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I imagine that most parents have the same problem I have – going to the store and walking out without buying something for their kids!  And this is not Callie’s issue, it’s mine.  She doesn’t have to be with me, and even if she is with me, I show far more interest in buying her things than she does in getting them for herself.  It will be the same thing with Justus, but right now Callie is at the stage where she is excited about everything, and it’s so much fun to watch her with a new toy.

Yesterday I heard her say “puppy” for the first time, and so while at the store today, when I laid eyes on this puppy, I had to buy him for Callie Grace.  She has taken an instant liking to him and carries him wherever she goes.  As you can tell from the picture, she also has tried to feed him her cheerios.  So kind. 🙂 And thankfully this gift for her doesn’t make any noise, so I shouldn’t have any regrets at 2am when I’m stumbling in the hallway with Justus and land on a little wind-up bunny that says “whee!!!”.  Not that I would know anything about that….

I’m reminded of Matthew 7:11. ” If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him!”

Callie Grace loves her bear, and decided to put him in Justus’s swing and cover him with her blanket.  She then proceeded to swing him in a manner that made me thankful he wasn’t a living being!  I’ll have to watch and make sure she doesn’t try to show her love quite as enthusiastically when Justus is in the swing.

Philip and I have been discussing words that we don’t want to say around Callie and Justus.  This is especially important now that Callie is repeating so much of what we say.  So far we’ve ruled out saying stupid, hate, sucks, and of course any curse words, not that curse words are a normal part of our vocabularies!

So basically we love everything and everybody.  Hmmm….

This makes TV watching around the babies rather tricky, since even commercials have many words I don’t want them to say.  I always thought I’d be more discerning from day one about what I’d watch on TV around the babies, but then when Callie didn’t sleep for the first 3 months of her life, I logged in a lot of hours on the couch in front of the TV in the middle of the night (thank goodness for the invention of the DVR, or I would be the owner of multiple vacuum cleaners I bought on the Home Shopping Network!).  This is really an excuse, and not even a good one, for not being more careful.  I was thinking about this as Callie came running into the living room when Law and Order came on – she loves the opening music for it!  It’s just so easy as parents, or maybe just as humans, to make the easy choice that requires no sacrifice or change on our parts.  Maybe it’s just that now as a parent I’m more aware of my propensity to make the easy choice, because it’s not just my life that my choices have a significant impact on.

At times I wish that the Lord had called me to the mission field overseas, somewhere where having TV and worldly influences on my children wouldn’t be such an issue, but instead I have to make a conscious decision on a regular basis regarding my words, actions, and choices.  Not that people in the mission field don’t have these issues as well, I think they must just come in a different form.

At least the form my issues have come in doesn’t include living without electricity, plumbing, Facebook, and Starbucks!  However, I am having to learn to accept the fact that I am in a mission field that includes mountain lions, snow, bears, coyotes, snow, elk, and of course, snow.  That’s wild enough for me.

Today we had a family outing to the mall.  That may not sound like much of a big deal, however the mall is “down the hill”, as the locals say, but it’s a mountain to me!  Also, here’s a list of what it takes to take a 3 month old and a 16 month old out for half a day: 4 bottles, one bottle of milk, formula, a juice sippy cup, a banana, diapers – size 2 and size 4, wipes, extra outfits in the event of an accident, burp cloths, bibs, cheerios, books, cookie monster, a pacifier, blankets, coats and hats (layering is a big deal here in Colorado), Silly Songs with Larry, a double stroller, two car seats, random toys that hang from said car seats, and many prayers for safety when I’m turned around in the front seat, trying to hand Callie the book that fell or give Justus his pacifier as we’re headed down “the hill”.  I must admit to getting both kids ready and out the door, in the car and out of the drive when I realized I forgot to put my own coat on, and I can’t remember if I brushed my teeth or if the door to the back porch is locked.

And yet, this is the best time I’ve ever had in my life.  The sight of Callie Grace sitting in her booster seat, eating french fries and watching the carousel, Justus in the stroller, staring at a duck and smiling as usual, Philip sitting beside me, holding my hand and getting me refills of Dr. Pepper, Callie saying “hi!!” to everyone we pass, these are things that I treasure, that I will miss so much in such a short time!  It’s so important to remind myself of this in the moments that overwhelm me, in the moments that I feel like I’m just trying to get by and get to the next day.  What a waste of precious time that is!  I’m certainly guilty of it, and I daily pray that the Lord will bless me with the ability to appreciate these days, these little things, and to let go of the things that don’t matter, like Callie eating cheerios from under the couch and Justus using a pink burp cloth that was Callie’s because all of his blue ones are dirty (sorry Philip! 🙂 ).

Right now both kids are asleep, Justus swaddled and in his bed, Callie in her crib with her two bears, her blanket and pacifier.  I have a stack of books to read, laundry that needs to be done, and bottles to wash.

So I’m going to sit on the couch and watch Law and Order with Philip.  It’s the little things that are precious.