How Clorox Wipes Ruined my Kids

back story for my not-so-short story about ruining my children!

....

so my children are responsible for cleaning their bathroom once a week...

Monday's to be exact...

and they clean the bathroom with non-other than Clorox or Lysol Wipes...you all know you use them...

I tried about 3 years ago to go all green in this area and stop using the cleaning wipes...yeah, that wasn't happening...

anyways, the kids clean every surface of their bathroom minus the inside of the toilet bowl, with the wipes, it works, they get it done, end of story...this is all they have ever used to clean the bathroom...the cleaning wipes and the toilet bowl brush...

summer is in full swing...and that means I have the kids 24/7...

like some home-school mom or something...

and so, things like errands...not happening!  

because taking the kids across town to WalMart to buy things like cleaning wipes and paper towels, when we could actually live without them 

(because in the history of the world we have lived without them), 

is not on my list of things I like to torture myself with...

end of back story...

so, first Monday of summer hits...

kids clean bathroom...all is well...

minus the fact that they used the very last cleaning wipe and failed to inform me...

second Monday of summer hits...

kids go into bathroom to start the cleaning process when they both realize the world has come crashing down around them! 

THERE.ARE.NO.CLEANING.WIPES!

boy child instantly sees this as a miracle releasing them from bathroom cleaning duties...

but girl child knows...

she's old enough to remember back...

back to that black time in history...

when mom went all green and there were no cleaning wipes in the house....

there is some discussing going on in the bathroom...

slight arguing...

boy child is elected to tell me the news about the cleaning wipes, 

probably because he's younger and I would never think to make him clean his own bathroom without the aid of cleaning wipes...

FAIL...I tell them to use...paper towels and cleaning spray...

back to the trenches they go...

then some more arguing...discussing...

girl child emerges now...

..."um...Mom...but there are NO paper towels left...none!"...

confidence has soared...they are golden...

NO cleaning wipes

NO paper towels

that can only mean one thing...NO cleaning the bathroom...

FAIL..apparently I have never introduced them to the wash rag!

what had I done as a mother?  

my children had no idea that they could clean surfaces, other than themselves with a wash rag...

AND that I actually had a stack of wash rags, in a long forgotten cupboard in the garage....

kids clean the bathroom...all goes well...

third Monday of summer hits...

paper towels have been purchased by the husband...

cleaning wipes have yet to be purchased...

because I have not come to the point of running that horrible errand mission...

but kids now know...

they have been educated on the old school ways of cleaning...

they are smart kids...

so, the smart kids that they are...and slightly lazy...

    they know they don't need cleaning wipes...

so, they start thinking outside the box....

do we really need wash rags?...

     all the way out in the garage...

or the paper towels?...

     all the way to the kitchen...

no, we can think outside the 'cleaning wipe' box that our mother held us in for so long...

and look, there is this roll of paper that we use to clean our bums...

why would that paper not work to clean the rest of the bathroom?

oh, and that cleaning spray...

     it's all the way under the bathroom sink...

     we'd have to like, open the cupboard door to get that...

but look, there is soap right here sitting nicely on the counter...

     nice soap...foamy Bath-&-Body Works soap...

     that's good enough to clean our hands...

     must be good enough to clean the entire bathroom...

     ...including the mirror...

yes...you read that right...

my children 'cleaned' their bathroom with toilet paper and not-so-cheap Bath-&-Body Works foamy soap!...their entire bathroom...

yes...Clorox Wipes have ruined my children...

and now I'm off to buy stock in them!

the one that rubs

...yeah...
there's this Bible story that rubs me the wrong way, one that Jesus Himself taught...
I just don't like it..never have...

it's the prodigal son...
yep, not a fan....

because guess what...I'm the good brother (or sister in this case)...
the 'good one'...the one that makes all 'right choices' the one that 'deserves' everything the father lavishes on the 'bad son' at the end of the story...

not only am I not a fan, it's a story that I've always hated...
yes...HATED!
I'm a justice seeking...stand in line...speed limit...kinda girl!
(although when my kids utter those horrible words,
'that's not fair' my skin crawls!)
but it's true...this story IS NOT FAIR!

