Summer holidays

For the past three years the words "Summer Holidays" have instilled fear right into my very core... These words signify the end of routine and activities for six or seven whole weeks! Do you know how long that is?? When you have a baby or a toddler life doesn't change for the holidays but you're left with an empty diary as swimming lessons and toddler groups take a break. I have survived (as have Zoë and Caleb), but I've always enjoyed the arrival of September and the restart of a weekly routine.

But this year feels a little different to me... it may be because we're now slowly edging into the world of terms and preschools, or because I'm just more practiced at filling in my empty diary with events, activities and playdates! I am actually looking forward to creating a new six week routine that we can enjoy together...

So, I started by writing a nice pretty colourful list of places to visit and activities to do on an A3 sheet of paper. I've done this for a few seasons now and find it a really helpful way of coming up with ideas. Most of the ideas are very simple and standard but it's nice to have a list to look at when I have the blank moment of 'what shall we do today/tomorrow?' I then asked Zoë what she wanted to do and added them to the list (ideas included 'go on a bus' and 'sleep in a tent'), and finally I asked on a FB group for local ideas of places and events as we've just moved house and I didn't want to miss anything we could walk to... And here is our list:

The second phase in my summer holiday organisation is to have a calendar up so we can pop in date-specific events (such as the kite festival on Dunstable Downs next weekend). I now have two visual reminders of things we can do and when we can do them, and this makes me feel much happier!

I've also been looking through a book I bought recently called Play Through The Bible by Alice Buckley and I'm hoping to do a story a week. This book includes lots of ideas for helping toddlers to remember the Bible story. I'm been thinking that I might be able to combine some of the stories with ideas off our list.

So all in all I'm quite excited about the next six weeks, oh, but first we need to finish the term... Roll on Thursday!!

Jesus is alive!

Easter is a much harder story for preschoolers to understand than Christmas; for one the idea of death rather than birth is sadder, and coming back to life is a hard concept for them to grasp.
I had lots of great ideas for helping Zoë and Caleb to get to grips with this very special part of the Bible story, but as per usual I completely over estimated the amount of time and energy I'd have. Compared to last year I seem to be doing significantly less with Zoë, but I now have a very active 1 year old boy, medication-related fatigue and less time with Zoë as she's at pre-school. But I continue to try as it's important to teach them about God and to have fun together!

Easter Story

I had planned to spend 5 weeks looking at each stage of the story from the last supper to the ascension, but this was too slow as Zoë needed to know the end of the story and couldn't wait. I'd looked at using a book published by The Good Book Company called Play Through The Bible by Alice Buckley; this book contains lots of good ideas for activities to help preschoolers get to grips with the Bible. I'd also looked on-line and other books on my bookcase so had a huge range of ideas to pick from...

One of my favourite activities was the Easter Egg story - I filled 6 eggs with 6 items from the Easter story and then used it to tell (and recap repeatedly) the story. The items were a donkey, bread, grass, stone, nothing and cotton wool. Can you work out the main points?

We had lots of fun over the Easter weekend - here are some of the things we did...

• Visited family and did an Easter egg hunt, made Tomb biscuits and decorated a Simnel cake

• Visited Waddesdon with friends and experienced Colourscape and did another Easter egg hunt

• Visited Ashridge with friends and got Zoë's face painted and did another Easter egg hunt!

• And looked after Wispy the hedgehog who came and played in our garden

 

Mummy Time

I'm still reading through A Mom After God's Own Heart by Elizabeth George and am finding it such a helpful and encouraging book. It's not easy reading, but you don't feel got at... A quote I found helpful in the last chapter I read is as follows:

On the one side, you must point them to God's way. And on the other, to enjoy any success in training your child for God and for life, you have to know your child, to know what makes him or her tick... Your children are individuals with special strengths and capabilities that should be developed.

Give us this day our daily bread

Dairy-free scotch eggs and 'cowboy pies'

I've been challenged recently about how providing food for my family is one of the main ways I can fulfil my God-given role of looking after my family. Elizabeth George, in her book A Mom After God's Own Heart, says:

Our goal as moms is to see that those in our family are not deprived of the food, nutrition, health and energy they need to handle daily life, prevent melt-downs and stay happy.

I've always thought that I've done ok, but in reality I know that I can improve in this area! I can learn more about nutrition and what Zoë and Caleb are actually eating. I can improve my meal planning to include snacks and preparation time to ensure that melt-downs are avoided as much as possible.

Enjoying his lunch!

