Mother's Day Breakfast

Mother's Day Breakfast is a tradition in our family that goes way back. When our children were young, their idea of such a feast was so wonderful. Their daddy would allow them to do their version. I would be presented with a plate of a bananas or an apple, jelly beans, red hots, bread with jam, and various other items that the children would think to be the perfect breakfast.

As they grew up, the food on the plate changed, but the enthusiasm did not.

Heather has been planning Sunday morning breakfast with Dorothy for a week. She has promised her that they would make breakfast together.

Yesterday, Chris told Heather that he was going to be off on Mother's Day. She was so excited. He has been planning the day off for two weeks now.

The day of the Mother's Day Breakfast was changed to this morning. Dorothy was so excited. Brian had decided to join in on this great event.

Heather began by grinding the wheat, some corn, and barley together for pancakes. Then Dorothy and Brian joined her in the kitchen and helped her add the rest of the dry ingredients into the flour. Dorothy added the baking soda and Brian added the baking powder. They each took turns stirring. They are learning that to stay in the kitchen they are to totally obey Mommy.

Cooking is the one event in the children's lives that they want to participate in from start to finish, so the process is a great teachable moment about following directions, taking turns and group participation.

The next step was to put together the wet ingredients. Heather pulled out two eggs and as Brian observed, Dorothy was allowed to crack the eggs and open them up into the bowl for the first time, then Brian was allowed to scramble the eggs. Dorothy then poured the buttermilk into the measuring cup while Heather held her finger at the level where she needed to stop. Then Heather added the vanilla.

Dorothy stirred the wet ingredients into the dry as Brian cheered, and then he was given his turn to stir.

As Brian sat and watched, Dorothy poured the batter onto the hot griddle and stood watching and waiting for the time to turn the pancakes. By the time she turned the third pancake, she was an expert pancake flipper. Then it was Brian's turn at the stove and he was so excited to be Mommy's helper.

Dorothy was allowed to use a knife to cut her own pancakes for the first time at this momentous breakfast. She was so proud of her accomplishments of the morning.

Since Brian is the man in the house when Daddy and Granddad are gone, he said the prayer over breakfast. "God. Thank you for this food. In Jesus' name. Amen!"

As we sat and ate our pancakes with maple and cinnamon syrup, and a cold cup of whole milk, Heather and I decided that these were truly the best pancakes that we had ever eaten. We thanked Dorothy and Brian for their wonderful efforts in the kitchen and loved seeing the joyful smiles on each of their faces.

Matching Furniture. What Is That?

Most of our married life, Mike and I have had various used living room sofas and accessories. Only once or twice do I ever remember buying anything new in the way of furniture for the family room. We always had the idea that once the children were grown that we could focus on such a luxury as matching and coordinated furniture.

Mike sells furniture at a local furniture store. He and I were recently visiting about our day and he told me of a sale he made of a sofa that he really would love to have himself. I responded, "Not until the children are older", and he agreed.

It took a moment and then we both looked at each other and with laughter, I inquired, "Didn't we have this conversation twenty-five years ago?

Our mismatched furniture is of good quality and is comfortable. We purchased it at Goodwill when we moved into our home almost 3 years ago. Along with the dining room table and chairs, we spent less than $200 total. We have a large desk that was given to me by a co-worker, and old piano, a small computer desk for the children to use as a writing desk, and two nice large bookshelves that are the newest pieces in the room. The biggest thing we have is the peace of mind that we have no debt on such items.

When I think of spending money on furniture at this point in time with small children in the house, my thought goes to the relaxed way we sit and watch movies and eat popcorn on the sofa. Sometimes peanut butter sandwiches, gram cracker, Cheerios and a myriad of finger foods are eaten while we cuddle on the sofa and read a good book.

Wrong or right, it would be hard for me to enjoy the same events as much if I was concerned about the dollar amount of the piece of furniture we were sitting upon. It is more important to me to make memories with Pippi and Tommy than to have everything in my living room color coordinated. So we will enjoy and praise God for what we have.

We cherish and consider of great value the many hugs and kisses we receive daily from Tommy and Pippi as well as from one another. "I love you", is a song to our hearts. "Please", "Thank you" and "Your welcome" are so nice to hear. "I am sorry. Please forgive me?" and "I will forgive you." are practiced by all in our family.

Watching Pippi and Tommy learning about our Heavenly Father and seeing their developing love for Jesus is such a great treasure that we will hold dear for all time.

Listening to Chris reading to Tommy at night; and Heather reading to Pippi; hearing the giggles during pillow fights; watching the adoring way Pippi looks at her daddy and the smile on her face when they are preparing for a date and the way they dance to the oldies are priceless and treasured memories. Listening to Tommy's gruff little voice when he plays; hearing Pippi and Tommy shout, "Granddad" or "Goo" when Mike or I walk through the door after working all day, playing Chickenfoot, (including Tommy), are all wonderful memories to possess.

We may not have much in the way of worldly possessions in the eyes of some, but we are so rich in love, respect, honor, laughter and tears as we live a full life together under one roof.

