More Bizarreness

And the hits just keep on coming . . .

For some unfathomable reason, the kids have taken to raiding my sock drawer and prancing around fighting the forces of evil in "hand stockings." As a result, my socks can often be found in unexpected locations throughout the house (i.e., the dishwasher). Good thing it's flip-flop weather finally.

But it wasn't until our fateful trip to Wal-Mart yesterday that I finally realized just how many issues we have.

Our normal tradition is to walk into stores holding hands, quacking like ducks (Danny's brainchild). What can I say? It works. Normally, Zekers and Kari Bou ride in the blue seats attached to the cart, but yesterday, Rach & Zekers both wanted to walk, and Kari Bou decided it would be more fun to ride in the basket part of the cart. Since I only needed a couple of items, I thought what could it hurt. Ha!

We were looking for hand cookie cutters to go with a foot cookie cutter I already have, when I looked back to see Rachel, her arms full of silk flowers she'd collected a couple of aisles back. She was convinced her life just wouldn't be complete unless we purshased the whole armful of very ugly flowers. You can guess how that scenario ended: Mom extremely frazzled and oldest daughter crying hot tears of righteous indignation.

Also, I became aware of another way potty training affects our lives: Rachel informed me shortly after all this went down that she had to use the bathroom. "Just hold it until we get to the check-out, Sweetie," was my automatic response. About 15 seconds later, Zekers made a similar statement. The sudden panic and accompanying rush of adrenaline was amazing. I grabbed both Zekers and Rachel, slammed them each down into a blue seat, and flew to the restroom at the rear of the store - it's incredible how fast an out-of-shape woman can move while pushing a large cart full of squirming bodies. With Zekers, I've learned that I have, at most, 30 seconds from the time the words "I have to go potty" leave his mouth, to have him positioned in front of a potty, or I'd better have a change of clothes ready (which, unfortunately, happened to be out in the van).

From there it all went south. A sweet old man came panting up to me with a loaf of bread in his hand - Dutch Country 100% whole wheat - which just happens to be the exact kind I always buy. Turns out it was the exact loaf I had just placed into the cart with Kari Bou about 1 minute earlier. Who knows how far that poor man had to run just to return our bread to us. I looked back a few minutes later to see that our package of buns had been thouroughly mutilated and torn to pieces. Soon a container of yogurt and some cheese shared the same fate as the bread. All I can say is, I have a newfound gratitude for kind-hearted older people who always seem to notice these things and run to the rescue.

As soon as I repositioned Karis into a blue seat, where she couldn't do nearly as much damage (I thought), I turned around to see Zekers running in circles with his hands shoved WAY down into his underwear. No matter how many times I told him that was yucky, he seemed to think it great fun. The really gross part was seeing him sucking his fingers later.

Then came the straw that broke the camel's back. Zekers had brought his craft from children's church with him into the store because he and Rachel both thought it was just the coolest thing ever. I honestly have no idea what it was supposed to be - it was made of the cardboard from a toilet paper roll, covered with stickers, with several brightly-colored streamers attached to one end. Huh. Anyway, Karis proceeded to tear off the streamers and throw the rest of the (whatever it was) out of the cart. So by the time we got to the check-out, everyone was crying, myself includedd!

On the way out, the older 2 refused to hold hands, and in fact, nearly ran out in front of a moving vehicle, so I promised each of them a spanking when we got to the van. As I gave them their swats, scenes flashed through my head in vivid detail: national news coverage of the "abusive Wal-Mart mother" spanking her children right there in front of the parking lot cameras. Agh! When I got them strapped in finally, I turned around to see that our cart had rolled halfway down the parking lot - with my purse still in it.

Well, you get the picture. It took us all a while to recover from that trip. The one redeeming element of our excursion was that the Aunt Millie's outlet actually had dinner rolls, so I bought seven packages of them for around $2.00 - the really large whole wheat ones.























