After weeks of practice, Chris' baseball team has finally started playing in the All-Star Tournament. We lost our first game yesterday, and are scheduled to play again tomorrow at 1pm.
There are certain things about this team that I am getting really tired of. There is one family whose son is on the team that I am getting sick of. All they say is that he's the best player in the league (I don't agree), so he should be playing every minute of every game.
SIDEBAR: In some aspects I understand this way of thinking. I think that Chris is the best player on his team. But I'm his mother and therefore am not the most objective person to ask.
All this family does is complain. There was even an incident at the field and a fist-fight almost broke out between his players older brother and one of the coaches. I didn't witness this event, so I don't really know what happened, but I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS!!!! This kids family is very loud, so when they get upset everyone hears about it. Of course, I shouldn't judge because I can be pretty loud myself. What these people don't understand is that the rest of the team hears about it too. This attitude is bringing down not only the fans of this team, but the team itself. So much of the energy has turned negative, even Chris has commented about it.
My experience with Chris makes me believe that kids get so much pressure from their parents when it comes to sports. Unfortunately, I have put pressure on Chris when I was doing what I thought was in his best interest. He gets so down on himself when he makes errors or didn't get "the big hit". He's told me before that "...I should be getting the big hits and making the big plays, Mom." This makes me feel bad. All I've really wanted from him is to go out and have fun, make friends, and improve. Parents can really ruin sports for a kid. When Greg was president of the league he got calls from parents whose kids were in T-Ball complaining about playing time or what position their kid was playing.
All parents get too caught up in this stuff, but some parents really cross the line. All I can say is that I'm really tired of this situation. If you really think that your son is the best player on the team, then why is he on the bench? Everyone else is wrong and your right? I'm getting to the point that I want to tell these parents that if you don't like it, take him off the team. Because I sure am sick of hearing about it.
All of that being said, I don't feel like I'm perfect in any of this. I've been known to make a complete ass of myself at a ballgame or two, but I guess we're all learning. I'm trying to get better with all of this. I have made it a point to be as positive as I can with these kids, especially with Chris.
Chris has made so much improvement on this team. He's always been a bit of a Drama King when it comes to injuries. He always thinks he's dying. In fact, he pulled himself out of a game a week ago because he "hurt" his arm. Really, he just scraped his arm. He got called out in front of the entire team by Roger. When Chris told me that I was pretty upset, I admit, but just talked to Chris about the situation. Yesterday, he got hit by a pitch. Greg and I just looked at each other, hoping that he learned something. He just trotted down to first base, you could tell that it hurt but he just kept on playing. I really hope that this is a lesson that sticks. This is just one thing that has improved with Roger and Johnnie as his coaches.
Another thing that I've noticed is that he worships Roger and Johnnie. If I hear one more time "...well Mom, Roger and Johnnie said..." I think I'll go nuts. Honestly, if they told him it would improve his game to run down Main Street naked, I think he'd consider it!!! And more than anything, his confidence has improved so much. He's having so much fun, and he's learning so much!
Well, that's about all I've got to say on that subject for right now. I just hope that there's a more positive atmosphere around this team. I'm going to do my part to make that happen.
Thanks Roger, Johnnie, Don, Popi, and Travis for all your time and effort you've spent with this team. You've made a difference with my son.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Friday, July 11, 2008
"MY DAY WITH DAD" and "HELP US, PLEASE HELP"
I had the opportunity to spend the day with Dad and I feel that I have some things to update. First of all: I had a WONDERFUL TIME. I always do when I spend time with Dad, he's amazing.
Anyway, when he woke up this morning, it looked like we might be having really tough day. He had an errand to run that he didn't want to go and do AT ALL and he didn't feel good. His head seemed really foggy. I was even a little bit nervous to take care of him alone. I really hated feeling that way, this was my Dad for crying out loud. I just didn't know what to expect.
Well, Dad and I drove in silence to run his errand. When we got to the distination, Dad quietly got out of the car, and was directed to where we needed to be. He quietly walked into the office, signed some papers, quietly thanked everyone for their help and assistance, and quietly left the building.
