The Magic of Parents

If you are anything like me and my husband you had THE BEST PARENTS. You looked up to them. You thought they could do no wrong. One or both of them were or are your hero. They were perfect. They were MAGIC. When you needed something they were there. A hug, a bit of advice, cloths, food. Most everything you could need and some of what you want. That's not to say there weren't things you could point out that they didn't get exactly right, you just don't really remember those things.

Now for a bit of news about these wonderful people we call mom and dad. If you have kids you have now figured this out for yourself... if you don't when you get kids this will be your "ah ha" moment. YOUR PARENTS ARE NOT EVEN CLOSE TO PERFECT. How do I know this. I am a parent. My husband is a parent. We screw it up DAILY. That is not to say I think we are doing a bad job. Just that I know when I've messed it up. I yell, I get mad, I get annoyed, I get stressed. Sometimes I want to run away. 

Dylan was a WONDERFUL baby. He rarely cried. He was happy. He didn't demand a lot of you. I was DEPRESSED for the first year of his life. Things were not going well for David and I. We were not making great choices for ourselves let alone for a family. I wanted OUT. But I stuck it through and things started getting better.

Paige was a pretty easy kid. She was sweet. She did her own thing as a toddler. She was a great solo player. I BROKE MY LEG when she was 4 months old and one week before Dylan's 5th birthday. It seemed like every time things get good for David and I something comes along and knocks us back down.

Joy is a JOY. She is sweet, funny, ACTIVE, smart, and my goodness HIGH MAINTENANCE!!! This kid is all up in my business ALL day EVERY day. For someone that requires a ridiculous amount of personal space and down time to myself this child is a challenge. 

I love all my kids to pieces. I couldn't imagine my life without them. They help me grow and make me be a better person because I want so much for them. I hope my kids think I am as perfect as I think my parents are! I don't really know where or what my parents think they got wrong. I know what they tried to do to get it right. I don't know if they think they were successful or not. I do know that they were probably as insecure as I am about how I am doing at this most important job. That they questioned all the time if they were doing the right thing for everyone. I know that they probably struggled with guilty feelings about being at work to much or giving one kid more attention over another. 

None of us are perfect as parents, but we sure hope we do a good job. But just so you know in the eyes if your kids you are perfect. You are wonderful. You are mom and dad and they will remember what you did right. And you have the magic that makes this happen because you care and your kids will love you even when you mess it all up and they are teenagers and they think they know everything and you are stupid for not agreeing with them... because the day will come when they have to admit you were right because you went through all this too and survived.

What has happend to my tv??!!

I LOVE TV. I don't mean I enjoy a good show now and then... I mean I am a full on TV addict. There is never enough TV for me. Over 100 channels with tons of shows... pffft. Not enough for me. 
I began my love of TV as most people my age do... Saturday morning cartoons. (If I woke up early enough. I kinda love sleeping in too.) I watched Transformers, Garfield, Thundercats, She-Ra... I WAS SHE-RA. You get it. Now I watch almost every prime time show on......
Well that's not the truth. WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO MY TV??? It's Monday evening and the shows to choose from are: 

Antiques Road Show (love)
Bear Grilles Survival (enjoyed)
Siberia (what is this?? Googled and: IT'S A FAKE REALITY SHOW. No really it's a scripted "reality show". They admit it!!!! What we don't have any more writers with the talent to write good dramas??)
Raising Hope (re-runs)
and the best (NOT) for last......
Mistresses. (What is this??? A bunch of people that can't keep it in their pants and discover that ..... OMG THERE ARE CONSEQUENCES TO MY ACTIONS!!!!)

For real? This is what I get from my beloved TV for entertainment. Now I don't turn on the TV for intellectual content. But I do expect decent entertainment. TV now days is filled with naked. cursing, selfish characters that contribute absolutely nothing to the screen. Not to mention the exploding in your face comical culture. I want good TV back. TV where people are still committed to their spouses. People that are committed to raising good contributing kids. TV that has characters that don't think they need to take their cloths off every time they see someone of the opposite, or same, sex. 

I heard from a English teacher that was talking to a writer, if it doesn't contribute to the story it doesn't need to be in the story take the pointless sex and cursing out and you got a great story. Maybe TV should take a page from that book.

