Yummy in Carter's tummy

I know what the experts say. I've read all the parenting magazines and listened attentively to what the doctor says when it comes to feeding babies. Yes, I realize that babies shouldn't eat table food until they're 8 months old or something ridiculous. But guess what...I'm sure that my parents fed me from the table long before that magic age and I somehow survived. And I know that the pioneers didn't run down to Wal-Mart and buy Gerber baby food to feed their babies. And yet, they grew to be adults. (Yes, I also realize that the average life expectancy was somewhere around 40, but I'm convinced it had nothing to do with their eating habits as babies.)

All that said...Carter LOVES green beans. And it's a good thing because they are a staple at our house. Jason and Hannah pick on me because I literally cook them for every meal. (And I think Jason is refusing to eat them any more).

Last night, big sister Hannah took on the task of feeding her brother some of her green beans...and what a sight it was. See for yourself > > > HINT: Let it play all the way through once, and watch it again so it won't be "jumpy" > > >

Sweet little Carter chomped on them beans as long as she stuffed them in his little mouth. Notice him grabbing her hands at the very end to make sure she keeps 'em comin'! =]

I have by-the-book friends who would literally STROKE OUT if someone tried to feed their child anything other than pediatrician-approved items. And I vaguely remember having minor panic attacks at the thought of Hannah eating things she wasn't "supposed" to. With her, I think it was more that I was afraid of her not eating baby food any more...more of a convenience issue for Mommy. But everybody says you do things differently with your second one, and BOY, ain't that the truth!!

"Funny" for the day...

Signs

I love signs! Especially handwritten ones with words horribly misspelled! I am working on my on personal collection that I'll post soon, but in the meantime I couldn't resist sharing these I found online:

I wanna go to Heaven

Hannah thinks that the way to get to Heaven is through our potty. And why wouldn't she? When our fish died (fish being plural-- we can't seem to keep those little boogers alive), Hannah flushed them down the potty and said, "Bye bye, fish. Go to Heaven." And last night we discovered a spider floating in her potty. As she flushed him away, I asked her where he was going...of course she said he was on his way to Heaven.

So I asked her, "Do you know what Heaven is?" And she just shook her head. So I started to tell her about Heaven as I dried her off from her bath. I told her that Heaven is where Jesus and God are and about the streets paved with gold; the mansions; that it never gets dark; and that nobody is ever sad or sick.

Her response? "I wanna go." Of course she does!

I said, "Baby, I want you to go, too, but not for a long, long time." And I pray I get there before she does.

Sometimes I get so caught up in making sure my children have what they need to excel in life that I neglect to give them the tools to excel in the afterlife. My job is to make sure they get to Heaven, not to Harvard. (But if they get to Heaven by way of Harvard, then that's ok, too.)

Children have a way of reaching into the innermost depths of your soul and tugging at emotions and thoughts you don't even know you have. It's amazing how their view of life is so honest, so pure. And I thank God every day for giving me these little blessings.

Lessons learned

Becoming a parent changes everything. Your perspective on life in general. Your sleeping habits. Your eating habits. Even your bathroom habits (I don't think I've been to the bathroom alone since 2005).

Tonight as I was washing bottles, I started thinking about how much I've learned about life since I was blessed with my children. Here are a few of the top lessons I've learned.

It's possible to love someone so much it hurts.
I have a vivid memory of staring at Hannah when she was first born, thinking that I would give anything for her to never know pain, disappointment, heartache or fear. The thought of actual bumps and bruises wasn't as tormenting for me as the realization that she would one day cry from having her feelings hurt.

If I could, I would take all that away from my children.

I now have a greater appreciation for how God must have felt as Jesus prayed in the garden. They both knew the agony Jesus would soon endure, and Jesus went to his father in prayer, begging for Him to "fix" it. But God looked into the future and saw me and you and my children and your children, and said, "No, son. You have to do this." What love God must have for us!

It really does 'hurt me more than it hurts you.'
So my parents weren't just saying that to try to make me feel worse about what I'd done to get in trouble!

Disciplining my children is by far the most difficult part of being a parent. Because I love them so much, I know I have to make them mind. But it breaks my heart to know that my child is crying because of me. I want them to know they have to do what I say, no matter what, because it literally could be a case of life or death.

I tell Hannah that I love her 'all the way to the moon and back,' and I want her to behave so everybody else will lover her as much as I do. I'm sure there are parenting "experts" who will tell me I'm scarring her for life, but I don't want my children to be the ones everybody dreads. The ones that people whisper about and say things like "I wish they'd do something with that young 'un." I know people say that about unruly children...I've said it myself.

