Mornings and Evenings in the Backyard

We have a GREAT backyard. We have a very large concrete slab that is perfect for riding toys, playing in the kiddie pool, and playing basketball, but we also have a big area for our swing set which the boys absolutely love. So needless to say, we spent a ton of time in our backyard. Every morning we head out there right after breakfast before it gets hot, and we go out there every night after dinner when Dada gets home. Great memories are being made in our backyard.

 We have a little house that the boys love. BB and PawPaw gave this to Coop for his birthday, and they have absolutely loved it. Peekaboo is their favorite game to play in the "little house" as Carter calls it.

Climbing in and out, in and out, in and out.

And then there are the good ole tractors. Coop has joined the fun on his kawasaki. Although this dinky little thing is NOT going to cut it long. He is very aware of how slow he is going compared to Carter. I think Santa will need to bring him a riding toy that is a little more up to par.

A weird thing....Carter is really into catching ants. And he has never even been bitten! I guess he is the ant whisperer or something. He catches like 20 a day...."big ants" and "tiny ants" are the two categories :) He reports every catch to me and tells me which category it falls into.

Coop gets in on the ant catching too, although he isn't quite quick enough yet :)

Then we put them in the tractor trailer and drive them around. I am sure the ants love this.

Swinging, swinging, and more swinging. They love to swing and have me sing songs to them. We sing anything from Amazing Grace to Old McDonald. Ha! Carter says, "Swing me high! Swing me way up there!" the entire time we are swinging. Doesn't this picture of him make you smile?

This is Coop singing "Zaccheus." His favorite.

Why do kids want to go UP the slide instead of down?

Even the little ones!

Love our backyard and all the fun we have. Winter is going to be a killer! Loving the summertime!!!

A few funny moments

 Joel trying to have a quiet time on the back porch. YEAH RIGHT! Like Coop was actually going to let that happen.

 Trying to wait patiently....that lasted about 30 seconds before he was beating down the door :)

 Cool Dude #1

 Cool Dude #2

 And off they go.

Our other green tractor.

Now that Coop has mastered walking, he is picking up speed. Love seeing him "run" from Carter.

Where's Carter?

There he is!

Oh how many books we have read to these boys! I can recite them all in my sleep.

A little update

Every few months, I like to record what my children like, what's going on in their little lives, etc... This blog is my scrapbook, my record book, and my photo album. So here goes some recording:

Coop at 15 months:

Loves to climb the stairs.

Giggles at Carter all the time.

Walks as his dominant mode of transportation...He walks like Frankenstein. Makes me smile. Still walks on this knees some. This is so funny to watch. Not a crawl, not a walk. Literally walking on his knees.

Dances with his little head. He's got the head-bob down.

Is totally addicted/attached to his sippy cup of milk...aka, BaBa

Squeals when he wants something RIGHT NOW.

He is very much a snuggler and likes to crawl and roll all over us as we lounge on the couch or the floor.

Has entered kid-hood in that he recognizes a bag of chips, a popsicle, candy, etc...and insists on having some.

His favorite toys are the empty dvd cases in the cabinet.

Wants to be outside all the time riding his little tractor alongside Carter on his big tractor.
Loves to sing Zachaeus....can't imagine that I spelled that right. He points his little finger the whole time I sing it :)

Carter at 2 and 3/4:

Loves crafts these days. Loves to draw, paint, color, play with play dough, stamps, etc...

Talks up a storm.

Eats all the time.

LOVES candy....of course.

Talks about the ocean and the beach a lot.

Loves the pool.

He is really into tractors right now.

Curious George is his favorite TV show.

Books, books, and more books....this kid loves to be read to.

Loves his swingset and wants to swing in the "yellow swing" all the time....that's when he isn't riding his tractor.

Carries random objects around everyday.

Loves the story of Jonah and the whale. We talk about Jonah several times a day.

Here are a few cute things he has said lately:

In the pet store looking at a snake, "Oooooh, Mama, look there's Satan"

Laying in bed last night as I was putting him down for the night, "Mama, let's talk about Jesus."

Me: Carter, what do you want to thank God for?

Carter: Mama, Dada, Carter, Coop, BB, PawPaw, Grammy, Pop, Uncle Stephen, Ms. Stefie (Joel's assistant)

Carter: Mama, the big fish spit Jonah out!

Me: Why?

Carter: Because he was sorry for his sins.

Me: Who were the first people?
Carter: Adam and Eve
Me: What did Adam and Eve do?
Carter: Disobeyed.
Me: What happened to them?
Carter: They got trouble!

There is so much more to add, but wanted to record the highlights off the top of my head.

Happy Weekend!!!

MUST READ!!!

