child Archives - Page 10 of 13 - Life in Lape Haven

Elijah and the Dream Job

October 21, 2015

You know when you’re little, and someone asks you, “What do you want to be when you grow up?”

Most kids give a pretty standard answer, “A policeman,” or “A ballerina,” or “Superman,” and they stop there.

Not my child. And I bet, if you’ve been reading faithfully over these past 20 days or so of the Write 31 Days (or if you just read the title of today’s post), you can guess which one.

Oh, Elijah. My bright, imaginative, curious, optimistic dreamer.

Do you know what HIS standard answer is when he’s asked what he wants to be when he’s older?

“Everything.”

I’m serious.

He tells people that he wants to be “everything.” And this has been his standard answer for the past 2 years, at least.

Of course with that answer, he always expounds a bit, clarifying his “everything,” in case anyone wonders what that means exactly.

He says something like this, “I’m going to be everything. I’m going to be an astronaut, a firefighter, a preacher, a farmer, a zookeeper, and a daddy. I’m going to be everything.”

These are just some of the occupations that he says fairly often, but it is by no means a definitive list. He adds new ideas regularly to his “everything” dream job.

As a mom, I’m both amused and amazed.

He could totally be a lot of those things at once. In fact I know someone who has been a daddy, a preacher, a firefighter, and somewhat of a farmer, all at the same time, so it’s possible.

But to shepherd a heart that dreams so big is kind of intimidating. All I can do is pray that God leads his steps and gives Brad and me wisdom as we raise him. Pray that we lay the foundations solidly for his own relationship with God so he can follow God’s leading closely. Pray that we notice his talents, giftings, and strengths so we encourage them and pinpoint his weaknesses and challenges so we can help him overcome them. Pray that he does his best to reach his full potential and fulfill all the plans that God has for him, even if they differ from Elijah’s own ideas or ours.

Of course, that’s really the same thing I’d be doing if he only had one answer instead of every answer.

Parenting is all about doing your best, learning, and growing while you depend desperately on God for guidance and discernment, trusting that He can still work through all the mistakes you make, and simply trusting that His love for your child is even greater than your love for that child, that His plans for your child are “to give him a hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11)

Trusting can be hard. But God has never failed me, and I’m choosing to trust Him with my boys. After all, He’s the One Who gave them to us and trusted Brad and me with them in the first place. (It reminds me of Hannah with her Samuel in 1 Samuel 1:27 & 28)

So while I work to embrace the overwhelming ambitions of my little visionary, I am also excited at the possibilities.

Sure he most likely won’t be an astronaut AND a zookeeper. But with that kind of expectation, confidence, and determination, it’s kind of fun to imagine what he really could be, to wonder at what God has in store for him.

As much as I want him to be my little boy forever, I’m also excited to see the “everything” he’ll be when he grows up.

Remember to enter to win a $500 Shopping Spree from DaySpring.com!

DaySpring is celebrating all the amazing Write 31 Days READERS who are supporting the nearly 2,000 writers this month! Enter to win a $500 shopping spree by clicking this link and following the giveaway widget instructions. There will be a link at the end of each day’s post from October 15 through October 30.

I would love it if one of MY readers won!!! So, good luck and THANK YOU, THANK YOU for reading!

The Boy and the Backpack

October 20, 2015

6 Comments

Life in Lape Haven: Write 31 Days - The Boy and the Backpack. It was a beautiful shot, but a more beautiful moment to capture the joy of true thankfulness.

Every August our church hosts a backpack giveaway event at the local elementary school, providing new backpacks and school supplies to hundreds of children in the area and giving all the families an afternoon of free fun with a street fair, bounce houses, games, face painting, and food.

This year was the first time my hubby and I were able to take part in the ministry since the past few years we have been out of town or on vacation the weekend of the event.

I was truly anticipating getting to be involved and even more so when I was asked to serve that day as the event photographer. Not only did I take that as a compliment (I am not a professional photographer at all), but that meant that I got to be everywhere throughout the afternoon and really see all that was taking place.

