The Puddles

Ben is talking to his friend Joshua through the window since he can’t be outside because he is sick . . .

“There is this girl who is s…  Wait. Mom, can I say a bad word just this once?”

“What does it start with?”

“S.”

“No.”

He turns back to Josh.  “O.k. there was this girl who was fabulous.  Mom, can I say fabulous?”

I love it.  I am looking forward to when the hormones kick in.

***Note*** Chris wanted me to put in that this entire conversation was about Daisy Duke from the “Dukes of Hazzard.” He loves the car chase scenes in this movie but apparently he loves something else too!!!

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we have one down for the count.  Ben got sick yesterday.  Vomit and fever.  We hope that he will be better today.  He took a bath this morning and is taking it easy, but he has already started to eye the open box of Thin Mints and is asking to eat some.  I think he is better.

We had the privilege of having Gordon come over yesterday and spend the night with us (yeah!!!!).  It was fun.  We always enjoy it when he comes to play.  At one point yesterday, we had seven kids playing at the house, so it was a full house.  I managed to get most of the house cleaned and I am almost finished washing two weeks worth of laundry.  Chris fixed the garage door, mowed the yard, and cleaned the entire garage.  Somehow we managed to get a lot done yesterday.  I can only hope that the rest of the week will look like yesterday.

After all of the laundry is put away, we still have to go through all of the closets and pull out the clothes that don’t fit anymore.  We are taking stock of what we need because Grandma and Papa Grace and Aunt Debra are all heading north tomorrow morning and we are going shopping together.  I (according to both Madie and Aunt Debra) don’t do a good job of picking out clothes.  Madie hates to shop, so I am bringing my two experts along for help.  Of course, my only goal for tomorrow is really just to have a good time with my family.  Chris and the kids are hopefully heading to Brenham to help put a roof on a garden shed and then the kids are staying with the other grandparents for a little bit.  They hardly ever see the other set of grandparents so it will be good for them to hang for a little bit.

We missed church this morning because of Ben being sick, but the sun is out. The windows are open. My azaleas are about to bloom and my world is good.

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Ben had a really good time with the Rodeo games on Thursday.  They had barrel races, horse races, cowboy dress up relay, bandana relay, and more.  The kids were all exhausted by the time we finished on Thursday morning.  It was chilly when the kids started playing and several of them had to go inside and get their jackets, but by the end of the play time the kids were stripping to get their extra layers off because it was so hot.

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We had a really good time trying to get all of us in a photo together.  Finally Dad came home and took our photo for us.  We needed to mark the day!

I dearly love those babies!

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The kids spent an hour setting up the restaurant.  They made a menu and signs, set the table, cooked the food, everything.  It was fun!  Ainsley is placing the orders. Ben is cooking the food.

I had been pretty tired when they set all of this up and had not wanted to go and play with them at all.  Guilt dragged me there.  But God knew what He was doing.  I had a great time and so did they!!

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I hope they had a good time.  Those little stinkers!

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Madie did a report this week on what she wants to be when she grows up.  Here are the highlights of her report.

“A pastor has many roles like, preaches, writes, teaches, visits the sick, helps in the community, leads meetings, works to bring peace to the world, leads the congregation, speaks on the behalf of God, listens to people’s hurts, does some counseling, performs weddings, baptisms, and funerals.  A pastor works 40-50 hours a week.  A pastor uses a computer, internet, Bible, cell phone, home communion kit, oil, calender, microphone, cross, books and baptism font.  Just to name a few.  I chose my job because I like being in front of people, reading, speaking about God, sharing God’s words, and helping people.”

I think that she is well on her way!  Way to go Madie!

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“Mom.  I need more fancy pants.”

“What are fancy pants?”

“See these pants.(he holds up a pair of nylon track pants.) These are fancy pants.  When I wear them and I slide down the stairs, I can go really fast! I go ZOOM down the stairs.  I like zooming.  Will you get me another pair?  Thanks, Mom!”

My conversation with Ben at bedtime tonight.

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All good meltdowns should be followed by a grounding.  Or at least that is what I am learning.  Good people in my life who are full of wisdom(and who have been there before) gently told me to stop putting my head in the sand and that I needed to punish Madie for her behavior.  After some discussion with Chris (which was mainly . . .”what do these wiser women  suggest?”  “OK sounds good to me.”), we decided to ground Madie.  Carefully and calmly, Madie and I talked about her behavior at the store.  She agreed that she needed punishment.  When I told her that she would be grounded, she melted.  “I’ve never been grounded before!!!!”  (That was proof that we should have done this a long time ago.) “Am I grounded during school recess?”  “I can’t believe this. My life is ruined.”  Peace and serenity. Peace and serenity. (That is my mantra while she wails.)  Soon she finishes her tears and she is good.  She has taken this all really well and I commend her for that.  Ben has been grounded so often that I can’t count how many times.  Why we have chosen not to do this with Madie, I’ll never know.  But we know better now.  And with knowledge comes power.  So beware . . . No, just kidding.  But you should always have a good balance between the law and the gospel.  So it is time to even out the scales at the Lake house.  For the betterment of us all.

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Milk and various assundries were all that were needed at the store.  We left to run our quick errand after I picked up the older two from school.  Nearly three hours later we made it home.  Half of that time was spent dealing with Madie’s monsterous meltdown.  For whatever reason, Madie has been melting in the middle of stores.  Not sure of what to do.  I just become the extreme opposite of her emotion.  She is angry.  I am calm.  She is crying hysterically.  I am smiling and offering a hug of support. Chris spent close to 45 minutes on the phone with her trying to calm her down.  But she had already gone over the cliff.  There was no coming back.  We just had to wait it out.

Those kind of experiences make me emotionally empty.  I can barely muster a smile right now. She hurts so much and I am not sure why.  I love her.  And right now in the middle of Walmart with her world caving all around her that is all I have to offer.  My love.

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