Life with Charley

Friday night Savannah (age 6) finally convinced Mandy to let her have her hair cut short.

Charlotte (age 4 and nicknamed Charley) wanted hers cut also. Mandy told her they had just trimmed her hair maybe next time they would see about cutting it short.

Saturday morning, the only day Dave & Mandy get to sleep in, they are awakened by screaming and crying at 7:30. Savannah rushes into their room and says something about Charley being cut.

They bolt out of bed and race to Charley who is still crying, looking her over intently they do not see any blood, Charley is crying too hard to tell them where she is cut and Mandy finally notices on the left side that Charley has some hair cut off.

They calm her down so she can answer the question “ who cut your hair?”, she finally looks up and says to Mandy (Charley is holding the scissors in her hand during this whole ordeal) – “Don’t you b’member you did it last night?”

Things I've learned from kids...

Thing's I've learned or heard through the years from kids.

There should be a sign in the cereal aisle requiring one adult per child. Otherwise it can get ugly - arguing over which cereal we should get this week. Mostly based on TV commercials not taste. Who's turn it is to pick, who gets the toy inside etc.

When Grocery shopping with a teenager you are better off giving him $5 and leaving him at the stores cafe.

Angie then age 4 informed me as I was clipping coupons out of the newspaper that she knew what Stayfree Maxi pads were for. Hesitantly, I replied really? What are they for? Angie's reply was you wrap them around your tennis racket handle for a better grip. I've watched some tennis matches over the years and have yet to see that particular grip enhancement used.

When teaching a teenager to drive (at the time it was David) the most important thing to remember is to phrase each instruction with "when I tell you to...." I can still remember David asking how do you see when you back up....as he put the car in gear and hit the gas and we went backwards across the yard. Good thing we have 3 acres.

Logic of the youngest child can't be argued with. Angie and David came home from school and found a pan of brownies that had not been cut.....

Angie: cut the brownies Mom won't care
Dave: you sure?
Angie: sure we can have one.

Mom when she comes home- who said you could have brownies.

Dave - Angie did
Angie - but you cut them
Dave - but you said Mom wouldn't care
Angie - but you cut them

It did not matter what Dave said - Angie's comeback was always you cut them.

Ellie 11 to Savannah - Shut up
Savannah 5 - watch your mouth
Charley -4 = that's not fair Ellie can't see her mouth

Savannah 5 - asks Tiny how old he is on his birthday he tells her 56 - her reply - WOW I didn't know people could get that old.

Savannah's birthday was on a Tuesday this year so we went down the Sat/Sun before to celebrate. She reminded us several times that she was not 6 yet. Asked if we were coming back on Tuesday for her real birthday. I said no we had to work. Tuesday evening I call to wish her a happy birthday - first thing she asks is - Are you at work? when I reply - NO - She wants to know if we are on our way for cake.

Ellie then about age 5 - announces out of the blue - my Daddy sleeps naked. This is in front of her Mom, Grandfather, grandmother and Great Grandmother.

Ellie then age 5 as we are traveling in the car - announces my Mommy and Daddy go into the store and leave us in the car. Grandpa is starting to sputter what!! I asked do they both go in? to which Ellie replies - no one of them stays in the car with us but the other one goes in and leaves us.

Sunday Morning getting ready for church at Dave's. Angie sends the four girls in to brush their teeth. Angie fusses at one and tells them to put that brush back it is hers. then starts the we can't find our toothbrushes, Angie asks when do you have them last? Reply was - when we went to KY - maybe they are still in the suitcase (that was at least 6 weeks before) about this time the father figure comes down the hall, working on straightening his tie and getting ready to leave to go over his sermon one more time before church - and he quizzes them. It turns out only Ellie the oldest knows where her brush is and the other 3 have apparently been using hers after she left for school. Think of it.....and their other Grandpa is a Dentist.

The girls talk Dave into keeping a stray puppy. They name him Max. After a month or so as it grows, puts on weight they discover Max is really a girl. Dave explains to the girls that sometimes when they are little you can't tell but then when the get older you can and that Max is really a girl. Charley (short for Charlotte) later at supper asks - so does that mean when I get older I will be a boy?

I now know that the handle on the passenger side of the car/van inside is called the Oh dear bar - it is to hold onto when Momma turns, or stops suddenly - that is according to Jenna who says her Daddy grabs it and says Oh Dear.

Pray for You

Much to my children's shock I've started listening to country music. My favorite are what I call silly country songs. The latest fav is one called Pray for You. It starts out talking about how this guy has started going back to church after his life has fallen apart. He listens to the preacher tell him what to do about not hating those who have done you wrong, you have to let the good Lord do His job and you just pray for them. Then the silly part takes over as he lists what he is praying for, That brakes go out running down a hill, that a flower pot falls from a window sill and knocks you in the head like I would like to etc. and just know wherever you are I pray for you. You just keep messing up and I'll pray for you.

I can't help it, I crack up every time I hear the song. Knowing that we should pray for those who have somehow wronged us and actually doing it are two different things. The human part of me liked the prayers listed in this song. How many times do we pray and really hope that we can just then sit back and watch God take care of someone that has hurt us. What if God's way of taking care of the situation is for us to make the first move. After all sometimes the person who hurt us does not even realize it. So how can they ask for forgiveness when they don't realize they crossed some line.

