Jesus Touched On Me!

This year we decided to make the trip 'home' to Goderich for Christmas...something we haven't been able to do for a number of years. So...the flight was booked, but along with the season, comes colds and flus and the worries of trying to keep everyone healthy for the flight.

The day before we were scheduled to fly out, Braden woke up with a cold. I kept him home from school that day, just to be safe and let him rest. I kept praying all day that he just had a cold and that we would be able to continue on with our travel plans the next day. Unfortunately, he started throwing up that night and seemed to be getting worse. We prayed over him and hoped for a good night sleep. Thankfully, he slept pretty well that night, so we woke up and continued to get ready to fly out. But then Braden started throwing up again. We continued to pray over him....really needing a miracle. He threw up at 10:15am and we needed to leave at 11am. We had a flight with 2 stops, a long day ahead of us and not a lot of options. Miraculously, Braden was off the couch and eating within the next 30 minutes. He actually went from being on the couch fro 24 hours and throwing up to hopping around the house on one foot. And he was fine for the whole flight. We had given him a little gravol as precaution, thinking that would help him sleep and rest on the flight. However he only slept for about 20 min on the way to the airport and was awake and fine for the rest of our travel day. It really was a miracle and we thanked God for touching him!

The best part was Braden testifying to one of the flight attendants. As she walked by with the drink cart, Braden says, "Excuse me!" "Did you know that I was puking before we came, but now I feel better?" Then he smiled really big and said loud and proud, "Yep, Jesus touched on me!" Totally caught off guard, she said, "That's great buddy!" Out of the mouth of babes....loved it!

And we too...thank God for helping us! How often we pray and then forget to thank him or deduce the answer to some other natural source or remedy. We KNOW that God really did touch Braden that day. It was a miracle before our eyes and we thank Him for being so faithful!

'These people speak french too...'

We are once again in Ontario for a few weeks, spending valuable time visiting family and friends, so we had to make the long trip up to Ottawa to visit my brother and sister and their families. On the way back, we made our first stop for lunch at the McDonalds in Gananoque. Obviously there are a lot of french-speaking people in that neck of the woods, so my kids were quite intriqued by that. Then we stopped again just before Kingston to let Braden use the washroom. The girls waited in the van while the boys used the washroom. While we were sitting there, another carload of people pulled up beside us and got out of their vehicle to stretch. They were all chatting, when one of the guys used the phrase...'Holy S---!' I wasn't sure if Olivia was even paying attention, but all of a sudden she casual comments by saying, "Man, these people speak french here too!" I was trying not to draw attention to the statement...but inside, I was killing myself with laughter! Ahhh....I love our kids!!!

God-Sightings

Olivia and Braden are attending VBS (vacation bible school) this week at my parents' church in Goderich. It seems the last couple years, we've ended up on vacation here during the same week as VBS and the kids love going, plus it gives 'mommy' a break for a few hours.

Anyway...on Monday, I decided to sh0w up for the large group time before they finish for the morning. They do this thing called 'God-Sightings', which gives the kids an opportunity to come up to the mic and share something that has happened that reminds them that there is a God. Basically...anything or anyway that they have seen evidence of God. So...as you can imagine...there is a wide range of things that kids share, mostly because they just love going up to the front and talking in the microphone. So...this particular morning, I saw Braden get up and go in line to share something, which totally surprised me. Both of my kids are pretty chatty and always have something to say, but they can get pretty shy when it comes to talking in front of a whole bunch of people. Anyway, when it was Braden's turn, he confidently grabbed the microphone and said, "It took a long time to get to the airport." That was it...that was his God-Sighting. Of course everyone broke into laughter.

Switching Partners??

Last night we went out for supper with Shawn's mom (Gramma Diane). Now just to give you a little history....Shawn's parents have been divorced ever since Shawn was little, so our kids have never known them to be together and it's always been a bit confusing for them to understand or figure out why they don't live together. Both of his parents are currently living with other partners and to try and keep things as simple as possible, we've just called everyone a Gramma or a Papa and added their names after it to keep them all straight.

Anyway...last night we went out for supper with Shawn's Mom (Gramma Diane) and her partner (Papa Lowell). While we were there...Olivia asked if she could go sit beside Gramma Diane. So they were chatting for a while, when out of the blue, Olivia looked at her and said in a sweet, bashful way...."Gramma Diane, it would be nice if you got married to Papa Randy (Shawn's dad)." Shawn and I were both curious to hear how the rest of this conversation went down...so we listened in while pretending to be occupied with other things. Shawn's mom proceeded to try and explain to Olivia that they were once married, but it just never worked out. And then Olivia says, "So you guys just switched???" The cuteness of her inquiry brought smiles to our faces, but there was also an element of sadness, reminding us how hard it is for kids to understand 'adult reasoning for divorce'.