Year Round Knitting!

Knitting has taken over a lot of my spare time. Preparing gifts for Christmas has been an ever present task over the past few months. Shawls and scarves for friends and family scatter my bedroom.

Although Christmas has past, the knitting still continues. Finishing a yellow blanket for Pippi and a blue one for Tommy before his birthday is now the focus of my time. There are more friends and family that I want to make scarves for before the winter season passes. Giving gifts year round as "just because" is sometimes more memoriable.

In the evening when Heather and Pippi read bedtime stories, a new tradition has been birthed. They crawl in my bed both clad in the shaws that I have knitted for them. Listening to the stories of fantistic characters like "Grandfather Frog", "Raggedy Ann and Andy", "Big Susan" as well as many other wonderful tales while knitting is a delight.

Making memories with family and creating a sence of history in the lives of the children enrich the lives of all involved.

My heart is full. Blessings overflow. Our Father has given us a unique opportunity while living under one roof.

Goo Time

Pippi loves to go in my bedroom with me and climb up on the bed, getting set for "Goo Time". We observe several rituals during our time. One being we are alone. Everyone else is in another room, including Tommy. Another is a Me Maw Story.

Me Maw was my grandmother. When I was Pippi's age, Me Maw was probably about the age I am now. She babysat me while my mother worked. Being the fifth child of six, I loved the one on one time with Me Maw. We would wash dishes together, pick berries, shell peas, go to the grocery store, go to church meetings, go visit the church shut ins and bring them goodies. We were always busy.

Pippi always likes to hear the stories of our heritage being told. So as we settle back on the bed and hold hands, the story begins.

"Pippi, when I was your age, I spent a lot of time with Me Maw. She let me spend the night quite often. Every night before we climbed into bed, she would kneel down beside her bed and I would join her. Talking to God one last time before we went to sleep was very important to her. When we crawled into the bed, I would lay in the bed beside her like we are doing now and we would hold hands. I would listen to her breathing and listen to it change into a slow and slightly snoring sound. It was so comforting to have Me Maw beside me as I slept."

Pippi snuggles closer and smiles and asks for yet another story.

"One day, my brother, Chip and I were playing outside. Me Maw was inside washing dishes. She could see everything we were doing at all times. Chip was about one year old and I was four, like you are now. Me Maw had a little blue tricycle and it sat in the driveway that day. Chip and I both wanted to ride it and we ended up screaming at each other while holding onto the handlebars of the tricycle. Screams of "Mine! Mine!" were flying through the air as the tricycle looked like a wishbone between us, first going this way and then that. Me Maw told us to stop, but we did not. Me Maw appeared at the door and said, "I told you to stop! Now come here!" Her blue slipper came out of no where and I could feel it on my legs. Oh, how I cried. I do not remember it hurting too badly, but I was so hurt that I had made Me Maw upset enough to spank me. After that, I watched very carefully for the blue slipper and tried to do everything she told me to do."

"Another one Goo!" Pippi exclaims.

"Me Maw was a very good cook. We would pick fresh vegetables from the garden that Paw Paw and she tended. Snapping beans with her made me feel grown up. It was an important job and I felt special because I was allowed to participate. My favorite beans to help her shell were the speckled butter beans. They were covered with purple splotches. They were easy to shell and they tasted nice and buttery, like their name. I liked everything Me Maw cooked, except okra. Me Maw would cook the most wonderful round steak and gravy and rice, butter beans, and guess what else. OKRA!!!! Oh no! I would sit and look at that nasty vegetable. What was I going to do?

Well, Chip was sitting right next to me and he loved okra. I whispered, "Chip, please take my okra?"

In a very loud voice, Chip would say, "No June, I do not want your okra."

Then Me Maw would say, "June! I already told you to eat your okra."

"So I was faced with having to put the slimy, icky tasting okra in my mouth. It was so hard to swallow. I would gasp, and gulp and make all kinds of horrid faces while trying to swallow. It would finally go down and I was so relieved there was no more to eat. Funny though Pippi, okra is one of my favorite vegetables today. "

Pippi laughs and shares how much she likes okra. Her favorite way to eat it is right out of the garden. She likes the okra story.

There are so many stories that I have shared with Pippi during "Goo Time". She has grown to have her favorite Me Maw stories. Although Me Maw went to be with Jesus before Pippi was old enough to have memories of her, the passing of the family heritage through oral accounts has proven entertaining and informative to my little listener.

"Goo! Please Play Legos!"

Yesterday, the shopping was needing to be done and it was my week to do so. Heather and I alternate weeks, and so I prepared to go to the grocery store as Heather was finishing the list. Since it was getting to be late in the morning and Heather was depending on what I brought home for the children's lunches, I could not waste any time dawdling about. As I slipped on my shoes, Tommy ran up to me and said, "Goo! Please play Lego's?"

Tommy has recently discovered the magical power of the word Please! This word has opened up a whole new world for him, so he is convinced that Goo will stop what she is doing and immediately bend to his request. It was heart wrenching to have to tell Tommy that I could not play. He followed me to my room with such a sad face and looked up at me and again said, "Play Lego's. Please Goo!" My heart melted into a puddle on the floor for this is the first time he has ever invited me to play his with his favored Lego's.

