby girls, we love you so much!
Quick Lawson Story: We attended cousin Morgan's basketball game who is now playing for Arlington Baptist. After the game all the kids were running around and before they got out of control, they were told to settle down. Lawson began to back talk me as he often does, and after a couple warnings he got a little love tap on his rear end. Though it wasn't hard enough for him to barely feel it, he played the sympathy card and began crying. He shuffles over to Mommy and proceeds to tell on me:
Kasey: "what happened Lawson?"
Lawson: "Daddy hit me."
Kasey: "Where you talking back?"
Lawson: "No, daddy hit me". (He then turns around pointing at his hiney) "Daddy hit me on my hiney......will you kiss it?"
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Lawson Boy
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
Fun at the Holidays
Happy New Year! We have had so much fun over Christmas and the holidays and can't wait to see what 2013 brings for us this year. Looking back over the past year, it seems to have gone by so fast and yet so much has happened and changed in that year. We struggled through much of the year trying to balance our work schedules and the kids and all the activities they are now involved in, and 2012 flat wore us out. Hard as it may have been, we had so much fun watching the kids grow and learn, and the things that will stick with us are the fun times and the hilarious stories that they fill our lives with.
In an effort to get into the Christmas spirit, we watched several Christmas shows including classics like Charlie Brown, newer shows like Ice Age Christmas, and we sprinkled in some musical specials as well. We chose to watch Michael Buble's Christmas special, and odd as it may seem the entire family laughed the whole way through. Let me explain. We use the term bubali (not sure the spelling) to describe a boys private parts, which is an actual term in Farsi that we learned. The pronunciation of this word is very similar to Buble, so every time somebody said Michael Buble we laughed and laughed and laughed. Not exactly a Norman Rockwell picture, but every family has to create their own memories. The highlight was when Elmo made an appearance on the show and said Mr. Michael Buble over and over and over. The kids laughed so hard, it's a wonder one of them didn't throw up.
This was the first Christmas that all the kids were old enough to truly enjoy the presents. My job this year was take care of Lawson's gifts and that task was gladly accepted. There is nothing more fun than going to the toy store and buying anything you want.....I mean buy toys for your son. It's still up in the air whether Lawson enjoyed opening his gifts more than me. One lesson learned is that those warnings they put on toys that ready "for ages" are based on a scale. It has nothing to do with safety and everything to do with fun factor. The lower the age warning the more boring the toy. The higher the age warning, the more fun. So Lawson at 2 years old did not receive a single toy under 4+.
We had a white Christmas here in the DFW area this year. The kids were so excited to go out and play in the snow until they realized how cold snow really is. They gave up on building their snow man in less than 3 minutes.
It's been mentioned several times in the blog that Lily has a similar sense of humor to mine which can be summed up in the following observation that she made just this morning.
Lily: "Daddy, you know what's funny about buttons?"
Me: "No, what is funny about buttons."
Lily: "If you take away the O and the N, it spells butt."
Lily and some of her friends practice for several weeks to go Caroling this Christmas. They went to the funeral home to bring cheer and joy to the elderly. When asked if they enjoyed their singing, she responded, "yes they did, except for the ones that were sleeping".
Because the kids are still so young they cannot be trusted to stay away from the gifts under the tree, so Kasey and I have to stay up late every Christmas Eve to get all the gifts wrapped and get Christmas morning ready. It's actually become a fun little time for us spend time together even though both of us want nothing more than to just get some sleep. The lack of trust in the kids doesn't make for a very pretty Christmas tree. If they can touch an ornament they will, and they will most likely break it as well. It doesn't matter how many times you tell them not to touch, they will still break it. So our Christmas had 70% of the ornaments at the top of the tree out of their reach and the rest were broken.
Along with the holidays comes colds, ear infections, and stomach bugs. Best guess is that we have washed somebody's sheets the past 12 days in a row due to some sort of nastiness in the middle of the night. In addition we made two ER visits for an ear infection and a fever that spiked to almost 105. Sometimes you just feel like the house will never be clean until that last little rug rat goes off to college.
But the award for best Christmas story in the Strait household goes to Chloe Belle.
Twas the day of Christmas and all through our house
Every Monster was searching for mischief about
Almost asleep on my couch when something I heard
Not sure what it was so to my slumber return
Then up the stairs, Monster Lawson did scurry
With fear in his words as "ooo, ooo, ooo" he did utter
In my daze, I paid no attention at first
Then something hit me saying this doesn't make sense
So I rose from the couch to see what could be
What a sudden surprise hung waiting for me
The dining room light hung from nothing but a wire
Come to find out my Chloe, she is not a good liar
There was a toy on the table that made for good fun
But not as much as if from a chandelier she hung
As best we can figure, she grabbed on for a ride
It pulled from the ceiling and she is lucky to have a backside
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Love
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Spidey Lawson
In an effort to get into the Christmas spirit, we watched several Christmas shows including classics like Charlie Brown, newer shows like Ice Age Christmas, and we sprinkled in some musical specials as well. We chose to watch Michael Buble's Christmas special, and odd as it may seem the entire family laughed the whole way through. Let me explain. We use the term bubali (not sure the spelling) to describe a boys private parts, which is an actual term in Farsi that we learned. The pronunciation of this word is very similar to Buble, so every time somebody said Michael Buble we laughed and laughed and laughed. Not exactly a Norman Rockwell picture, but every family has to create their own memories. The highlight was when Elmo made an appearance on the show and said Mr. Michael Buble over and over and over. The kids laughed so hard, it's a wonder one of them didn't throw up.
This was the first Christmas that all the kids were old enough to truly enjoy the presents. My job this year was take care of Lawson's gifts and that task was gladly accepted. There is nothing more fun than going to the toy store and buying anything you want.....I mean buy toys for your son. It's still up in the air whether Lawson enjoyed opening his gifts more than me. One lesson learned is that those warnings they put on toys that ready "for ages" are based on a scale. It has nothing to do with safety and everything to do with fun factor. The lower the age warning the more boring the toy. The higher the age warning, the more fun. So Lawson at 2 years old did not receive a single toy under 4+.
We had a white Christmas here in the DFW area this year. The kids were so excited to go out and play in the snow until they realized how cold snow really is. They gave up on building their snow man in less than 3 minutes.
It's been mentioned several times in the blog that Lily has a similar sense of humor to mine which can be summed up in the following observation that she made just this morning.
Lily: "Daddy, you know what's funny about buttons?"
Me: "No, what is funny about buttons."
Lily: "If you take away the O and the N, it spells butt."
Lily and some of her friends practice for several weeks to go Caroling this Christmas. They went to the funeral home to bring cheer and joy to the elderly. When asked if they enjoyed their singing, she responded, "yes they did, except for the ones that were sleeping".
Because the kids are still so young they cannot be trusted to stay away from the gifts under the tree, so Kasey and I have to stay up late every Christmas Eve to get all the gifts wrapped and get Christmas morning ready. It's actually become a fun little time for us spend time together even though both of us want nothing more than to just get some sleep. The lack of trust in the kids doesn't make for a very pretty Christmas tree. If they can touch an ornament they will, and they will most likely break it as well. It doesn't matter how many times you tell them not to touch, they will still break it. So our Christmas had 70% of the ornaments at the top of the tree out of their reach and the rest were broken.
