"Where are my nuts?" and a Prayer Request

I think I tend to ramble a bit so I'll try to keep this quick and concise. Bear with me all the way through because it's all good. :)

Prayer Request
God has blessed me beyond my wildest expectations by giving me the chance to work for my church. I love my job and I love the men that God has leading our church. These 6 guys consistently go way above and beyond as they serve the Lord. Their hearts for people and genuine love for people are moving and contagious.

Please pray for God's hand of protection over each of them as they're on their way to Atlanta this morning. Pray for their safety as they travel and for protection from all of the ways we know the Enemy will try to make this trip ineffective. Pray for their wives and families as they go through the week without their husbands and fathers.

Now, on to, "Where are my nuts?"
Saturday afternoon we took the kids to this really cool park that we've gone to a few times in the past. We went and had a picnic and then spent the rest of the afternoon walking around the little pond there, playing hide and seek in the pretend town (it's so cool), and swingin' and slidin' on the play equipment. As we walked around the pond towards the swings the kids began to pick up little nuts off the ground. Sorry, don't know what kind they were, only that the squirrels were lovin' these nuts. The kids thought they were so cool! They were each carrying around 2 or 3 in each hand. But hubby and I got a kick out of some of the things Little Man was saying with regard to his "nuts". Here are 2 examples:

Hubby had taken Little Man to use the toilet. As Little Man prepared to head into the stall he had to stop and ask Daddy, "Daddy, will you hold my nuts?"

Hubby had to pause for a sec....as that just didn't sound quite right. Nonetheless, we got a kick out of it....Little Man didn't quite know what was so funny!

Yesterday on the way home from picking up the kids.....out of the blue Little Man says, "Mommy, I wish I knew where my nuts went. Do you know where my nuts are?"

I just chuckled. Gotta love them kiddo's.

Fun with Daddy

So, I was in the kitchen fixing dinner while listening to the joyous sounds of laughter and giggling coming from my kiddo's playing in the back yard. Daddy had gone out a few minutes earlier and gotten on the trampoline....after which..they all piled in and the craziness ensued.

It's these moments, the ones where everything seems right with the world. A beautiful day, a cool breeze, cookies baking in the oven (yummy ones too), dinner cooking on the stove, and the sounds of kids laughing as they play with their daddy. I LOVE IT!

As I stood there languishing in my moment I heard a noise, more like 4 voices, in unison shouting, "MomMY! ....MomMY!......MomMY!"

I knew Daddy wanted me to come take some pics.....so I did.

"Respect My Authority!!!!"

So anyone even semi familiar with South Park can now, clearly and crisply, hear Cartmans voice screaming in their head, "Respect my authority!!"

Not such a good parenting tool. Doesn't teach much....other then that yelling is highly ineffective. Doesn't inspire respect and certainly doesn't make the "yeller" feel better.

I'm often telling my kiddo's, when I know they're tired, that they still have to make good choices. That being tired is no excuse for poor behavior.

Well...you guessed it. I'm tired! I miss my hubby terribly and I stayed up waaaaay too late last night... bad choice on my part. So tonight I found myself utilizing a bit of Cartman's technique with my kiddo's.

Effective?
Nope!
Inspiring?
The opposite!
Discouraging?
Absolutely.

Little Man has been having some struggles at school lately and has been praying for God to help him make better choices. Tonight he prayed for God to help mommy make better choices. Thanks Little Man.....I needed that.

Now I think I'll do some praying of my own. Then I think I'll get a step ahead on good choices for tomorrow by going to bed!!!

PS - 60-60 sort of slipped away over the weekend. I'll begin again tomorrow, seeking to connect with God every hour with my heart and ears open to His voice.

Grandpa's and bunk beds?

Got a call from my Dad today to say he'd be in town in a few days. I'm excited......because I have a love for my dad that's steadily been growing which I can't say had been there before. God has done some miraculous things in my heart. I give Him all of the credit.

I love my dad. It's funny how growing up tends to change the way you view the past. I told dad that I had been thinking about calling him for the last couple of days. His response, likely unrealized by him...meant the world to me. He said, "I think about calling you too.......pretty much every day." Those are the types of comments, so often said in passing, that really make a girl feel special.

Some day I'll share my testimony. It's probably hard to understand why that little comment meant so much to me without knowing a bit about our past.

Anyway....I knew the kiddo's would be excited about a visit with Grandpa so I shared the news of his visit as soon as I picked them up. Yes...they're very excited!

So tonight while I was putting Little Man to bed he shares with me how he wishes daddy wasn't working at night anymore so that he could sleep ALL night (emphasis on all) in bed with Little Man.

To which I responded, "but I want daddy to sleep in bed with me!"

Little Man replied, "Hey, how about you and daddy sleep on the top bunk....since I DO have bunk beds, and I'll sleep down here." He was quite impressed with himself at this point.

It was cute....and might be fun.....so I told him we'd see.

This was when he got very excited and exclaimed, "Hey...I know! How about Grandpa and I have a sleepover and he can sleep on the top bunk!"

I had to laugh at the image of my dad sleeping on the top bunk......but that would be so cool for Little Man. I suggested that he talk to Grandpa about that in a few days when we're all together. His response was a resounding, "Yes! I think I'll do that!"