Proverbs 26:6 says, "Train up a child in the way he should go; Even when he is old he will not depart from it."

I'm not naive enough to think that my children will grow up to be perfect, but I do hope that I can instill in them a sense of right and wrong that will carry them through their lives as kind, loving and *hopefully* law-abiding citizens.

Time passes faster the older you get.
Last month I was in high school. Last week Hannah was born. And Carter was born yesterday. Or so it seems.

I sometimes forget how old I am. Not because I want people to think I'm younger than I really am, but because I honestly can't comprehend that time has flown by like it has.

It seems that since Hannah came along, the clock has been in fast-forward. Her first three years have been a blur, and I shutter to think how quickly the next 20 years will go. Carter's five little months have been so chaotic that I think I've blocked most of it from my memory. I watched him today rolling around on the floor, and then I realized that I didn't know he could roll over in both directions! He was even trying his best to say "mama". (Actually it was more like "mmmmmmaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh mmmmmmmmmaaaaaaaahhhhh", but it sounded like mama to me.)

I want to remember every second of my children's lives, and I want to enjoy them being babies. But I'd better act fast because Hannah will be getting married in a few weeks, and Carter will be headed off to college in a month or two.

*SOB*

Once a mother...

Becoming a mother has given me a new perspective on life, and I've been touched in ways I never could have imagined. I got this in an e-mail from a friend this morning, and had to pass it on:

At a zoo in California, a mother tiger gave birth to a rare set of triplet tiger cubs. Unfortunately, due to complications in the pregnancy, the cubs were born prematurely, and, due to their tiny size, they died shortly after birth.

The mother tiger, after recovering from the delivery, suddenly started to decline in health, although physically she was fine. The veterinarians felt that the loss of her litter had caused the tigress to fall into a depression.

The doctors decided that if the tigress could surrogate another mother's cubs, perhaps she would improve. After checking with many other zoos across the country, the depressing news was that there were no tiger cubs of the right age to introduce to the mourning mother.

The veterinarians decided to try something that had never been tried in a zoo environment. Sometimes a mother of one species will take on the care of a different species. The only 'orphans' that could be found quickly were a litter of weanling pigs. The zoo keepers and vets wrapped the piglets in tiger skin and placed the babies around the mother tiger.

Would they become cubs or pork chops? Take a look...

I witnessed something like this several years ago. We had an "adopted" cocker spaniel named Lady that, to our knowledge, never had a litter of puppies. (At least not as long as we had her.)Our cat had a litter of kittens and -- for whatever reason -- she abandoned them. I don't remember exactly how Lady ended up with the kittens, but we found her in the flower bed surrounded by those little mewling babies nursing away.

Well, since she didn't have puppies, we thought she was just "pretending" to feed them. But after taking a closer look, we found that Lady was actually making milk to feed her litter! She raised those kittens just like they were hers...bless her soul!

I've heard that adoptive mothers (of the human sort) sometimes experience something much like this. I guess it's God's way of helping us help each other...no matter what species we are.

I also recently saw a video that showed the amazing nature of mothers...a leopardess, after finishing off a baboon, discovers a tiny infant - a one-day-old baboon. In that moment, this young leopard forgets she is a hunter, and nurtures the baby baboon as if it were her own cub. See it here: http://www.maniacworld.com/the-night-the-leapard-lay-down-with-a-baboon.html.

A few pics from a braggin' Mama...

Ta-da! Hannah was so happy for Mommy to finally make a dress for her. She kept asking, "it is for me?"

Makin' biscuits with Mimi. Hannah and Mimi have the best time cooking together. When Hannah saw the flour come out of the cabinet, she asked, "Can I get my hands dirty, too?"

CHEEEEEESE! This is Hannah's whole-face, cheezin-it-for-the-camera grin. She's such a great little model!!

Baby blues. Laying on his tummy is NOT his favorite...but he obliges me for a few seconds. Just long enough for me to capture those big blue "Jason" eyes.

Bigfoot. Carter gets comfy while he waits for his supper. These days, those itty bitty jars of baby food just isn't enough for my big ole boy, so we're gonna have to start "supplementing."

6 unspectacular facts about me

I’ve been tagged by Bethany at The Akridges. So now I’m supposed to follow these rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Mention the rules on your blog.
3. List 6 unspectacular quirks about yourself.
4. Tag 6 bloggers by linking to them on your post, then commenting on their blogs to let them know "they’re it."

