Sun Catchers & Pot Bling

     Layer cheap plastic beads in cake pans (no lining required) and melt at 400F. Warning: The plastic smell will be strong, so open windows!! Cook for @ 15-20 minutes, and remove from the oven before the plastic bubbles. Let cool, & then just flip them out. Drill a hole to make a sun catcher. A quick internet search for "sun catchers" will give extra specifics.

Pink "bead" flower
adhered to a wooden chopstick

     OR, a great "craft" idea for kids...  to make as a gift for grandparents or teachers... or as a grandparent/grandchild activity: small flowers or stars for plant pots (use a glue gun to adhere to a Popsicle stick or a wooden chop stick) or create coasters. Children can choose colors and arrange them in a metal cookie cutter. Bake in a toaster oven 400F @ 5 minutes on the back porch, to minimize plastic odor in the house.

Tremendous 2's & Two's

      Two-year-old boys will be tremendous boys. During a rare -for-me grandchild-sitting opportunity, our dare-devil plays ball on the steps, is clearly and fairly warned DANGER, to no avail. I snatch the ball and unsuccessfully try to distract him. He tearfully demands the ball back. DeDe is a softy, but when it comes to grandchild safety issues, I do not yield. I pray for him under my breath, and he eventually points upstairs, seeking binky-time, which equals crib timeout. 

      We take the long climb up the steps together, to his room, to claim our sides of the ring: He takes the crib; I the nearby rocker. Hearing his squeaky, binky calisthenics, I know he needs consoling...

      ... DeDe loves you...

      I begin to remind him of our morning activities, and mention his hands and feet and nose, and then... we imagine tickle tummy together; I giggle energetically, and finally he breaks his silence, giggling too. After 10 minutes of happy-therapy, for both of us, we hungrily head downstairs to eat PBJ's.

      We eat, he studies me, and I keep mostly quiet. After a nourishing sandwich and milk, it is nap time, so we head right back upstairs. I place him into his crib, and he earnestly stretches his arms to me. He trusts me to rock him. I do. After a few minutes I feel his muscle-twitches as he, uncharacteristically, snuggles in my lap... falling sound asleep. Ahhh, priceless.

Flower-powered two fearlessly face the bloomin' tremendous 2's

      Timeout (a/k/a exile), heartache, and clashing wills happen and produce an urgency to seek some sort of closure, and we also need to feel comforted. Life can be painful; it is unfair; we feel hurt by people... and sometimes we even feel hurt by God. How do we respond?

The Heart: 2 Tickers & 1 Teapot Time

My heart says of you, 'Seek his face!'...

Heart Ticker #1:  During a recent amusement park visit, a Mom and a Dad with 3 young children are in a quandary at the elephant ride. Each young child must be accompanied by an adult. My husband observes as the poor little 3-year-old breaks into tears. Because there are just 2 adults, he (and none of his family) will be able to ride the longed-for, colorful, flying elephants.

This sounds odd, but my wife is riding one of the elephants, solo. She would be glad to accompany your little boy, my husband says.

The family energetically agrees. It leads to me riding with a stranger. I let the little boy choose the red elephant, although the purple one was my preference. I follow his lead and gladly enjoy his red elephant world. I let him press and release the magic flight button for us both. I say, Up, up, up! and then Down, down, down!

I learn his name, Tate, and that he recently had his third birthday. That is all as we enjoy his little world. We fly in circles on red Dumbo, and Tate presses the lever to go up, up, up and down, down, down.

Heart Ticker #2:  My youngest grandson is a bulldog physically. To wrestle a diaper onto his in-motion body takes courage and strength. Each evening he enjoys his bath-time, reaching for everything in sight. When he daringly stands in the tub, it is time for the towel-dry cycle. Maybe he can air dry and go to bed naked tonight? Nnnaaa! The battle is on.

We head to his bedroom for the Sumo diaper wrestle. Tonight's strategy is to distract, be fast, and voila! I haul him to the rocker, take a few deep breaths, and successfully set one towel-dried, diapered, and pj'd 10-month-old onto my welcoming lap.