After kissing Mom good-bye there was more silence in the car as we drove to Smiths to pick up something for us to eat for lunch. Dad was his regular self when it came to what I wanted for lunch. He made it pretty clear that not only did he not want me to starve, but he wanted to make sure that I had anything I wanted. I thought that was very sweet, that was the Dad that I grew up with. There were also a couple of times that I had to just keep my mouth firmly shut (something I don't do very well) and let Dad take care of some things. Like: self check-out. He doesn't like to be disturbed:>
We got back to the apartment we both ate breakfast (we were home befor 9am) and I gave Dad his first dose of medication. By the time came for he second dose he was doing much better. His head didn't seem to be in the clouds as much. Infact, he started bossing Benjamin and myself around the apartment -- we moved furniture. By the time we were done: the living room furniture had been moved, the entire apartment had been dusted and vacumed, the kitchen had been cleaned, and some of Mom's papers had been "gone through". So: I feel my day with Dad went well. By the time we left this evening Dad seemed much better. He discribed it as: "...my head has come down from the clouds."
Before I left, I went and gave Dad a hug and kiss and thanked him for letting me come up to hang around. I told him I had a great time. In my opinion any time I can spend with my dad, is time that is absolutely well spent. I told him I'll come up again next week for at least 1 day. He told me that would enough time for him to figure out another long list of chores.:>
One thing that I learned today was that things are not perfect and aren't what we'd hoped, but we adjust. In my opinion Dad's disease is progressing much faster than anyone anticipated. It totally sucks and is really SCARY!! The one person I am in total awe of when it come to this crappy situation with Dad is Mom. I always thought my mother was an amazing woman, but watching her go through all this with dad while having to try to answer questions and concerns of 4 children and 4 children -in law and 9 grandchildren takes her to a different standard. My Mom Rocks!! I know that sounds juvenile but that's the only way I can think to describe her right now. My Mom is amazing!!!
One concern we all have right now is raising money for Dad's medical expenses. We were given several gift baskets at Dad's Retirement Party for us to sell. Greg has placed it on Ebay the link is on the post from July 6th. If you all could help us put the word out we would all really appreciate it. This first basket has tickets to the Steve Miller Band concert. Like I said we have several other baskets and more are being donated daily, so if you'd be interested in donating something to add to the auction, please let us know through this blog. Also could we all please put the word out that we have these items to sell. They were all donated and Mom and Dad could use as much as they can to pay for medication, doctor, and hospital bills. I KNOW THAT WE CAN MAKE THINGS HAPPEN TO REALLY HELP DEAL WITH THE BILLS, so any little help or idea please let us know asap.
Anyway, when he woke up this morning, it looked like we might be having really tough day. He had an errand to run that he didn't want to go and do AT ALL and he didn't feel good. His head seemed really foggy. I was even a little bit nervous to take care of him alone. I really hated feeling that way, this was my Dad for crying out loud. I just didn't know what to expect.
Well, Dad and I drove in silence to run his errand. When we got to the distination, Dad quietly got out of the car, and was directed to where we needed to be. He quietly walked into the office, signed some papers, quietly thanked everyone for their help and assistance, and quietly left the building.
After kissing Mom good-bye there was more silence in the car as we drove to Smiths to pick up something for us to eat for lunch. Dad was his regular self when it came to what I wanted for lunch. He made it pretty clear that not only did he not want me to starve, but he wanted to make sure that I had anything I wanted. I thought that was very sweet, that was the Dad that I grew up with. There were also a couple of times that I had to just keep my mouth firmly shut (something I don't do very well) and let Dad take care of some things. Like: self check-out. He doesn't like to be disturbed:>
We got back to the apartment we both ate breakfast (we were home befor 9am) and I gave Dad his first dose of medication. By the time came for he second dose he was doing much better. His head didn't seem to be in the clouds as much. Infact, he started bossing Benjamin and myself around the apartment -- we moved furniture. By the time we were done: the living room furniture had been moved, the entire apartment had been dusted and vacumed, the kitchen had been cleaned, and some of Mom's papers had been "gone through". So: I feel my day with Dad went well. By the time we left this evening Dad seemed much better. He discribed it as: "...my head has come down from the clouds."
