Breaking the Nativity

I can’t believe it’s already mid-December. I just realized it has been over two months since my last blog post. Apparently, things have been just a little bit crazy around here. We had a quick chaotic trip to New Orleans in October. It was fun. But traveling with little kids is hard, y’all. It’s like the kids just have some sort of innate ability to sense our fear and trepidation.…

One Year Ago Today

One year ago today… One year ago today, Jonah couldn’t form an original thought. Everything he said was a repetition of something he’d heard before. One year ago today, Jonah wasn’t able to look people in the eye when they spoke to him. One year ago today, Jonah was having six or seven daily meltdowns because he couldn’t transition between activities. One year ago today, Jonah had no interest or…

Two and a Half Weeks

Two and a half weeks until school starts. That’s it. The lazy days where we lay around in our pjs are almost gone. The mornings spent riding scooters in the driveway – have all but disappeared. The nights when we stay up way too late – won’t be happening anymore. Where has the summer gone? To be honest, usually at this point in the summer, I can’t wait to ship…

Expect the Unexpected

The past couple weeks have been full of excitement at the Terrebonne house. Nanna and Pappy came for a quick visit because THIS happened.   Brie was so excited to complete this milestone, but it was also bittersweet because all her friends will be going to different schools next year. On the last day of school, the 5th graders got to do a final walk-through of the school and I…

Mercy, Time-Outs, and Chocolate

Recently, a friend mentioned how we should always strive to maintain control of our emotions and that we should extend grace to our children when they frustrate us. Can I just say that I failed miserably at this last week? (And people who are gentle and self-controlled and have perfectly wonderful, compliant children make me ill.) (But I guess that’s not “maintaining control of my emotions…”) Anyway, last week, Peter…

Plagues and Prayers

Insomnia is the pits. Especially when my favorite thing to do is sleep. Lately I have been plagued by sleepless nights. The last time I suffered from insomnia was when Peter was deployed for a year. He was getting shot at and bombs were exploding all around him so I think it was sort of acceptable for me to stay up, worrying about his safety. But now, there is no…

Someone Is Watching

I learn something new from my kids all the time. I’ve learned to stop and enjoy the rain pouring from the sky. I’ve learned to take a break from chores and run around the house, giggling. I’ve learned to relax and enjoy a little cartoon time with them. I’ve learned to immediately empty the little potty before Vivienne pours the pee out all over the playroom carpet. Yes, they teach…

Great Expectations

This is how I spent Valentine’s Day 2014. I know you all are super jealous. I’ve got one kid who needs to be potty-trained (aka Jonah, the 3-year old wild man) and another kid who doesn’t want to be left out of anything that’s going on in our house (aka Vivienne, the 1-year old little mama). I can’t keep up. I don’t know how parents of twins do it. Actually,…

He Makes All Things New

Happy New Year! It’s hard to believe that it is 2014. I sometimes still find myself writing 1990-something, so this 2014 thing seems a little crazy to me. I mean, do you realize that the kids who will be entering high school this fall were born in the year 2000?!?! What the what??? As this new year begins, I find myself reflecting on the past year. 2013 was really good…

Peace on Earth

Aaaah… The Christmas season is upon us. Joy to the world. Peace on earth. Goodwill to men. Sometimes, though, I feel like I’m still waiting for that joy, peace, and goodwill to make it to our house. I’m kidding, obviously. Except for the peace part. I can’t remember the last time our house was peaceful. With three kids, two adults, and a dog running around this place, peace is hard…