Why I know God is real.....

 We just celebrated the 4th of July and I got ^ this pic of Joy. I just love it. I look at this pic and think "She's glowing. she's sooooo beautiful. How in the world did I make this???" Of course the answer is: I didn't. God did. There is no way... no matter how many people tell me I am creative... I could make something so wonderful. So individual. So well... wonderfully made. The bible tells us God knit us together in the womb. He knew us before we knew ourselves. My kids are such a window into God and how REAL and awesome he is.

 Every now and then I get a pic of a kid that I think man.... that is a great pic. The picture will move me in many ways. It will make me think about the person in it. Where we were. All sorts of things. I usually end up somewhere spiritual. I could not have gotten this pic without God. He created this wonderful boy. He put the personality in there. He put the joy in there. He put the happy go lucky in there. I didn't do any of it. I hope I am a good guide for my kids. I hope I teach them everything they need to know, but I know without God my work would mean nothing. I am constantly amazed at how GOOD of a kid I have in Dylan. He is just an easy kid with a passion for life and God. I can't take the credit for much of it. God put it there.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this pic of Paige at the beach. Not only is my BEAUTIFUL little twinky ( in looks) in this picture, she is at my FAVORITE place. I love the ocean. I see God ALL in it. From the wealth of life contained in it... to it's seemingly infinite depths and distance I think the ocean is a great metaphor for who God is. I love pictures of Paige. I think she is so pretty and cute and sweet. She is my mini me and when I look at her I think "That is me. That is my body when I was little. That is my face. That is my smile." and I feel pretty and cute and sweet. Women spend so much time frowning at our perceived flaws and Paige helps me see that I don't really have any physical flaws. I am beautiful because we were made by the same "Person". God put us together. And guess what... HE KNOWS WHAT HE'S DOING! I may not always know or understand what He's doing, but He does and I see it in my kids. They are so unique and fun and challenging. They show me things I need to work on in myself and reassure me of the things that don't need my attention. I know God is real because my kids show me every day.

Things My Daddy Taught Me

My dad is the BEST dad ever!! Ok.. so I know EVERYONE with a great dad says that, but I mean it. My dad has taught me so much in my life. I think these are important lessons to pass on. So in list form here they are:

1. Pick a man that is serious about living the rest of his life with you.
When I was in high school I hurt my moms feelings pretty bad.. can't remember what I did. What I do remember is my dad saying "I CHOSE to spend the rest of my life with your mother. Some day you will leave my house. You can make it today." At first my feelings were a little hurt, but then I thought "I hope I marry someone like this."

2. Be willing to WORK hard. 
Working hard will get you the things in life you need... and some things you want.

3. Love your kids.
My dad has made each of us feel special and has always shown interest in the things we were interested in. To this day he'll send emails or call with things that we would like to see or do.

4. Love your mother.
Even when she is being a complete pill. Ok so my mom isn't a pill. She totally rocks too, you should just love your mom no matter what.

And the most important:

5. Without God you cannot do any of the above. 
I have NEVER met someone that lives so completely (as much as possible for a human being) for God. My dad LOVES God and His word. He is constantly studying. He even learned Hebrew and Greek so he could read it in it's original text. 

These are only 5 lessons my dad taught me, but I think they are the core of living a happy, fulfilling life.

My Last Love Letter to PBS

Thank you PBS for having such good programming that I can sit with my kids and watch ALL day long.

Thank you for no commercial interuptions!

Thank you for great kid programming that keeps my kiddos out of my hair!!

Thank you for educational and informative shows that spark many a discussion or debate in our house.

Thank you for period dramas that make me want to cry or celebrate at the season premiere. (Darn you Downton Abby!!!)

Thank you for DOCTOR WHO!! Seriously for me and Dylan the best programming decision you have EVER made!

Thank you for Lawrence Whelk. Joy's favorite tv show right now. 

Thank you for all you do to ensure there is still quality programming on tv!!!

Thank you PBS!!!!

