1. The other day Eden and I went to school to eat lunch with Benjamin (eats at 10:53) and then we stayed to eat lunch with Payton (eats at 11:27). It was a bit too long to ask Eden to sit. She did great through Benjamin's lunch but by the time Payton arrived she was ready to be on the move. I did my best to keep her entertained but she was up and moving the last 10 minutes....until we finally excused ourselves. That night Payton said, "mom, I loved you being at lunch today and I liked having Eden there. Please do not bring her back." I said, "Payton, I totally understand, she was a bit wild there at the end. Next time I will eat with Benjamin on one day and you another so Eden will be fresh and able to sit still the entire time." He said, "No her not sitting still was fine. What bothered me was everyone looking at her and thinking she was cute. I know she's cute but when people start talking about her something in my heart feels like I want them to stop. She is my baby sister. I think it is a good idea if you leave her at home where she is safe and no one looks at her from now on." Protective older brother in full force. So sweet.
2. Benjamin is also protective of Eden. However, there is something in him that recognizes after he has been at school , she has had 7 hours of uninterrupted peace. He has to somehow make up for that 7 hours of pester free living in the short time he has before he goes to bed and he aims to do it each and every day. From about 2:30 -7 Eden has a constant flow of adrenaline. We are working on this.
3. Eden is precious...but she can dish it out. More than once I have caught her walking up behind Benjamin with a bat, a stick, some type of weapon ready to get him good on the back of the head. Sometimes I do not catch her in time and Benjamin glimpses the reality that if you are going to pester, you are going to be pestered. It's a life lesson. One that I am anxious for everyone to learn so we can move on to the next stage.
4. Eden would be fully potty trained if she could go out her belly button. She has obviously observed from an early age her brothers going the bathroom. (We now have a closed door policy, so that no longer occurs.) She has successfully used her potty a few times in the proper way. Many other times, she has taken off her diaper, stood in front of her toilet, stuck her belly out over it and peed all over the floor. Have mercy.
5. The other day Payton said he had a few questions on heaven....which really turned in to he had a few tangents about heaven.
Tangent 1..." I have heard that you do not sleep in heaven. While that sounds nice, I have been a lot of places that have been a lot of fun but I always get tired. Reference : Seaworld, Six Flags. While the idea of never sleeping is nice, what happens if I want to lay down and take a nap and there is no bed. Am I just supposed to stand there or sit there for forever miserable. Does God understand how that could get irritating quick?
Tangent 2..."Do you guys think your new heavenly body will be able to fart? I wonder about this. Most of the times when I laugh the hardest is when someone farts. I think I could not help but be sad if I got to heaven and our new bodies do not do that. What would everyone laugh about?
Deep thoughts from Payton Brooks.
6. The other day Eden and I were out walking when our new neighbor (moved in a couple months back, but we had not met him) came out. I introduced myself and then he introduced himself. The he said, "you know I witnessed one of your worst moments." My heart immediately sank as my mind began to race about the (Countless) times I have been trying to load the kids and for one reason or another it has resulted in spankings for one or the other...or even worse, no spanking, just me totally losing my mind. He then said, "I was out here one day letting my dog out when I saw you come running out and hop in your suburban. Then I saw you throw it in reverse and slam in to your husband's new truck. When you got out to look at the truck I could tell you were upset. When I saw the paper tags on that truck I thought I was about to see your husband lose it. I stayed outside curious to see what would happen. I watched while you went to get him and then I watched him walk out, look at the truck, take a deep breath, hug you and then walk back in. I've never met your husband, but he's a good man. I know that." Tony and I have been so challenged by that conversation. First because neither of us had any idea that man was watching. Next because we have thought about all the times we have reacted differently than that and not known any one was watching. Yikes...We both want to be more consistent in who we are as Christ followers. By the way, Tony is a great man. So thankful he is mine.
7. Tony has been reading Tony Dungy's book Uncommon. I have to say it is a great parenting book even though that is not what it is intended to be. One of the quotes in it is, "Don't worry that children never listen to you; worry that they are always watching you." We have seen this come to light in our family more than ever as of late. Some of the qualities that Tony and I wish so badly were not a part of our personalities are rearing their heads in our kids. It makes us want to to be different now.
8. This summer Benjamin said he wanted a hair cut just like his dads. Tony was more than happy to give him a buzz. The next day he was looking in the mirror and said, "Dad, you know I wanted to have a haircut just like yours. Why did you not give me one." Tony said, "I did Benjamin, your hair looks exactly like mine." Benjamin said, " I wanted a little bit of my skin to show on the top back of my head. Then I would really look like you." It was the most insulting, sweetest compliment Tony has ever received. Our boys want to be just like their dad.
9. One of Eden's favorite song to dance to is Uncle Kracker's Smile. At different points she will grab her brother's hands and pull them into her dances. I was watching the three of them the other day and started to cry. Huge thankful tears to the Lord...I would be willing to bet many people don't look at Uncle Kracker as a praise leader, but that day, in our home, that's exactly what he was.
"even when your gone
somehow you come along and just like
a flower poking through a sidewalk crack
and just like that
you steal away the rain, and just like that
you make me smile like the sun, fall out of bed
sing like a bird, dizzy in my head
just the thought of you can drive me wild
oh you make me smile."
10. Last year we spent labor day weekend with Tony's dad. We celebrated my birthday, we spent a lot of time talking, a lot of time visiting Tony's mom (she's in a nursing home), laughing and enjoying a great labor day weekend. We have relived every moment of that weekend a thousand different times in our heads...willing ourselves in our memories to notice more details, to hug a little longer, to soak up the moments of togetherness that we passed over in the moment assuming we would have more. None of us knew it was the last time we would have together. We hugged Tony's dad and told him goodbye on Monday, September 7th. He went to be with the Lord 9 days later. We miss him terribly. This weekend we are looking forward to another great Labor day weekend but we will live a little more fully in the moment because of the life we have lived in the past year. The Lord is very clear that our lives are but a breath...but it takes seeing up close how short that breath can be before it starts making you live differently. If you've read this far...bless you- (most likely I am just speaking to my blood relatives now:)) Soak up every moment and pour out everything you have. The Lord invites us to leave a legacy that will last in the people He surrounds us with...He is so good. May you and your family experience more of what He has to offer in deeper ways in these coming days.