But as much work as having three little ones can be, they are just so darn cute, and such a riot, I can't help laughing at their antics. (The first picture on the right is of Zekers "flexing his muscles.") Just look at those little faces - could they be any more adorable?? We ended up spending a fun afternoon outside - which was exactly what we all needed. Zekers finally wore himself out and fell asleep on the floor at the end of LIFE group later in the evening. And I made 2 important decisions: 1) I'm not going to let the "little" things get me down, and 2) The next time I go to Wal-Mart, it's going to be at a time when I can leave the kids home with Danny!

Weekend to Remember

No, I'm not referring to a marriage retreat, but after this weekend, I feel like we need one! It was actually a lot like those breakfast things McDonalds came out with about a year ago: "bizarre but good."

Our noteworthy weekend began on Thursday. I bought Rachel her first pair of scissors on Wednesday, so she could practice cutting shapes. Thursday morning, while I was watching 2 little friends of Karis', I got out Rachel's crayons, markers, paper and scissors, so she would have something to keep her occupied for a while. Well, the first thing she decided to try cutting was, of course, her hair. Proudly holding out a handful of curls, she informed me that her scissors did, in fact, work. Luckily, she hacked away a section in the front, and with such curly hair, the uneven cutting job isn't all that noticable - it just looks like she has some long bangs. When I informed her, however, that it would likely not grow back out until well after her 5th birthday, instead of in 2 days, as she thought, she immediately burst into hysterical tears. I must confess, I didn't try too hard to console her. The more upset she is, I thought, the less likely we are to have a repeat performance!

Just as I finished cleaning up all the hair, I noticed Karis happily munching on a handful of yellow play doh (which I had gotten out for Zekers). I realized it wasn't the only play doh she'd ingested, as that same yellow, and lots of other pretty colors, came gushing out of her mouth, along with some breakfast cereal. Later, Rachel again burst into tears as a fight between her and Zekers resulted in one leg being torn off her "R" pillow. I helpfully suggested that now it could just be her "P" pillow, which only made her cry harder. ("But Mom, there's not even a "P" anywhere in any of my names!" True.) On his way home from work, Danny picked up a Sobe green tea for me, and I definitely felt like I'd earned it. (My favorite is Starbucks tazo green tea, but the nearest one is about 30 minutes' drive from here, so Sobe is the next best thing.)

Friday seemed much more promising. In the morning Rach & I walked to her kindergarten "screening", and I actually came away very encouraged. It turns out a lot is expected of the kids before they enter; I was given a long list of things Rachel needs to know, and tips/activities to help us work with her. The really encouraging thing was that she's already mastered the entire list, and then some (with the exception of writing her last name - I've gotten lazy these past couple of months and haven't worked with her much on that one).

One thing that struck me as rather curious: every teacher I talked with, as well as the one who addressed our little group of parents during the screening, seemed to operate on the basic assumption that kids who haven't attended pre-school don't know anything - not their alphabet, not how to write their name, not their address, not what a word in a book looks like. It kind of struck me as funny. Why on earth wouldn't a child thrive under one-on-one instruction at home, even a pre-school aged child? Anyway, I came away feeling much better about her coming school experience, and feeling good about her readiness to attend.

That evening we dropped the kids off with some friends (our turn for a date night!). Generally, we drop off all three kiddos, then pick Karis up around 8:30, while the other 2 spend the night. The next month, they do the same with their 3 kiddos. We had such a wonderful time - doing nothing! I wasn't feeling great, and Zekers had been in meltdown mode all afternoon, so we opted to just stay in town and use a gift certificate for dinner. We got coffee afterward, and went walking in the park for about an hour - so we could discuss a book I had just read and asked Danny to read before our date night. (Let the record show that I gave him his "homework" about 2 weeks in advance; he started reading at about 1:30 Friday afternoon. To his credit, he did manage to finish over half the book - enough that we could discuss it.) The material contained in this particular book holds the potential to drastically affect our lives, so I wanted to make sure we were on the same page (haha). More about this in a future post.