After arriving home from the grocery store and getting everything upstairs and put away, I became involved in projects around the house and Tommy had forgotten about his request. The rest of the day was taken up by the various things that one does on a lazy Saturday afternoon and "Goo" did not play with Tommy and his prized Lego's.

Today after church, Tommy ate lunch and took his nap. The afternoon was a lazy afternoon with the children watching a Pippi Longstocking movie. After the movie, I found myself changing a load of laundry from washer to dryer and then reloading the washer with yet another load. Tommy came to me and asked, "Goo! Please play Lego's?"

The world stopped at this point in time. The washer sat half full for the next hour as Tommy and I sat on the floor and built train overpasses and tunnels and light sabers and cars and . . . Tommy is now downstairs playing with his beloved Buzz Lightyear, and I sit content to hear his little voice as he and Pippi play together. The washer is now whirling and doing the job it was enlisted to do.

All is right in our world.

The Meadow

"Look! Granddad, there are beautiful flowers in our meadow" Pippi says with glee. Her eyes dance as Granddad and she settle into their favorite spot in the meadow.

"Yes, Pippi, they are wonderful and smell so sweet. Look! There are juicy berries waiting to be picked" says Granddad in his deep base voice.

"Yes Granddad. We need a basket to pick them." Pippi exclaims. She quickly finds a basket and they pick berries until the basket is overflowing. "Blackberries are so sweet. The juice is all over my face."

"Do you see the clouds in the sky? They are fluffy and look like cotton candy Granddad!" Pippi says as she lazily takes her place by Granddad cuddling up with his strong protective arm around her.

Granddad and Pippi are spending the afternoon in their special meadow. They lay in the tall sweet smelling grass and feel the cool breeze on their faces. They see some rather unusual wildlife and plant life as they hold hands and explore their special world.

"Pippi! See the deer? It just hopped across the meadow. Now it's standing under the apple tree." Granddad points in the direction of the white tailed deer so Pippi can get a glimpse of the soft cotton tail before it disappears into the wooded area just beyond the meadow.

"Yes Granddad, I see the deer. Maybe she is going to see her baby. Wow! Granddad, see the monkey? He is swinging through the trees!" Pippi says, giggling with excitement.

"Yes, I see him. He is so funny" Granddad says laughing. "Oh! I hear a lion roaring in the woods. Be careful! Come closer and I'll protect you." Granddad says with an urgency in his voice.

"I see him. Let's be very still and maybe he will not know we are here." Pippi whispers in Granddads ear, her hand a little tighter around his.

The freedom and excitement of being out in the meadow with the wild flowers and wild animals surrounding them, is a delicious treat for them both.

"Pippi! Granddad! It's time for dinner!" Mommy calls from the kitchen.

"We'll be right there!" says Granddad as Pippi and he get up from the floor and fold up the blanket they have been lying on in the living room.

"Granddad can we go back to the meadow tomorrow? What do you think we will see then?" Pippi asked Granddad excitedly.

"We'll go back again tomorrow!" Granddad said as they sat down at the table with the rest of the family.

So goes an afternoon in our home.

Find your "meadow" with the little ones in your home. It is simple, does not take extreme amounts of time, and the children will have memories of you that will last a lifetime.

Generational Reading

Breakfast is served and Heather has eaten and is now reading to the children as they eat. Her voice has a wonderful cadence. Anyone will want to sit and listen to the soothing assuring voice as the story she is spinning from the pages of the book unfolds. The proper mixture of the words on the page and her voice cause the characters to jump off the page and perform better than any man made movie can ever produce. She is able to awaken the imagination of even an adult as she uses accents and inflections of the characters themselves.

Bible stories take on a new dimension. Instead of telling only the facts of a Bible event, Heather strives to capture the imagination of the listener and take them to the very place with all the sounds, smells and sights that can very well be a part of the story. Adding dimension to the beloved Bible stories without sacrificing the truth in the stories is done with great care. The style of sharing Bible stories this way comes about because Pippi is asking questions such as;

"What are they wearing?"

"Is the sun shining?"

"Is it a pretty day?"

"Is it cold or hot outside?"

"What are they eating?"

"What color is Jesus' robe?"

"What does the trumpet sound like?"

Thankful for the investment of time that Heather is pouring into her children through the reading of the written word and bringing it to life, I praise our God that she is such a devoted mother. Opening up the world to her children through the books she reads gives them the ability to use their imagination in ways that we may never understand.

Many years ago as I sat and read the limited library of books in our home to the children over and over again with my feeble attempts at voices and action, I never dreamed that one day, my children would return the blessing back to me one thousand fold with their enthusiasm and love for the written word. Mesmerised, I sit full of joy knowing that the time spent those years ago produced such a rich world of imagination. At that point in time, I could have never begun to understand that the simple reading over and over of the favorite books of my children would have a part in producing what I witness daily in our home.