Had I been working a game or swirling the cotton candy onto a stick, it would have been wonderful, too, but I would have missed out on all the little moments of interactions between our church volunteers and the children they served. I might not have seen the adorable little smiles sticky with fresh cotton candy devoured before they had cleared the line. I’d have missed the opportunity to coax a snarl out of one of the little boys who’d gotten his face painted like a wolf. I wouldn’t have been near the backpack distribution tables to see the delight on a little girl’s face when she received the brand-new pink butterfly backpack that she wanted.

I also wouldn’t have been beside those same tables to witness one of the most genuine displays of gratitude of the day from a young boy whom I hope to always remember.

To receive their backpacks, families started out by visiting the registration table, and then they made their way around the school to come in through the playground gates to the distribution tables. There the children had their pick of at least a dozen patterns and styles of backpacks. Once they had their bags, they are invited to enjoy the festivities and food with their families until the event was over.

That sounds simple enough until you consider that we gave away over 1,000 bags this year, which means hundreds of families waiting in line to register and pick out a bag. The line was wrapped around the block before the event even opened.

It was also in the afternoon, in August, which meant it was hot, very hot. Even with the snow cones, water bottles, and sprinkler systems set up, it was a long, hot wait in a very long line for these families, not because our people were inefficient – the organization was actually rather impressive- but because there were so many with a need.

So as I watched the children swarm the distribution tables once the event started, I felt honored to be a part of helping meet that need.

That’s when I noticed the boy in the bright green shirt. He was being very kind and patient as he waited for the type of bag he’d picked out. Looking through my lens, I was ready to capture the moment one of the volunteers handed it to him. Instead I was able to grab a different moment.

Glancing around him, he noticed other children opening their backpacks and checking out what pencils and other school supplies were inside them.

And he got excited, seriously excited.

He said, “There is stuff in it?!?”

When one of the workers confirmed that, yes, each bag comes with supplies, he exuberantly and genuinely said, “Oh, wow! Awesome! Thank you!”

And I caught THAT smile.

Honestly, I wish I’d had a video camera instead of just my regular camera at the time.

To think that he had waited in that tremendously long line on an extremely hot day without complaining, in the hopes of getting an empty, though new, backpack. That would have been an amazing enough gift for him.

He was so authentically grateful to receive more than he had expected, something that most of us would take for granted. Some pencils and paper, a box of tissues. He valued it and appreciated it, and he left a mark on my heart.

I know it is often said, in some way or another, that when you teach, you learn, or when you minister, you get ministered to.

I was doing one of the easiest, most fun jobs of the day (I even got in the bounce house for the sake of some cool pictures). It was truly a privilege to be a part of this wonderful ministry and serve with all the generous, hard-working, loving people who helped make it happen. That ministered to me, and it would have been enough of a gift for me.

But God, who always gives more than we expect, said, “Here you go. A beautiful shot, a more beautiful moment. Capture the joy of true thankfulness and remember it.”

Josiah and Colossians

October 19, 2015

3 Comments

Life in Lape Haven: Write 31 Days - Josiah and Colossians. In teaching my children Bible verses, they reminded me that I also need to be remembering what God's Word says.

Over the summer, I began giving Elijah some Bible verses to memorize. I tried to have a new one picked out for him every Monday morning, and then we would go over it throughout the week. If he could say it by himself without help on Sunday, then he earned a dollar toward his King’s Island fund.

It only took the first couple of days of going over the first verse for me to realize that Josiah was not going to be left out of this. He wanted his turn to repeat the words after Mommy. That was fine with me. Whether he could really remember them or completely understand them, he would be learning God’s Word. I searched for the most kid-friendly translations, and we always talked about the verses as we learned them.

Elijah memorized them easily and eagerly, but Josiah’s determination to learn them really surprised and delighted me.

Some of the verses we studied were John 3:16 (of course), Proverbs 1:7, Philippians 2:14 & 4:13, Luke 6:31, and Colossians 3:20 & 3:23.

One day during breakfast, as we were going over our verse for that week, which was Colossians 3:20, I recorded Josiah working on his verse. Here it is:

For just over 2, he was doing a really great job, but did you hear what he said at the end?

