myletterstoemily: nine lives

myletterstoemily: nine lives

dinner time!

dear emily,

a sweet, young mommy asked me what she could do to help
her toddler eat better.  she said that he only wants snacks and
won't eat a bite at meal time.

"it's just the biggest battle every meal and i'm so afraid he isn't
getting enough to eat!"

it took a lot of will power not to smile and say, "honey, you
will look back on this, when he is screeching on two wheels
of his truck out your driveway, and wish this was all you had
to worry about!"

instead, i told her that there were some tricks in establishing
healthy eating habits.  if possible, she should save all battles
for any other time, so that her little ones would have happy
memories of family dinner.

easier said than done.  we had some doozies at our house, but
here are some pretty fail proof tips to get your toddler to eat:

1.  hide all snacks so that is not even an option.

2.  put a few healthy, yummy choices out for each meal.  who
     wants to eat lima beans from a can?  gag.

3.  make sure your little guy works up an appetite from running
     and playing, and i promise he will eat.

4.  no dessert until he has eaten the good stuff.

the first day may be rough, but they are such smart little guys
and will fall into line if they see you really mean it.   if your
precious angel is especially stubborn, a banana before bed
will help you sleep better.

i used to hide my peas under the cushion of my chair.

love,
lea

"how sweet are Thy words...sweeter than honey..."
psalm 119:103

sweet tayler

dear emily,

one of the highlights of my week is having lunch with tayler,
the first grader that i mentor.  her quiet voice just slays me when
she says, "oh, i forgot the thank you note i wroted you!"

she giggles at all my silly jokes and loves every story. it gratifies
my heart that she eats her entire lunch now, because she used to
be too frightened to take more than a few bites.  i think she can
tell that i am crazy about her.

when i mentioned that my husband was very funny and laughed
a lot, she said,  "i never seen my daddy laugh..."

i wanted to gather her up in my arms and take her home with me.
memories of hans' mantra to outlast the kids flooded my mind.

"one more story, daddy!" was met with two more stories.  one
more request to wrestle was happily supplied.  if they were
giggling, he was laughing.

how i wish tayler had a daddy like that.

love,
lea

Jesus said, "let the little children come to Me..."
matthew 19:14

favorite children's books

dear emily,

before i begin a post to which i have long looked forward, i want
to thank everyone for teaching me how to underline!  it took the
entire blog world to do it. :)

two things saved my life when my children were little like yours:

my love for peanut butter and children's literature.  good thing,

too, because we had a steady diet of both.  

isn't it amazing how many times a child can listen to the same 

story?  if i tried to deviate from the story of ferdinand by 

munro leaf, shelby would say, "no!  he just liked to sit under the

cork tree and smell flowers."  

the most charming, witty, and hilarious of all authors is arnold

lobel.  my boys and i would roll on the floor with laughter at

frog and toad adventures and then sniffle a bit through

uncle elephant.  

e.b. white is famous for stuart little, but i prefer the clever

story of louie in the trumpet of the swan.  poor louie is mute

and has to hang a chalkboard around his neck to communicate, 

plays the trumpet (think louie armstrong), and tries to win the

love of serena.

but our hands down favorite is the big friendly giant by roald 

dahl.  the BFG is the only friendly giant averse to eating 'human 

beans' and forced to endure 'snozzcumbers' and 'frobscottle.'  his 

lovable nature  is enhanced by his funny abuse of the english 

language and constant befuddled state.  he also make gross

sounds that might offend some moms but kids love it! 

just the beginning,

lea

ps. sarah said, "God has made me laugh..."(genesis 21:6) and 

named her son, isaac, which means laughter.  

admitting it is the first step

dear emily,

as i was sitting in the choir loft yesterday, i looked out to see an 

old friend in the congregation.  my heart lifted, because she has 

struggled with alcohol addiction and has avoided the church.  i 

imagined her saying, "my name is...and i'm an alcoholic."

that is a tried and true method of AA, but all of a sudden it 

just seemed so unfair.  if they have to humiliate themselves to

that level, then we ought to hold ourselves to the same standard.

imagine the crowded hallways of the church filled with these

kind of conversations.

"hello, my name is lea, and i am a self centered, selfish, lazy

person.  sometimes, i can be downright mean and hurtful, to

boot.  whatever made you think to wear navy slacks with a

black sweater?"

"hi lea.  nice to meet you!   my name is rae, and if i don't get 

my way, i am given to periods of pouting and moodiness.  my

marriage is in shambles.  don't you think your skirt is a wee bit

too short...and tight?"

love,

lea

matthew 23:12

"for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever

humbles himself will be exalted."

  

thank you, canada, the most beautiful and
gracious hosts of an extraordinary winter
olympics!!!

OKLAHOMA STATE   85
KANSAS                  77

'nuff said!!!!!