The song just contrasts to me God's forgiveness and man's - God has to look at things we do and want to nudge that flower pot off the window sill when we walk by to get out attention. Instead He loves us, offers us complete forgiveness and then miracles of miracles He forgets the sin. He is not there just waiting for us to mess up again so he can zap us, He is walking with us to help us truly change our lives if we rely on Him.

Yes I will still smile when someone says I'll pray for you, but I hope they are praying through God's vision and not man's.

Christmas 2009

This Christmas is one of changes. I sit at 1 am Christmas morning writing because I can sleep - which is weird for me.

I sit in my sons living room where in a few short hours 4 excited girls will bound in to see what Santa brought them. This is the first Christmas in a number of years that we haven't had Christmas morning at our house.

Christmas Eve the girls opening presents, bouncing up and down with excitement over an Ipod, head bands, baseball gloves, toe socks, games, a watch for one, a purse for another. Yet to me the most memorable is the gift that my 10 year old granddaughter gave her dad. It was a puzzle with of a short story about what Christmas meant to her.

She was excited because this year they didn't have to travel as long to get to grandparents houses but what touched me most was that she said Christmas Eve always started with the reading from Grandpas absolute favorite book Luke 2 in the New Testament. I had to stop and think how proud my Mom would be to know that a tradition she started over 50 years ago was being carried on by her Children, Grandchildren and Great Grandchildren. That her Granddaughter was sharing the Christmas story in Africa to those who had not heard it. That truly is the best present of the season being reminded of past generations and current that are keeping Christ in Christmas.

Merry Christmas to all

The Ghost of Christmas Past

I looked through some of my sisters photos of Christmas past on line and through a Christmas scrapbook I have of each Christmas since the kids were little. I pause each time I come across the photo of our first Christmas in Virginia. I think it was the first time that we were not in Nebraska for Christmas. Money was tight with just moving and about all David got from Santa was a plastic train set that was battery operated. I look at that picture with what now I would consider so little under the tree and see the excitement and joy of a little boy as he watches the train going around on the track. He could have cared less that there was not an abundance of gifts because there was an abundance of love. He reveled in the joy of a new toy. He enjoyed the gift to its fullest.

Then I stop, think of the tremendous gift we were all given that first Christmas. It was given with an abundance love, with joy that we should revel in and we should enjoy that gift to its fullest and most importantly share that gift. That gift should be as contagious as a small child's laugh and excitement over a new toy. It should infect those around us so that they feel God's love and want to share in that gift.

Black Friday

Black Friday - Gammy's Version

The grand kids came on Wednesday and the chaos of having 6 extra people in the house started. It is something I look forward to and yet when they leave to go to "the other Gammy's house" Grandpa and I both sit with our feet up enjoying the quiet.

But I wouldn't trade the chaos for anything. We learn so much, like Savannah (5) and Charlie (3) think it is perfectly OK to take showers with boys. (by the way Charlie is short of Charlotte). Jenna (8) was told by a boy at school that she was hot but she informed her parents when she got home not to worry she felt OK. There is a volume control on the TV in the back bedroom and it unfortunately goes all the way up to 24 on that dial. Charlie likes to turn it up loud and then fights over who gets to sit the closest. Of course these fights have to be shouting battles so that she can be heard over the TV.

Savannah has band aids on her Santa list - because she wants a band aid whether she needs it or not. Ellie (10) has Chocolate on her list - because she wants to be sure to have plenty, definitely has some Case gene's in there somewhere. Ellie wanted to go shopping on black Friday just to see what it is like - not because she had anything to buy - but she wanted to go. Grandpa and I took her to town when he went to put his check in the bank so that she could see the parking lots jammed with people.

Have also discovered when the chocolate milk jug gets down to one glass left it is best for Gammy to drink it - it saves lots of arguing later (someone has to do it and I'm willing to make the sacrifice). Jenna has turned into the bottomless pit - she finished her grilled cheese, then ate what was left of Savannah's and Charlies. Thursday for breakfast she had 2 pieces of toast, cereal, cranberry bread, banana and an apple and was still looking for something to eat.

Jenna made the statement that this Thanksgiving dinner was really good - I should note it is not necessarily my cooking but the fact that this is the first year she ate the dinner and not just a PBJ sandwich.

Yet in the midst of the chaos I hear feet in flip flops coming down the hall and start to fight the tears because I know it is not the original flip flop queen, who for the first time in her life won't be home for the holidays but another, younger little blond haired girl coming down that hall with the familiar flip flop sound.

I don't know how parents coped before the Internet when their children went overseas as missionary's or when they go to some part of the world where they don't have daily access. I thank God that she is safe and so willing to serve and for the fact that we get to see her online and share in her life there in some small way.

So I sit and am so thankful that my son and his family are here to share Thanksgiving dinner, in putting up the tree (did you know that when you pull a box of ornaments out in a room with four little girls those ornaments are on the tree in less than 5 minutes - amazing) and hanging the stockings up. Yet there are still the pulls on my heart because the Christmas Elf, Personal Shopper and Gift Wrapper is where God wants her to be and I find myself trying to deal with the fact that that happens to be in Africa and not Gum Spring, VA, and as she said in one of her blogs.. For this, I have Jesus.