Love,
Amanda

A Love Letter to PBS (Part III or Brit Comedies)

As you all now know I love PBS. Today's post is about British comedies. I love British comedy. It almost always involves some form of slapstick and always smart humor. My recommended shows are: The Vicar of Dibbly, Are You Being Served, Keeping Up Appearances, and Doc Martin (which could almost be called a drama). 
I don't even know where to begin with these shows. The writing is so intelligent and the comedic timing is off the charts. There are some seriously talented people on these shows. 
The Vicar of Dibbly is about a female vicar in a small town. Her best friend is a dingy lady that provides half the laughs. The "guys" of the town provide the rest. 
Are You Being Served is about a group of co-workers who work in a department store. They are all slightly abnormal. There are a bunch of great one liners in this show.
Keeping Up Appearances is about a chick named Hyacinth Bucket, pronounced Bouquet (according to her). Her family is really just a bunch of people that here in the states would probably be living in a trailer. They are such fun to watch. 
I know I said Doc Martin deserved its own post, and it really does, but how may love letter to PBS can I write? Turns out the number is four and the last post in my opinion is for the best. Stay tuned to read about it.
Doc Martin is truly great TV. I love this guy. He is super smart, really cares about the people around him, socially inept and a TOTAL grouch. He just looks grouchy. He also has a phobia of blood. Which is great, because he used to be a surgeon. If you don't get this show I recommend seeing if you can get it on Netflix. It's great! 
Well there are my fave. Brit comedies. I know I didn't say a lot about them. but I don't want to ruin the fun of discovering how great they are!

A Love Letter to PBS (Part II or Science vs. Church)

In my last post I talked about all the kids shows on PBS my family enjoy. As you read there are a lot. From here on out I won't talk about so many shows at once. 
Today's post is about Wednesday night. This is the night for NOVA and Nature. NOVA is a science show that talks about everything from the stars to the earth. David and I really enjoy this show. We learn a lot, plus it's fun to get into the evolution vs. creationism debate with the TV from time to time. Nature is a documentary show about every animal found on land and in sea. It's great! We have fun watching with the kids. It's interesting to see who's side they are on.. the predator or prey. So far they have all fallen squarely on the side of the predator. Prey animals are just the stupidest seeming animals on earth. I don't know if I should be worried that every one of my kids root on the lion taking down the "insert prey here" at two years old. And the cheers that follow said take down. I will say my kids all have a healthy respect for all God's creation. These shows also allow us to broach subjects from a christian perspective without seeming like we are teaching a lesson. However, they are on Wednesday night, a church night. Why couldn't this be a night PBS airs a show I don't mind missing. 
Hello, my name is Mandy, and I am a TV addict. I admit it. I love the medium. I can sit and watch for HOURS. Literally I have done it. PBS does not help. NO COMMERCIAL  INTERRUPTIONS, great story telling, educational. IT HAS IT ALL!!!!! (Insert manic behavior!)
But I digress. Of course church wins out, but some nights it's hard to pull myself out of the chair and get the kids ready to go. Thankfully Thursday is re-run night on my other PBS station, but then there is Doc Martin....... A show deserving of it's own blog post. What to do??!! I got to start recording these things!

A Love Letter to PBS (Part 1)

My family’s favorite TV station is PBS. It has something for everyone and in the Huggins house it is on 24/7. You think I’m joking. We wake up to Curious George and go to sleep to News Hour or Tavis Smiley or Charlie Rose. We love PBS. There are lots of great shows. I’m not just talking about documentaries or concerts (mainstays of PBS viewing), but PBS kids and all the British shows that are now airing. I want to touch on some of our favorites because I think they are shows worth sharing. I am going to break this Love Letter up into a few segments because there are a lot of good shows and this post would be crazy long if I didn’t. So with that in mind I’m going to talk about kids show today.

Kids shows we DO NOT MISS:

Curious George of course is a popular one around here. This is Paige’s favorite. Has been since she watched the first episode. It’s great that she gets to wake up to this show. It makes our mornings go so easy. With 3 kids sometimes you need one distracted so you can get another one dressed! Curious George is such a sweet little guy it’s hard to turn him off!