Before I left, I went and gave Dad a hug and kiss and thanked him for letting me come up to hang around. I told him I had a great time. In my opinion any time I can spend with my dad, is time that is absolutely well spent. I told him I'll come up again next week for at least 1 day. He told me that would enough time for him to figure out another long list of chores.:>
One thing that I learned today was that things are not perfect and aren't what we'd hoped, but we adjust. In my opinion Dad's disease is progressing much faster than anyone anticipated. It totally sucks and is really SCARY!! The one person I am in total awe of when it come to this crappy situation with Dad is Mom. I always thought my mother was an amazing woman, but watching her go through all this with dad while having to try to answer questions and concerns of 4 children and 4 children -in law and 9 grandchildren takes her to a different standard. My Mom Rocks!! I know that sounds juvenile but that's the only way I can think to describe her right now. My Mom is amazing!!!
One concern we all have right now is raising money for Dad's medical expenses. We were given several gift baskets at Dad's Retirement Party for us to sell. Greg has placed it on Ebay the link is on the post from July 6th. If you all could help us put the word out we would all really appreciate it. This first basket has tickets to the Steve Miller Band concert. Like I said we have several other baskets and more are being donated daily, so if you'd be interested in donating something to add to the auction, please let us know through this blog. Also could we all please put the word out that we have these items to sell. They were all donated and Mom and Dad could use as much as they can to pay for medication, doctor, and hospital bills. I KNOW THAT WE CAN MAKE THINGS HAPPEN TO REALLY HELP DEAL WITH THE BILLS, so any little help or idea please let us know asap.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
HAVING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES
I'M TRYING TO MAKE SOME CHANGES ON MY BLOG AND IT'S NOT GOING WELL. THINGS SHOULD BE UP AND GOING SOON. PLEASE BE PATIENT. THANKS
Monday, July 7, 2008
The Bear of Love aka:Kolbie
What a weekend! Greg put in a new dishwasher (I helped) and we didn't end up in divorce court (this is a miracle, we always fight when we do home improvements). We went and saw WALL E as a family. I liked it, I thought it was funny. And most important: KOLBIE GOT BAPTIZED!!!!!
I cannot believe that my youngest child got baptised! I am WAY too young to say that!! Anyway, Kolbie (as usual) was amazing.
She planned the entire program. She called and asked Grandma (sort of) to play to piano. She asked her Aunt Stephanie to conduct the songs. She picked: I Love To See The Temple and I Am A Child Of God.
Her cousin Mason gave a speech on Baptism. He did an amazing job! I was going to get a picture of Mason and Kolbie but I forgot (of course). He did a great job. He sat right down in front of Kolbie and talked to her about baptism, what it meant and how important it was. I cannot thank him enough, he did a great job and he made Kolbie feel special. After Kolbie was baptized my Mom and Dad gave a speech about being Confirmed and The Gift of the Holy Ghost. They were great (as usual). I am so grateful that my parents could be a part of the program. With Dad being sick, he get confused easily, he also forgets things so I was happy that he and Mom were able to contribute to the program.
After Greg and I had Katie, we thought that we were done having kids. In fact, if you were to ask us we would have told you that we were DONE HAVING KIDS!!! But then, the Spirit gave both Greg and I the feeling that we weren't done having kids, and then Kolbie became part of our family!!! Looking back, I can't even believe that I ever felt that we were all done. I have a friend that was given a blessing after one of his children were born with severe disabilities and was told that this baby was going to cement his family together. He told me after I had Kolbie that she would be the cement of our family. I know that he's right.
Kolbie was blessed with a genuinely happy and grateful personality, and I have learned and continue to learn so much from her. My Mom said in her talk at the baptism: if you only get 2 hugs from Kolbie when she sees you, she usually upset with you. Kolbie is very affectionate. Almost every night I fall asleep snuggling with Kolbie. Kolbie is also a caregiver. She HATES that I'm sick, but she takes such good care of me. She has literally held my hair back when I've been throwing up -- this just shows me how much she loves me because she has a weak stomache. She is always asking me how I feel and if I need anything. Kolbie thinks about other people before she thinks of herself allot of the time (she is a kid). She takes good care of me! My Mom and Dad call her: The Bear of Love (Bear is one of Kolbie's nicknames), there's a funny story that goes along with that name, but it completely describes Kolbie.