Along with the holidays comes colds, ear infections, and stomach bugs. Best guess is that we have washed somebody's sheets the past 12 days in a row due to some sort of nastiness in the middle of the night. In addition we made two ER visits for an ear infection and a fever that spiked to almost 105. Sometimes you just feel like the house will never be clean until that last little rug rat goes off to college.
But the award for best Christmas story in the Strait household goes to Chloe Belle.
Twas the day of Christmas and all through our house
Every Monster was searching for mischief about
Almost asleep on my couch when something I heard
Not sure what it was so to my slumber return
Then up the stairs, Monster Lawson did scurry
With fear in his words as "ooo, ooo, ooo" he did utter
In my daze, I paid no attention at first
Then something hit me saying this doesn't make sense
So I rose from the couch to see what could be
What a sudden surprise hung waiting for me
The dining room light hung from nothing but a wire
Come to find out my Chloe, she is not a good liar
There was a toy on the table that made for good fun
But not as much as if from a chandelier she hung
As best we can figure, she grabbed on for a ride
It pulled from the ceiling and she is lucky to have a backside
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Love
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Spidey Lawson
Thursday, November 22, 2012
Happy Thanksgiving
When I asked Lily if she knew what Thanksgiving was all about, her response involved something along the lines of being thankful for family. Realizing that she was about to receive a full blown explanation involving tales of Pilgrims and Indians, she quickly informed me she was not interested in hearing the story. Further realizing her statement had not deterred me from further explanation she asks, "I don't really have a choice, do I?" NOPE.
We have so much to be thankful for this year, it is hard to know where to begin. Makes sense to go with Lily's theme and start with family. Despite all the chaos and craziness, the sleepless nights, the sprouting gray hair, the constant interruptions and messes around the house, life would be unimaginable without the monsters. I'm thankful for Lily and the beautiful intelligent young lady she is turning into. Her humor and wit makes me laugh daily, and her curiosity reminds us how much fun it is to learn and experience new things.
I'm thankful for Abigail and the way she reminds us to live life to the fullest, and there is nothing wrong with wearing your emotions on your sleeve. Not a day goes by that she does not experiences utter joy and laughter, nor has a day gone by that she has not been so hurt or saddened that she cries uncontrollably.
I'm thankful for Chloe who teaches us that life does not always have to be so serious. She has a way of taking a serious moment, a bad situation, or just a tough day and giving you this look with a smirk on her face that will make anybody smile and forgot what was so important.
I'm thankful for Lawson Boy who gives me a buddy to hang out with every day and reminds me what it is like to think like a child. Dreaming about the future and the possibilities for him coupled with his charm and humor provide hope because all we really want is for our children to be better and have it better than we do.
I'm thankful for Kasey for cooking my Thanksgiving dinner. In fact she does most of the cooking after she has made sure the kids are taken care of, their extracurricular activities are managed, and she has put in a full days work for her job. Really not sure how she does it everyday while putting up with me, but I'm truly grateful for all she does.
I'm thankful for our parents who pitch in and help at just the right moment to help with the kids before we lose our sanity. We have been blessed with loving families that provided a good foundation and support on which to build our family.
I'm thankful we have good jobs to provide for the monsters. Even though we work way too many hours and would rather be home with the kids, they are learning the importance of hard work.......hopefully.
I'm thankful for our friends who share their lives with us. Knowing we have others to share our stories and trials with, and listen to theirs in return is comforting.
I'm thankful for our country and the men and women who put their lives on the line. Thank you nephew Stephen Hale for your service, it was great to speak with you today.
I'm thankful to God for providing all the gifts he has given us.
Someday when the kids are grown and we are sitting around the Thanksgiving table with their husbands, boyfriends, wife or girlfriend, I envision them breaking out whatever form of technology we will read from and reading some of these blogs and laughing about all their shenanigans. I'm thankful for what the future holds for us and our amazing children.
Happy Thanksgiving,
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abigail, Chloe, and Lawson Boy
We have so much to be thankful for this year, it is hard to know where to begin. Makes sense to go with Lily's theme and start with family. Despite all the chaos and craziness, the sleepless nights, the sprouting gray hair, the constant interruptions and messes around the house, life would be unimaginable without the monsters. I'm thankful for Lily and the beautiful intelligent young lady she is turning into. Her humor and wit makes me laugh daily, and her curiosity reminds us how much fun it is to learn and experience new things.
I'm thankful for Abigail and the way she reminds us to live life to the fullest, and there is nothing wrong with wearing your emotions on your sleeve. Not a day goes by that she does not experiences utter joy and laughter, nor has a day gone by that she has not been so hurt or saddened that she cries uncontrollably.
I'm thankful for Chloe who teaches us that life does not always have to be so serious. She has a way of taking a serious moment, a bad situation, or just a tough day and giving you this look with a smirk on her face that will make anybody smile and forgot what was so important.
I'm thankful for Lawson Boy who gives me a buddy to hang out with every day and reminds me what it is like to think like a child. Dreaming about the future and the possibilities for him coupled with his charm and humor provide hope because all we really want is for our children to be better and have it better than we do.
I'm thankful for Kasey for cooking my Thanksgiving dinner. In fact she does most of the cooking after she has made sure the kids are taken care of, their extracurricular activities are managed, and she has put in a full days work for her job. Really not sure how she does it everyday while putting up with me, but I'm truly grateful for all she does.
I'm thankful for our parents who pitch in and help at just the right moment to help with the kids before we lose our sanity. We have been blessed with loving families that provided a good foundation and support on which to build our family.
I'm thankful we have good jobs to provide for the monsters. Even though we work way too many hours and would rather be home with the kids, they are learning the importance of hard work.......hopefully.
I'm thankful for our friends who share their lives with us. Knowing we have others to share our stories and trials with, and listen to theirs in return is comforting.
I'm thankful for our country and the men and women who put their lives on the line. Thank you nephew Stephen Hale for your service, it was great to speak with you today.
I'm thankful to God for providing all the gifts he has given us.
Someday when the kids are grown and we are sitting around the Thanksgiving table with their husbands, boyfriends, wife or girlfriend, I envision them breaking out whatever form of technology we will read from and reading some of these blogs and laughing about all their shenanigans. I'm thankful for what the future holds for us and our amazing children.