He is finally somewhat still as I reach for the book Baby's Colors. On this particular long-distance visit, 4 evenings in a row I read this same book to him. Tonight when he sees the book, before I even begin to read, he turns his expressive face to me with a delighted look. As page one is opened, using energetic, high-pitched baby talk, I read aloud, Baby!Sees!Red!!!

Again he turns to me, eyes wide, and his entire body giggles. With each page, he eagerly reacts the same as I enter into his exciting little world of red, yellow, blue, green, orange and pink.

Teapot Time:  I drink tea all day long, every day. It is no exception during my visits with long-distance grandchildren. My pot of tea steeps throughout the day. My grandson knows this and recently maximized on the idea with a thrift store purchase of a Fisher Price teapot with two tea cups. As he tips the pot, the realistic sound of pouring tea occurs. "DeDe, outside... tea!!"

A 3 1/2-year-old wants company and enters into my big adult world of tea time. He knows my love for it and draws me outside with him to the front porch step. Never mind that pretend tea time lasts only mere minutes. I embrace it. Then bug searching time begins. That's alright.

"DeDe, ...outside... tea!"

It melts me every time, and I respond. My grandson's heart seeks my face and he joins my tea time. I'm there. On the front step. Sipping tea with him, and then I watch and help him as he searches for roly polys and ants.

...Your face, Lord, I will seek (Psalm 27:4,7-8). 
And then, won't God, too, intuitively help me to uncover those most intriguing bugs?

This parallel sounds overly simplistic as I shift thoughts to ask: Do I initiate time with God and attempt to enter into His big world? or, Does my little world of endless requests take over? What partnering image ["teapot"] emerges for mutual "tea time" with THE One who loves and knows me better than any one ever could?

A Tale of Two Manger Scenes

Neighbor Joe's Manger Scene

     Two cherished and vintage Christmas photos help to share the sentiments of the following heart-warming Tale of Two Manger Scenes. The first manger scene is in Neighbor Joe's front yard. I planned this shot long before my long-distance grandson ever arrived for the holidays and never imagined it would be such an enchanting experience.

     It is dusk, with gentle snow flurries. We are babysitting our little guy, with only one more visit day remaining, and daylight is quickly slipping away. I need to get THE shot: Jeff, it is so beautiful outside. We must get that manger scene picture at Joe's, today and now!

      We quickly don warm coats and shoes. Our front steps are snowy, so we cautiously proceed, holding hands. Will the pictures be as good as I had hoped? Photographer Jeff snaps the photos as we carefully wipe snow off baby Jesus. I love it.

     This second manger scene picture has a totally different story. My grandson was drawn to this manger scene rather than being led to it... it was hidden in my bedroom... basically for nostalgic purposes... for me. It is an olive wood manger scene from Jerusalem that Mom gifted to me 25 years ago, and he discovered it and connected with it, naturally. He returned to my darkened room every day, two or three times a day to hold the figures, knock them over, and play... he chose to love his great-grandma's sentimental manger scene. See the train he added? Surely there was a train in Jesus' manger.  Love, love it.

LEGO Connections

     The Lego Group began in the workshop of Ole Kirk Christiansen (born 7 April 1891), a carpenter from Billund, Denmark, who began making wooden toys in 1932. In 1934, his company came to be called "Lego," from the Danish phrase leg godt, which means "play well." It expanded to producing plastic toys in 1947 (Wikipedia).

     Connecting one block to another, to another, and to yet another to build cars, trucks, planes, skyscrapers, etc. is the fascination of and hunger for Lego sets. Budding carpenters, architects and others "play well" and will hopefully develop early skills to transfer to varied careers.

     Building Lego cars and fortresses with our grandchildren (or playing house, fishing alongside them, reading or watching soccer together, etc.) builds an intangible quality; genuine, fun, and safe relational connections of grandchildren with their kindred adults. Two generations connect and learn what really is important. We learn what makes them tick, and they apprentice what makes us tick.

A mere 463-piece Lego set, for connection-enrichment?