I recently even had a conversation with my mother about this despised story...
about me being the 'good one' and talking about the prodigal one...
and how I dislike that Jesus had to put this in the Bible at all...

and then guess what...
God flipped the tables...
I had a dream (and yes, I know that most dreams are just dreams...but I also know that God used dreams in the OT and it worked...so yes, I believe 100% that God gave me this dream to understand His love just a little bit more)

In this dream I was no longer the 'good sister'...
I was the mother...OUCH
I was no longer the do-gooder sister, I was the parent of the prodigal son...
In my dream my sweet, kind, cuddly, loving, tenderhearted 6 year old boy was all grown up and 19...
And he was no longer any of those things.
He was living in the world, making stupid, horrible, scary life choices...
His sister stayed home and was being the good one...making all the right choices...
But as the mother...my heart was breaking for my son...my son had turned his back on everything I had taught him, everything he knew, squandered all I had given him.

Yes, I was proud of my daughter, I was filled with hope and joy at all her choices.
But at the same time my heart was literally torn in half by the choices my sweet baby boy had grown up and made...
Just typing this out and remembering my pain, makes the lump return to my throat.

I woke up in tears, sobbing over my lost son, the son that I would do anything to have back in my arms, safe and sound...the son that I would throw a huge party for if he would only turn around repent and seek my forgiveness....
I knew without a shadow of a doubt I would throw this lost-and-now-found son of mine the biggest party I could.  I would celebrate him coming home!

so now this story rubs a different way...I now 'get it'...
I now understand the celebration for the lost son...
...and now my heart breaks for all the prodigal son's...
I now have a small window into the pain that God feels for all those that have turned and are doing it their way opposed to His way.

I also see that the father/parent hasn't turned himself away from the good child...he loves that child just as much as the other one.  And that maybe the good one has some sin in his/her life...the sin of pride...
He believes that his actions can earn the love of his father/parent.  As a parent I know my child can do nothing to earn my love or take away my love...I love them no-matter what.  And God's grace and love is the same, my actions, my good behavior, my deeds, works, etc...will never 'earn' my father's love!  I do all of those things because I love HIM, not so He will love me!

And I pray that in the future rather than being the sullen, it's-not-fair 'good sister', I can be the heartbroken mother that seeks out the lost son.

to the dads

in honor of Father's Day I wrote a post over on my husbands blog www.reddingfirstfamilies.blogspot.com ...
go check it out...
to all the dads doing it right!

the swim test

back story to the story.....
we have 2 different swimmers in our family...
the girl child is a fish...
     has always had confidence in the water
     even when she didn't have form she had confidence,
     she just knew...she had FAITH she wasn't going to drown
     and she loves the water
    as a some-what-shy toddler and preschooler she had no problem taking a swim class,
          in fact she loved taking them

the boy child...he's been a totally different animal
     and not a water one
     has never believed he could swim, even when he can
     swim lessons have always been a fight
     one year he even refused to 'dress' for lessons and wore his jeans, I still made him get in the water with his jeans (not a happy little boy)
     he likes to swim....sometimes...half the time he'll chose to stay home with dad!
   
okay...the swim test!

last week of school (2 weeks ago) boy child's 1st grade class is going on a swim party field trip to the YMCA (the pool that we swim at most of the time).

The swim party is taking place at the outdoor pool that looks like this

the kids need to pass the 'swim test' to get the green wrist band and swim just on the other side of the rope from the shallow pool into the first swim lane
(a place where the kids can actually stand up in...but since the depth gradually increases to a point where they can't touch they need to take the test).

the swim test starts at the deep end and the kids must swim the length of the pool

the lifeguards were great,
one of them has been Wilson's swim teacher a few times,
Mr. Steve, he's a great guy that is amazing with kids, builds confidence in the water and has just an amazing heart for kids.
they had the kids jump in and swim... if/when they got a little tired they could grab onto the wall for a short break and then continue swimming.
by the time Wilson has decided he wants to take the swim test about 15 kids have already taken the test and passed...these 'green wrist band' kids are not swimming in the deep end they are all playing and splashing and stuff down in the shallow area

Wilson does great...
He jumps in, and he is swimming without stopping, he's closer to the swim lane (rope) and not the wall, not stopping to rest because he's too far away to grab on the wall.
He makes it down to the 'shallow' area...where he can actually touch...
and he hits a wall of inner-tubes, swim noodles, beach balls and kids...

he freezes...he doesn't move...
at this point he can actually touch, but he doesn't...
he doesn't swim under any of the things in the water
he doesn't move any of the water toys, he won't even touch them

boy child panics...and even though he can touch he almost drowns right here because he's stuck in the doggy paddle and is TIRED because he's just swam the entire length of the pool without resting....

the lifeguard has to throw him the lifeguard flotation thingy
(it's not the ol' round life preserver thingy that we all think about, but those long red foamy things...)
anyways, once Wilson sees the lifeguard throw that towards him his panic doubles...
"I'm getting rescued...that mean's I'm drowning!"
...he panics and doesn't grab it...lifeguard throws it again...
Wilson grabs it this time and is pulled to safety...10 feet away!

