how does she do it?

 How does she do it?

And by she...I mean our babysitter.

Today two if Kase's buddies came to play.  They were only here for an hour.  And I'm exhausted.  EXHAUSTED.  That might be partly because I spent the last two days listening to various speakers talk about various legislative issues that impact education (zzzzzzzzz...this is me snoring).  

But fo realz.  Even though these are three of the cutest kids ever, watching three active toddlers is crazy!  Today has convinced me (even though I was already certain this is true) that there is a special place in Heaven for babysitters, complete with the most beautiful wings God ever created.  I'm also convinced that babysitters are angels on Earth.  I wish everyone had a babysitter like we do.  She is a true TREASURE.

Let me introduce you to some of Kase's buddies

This is Dayton.  His dimples, blue eyes, and curly hair will break hearts someday.  Parents, lock up your daughters!  He spent a large portion of the hour putting all of the balls he could find onto the chair, then hoarding them from Addilyn & Kase!

This is Addilyn (Kase calls her Addi).  She's very sweet and very smart, not to mention a cute little peanut!  She liked playing with our Leap Frog alphabet toy we have on the fridge.  I said she was smart...this girl (she's not even 2 yet) can sing the entire alphabet.  Whoa!

 Kase had a rough time sharing his toys.  And, of course, Dayton & Addi went for his favorite toys so that made the sharing even more traumatic.  However, by the end of the hour, he was almost content sharing.

I tried to get a group picture...this was the best I got :)

so fun

"so fun" is what kase says when something is exactly that, so fun! we heard it many, many times this past sunday as we took full advantage of the beautiful weather.

first up after naptime was playing in the backyard, complete with bubbles, digging in the dirt, waving at our neighbor, and playing ball.

next, helping daddy dig out a few bushes

then, our first (of many) trips to the park this season.

molls came to the park too.

but she got tired on our walk back, so we put her in the basket of kase's stroller for a ride.

on our way home we saw a few friends who called us over to see some baby ducks they had in their backyard. he thought they were pretty great and wanted to hold them (eek!).

so fun!

puzzles

 Kase's interest in puzzles hasn't slowed down lately...in fact, I would say it's increased significantly!  It's probably because he's become quite good at them, so I think he has more fun with them now.

This is his "Momma, help me" face.

I find myself torn when he makes this face.  I know he can do it, he shows me that he can all the time.  However, I hate seeing him struggle.

I need to fight myself and not automatically jump in and solve his issues, but let him figure things out on his own.

It's difficult to try and teach self-confidence!

I love puzzles for kids. Not only does it teach fine motor skills, but it helps teach new things like vocabulary words, colors, counting, problem-solving, all kinds of things!

 WE DID IT!!! Or as Dora says, LO HICIMOS! (Kase is a BIG Dora fan).

gimme some of dat cheese

This afternoon I was sitting at the table, minding my own business, eating a piece of string cheese and reading a magazine.

I could sense some eyes watching me.

How could I not resist these pretty puppy dog eyes???

Would you like to guess how much string cheese I ate?

An accurate guess would be VERY little.

These are two lucky puppies.

for those mamas with strong-spirited children

I received this devotional in my email this morning.  It resonated with me...big time.  And I know it'll resonate with a few other mamas as well!

I Don't Want to Raise a Good Child

"Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it." Proverbs 22:6

My daughter, Hope, is a senior this year.  And she decided her senior year should be adventurous and a little out of the "normal" box.  A lot out of the box actually.  She withdrew from traditional school.  Applied with the state to homeschool.  Enrolled in online college courses that would allow her to get both high school and college credit simultaneously.  And planned to spend the month of January serving in Nicaragua doing missions.

This didn't surprise me really.  Hope has always liked charting her own course.  This thrills me now.  But it didn't thrill me so much in the early years of raising this strong-spirited child.

When she was little I was scared to death I was the world's worst mom, because Hope was never one to be contained.  And I honestly thought all her extra tenacity was a sign of my poor mothering.

One day I took her to the mall to meet several of my friends with toddlers to grab lunch.  All of the other kids sat quietly eating cheerios in their strollers.  They shined their halos and quoted Bible verses and used tissues to wipe their noses.

Not Hope.

She was infuriated by my insistence she stay in her stroller.  So, when I turned away for a split second to place our lunch order, she wiggled free.  She stripped off all of her clothes.  She ran across the food court, and jumped in the fountain in the center of the mall.  Really, nothing makes the mother of a toddler feel more incapable than seeing her naked child splashing in the mall fountain.  Except maybe that toddler refusing to get out and said mother having to also get into the fountain.

I cried all the way home.

