Author: Becky

Before I knew we were having another girl, I was at The Children’s Place for another awesome clearance sale, and stumbled across some adorable baby girl outfits that would be perfect for next summer–if our little one was a baby girl.

I couldn’t help myself–I went ahead and bought four outfits for $10, thinking, “If it’s not a girl, these would be great baby gifts for somebody’s little girl!”

Ironically there was only one boy outfit, which I purchased, thinking, How would I explain to my son that I bought him all girls’ clothes?!

Good thing we didn’t know she was a girl yet–just think of how many outfits I would have found!

I’ll admit it: I’m a sucker for baby clothes!

Last November, we were in Toys R Us only to buy diapers, and Mara pulled a dress off the clearance rack (child after my own heart!).

I said, “Mara, that’s too small for you, sweetie.”

“It’s not for me!” she said right away. “It’s for the little sister!”

I looked at the little dress. It wasn’t exactly my style, but it rang up only $2.17 and the tag said 3/6 months–perfect for next summer.

And besides, Mara picked it out–for her little sister!

I guess baby clothes find Mara too.

It must be genetic.

Micah, my two-year-old, has been playing with the plastic packaging that his Mr. PotatoHead came in. (Not the Potato Head. But the plastic it came in.)

He’s been using it to carry toys around, pretending that it’s his “lunch bag”–like Daddy’s lunch bag, of course. Micah kept opening and closing it, until it broke.

Ever resourceful, he went to the drawer of the hutch and pulled out the screwdriver. “Fix it?! Fix it?!”

Then he came back to me asking, “Batteries? Batteries?”

In his little mind, you can fix anything with a screwdriver and batteries!

——–

The same two-year-old just had to be corrected for crawling under the gate into the dining room this morning and eating my bagel while I was upstairs in the bathroom.

Mara offers her two cents’ worth: “Mommy? Maybe sometime we could get a sign that says, ‘Don’t crawl under the gate.'”

A sign.

Never mind that he can’t read yet!

Mara insists that he would just “see the sign and go back in the living room.”

Yah.

——–

And now I’m trying to keep a straight face as I look at my kids.

My three-year-old daughter is adjusting her ears. Well, they’re not exactly her ears–they’re Mr. Potato Head ears in her ears!!!

Of course, my son wants some.  He’s saying, “Ears?! Ears?!”

And my ever-generous, selfless daughter replies, “Micah, you can use the tongue and the nose in your ears.”

NOT a good idea! Here is where Mom steps in!

This the same son who tried to stick peas up his nose at dinner last night. (And wow, that brought back childhood memories of my sister!!! Must be a middle-child thing. Sticking stuff up your nose just because. . .)

———-

My daughter is saying, “I got all this energy! I want to do something to get out this energy!”

I should go.

Parenting is more challenging than I imagined. It all seemed so clear-cut before kids. (Ha ha!) But God tells us that His word gives us all we need “for life and godliness,” and it’s true! We just need to dig in!

Growing up in a pastor’s home, I heard a significant amount of Bible teaching on child-rearing and the home. While attending a Christian university, I took an elective class on God’s design for the home. And before children came along, we attended a church that led Sunday School classes or book studies on parenting. But now, with three children three and under, I sometimes–actually, daily–need a refresher, now that I’m trying to apply all these concepts to real life.

My former pastor, Eric Sipe, has several dozen messages on Sermonaudio.com. (A disclaimer: this is not an endorsement of all speakers/topics/messages on Sermonaudio. I’m just sharing my former pastor’s messages, knowing that he seeks to be God-focused and biblically-based in his sermons.) Recently on Sermonaudio, I discovered his messages at a parenting conference in California in 2006. I’m so grateful for all the technological resources we have these days!

So today, while decorating Micah’s birthday cake and wrapping presents, I also “attended” the first session of a parenting conference taught by my former pastor. If you’re interested in listening too, click on this link! Maybe it doesn’t work for you to listen while you work around the house. (Sometimes I have to listen two or three times before I feel like I actually heard the message!) But maybe after the kids are in bed or during their naps or room-time, you want to pull out your Bible and a pen and join the conference.

I will warn you though: If you’re just wanting to see change in your children, these messages start first with you.

So be prepared to let God show you some areas of your life where you as the parent might need to grow and change first! As each one of us submits to Him, our families and marriages will bring God glory.

On Sunday during Mara’s nap, she came downstairs and told me that her leg was “really hurting.” When I looked at it, I saw hives over most of her thigh and noticed they were on her face as well.

I didn’t say anything about her face–she was already scratching her leg–but by the time I took her to show Daniel, hives were appearing on her arm too.

Since I had no Children’s Benadryl on hand, Mara and I left right away for Target, where we pulled several children’s antihistimine products off the shelf and took them over to the pharmacy to discuss our options.