Happy Thanksgiving,
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abigail, Chloe, and Lawson Boy
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Flower Girlzilla
The last time it was just the 3 of us would have been about 4 years ago, and back then we would have still been dealing with 2 year old issues like changing pull ups or tantrums. Now we are dealing with a smart little 6 year old who thinks she knows more than us, and entertained us with her humor, singing and dancing all weekend. We stayed at a wonderful lake resort and upon arrival, Lily was admiring the water park on site. It was explained that due to the fact that we are in November, the water park would be closed. The wheels started turning in Lily's head and she had an idea, "we should sneak in the water park tonight Daddy." That got us to laughing and Kasey responded, "Lily, you think just like your Daddy." Without hesitation Lily exclaims, "we should sneak in naked." Hmmmmmmmmmm. That comment was funny and disturbing all at the same time. Funny, because that really convinced Kasey that she thinks like her Daddy. Disturbing, because it is not quite clear why she would say something like that. There is usually a rationale explanation to Lily's thought process, and after some digging it became clear. She was aware of the fact that we did not bring our bathing suits, and she was also aware that we should not get our clothes wet. The only plausible way to sneak into a water park without a suit and not get your clothes wet is to go naked.
Lily's special day was full of pampering and drama. Lily had her hair done at the hotel salon, and chatted with the stylist the whole time. Her hair was to be curled for the wedding and Lily got a kick out of watching her hair transform. Her hair was only half way complete when she told the stylist, "it looks so ugly". It had to be explained to her that this was a process and the curls would loosen up to the way it was supposed to look. Clearly my explanation was not enough to convince her. Lily can be self conscious at times and she worried people would laugh at her. An argument ensued between her and her mother that I can only imagine will be the first of many to come throughout the years as it relates to what she is wearing and how she looks. All turned out well and Lily looked absolutely gorgeous as you can see in her picture above.
Lily took her role as part of the wedding party quite serious. In her mind she was not to be separated from the rest of the bridesmaids the whole wedding. When she realized she would not be sitting at the head table, and had to sit next to us, well that just did not sit well with her. "Daddy, I feel like a baby having to sit next to you." After more explanation and some hot chocolate, we got passed that hurdle. The rest of the evening consisted of speeches, cotton candy and finally some dancing. Lily had been looking forward to dancing the whole evening. Daddy was looking forward to dancing with the beautiful flower girl, and then she went and ripped my heart out. She was a flower girl and she wanted to dance with the bridesmaids. She did not want to have anything to do with her Daddy because all of the sudden, I am now embarrassing. And so it begins.
It has to be mentioned that the bridesmaids were so sweet to Lily including her, letting her hang out with them, and making her feel very special. Thank you Ms. Lauren, Brandie, Mycall, Kathryn, Kelly, and Jessica who gets special mention for raving about the blog.
In the end, all the excitement and dancing got the better of Lily and she started to fall asleep at the table. Even though she would dance with her old man, I took the opportunity to scoop her up and cuddle her while she fell asleep in my arms. She will always be my baby girl.
Meanwhile, back at the homestead, Abby and Chloe completed their last soccer game. The other team didn't show giving them their one and only victory of the season. They scrimmaged each other and because they were short a player, Lawson Boy got to play with them. Apparently he is pretty good dribbling the ball up and down the field, he just cannot grasp the concept of direction yet. The girls recieved their trophies for the soccer season, and Lawson recieved one for attending every game. He was so excited to tell us when we arrived home, "I gotta twophy".
Now the weekend is over, the chaos, bickering and constant noice is back...........and we couldn't be happier.
Ashey, you looked beautiful!
Jeff, Kasey, Flower Girlzilla, Abby, Chloe, and Lawson Boy
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Terrible "Deuces"
No, terrible 2 is not a reference aimed at disparaging the twins, though it it would be an understandable mistake to make that assumption. While Abby and Chloe certainly still have their moments and will remain a handful for years to come, they have turned the page on some very irritating behaviors. Potty mishaps are infrequent, severe tantrums have diminished considerably, and they are learning to play together as well as with others without constant intervention. Case in point, we had dinner with all of Kasey's family last night with all the kids sitting at one end of the table together, and not once did we have to get up and deal with a behavioural problem. The funny thing about kids is just when you think you are about to move upon a stage and life is going to get easier, the next stage presents a new challenge. Right now, our biggest challenge is the extreme decibel level of noise that never seems to desist. While Abby, Chloe and Lily are learning to play together nicely, they have yet to learn how to do so quietly. Lawson Boy only knows two levels of speaking, loud and louder. Along with passing into new stages and noise levels comes the wonderful technique that every child has mastered, the art of talking back. As we celebrate not listening to crying babies, no more poopie diapers, no more expensive formula and packing everything including the kitchen sink just to leave the house; nothing will make you want to drop kick your child more than a 3 year old talking back to you in a tone that implies they think they are not only smarter than you, but you may be the dumbest daddy or mommy alive. It has been verified that this is the root cause of gray hair.
So if terrible 2 does not refer to the twins, that just leaves our son who is currently 2 years old and when asked how hold he is, will now respond with 2 fingers in the air, "deuces". Admittedly, there was some coaching involved, and it provides me great pride and humor when he does it. The Boy makes us laugh constantly, but when he goes into Terrible Lawson mode, it is terrible. He has always been so easy to put down at night and when tired will even ask to go to bed. That all changed less than a week ago, when he just decided he no longer wants to go to bed at night. Similar to Pavlov's dog, when we announce "bedtime" in the evening, Lawson immediately jumps up, point his finger, and in half mad half cry voice, "no Daddy, I not tired, I no go to bed". When he is not getting through to us, he will change tactics on you, "Daddy, I cuddle you pease". Along with the face that accompanies his remarks, how can you not give in?
He too has mastered the art of talking back, though we are not always certain what he is yelling at us about, and frankly it is probably best we don't know based on the evil look in his eyes. All the children are stubborn in there own way, but when Lawson Boy decides upon something, there is no convincing otherwise. Luckily he is a boy and his male attribute of compartmentalization and the ability to forget when something else peaks his interest can be easy to take advantage of. The girls may be playing with something and the Boy decides they are having too much fun so he interrupts and steals a toy. Just try to convince him to give that toy back. In his mind, that is now his toy and you are not getting it come hell or high water. Face is scrunched, snot is running, mouth is screaming, and you decide bribing is the only way to diffuse him. "Lawson, you want some ice cream?" His first response is always, "NO!", and then it computes what you just asked him. Tears dry up instantly, frown turns into a face of surprise, and he politely responds, "oh yes pease, I wike ice cweam".
Earlier it was mentioned that potty mishaps have become infrequent, and our most recent occurrence still baffles me somewhat. The 3 younger kids were down for nap, so Lily generally will watch some TV or play games on the computer while they rest. Sounds like an opportune time to watch some football and doze off. While in a semi-comatose state, a bright white streak appeared alerting me to something odd. The realization hit me that Lily was streaking through the house, so naturally the question begged, "Lily, why are you naked"? And she responded ever so matter of fact, "Dad, I had to go potty really bad, when I sat down the lid was closed, and I wizzed everywhere."
It happens to the best of us.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Deuces
So if terrible 2 does not refer to the twins, that just leaves our son who is currently 2 years old and when asked how hold he is, will now respond with 2 fingers in the air, "deuces". Admittedly, there was some coaching involved, and it provides me great pride and humor when he does it. The Boy makes us laugh constantly, but when he goes into Terrible Lawson mode, it is terrible. He has always been so easy to put down at night and when tired will even ask to go to bed. That all changed less than a week ago, when he just decided he no longer wants to go to bed at night. Similar to Pavlov's dog, when we announce "bedtime" in the evening, Lawson immediately jumps up, point his finger, and in half mad half cry voice, "no Daddy, I not tired, I no go to bed". When he is not getting through to us, he will change tactics on you, "Daddy, I cuddle you pease". Along with the face that accompanies his remarks, how can you not give in?