     My children's long-distance Grandma (my Mom) valiantly tried, but we lacked connecting prowess. Motherhood for me was overwhelming. I basically endured each day. I didn't know to be nurturing for my children.

     Sabbatical time, grandchildren, and surviving torrential HER2/Neu positive breast cancer have afforded me rare and intense appreciations. By the time my grandchildren were born, I was able to begin to practice real affinity. I finally understood what loving a child in a nurturing, healthy way was supposed to feel like.

Legos & such take up a small space in the office corner
Click for how-to of Legoland in the corner

     Time.Opportunities.Appreciation. I connect first with myself, and then endeavor to connect deeply with others to savor kindred relationships. Letting go determines Lego connections:

• Managing rather than micro-managing. I add decorative yet child-friendly items to the corner of my husband's home office to invite generational interaction, naturally.
• Discovering rather than hovering. Some items, like the manger scene below, are most fun when grandchildren naturally discover them in the master bedroom.
• Natural as opposed to contrived. Intentional yet not intense... that seems impossible, but isn't. 

      A little ahead-of-time planning helps to create mutual connections.

Place an unbreakable nativity set. Somewhere on the sidelines.
For children to discover, naturally (John 3:16)

Deuteronomy 6:7
     Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. [N.A.T.U.R.A.L.]

     Mothers-in-Law Mutual mutually strive to develop natural connections and Jesus teaching times. My children and grandchildren can't catch from me what I don't got.

What EYE Saw on Father's Day

What EYE saw on a Father's Day walk....

It was like a rare piece of artwork spun in the sky.

First, a bald eagle catches our attention,
We eye him circling up, up, up, up, up.
His ascent is mesmerizing as he swirls up toward the sun.

And then, that's when, bulls-eye!
The magnificent bird draws our attention to a jaw-dropping sight.
A blinding but delicate sculpture in the sky.
A rainbow-like ring encircles the sun.
It is stunning. Like a museum piece. It speaks wonder and awe.
Let's permanently capture this melting monument!

Despite harsh rays, we aim a trusty cell phone
directly towards the blaze.
Desperately clicking shot after shot,
knowing that the first-for-our-eyes treasure will soon
Vanish.
Evaporate.
Disperse.

Much like a child's awe-filled and monumental
First bite of carrots.
First crawl.
First independent steps.
Imprinted. in photos. and. in our memories.

The microscopic black speck, our circling bald eagle, seen below, too.

Twinkling eye. Bulls-eye eagle. & Solar Halo.

This post-script set of photos                                                       segues to an odd curiosity.

What Father's Day 2014 photo...

...by our Heavenly Father?

     ..was captured..

The pic
below
interprets
the Father's Day
 God's-eye viewpoint,
complements of this
"off" GenJoneser

God sees our Solar Halo awe

As a Father Carries His Son

     A wise and highly successful father once said:  "Never let your children win. A truly competitive father never lets his children win, because he loves them. Every time you give your children something that you did not have growing up, you take from them something you did have."

     After pondering this advice, I add two footnotes: 1) Never say never or always, and 2) the preface words "A truly competitive father" are key. In general, I tend to agree. Heed the resistant, knee-jerk inclination to do things differently than your parents did: "I want to give or do this or that for my child because I wished my parents had done this for, or given that to, me."

     It is much like traveling back into time to rescue a 3-year-old who died, and thus changing history. The now rescued child who should have died matures and marries. His or her spouse would have married someone else. That child has children that never would have been born. And the list of ramifications is endless.

     With strengths, the implosion effect is possible. A coddled, always rescued child might lack incentive to develop his or her strengths. As an adult he or she lacks drive. A unique business that might have formed to help others is never created. That child ends up lost and searching for meaning. The potential consequences are measureless.

     Reviewing strengths in light of insightful Deuteronomy 1 can be eye-opening. With potentially unneeded rescuing, would I possess my key strengths? Ninety-nine point nine percent (99.9%) of the desert-circling Israelites seemed unfazed by God's goodness and Almighty Fatherhood.