"Veggameatabreadatarian"

We were having supper tonight and found ourselves marvelling at how different our children are regarding food. Our son, Bailey, has always been a good eater...providing that we serve foods that he likes. I don't think he is a particularly picky eater, but there are certain foods he will NOT eat. He won't touch fish, for example; not even fish sticks. He doesn't like salads either. Not green salad, potato salad, egg salad...he doesn't really like things mixed together at all. He has always been a meat & potatoes (mashed or baked) kind of kid. He must take after my side of the family. He will begrudgingly eat his cooked vegetables, beans and peas if we urge him along. We have always kept it simple with him, avoiding too much seasoning, often not having things that are too exotic, etc. My daughter, Emily, on the other hand, loves vegetables. She has frequently been known to eat all the veggies on her plate first and sometimes pass right over the meat and starch. She loves salad, too, which I thought all kids hated.?? And I won't even talk about the raw peppers, bell peppers, jalapeno peppers and those peppers they give you in the PapaJohn's Pizza box. I don't even touch those, but she likes them. Raw fruits and vegetables are often what she chooses for snacks, as well. She must take after her Granny Sharon, my sweet mom-in-law. Anyway, tonight we were trying to get Bailey to eat his steamed veggies & lima beans. All the while, we also tried to get Emily to at least try her chicken & rice. I joked that between the two of them they eat a complete meal. Haha! I also made mention that Emily is just a natural vegetarian. To which, my son said, "Well, I'm a veggameatatarian." A short pause and he added, "No, I'm a veggameatabreadatarian. I like bread, too." LOL

"The Hard Way"

The funniest thing happened last weekend. My 3 1/2-yr-old nephew, Collin, had come to stay with us on Friday, while his mom, my sweet sis-in-law Courtney, had jury duty. The kids played hard all day long and had such a great time. In the evening, after we ate dinner, the two boys went right back to playing. At one point, they came out of the bedroom dressed-up head to toe...Bailey was Darth Vader, Collin was the red Power Ranger...both wielding light sabres. It was hilarious to watch them go at each other while trying not to run into furniture, knock things over, hit the walls or hurt each other. And amusingly they did this while my oblivious husband sat on the couch reading the latest copy of his favorite Mopar magazine. Kids are better than TV! A short while into it they both stopped to take a breath and plan their next move. Bailey looked at Collin and in a very serious tone said, "Okay, we can do this the easy way or the hard way!" There was a momentary pause, then Collin very matter-of-factly replied, "THE HARD WAY," and gave Bailey's light sabre a good whack. Courtney and I looked at each other and started cracking up laughing. What made it even more amusing was that Bailey stands a good head-and-shoulders over Collin, but Collin was fearless in his challenge. The whole thing made me think. Isn't that how we are sometimes as adults. God says, "Okay. we can do this the easy way or the hard way." We barely pause to think about it and CHOOSE the hard way in our inexperience or arrogance. Sometimes it's just our thirst for excitement that drives us into challenges we might be better off avoiding. And often we do this with no fear of what might happen if life gets a little out of control. As I've gotten older, I realize that the hard way does not come without it's repercussions and consequences. Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." He offers us the easy way. We should all learn more quickly to take hold of it.

Kids Say the Darnedest Things 1

Like most parents of young children, I am always amused by the things my children say. The other day my 8-year-old son, Bailey, was showing off his video gaming talents to my father, his Pawpaw. He just recently got the game system, but has quickly learned how to play several of the games very well. Unfortunately, the rest of the family is not so talented at playing them, so he is always looking for someone new to challenge him at Mario Bros., Star Wars, or whichever of the games he happens to be interested in that day. Anyway, he convinced Pawpaw to play a game with him and off they went to the bedroom to play. I could hear Bailey from the other room explaining, in his 8-year-old way, how the game was played, what the object of the game was, which buttons on the controller did what functions, etc. He quickly rambled through it all and then said, "Okay, Pawpaw, let's play." Having been through the same "instruction-time" with him myself, I could sense the confusion from the other room. But, Pawpaw, in his best way, said, "Okay, let's play." Anyway, I was visiting with my Mom, and we could hear them going at it the other room...mostly Bailey saying, "No, Pop, not that way, this way," or "you have to hit that button, no that button, no, no, no..." After a long while of giving it his best shot, my poor Dad finally gave up and "let him win." When it was all over, my sweet son looked at my Dad and said in his most serious tone, "Pawpaw, you're going to have to improve." LOL Fortunately, Pawpaw was tickled pink over that and will have plently of chances to hone his gaming skills. Every time they come to visit, Bailey asks him to play again. I'm glad my Dad has a great sense of humor.