We finished out the evening by spending insane amounts of cash at Lowe's for our yard, picking up Karis and heading home. This is the part where you can rest easy, Marfin, because it's nearly impossible to have a "romantic" evening at home when your son goes hysterical and wants to come back home at 10 PM, which is exactly what happened. He continued the hysterical thing at 3 AM, when we finally brought him to bed with us. He woke up again at 6:15 and wasn't about to go back to sleep. Oh well . . . at least Danny & I had a fun evening together, and I completed some scrapbooking pages! Besides, it's almost impossible to be frustrated with your son when he throws himself into your arms and tearfully says, "I just wanted you, Mommy." I do believe, though, that every time Danny and I make plans, God has a good laugh. And we're learning flexibility . . . or something.

Saturday we did yard work, Rachel got stung by a bee, and after she recovered, I took her with me to a bridal shower. (I suppose I should also mention that I dragged Karis to Wal-Mart in the morning because I developed an inescapable craving for cheese danish.) After dinner, we went for a family bike ride and stopped at the park; what a perfect evening to enjoy the outdoors. We have one seat on the back of each bike, and Danny hauls Kari Bou in the trailer - great exercise! I guess I'd better start working out before the baby comes, because next summer I'll be hauling a trailer, too!

Today was a momentous day . . . Zekers not only told the children's church workers he had to go potty and went all by himself, but for the first time in over a week, he actually pooped in his potty and not in his underwear! Yay Zekers! (Hey, what's the joy in life if you can't celebrate the small things?) This afternoon Rach, Zekers and I went with a friend and her kids to see a performing act with a stunt artist/mime and her dog: Pino and Bonzer. They loved it. And Danny loved the 1 1/2 hours of quiet while we were gone; I didn't even bother asking him if he missed us! We grilled hamburgers for dinner, then Danny & the kiddos went to a small park nearby while I cleaned up the wreck that is our house. I was going to join them as soon as I finished, but ended up talking to a neighbor. Oh well.

And to top off the weekend . . . I received the most thoughtful gift - crackers and Easy Cheese! A friend had compassion on me and dropped it off just before dinner, so now I can indulge away, without actually having to admit that I went out and bought the stuff. Although it does contain real cheese, so it has to be good for me, right? I've already had WAY too much fun using the cheese to make shapes and designs on the crackers; I guess it doesn't take a whole lot to amuse me.

So that's the weekend wrap-up: and I have to say that the good moments far outweighed the bizarre ones!

What's That Smell?

The wierdest thing happened this morning . . .

OK, yesterday was the worst day yet since Zekers began using the potty. The first three days were great, but since Sunday evening it's been all downhill. Yesterday we hit rock bottom when he woke up with soaked sheets, and pooped in his underwear twice within 15 minutes. He had several more accidents in the morning, and one at LIFE group in the evening.

Anyway. I put all his dirty clothes together and by the end of the day I had enough to make a load. Even though it involved about 5 pairs of pants and underwear, it was still a pretty small load, so I combined his clothes with some of the girls' and ours and a couple of towels, and got it going right before I went to bed.

So here's the wierd thing: I went downstairs this morning to put everything in the dryer, and I couldn't believe the stench that greeted me when I opened the washing machine. No joke - it smelled awful - definitely like poop. I ran the load again while I was at Bible study this morning, with extra soap and some Oxi Clean. I checked it again when I got home - same stench, although not nearly as strong.

I know I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer sometimes, but I didn't know what else to do, so I stuck the clothes in the dryer with about 4-5 dryer sheets, thinking the clothes had to be clean, and maybe I just needed to do something to get rid of the stench.

Well, when I went to get the clothes out of the dryer a little while ago, Zekers' clothes smelled pretty good, but Danny has a pair of pants and a shirt that now smell faintly of poop. I'm not sure how to break the news to him. Maybe if I spray them with his cologne no one will notice! Aaaagggghhhh!

