When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they will not overflow you. Isaiah 43:2



Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Hi from Kya


Today is Kya's day. She is sick and so the day is dedicated to all things Kya. She has already had peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for breakfast and played soccer in the living room (not normal occurrences in the Haner home.) She says to tell everybody, "Hi!" and "I like Yo Gabba Gabba!" (Have you watched this show? It is so weird! But Kya loves it.) Bye for now.

Thursday, October 25, 2007

A Trying Day

Some days without explanation are just difficult. Maybe it's hormones. Perhaps (ya think?) it's because I didn't start with my God time.

DENTIST: I started the day by taking Kya to the pediadontist. It is her first trip since she was nine months old when we found out that she had neonatal teeth in the front on the bottom. These teeth, we were told, formed in utero without enamel or roots. They erupted when Kya was two weeks old. I know--weird. So they are discolored and small compared to her other teeth--oh and they move like a loose tooth because there are no roots to keep them in place.

Anyway, we went back today to find out about the permanent adult teeth under the neonatals, which 99% of the time are present and healthy. Well, not my baby! After an interesting time getting Kya to sit still for X-rays (for which I could not hold her due to my potential for pregnancy--don't worry, I'll tell you all as soon as I actually get pregnant!), we found out that she is one of a very very rare few who does not have any permanent teeth in the front on the bottom. So, she will have to have a "pediapartial" at age 6 and implants when she is about 17 (or whenever they determine she has ceased growing). Dr. Dan (Purdy) said he had NEVER seen completely missing front bottom teeth and only a handful of times had he seen it in the "usual place" which is the top two front teeth.

Although I was startled and saddened for Kya that she will have to endure anything but a "normal teeth experience" in her life, I am thankful that she is otherwise healthy and that it really is just an aesthetic problem. It's always hard to hear our babies aren't perfect though, isn't it? Did I mention Scott and I have never had a filling? Odd.

MY PLANS: I had lots of plans today...God had other plans. This is the season for mommyhood, not cleaning house, painting, sewing, cooking, or any other thing, at least not very often. Today, I did NOT clean my house, fold laundry, change the sheets, or pick up the dog poop. Today, I DID play with playdough, paint a halloween picture, cut and paste a jackolantern, nurse Wyatt 10 times, change 4 poopy diapers, drive around the block seven times with Bible Songs bumpin', dance around my living room singing "Jump Shake your Booty," clean a highchair (donated by fellow MOP, Ronda Henke and delivered by friend Raquel Steele), give Kya two baths and Wyatt one, and unfortunately, yell at Kya a little too often.

A good friend recently told me she struggled with yelling at her kids. I proudly told her I did not struggle with that. Uh...HELLO, I have yelled at Kya like twenty times this week alone! I feel just terrible about it. Tomorrow, I will not yell. Tomorrow, I will approach the day with a BETTER plan and I WILL have God time and exercise because it makes everything better!!

PLAN FOR TOMORROW (barring heavenly intervention):

5:00--Wake up, shower, make Scott's food, God time
Make beds
Vaccuum MA Bedroom (gosh, my hair builds up on the floor of our bathroom--SOOooo gross!)
Make breakfast for Kya
Empty dishwasher, Clean up breakfast dishes
Exercise

8:30--Go to park

10:45--Spend 15 minutes cleaning out car
11:00--Make and eat lunch
11:30--Lunch cleanup

12:00--Naps

Go to grocery store for pumpkin cheesecake ingredients
Make cheesecake (chill for evening party)
Learning time
Play time in Wyatt's room

Go to pumpkin carving party.

PRAYER: Lord be with me that I may accompish what you want me to accomplish in my day--no more and no less. To you be the glory for anything I do accomplish. Help me see your plans and purposes throughout the day and to treat my children with the correct balance of discipline and cuddles. :)

Friday, October 12, 2007

Mommy's Prayer

Today Lord I ask for wisdom to know how to best handle my kids' illness. Both have fevers and I want your healing hand to guide me as a mommy to do what's best for them to speed healing avoid contaminating anyone else and help their bodies rest. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Thursday, October 11, 2007

God at work

FINANCES: God is constantly working on me--refining me and teaching me more about who He is and how I should allow him to work in our family. Lately, we have been challenged in the area of finances to trust in Him. He has ALWAYS been faithful in providing for our needs and more...but, sometimes it just seems like there is no way we are going to be able to continue with me at home. It is challenging to wait on the Lord and not run out and get a job out of fear. I know I am supposed to be home with my babies at this time, but I am open to the Lord speaking into our lives something different. It would have to loud and clear because I do so love being at home with them.

AT HOME: Speaking of being home, I am wanting more and more to be AT HOME. Even as a homemaker, I am challenged to actually stay at home. We seem to always have somewhere else to be or something to buy, a doctor or dentist to see. I am going to really try to stick close to home for a week and see if we feel more peaceful and calm. My errand day is Wednesday, so we will only buy things on Wednesdays barring any emergency. I do have chiropractor, dentist, and doctor appointments coming up and I'm not sure how to handle those with a six month old and a two year old. Dare I bring them with me? Or do I trouble a babysitter to watch them? I don't know. I really dislike leaving the kids with anybody because they are both at challenging ages and I really don't want to put anyone out. Plus, with Wyatt getting a fever this evening, I will hesitate to expose anyone to him.