Kolbie is a very good friend. Her best buddy is Annie Smith, and they have been friends for almost their entire life (we have pictures of them playing as babies). Aly talks about when Kolbie was over when she was a baby, she dropped pancakes down to Annie from her high-chair. Annie and Kolbie are about as close as you can be without being sisters. Chuck and Aly joke about Kolbie being their oldest third child! We feel the same about Annie.
Kolbie is a great sister. She truly loves Chris and Kate with all her heart (even though she is yelling at them as I write this). She wants the best for them and even cries for them when they get their hearts broken. Sometimes she can be a little devil with Chris and Kate too. She does things to make them mad on purpose, then turns around with that little devil smile on her face. She knows what she's doing.
Kolbie is beautiful. Honestly, Kolbie was the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen. She was just beautiful!!!! The doctor and nurses even commented on how beautiful she was (one even told me that they're supposed to comment on how beautiful every baby is, but Kolbie was the most beautiful baby she's seen). Now that Kolbie is growing up she is still one of Gods most beautiful creations, in my opinion (along with Chris and Kate). Boy, that last line sure sounded corny, but it's true! Kolbie is my wild child when it comes to what she wears. But no matter how wild (ugly) her clothes can be she looks beautiful!
My favorite thing about Kolbie is she is always telling us she loves us. Every time she leaves the house she yells "I'm going to .....'s house. I love you Mom!!!" That makes me smile every time I hear it!!
Kolbie is so many of the things that I hope to be one day. I wish that I could tell someone I love them as easily as she does. I wish that I could smile as often as she does. I wish I could love the little things as well as Kolbie does. I wish that I could make friends the way Kolbie does. I wish that I was a happy as Kolbie is all the time.
Kolbie is the cement of our family, we all learn so much from her, and I can't imagine what life would be like if she weren't with us. Sometimes I get mad at her, and her room is NEVER clean, and she sneaks food downstairs when she shouldn't, and she tries to get out of being in trouble by batting those big beatiful eyes at us, and she blames everything on her brother, but she sure keeps us all going. I love Kolbie so much. She completes our family!!
I cannot believe that my youngest child got baptised! I am WAY too young to say that!! Anyway, Kolbie (as usual) was amazing.
She planned the entire program. She called and asked Grandma (sort of) to play to piano. She asked her Aunt Stephanie to conduct the songs. She picked: I Love To See The Temple and I Am A Child Of God.
Her cousin Mason gave a speech on Baptism. He did an amazing job! I was going to get a picture of Mason and Kolbie but I forgot (of course). He did a great job. He sat right down in front of Kolbie and talked to her about baptism, what it meant and how important it was. I cannot thank him enough, he did a great job and he made Kolbie feel special. After Kolbie was baptized my Mom and Dad gave a speech about being Confirmed and The Gift of the Holy Ghost. They were great (as usual). I am so grateful that my parents could be a part of the program. With Dad being sick, he get confused easily, he also forgets things so I was happy that he and Mom were able to contribute to the program.
After Greg and I had Katie, we thought that we were done having kids. In fact, if you were to ask us we would have told you that we were DONE HAVING KIDS!!! But then, the Spirit gave both Greg and I the feeling that we weren't done having kids, and then Kolbie became part of our family!!! Looking back, I can't even believe that I ever felt that we were all done. I have a friend that was given a blessing after one of his children were born with severe disabilities and was told that this baby was going to cement his family together. He told me after I had Kolbie that she would be the cement of our family. I know that he's right.