The super good news is that Zekers had a dry night and, so far, has stayed dry all day. He even told the girls doing childcare that he had to go - a first for him! And the day got off to a great start with our discussion in Bible study. Praise God for good days! Now, if I can just figure out what to do about that poopy smell.

Yep . . . Only 14 Weeks

I've been scratching my head trying to figure out just how I got THIS much larger in less than one month's time. (The first pic was taken on March 16 at 10 weeks, the second on April 14 at 14 weeks. I wish I could go back in time about 5 years and smack myself around for thinking I was huge when I was this size with Rachel at six months.) Still, when Zekers looked into my eyes several days ago, and said with all the sincerity of a 3-yr-old, "Wow, Mommy, you're BIG," it did make me wonder about the reason I've exploded in the last several weeks.

Then I remembered:

- the trip Danny had to make at 10:30 PM to get me some chips and dip

- the trip Danny had to make at 10:48 PM to get me some mint chocolate chip ice cream

- the trip I had to make at 9:30 PM (when Danny refused to go a 3rd time) to get deli meat for a sandwich

- the items I've purchased that haven't been on the shopping list: green olives (which I wolfed down immediately upon arriving home), green pea soup, assorted sugar wafers, club crackers.

- the juice I've been sucking down (Rachel asked me the other day where all their juice boxes had gone . . . Oops)

- items I've had a sudden need to eat late at night: cooked spinach, hard boiled eggs, corn, more green olives, peanut butter


The one thing I've been craving for weeks, that I absolutely refuse to buy, is cheez whiz. Hey, ya gotta draw the line somewhere.

That's all I have time to write - this is making me hungry.

Thomas Underwear = Chicken Soup for my Soul

What began as a curse has morphed into the most unexpected gift . . .

Today was the first day I set foot outside the house since Sunday; I can't remember the last time we've been homebound for so long, and I do NOT do well with being forced to hang around the house 24/7. The girls got sick on Monday, Zekers caught the bug on Tuesday, and I came down with it on Thursday. Even after the worst of it had passed, none of us were in any shape to do anything but sit around, staring straight ahead with glazed eyes. I was irritated to have to miss weekly events I look forward to; I was frustrated because out of sheer necessity I ended up letting the kids watch at least twice as much TV as usual (How did those Pioneers manage without electronic media?); I had a severe case of the blahs and there was nothing I could do about it.

But here's the amazing thing:

For an entire year I have been stressing about potty training Zekers, and he's made it abundantly clear that he's not even remotely close to being ready. He didn't want to be a "big boy"; he cried every time I tried to tempt him by having him put on his cool Thomas the Train underwear; and he could care less about his friends who peed in the potty, nonchalantly informing them that he preferred doing his business in his diaper. Finally I threw up my hands in despair, and resigned myself to a future of buying diapers for him until he's able to get a job and pay for them himself. (OK, that's not the amazing thing, but just hang on - I'm getting to it!)

A couple of months ago, a good friend let me borrow an ebook she'd downloaded about a 3-day potty training method that was supposed to be fool-proof. So I read it over, thought it actually sounded pretty good, talked about it with Danny, and together we set aside this weekend, beginning on Thursday, for the intensive potty training to take place. (It had to be a weekend with NOTHING else going on, so I could focus solely on Zekers and Danny could take care of everything and everyone else for the three days.)

I can't even believe I'm writing this . . . Zekers has, pretty much all on his own, kept himself dry (with the exception of one accident) since Wednesday morning - the day before I had planned to start potty training him. I honestly have no idea how it happened - but I shouldn't be surprised; it is so in character for him to just, out of the blue, make up his mind to do something like this. We've gone cold turkey - no diapers, no pull-ups, nothing but "big boy underwear" for the past 3 days and nights!