Kimberley Graham posted this on facebook a while back. If you are a parent with a child 18 months or older, you MUST READ THIS!

Parenting 001

Does it seem like parenting has gotten more complicated? I mean, as far as I can tell, back in the day parents basically tried to feed their kids, clothe them, and keep them away from explosives. Now our kids have to sleep on their backs (no wait, their tummies; no never mind, their backs), while listening to Baby Mozart surrounded by scenes of Starry, Starry Night. They have to be in piano lessons before they are five and can’t leave the car seat until they’re about five foot six.

It’s all so involved. There are so many rules and expectations. Kids can’t even eat sugar anymore. My parents were solid as a rock but we still had a cupboard populated with cereal royalty like Captain Crunch and Count Chocula. In our house the pebbles were fruity and the charms were lucky. The breakfast bowl was a place for marshmallows, not dried camping fruit. Our milk was 2%. And sometimes, if we needed to take the edge off a rough morning, we’d tempt fate and chug a little Vitamin D.

Trial by Error

I don’t consider myself a particularly good parent. I was asked to speak a few years ago at some church’s conference. They wanted me to talk about parenting. I said I didn’t have much to say so they should ask someone else (which they did). My kids are probably not as crazy as they seem to me (at least that’s what I keep telling myself anyway), but if I ever write a book on parenting I’m going to call it The Inmates Are Running the Asylum.

There are already scores of books on parenting, many of them quite good. I’ve read several of them and have learned much. I really do believe in gospel-powered parenting and shepherding my child’s heart. I want conversations like this:

Me: What’s the matter son?
Child: I want that toy and he won’t give it to me!
Me: Why do you want the toy?
Child: Because it will be fun to play with.
Me: Do you think he is having fun playing with the toy right now?
Child: Yes.
Me: Would it make him sad to take the toy away?
Child: I guess so.
Me: And do you like to make your brother sad?
Child: No.
Me: You know, Jesus tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves. That means loving your brother the way he would want to be loved. Since Jesus loves us so much, we have every reason to love others–even your brother. Would you like to love him by letting him play with the toy for awhile?
Child: Yes I would daddy.

I try that. Really I do. But here’s what actually happens:

Me: What’s the matter son?
Child: I want that toy and he won’t give it to me!
Me: Why do you want the toy?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: What’s going on in your heart when you desire that toy?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: Think about it son. Use your brain. Don’t you know something?
Child: I guess I just want the toy.
Me: Obviously. But why?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: Fine. [Mental note: abandon "why" questions and skip straight to leading questions.] Do you think he is having fun playing with the toy right now?
Child: No.
Me: Really?! He’s not having fun? Then why does he want that toy in the first place?
Child: Because he’s mean.
Me: Have you ever considered that maybe you are being mean by trying to rip the toy from his quivering little hands?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: What do you know?
Child: I don’t know!
Me: Nevermind. [I wonder how my brilliant child can know absolutely nothing at this moment.] Well, I think taking the toy from him will make your brother sad. Do you like to make him sad?
Child: I don’t know.
Me: [Audible sigh.]
Child: He makes me sad all the time!
Me: Well, I’m getting sad right now with your attitude! [Pause, think, what would Paul Tripp do?  Thinking . . . .thinking . . . .man, I can't stop thinking of that mustache. This isn't working. Let's just go right to the Jesus part.] You know, Jesus wants us to love each other.
Child: I don’t know.
Me: I didn’t ask you a question!
Child: [Pause.] Can I have some fruit snacks?
Me: No, you can’t have fruit snacks. We are talking about the gospel. Jesus loves us and died for us. He wants you to love your brother too.
Child: So?
Me: So give him the toy back!

Then I lunge for the toy and the child runs away. I tell him to come back here this instant and threaten to throw the toy in the trash. I recommit myself to turning down speaking engagements on parenting.

Growing What You Can

I want to grow as a parent–in patience and wisdom and consistency. But I also know that I can’t change my kids’ hearts. I am responsible for my heart and must be responsible to teach them the way of the Lord. But nothin’ guarantees nothin’. I’m just trying to be faithful, and then repent for all the times I’m not.

I have four kids and besides the Lord’s grace, I’m banking on the fact that there really are just a few non-negotiables in parenting. There are plenty of ways to screw up our kids, but whether they color during church, for example, is not one of them. There is not a straight line from doodling in the service as a toddler to doing meth as a teenager. Could it be that beyond the basics of godly parenting, that most of the other techniques and convictions are nibbling around the edges? Certainly, there are lots of ways that good parents make parenting a saner, more enjoyable experience, but even the kid addicted to Angry Birds who just downed a pack of Fun Dip and is now watching his third Pixar movie of the week (day?) still has a decent shot at not being a sociopath.