Kolbie was blessed with a genuinely happy and grateful personality, and I have learned and continue to learn so much from her. My Mom said in her talk at the baptism: if you only get 2 hugs from Kolbie when she sees you, she usually upset with you. Kolbie is very affectionate. Almost every night I fall asleep snuggling with Kolbie. Kolbie is also a caregiver. She HATES that I'm sick, but she takes such good care of me. She has literally held my hair back when I've been throwing up -- this just shows me how much she loves me because she has a weak stomache. She is always asking me how I feel and if I need anything. Kolbie thinks about other people before she thinks of herself allot of the time (she is a kid). She takes good care of me! My Mom and Dad call her: The Bear of Love (Bear is one of Kolbie's nicknames), there's a funny story that goes along with that name, but it completely describes Kolbie.
Kolbie is a very good friend. Her best buddy is Annie Smith, and they have been friends for almost their entire life (we have pictures of them playing as babies). Aly talks about when Kolbie was over when she was a baby, she dropped pancakes down to Annie from her high-chair. Annie and Kolbie are about as close as you can be without being sisters. Chuck and Aly joke about Kolbie being their oldest third child! We feel the same about Annie.
Kolbie is a great sister. She truly loves Chris and Kate with all her heart (even though she is yelling at them as I write this). She wants the best for them and even cries for them when they get their hearts broken. Sometimes she can be a little devil with Chris and Kate too. She does things to make them mad on purpose, then turns around with that little devil smile on her face. She knows what she's doing.
Kolbie is beautiful. Honestly, Kolbie was the most beautiful baby I'd ever seen. She was just beautiful!!!! The doctor and nurses even commented on how beautiful she was (one even told me that they're supposed to comment on how beautiful every baby is, but Kolbie was the most beautiful baby she's seen). Now that Kolbie is growing up she is still one of Gods most beautiful creations, in my opinion (along with Chris and Kate). Boy, that last line sure sounded corny, but it's true! Kolbie is my wild child when it comes to what she wears. But no matter how wild (ugly) her clothes can be she looks beautiful!
My favorite thing about Kolbie is she is always telling us she loves us. Every time she leaves the house she yells "I'm going to .....'s house. I love you Mom!!!" That makes me smile every time I hear it!!
Kolbie is so many of the things that I hope to be one day. I wish that I could tell someone I love them as easily as she does. I wish that I could smile as often as she does. I wish I could love the little things as well as Kolbie does. I wish that I could make friends the way Kolbie does. I wish that I was a happy as Kolbie is all the time.
Kolbie is the cement of our family, we all learn so much from her, and I can't imagine what life would be like if she weren't with us. Sometimes I get mad at her, and her room is NEVER clean, and she sneaks food downstairs when she shouldn't, and she tries to get out of being in trouble by batting those big beatiful eyes at us, and she blames everything on her brother, but she sure keeps us all going. I love Kolbie so much. She completes our family!!
Monday, June 30, 2008
Decisions
There are so many different things that I could write about today, and many of those things are so hilarious you'd laugh till you cried (Aly -- I'm still working on that t-shirt), but I feel like being serious.
I have a very serious decision to make over the next few weeks, and I'm stumped. I could use some help.
As you know, I've been dealing with some really serious health issues lately. The biggest issue is that I've had so many kidney stones and surgeries and procedures to repair or retrieve stuck stones I have pretty serious nerve damage. Long story short: I feel like I'm having kidney stones all the time, when I'm not. I still have tons of stones in my kidney's, but they have taken up residence and decided to not move for the time being.
The problem that I have is that I'm in pain from this nerve damage all the time. My life is not my own. I have to take pain medication everyday. HOWEVER! I am happy to report that I don't take the maximum amount of the pill and I can't wait until I don't need them anymore.
The doctor thinks that it's time that we did what's called Spinal Cord Stimulation. Basically, they put an implant in that helps control the pain impulses sent to your brain. The doctor puts leads into the space between the spinal cord and the back bone to control the pain impulses from certain nerves. The leads are attached to a devise that is implanted under the skin. I would control the devise by remote control depending on how bad my pain is. I think the whole idea sounds like something that you'd see in a bad sci-fi film.
It's a 2 part procedure to get everything all done. During the first operation they place the leads but don't implant them under the skin. Yep. They'd be sticking right out my back. They'd stay that way for about 5 days, until I go into the dr office and they remove them. IF the leads seemed to help, then they would take me back to the OR (and another IV-- you'd think they wouldn't bother me by now, but they do) replace the leads and implant the device.