“Now yours turn.”

Hmmm.

Most people probably equate Memory Verses with Sunday school or Children’s Church, and thus, children. However, we are reminded continually throughout scripture of the importance of knowing God’s Word, of having it before us, around us, and in us. (Deuteronomy 6:6-9, for example).

Josiah’s words challenged me. I was teaching scriptures to them and remembering those verses as I taught them, but when was the last time I had purposely set out to memorize God’s Word for myself?

Having been in church all my life and having attended a Christian school from 6th grade through 9^th grade, I’ve had plenty of Memory Verses, whole chapters of Psalms, and even the Lord’s Prayer in Spanish (Thank you, Mrs. Bolds). Then, of course, teaching children for several years means that I’ve helped them learn many of the same verses I learned.

So, I know some scripture. But I definitely don’t know it all.

Now I understand that some people just aren’t good at memorizing. Some people can remember the words, but not always the reference (I’m there often).

However, having even a basic familiarity with what God has said makes it so much easier to find those Words when you need direction, encouragement, or even correction.

I don’t think God is looking so much for us to be able to perfectly recite the entire Bible, but He wants us to WANT to know it. To NEED to know it.

If we are serious to know His Word and do our best to study it, then He’ll help us recall what we need to when we need it.

Sometimes we just need a little reminder of all we need to remember.

“Your word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against You.” – Psalm 119:11

Remember to enter to win a $500 Shopping Spree from DaySpring.com!

DaySpring is celebrating all the amazing Write 31 Days READERS who are supporting the nearly 2,000 writers this month! Enter to win a $500 shopping spree by clicking this link and following the giveaway widget instructions. There will be a link at the end of each day’s post from October 15 through October 30.

I would love it if one of MY readers won!!! So, good luck and THANK YOU, THANK YOU for reading!

Elijah and His Wife

October 18, 2015

1 Comment

Life in Lape Haven: Write 31 Days - Elijah and His Wife. Praying for your spouse before you even have one.

As a little girl, I remember my dad telling stories about how, as a young teenaged Christian, he had begun praying for God to bring him the right wife. Knowing that the answer to those prayers had been my mom and seeing how God had used their marriage to bless them and those around them, I was inspired in my childhood to begin praying for my future husband.

I had to pray a little longer than my dad did, though, because while my parents got married the summer after Mom graduated high school, it wasn’t until I was 26 that I even met the man who would be my hubby.

However, no matter how long we had to pray, praying for and following God’s leading to our spouse and continuing to pray for them and follow His leading throughout marriage has been crucial to the success of our unions. My parents have been married for 40 years, and Brad and I have been married for over 7 years.

A couple of years ago, when Elijah was only 3, he and I had a conversation that encouraged me to hope that our family’s legacy of trusting God to direct us to our spouse would continue into the next generation.

One night Elijah was talking about how he was getting bigger “like Daddy,” and he said, “I wonder who my wife will be when I’m bigger?”

Before I had a chance to reply, he continued, “Hmmm…I’ll have to ask Jesus about that.”

My extremely pleased and impressed answer was, “Yes. That’s a great idea.”

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

You can enter to win a $500 Shopping Spree, thanks to DaySpring.com!

DaySpring is celebrating all the amazing Write 31 Days READERS who are supporting the nearly 2,000 writers this month! Enter to win a $500 shopping spree by clicking this link and following the giveaway widget instructions. There will be a link at the end of each day’s post from October 15 through October 30.

I would love it if one of MY readers won!!! So, good luck and THANK YOU, THANK YOU for reading!

My Boys and the Letter B

October 17, 2015

Add comment

Life in Lape Haven: Write 31 Days - My Boys and the Letter B. Three amusing quotes from my boys that came from misunderstandings or miscommunication.

It’s Saturday, and time for another round of simply amusing quotes from my boys, Elijah and Josiah.

Today’s quotes are brought to you by the letter “B” and by the number “3.”

“B” starts such words as “bark,” “Band-Aid,” “bleed,” “bite,” “Brown,” “bid,” and “buy.”