He too has mastered the art of talking back, though we are not always certain what he is yelling at us about, and frankly it is probably best we don't know based on the evil look in his eyes. All the children are stubborn in there own way, but when Lawson Boy decides upon something, there is no convincing otherwise. Luckily he is a boy and his male attribute of compartmentalization and the ability to forget when something else peaks his interest can be easy to take advantage of. The girls may be playing with something and the Boy decides they are having too much fun so he interrupts and steals a toy. Just try to convince him to give that toy back. In his mind, that is now his toy and you are not getting it come hell or high water. Face is scrunched, snot is running, mouth is screaming, and you decide bribing is the only way to diffuse him. "Lawson, you want some ice cream?" His first response is always, "NO!", and then it computes what you just asked him. Tears dry up instantly, frown turns into a face of surprise, and he politely responds, "oh yes pease, I wike ice cweam".
Earlier it was mentioned that potty mishaps have become infrequent, and our most recent occurrence still baffles me somewhat. The 3 younger kids were down for nap, so Lily generally will watch some TV or play games on the computer while they rest. Sounds like an opportune time to watch some football and doze off. While in a semi-comatose state, a bright white streak appeared alerting me to something odd. The realization hit me that Lily was streaking through the house, so naturally the question begged, "Lily, why are you naked"? And she responded ever so matter of fact, "Dad, I had to go potty really bad, when I sat down the lid was closed, and I wizzed everywhere."
It happens to the best of us.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Deuces
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Kids Are So Mean
As the kids continue to grow bigger and older, so does their intelligence and understanding of the world around them as well as how people interact with their surroundings. Along with that understanding comes the ability to recognize how a situation will affect them personally and the ability to alter that situation to their benefit with words or actions. So it is really no surprise that as the monsters grow, so grows the sibling rivalry, the bickering, and the down right nastiness toward each other at times. We are all born with an ego centric, self preservation instinct which was evident to us when the twins were still babies. Not even old enough to crawl yet, Abby and Chloe both wanted to play with a book and went mortal combat on each other trying to get it from the other (pay no attention to the smile on my face from the amusement of this battle).
While most of the physicality now involves Lawson pushing or punching, the verbal assaults range from comical to cutting, and girls can be down right mean to each other. It doesn't take much as they have each learned the others hot buttons and what really gets under their skin. The twins know that when Lily wants be left alone and play in her room, that is the ideal time to barge in and out of her room or simply sit out side her room and occasionally crack the door and whisper "Liiiiiiiiily" in that mischievous tone. Oh the laughs they enjoy together followed by the angry chastising from Lily. They all know that when Abby is on the verge of a tantrum, a simple touch of her arm or picking up her blanket will send her over the edge. Even Lawson at 2 years old knows that when the girls are playing dolls and they have them spread out on their blanket just so, that is the perfect time to rip the blankets out from under and then run for his life.
Lily was attending a sleepover, and as is customary she had to listen to my speech regarding manners and proper behavior. The sleepover speech includes a directive to play nicely even when the other girls want to play something else, and make sure you include everybody in your games which also means do not tell secrets intentionally in front of other girls. Lily has heard my speeches enough that she can recite most of it in tandem with me, and this instance was no different except for her final comments. She was nodding at me just enough to give the impression she was listening, and would give the occasional eye roll, and then she said, "Daddy, it's ok if we don't include somebody for a little while because we can always apologize to them."
Just when you think the monsters are about to go Cain and Abel on each other, they do something to show that they really care and love each other. Many times you just have to give them something to rally around each other with, and that generally means we have gotten on to them and have become the big bad daddy or mommy that they rally against.
Chloe has become the nurturing one of the group and always has a hug or kind word when one of the other kids is struggling to keep it together. Sometimes she can console in unique and funny ways. Abby was having a night time melt down and when she enters the melt down, there is no consoling her for quite some time. Kasey was try to calm her and Chloe realized this was going on for a while and she had enough. Chloe decided to go ahead and say her prayers for the evening, and after thanking Jesus for everybody she ended with a special prayer for Abby. "Jesus, please help Abby stop crying so I can get some sleep here."
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Lawson Boy and Jingles
While most of the physicality now involves Lawson pushing or punching, the verbal assaults range from comical to cutting, and girls can be down right mean to each other. It doesn't take much as they have each learned the others hot buttons and what really gets under their skin. The twins know that when Lily wants be left alone and play in her room, that is the ideal time to barge in and out of her room or simply sit out side her room and occasionally crack the door and whisper "Liiiiiiiiily" in that mischievous tone. Oh the laughs they enjoy together followed by the angry chastising from Lily. They all know that when Abby is on the verge of a tantrum, a simple touch of her arm or picking up her blanket will send her over the edge. Even Lawson at 2 years old knows that when the girls are playing dolls and they have them spread out on their blanket just so, that is the perfect time to rip the blankets out from under and then run for his life.
Lily was attending a sleepover, and as is customary she had to listen to my speech regarding manners and proper behavior. The sleepover speech includes a directive to play nicely even when the other girls want to play something else, and make sure you include everybody in your games which also means do not tell secrets intentionally in front of other girls. Lily has heard my speeches enough that she can recite most of it in tandem with me, and this instance was no different except for her final comments. She was nodding at me just enough to give the impression she was listening, and would give the occasional eye roll, and then she said, "Daddy, it's ok if we don't include somebody for a little while because we can always apologize to them."
Just when you think the monsters are about to go Cain and Abel on each other, they do something to show that they really care and love each other. Many times you just have to give them something to rally around each other with, and that generally means we have gotten on to them and have become the big bad daddy or mommy that they rally against.
Chloe has become the nurturing one of the group and always has a hug or kind word when one of the other kids is struggling to keep it together. Sometimes she can console in unique and funny ways. Abby was having a night time melt down and when she enters the melt down, there is no consoling her for quite some time. Kasey was try to calm her and Chloe realized this was going on for a while and she had enough. Chloe decided to go ahead and say her prayers for the evening, and after thanking Jesus for everybody she ended with a special prayer for Abby. "Jesus, please help Abby stop crying so I can get some sleep here."
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Lawson Boy and Jingles
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Busy, Busy, Busy
Busy, Busy, Busy is not simply a reference to Kasey and my days, weeks, and months. We are officially entering into the stage in which the kids have an activity almost every night of the week. The twins have started soccer, which at 3 years old is probably too early for them and more akin to herding cats than actually playing soccer. Lily has gymnastics, cheer practice, soccer practice, and then a game for both soccer and cheer on Saturdays. Due to some rain this past weekend, we jumped at the chance to make the assumption that all games are cancelled and just stay home for the day. While Lawson Boy has not been enrolled in any activity, he stays plenty busy going from practice to practice, game to game, and has become quite proficient at locating the closest playground. Don't turn your back to watch a game because he will stealth away to a playground without so much as a hint as to where he is going.
