MamaGrizzly

This past weekend, I got to see my very first movie at the movie theatre in almost exactly 2 years!  I had the privilege of taking my sweet little 4 year old boy to see Horton Hears a Who - and we both LOVED it!

My son is a big fan of Dr. Seuss books and this book is particularly one of his favorites - his favorite line of all in the book is “A persons a person, no matter how small”!  All parents should remember that on a daily basis!

Anyway, it follows the book pretty closely with some different twists in there - I mean, come on, it’s  a short book and the original version of the movie is only about 30 minutes long.  I think we’ve seen the original version no less than about 50 times.  And for those of you who have “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” on DVD, take a look at the Extra Features - the original “Horton Hears a Who” is on there.  Which makes sense because the Grinch, after all, lives in Who-ville.

Anyway, not very many “G” movies come out these days and so when they do, we try to take our son (our daughter will be 2 soon so she’ll be getting to go in a few more months as well).  It’s a cute movie and enjoyed by both children AND adults!

A little over year ago we made a major purchase that I just want to document and say was WELL worth it!  We purchased the swingset you see below made by “Gorilla” from Home Depot.  And, let me just say that it was a fantastic purchase.  The children are on that swingset EVERY day when the weather is nice - which, fortunately is often when you live in sunny South Carolina.

What do we like the MOST about it?  It’s sturdy - we can swing on it and it doesn’t move.  It is safe - everything is either hidden or covered so it’s hard for children to hit a nail or a screw (actually, nearly impossible).  I also like the fact that my children’s cousins who are 8 and 9 come over and love to play on it too.  So, I think for the money we spent, we will get MANY years of use and enjoyment out of it.

By the way, this is NOT a paid advertisement - just my personal opinion.

I was around someone the other day who told their child that they better “get happy” - ”GET” happy?  How do you do that?  Everything in life isn’t always “happy”.  Why does their child have to be HAPPY?  I’m not happy all the time - as humans, we have a range of emotions - happy, sad, mad, afraid, glad…..

Then, I had a great talk with my sister the other day about feelings and emotions and how critical it is to let children “have” and experience feelings.  We talked about our experiences as children and she remembered that none of the family pets when she was growing up ever “died” - because our parents didn’t want the kids to have to deal with that emotion.  Why not?  Grief is a part of life - it’s something both my sister are dealing with now with the recent death of our Father.

What is MOST important, with children and emotions, is that they learn exactly HOW to deal with those feelings and what is appropriate.  I can’t “command” that my children be happy - I think that is actually absurd.  But, I CAN help them learn how to handle their feelings.  I’ve been working with my son on how to express his frustration and I have no problems with him telling me that he doesn’t like something - as long as he is respectful in the way he presents his feelings.

You see, I’ve been around people who have no CLUE how to express that they are mad at you or upset with you - and it can be incredibly frustrating to be their friend because you never know what you’ve said that upset them.  And, it certainly doesn’t promote a very healthy relationship.

The other day, my son wanted a snack 5 minutes before dinner.  I told him that he could not that dinner was almost ready.  I was so proud of him because after his bath, he said, “Mommy - can we talk about it?”

“Talk about what, sweetheart?”  I said.

“Well, I wanted a snack and you wouldn’t let me have one.  That made me mad”  he said very politely.

“Sweetie” I said as I put him on my lap, “I knew you were hungry and I was working hard on preparing a really nice dinner for everyone in the family and so I was busy and you were about to eat in 5 minutes.  It would have hurt MY feelings if you hadn’t eaten any of the dinner I had fixed and Daddy and your sister would have had to wait longer for dinner.  We can’t ALWAYS have what we want WHEN we want it.”

We talked a little bit longer and at the end of the conversation, I got a big hug with an “I love you Mommy” that almost moved me to tears.  I was so proud of him - he didn’t like something but he had learned HOW to tell me that in a very respectful manner.  He’s learning to express his feelings and emotions - a big step for children.  I don’t want my children to think they always have to be “happy” - that’s not a realistic expectation  - I’m certainly not always happy.  I DO want them to know how to handle their different emotions and how to express and discuss those feelings those.  THAT is a very important lesson to me!

I get a LOT of hits on people doing google searches on Pulmicort and Xopenex - and the other day, someone was even searching Pulmicort with the words “infant hype”.  Pulmicort IS a steroid and it most DEFINITELY affected our daughter.  She’s always been a good sleeper but we definitely noticed that we couldn’t give her Pulmicort at night.  If we did, bless her heart, she was hyped up for half the night - it was pitiful.  When we DID give her Pulmicort (and we tried not to), we wound up giving it to her in the morning only - it definitely affected her during the day, though, and it was harder for her to fall asleep for her naps -  nothing a little extra snuggling and nursing couldn’t fix though!

My parents did a LOT of things right - those are the things I most definitely want to mimic.  One of those things was always making healthy snacks available.  I could eat at any time of the day if I was hungry.  My Mom always made sure that there were plenty of healthy snacks available around the house for those times.  We had fruits, nuts, crackers - oh yes - and peanut butter!  We never had sodas around and cookies and cake were special treats but ALWAYS home made.

I learned a lot from that growing up and it’s taught me some very healthy eating habits.  And although my Mother always prepared healthy dinners, I’ve been able to learn even more about health and nutrition.  It’s interesting that my children, 4 and almost 2, are naturally hungry and want something to eat about 6 times a day.  Why do I find that interesting?  Because every diet out there known to man preaches that you should be eating 6 small meals a day - and my children are just acting on their natural hunger.   I won’t bother naming any of them because EVERY diet and diet book I’ve read makes that recommendation.