Mara is in that awkward age 2-5 range, where you aren’t supposed to use Children’s Benadryl without consulting the pediatrician. The pharmacist wouldn’t tell me what the dose would be for someone her age, unless our doctor prescribed it.

We did find a generic Children’s Zyrtec with dosage information for ages 2 – 5. But the pharmacist said for treating hives, Benadryl would definitely be preferred over Zyrtec.

So my find of the day was Benadryl Extra Strength Itch Stopping Gel! The pharmacist said this gel should do for us what the Benadryl is supposed to do, and Mara could take the Zyrtec orally, just to be safe.

While we were talking to the pharmacist, rashes begin covering both her arms, all around both her ankles,with patches on her face, stomach and back. As always, Mara wanted to call somebody: “Let’s call Grandma B. and tell her I have rashes all over my body!”

When I saw how the rashes were spreading, I put the gel on her and gave her the Zyrtec right there in the Allergy Relief aisle at Target. I needed to do some shopping, so we did. I got groceries, some toiletries, and a new pink hat which absolutely Mara loved. I hoped the hat would distract her from scratching her hives, and it did.

“Let’s go back to the pharmacy and show them my new hat!” she exclaimed with a huge smile.

As we shopped, her hives began to disappear, and gradually, within an hour or two, her skin was completely normal again.

With my husband and me both coming from families that suffer from allergies, I know all the questions to ask:

• Did she eat something new? Anything new? Today? Yesterday?
• Did we use a new laundry detergent? a new soap/shampoo? Buy a new blanket? new clothes?
• Has she been exposed to a new pet? or animal dander which is unfamiliar to her?
• Was she outside? Possibly exposed to a new tree/grass pollen? or other allergen?

We asked all the questions and can’t come up with any reason for the hives. I’m not worried. I had my share of hives and miscellaneous allergic reactions as a child.

But I’m glad I’ve added this Benadryl Extra Strength Itch Stopping Gel to our Medicine Cabinet! It Works for Me! And you just never know when you might need it!

Someone once challenged us as parents that we should not only be teaching our children memory verses, but we should also be teaching them, by our own example, the value of hiding God’s Word in our hearts. (In other words, what Scripture passages are you as a parent memorizing and applying to your life?)

I was convicted by that. I do value God’s Word, and I want my children to value it too. But as my former pastor used to say, “Time is the great revealer of the motives of the heart.” And often the way I use my time reveals that I don’t, in fact, value God’s Word above many other things in my life.

Last year, I had a goal of using Desiring God’s Fighter Verses to memorize one Scripture passage/week. A goal which I did not achieve. I won’t say that I failed  miserably though, because the passages I did memorize were alternately a blessing, encouragement and a rebuke to my heart.

We would like our children to memorize out of the English Standard Version, and I have found very few children’s memory resources written using the ESV. John Piper’s church has a ministry called Children Desiring God, and this week I was delighted to discover that there is a CD for the Fighter Verses (Set D only) set to music, using the ESV! This Works for Me! The songs begin and end with the reference, and repeat the text of verse a couple of times. Some songs have the verse text spoken in the middle of the song as well. The music is not particularly amazing–but certainly a helpful memory tool!

I was so excited! I’ve purchased this CD, and I plan to learn the verses with the kids this year.

My goal is to play the entire CD a couple times throughout the week, just casually, while the kids are playing. Mara memorizes most of the CDs we listen to, and Micah, the child who screamed through nursery every Sunday for months, now wants me to sing “The Wise Man Built His House Upon a Rock” and “My God is So Big” every night before he goes to bed. He can hardly talk, but he uses the signs and says “Wise Man” and “God. . . Stars!”  They learn so much, just being exposed through “casual” listening!

Then I want to focus on one verse each week. Listening intently to one song three times. Then trying to recite the verse without the song.

This week it is “Isaiah 41:10.” Before bed tonight, I sat with all three kids singing along with this song: “Isaiah 41:10. Fear not, for I am with you. Be not dismayed; for I am your God. I will strengthen you. I will help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10.” Then I said the verse (with Mara repeating after me and Micah trying to repeat after me).

Mara wanted to know, “What’s ‘dis-maid’?”

Of course, Carissa sat on my lap listening quietly.

As I sang along (“I will uphold you”), my little Micah climbed onto my other knee, asking, “Hold you? Hold you?”

“Yes, buddy, I will hold you,” I told him. He snuggled for the rest of the song, and before I turned out their lights, I sang it again to both Mara and Micah in their beds without the CD.

Even though Micah’s not really grasping the concept “God will uphold you,” I’m encouraged that he’s hearing. And someday, hopefully soon, God will work these truths in his young heart.

“Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”

May God speak to their young hearts through His word!