Joy has discovered Sesame Street. Of course this show has to be someone’s favorite. It’s been on for 40+ years. That’s right Sesame Street is over the hill! Today was a great episode with a bunch of Grouches. I loved every grouchy minute. One thinks that stuck out is how OLD the original cast members have gotten!!! Seriously think about it; they were adults when the show started 40 years ago. That means the original cast members are over 60. They are not going to be with us much longer. But back to Joy.  She gets into certain segments. She will stop whatever she is doing for Abby’s Flying Fairy School. She loves Abby. She got a little stuffed Abby for her birthday and Abby MUST sleep with her at night. It’s supper cute when she does her bed check and asks for Abby.

Daniel Tigers Neighborhood is a new one based on Mr. Rogers Neighborhood. Now I loved Mr. Rogers as a child. Dylan barely got to see Mr. Rogers and he did not like him at all. As Dylan says, “Mr. Rogers freaks me out!” Which I think is kind of funny. But back to Daniel Tiger. It’s an animated series and I love the voices on this show. They are soft and soothing. I take a break when this show comes on. Ok I’ll be honest; this show airs when Joy is down for a nap. I watch it alone most days. It’s just really relaxing. They also have little catchy tunes they sing repeatedly as reminders of the day’s lesson. One sung frequently in the Huggins house is. “You gotta try new food cause it might taste goo-ood!” Gets my kids to try new stuff all the time. Stuff that would have never entered a mouth in the Herren house. (For those who don’t know Herren is my maiden name.)

Other favorites include:

Word Girl: Superhero girl who fights crime with her sidekick chimp Captain Huggie Pants. The focus is on vocabulary. Captain Huggie Pants does a dance segment that shows the physical definition of a word, like angry. The girls dance along to this and someday I will post a video on Facebook of them dancing.

Martha Speaks: Martha is a dog that eats alphabet soup and gains the ability to talk. Great theme song! The focus is on vocabulary on this show too.

And last but not least:

Wild Kratts: This show is about 2 brothers who go on animal adventures. They have some friends that help them out with creative technologies. One of them is their Animal Power Suits that give the brothers the attributes of the animals they are with. I highly recommend this show.

Really we love all the PBS kids show. They are educational and I never have to worry about the kids hearing or seeing things they shouldn’t. I don’t always get that with other channels geared for kids. And unlike the other channels PBS is FREE!

Next post:

British Shows!!

Time Out, Grounding, and Spankings

I recently read an article in Parenting magazine that discourages spanking. Like they all do. I often wonder how many of these experts actually have kids and if they do how many secretly spank said kids. Don't get me wrong generally I do believe spanking is not the way to go, however I also believe there is a time and a place. My big 3 times are: if they are doing something that will hurt others, are disrespectful to their elders, or lying. David and I have 3 children. They are each a blessing and an interesting study in human behavior. Yes, that's my way of saying they can sometimes be a challenge. Let me tell you a bit about each one and how discipline in its many forms has been (and not been) effective.
Our oldest is Dylan. He's 10 and he is a crazy good kid. The easiest of them all by far. However as he had gotten older he has tested the waters on what he can actually get away with, as do all kids. His biggest problem seems to be lying, and half doing a job. Oh and he is the ssslllloooowwwwweeeesssttt person on earth to get something done. I mean this kid has no fast forward button. He doesn't lie often, but when he does it's usually over something really stupid that if he had told the truth in the first place he never would have gotten in trouble. Time outs never work with him... he's getting a little old for them now, but when he was younger they just never made an impact. Spanking seems to be the only thing that made any kind of impact on future behavior. At 10 he is respectful of others and a great help around the house. He rarely talks back and will fix bad behavior with just a warning. It rarely has to go further. If it does grounding seems to work fine now.
Paige is stuck in the middle. She is 6 and a sweetheart. She tends to tattle... a lot. Is this a girl thing? It drives me absolutely crazy! She is also disrespectful of other peoples property. She recently pealed paint off of one of my walls and is constantly taking her brothers things. In some ways I think she is trying to establish her place in the house. I get that, but we can't let her get away with it. She hates spankings. I don't think they do any good with her. Yea, the behavior will stop, but for her you can see she views it as being bullied. Now.. tell her your disappointed in her choices and her world has ended! She can not handle people being upset with her. She really needs assurance that just because she made a bad choice you still love her. A hug works best, but until she gets that hug she has to serve a time out. She hates these too, but I think she gets that it's discipline,not bullying. 
Joy is the baby, and she knows it. She just turned 2 and she is a CHALLENGE all her own. I have never in my life met a kid with a will to get their own way as big as hers. I recently read a post by a friend of mine that confessed that she wasn't sure she wanted to be a mom growing up because she just wasn't good with kids. I am not that way at all. I have a natural way with kids. They LOVE me. To the point it can be annoying. I can't go anywhere without some strangers kid coming up to me and talking to me, or wanting to show me something, or wanting to play with me. Even when I'm on a trip with my own kids. I also have that mommy vibe. I've had it since I was little. I could and still can throw that look that says "Cut it out!" AND YOU LISTEN because if you don't you know it won't be good for you. Well... Joy could care less. She still doesn't sleep through the night. She will not come to me when I tell her to if she doesn't want too. She bullies her sister like crazy. (It's really hard not to laugh at this sometimes.) To make it all better is NO FORM OF DISCIPLINE works with her. Not a one. If you go to swat her butt, she puts her hand back there and runs. She NEVER waits for time out to end. When she thinks it's done she's up. Put her back, she'll wait till your back is turned and by the time time-out is over she had no clue why you put her there to begin with.  She will straight up say no TO MY FACE! That's new for me. I'm a 6 foot tall woman who does not intimidate easily and she just shrugs me off like I'm a puny human is some syfi movie! Blows my mind.
My point to all this is that every child is different and you can't just count out any form of discipline, aside from abuse of course. I will let you know when we figure out what works for Joy.