And I think that is critical to the success of our children - to teach them that food is simply energy - it’s not to be a controlled substance.  But, I’m also considered “odd” by many of my friends because, you see, we don’t bring sugared foods into the house.  Children don’t NEED sugar.  What they need is a steady stream of healthy carbohydrates, protein, and the right fats to maintain their energy.   When my children are older and able to fix their own snacks, I intend to give them free access to the kitchen pantries and refridgerator.

A friend of mine told me about a group called “They Might be Giants” that has some really fun music for children - the music is geared towards learning and both of her children love the music. Well, they have quite a few videos on YouTube and here’s one I found that my son LOVES! I think I’ll be getting some of their CD’s!

I get a lot of hits on this blog for people doing google searches on “Xopenex and Pulmicort“.  When my daughter was diagnosed with RSV in November 2006 (at 7 months), we had to give her breathing treatments of Xopenex and Pulmicort off and on throughout that Winter.  I was told to be prepared that we would probably be on both drugs throughout the second Winter of her life as well.

I fully expected, after talking to the pediatrician, as well as, friends and family members who have children who have had RSV that this Winter (2007) was going to be rough but I am happy to report ( and a little nervous since it’s not QUITE over) that we’ve only had to do breathing treatments for about 3 days since October 2007.    We’re very relieved that she has stayed as healthy as she has and I hope that next year we won’t even need the prescriptions for Xopenex and Pulmicort.  Anyway, since I get so many hits on those 2 drugs, I just thought I would post an update.

Our church has Baptism as a part of the church service. I love that it’s a part of our service because it means I regularly get to witness a Baptism - and every time I do, I cry. In our church, for an infant Baptism, the parents make a commitment to raise this child to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. As a congregation, we take part in the Baptism as well and make the commitment that we too will help this child to grow up to know Jesus. We are specifically asked to respond to questions, the same way the parents are asked to respond. But, the part that I love the best is that just before the Baptism occurs, our Pastor invites all of the children to go up and sit down at the alter for the Baptism. He wants the children to have the opportunity to witness and be a part of the Baptism. After the Baptism, he talks to the children about what Baptism means and as our Pastor, he has Baptised almost every child that is sitting with him. He has Baptised both of mine. He tells the children how they too can be a very important part of this child’s life and how they too can help this child grow to learn Jesus. He then asks them if they will promise to help this child learn about Jesus and they all say, “yes”.

My son always comes back to sit with me after a Baptism and wants to talk about his Baptism and I tell him all about it. We talk about how important Baptism is and then he asks about his sisters Baptism. I do so love that it’s a part of our church service - it’s always a reminder that we too are making a commitment to help others with their faith and their journey towards a life with Christ.

OK - I’m going to be a little bit cynical in this post.  But, I just had to laugh.  A very young soon to be new Mom friend of mine asked me a few weeks ago about a regular “date night” and what my husband and I do for a date night now that we have children.  I asked her what she meant and she said that some friends of hers from her church have been telling her that she and her husband really need to have once a week date nights after they have the baby.  I was sipping on a glass of tea at the moment and almost spit out my drink in laughter.  She asked me why I was laughing?

Well, I was laughing for a lot of reasons.  First of all, I don’t think people that make these kinds of statements live in the same world that I do.  First off - it’s EXPENSIVE to find a babysitter - especially when your children are younger.  And as for a newborn?  Well, there just aren’t that many people qualified to take care of a newborn.  And let’s not even discuss what a breastfeeding Mom is supposed to do.

Secondly, let’s suppose that I COULD afford the babysitter.  Now I have to find someone that I trust - and when you don’t have any family in town, that gets even more difficult.

Third, OK - let’s suppose that I DID have someone I could trust and afford - NOW I have to be able to afford going OUT!  UGH!  Do you see where I’m going with this?

Fourth - you know, children get up EARLY at our house.  So, now that I’ve got someone I can trust and afford taking care of my child AND I can afford to go somewhere, I better not stay out LATE because those children are going to wake up BRIGHT EYED and BUSHY TAILED (as my Dad used to say) and RARING to go.  Now, my children are awesome sleepers and they’ve been known to sleep in until 7:30 sometimes - but, I still better not stay out very late.   I really like my sleep!    :wink:

So, I asked my friend why the emphasis on actually going OUT and she said that it was important that they focus on their marriage as a couple even when the children arrive.   OK - Well, this I can agree on.  But, my question back to her was, “Why do you have to go OUT on a date every week?”    I guess my point back to her was that through the ages, families haven’t been able to “afford” this type of a luxury and they were able to stay married for a lifetime.   I know for a fact that my Grandparents didn’t go out on a “date night” - heck, they lived on a farm and had 4 boys and many sharecroppers.  They didn’t even have a car to drive until the youngest child was 13 years old.  But, somehow, my grandparents stayed married their entire lives without going every week.

I’m not trying to trivialize the time spent with your spouse - it’s important.  But you don’t have to spend a lot of money to have quality time with your spouse.  My husband and I spend time together talking every night when the children are in bed - we don’t have to spend a lot of money to have that quality time together.  I think the “once a week date night” was actually invented by the restaurant industry just like I think the greeting card company’s keep inventing new “holidays” so that they can sell more greeting cards.  Spend quality time together with your spouse - but just know that you don’t have to leave home and spend a lot of money to do that!

These young ladies are magnificent! Turn up the volume and enjoy!