We do find great joy in watching the kids play and begin to hone their skills. Lily did not enjoy soccer for a while because she felt the other kids were better than her, and frankly the other kids were better than her. She has learned that putting forth some effort and practicing has improved her ability by leaps and bounds. Her favorite by far is gymnastics and it shows based upon the effort and time she puts into it. When she started just a short couple months ago, her cart wheels resembled a kid trying to donkey kick the person behind her. Now she is close to performing a hand spring with her legs completely straight. The Cheer comes pretty natural as she loves to dance, and she love to include the twins and teach them how to cheer. Unfortunately she also loves to teach the Boy how to cheer. While at Cheer practice the other day, sitting amongst the other cheer moms, Lawson decided he would show off his skills. In his cute little babbling raspy voice, he sounds out his cheer with flawless choreography, and one of the moms looks at me and sadly asks, "ahhhh, does he know all the cheers." In a tone lacking in pride, "why yes he does, he sure knows how to make his daddy proud."
Abby and Chloe sure look cute in their soccer outfits, but it is painful to try and get a 3 year old to pay attention when all they really want to do is anything but play soccer. While there is probably something they are learning and it's good for them, it drives me crazy trying to understand why 2 kids who never stop moving or talking can enter an atmosphere that promotes running, kicking and playing, and all they do is stand there with this dumb look on their face.
Hard to believe the summer has come and gone and Lily is back in school. She does like school and being around all her friends, and now complains less about being bored. That was the summer theme for Lily, "I'm bored." We had our first trip to the ER for stitches. While my money was on Lawson, it was actually Lily that busted her chin open swinging between the counters in the kitchen. It's a sweet scar that matches her daddy's, but that story is better left undocumented.
Football season is upon us and though my boy is not afraid to blurt out a cheer in public, he loves watching football with his daddy. Busy as we may be, watching a game with the Boy will cure all......until he decides to headbutt you as soon as you fall asleep. That smarts.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Lawson Boy and Jingles
We do find great joy in watching the kids play and begin to hone their skills. Lily did not enjoy soccer for a while because she felt the other kids were better than her, and frankly the other kids were better than her. She has learned that putting forth some effort and practicing has improved her ability by leaps and bounds. Her favorite by far is gymnastics and it shows based upon the effort and time she puts into it. When she started just a short couple months ago, her cart wheels resembled a kid trying to donkey kick the person behind her. Now she is close to performing a hand spring with her legs completely straight. The Cheer comes pretty natural as she loves to dance, and she love to include the twins and teach them how to cheer. Unfortunately she also loves to teach the Boy how to cheer. While at Cheer practice the other day, sitting amongst the other cheer moms, Lawson decided he would show off his skills. In his cute little babbling raspy voice, he sounds out his cheer with flawless choreography, and one of the moms looks at me and sadly asks, "ahhhh, does he know all the cheers." In a tone lacking in pride, "why yes he does, he sure knows how to make his daddy proud."
Abby and Chloe sure look cute in their soccer outfits, but it is painful to try and get a 3 year old to pay attention when all they really want to do is anything but play soccer. While there is probably something they are learning and it's good for them, it drives me crazy trying to understand why 2 kids who never stop moving or talking can enter an atmosphere that promotes running, kicking and playing, and all they do is stand there with this dumb look on their face.
Hard to believe the summer has come and gone and Lily is back in school. She does like school and being around all her friends, and now complains less about being bored. That was the summer theme for Lily, "I'm bored." We had our first trip to the ER for stitches. While my money was on Lawson, it was actually Lily that busted her chin open swinging between the counters in the kitchen. It's a sweet scar that matches her daddy's, but that story is better left undocumented.
Football season is upon us and though my boy is not afraid to blurt out a cheer in public, he loves watching football with his daddy. Busy as we may be, watching a game with the Boy will cure all......until he decides to headbutt you as soon as you fall asleep. That smarts.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Lawson Boy and Jingles
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Lily, where's your popsicle?
Remember when your parents used to say, "this hurts me more than it hurts you"? And you are sitting there thinking, I'm the one who just got handed the tookus beating, how in the world could that hurt you more than it hurt me? You never truly understand that statement until you begin disciplining your own children. Certainly you understand the concept as you grow older, but to truly understand it is to live it and trudge forward with the consequence you are doling out as your child sobs, and everything in you is urging you to just give in and comfort that child.
We were all eating dinner one evening and Lily started in with her attitude that she did not care for this dinner and she was going to let it be known. Coupled with her tendency to already eat slow and never stop talking at the dinner table, our patience had worn thin with her and she was encouraged to stop talking and simply eat her dinner. The other three children were eating and behaving well, relatively speaking, so a Popsicle was offered to them as a reward for their good behavior. That may not seem like much, and it really isn't, but we don't keep very many treats or candy around the house so when a delicious treat like a Popsicle is offered the children tend to get excited. Lily was excited about the Popsicle, but took for granted that she would get one no matter what because in her mind that is only fair. She continued to be stubborn with her dinner, so holding back the Popsicle seemed like the best consequence to encourage her. As any good parent knows, once you throw that threat out there, you have to follow through or your kids will walk all over you. The stubbornness continued, the consequence was handed down, and the tears starting flowing.
I'm a sucker for the tears and Lily knows how to look at me just the right way to tug on my heart strings, but she had to sit there and watch her siblings eat there Popsicle and that is where the true punishment began. Oh the joy that Abby and Chloe took in savoring that Popsicle on Lily's behalf. They waved them around, made up songs about the Popsicle, and Chloe made sure to mention what color everybody had. "Lawson ate his dinner and has a red Popsicle, Abby ate her dinner and has an orange Popsicle, I ate my dinner and have a purple Popsicle......Lily, you didn't get a Popsicle." At this point, I took some compassion and at least let Lily be excused from the table so not to endure the obscene gloating.
Punishing our children can be very hard at times given the different circumstances we find ourselves in. Whether it be in public with witnesses all judging your tactics, or at home in private where it easy to let them get away with it this time because you are so tired of having to correct them over and over and over. We are certainly not perfect, but we try to be consistent and stay true to teaching our kids manners and respect. We struggle at times due to the fact that we are out numbered and have to run a zone defense instead of man to man, and the inmates try to take over the asylum. In the end we know that however hard it is, our kids will be better for it. When you take time to punish your children, you are letting them know you care about them and their actions.
(And I'm not talking about beating your kids......I shouldn't have to say that, but this is going out in open format online, and you never know when some new age passive PETA loving freak will take this the wrong way.)
