*Glorious*

Isaiah 11: 10

"And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious."

I get 4 things out of this verse:

1) Truth will be rooted in that day and time (the Millennium)

2) We can seek, find, and cling to the truth

3) By doing so we will gloriously find and feel--joy, peace, and truth.

4) It will be glorious

Comforting, no? I think it sounds worth working for...

The Giraffe, in the Living Room, with the Hotwheels

After dinner I was wrestling with my babies in the living room while Brendan finished the dishes. Wrestling is something that occurs with some frequency at my house. Really all that happens is that I lay on the floor and let the babies climb all over me, amid shrieks and giggles.

This evening The Giraffe decided that he could not possibly relinquish his hold on his yellow Hotwheels. Now, in all fairness, it is likely that had he put it down he would have been forfeiting his chance to play with it for the rest of the evening. Yes, I think it highly probable that this was a learned behavior via trial and error.

At some point in our wrestling, I got pummeled in the mouth by his Hotwheels car. For those of you with experience in brutal behavior, you know that lip-shots hurt because there is something hard and potentially sharp on both sides. No blood, just a fat lip, but that ended our wrestling match making the score Mommy 0 , babies 1, 749,261. Be it known, not all of those matches ended in violence. Most end because Mommy gets tired of it and forfeits.

Now we get to my favorite part, and really the only reason the story is worth telling. I don't make it a habit of telling people my 2 and 1 year old boys can whip me without having something to show for it. Probably twenty minutes after we'd broken up the match and I'd settled on the couch with a book The Elephant came around the couch and picked up The Murder Weapon,

"Mommy, this car...bonked your face?" he asked me concernedly.
Smile..."Yes, baby, that car bonked Mommy's face."
"On your yip?"
Smile widens..."Yes, on my yip."
"Oh."
"Will you kiss it better for me?"
Noding "Mmm-hmm...mmwaa...all better."
"Thank you, love."

And you know what the best part is, it really did make me feel better! It's like magic, lovey kisses really do make your hurts better! Maybe we could market this somehow!?

Mommy Pep-Talk

I can remember my Dad hollering up the stairs at one of us (there were 6, 2 boys, me, and 3 more boys--and I breed boys...shocker) he hollered, "Next time you want to yell at someone, look in the mirror and scream SHAME! SHAME! SHAME!" It's funny now and it was funny then, which means I was not the intended recipient of said instructions. Now though, I think I might rather alter the method.

You know how some days the motivation to do whatever, whenever has been completely misplaced. Or it kicked you out of bed that morning and said, "You do it today, I'm staying here" and then giggled while you stumbled around dazed. Those/these are the days I'm thinking I might try and re-apply my Dad's method--whit style.

I think I'll try standing, in front of the mirror, on the balls of my feet with my dukes up. Right foot in front (or left, however you'd snowboard--goofy or regular) and shifting my weight back and forth (the Boxer Shuffle, give it a bit of a bounce). Hands up in front of my face (you use them to block). I can't do this quietly, so, "Ha, ha, Ha, ha, Ha, ha" just letting out a little breath, not much sound...for now. I'll work it up for a minute or so, thinking about the locker room prep before the game (or my brothers rugby games, when the "turn it in" it's quiet for a second as they group...) Then I'll start yelling, "I CAN DO HARD THINGS! AND I CAN FIND JOY IN THE JOURNEY! AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!! (Now grimace at the mirror! Show you your BRING IT ON face! Make your reflection squeal like a girl!) AAAAAHHHHH!!! I AM WIFE! I AM MOMMY! I AM WOMAN!! BRING IT ON WORLD! BRING IT! I'LL TAKE TO YOU THE CURB! COME ON! (now flex during this last yell) AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!

A few practice shots: jab, jab, cross---jab, jab, cross---jab, cross, hook, upper, jab, cross, hook, upper.... BRING IT! HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT! (a little electric slide...Fire Away!) Ha, ha, Ha, ha, Ha, ha...(it's the cool down) then I'll relax my dukes, say, "Let's do this thing," turn out the bathroom light, and start my day.

Thanks Dad, I feel better already.

Love ya,

whit

Censoring: Take Two

Someday... (in case your wondering about Take One)

Among the things I recognize/realize too late/state deliberately/ that I say, I hope to one day no longer discover the things I say by listening to my two-year old repeat them...

I don't swear like my mom does, like her mom does... mostly it's just the habitual phrases that The Elephant chants...while I cringe...thinking "oh, I really do say that don't I!"

"Crraap."

"Cwwwaapp!" Echo, echo, echo...