Author: Becky

Carissa has always been my spunkiest.

She’s fun-loving, fearless, likes to laugh–and make you laugh!

It’s been interesting: she is our first to really struggle with her “place” or her “security” in the home after the birth of a new baby.

Mara and Micah each showed great excitement when the new one came along. Riss–well, if I’m holding the baby, she’ll point to the nearest place he could go and say, “Seat! Seat!” or “Bed! Bed!” (She wants me to put him down and do something with her.) She’s coming around. She loves him, she coos over him and kisses him, but there are times when she really wants her place as “baby” back!

She has been taking two naps a day since she was probably six months old and all summer she has slept only through the morning nap. I knew it was coming time to go down to one nap/day, but honestly with bedrest and pregnancy and then recovery, I really needed her to at lest be in bed while the others napped.

For the past several weeks I have been trying to transition her to one afternoon nap (at the same time as the older two). That hasn’t gone well. She mostly walks around the house all morning, clutching her “Blanky” and sucking her fingers. . . Leaving me to ask “Where is my spunky Riss? and who is this little girl?!”

Every time I gave her a morning nap, she would not sleep at all in the afternoon and she would end up keeping Mara from sleeping too.

I missed my spunky Riss.

Well, I have a solution. And I say “a” solution, because there are things I don’t like about it. But it is what it is–for now.

I’ve decided to let her take a morning nap, and use her afternoon naptime for Mommy-and-Carissa one-on-one time. She does very well with that, and come to think of it, that’s what she’s been doing for months! Napping in the morning and playing in her bed in the afternoon.

It’s limiting to me in some ways, since having all the kids nap at once definitely frees me to do housework much more quickly and leaves the option of a nap if I’m up all night. But in some ways, it works better. Since David likes to sleep most of the morning, the littles are down in the morning–I just have Mara and Micah, and in the afternoon, they’re napping and I have Carissa and David.

This morning the littles napped, while the older two played with Playdoh. They had a great time with the “Fuzzy Pet Parlor.”

Then we had lunch and this afternoon Carissa and I spent a lot of time together. We set up the Melissa & Doug “big red barn” and made animal sounds. Then Carissa knocked the barn down “BOOOOM!” and started stacking all the wooden pieces higher and higher, with trees on the very top. I think it was good for her motor skills, because she kept knocking it down accidentally and having to rebuild and be more careful.  We sang nursery rhymes and children’s Bible songs. We sang active songs like “Head and Shoulders Knees and Toes.” We did ABC charts and sang the ABCs; after we practice letters and sounds, she lovvvves to point at the objects on the chart when I say, “Where’s the [zebra or pumpkin or elephant or apple]?”

I am just beginning catechism with her. And her spunky spirit came out in this conversation:

I asked her “Who made you?. . . now, you say, ‘God made me.'” and she wrinkled her forehead and said, “Why?”

When kids are this age–especially this child, I never know if they’re repeating their favorite “why” or if they are genuinely asking (probably not). But I give them the benefit of the doubt. So I tried to explain on a 19-month-old level why she should know that God made her.

Then I said again, “Who made you?’ Can you say, ‘God’?”

She shook her head and said, “Nope.”

So I got a little stern with her–obstinate little thing!–and said, “Carissa. . .”

And clear as day, she said, “God!”

Good grief. She can totally do this.

I’m learning that she definitely talks. She talks in whole sentences. Just rarely out loud.

Last night Carissa kept running to the back door, stepping on the step stool to look out the window saying, “Moon! . . . In sky! . . . See it?!” over and over and over–must have been over a dozen times (except she has a lisp, so it was more like, “Moon! . . . In th-ky! . . . THEE it?!?!”

I went to “THEE” and yes, it was an extra-clear night and the moon was beautiful!

When Daniel came home, Carissa ran to him, shouting again, “Moon! . . . In th-ky! . . . THEE it!!!” And I love this about my husband–he went to “see it.” We all went to see it. . . last night. . . and again tonight, at Rissa’s request. . . even baby Davey went to see the beautiful moon.

She’s not the “baby” any more, but she’s still my spunky Riss. She brings something so very special to our lives every day.

Tonight I made tuna noodle casserole–not a family favorite, but occasionally on the menu nonetheless. Daniel actually likes it better than I do, I think.

I dished out the dinner–just for the kids since Daniel was not getting home till around 7 PM, and 3-year-old Micah surprised me. He said, “I’ll feed Carissa,” and went over to her high chair.