I just don't know how I feel about having an implant in my body. I'm only 34. I don' want this to keep limiting what I do. I want (and need) to go back to work, I need to get this situation under control, but I don't know if this is the right way for me to go. The idea of an implant and something inside my body creeps me out. I don't know how I feel about any of this.
There are things on my bucket list that I want to do, but I don't know if I'll be able to with an implant. Like run a marathon. I know it sounds stupid, but I don't know if I can give up certain things just yet.
If there's another way to get things under control I'd better find it FAST!
I have a very serious decision to make over the next few weeks, and I'm stumped. I could use some help.
As you know, I've been dealing with some really serious health issues lately. The biggest issue is that I've had so many kidney stones and surgeries and procedures to repair or retrieve stuck stones I have pretty serious nerve damage. Long story short: I feel like I'm having kidney stones all the time, when I'm not. I still have tons of stones in my kidney's, but they have taken up residence and decided to not move for the time being.
The problem that I have is that I'm in pain from this nerve damage all the time. My life is not my own. I have to take pain medication everyday. HOWEVER! I am happy to report that I don't take the maximum amount of the pill and I can't wait until I don't need them anymore.
The doctor thinks that it's time that we did what's called Spinal Cord Stimulation. Basically, they put an implant in that helps control the pain impulses sent to your brain. The doctor puts leads into the space between the spinal cord and the back bone to control the pain impulses from certain nerves. The leads are attached to a devise that is implanted under the skin. I would control the devise by remote control depending on how bad my pain is. I think the whole idea sounds like something that you'd see in a bad sci-fi film.
It's a 2 part procedure to get everything all done. During the first operation they place the leads but don't implant them under the skin. Yep. They'd be sticking right out my back. They'd stay that way for about 5 days, until I go into the dr office and they remove them. IF the leads seemed to help, then they would take me back to the OR (and another IV-- you'd think they wouldn't bother me by now, but they do) replace the leads and implant the device.
I just don't know how I feel about having an implant in my body. I'm only 34. I don' want this to keep limiting what I do. I want (and need) to go back to work, I need to get this situation under control, but I don't know if this is the right way for me to go. The idea of an implant and something inside my body creeps me out. I don't know how I feel about any of this.
There are things on my bucket list that I want to do, but I don't know if I'll be able to with an implant. Like run a marathon. I know it sounds stupid, but I don't know if I can give up certain things just yet.
If there's another way to get things under control I'd better find it FAST!
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Devotion
When I got home from church I turned on the TV and there was nothing on and soon found myself watching: A SOCCER GAME!!
You all know that I LOVE baseball and can tolerate football, but I really hate soccer. At least I thought I did.
I don't understand the rules and it was about as fun as watching paint dry until about three quarters of the way through the first half. The score was 1-0 for Spain and then: the captian for Germany got hurt. No bid deal right? Wrong. The poor guy was going to try and hit the ball with his head (I think this is called a header) and bonked heads with his opponinent and cut his head open. And again I ask: what's the big deal? Well, the big deal is: the guy was laying on the grass bleeding everywhere and the medical team came right out onto the field, and sewed his head up right there in the middle of everything. They didn't even stop playing!
Now, that's what I call sacraficing yourself for the game! No time out, no nothing!!! Everyone just went right on playing while the guy got 4 stitches in his head!! The only delay when when the ref (I think that's what they call them in soccer) ran by the guy and yelled at him he needed to go change his jersey because the one he had on had blood all over it! That's what I call devotion!
Just thought I'd share.
You all know that I LOVE baseball and can tolerate football, but I really hate soccer. At least I thought I did.
I don't understand the rules and it was about as fun as watching paint dry until about three quarters of the way through the first half. The score was 1-0 for Spain and then: the captian for Germany got hurt. No bid deal right? Wrong. The poor guy was going to try and hit the ball with his head (I think this is called a header) and bonked heads with his opponinent and cut his head open. And again I ask: what's the big deal? Well, the big deal is: the guy was laying on the grass bleeding everywhere and the medical team came right out onto the field, and sewed his head up right there in the middle of everything. They didn't even stop playing!