And you know what I think? He needed those consecutive days at home, with no interruptions, to get into the habit of going potty on his own. He began at the start of the week to go in his little potty every so often and just worked his way up to no diapers in a matter of days. . . unbelievable. It was totally worth all of us getting sick! I'm so glad God is willing to mess up my agenda every once in a while - I need the intervention.

In other news: Karis has begun sleeping in a toddler bed! This happened shortly after I disciplined Rachel several times for getting Karis out of her crib, and then realized that Karis had actually been climbing out on her own. Just one of many things Rachel will end up having to forgive me for before she leaves home, I'm sure.

Opposing Quotes

I've been giving the topic below some serious thought in recent weeks, and I came upon 2 different perspectives, which I thought I'd put out there for anyone who cares to read them. The first is our natural, human reaction - I must confess, I've felt this way before; the second I found to be quite insightful and thought-provoking.


Quote #1

Think about some of the women you meet at church. They're trying to live up to some model of fimininity. What do they "teach" you about being a woman? What are they saying to us through their lives? Like we said, you'd have to conclude that a godly woman is . . . tired. And guilty. We're all living in the shadow of that infamous icon, the "Proverbs 31 Woman", whose life is so busy I wonder, when does she have time for friendships, for taking walks, or reading good books? Her light never goes out at night? When does she have sex? Somehow she has sanctified the shame most women live under, biblical proof that yet again we don't measure up. Is that supposed to be godly - that sense that you're a failure as a woman?

- from Captivating by John & Stasi Eldredge (p. 6)



Quote #2

The word “tired” comes to mind as I read this chapter. You’re familiar with the passage—on and on and on about all the things this woman does. She gets up early in the morning; she stays up late at night; she just burns the candle at both ends, and she is so busy. You can read this passage and just feel tired. If you weren’t before you read it, you are after you read it!

Another word that comes to mind is the word “overwhelmed.” How does she do it all—and with no technology in her day and age such as we have today? It’s easy to feel defeated or to feel like a failure. It’s easy to look at this standard—this picture of a woman of virtue—and feel, “This is impossible!” Then the next thought is, “I guess I’d just better give up. I can never be this kind of woman” . . . So we have feelings of comparison, feelings of guilt. . .

Now, I want to make two statements that I’m going to repeat probably many times throughout this series because I want this to get into the fiber of your thinking. Here are the two statements. First of all, no woman can be like the woman that we read about in Proverbs 31. . . Anything we do try to do on our own in our striving and efforts is not pleasing or acceptable to God. The only way we can ever please God is through the righteousness of Christ, through His excellence. He’s the only One who has ever measured up to God’s standard of holiness.

But here’s another statement that sounds like the opposite, and it’s just as true. Any woman who is a child of God can be like this woman. . . because Jesus lives in us, and He’s the One who fulfills the righteousness of God. So as we’re filled with the Holy Spirit, you and I can be a virtuous and excellent woman.

You see, the most outstanding thing about this woman as I read this passage . . . is not all the things she can do . . . it’s her heart. It’s her priorities. It’s her values.

- from the radio series The Counter-Cultural Woman by Nancy Leigh DeMoss (2.14.07)

Night Visitors

All of us in the Wright household are pretty much walking around like zombies, due to the unannounced visit last night of our 2 friends, Up and Chuck. They spent several hours with Kari Bou and then moved on to Rachel. Thankfully, they only stayed the night, taking their leave early this morning.

Actually, there's lots to be thankful for:

1. I have no digital pix to share with you from this experience.
2. Zekers was never affected by the visit.
3. Both girls are feeling better today, although Kari Bou is now spending quality time with another friend, Squirt.
4. Rachel happened to be sleeping in the bottom bunk last night, not the top!
5. Danny was home this time, and carried most of the clean-up, allowing me to simply give baths and dress and snuggle shivering sweethearts.
6. In the midst of everything, Zekers has been using his little potty with increasing frequency, and has managed to keep his diaper dry so far today!! ("Official" potty training begins Thursday)

And now - I get to indulge in something I've been wanting to do since Sunday morning . . . take a nap!!