I almost said ‘no, she can feed herself,’ until I saw that before I could say anything, he had already put a bite on the fork and she was chewing it up!

Wow, I thought. Maybe he’ll get her to eat this, even though she had a bunch of animal crackers this afternoon for a snack. Unfortunately, Riss is not a fan of pasta. And she has just hit that plateau that all my kids hit about this age–when they go from inhaling everything in sight, and wanting seconds, thirds and fourths–to suddenly picking at their food and eating almost nothing.

Micah was impressive–he fed her so quickly that Mara was calling across the table, ‘Micah, let her chew the bite before you put more in her mouth!’–but that’s how Micah eats, so I’m sure he thinks that’s “normal.”

Between bites, Micah would say, “Great job, Caritha!” and “You’re doing thhho well! Just a few more bites!” What an encouraging brother!!! (Where is this coming from?!)

In mere minutes, Micah had cleaned up her entire plate! I plan to assign him to feed Carissa from this day on.

I couldn’t believe it. And I couldn’t stop wondering where this amazing display of goodwill had come from. Or why she was SO willing to eat the food if Micah put it in her mouth?

“You’re SUCH a big helper!” I exclaimed. “Thank you, Micah!”

“Yeth!” he agreed. “I’m a big helper!”

As soon as she finished what was on her plate, I said, “Okay, Micah, now you need to sit down and eat yours.”

He sat down at the table and instantly burst into tears. “But I really don’t like it!” he sobbed.

I was shocked. I was really not expecting that response. Especially after he had fed Carissa her entire plate without a word of complaint about the food.

Wow.

Soooo was all that a ploy to avoid eating his casserole? or am I reading way too much into this 3-year-old’s actions? . . . Some times I wonder what. on. earth. is going on in this boy’s head.

Mara and Micah began asking if they could have ice cream if they finished their casserole. Carissa–so excited–was calling, “Daddy! KEEM! Keem! [cream]”

With the promise of ice cream cones for dessert, they all finished their casserole.

Me, calling up to Mara: What are you doing up there?
Mara, swinging out over the staircase with a blissful smile: I’m princessing!
Who knew “princess” could be a verb?

———–

After lunch, Micah lined up 6 dinosaurs and named them after all his family. “This one’s Mara. This one’s me. This one’s Mommy. This one’s Daddy. This one’s Carissa. This one’s Davey! . . . Look, I’m flying!”

I took a picture–of the dinos–and in a rare moment when he wanted his picture taken, he said, “Don’t picture them! Picture ME!. . . Cheese!”

Since he asked. . .

At bedtime I ask both of the older kids to choose a song about God to sing after we pray. It’s our way, after prayer, to say “thank you” for all He has done for us or to remember His love and care when things are difficult.

Sometimes though the kids get in a rut and choose the same two or three songs over and over. In those times either I choose or ask the kids to pick something else.

Tonight Micah had a song to offer: “I made it up!” he exclaimed. “It’s ‘Don’t Punch God–He’s the Good Guy,’ and it’s a night-night song!” And he was dead serious.

It’s times like these I recommend we pick another one.

I use the ‘I-don’t-know-that-one-let’s-sing-something-Mommy-knows-too’  line.

Sometimes it’s all I can do to keep from guffawing.

On a more somber note, I asked the kids to pray with me for the Iranian pastor who is jailed and facing possible execution for his refusal to renounce his faith in God. Mara seemed to understand (Micah not at all) but I told Mara that God could choose to change the bad men’s hearts and allow him to be freed from jail. But if not, God promises that He will walk beside this man right there in jail. That He will be with him, no matter what happens to him.

“It’s like the Fighter Verses say,” Mara agreed. “‘When you walk through the fire, I will be with you,'” she quoted from Isaiah. “That’s the hard times.”

That’s right, Mara! I was so thankful that she understood the verse, and remembered, and applied it to a life situation.

Well, we prayed, and after the prayer, she looked at me with the most sincere expression. With slow, deliberate, measured words she asked: “Do you know what? I love God”–and her eyes told me that she wanted to find the most perfect metaphor for her heartfelt expression–“as much as I love . . . syrup.” She almost whispered and with such intensity. Right up until the word ‘syrup,’ I thought she was about to declare her willingness to be martyred too!

Mara tried to explain: “Because syrup is . . . the sweetest. . . sweetest thing. . . And that’s how God is.”

At least she knows He is sweet. And at least Micah knows He is the good guy.

We may have a long way to go, but I guess we’re heading in the right direction.