Ensuing

Seek peace,and ensue it. l Pet.3:11

Pouring love . . .

 

... with gracious care.

My Help

Do you clean? I don't ask him to do it. He likes to. I'd be a fool not to hire him.

Size Up

We want to be sure to have all the correct information before we size up.

"The best we can do is size up the chances, calculate the risks involved, estimate our ability to deal with them, and then make our plans with confidence."
~Henry Ford

Avids

Zane is at the stage where he loves to flip through books on his own, using his independent toddler skills. Sometimes he likes to hear you read as he plays to the side. He has some stories memorized.

Vanessa went through a spell where she was tired of being asked to read a book. It was as if she knew this was yet another thing she was afraid to give up her dependence for, and all the new school related reading on top of pleasure reading at home was maybe too much of a good thing. She would proclaim we always read and she's bored of it. In recent months she's venture back into her love of reading by gradually slipping back to cuddling and listening to someone else read. And becoming a relatively independent and a newly confident reader has sparked a delightful eagerness to delve back into book after book. She forgets that she's making the independent choice to get lost in books. Sometimes she realizes she's revealed her disguise and again pretends she's lost all capability, but now not for long, because she just can't help herself.

Some Things of Spring

 

Here are some things we love of spring:

• Wind blowing through our hair
• Little boy shirtless and everyone digging for treasure 
• Feeling warmer air all over our body
• Budding
• Barefoot
• Bubble blowing and bubble chasing 

And there are so many more things to look forward to.

PainT!

Zane emphasizes the t in paint.

"I paint objects as I think them, not as I see them."
~Pablo Picasso

Faux Pet

Since the kids' interest is sporadic and short-lived, it's perfect to be able to pull out an old toy of Daddy's to satisfy spontaneous desires. Roboreptile is plain cool. We can't remember the exact year but we feel certain that it's been more than ten years ago that Grandpa Tim treated Daddy to this toy. We remember him every so often and bring him out to play. This time out is Zane's first time playing with him. Last time we had him out was when Vanessa was about Zane's current age. She was freaked by Robo, so he didn't stay out  for long.

Here's why he's a perfect Faux Pet (from Amazon):

• The ultimate herpetological species. Don't be fooled by this beast's size -- he is fast, ferocious, cunning and intelligent
• A sly and ruthless creature, Roboreptile uses advanced technology for greater intelligence
• Roboreptile's powerful infrared vision and sonic sensors swiftly alert him to disturbances in his environment
• Roboreptile can be extremely hostile or harmless, alert or asleep
• He can be programmed with movements and animations and is packed with personality
• Can be controlled directly, programmed or put into Free Roam, Demo Mode, Guard Mode or Sleep Mode.
• He has four moods aggressive, ferocious, passive or tammed
• In Guard Mode they make him a formidable sentry. In Free Roam his sharp sensory systems make him a ruthless predator

Conformist/Nonconformist

She's a wonderful balance of both. She is conformist when it comes to following directions and routines for structured events and things , but she's a nonconformist in most social aspects.

Recently she opened up an instructional manual and within minutes, with the help of good illustrations, she had the process figured out  for hanging a nest swing. Her use of language to describe the process was amazingly cute and spot on.

I hear from others that she would make a great editor -- her seemingly critical attention to details might feel annoying at times but it demonstrates her extreme analytical thinking. We're working with her to understand and channel that appropriately to demonstrate her respect and to be sensitive to others.

Socially she has no problems sharing her opinion. She's very realistic in her thinking and doesn't have time for absurd fluff. You can't make her do things that place her outside of her comfort zone, which I'm extremely thankful for. If she's unsure or insecure about something, her reaction will let you know. And for that, I'm a firm believer in that you don't make a little one do something to appease others, for it might convince them that they're never good enough or they're not able to do things independently and with confidence, or that they're not to listen to their natural instinct. 

She is who she is and I love and accept her just the way she is, conforming or nonconforming.

No Fooling

We can call it a break since it was a break from Vanessa's normal routine. We went to COSI. We bowled and played with friends. Vanessa and Mama had a dinner & shopping date. We crafted and colored eggs. We had special lunches with some of our favorite peeps. we watched movies and ate whenever we wanted. We hunted for eggs with cousins and friends.We made an impressionable Grace Garden. Vanessa started to develop an understanding for communion. Good Friday services and KidCity were enough for Vanessa to want to hang with the family during the Easter service. And we were overindulged with an awesome Easter dinner. One of my favorite things to do over break was to nap altogether, lined in a row and snuggled up in Zane's bed.

 

Something worth recording -- Zane didn't like getting near the Easter Bunny. But eventually he approached Bunny while in Grandpa's arms. Later in the day, each time Vanessa would tell Zane stories about the Easter Bunny coming to our house, he would get very distraught. When trying to go to sleep that night, and just after drifting off, Zane sprung up and said "No bunny at our house." I assured him that he would not have to worry about seeing Bunny, and so he plopped his head back down and drifted off to sleep.