My Little Models

 

 

 

Oh, how I love them!

Redemption?

So, after the ham fiasco (what do you mean it wasn't a true fiasco?) John decided that he would make it up to mommy by complimenting her.

I was making a three layer cake today to take to some friends (yay!) tonight.  The three layers were laying out on cooling racks while I whipped up the frosting when I heard John call out, "Mm mm mm!"  I turned around to find two finger pinches out of my cake and crumbs on his mouth.

Well, if the ham isn't John approved...the cake is!

Ouch!

Mommy's ego is a little sore today.  Johnny had the audacity to hurt her feelings!

I thought I would treat my family to a spectacular meal today.  I needed diced ham for a recipe I am making at freezer cooking tomorrow and I decided I would go all out and dice it myself from the leftovers of a nice ham meal.  I cooked the ham all up and drizzled it with the yummy sauce and we had it along side mashed potatoes and corn.

The girls were thrilled and John ate well for a bit and then slowed down.  Finally he stopped completely and quietly said, "I done," and pushed his plate away from himself.  I looked at him questioningly and asked, "Why?"  His answer?  "It's horrible!"

Really?  Horrible?  Thanks for the slap in the face!  Lest you worry, I took it all in stride and laughed long and loud with the rest of my family at John's sweet description of my lovely meal.

Patience

Libby asked me if I would be willing to teach her how to sew for school.  Now, mind you, I am only teaching myself now, so my knowledge is by far NOT vast!  It is, however, deep enough that I decided to take her up on the task.  I figured we would start with something simple, like a pillow case.  First, though, I wanted to check around to see what the internet gurus had to say on the subject.  When I ran across Whipstitch Fabrics short curriculum I fell in love!  We didn't end up starting with a pillow case, we ended up starting with patience.

How did we learn patience in sewing?  Good ol' fashioned noodle necklaces!


First, we had to prepare the coloring.

Then, we had to be persistent to get the color we wanted.

  Patience while the noodles dried!

A little planning will go a long ways.

Then, there is my other personality type...let's just play while we wait!

Finally, the noodles are ready and it is time to make patterns out of our necklaces.

 
A little bit of problem solving was required!

Last, but not least, our perfect products!

Now my children know that string holds together a final product that was just pieces before we put a little work into it.  They also learned a bit about preparation, persistence, patience, planning, playing, patterning, problem solving and producing while they were at it.  All in all, a good day's lesson!

Clean Up! Clean Up!

I have to admit, cleaning is not my forte...nor is helping my kids learn the art of cleaning.  It is just something hard for me to do.  That being said, maybe my children will help me to get that over that issue!  Last time it was Grace and John fighting over cleaning toilets.  This time they were helping me fold laundry.  It is absolutely hilarious to hear them fighting over who gets to fold daddy's underwear because they like the "pattern" of folding...and, they both did a great job at it!

Gratitude

There are many things missing from today's culture, but two that hit close to home for me are gratitude and hand written-letters.  You see, God blessed me with the gift of encouragement and the love language of words, so these two things are dear to my heart.  As for the hand-written letters, maybe I sound hokey in a day and age of instant e-mail, but I still get SO excited to open the mailbox and see an envelope with my name on it...NOT a bill...a letter from a friend!  It just lights my day up! 

Therefore, we took Sunday evening to make thank you cards for grandparents.  (You will get them soon...I think!)  This, of course, turned into cards for London, Aunt Judy, and Aunt Hannah.  I love it!  That being said, we are STILL working on cards (remember, Libby is my perfectionist and Grace goes to preschool in the afternoon) and not all of them are mailed out yet. 

Some day, I hope that my diligence as a parent pays off and they choose to continue handmade thank you cards on their own...not as a testament to me, but as an encouragement to others!