FEVERS: Fevers...why do I even take the kids' temperature? I believe that fevers are a healthy good way for the body to fight infection. But for some reason once I confirm they have a temperature (by taking it) I panic. Wyatt's is only 100.1, but gosh, the poor little guy has been sick in the past six months more than Kya has been in two years. So, I worry. God tells us to worry for nothing so tonight, I am praying for peace and for God to remove my anxiety. I praise Him already for freeing my soul from worry and bringing our family through so much.

SARAH KATE: I found out today that a couple in our church that lost a baby girl (she was stillborn) was able to have another baby girl named Sarah Kate in the last few days. Praises to God for helping that family heal and experience this joy of new and healing life. Help us Lord understand Your ways and that they are far better than our own.

MORE CHILDREN: As we consider the next child we would like to have, I am excited and praying for God's hand to be involved. I pray that God will give us exactly what our family should have and that if this is to be our last child that he will give me a peace about it and remove the desire to have more. I love being a mommy. Thank you God for that passion and joy. There is nothing I could have ever imagined that compares to the joy I feel in being a mom to Kya and Wyatt and wife to Scott.

HOMEMADE APPLESAUCE: I didn't accomplish much in the house today, but I did make some homemade applesauce!! It was easy and saved me an errand since I didn't have any baby food fruit to mix with Wyatt's breakfast of rice cereal. I just boiled a bunch of apples, skin on, cut up into one inch pieces, then I processed them in the food processor, which made a lovely smooth sauce. Wyatt loved it and I know exactly what is in it! :)

Blessings!

Tuesday, October 9, 2007

The Art of Being a Lady

A dear friend gave me a book that I have lately been greatly enjoying. It is called, "Mrs. Dunwoody's Excellent Instructions for Homekeeping." Last night (after I put ALL the laundry away :)), I read an interesting chapter regarding the art of polite conversation. I gleaned much from it, and some of what I learned was very appropriate for some situations I encountered today. I am naturally a talker. I share freely and am not good at withholding information or remaining a mystery. What I gleaned from my reading though is that proper etiquette and politeness are really about focusing not on oneself during conversation (or life in general) but on the thoughts and feelings and interests of others. I think Jesus would approve of Mrs. Dunwoody's thoughts in this regard.

Here's a brief list of some of the things I thought were interesting.

-A lady is never rude to anyone.
-A lady will not dress in an odd way as to attract attention or remarks.
-A lady carries herself with dignity, but never in such a way to make others think she feels superior to them.
-A lady refrains from discussing anything unpleasant or indecent.
-A lady is always concerned with the health and happiness of those around her and will do everything she can to see that they are properly attended to.
-A lady is never late.
-A lady possesses a sense of humor and can easily laugh at herself, but never at others.

How humble and lovely a true lady is. I would like to strive to be more ladylike, not in all aspects of life, for I believe it is essential to have honest discourse with close friends and my spouse which may at times be "unpleasant or indecent," but overall, these are good things for me to be working on.

Another interesting point I found stated, "no behavior on our part is more self-centered that the demand to speak and the refusal to listen. Such behavior is a root of most interpersonal conflict." I needed to read this and take it to heart--people don't need to hear all about Tara or Tara's thoughts! (I'm an only child so I tend to think everyone has great interest in all things about me. :) LOL!) Also, I found the following comment interesting, "Refrain from commencing a conversation by an allusion to the weather. ..take care that your tone of voice is neither loud nor unpleasant and refrain from appearing too common, as do those fools who resist all inclinations to enunciate properly." LOL!!! :) This is hilarious to me. I know very few people who use perfect grammer or who even try most of the time, but I am constantly trying to reinforce good grammer with my two year old, so I need to maintain high standards in this regard so at least she has the OPTION of speaking and writing properly. Ha!

Anyway, I am working on being more of a lady which my friends and family will no doubt be in agreement is a GOOD thing! And I will be able to teach our children some etiquette as well after reading this book! :)

In concluding the day, I am again so overwhelmingly thankful to God our father in heaven, who has blessed this day with beauty and mercy and grace for us his children. A final quote from my reading..."Live your life in such a manner that you wouldn't be embarassed to sell the family parrot to the town gossip." -Aunt Middle Mary.

Monday, October 8, 2007

Laundry

Why is it I cannot finish laundry?

I start it at the beginning of the day with such good intentions, but then...well, everything else seems to take priority. For instance, writing my blog...

Tonight, I WILL finish two loads of laundry including putting away all that I can (both babies are asleep in their rooms, so I can't put theirs away.) What keeps other mommies motivated in this area?

Introduction

Well, I am finally getting on the blogging bandwagon. I feel a little self-important wanting to share all our family updates with the world, but I suppose you all will read my blog with as much interest as I do yours...are we all just nosey or are we just curious about each other and how each of us lives?



I feel like the more I can glean from others, the more I can enrich our lives and be a better mom and wife, which ultimately is my goal. I have learned so much already from mommies who have become dear friends through the internet--Rossie, Raquel, Dani, Rachel, just to name a few. I am still learning the art of homemaking, the loveliness of listening to the Holy Spirit's prompting in all my daily decisions (I am still working on this--I am a little controlling and learning to "let go and let God" is still very challenging), and incorporating Christian education into every aspect fo my dear childrens' lives.


I look forward to sharing some daily thoughts and looking back on each day with a thankful smile. Thank you for sharing in the journey of life with me.

Blessings!