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe and Lawson Boy
We were all eating dinner one evening and Lily started in with her attitude that she did not care for this dinner and she was going to let it be known. Coupled with her tendency to already eat slow and never stop talking at the dinner table, our patience had worn thin with her and she was encouraged to stop talking and simply eat her dinner. The other three children were eating and behaving well, relatively speaking, so a Popsicle was offered to them as a reward for their good behavior. That may not seem like much, and it really isn't, but we don't keep very many treats or candy around the house so when a delicious treat like a Popsicle is offered the children tend to get excited. Lily was excited about the Popsicle, but took for granted that she would get one no matter what because in her mind that is only fair. She continued to be stubborn with her dinner, so holding back the Popsicle seemed like the best consequence to encourage her. As any good parent knows, once you throw that threat out there, you have to follow through or your kids will walk all over you. The stubbornness continued, the consequence was handed down, and the tears starting flowing.
I'm a sucker for the tears and Lily knows how to look at me just the right way to tug on my heart strings, but she had to sit there and watch her siblings eat there Popsicle and that is where the true punishment began. Oh the joy that Abby and Chloe took in savoring that Popsicle on Lily's behalf. They waved them around, made up songs about the Popsicle, and Chloe made sure to mention what color everybody had. "Lawson ate his dinner and has a red Popsicle, Abby ate her dinner and has an orange Popsicle, I ate my dinner and have a purple Popsicle......Lily, you didn't get a Popsicle." At this point, I took some compassion and at least let Lily be excused from the table so not to endure the obscene gloating.
Punishing our children can be very hard at times given the different circumstances we find ourselves in. Whether it be in public with witnesses all judging your tactics, or at home in private where it easy to let them get away with it this time because you are so tired of having to correct them over and over and over. We are certainly not perfect, but we try to be consistent and stay true to teaching our kids manners and respect. We struggle at times due to the fact that we are out numbered and have to run a zone defense instead of man to man, and the inmates try to take over the asylum. In the end we know that however hard it is, our kids will be better for it. When you take time to punish your children, you are letting them know you care about them and their actions.
(And I'm not talking about beating your kids......I shouldn't have to say that, but this is going out in open format online, and you never know when some new age passive PETA loving freak will take this the wrong way.)
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe and Lawson Boy
Friday, July 27, 2012
The World Through the Eyes of Kids
Seeing as how the days start very early and we are wiped out by the time we get the kids down to bed, I thought I would try to sneak in a post while at work today. My intentions are to write at least one post per week just to keep up with half the stuff we want to remember about this time in our life. As frustrating as raising 4 kids can be at times, we do laugh a lot and find great joy in watching the kids learn and experience new things.
We were recently on a trip down to San Antonio for my 20 year reunion. That's right, 20 years since I graduated high school and went off to college as an eager young man with dreams and high hopes of a successful future. No way in H-E double hockey sticks was there a vision of 4 kids in my future, so I guess my dreams just weren't big enough back then. Anyway, while making the track down I-35 after everybody had stopped screaming and yelling at each other, the kids were staring out the windows into the darkness. Just when we thought they were all asleep, Abby broke the silence with an odd and somewhat angry statement. "GO AWAY MOON", she blurted. It took a minute for it register what she was saying and then the moon appeared out the window to my left. "Daddy, the moon is following us, why is it following us?" Instead of explaining the scientific reasons why it appeared the moon was following our car down the highway (not that I could do that anyway), we made a game out of it and I told her the moon was actually trying to race us to Mama and Papa's house. The kids thought this was great and encourage me to drive faster. "Faster Daddy, Go Faster!" Realizing my susceptibility to a child's influence, my story changed to the moon is really following us to keep us safe. The best part about raising kids is you see the world in a completely different and innocent light.
We were coming home late earlier this week when Lawson noticed the moon outside his window. "Daddy, Mama and Papa house?" It took me a minute to remember our trip and then realized he now associated the moon with driving to San Antonio. It gives me hope that Lawson Boy's head may be used for something other than just a battering ram.
We were recently on a trip down to San Antonio for my 20 year reunion. That's right, 20 years since I graduated high school and went off to college as an eager young man with dreams and high hopes of a successful future. No way in H-E double hockey sticks was there a vision of 4 kids in my future, so I guess my dreams just weren't big enough back then. Anyway, while making the track down I-35 after everybody had stopped screaming and yelling at each other, the kids were staring out the windows into the darkness. Just when we thought they were all asleep, Abby broke the silence with an odd and somewhat angry statement. "GO AWAY MOON", she blurted. It took a minute for it register what she was saying and then the moon appeared out the window to my left. "Daddy, the moon is following us, why is it following us?" Instead of explaining the scientific reasons why it appeared the moon was following our car down the highway (not that I could do that anyway), we made a game out of it and I told her the moon was actually trying to race us to Mama and Papa's house. The kids thought this was great and encourage me to drive faster. "Faster Daddy, Go Faster!" Realizing my susceptibility to a child's influence, my story changed to the moon is really following us to keep us safe. The best part about raising kids is you see the world in a completely different and innocent light.
We were coming home late earlier this week when Lawson noticed the moon outside his window. "Daddy, Mama and Papa house?" It took me a minute to remember our trip and then realized he now associated the moon with driving to San Antonio. It gives me hope that Lawson Boy's head may be used for something other than just a battering ram.
The kids seem to be enjoying their summer so far. Lily was able to spend extra time in San Antonio by herself, which made her very happy to have some time away from her brother and sisters. Lawson is anything but a baby anymore. He has entered into the terrible 2 stage and is not bashful to let you know his feelings. When he does not get his way or you start to get on to him, he points his finger directly at your and yells, "NO." This fun little gesture is typically followed with a full palm held at you as he utters, "Thtop", and "NO" once again. Aunt Chelle witnessed this lovely interaction between Lawson and I, and now uses this tactic on her teenage kids (Morgan going into college this year), though I believe the only reaction she will get from this style of discipline is uncontrollable laughter.
We are looking forward to the beginning of even busier times which should last the next 15 years. Lily is in soccer, gymnastics and cheer leading. The twins will start soccer this fall, which I cannot wait to see how that goes. My prediction is Chloe will enjoy socializing with the other girls, and Abby will give her all to being the best soccer player on the field. She takes after her daddy a bit, and does not like to lose. Hopefully she can keep her temper in check seeing as she wears all her emotions on her sleeve. Regardless, it may take more than one mini-van in this household to shuffle the monsters around to all these events.
An update on the final member of our family. Jingles is about as tall as Lawson now, and listens about as well as Lawson too. Good thing he can't raise a finger and say "Thtop".