Things That Go Bump in the Night.... or Day

I am not a person who scares easily. Never have been. I am super aware of my surroundings. If someone tries to creep up on me and give me a "Boo" I usually know they are there before they get to me. If they happen to be able to get there DUCK! When I get scared I'm a bit of a puncher. But this post isn't really about me. It's about my 2 year old Joy. This baby (well toddler) is generally FEARLESS. In a lot of ways she reminds me of my little sister Adrianne. My family will get this. Joy will take off in church or down the road by herself like she can take on the world. She tries to climb onto her siblings bikes so that she can ride. "I do it!" is her catch phrase. Not much scares her. Pictures that would make any normal 2 year old run screaming usually only get a "Rwarrr" out of Joy. She likes them, she thinks they are funny. A favorite game is you run and hide and when she finds you yell "Boo!" She'll jump, laugh, and then take off for another round. You can toss her in the air (an activity that caused her big brother to scream in a pitch no human ear could hear) and swing her around and she'll ask for more. Once I caught her trying to jump from the toilet into the bathtub of water. I think you are getting my point. This child fears nothing. Well....... almost nothing. 
This child of mine is scared to death of, are you ready for this? I mean scream and scream afraid of...........

PINE CONES.

Yes, you heard me right. Pine cones. She will become immobilized at the sight of one. She will cry (real tears) until they are thrown over the fence. She will climb you like a tree and won't let you put her down until it is gone.

PINE CONES.

I don't get it.

Baseball and Bad Calls

Today was Dylan's first official game of the season! The kids played great and had a blast playing. Dylan  hit it every time he was at bat. He assisted in 2 runs, got out on first, and you know those hits that seem to skim across the ground but don't actually touch the ground.... the other team caught one of those he hit. It was actually a great hit and an awesome catch.
Now for the Bad Calls part.....
I don't know why but our games are almost exclusively reffed by 13/14 year old refs. I love that these kids get experience reffing.... however we REALLY need some adults in there. About 80% of the calls were wrong at bat. ( I will be fair here and say that they were equally bad for both teams.) 
In all I think today was a GREAT game and can't wait until we play again.

It's been a while... but I'll get better....

Ok. So I'm not the best at keeping this thing updated. Let's see where are we? Dylan is 10, in 5th grade, and church league ball again. He LOVES baseball! Paige just turned 6, is her always sweet self, and an excellent student. Joy is one crazy baby. Well she just turned 2 so maybe she is a crazy toddler?? Anyway. Everyone is growing and doing great. I have a post coming soon about Joy's greatest fear. I'd tell you. but it's to good to not have it's own post!!