So, Wilson FAILED the swim test...
even though he swam so far, he panicked and had no idea how to swim or get to safety...not good...

kids that failed the swim test received a red-wrist band so the life guards knew what kids could be where.
Mr. Steve talks Wilson into re-taking the swim test...talking to him about how to get thru the 'water-hazard' at the end...

and guess what...same thing happens...
and now...
Wilson has FAILED the swim test twice...

What Wilson didn't see...won't see...can't see...
is that he SWAM almost the entire length of the pool...TWICE...
he SWAM in the deep end...
he never needed to grab the wall to rest...
TWICE...he swam twice the length and never reached out to rest on the wall!
HE CAN SWIM....
he only sees a failed red wrist band

fast-forward to the next week...first week of summer vacation...
and...
da.da.dum...
swim team...yep, I have boy child (both actually) signed up for swim team...

same pool...what happens...
Wilson doesn't swim...
the boy gets in the water....strokes twice...grabs the wall...
'monkey-arms' it about 20 feet...strokes twice...grabs the wall....
repeat...
all the way to the end...
and repeat for the entire 1 hour swim practice!
!

ARGH...
why?
He knows in his head that he FAILED the swim test...
he "can't" swim!

I convince swim coach that my son can in fact swim so please don't kick him off swim team...
(yep, I was that mom!  SHEESH)
and then sign him up for swim lessons...

fast-forward 2 weeks...
Wilson has now been on swim team 2 weeks...and taken 2 weeks of swim lessons...
and he has yet to swim the same distance he did for the 'failed' swim test...
his coach knows he can swim and has let him remain on the swim team...he's done amazing at his lessons...
but still he 'knows' he can't swim because he failed the swim test...

as a parent I can tell him over and over and over again that
He Can Swim...
all he can see is that red wrist band that told him he couldn't...
...
I have wondered ever since that fateful 'swim test'...

God, 
Do I have a failed swim test in my life?  Do I see the 'flotation devices' in my life as water hazards?
Have You told me over and over and over again that I can do something...
Yet, I keep pointing to my failures and telling you that I can't do it?  
Showing you where I failed, how I failed, how I'm not equipped to do what you've asked of me...pointing to my failed red wrist band and saying GOD, you have no idea what I can't do, but I know I can't do it!

Ouch...
I am grateful for the spiritual lessons my children teach me!

God, 
Remind me that I can swim...that I'm not swimming alone, and that you are always my lifeguard even when I can touch the bottom...and that my failed red wrist bands are ones that I have put on myself or the world has...not ones that you put there!

my mom in a swim suit!

yep...
I'm posting a picture of my mom in a swimsuit on my blog...

the date stamped on this makes my mom about 6
...the same age as Wilson...

isn't she adorable!...

I was looking thru some pictures to change out and add a summer vibe to my living room decor and I found this one and a few others that just felt like summer to me...

here it is on the whole 'pia-ntle' (piano trying to be a mantle)

she's to the left of the plant...held up by a large teal clothes-pin

and a step back...

my summer subway art is framed and on the left side of the piano...

and because she loves when I post pictures of her in her swim suit...without asking permission...
here is the other swim suit pic of my mom...

this is framed and on the right side of the piano

doesn't this picture just 'scream' summer to you?...I love it...I'm guessing mom's about 17...and that's her mom..my grandma...making grandma about 64 in the picture...love the pose from both of them...
and looking at the age of my mom...I'm just guessing that my grandfather (her dad) had died maybe within the last year before this picture was taken...this might have been a really hard sad summer for both my mom and grandma so it makes my heart happy to see them being a little spunky at the beach!

any maybe my most-favorite 'embracing the summer' picture I found of my mom...

framed in the center, slightly to the right of the plant.

love this picture...my mom talks about being shy as a child...but this picture..at the beach, standing on a bench, hands on hips...says she wants to take on the world...or at least the next 3 months of summer vacation...
...
do you ever look at pictures of your parents or grandparents at different ages and wish you could step back and spend a day with them at that age...
I see the little girl in that top picture, the same age as my son, and think how much fun the two of them would have running around on the beach together...
the carefree teen with her beyond middle-aged-mom I'd love to sit and share lunch with the two of them...
or the spunky little girl that is taking summer by the horns...I can just imagine her and my daughter laughing and giggling and being amazing little girls together...

happy summer...
hope you enjoyed my mom in her swim suit...

so far...so good

the summer plan is working out okay...
we are foregoing the Movie Monday today
....for my new favorite day...
Nap Monday...
kids weren't in love with the idea...
but both promptly fell fast asleep!

we had a
"welcome-to-the-summer-slumber-party"
last night
all kids tucked in 'bed' by 11
aka futons, couches, floors
...last time I was out of bed to yell at them tell them to sleep was 1:30...
not too bad...
only 3 of the slumber party kids (my 2 + one other) had swim team bright and early this morning...