6 unspectacular facts about me:

1. I'm such a nerd that I used to play school with my imaginary friends...of course, I was the teacher. My daddy jokes that I had the smartest imaginary friends in town. Sad, huh?
2. I can't throw a ball. Not a baseball or softball or even kickball. I look like such a sissy.
3. I've read nearly every book Stephen King ever wrote.
4. "Fresh Prince" and "Sanford & Son" are my two favorite TV shows of all time.
5. I hate to UNload the dishwasher, but loading it doesn't bother me. Go figure.
6. My mama always told me that I would have been a good lawyer because (and I quote), 'You could argue the horns off a billy goat.' Now why would she say a thing like that?!

So there are my six unspectacular facts. I know you're all better of having read them.

Since I'm so new to this blogspot thing, I don't know six people to tag...but I'd love to hear from any of you who see this and like doing this sort of thing.

On the move...already!!

I can't believe I've already uttered the words, "Carter...where are you?" I've even heard Jason tell him "you can't go," when Carter was trying to follow Jason outside. Seriously...who would've every thought he would be moving around so good already! But put that boy in a walker and he can go wherever he wants. Well...until he runs into something he can't get around.

Tonight I found myself standing in front of Mama & Daddy's fridge, moving those little letter-shaped magnets up out of his reach. He had maneuvered his way over to the fridge and was having a grand time pulling at the towel hanging from the handle, but I could just see him grabbing one of those magnets and swallowing it...NOT a scene I'd like to see. These days, anything that brushes his little hand goes straight into his mouth.

Carter is such a gentle little giant, but I wonder if this is just a sign of things to come...

My little love bug

Now I know why pet rocks -- however ridiculous they may have been -- turned out to be a tremendous success. My beautiful, too-smart-for-her-own-good, and ever-so-tenderhearted daughter can literally make a pet out of anything.

For weeks, we had three pet Georgia grasshoppers (you know -- those humongous black & yellow creatures) that lived inside the "crooket" (Hannah's way of saying "cricket") cage on the back porch. Hannah was a great little grasshopper-keeper, faithfully dropping a few pieces of lettuce in there for them every day or so. And, believe it or not, they ate it and stayed alive until they died of old age...except for the one sole survivor that "beskated" (escaped).

Oh -- and there was that one really cool one that I caught for her that had wings that looked like leaves. Because it was "special," it got to live INside until I convinced Hannah that it was a mommy grasshopper who was sad because she missed her babies. Her tender little heart couldn't bear that thought, so she let "her" go.

Her latest "pet"?? Love bugs. Three of them. Don't ask me how THAT works, but somehow she managed to capture and domesticate three little love bugs. When I asked her what she was going to feed them, she said, "Ummmm...I think they like lettuce." Of course. What was I thinking?

Anybody know the lifespan of a love bug? I'm sure I'll find out soon enough.

Adventures in Candy Land

Hannah is the Candy Land Queen. Ever since she's discovered the joys of board games...er, board GAME...a daily game of Candy Land is mandatory in our household. Last night she recruited a new player...cousin Josh...to be her opponent (or victim). She made short work of poor Josh, exercising her powers as sole heiress to the Candy Throne and banishing him to the farthest reaches of the licorice forest.

What Josh didn't know is that Hannah's rules vary slightly from those recommended by the genuises who created the game.

For instance, in Hannah's version there's no "going back." This means that once you pass one of the coveted spaces that has a picture (candy cane, gingerbread man, 'dumdrop', etc.), you don't have to go back to those spaces if you draw one of those cards. Unless you're new to her game...then she messes with your head and makes you go back...but she never follows suit. Poor Pop got caught in that vortex the first time he played with her. (She told him that he had to go back but she didn't because then she wouldn't win...brilliant!!)

Also -- only Hannah is allowed to get the ice cream card. I actually caught her taking the card off the top of the deck (when it was my turn) and sticking it back in about halfway down. And there has been more than one occasion when she actually snatched the ice cream card from her opponent and replaced it with another (less appealing) card. Oh, and I should mention that she has the back of the ice cream card marked so that she knows it when it's face down.

Who knew a 3-year-old could be so sneaky??

She's even learned to talk smack (in 3-year-old terms). When you start getting close to one of the licorice spots (where you lose a turn) she'll say, "You're gonna get stuck." And she's usually right.

What's so sad is that to begin with, we "let" her win. But after a while we didn't have to. Jason -- bless his heart -- is so competitive that it was hard for him to purposefully lose a game of any sort. Even Candy Land. To a baby. But that's no problem for Hannah...she's the master.

I'd like to try a different board game with her just for a change of scenery, but I'm afriad of what would happen! I actually bought Trouble...and she can definitely play it...but she'd rather take the little pegs and put them on her fingers as "claws" so she can pretend to be Shere Khan (from Jungle Book). Not exactly what I intended when making that little purchase.

Maybe we'll try Old Maid or Go Fish...can she possibly cheat with those??