They are average, every day words, right? Nothing bewildering or befuddling about them. However, in these next three quotes, you can see that those words are all mixed up in a few funny misunderstandings or miscommunications for our boys.

1. Josiah and “Bark”

Until Josiah was over a year old, he stayed in the main sanctuary at church on Sundays with Hubby, my parents, and me. It wasn’t that he couldn’t have gone to the nursery, but since he was still nursing, it just made it easier to keep him nearby.

One Sunday when he was about 10-months-old he was sitting happily with his head on my shoulder as we listened to the message. Suddenly Josiah got very excited, lifting his head, looking over my shoulder at something behind us, and saying, “Ba! Ba! Ba!”

“Ba” was a recent addition to his growing baby vocabulary, and I knew that it was his word/sound for “dog.” (He was basically trying to say, “Bark.”)

Since I doubted there were any dogs at the church, I glanced back to see what he saw. Sitting behind us, smiling and cooing at my son as he “barked” at her, was a lady wearing a brown fur-trimmed coat.

I quickly turned back around, trying to contain my laughter, thankful that the lady behind us had no idea my child was trying to say she was wearing a dog around her neck.

2. Elijah and the Band-Aid

One morning, around about the same time Josiah had confused fur coats with living animals, my boys were playing in our living room, doing what they did pretty much every day for me: emptying all the toys out of the toy box and scattering them around the room.

Since Josiah was still perfecting the art of standing and was flirting with the idea of walking, it was no surprise when he tripped over a toy. When he fell, somehow he cut his finger enough to make it bleed just a little.

Elijah suggested that we put a Band-Aid on Josiah’s finger (they always love a reason to break out the Band-Aids).

Considering that Josiah still liked to put everything in his mouth, I answered, “I don’t think he’d leave it alone. He’d probably bite it off.”

Elijah looked at me in horror and replied, “His FINGER!?!”

In case you’re wondering, I meant the bandage.

3. Elijah and Alton Brown

From the time Elijah was little, Food Network has been a channel staple in our home because it’s generally a bit more family friendly than other main stations, including some of the kids’ cartoon channels. It teaches us all how to cook (mostly with ingredients we’d never buy), so it’s educational. Plus a mom can only take so much Caillou before she wants to reach into the TV and slap some sense into both that whiny little kid and his parents (one episode will do that easily).

This means that Elijah and Josiah have grown up watching Good Eats, Diners, Drive-Ins, & Dives, and one of our favorites, Cutthroat Kitchen.

For those unfamiliar with that show, Cutthroat Kitchen is a cooking competition hosted by our favorite Food Network guy, Alton Brown. During the three-round competition, chefs attempt to cook a specified dish within a given timeframe. To make things interesting, before and during their cooking time, Alton offers various cruel and unusual sabotages in an auction for the contestants to bid on to give out to their opponents, such as taking away the chef’s ability to taste the food he is cooking or having to use a child-sized kitchen as their kitchen.

Last summer, my grandparents’ church held a fundraising auction, and Elijah was surprisingly excited to attend his first auction. He was determined to take some of his own money with him to buy something.

Can you guess what he was planning to bid on?

When I asked him what he was going to do at the church auction, he told me, “I’m going to buy sabotages.”

So, too much Cutthroat Kitchen, maybe… sorry, Alton.

Remember, you can enter to win a $500 Shopping Spree, thanks to DaySpring.com!

DaySpring is celebrating all the amazing Write 31 Days READERS who are supporting the nearly 2,000 writers this month! Enter to win a $500 shopping spree by clicking this link and following the giveaway widget instructions. There will be a link at the end of each day’s post from October 15 through October 30.

I would love it if one of MY readers won!!! So, good luck and THANK YOU, THANK YOU for reading!

Elijah and the Lullaby

October 16, 2015

2 Comments

Life in Lape Haven: Write 31 Days - Elijah and the Lullaby. Making time to share precious moments

Oh, the glorious, miraculous hour of the day that is bedtime. Isn’t it wonderful?