Not because of what she'd done that day.  But rather because of how she was everyday.  So determined.  So independent.  So insistent.  I would get God to show me how to raise a good child.  One that stayed in her stroller.  One that other people would comment about how wonderfully behaved she was.  One that made me look good.  But God seemed so slow to answer those prayers.  So, over the years, I changed my prayer.  "God, help me to raise Hope to be who You want her to be."  Emphasis on "God HELP ME!"  I think I changed my prayers for her because God started to change my heart.  I sensed He had a different plan in mind for my mothering of Hope.

Maybe God's goal wasn't for me to raise a good rule-following child.  God's goal was for me to raise a God-following adult.  An adult determined and independent and insistent enough to fulfill a purpose He had in mind all along.

Today's key verse reminds us we are training children so that when they are old they will not turn away from Biblical principles, but rather implement them in their life-long pursuit of God.  Remember, the things that might aggravate you about your child today, might be the very things when matured that make them great for God's kingdom tomorrow.

I don't know what mama needs to hear this today.  But let me encourage you from the bottom of my heart with three simple mothering perspectives you must hang on to:
1. Don't take too much credit for their good.
2. Don't take too much credit for their bad.
3. Don't try to raise a good child.  Raise a God-following adult.

And all the mamas of fountain dancing children said, "Amen!"

Dear Lord, I know you desire for me to raise a God-following adult.  Please give me Your wisdom as I seek to become the parent You called to this high honor.  Redirect my perspectives and equip me for this task today.  In Jesus' Name, Amen.

disclaimer

ATTENTION BLOG READERS:

THE SIETSTRA'S ARE NOT PREGNANT

It has come to my attention that me calling Kase "Brother" in my previous post has caused some confusion amongst the blog community.  "Brother" is a pet name that I sometimes use when I talk about Kase.  I'm sorry to disappoint, but we are not adding another child to our family at this time.  When that time comes, I will announce it in a more obvious way.

That is all.

Good night.

check this out

 First, you've GOT to try this soup.  IT'S BEYOND DELISH.  You could make it vegetarian if you use vegetable broth rather than chicken broth, and omit the prosciutto (but for realz, the prosciutto is fabulous).  If you've never had prosciutto, first, it's kind of a bacony-hamish meat.  Second, try it.  Wrap it around chicken, throw it in your soup, just try it.  It's spendy so don't go crazy, but try it.

OK, here's the recipe: 2T EVOO; 1/4lb prosciutto, chopped; 1 lb zucchini, discard seeds, cut & chopped; 2 ribs celery, chopped; 1 carrot, chopped; 1 onion, chopped; 1 bay leaf; 3 cloves garlic; salt & pepper; 32oz chicken stock; 1-15oz can cannellini beans, rinsed (I mash these after they've cooked for awhile because let's face it, beans are nasty); 1-15oz can crushed tomatoes; 1/4lb penne; basil; 2T butter

1. Heat the EVOO & add prosciutto, cook until browned.

2. Add zucchini, celery, carrot, onion, bay leaf & garlic.  Season with salt & pepper.  Cook until vegetables are tender.

3. Stir in the chicken stock, beans & tomatoes.  Bring to a boil.

*Note, if you want to do this meal as a make-ahead dish, after the soup is brought to a boil, cool completely and either freeze or refrigerate.  Then, when you reheat, bring to a boil again, and cook the pasta.

4. Add the pasta & cook until al dente.

5. Stir in basil & butter.

Enjoy!

Then...

check out brother's new trick

How cute is this naked little boy sitting on the potty?!?!

We've been working on potty training for awhile, but nothing real serious.  Right now, it's still just fun for him to sit on the potty, not a permanent activity.  Up to this point he hasn't pottied in the potty.

until tonight

tonight...

HE DID IT!!!  HE POTTIED IN THE POTTY!!!

Look at how proud brother is of himself

Mommy made quite a big deal out of it.

I may have over-exaggerated.

But I'm OK with that.

Mommas are supposed to over-exaggerate when their kids do extraordinary things.

And going potty in the potty chair is extraordinary :)

learning/bath time

 I TRY to have "learning time" with Kase every now and then.  Sometimes he's more interested than other times, but tonight during bath, he was more than interested!  He couldn't get enough of this matching color game, and, he did great!  I figure, not only did he practice his colors, but he practiced listening to instructions, matching, and "top" and "bottom" differentiation!  After he put the animal on the cup I'd ask him, "Kase, is the frog on top or bottom?"  Towards the end of our game he figured it out!  Then, of course, we counted all of the matches.  I'm amazed as his learning abilities...he catches on to things to quickly!  We'd love for this to carry over into school as well :)

 Then...it was time for the FUN part...knocking them all off the ledge of the tub!