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| After a morning of errands with the boys, I stopped at the playground to let them run around in the 85-degree weather. It was empty in the heat but they enjoyed it fully, running back and forth between the two playgrounds and then stopped under the pavilion to enjoy the kumquat bread and trail mix I had brought along. I watched their faces flush with heat as sweat curled the hair at the back of their necks. They drained their water cups and ate all the food I had brought. It was amazing. I brought them home and fed them homemade ice cream before putting them to bed.
Why so amazing?
- I was able to carry Ant down the stairs to put him in the car, get in and out of the vehicle several times on errands, and still have enough foot-strength left to make a park visit.
- At the library I was able to walk into the stacks and actually browse the shelves instead of just picking up reserves by the front door. This meant new board books for Ant.
- It was possible to walk from one tot lot to the other when they wanted to try a new piece of equipment.
- When Munchkin asked me to push him on the swings I didn't have to stop after a few pushes from the pain of standing up. I just kept standing there and waiting for the pain to start and it didn't.
- I will not be spending the afternoon sitting still, stretching my feet & ankles, or sleeping off the pain from the morning's exertions.
God is so kind to heal me! I still have a disabled tag on my car and my feet do get sore after an extended amount of activity, but they haven't felt this good since before Ant was born. I have high hopes that the healing will be complete and eventually I'll be able to take the boys for long walks. It hasn't just been my life that's been constricted by my disability -- their opportunities for development, exercise and activity have been seriously limited. I'm so glad for them as well as for me! What a gift from God.
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| (While listening to Isaiah on the stereo "He was wounded for our transgressions") Munchkin: What does it mean to be wounded?Me: It means to be hurt. Munchkin: You remember how sometimes I wound Ant? Me: Yes. Munchkin: That's because I'm a sinner who needs a savior. I'm always a sinner who needs a savior. But sometimes I'm a scoffer too. Then I get two disciplines.
Later today:
Munchkin: What do the ducks mean when say "We're the three caballeros, the three gay cabelleros"?
Me:... uh... It means they're happy.
Munchkin: Then I'm gay!
Me.... uh..."gay" is an old word which used to mean happy but now it means somebody who does not obey God. Since the Three Caballeros is an old video we know they mean they are happy. But since you are young, if you say you're gay someone might think you do not obey God. If you are happy it's better to say you are happy.
Munchkin: I am HAPPY!!
This conversation alone was worth giving up my dissertation for.
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| There is a seam in the corner of Ant's pack & play that began to unravel when he was 3 months old. He just had his 18-month checkup and has diligently enlarged it so he can shove things through it into the corner where they become unreachable. Noticing it was big enough for his head to fit, I took a few minutes this morning to repair it.
I was industriously improvising with needle, thread, and seam binding and thinking perhaps I could compare to Mrs. Pepper when Munchkin finished his chocolate chip bagel with peanut butter.
Munchkin: Mom, I'm full!
Me: Okay, wipe your hands and face and get down.
Munchkin: Where's the washcloth?
Me: On the table.
Munchkin: I don't see it.
Me: Look on Ant's tray.
(silence)
Munchkin: (in doorway with peanut butter hands) What are you doing?
Me: Go in the bathroom and wash your hands with soap.
Munchkin: Ant is following me!
Me: Shut the door.
Munchkin: No, Ant!
Ant: Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaah
This fabric is more raveled than I thought. I'm going to have to do six or eight seams to get the edges to go together. Wish this seam binding was wider, then I could do less stitches. Better start the second seam. Didn't realize it was going to be this hard. Maybe I should have googled a how-to.
(Three minutes later...)
Munchkin: Mom, I peed in my underwear.
Me (stitching): Okay, go in the bathroom and take your pants and training pants off and finish peeing on the toilet.
Munchkin: I think you are wrong.
Me: What?
Munchkin: I don't have any more pee.
Me: Okay, go take off your pants and underwear and put on some new ones.
(silence)
Munchkin: Mom, Ant did something horrible!
Me: What did he do?
Munchkin: He moved the chair! No, Ant!
Ant: Waaaaaaaaaaaaah
These are the last two seams. Oh dear, I can't do them sitting down. Whoa, bending over the side with one hand on either side of the seam sure hurts my back.
(two minutes later)
Munchkin: Mom these underwear are too hard to get on.
Me (hiding the needle and scissors from Ant): How do you ask for help?
Munchkin: Mom can you help me please?
Me: Yes. Oh, you've got your legs in the wrong holes.
Munchkin: What are you doing?
Me: No, Ant... I'm fixing Ant's pack & play. Remember the hole? I'm sewing it.
Munchkin: Can I see it?
Me: When I'm done.
(two minutes later)
Munchkin: Mom, Ant unplugged the monitor (behind the pack & play which I had pulled out from the wall)!
Me: Don't worry, I'll fix it when I'm done with this. Or maybe you can plug it back in.
Munchkin: Urg! Urg! Ennngh! Mom it won't go in!
Me: Try turning it around.
Munchkin: I did it!
Me: Good!
Starting on the last seam. One of my fingers is bleeding.
Ant: gurgle gurgle gurgle (snipping experimentally)
Me: No, Ant! (retrieving the scissors and pincushion)
Ant: ewwoooooo (bouncing on my outstretched leg)
Munchkin: Mom, something moved under the bed! It was coming toward me! I'm scared!
Me: There's nothing under the bed.
Munchkin: I think it is a mouse. Can you look please?
Me: (Under my breath) Vermin. Okay, let's see... It's a car.
Munchkin: Can you get it please?
Me: No, I am sewing. No, Ant.
My husband has too much sense to ask the famous question "What did you do all day?" Because now I have the great accomplishment of preventing my child from strangling himself. Furthermore, if he wants to throw his bottle in an inaccessible corner so he can cry until someone fetches it, he now has to stand up.
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| Munchkin: Mommy, what did you get at the store?
Me: I got some knives and some ankle splints for me, and some chips.
Munchkin: You got some chips for me?
Me: Do you deserve chips?
Munchkin: Yes.
Me: No. What do you really deserve?
Munchkin: Wrath, and chips.
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| Munchkin: My soul was hungry before you put on the Bible. Thank you for putting on the Bible. That was kind of you to put on the Bible for my soul.
Me: You're welcome.
Munchkin: Our soul grows and grows because we feed our souls with Bible. That's their food.
You are right.
Such a welcome change from the conversations about whether poop ought to go in the toilet instead of in his diaper. Here's another:
Me (singing Andrew Peterson's song): Ant, Ant, shooting to the moon
Munchkin: NO, rockets go to the moon, not babies!
Me: Well what do babies do?
Munchkin: Them cry and burp and eat food.
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