After the often chaotic, frequently frustrating flurry of brushing teeth, washing faces, and all the rest of the stuff that goes in to getting two little boys ready for bed, comes the beautiful, snuggly settling-down time of day where my cuddly, pajama-clad children nestle close to my hubby and me for a bedtime book, a Bible story, and family prayers. Then it’s time for goodnight kisses and hugs, whispers of, “Good night” and “I love you, Mommy,” and tucking in our little ninjas.

Now, granted not every night is that idyllic. Some nights the boys are still hyped up from the day and don’t want to settle down, wiggling around and jumping off the bed to grab toys from around the room. Other nights they are over-tired, cranky, and fighting with each other over who gets to sit with Daddy or Mommy.

When we only had Elijah, bedtime was similar, with the exception of one thing. Every night right before we tucked him in, I sang to him. It was a carryover from when he was really little, and I sang to him while I nursed him.

With the arrival of Josiah, our bedtime routine got shifted around a bit. We’d read our book and Bible story, say our prayers, and tuck Elijah in, and then I would go feed Josiah before putting him to bed. Even after Josiah was weaned, the routine stayed the same.

Mommy and Elijah

Then one night last winter, as I was telling Elijah good night and tucking him in, he asked me, “Can you come back in and sing to me after you put Josiah in his bed?”

I realized in that moment that while I sang to Josiah once I took him into the nursery, I hadn’t sung to Elijah for quite a while. It made me a little sad to admit it.

So, I promised him I’d be back in as soon as Josiah was down.

That night I climbed up in his bed beside him, and he asked me to sing “Jesus Loves Me,” I think because he’d overheard me singing it to Josiah. Then after I sang, we talked, just a little, about our day. Then I kissed him good night, and left a very contented big boy cozy in his bed.

From then on, it became our thing. Every night, without fail, he would ask me, “Will you sing to me?” and I would come back in, cuddle up and sing him a lullaby of his choice. Some of his most requested songs were “Jesus Loves Me,” “Skinamarinky Dinky Dink,” “A Bushel and a Peck,” and “O Holy Night.” (Yes, singing a Christmas carol in the middle of July). He also liked when I made up songs about him, Josiah, and their cousins.

Always after I would sing, he wanted to talk. So we talked about all kinds of things. It’s where we talked about what it meant to be baptized, after he saw the story of John the Baptist and Jesus on the Kids Bible App. It’s where we talked about him starting kindergarten in the fall and all the fears and excitement and questions he was facing.

With all the transitions we’d gone through after bringing Josiah home, I hadn’t really been able to find much for Mommy and Elijah time, and clearly it was something that he was desperately craving. I remember telling him when I was pregnant with Josiah, that if he ever felt like he needed Mommy, all he needed to do was ask me for a hug or come sit with me if I were nursing Josiah. And he did do that, often. However, what we didn’t have was time to share with each other without the distractions of the house, dinner, or his daredevil little brother getting in to things.

Our new nighttime routine gave him his mommy back in a very special way.

Since he’s started school, we don’t get to have our Mommy/Elijah talks every night, just due to the fact that he HAS to go to sleep. On the nights we can’t, I sing to both the boys before we give hugs and kisses and tucks-in. However, on those days when we can, they are some of the most precious minutes of my day.

Oh, the glorious, miraculous hour of the day that is bedtime. Isn’t it wonderful?

Remember, you can enter to win a $500 Shopping Spree, thanks to DaySpring.com!

DaySpring is celebrating all the amazing Write 31 Days READERS who are supporting the nearly 2,000 writers this month! Enter to win a $500 shopping spree by clicking this link and following the giveaway widget instructions. There will be a link at the end of each day’s post from October 15 through October 30.

I would love it if one of MY readers won!!! So, good luck and THANK YOU, THANK YOU for reading!

Tag - child

Elijah and the Dream Job

The Boy and the Backpack

RELATED POSTS:

Josiah and Colossians

Elijah and His Wife

My Boys and the Letter B

1. Josiah and “Bark”

2. Elijah and the Band-Aid

3. Elijah and Alton Brown

Elijah and the Lullaby