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Lawson Boy, and Jingles
Saturday, June 23, 2012
When Lawson Attacks
It was apparent to me that the blog had not been upated in a while, but I had not idea it had been close to 2 months. It would take another 2 months to share all the crazy and funny things that have happened in that time period, but let's give it a shot anyway. The highlights of the past couple months go something like this:
Lily graduated kindergarten, turned 6 years old, and convinced me she was resonsible enough to take care of a dog (as if we don't have enough mouths to feed around this asylum). Surprisingly, she has done a great job of taking care of Jingles, and even cleans the poop with relatively few comnplaints. For her 6th birthday we let Lily have a sleepover and our house was inundated with 10 6 year old girls who when they get together love to scream alot. And the bossiness of those girls......who knew? We are so proud of how Lily did in Kindergarten this year. It's amazing how much she learned and how well she reads. We absolutely loved her teacher, because she really emphasized discipline and somehow Lily made it through the year coming home with a green bear every day. Though now she admits had a yellow bear one day and turned her attitude around at the end of the day to earn her green bear back. The reading comes in handy and we do take advantage when Lawson or the twins want us to read them something we occassionally tell them to go ask Lily to read it. As you can see from her picture below, she is turning into a beautiful young lady. I catch myself staring at her sometimes just wondering what the future holds for her and it makes me smile. She catches me and says, "Daddy, what are you staring at?, in that tone that only a 6 year old girl going on 18 can have. Lily continue to crack me up with her sense of humor. She is at the age where I share stories with her about my child hood, or make general observations about things that I think are funny and she and I will laugh uncontrollably together. We have the same sense of humor, which typically means we end up laughing about fart stories.
Abby and Chloe are potty trained! Abby and Chloe are potty trained! Abby and Chloe are potty trained! Obviously we are excited about the potty training and only one kid left in diapers. While potty trained, they still drive us absolutley bonkers with the constant jibber jabber and never ending energy to destroy things.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, Mike Singletary, and Jingles
Lily graduated kindergarten, turned 6 years old, and convinced me she was resonsible enough to take care of a dog (as if we don't have enough mouths to feed around this asylum). Surprisingly, she has done a great job of taking care of Jingles, and even cleans the poop with relatively few comnplaints. For her 6th birthday we let Lily have a sleepover and our house was inundated with 10 6 year old girls who when they get together love to scream alot. And the bossiness of those girls......who knew? We are so proud of how Lily did in Kindergarten this year. It's amazing how much she learned and how well she reads. We absolutely loved her teacher, because she really emphasized discipline and somehow Lily made it through the year coming home with a green bear every day. Though now she admits had a yellow bear one day and turned her attitude around at the end of the day to earn her green bear back. The reading comes in handy and we do take advantage when Lawson or the twins want us to read them something we occassionally tell them to go ask Lily to read it. As you can see from her picture below, she is turning into a beautiful young lady. I catch myself staring at her sometimes just wondering what the future holds for her and it makes me smile. She catches me and says, "Daddy, what are you staring at?, in that tone that only a 6 year old girl going on 18 can have. Lily continue to crack me up with her sense of humor. She is at the age where I share stories with her about my child hood, or make general observations about things that I think are funny and she and I will laugh uncontrollably together. We have the same sense of humor, which typically means we end up laughing about fart stories.
Abby and Chloe are potty trained! Abby and Chloe are potty trained! Abby and Chloe are potty trained! Obviously we are excited about the potty training and only one kid left in diapers. While potty trained, they still drive us absolutley bonkers with the constant jibber jabber and never ending energy to destroy things.
Here they sleep and provide a moment of peace
Abby was a little slower with the potty training and she tends to live in them moment and that meant not stopping what she doing to take a moment and walk to the potty. The great thing about Abby is you always know what she is thinking because she wears her emotions on her sleeve. When she is excited about something, she lets you know and you can see the excitement all over her face. When she is upset her uncontrollable screaming and flapping of the arms makes it apparent. When she is sad, that pitiful face will break your heart. She is the most energetic of all the kids too. If we could figure out a weight to bottle her energy and sell it, we'd be rich. Because she is so active and never stops moving during the day, when it's time for bed, she is ready to go. A common phrase from her in the evening, "Daddy, the sun is almost down, can we go night night now?"
Chloe is my silly girl. She is pretty laid back (relatively speaking) and just doesn't take too many things that serious. I'm starting to hear her come up with ideas and then convince Abby or Lawson that it is the right thing to do, and that never turns out well. Generally speaking we have done a good job with teaching respect and manners, but Chloe has work to do in the meal time manners department. She can't hardly eat 5 bites without burping, and I'm not talking cute little girl burps. These are the type that come from your grandpa who just ate something bad and really can't help it.
We've signed the twins up for soccer and I cant' wait to see that. My anticipatoin is that Abby will love running around chasing after the ball, and Chloe will be walking around demanding they stop and just give her the ball.
And then there is Lawson Boy. It's been expressed to me that I favor Lawson Boy, and though I won't admit to favoring him because I love all my children equally, I will admit to spoiling him a bit. He is the baby of them all, and he just happened to be the only boy, so he gets away with more. Some of it is I don't have the energy to repeat myself over and over like I would have when Lily was his age. And some of it is, the kid does stuff that I know he shouldn't, but it just make me laugh. When he gets in his mischievious state, he gives a look and I feel like I'm looking at myself, and I understand that even what he is about to do may not be a good idea, it sure does look fun. I empathize with the boy. Lawson is really mastering the english language, but there are time when all we hear is mumbling. What comes out of his mouth makes sense to him and you can see the frustration on his face as he repeatedly expresses himself with more frustration each time. And then the index finger comes out, points at you, and he proceeds to utter a jibberish string of unrecognizable words, but the point is very clear. He is verbally assaulting you for not being able to understand him, and you are very close to a Lawson smackdown.
All the kids are doing pretty well with the addition of Jingles to the family. Jingles is still in his nipping stage and is becoming very energetic, and that will scare the girls at times. They love when he is calm and they can hold him and they truly adore the dog. Lawson shows his love in other ways. The child has no fear of the dog and actually encourages the rough behavior in a way only a boy can do. The dog will be standing there and Lawson will lower his shoulder like a linebacker and throw himself into Jingles, and then curl up to protect himself because he knows the dog is about to jump all over and starting nipping at him. This little game led to multiple scrapes and a nice cut on the top of Lawson's forehead. And every time when you think the boy is down there crying, he stands up with a big grin on his face laughing.
Monday, April 30, 2012
Potty Time
Obviously from the title of this post, we are trying to potty train the twins. And by "we", I mean Kasey and Ms. Lauren. We have been encouraging the 2 of them to go in the potty for well over a year now, and they simply have no interest whatsoever. So today they were forced to go outside in the same clothes the good Lord brought them into this world in. Kasey has been updating me though out the day and at this point it appears that Chloe has gone tee tee a couple of time and Abby still insists that she is not a big girl and she would like to continue wearing the diaper. Too bad kiddo. Somebody may be cleaning crap off the floor, but you are going to pee or poop somewhere besides that diaper today.
By now, I've lost track of all things that we promised or bribed them with. We started with candy, then a toy, a special one on one night with mommy or daddy, and now I believe I have backed myself into a corner and once this process is complete it appears we will have a 4 legged canine running around our house. Ms. Lauren has a little dog that we watched for the weekend and Lily was driven to prove that she was responsible enough to take care of a dog. Actually, she did quite well taking her outside, feeding her, and she slept with her at night. The only area I would give her a failing grade on is protecting the puppy from Lawson Boy. Lawson worked so hard to coax that dog onto his lap, and when he was finally convinced Bella was not going to come to him, he decided to try and sit on the dog instead. Luckily Bella is quick on her feet.
