PT Boot Camp

I hope everyone had a great Memorial Day weekend. The Zfam took advantage of the extended weekend to conduct PT boot camp...3 days of serious nonstop potty training. Rebecca did not leave the house or back yard for the entire 3 days. We had every intention of going to church Sunday, but when I woke up with a stomach bug, I decided to keep her home as well and not break the momentum, if there was any. Rebecca has been quite the reluctant "big girl". Here are some numbers that give a glimpse of how it's been going:

False alarms in one 90 minute period (Yes. I counted.).......... 23
Average number of seconds spent on the potty after "NEE GO POTTY!!!" is proclaimed...... 4
Number of times Mommy failed to react urgently to "NEE GO POTTY!!!" and regretted it..... 6
Songs made up to encourage normal bodily functions...... 2
MnMs given to reward normal bodily functions.......... 27, give or take
Potential savings on diapers if PT can be mastered..... $48.36/month

I think we made progress over the weekend, but today it's back to real life...errands, school pick ups/drop offs, volleyball games, etc. I'm not looking forward to the inevitable accidents and trips to public restrooms (YUCK!), but whata ya gonna do?

How about you? How did you spend the holiday weekend?

Bowing Down to the Bathroom Scale

I previously posted about reading in Jeremiah about idols and how today, idols take the form of addictions or obsessions. Well, for me Idol #1 is the number on the bathroom scale. I am absolutely obsessed with it. It is the first thing I look for upon waking and I let it determine what kind of day I'm going to have. I have a magic number and if I get on the scale and see this number then Woohoo!!!! It's a great day! If the number is within a pound or 2 of my goal then it's still a good day. If it's 3 -5 pounds above my goal then it's an anxious unsettled day and if the number creeps up more than 5 pounds beyond the magic number then it is a downright dark and ugly day. Isn't that crazy...to let a number dictate what kind of day I'm going to have? On those dark and ugly days, I'm disgusted and frustrated with myself which makes it difficult for me to be pleasant and patient with the people around me. Other than that, I didn't feel like my little obsession was hurting anyone. I just had to keep that number in the "acceptable range". But after reading Jeremiah, I realize I am a slave to the bathroom scale and I feel like God is leading me to break free from that bondage. I'm not exactly sure how to do that. I've had this habit for the past 10 years. Do I go cold turkey and never set foot on a scale again? This doesn't seem wise. Is monitoring my weight on a weekly basis okay in God's eyes? I just don't know. I do know it is going to be a struggle and I pray God will help me. Tomorrow, I will post about Idol #2, the counter part to Idol #1.

Sad Mommy

Yesterday we officially started potty training Rebecca. So far it is not going well. I'm trying to forgo the Pull-ups unless we are going out in public and because we had so many accidents yesterday we don't have any clean training panties. So today, she's just wearing a little dress and nothing underneath. So this is our conversation:

Rebecca: Need diaper.

Me: Diapers are for babies. You're a big girl!

Rebecca: Noooooooo! Becca need diaper.

Me: Rebecca, you're a big girl. Big girls go on the potty.

Rebecca: Nooooo. Don't liiiiiiiike it potty.

Me: Sweetie, you're a big girl now.


This is what I am saying to Rebecca, but my mind (or is it my heart) is screaming...Nooo! She is a baby! She's my baby! She is NOT a big girl. That's just crazy talk!!!

I'm not ready for my baby to be a big girl, but as I learned with Abigail, life doesn't wait for the mommies to be ready.

Tough Love

I received a bit of tough love in my Bible study Monday night...before the whole Lamentations distraction. I had just read the verses that our pastor referred to...

Jeremiah 1:5

⁵ "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."

and

Jeremiah 29:11-13

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ¹² Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. ¹³ You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.

both of which I love and find very encouraging, but while in the book of Jeremiah I found commentary on idolatry. My study Bible explains that despite Jeremiah's warning the people of Judah were not willing to give up their idols and even though today we may not bow down to statues we are often still guilty of idolatry. In the New Testament Paul said that greed is idolatry. The things people get greedy for--money, sex, status, food--can function as little gods, as addictions. When we feel depressed, we turn to them for comfort. When we're happy we give them credit. But this is the place for God in our lives.

I went to the verse that my study Bible referred to...

Ephesians 5:5

⁵For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

Ouch!!! I have a couple of things I'm obsessed with or maybe even addicted to. I think I just received a pretty blunt TXT MSG that says God wants me to get rid of these "idols". It's not going to be easy, but I have faith that He will help me.

I goofed!

Hi, a quick note from Kari's hubby to introduce today's post:
So, I am standing in our bathroom, shaving my dome as Kari steps in with a very unhappy expression on her face. This is not how she usually returns from her beloved body-pump class (she must love it. She gets up at 4am for it!). 'I goofed!' she exclaims and proceeds to tell me that, in spite of our pastor's warnings, she took a glimpse at the book of Lamentations after finishing Jeremiah. She has one of those study Bibles that summarizes the chapters and the overview about the book alone was enough to upset her. She may or may not give you more details below, but unless you're a Stephen King fan or your tastes tend to the gory, I would heed the pastors recommendation and stay away from it. Whoever is shaving in your bathroom will thank you for it.

Thank you, Chris. Now just a few clarifications: First, I don't love Body Pump. I actually hate lifting weights, but Body Pump makes in bearable. Second, I didn't finish the whole book of Jeremiah. I just finished my study time in it for last night. Third, our pastor didn't say stay away from Lamentations. He suggested that we put it off until a time when our hearts are prepared for it.

