Would You Like Some Cheese With That Whine?

I have an almost two year old little girl. She doesn't talk. She whines. Well, not all the time. Part of the time she does talk in very intelligent sentences. Part of the time she sings. Part of the time she yells at the top of her lungs, with excitement. But the rest of the time she whines, and whines, and whines. Lately, she cries over every little thing, and I can't get out of her why she is crying. I don't get it. Except for the fact that she is almost two and she is a girl.

I know that there have been days (no, weeks!) (no, really, MONTHS) where I have been tired and impatient and have yelled at my kids. Or I have whined myself, asking them why they have to do this, or why they did that. I need to pray and ask God to help me stop whining. I have a feeling there will be a big change in Princess Diva Toddler Bear, once there is a big change in me. Our attitudes and emotions affect those around us much more than we think. If we are always whining, complaining, grumpy (read: hormonal), angry, joyless, then our loved ones who live in the same house with us will also do these things. Don't expect them to change, until you are willing to change.

Lord, please work in my heart. Forgive me for my sins of anger, impatience, discontent, selfishness. All of those things cause me to react in ways that are not pleasing to you, and make me look ugly. Please help me to reflect your glory through patience, joy, love, compassion and tenderness. Help me to be selfless. This is one of the biggest things I struggle with, but I know with your help, I can change. I can do ALL things through YOU who gives me the strength. Thank you for your forgiveness and grace in MY life. Please help me to be quick to forgive and show grace in the lives of those I love.

Mama Bear

The Best Musical Rendition of "The Lord's Prayer"

Why I Can't Let Go

You know there's a point in each of your children's lives where you must let go. For some kids, it comes pretty early, because they are those super independent kids that know what they want out of life at age two and don't stand in their way, because no one's going to stop them! For others, they are still hanging on to mama's apron strings at age 25, when you're giving them that mama bird push out of the nest....you know the one, where they either fall or find their wings!

Well, there are also different stages in your kids' lives where you need to learn to let go and let them do it "by myself", even if there is the dread of big messes to clean up. I'm that mama. I have a hard time with letting them do it themselves, because I dread cleaning up the mess. Have you ever seen a toddler trying to learn to feed themselves? How about a toddler with tactile defensiveness, who doesn't eat much "big people" food, because he doesn't quite know how to chew yet? (Yeah, we're working on that. It's not a mommy-coddled issue...it's just something he's having to deal with.)

I decided yesterday to let Baby Bear eat his morning porridge (really! It was! He loves oatmeal!) by himself. I'm only brave enough to do this with foods that are fairly thick! He has this fun little spoon that holds the food in because of the little holes in the bowl of the spoon. It also has this wonky handle that is a little textured, and a little curvy. So here he is, eating like a big boy (This was early; you should've seen the bib by the time he was through!):

And here he is at lunch time with yogurt all over his hands and arms, after soaking his chow mein noodles and animal crackers thoroughly in the yogurt. I think he realized that by putting the crunchy foods in the wet food, they will soften enough for him to eat without having to chew them! He's a clever little bear, that's for sure! Ahhhh, see how happy he is? He's messy! This is actually pretty good for a little guy who screamed and cried when he got anything on his hands, at the time that we first got him.

Next step: Potty training!

What have you been hesitant to let go of? I'd love to hear from ya!

Mama Bear