Incomprehensible

Resurrection Sunday was hard. There's no other way to say it. I know it's a celebration of Christ's triumph over death and the grave, and that is cause for great rejoicing! But the fact is, you can't dwell on Christ's resurrection without being affected by the reality of the cross, and the truth about the cross is . . . unthinkable. For one thing, I can't bear to think of Christ enduring His own Father's wrath in such a cruel way - for people who, left to themselves, do nothing but sin continuously - for me. For another thing, there is no logical explanation! It's mind-bending. It's gut-wrenching. It's overwhelming. And yet . . . it's unspeakably beautiful.

I wanted to share the words of a song that's been haunting me all week, if I may:

How deep the Father's love for us, how vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son to make a wretch His treasure
How great the pain of searing loss; the Father turns His face away
As wounds which mare the chosen One bring many sons to glory

Behold the man upon a cross, my sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice call out among the scoffers
It was my sin that held him there until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life; I know that it it finished

I will not boast in anything - no gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ - His death and resurrection
Why should I gain from His reward? I cannont give an answer
But this I know with all my heart: His wounds have paid my ransom


"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21).

Even though David wasn't speaking of the cross specifically when he uttered these words (but he was speaking of God's omniscience), I can't help but echo them now: "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain to it" (Ps. 139:6).

That's all.

The Grossest French Kiss I've Ever Witnessed

I received a "kiss" similar to this one (from a black lab) while in high school. Blech!

The Neglected Middle Child Has Another Birthday Party

All reports are in . . . after Saturday, Zekers has officially consumed enough cake and ice cream to last him until his next birthday.

For party #2, at Grandpa & Grandma Miller's house, we did an Elmo theme. The cake came together without a hitch, and both Zekers and cousin Esther (who turns 2 this week) got to blow out a candle. It was much different than the Thomas cake - all I did was make the cake and four different colors of frosting, and followed the outlines. Ya gotta love Wilton pans! And the beautiful thing: this is the third time I've used the pan (Elmo has been the main attraction for Rachel's and Zekers' 2nd birthdays), plus a couple of friends have borrowed it, so I can finally stop losing sleep over the amount I spent on it.


Highlights of the evening included: overcoming his fear of baby Lucas, eating about 6.3 deviled eggs, reading books with Grandpa, seeing Ohio State win (a highlight for Mommy and Daddy!), wolfing down Elmo's nose (he called dibs on it before I even made the cake; and Rachel called dibs on an eyeball), and, of course, opening presents.




Before we left, all four cousins took a bath together in Grandma & Grandpa's tub - what a hoot. They all combed each other's hair and played with little plastic boats and sucked on washcloths and looked completely adorable.

One last thing: I would be remiss if I failed to mention the gift God gave Danny & me for Zekers' birthday . . .

Exactly one year ago, pretty much on his 2nd birthday, our sweet, sunshiny little boy turned into a completely different person. He's been grumpy, whiny, tempermental, and beyond stubborn, often consumed by fits of temper that last nearly an hour. I will never again shake my head at parents of children who behave this way in public, because the truth is, we've tried EVERYTHING we can think of with him - from compassion and encouragement to strict discipline - and nothing has worked. He cries and throws temper tantrums at church, refuses to go near people he's always loved, and makes rude comments to Danny and me (such as "Get out of my bed, Mommy" and "Go back to work, Daddy.")

But these past 2 weeks, since he's turned 3, it's as if some cloud that's been hanging over him all year has suddenly dissipated, and we have our little boy back again! He smiles and laughs, he acts like a total clown, he's cooperative and even helpful. I have no idea what brought about this change, but I'll take it! It's like there was some kind of "crabby spell" baked into last year's Elmo cake, and he had to eat another cake to reverse the effects.

Also, the most unexpected gift Zekers received: this book, from what we used to think was a fine, upstanding family in our church . . . I just pray he doesn't request the action figure.