Well, my heart was NOT prepared for it. I didn't go there on purpose. I had been reading in the book of Jeremiah, which by the way is no picnic. (Jeremiah was a very reluctant prophet.) After reading the last verse our pastor recommended (Jeremiah 29: 11-13) and asking God to help me understand His plan for me, I just flipped to a page in Lamentations and read a boxed explanation of a verse that jumped out at me. What I read, was more disturbing than anything I have ever come across, inside or outside of the Bible. I wish I could get it out of my head. So, let me just say that I would highly recommend heeding our pastor's warning. I will NOT be going back to Lamentations until someone explains to me exactly how to prepare my heart for it.

Thank you Ms. Kris

It is with a heavy heart, that I sit here typing this morning. We found out yesterday that Rebecca's beloved Sunday School teacher, Ms. Kris, is very sick and in the ICU. On the way to church, Rebecca sat in the back seat happily babbling about getting to see Ms. Kris. When we went to drop her off, we were told the sad news. I had been dreading promotion Sunday in three weeks because it would mean that Rebecca would graduate out of Ms. Kris' room and into the preschool wing. I thought I would get a chance then to thank her, but it is very unlikely that she will be back by then. It is a terrible feeling to know that you have missed an opportunity to tell someone how much they have meant to you. I want Ms. Kris and all the other women in the HCC nursery to know what a blessing they have been to our whole family.


Dear Kris (and all the other wonderful women in the HCC nursery),

I would like to thank you all for the love and patience you have shown my little Rebecca. I know this is what you do for all the children and have been doing for years, but I would like to tell you why it has meant so much to our family. God made us wait a while for Rebecca. After a difficult and scary pregnancy, Rebecca was born 3 weeks early and weighing only 5 pounds 3 ounces...tiny but healthy. Praise God! The doctors and nurses kept a close eye on her, but even though she weighed barely as much as a sack of sugar, she was released to go home two days later.

Our first daughter weighed 8 1/2 pounds when she was born and has been in the 95th to 100th percentile for height and weight ever since. By contrast, Rebecca barely stays on the charts for weight. At 4 months of age she came down with a scary MSRA staph infection and at a year of age she was diagnosed with a life threatening tree nut allergy. To say we have been protective of her would be an understatement. When she turned two she had never been left with anyone outside our family. I felt it was time to start bringing her to church, but Chris and my mom had reservations because they knew Rebecca would have a difficult time being left. I worried about this myself, but I felt like it would be to her benefit in the long run. We started out with the Tuesday Mom's Bible Study. I prayed all the way to the church that first morning and when I handed her off to Ms. Eva, I was able to walk away knowing that she was in loving hands. After a few weeks, when Rebecca would happily talk about the sweet ladies who took care of her on Tuesday mornings, I knew my prayers had been answered.

The next step was to take her to church on Sunday morning. Because the Tuesday group is small and there aren't that many kids, I think Rebecca got a lot of extra attention when she needed it. Sundays are a whole different ballgame...lots and lots of kids. I wasn't sure how she would handle it. Rebecca was put in the squirrel classroom and it broke my heart to see her lip quivering, trying with all her might to fight back the tears when we handed her over. This is where Ms. Kris came in. That first Sunday, she held Rebecca and rocked her in the rocker. When we picked her up she told us how good she had been. She always welcomed Rebecca with open arms and it wasn't long before Rebecca was also excited about going to church on Sundays, as well as Tuesdays. Whenever we would pick Rebecca up from her classroom, Ms. Kris would tell us how sweet she was. She always made me feel like she really loved her. I want to tell her how blessed I feel to have had her in Rebecca's life. I want to tell her and the rest of the beautiful wonderful women in the HCC nursery how much you have all meant to me. Through you, my prayers were answered. Thank you for loving my baby girl.

God bless you all,

Kari

Playing Catch Up

I got a little behind last week. Not because I slacked off in my study time, but because I was not ready to move on or did not feel like I had anything to share. Today I'm going to try to catch up so that we can stay on track and begin with the major prophets tomorrow. So here is some of what I have gotten out of the wisdom books:

Job 1:20-22

²⁰ At this, Job got up and tore his robe and shaved his head. Then he fell to the ground in worship ²¹ and said:
"Naked I came from my mother's womb,
and naked I will depart.
The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away;
may the name of the LORD be praised."

²² In all this, Job did not sin by charging God with wrongdoing.

I had a hard time reading Job, but I was encouraged to learn that God does not condemn doubt and despair. He does ask us to have faith during our trials and to trust Him. My study Bible gave this quote: "Do not forget in the darkness what you have learned in the light." I will always try to remember that suffering can be used for a higher good.

Psalm 18

¹ I love you, O LORD, my strength.

² The LORD is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;
my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge.
He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

³ I call to the LORD, who is worthy of praise,
and I am saved from my enemies.

The psalms are amazing and I plan to go back and spend a lot more time there. There is a psalm to match every mood and emotion, from joy to sorrow, from fear to contentment and so on. When I am struggling in my prayer life, I will pray the Psalms.

Proverbs 9:10

¹⁰ "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,
and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Would I sound like a drama queen if I said that this verse changed the way I live my life? A few months ago, our pastor gave an entire message on this verse. In this message, he said we should fear God's disappointment more than man's disapproval. That thought really struck me and I have been trying to live by it. When I felt like God put it on my heart to start this blog, my first reaction was: NO WAY!!! What if someone actually reads this and thinks I'm __________. (You can fill in the blank.) Then and many times since, when blogging or making other choices, I decided to worry more about disappointing God than what other people think of me. It's not easy, but I'm trying.

I will be spending a lot more time in the wisdom books and I will try to share future thoughts and insights, but tonight I will look forward to what Jeremiah has for me.