I want to share this summer subway art I created...
saw a few on pintrest...none of them had the all the right words for our family and/or colors I loved...

leave me a comment with your email and I'll send you a pdf version so you can print one off if you'd like...

happy summer!

sum, sum, summa time...a plan

It's here...
today is the first day of summer vacation!

idea that I got from pintest...kids came home to this yesterday.

Can't believe it's here already!
AND I have a plan...
my goal is to not have a mind-numbing summer...
that's 2-fold...
1.  I don't want it to be mind-numbingly boring!
2.  I don't want the kids to have their brains be numb by the end of the summer and then school hurts their brain come August!

I also want it to feel like summer for the kids...
a little carefree
a little laid back
screen time (in moderation)
a little spontaneity here and there

so this is the sum, sum, summa time plan
a minor, not too rigid agenda
*swim team
     this is a great low commitment scheduled 'event' for the kids.  It's 3 days a week; MWF, for an hour.  It's early, but not too early, starting at 8:30.  The early factor is do-able because the prep is zilch...the have to have their swim suits on their bodies and all their swim stuff will just live in the car (goggles, sunscreen, etc) and their towels will hang in the garage right next to the van to be grabbed on the way......then they can eat breakfast on the go in the car, a breakfast burrito or peanut butter sandwich, etc.  Also it's WAY cheaper than actual swim lessons $1.51 per hour compared to $8.75 an hour...AND swim team lasts all summer and lessons are only for 2 weeks.

*reading
     we will take part in the Barnes and Noble summer reading program for kids (download the pdf form here) and we're going to do a family reading program that will be geared for the reading level and age of our own kids (boy child needs to read 7 chapter books to earn a free book, girl child needs to read 5 chapter books...her chapter books are WAY longer than his and takes her longer).
     we're also going to do reading bingo....our own version...for every bingo they earn a coupon and then when then get a blackout they will get a golden ticket.

idea from how does she

   visit how does she to download the printables that are totally customize-able for your kids.

*theme days
     Movie Monday's = our local dollar theater (that's actually like $1.50 but we still call it the dollar theater) has family days on Monday's and a group of 3 or more (aka a family) pay only $0.75 per person.  If there isn't a move we want to see we will do the red box and watch a movie that we haven't seen yet.  We haven't 'rented' a movie all year long and rarely go to the theater so there are a ton of movies for us to catch up on.
     Errand Day Tuesday &/or Garden Tuesday = kids are not in love with errands...or actually the boy child is not, the girl child is on the fence about errands if there is a store involved she's all over that.  Then the garden day will happen early and will be weeding and harvesting our garden.  This is also a day that Redding has a local Farmers Market so errands and gardening go hand-in-hand and we will probably visit that a few times a month.
     Music Wednesday = their piano lessons are scheduled for Wed afternoon...so really not too
musically...but I might make this a day that we also crank up the tunes and rock out while we do our chores.
     Library Thursdays = this doesn't need an explanation...we will go to the library on Thursdays...
     Field-trip Friday = Beau's day off so this is a great day to go on family hikes, visit waterfalls, drive to the coast, etc....
     AND/Or Friend Friday = we will probably let them invite friends along on our field-trips and if we have nothing planned they can just have a friend over anyways.

* responsibilities before screen time

     the kids both have a responsibility chart that hangs in the hallways and they will need to complete all their responsibilities before they are allowed to turn on the tv or play their DS's.  And their screen time will be limited to 1 show per child and then a 30 minute time frame on the DS games....

*various other ideas
     I have pinned a ton of ideas on pintrest to keep the summer fun...visit my School Vacation Idea board to see what we might be doing....

...
also I will have to be working from home most mornings and will have to make trips to the office a few days a week....
so here's hoping our summer is smooth and not-too-mind-numbing....

what's your summer look like...
are you planning it out or letting it just happen?