WFMW: Bags for the Road Trip

As I mentioned last week, we will be heading to North Carolina via car (shudder) next month. This trip has been planned for quite a while now, and I've been making mental notes of different things to buy in order to make the road trip a little less hellacious.

One of my ideas was to give each boy a small book bag to hang on their arm rests to hold their loot (a.k.a. books, crayons, paper, and small toys). This is to prevent me from getting whiplash from all the neck-craning involved with pleasing 3 boys on the road.

If you've taken a road trip with young kids, you know what I'm talking about. "Mommy, I need such and such." (5 minutes later) "Mommy, I'm done with such and such."

In my non-crafty mind, I imagined that I would need my mom's help in sewing simple bags. But when I mentioned this to her last week, she suggested I check Hobby Lobby for cheap, already-made bags. She's a genius, I tell you!

A trip to Hobby Lobby proved her right. I found these canvas bags complete with handles and outside pockets for around $3 each.
I found fabric markers on the same aisle for something like $7.
The boys have enjoyed decorating their bags a little each day.
And my idea of hanging them on the boys' arm rests...voila!
I had hoped to show you a picture of the boys each smiling in their seats and proudly displaying their bags. Unfortunately, their stinky attitudes showed me that they needed an early bedtime. Anywho....

When we hit the road in a few weeks, my neck will be able to rest a little longer between the requests for "such and such".

What else might make this road trip bearable? I would love to hear your ideas! (I'm also planning to hit the dollar store for cheap toys so they can have something new every couple of hours. Of course, we have movies and music.)

This post is linked to Works for Me Wednesday over at We Are That Family.

Friday Funny

We had the threat of a tornado the other night, so the boys, Winston, and I headed to my closet for safety. My husband, the hero, decided to stay in front of the tv to watch the weather reports.

What a man, what a man, what a mighty good man! (Name that song and win brownie points.)

I have a few children's books in my closet for such stormy occasions. Books help to take their minds of the impending storm.

The first one I read to them had them laughing so hard they had side aches.

Have you read Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willems to your children? If you haven't, they are seriously deprived children.

(I hate book reviews, so I'm not going to make you read mine. In college, I had to write fifty reviews one semeseter, and I will forever hate them. If you want to know what Knuffle Bunny is all about, click here.)

And when I say that your kids are deprived without Knuffle Bunny, I might be exaggerating. I don't want all two of you to rush out to the bookstore to purchase this light-hearted book and then be disappointed.

But if you want a good laugh, then let me tell you about this page in particular:
When I turned to that page, Jack said, "Look, Trixie has goggles in her hand."

I laughed so hard my sides ached.

And I didn't correct my innocent child.

Making a Book List

We leave in less than 4 weeks for our family vacation to North Carolina. Via Car. My blood pressure rises every time I think of two days on the road. If I could just blink and be there, that would be grand.

Once we get there, we'll be staying in a cabin on the Appalachian Trail. Sigh. My blood pressure mellows out every time I envision myself reading a book on the deck in 70-degree weather, while my children play sweetly at my feet.

Okay, so maybe not so much of the playing sweetly at my feet, but I am a-hopin' and a-prayin' they play nicely for at least one hour of every day, while I enjoy a good book on the deck.

Because vacation isn't complete without some good fiction, I need some suggestions. What are some must-reads in your opinion? (I will read a wide variety of fiction, but I won't read smut. I don't need my brain littered.)

I Love You More

I was recently sent a copy of Laura Duksta's "I Love You More" for review. It is the story of a mama telling her son how deeply she loves him. Halfway through the story, the reader flips the book to hear the child's love for mama.

The story itself is very touching, and my boys enjoyed cuddling up to read it with me. Periodically, they would sign "I love you" to me, which made my heart flutter!

Karen Keesler's illustrations are brightly detailed. I found my boys reaching out to touch an object on every page.

If you're having a particularly hormonal day, then you might want to grab a tissue before reading this story to your little ones. Not that I could speak on that topic personally or anything. Ahem.

Repeat After Me

..."I will not buy this book for my children!"

It might look very cute in the book store. I agree that each pop-up filled page is quite cute.

But the last page makes me want to call Christmas off, and it's not even December 1! That page has a little tab that can be pulled to play the most annoying version of "Jingle Bells" ever known to man.

And your children will not be satisfied to play it once. They'll want to hear it over and over again, until you are ready to either hide the book or run away until January 1.

I'm currently happy with the former. But if this blog takes a six-week hiatus, then you'll know that my children have found "Jingle Bugs" and I have flown the coop.

Consider yourself forewarned. You're welcome.

All He Ever Learned...Part I

We've probably all heard of the phrase "All I Ever Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten". But did you know it's actually the title of a published book of 50 essays? It is Robert Fulghum's 1986 work that was on the New York Times' bestseller list for almost two years.

Here is an excerpt that I found on the wonderful worldwide web. (Really, what did we do without that wonderful device?!):

All I Ever Really Needed to Know I Learned in Kindergarten
- by Robert Fulghum

Most of what I really need to know about how to live, and what to do, and how to be, I learned in Kindergarten. Wisdom was not at the top of the graduate school mountain, but there in the sandbox at nursery school.