Brought to you by 'Chinese money and the letter B'

Today was our yearly visit with Shawn's Mom (Gramma Diane) and her partner (Papa Lowell). We met them at their hotel, where we received our 'itinerary' for the evening. First on the list was a little surprise for the kids. The deal was, they had to sit on the bed, with their eyes closed and their hands open. Then Papa Lowell placed a loonie and a quarter in each of their hands and told them to keep their eyes closed. As soon as the money hits Olivia's hand she says, "I think I know what it is....I can hear the ching and the chong!" Then Papa Lowell asks each of them to pick a number between 1 and 10 (eyes still closed). Olivia shouts out, "11", to which we reply...."um...BETWEEN 1 and 10". Her new number? 7 (much better). Then Braden thinks for a long time and then shouts out, "B". Definitely not 'proud parenting' moments, but yet super funny!

Buried with....peppermints???

Once again....another precious kid moment erupted while driving.

Out of the blue....Olivia says, "Mom, you know when Jesus died, He was buried with peppermints so he would smell nice when he got to Heaven. So....that's what we should do...bury people with peppermints, so they will smell nice. Don't you think that's a good idea?"

I attempted to try and explain to her that these bodies we have now are going to just rot and decay in the ground, but when we get to heaven we will get a new body...a brand new body!!!

Her response? "Hmm...that's weird."

Yet, another random thought in the mind of a child.

A few little cute things from "the boy"!

One of the things that I love about Braden is his desire to tell me continually that he loves me! Numerous times throughout my day, Braden will hollar at me from the other room, "MOM!" (in a tone that always leaves me thinking he's calling me because he wants something). Since, I'm usually busy doing something, I will often hollar back, "WHAT?"....to which he hollars back his response, "I LOVE YOU!!"

Tonight...as I was tucking Braden into bed, he said, "Mom....when we get to heaven, can I sleep next to you?"

'Apparently I'm Pregnant!'

I was playing with Olivia a couple of nights ago. She was in her room, talking on her pretend cell phone and I was in the next room pretending to talk to her on my cell phone. As we were having our 'made-up' friend to friend conversation on our cell phones, she says to me (on her phone), "apparently, I'm pregnant!" Secretly desiring more information on her understanding of this particular subject, I pushed the conversation a little further and said, "So...how on earth did that happen?" Her response was, "I have no idea! I was asleep the whole time!"

Oh my!

The 'itchy....' (ahem)

Just in the last week or so...Braden has been on this rhyming kick with everything. So....he was laying on the floor one night...earlier in the week and I guess his back was itchy. He came over and asked me to scratch his back. As I started to scratch his back, he proceeded to tell me that he had the "itchy bitchies"! He had no idea what he was really saying, but I was laughing hysterically....and continued to for the rest of the day!

Oh...the taunting has begun!

As with most normal siblings...there are moments of heated argument and rash behaviour! For the most part though...Olivia and Braden play very well together. I usually tell people that they play passionately together and they fight passionately....either way....there is always lots of life and emotion flying around!

Braden has only just begun to really 'fight back' in the last few months and normally doesn't unless he's really upset about something. His most recent come-back in his moments of frustration with his sister has been, "Well...I'm not going to be your sister anymore!" Of course that one makes me laugh every time, which usually only adds to the escalation of his anger and emotion! We've tried to explain to him the problem with this statement...but I still don't think he gets it!

Another recent favourite of mine was the new one-liner that I think he must have learned from his daddy! While he and Olivia were taunting each other, Braden came back with his version of the famous 'girls drool and boys rule'. Only he said, "Oh yeah...well, girls drool and boys (pause)....don't!" Such a powerful statement...LOL!

Some Braden 'One-Liners'!

Since Braden and I have been sharing some quality one-on-one time now every afternoon, while Olivia is in Kindergarten....he has come out with some funny things lately. One thing I have noticed...with the absence of his sister from our conversations...is how much he talks! Oh my...I thought boys talked less than girls...but when it's just him and I together...he's always got something to say! I love it though.....and it sure has made for some delightfully funny conversations with him.

The other day we were shopping....and there was a man standing near the checkouts who was wearing a turban. This is not really an uncommon sight where we live in Abbotsford, but Braden caught a glimpse of the man and then turned to me and said, "Hey mom...Look! That man is from the desert!"

Just today...we were driving to pick up Olivia at school and Braden was commenting on how he couldn't believe that his little neighbour friend goes to preschool. Since we chose not to put Braden in preschool, I thought I'd ask him about it, so I said, "So...would you rather hang out with mommy in the afternoons Braden...or would you rather go to preschool?" He paused for a minute and then said, "...hang out with you!" Just as I smiled with contentment at his response, he piped up and said, "But...it's a hard decision!"