Speaking of Lawson Boy........when I started this blog probably close to a year ago already, he was still a baby and the twins were in that stage where they try to communicate and then get really frustrated when you don't understand what they are saying. Well the boy has entered that stage and he must take after his mother, because he has quite the temper when you can't understand what he is saying. The longer you take to figure it out, the louder and madder he gets at you. I know he is trying to hard to get his point across, and you don't want to get mad at him, but you also cannot let him speak to you that way. Kasey keeps getting mad at me because when Lawson is trying to her something and starts yelling at her, it makes me giggle.
Lily continues to amaze us with her reading skills. I honestly do not remember having to read every night in kindergarten, nor do I remember having homework at that age, but she has homework every night. It is certainly paying off especially when one of the other kids asks us to read and we just tell them to take the book to Lily and let her read it to them.
Stay tuned for potty training updates and if I'm unable to back of this bribery thing, I guess stay tuned for puppy pics.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and on the verge of terrible 2 Lawson
By now, I've lost track of all things that we promised or bribed them with. We started with candy, then a toy, a special one on one night with mommy or daddy, and now I believe I have backed myself into a corner and once this process is complete it appears we will have a 4 legged canine running around our house. Ms. Lauren has a little dog that we watched for the weekend and Lily was driven to prove that she was responsible enough to take care of a dog. Actually, she did quite well taking her outside, feeding her, and she slept with her at night. The only area I would give her a failing grade on is protecting the puppy from Lawson Boy. Lawson worked so hard to coax that dog onto his lap, and when he was finally convinced Bella was not going to come to him, he decided to try and sit on the dog instead. Luckily Bella is quick on her feet.
Speaking of Lawson Boy........when I started this blog probably close to a year ago already, he was still a baby and the twins were in that stage where they try to communicate and then get really frustrated when you don't understand what they are saying. Well the boy has entered that stage and he must take after his mother, because he has quite the temper when you can't understand what he is saying. The longer you take to figure it out, the louder and madder he gets at you. I know he is trying to hard to get his point across, and you don't want to get mad at him, but you also cannot let him speak to you that way. Kasey keeps getting mad at me because when Lawson is trying to her something and starts yelling at her, it makes me giggle.
Lily continues to amaze us with her reading skills. I honestly do not remember having to read every night in kindergarten, nor do I remember having homework at that age, but she has homework every night. It is certainly paying off especially when one of the other kids asks us to read and we just tell them to take the book to Lily and let her read it to them.
Stay tuned for potty training updates and if I'm unable to back of this bribery thing, I guess stay tuned for puppy pics.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and on the verge of terrible 2 Lawson
Saturday, March 10, 2012
What Do Lily and Make Tyson Have In Common?
In an effort to better myself in business and my personal life, I made note of some advice that our preacher spoke about one Sunday. Be interruptable. The gist being when somebody needs you or wants your attention, you should give them your full attention. My struggle is that I have 80 employees, countless, vendors, my boss, my boss's boss, a lovely wife and 4 kids all of which need my attention on just about any given day. Add on top of that the fact that I have self-diagnosed myself with a slight case of adult attention deficit disorder , and it makes for a real struggle with little time to complete my tasks or have much down time. The good news is that my commute home gives me some time to prepare for the kids daily information dump that begins immediately upon breaching the front door. This is actually the part of my day that I look forward to most. Nothing makes you feel than 4 kids running and greeting you enthusiastically after a long day of work. After a few minutes, I have to stop them because they are all 4 trying to tell me what happened that day, and no matter how much I pay attention it is impossible to keep up with 3 girls jabbering and the boy trying to throw each of them off of me so I can give him my full attention. My conscious efforts to be more interuptible are certainly not perfected, but when I make the effort I hear more of what is being said and find myself more patient with the kids as well.
Abby and Chloe are making strides in the right direction with their ability to not destroy a room in a matter of minutes. They have still yet to potty train, but they are increasingly becoming more interested. Both continue to make us laugh on a daily basis, and we are amazed how smart 3 years old can be and what they pick up on. Chloe is our rule Nazi and loves to make sure that Abby is doing the right thing. Abby is and will continue to be the emotional one and always lets you know exactly how she is feeling whether good bad or indifferent.
Lawson is mastering the art of the English language and does well to communicate in one sentence bursts. Along with that comes the frustration when he is not able to communicate his point. The boy has quite the temper, but then they all did at this age. The main difference is that he enjoys using his fists more to communicate his frustration. His appetite remains grossly disturing, and I am truly fearful of the future grocery bills.
Last night we all met up at that mall for dinner as Ms. Lauren has taken the kids over there to get out of the house. We have figured out how to get the kids to behave at dinner and eat all their food. Hold off on dinner until they are really hungry, and they won't say a word and will devour their food and ask for more. Lily wanted to ride with me on the way home as she likes to listen to the Ipod in the car and sing. She gets to pick a song from my Ipod and then I get to pick one. Lily chose Justin Bieber and she made fun of me for singing along with her. I went old school and busted out Phil Collins In the Air Tonight. If you have seen the movie Hangover you know what I mean when I say you cannot listen to the awesome buildup to the drums without picturing Mike Tyson playing air drums to the song. Lily thoroughly enjoyed this part as especially since I cranked the song up as load as I could. We had to listen to at least 5 times and she laughed hysterically as she played the air drum along with the song.
Kids are awake.....let the fun begin.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Lawson Boy
Abby and Chloe are making strides in the right direction with their ability to not destroy a room in a matter of minutes. They have still yet to potty train, but they are increasingly becoming more interested. Both continue to make us laugh on a daily basis, and we are amazed how smart 3 years old can be and what they pick up on. Chloe is our rule Nazi and loves to make sure that Abby is doing the right thing. Abby is and will continue to be the emotional one and always lets you know exactly how she is feeling whether good bad or indifferent.
Lawson is mastering the art of the English language and does well to communicate in one sentence bursts. Along with that comes the frustration when he is not able to communicate his point. The boy has quite the temper, but then they all did at this age. The main difference is that he enjoys using his fists more to communicate his frustration. His appetite remains grossly disturing, and I am truly fearful of the future grocery bills.
Last night we all met up at that mall for dinner as Ms. Lauren has taken the kids over there to get out of the house. We have figured out how to get the kids to behave at dinner and eat all their food. Hold off on dinner until they are really hungry, and they won't say a word and will devour their food and ask for more. Lily wanted to ride with me on the way home as she likes to listen to the Ipod in the car and sing. She gets to pick a song from my Ipod and then I get to pick one. Lily chose Justin Bieber and she made fun of me for singing along with her. I went old school and busted out Phil Collins In the Air Tonight. If you have seen the movie Hangover you know what I mean when I say you cannot listen to the awesome buildup to the drums without picturing Mike Tyson playing air drums to the song. Lily thoroughly enjoyed this part as especially since I cranked the song up as load as I could. We had to listen to at least 5 times and she laughed hysterically as she played the air drum along with the song.
Kids are awake.....let the fun begin.
Jeff, Kasey, Lily, Abby, Chloe, and Lawson Boy
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