These are the things I learned: Share everything. Play fair. Don't hit people. Put things back where you found them. Clean up your own mess. Don't take things that aren't yours. Say you're sorry when you hurt somebody. Wash your hands before you eat. Flush. Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you. Live a balanced life. Learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work some every day.

Take a nap every afternoon. When you go out into the world, watch for traffic, hold hands, and stick together. Be aware of wonder. Remember the little seed in the plastic cup. The roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.

Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the plastic cup - they all die. So do we.

And then remember the book about Dick and Jane and the first word you learned, the biggest word of all: LOOK . Everything you need to know is in there somewhere.

The Golden Rule and love and basic sanitation, ecology and politics and sane living.

Think of what a better world it would be if we all - the whole world - had cookies and milk about 3 o'clock every afternoon and then lay down with our blankets for a nap. Or if we had a basic policy in our nation and other nations to always put things back where we found them and clean up our own messes. And it is still true, no matter how old you are, when you go out into the world, it is best to hold hands and stick together.

So what do you think? Is there something missing from that list, or is it complete? Let's get some comments rolling!

Stay tuned for how I can tie this post into my husband's kindergarten report card and his 36th birtday this week! (At this point, my palms are sweating, now that I've promised this. I'm not sure if I can handle the pressure. I might not sleep for days now!)

And if you're interested in purchasing Fulghum's book, Amazon.com has used copies for as cheap as a penny! I might need to order one.

Friday Funny

I read The Wonderful Way Babies Are Made to Liam for the first time this week. In our discussion, we reviewed the fact that he and his brothers did not come from my belly but from their birth moms'. At the end, Liam had a confused look on his face and asked, "When Garrett grows up, he'll go live in your belly?"

I think it'll be a while before it all sinks in for Liam!

What about your family? What funny questions have come up in regards to the birds and the bees? Please post a clean, family-friendly comment below.

Odds and Ends

Jill is having a book give-away. Go to her place to check it out for yourself.

With swimming lessons and VBS every day this week, I'm wiped out. I'm going to attempt a nap while the house is quiet.

Oh, you'll be proud to know that we have a possible babysitter coming to meet all of us tonight!

Works for Me Wednesday: Quiet Time

I hear so many moms comment on how they struggle to find time to read the Bible and pray on a regular basis. I, too, struggled with this, until I implemented blanket time. While the boys play independently on their blankets, I sit in the same room with my Bible and prayer journal.

This works for me for several reasons:

• This gives me a guaranteed 45-minute time slot every day, in which I'm spending time with God.
• I am showing my boys the importance of reading the Bible.
• By journaling my prayer requests, I am showing my boys how to take concerns before the Lord.
• Because blanket time is usually in the morning, we are beginning our day on the right foot.
• Because I also play worship CDs during this time, my boys see/hear me praise God.
• Once I finish reading and praying, then I use the last few minutes to read non-fiction. It is important that our children see us enjoy books. (I'm currently working on Sacred Parenting by Gary Thomas, which I recommend to every parent!)

I hope you found this helpful. Shannon has many more ideas, so please visit Rocks In My Dryer.

I Do Love You!

Mem Fox is one of my favorite children's authors. In college, I created an entire reading unit using only her books. She has a way of writing a book that touches the heart! Who wouldn't want to curl up with a wonderfully illustrated children's book that will leave them with a warm, fuzzy feeling?!

Recently, I checked out Fox's Koala Lou from our local library. The story is of a young koala who feels safe and secure as her mother's first-born. When she does something sweet, her mother shows her affection by saying, "Koala Lou, I do love you!" As time passes, Koala Lou becomes an older sister many times over, and she feels that her mother no longer loves her. In an effort to gain her mother's attention and affection, Lou decides to train for a tree climbing contest, hoping that first place would gain her mother's approval. The big day arrives, and despite her giant efforts, Lou is defeated in the competition, leaving her feeling even worse. However, her mother quickly comes to her side to tell her of her unfailing love. My boys loved the story, and we read it many times before returning it to the library. Honestly, I teared up each time I read it to them.

Perhaps all first-borns feel like Koala Lou. Being the one and only child for some time, they are doted upon by all family members. Then, siblings come along, which cause mommy's time and attention to be diverted. I often feel an ache in my heart for Liam, my first-born. He has been a true pride and joy for our entire family. I suppose a lot of our excitement for him was because of our long fight with infertility and failed adoptions, but maybe we were just like you as new parents. We filmed, photographed, and journaled his every coo, smile, and minor milestone. But we quickly added two brothers to his life, and I often feel a sadness for Liam, because I know that I am busier with two more kids. Because I know that he still needs one-on-one time with me, I make sure that he gets an hour of my time every afternoon. We play games, read books, practice reading skills, whatever...we're just together. But I still feel that twinge in my heart that says, "Liam Edward, I do love you!"

Just yesterday, he suddenly told me, "Mommy, I do love you!" It took me by surprise, as it's been a few months since we've read that book. I took a deep breath to steady my voice, and I responded with, "I do love you!" He's said it several more times this weekend, and I hope it will continue. Because I know he says it to remind me that he needs that special moment with me.

Please get your hands on a copy of Koala Lou! You will enjoy its innocence, and your kids will be able to relate to Lou's need for mommy. I bet you'll walk around your house saying it..."I do love you!"