Now, that's what I call sacraficing yourself for the game! No time out, no nothing!!! Everyone just went right on playing while the guy got 4 stitches in his head!! The only delay when when the ref (I think that's what they call them in soccer) ran by the guy and yelled at him he needed to go change his jersey because the one he had on had blood all over it! That's what I call devotion!
Just thought I'd share.
Friday, June 27, 2008
Lesson Learned
Yesterday, I was spending the afternoon watching the final game of the Baseball World Series between Fresno State and Georgia (Chris recorded it on our DVR) and Chris asked me: "Hey Mom? Why is it bad if people have sex with lots of people? I know that you tell us we shouldn't do that. And we learn that at church, but why?"
I was caught completely off guard by this question, so I took a deep breath counted to ten and answered the question the best that I could. I won't go into the specifics but Chris and I were able to have a very candid discussion about sex and why it's important to stay morally clean. The entire conversation lasted about 3 minutes and then we were back to betting on whether or not Gordon Beckham would play in Double A or Triple A next year.
Then, later that night, after Greg and the kids came home from visiting his Mom for her birthday Kate snuggled up to me and we chatted for about an hour. It was great! We laughed and joked and we even cried a little. Kate isn't one to really open up allot, but she did last night. She told me how she felt about her Grandma Kate, and what she thinks about her PaPa being very sick. She also told me how she feels about other family members and how things are going in our home. It was great to just listen.
I don't want to give the impression that we are always having these "learning and teaching moments" (funny thing, I'm supposed to be the one teaching and end up learning) all the time at our house, but they do happen.
The thing that I learned from my kids yesterday is that they talk when THEY are ready.
I was able to talk to Chris about some very grown up things, but he started the conversation. It wasn't a "...come sit down son, we need to talk..." situation. We were doing something he wanted to do and he felt comfortable asking (what could be) a difficult question. And I (hopefully) answered the question so he really heard me.
My time with Katie taught me allot too. She told me how she felt about so many things that I thought I already knew the answer to. She was honest about some things going on at home, and I really appreciate that. She also reminded me that she's still a little girl. She acts so grown up sometimes, I forget that she still needs me. I loved that she cuddled and talked to me. In fact, I fell asleep last night cuddling with both of my beautiful daughters.
I guess the moral of the story is: Kids will talk to you when they want to talk to you'd better be ready to listen.
I was caught completely off guard by this question, so I took a deep breath counted to ten and answered the question the best that I could. I won't go into the specifics but Chris and I were able to have a very candid discussion about sex and why it's important to stay morally clean. The entire conversation lasted about 3 minutes and then we were back to betting on whether or not Gordon Beckham would play in Double A or Triple A next year.
Then, later that night, after Greg and the kids came home from visiting his Mom for her birthday Kate snuggled up to me and we chatted for about an hour. It was great! We laughed and joked and we even cried a little. Kate isn't one to really open up allot, but she did last night. She told me how she felt about her Grandma Kate, and what she thinks about her PaPa being very sick. She also told me how she feels about other family members and how things are going in our home. It was great to just listen.
I don't want to give the impression that we are always having these "learning and teaching moments" (funny thing, I'm supposed to be the one teaching and end up learning) all the time at our house, but they do happen.
The thing that I learned from my kids yesterday is that they talk when THEY are ready.
I was able to talk to Chris about some very grown up things, but he started the conversation. It wasn't a "...come sit down son, we need to talk..." situation. We were doing something he wanted to do and he felt comfortable asking (what could be) a difficult question. And I (hopefully) answered the question so he really heard me.
My time with Katie taught me allot too. She told me how she felt about so many things that I thought I already knew the answer to. She was honest about some things going on at home, and I really appreciate that. She also reminded me that she's still a little girl. She acts so grown up sometimes, I forget that she still needs me. I loved that she cuddled and talked to me. In fact, I fell asleep last night cuddling with both of my beautiful daughters.
I guess the moral of the story is: Kids will talk to you when they want to talk to you'd better be ready to listen.
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