I remember years ago hearing a line from Alistair Begg, quoting another man, that went like this: “When I was young I had six theories and no kids. Now I have six kids and no theories.” I must be smart. It only took me four kids to run out of theories.

Getting a Few Things Right

I look back at my childhood and think, “What did my parents do right?” I watched too many Growing Pains reruns and played a lot of Super Techmo Bowl (LT could block every extra point and Christian Okoye was a stud). I never learned to like granola or my vegetables (kids, stop reading this post immediately!). But yet, I always knew they loved me. They made me go to church every Wednesday and twice on every Sunday. They made us do our homework. They laid down obvious rules–the kinds that keep kids from killing each other. They wouldn’t accept any bad language, and I didn’t hear any from them. Mom took care of us when we were sick. Dad told us he loved us. I never found porn around the house or booze or dirty secrets. We read the Bible. We got in trouble when we broke the rules. I don’t remember a lot of powerful heart-to-heart conversations. But we knew who we were, where we stood, and what to expect. I’d be thrilled to give my kids the same.

I worry that many young parents are a) too adamant about the particulars of their parenting or b) too sure that every decision will set their kids on an unalterable trajectory to heaven or hell. It’s like my secretary at the church once told me: “Most moms and dads think they are either the best or the worst parents in the world, and both are wrong.” Could it be we’ve made parenting too complicated? Isn’t the most important thing not what we do but who we are as parents? They will see our character before they remember our exact rules regarding television and twinkies.

I could be wrong. My kids are still young. Maybe this no-theory is a theory of its own. I just know that the longer I parent the more I want to focus on doing a few things really well, and not get too passionate about all the rest. I want to spend time with my kids, teach them the Bible, take them to church, laugh with them, cry with them, discipline them when they disobey, say sorry when I mess up, and pray like crazy. I want them to look back and think, “I’m not sure what my parents were doing or if they even knew what they were doing. But I always knew my parents loved me and I knew they loved Jesus.” Maybe it’s not that complicated after all.

PawPaw, Wrestling, and a Comparison

PawPaw came to visit and attempted to check his email while he was here. YEAH RIGHT! They hovered around him and bugged the stew out of him until he finally gave up and started playing again.

 You done yet?

 You done yet?

 Yay! All done!

 Wrestling. Carter enjoys this activity so much. Coop enjoys it for a minute or two, but after he gets smeared into the ground a few times, he's over it.

All tired out after a half hour of wrestling.

Check out this comparison. Coop is above. Carter is below.

Same outfit, close to the same age. Everyone says they look nothing alike, but I can see a little brotherly resemblance.

What we do

We play on the stairs. Mama does not enjoy this activity.

We giggle, although boys aren't technically supposed to "giggle"...it still happens around here.

We turn the lights on and off, on and off, on and off much to DaDa's dismay. I try to stop it, but it just keeps happening.

We wave. I would put good money down on a bet that Coop will be mayor one day. I call him my little politician as he charms and waves at the people who pass him by on the square.

We drool. Darn molars.

We swing. We got our swing from our Germantown house. Sweet, sweet memories of rocking my babies on this swing. Something special about swinging....especially when it's with your babies.

We perform.

We ride our green tractor for many of our waking hours.

We fight....here is what we call the "booty bump."

We tire of Mama's camera.

We whine...both of them.

We swim.

We hang upside down and "spin" as Carter calls it until we can't walk a straight line.

And so much more....

The view from up here and more

Here is the view from my chin looking down. You can catch this view if you look over my shoulder most any time of the day :)

When the previous view subsides for a moment, you can usually look over my shoulder and see this.

Wouldn't change "my view" for anything in the world! Am I blessed or what? Remind of the the blessed part around 5:00 when I am trying to cook dinner :)

Coop has decided over the past 48 hours to make walking his dominant mode of transportation. Go, Coop, Go!!!

Melt my heart.

 

I mean I just can't take it. Melt my heart again. These babies may not live to see another birthday....I can't stop squeezing them. Gotta get my smooches while I can!

Carter is obsessed with our "junk drawer." Gotta lock that thing before I go crazy! I keep finding random/dangerous items all over our house..i.e. scissors, lighter, random chargers, wedding invitations, etc...

Coop is STILL in that oral mode. Loves to taste, chew, lick EVERYTHING.

This is typical. Carter with only underwear on, carrying his yaya, and going in and out, in and out, in and out :)

Walking in DaDa's shoes.

He has had an entire year of practice doing this. I'd say he's a pro now. Check the next picture. 

Flashback! This is Carter last summer walking in large shoes :) Where did the year go? Coop was just a little tiny tot and Carter was wearing diapers and couldn't even talk yet! Time stand still, please!!!