As well as being challenged in what I'm reading, we're also going through some food issues as a family. As many of you know Caleb has been dairy-free since he was a few months old and, whilst we're slowly reintroducing milk, has a fully dairy-free diet which requires planning. Zoë was gluten-free for the first couple of years but more recently has tolerated a low-gluten diet. However recent illnesses suggest that this may no longer be the case. We are currently in a 6 week phase of high gluten consumption before a load of blood tests to see what is occurring... after that it may be that we have to be gluten-free too! And of course I'm allergic to nuts!

Cooking is great fun!

If we're a dairy-free, gluten-free and nut-free family then I need to swat up on nutrition to make sure we're not deprived of the nutrients we need, and I need to be more organised with my meal and snack planning. So, as a way of holding me accountable I thought I'd share some of my ideas here with you...
- chat with friends who are further down the line on the intolerance journey.
- include snack ideas on our meal planner
- plan meals with low preparation times and schedule in preparation in my day
- make/bake more of our own snacks
- research more ideas for df, gf and nf breakfasts and lunches to add variety and different nutrients
- consider a 4 week free course with University of Aberdeen on nutrition

I hope you'll enjoy coming on this journey with me as I explore how I can feed my family for the glory of God!

Everyone

We had a lovely week away on holiday in Bournemouth so took a break from learning a new verse. It was a great opportunity to just recap the ones we'd already learnt as well as talking about God in general life. At the age of 3 Zoë is a little sponge and has an amazing memory, but she's also starting to ask questions and work things out herself rather than just accepting what we're telling her.

Alphabet Verses

Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Acts 2:21

This has been quite a hard verse and we haven't really got it yet. Maybe it's because we haven't found a song to re-emphasise the truth. We'll definitely have to come back to this one in the future.

Over the next few weeks we're taking a break from our alphabet verses to look at the Easter Story - this week we're reading about the Last Supper.

Mummy Time

I've taken a break from A Mom After God's Own Heart to briefly read Aren't They Lovely When They're Asleep by Ann Benton and Whispers Through Time: Communication Through the Ages and Stages of Childhood by L.R.Knost. These are two very interesting books which have some similarities, but also different approaches to parenting. I'm finding it very interesting learning how to read Christian parenting books with a critical eye and comparing everything back to the truths in the Bible.

Other fun

We have a cheeky boy! Caleb is developing his personality and there's a sense of humour coming through. One of his favourite games is to climb onto the little table in the kitchen and 'hide' underneath the worktop. Another game is a to run away when I'm trying to get him dressed!

We had to miss our swimming lesson recently so I took my two energetic children to the local playgym where they had a good run around and used up their energy. Zoë attends gym classes now so was showing me some of her new skills; Caleb was overawed by the fact that he was allowed in the gym and didn't have to stay in the entrance area and play with the vending machines!

Do not fear

I'm going to cover pretty much the whole of February in this blog post, well, the first three weeks at least! The big highlights of February have included:
- More snow

- Caleb's 1st birthday and the zoo

- Weekend visit to family in North Yorkshire

Alphabet Verses

Do not fear for I am with you. Isaiah 41:10

This has been a great verse to learn as Zoë has just decided she's scared of the dark and of the 'monsters' which live there. Whilst acknowledging her fear we've also been able to encourage her that God is always with her.

Mummy Time

I'm continuing to read through A Mom after God's Own Heart. This is such an encouraging and challenging book and every page has something underlined and highlighted! The quote highlighted in the picture has really challenged me as telling Zoë and Caleb about Jesus should be the main and almost only aim of my day - and I know that sometimes I fall short...

Other fun

Zoë's new mug

Zoë's veil - one of my grandparents' tablecloths!

Teaching Caleb how to draw

Learning to peel a carrot

Caleb enjoying the outdoors

Come near to God

I've realised that I haven't blogged about the last two verses that we've been learning with Zoë, so here is our C verse.

Alphabet Verses

Come near to God and he'll come near to you. James 4:8

We've been singing along to a Colin Buchanan song based on this verse which has really helped us to learn it. (CD is called 10, 9, 8 God is great)

Mummy Time

We had a lovely evening with friends recently. I'm suffering tiredness as a side effect of the new heart medication so the menu had to be very carefully planned to ensure that I wasn't worn out before people arrived. Starter was doritos and salsa, main course was jacket potatoes with a selection of toppings (chunky chilli, cheese, beans) and salad, and pudding was apple caramel crumble and chocolate brownie. It was all very yummy and we had lots of fun.

I'm continuing to enjoy reading A Mom After God's Own Heart - it's such a challenging read, but also so encouraging too. My daily Bible readings are going pretty well too as I'm making opportunities to do it rather than waiting for opportunities. It's also encouraging to aim for regular reading rather than daily reading as I'm not beating myself up about it again.

Other fun

A highlight of our week was Zoë's first proper haircut! She sat so still until the hairdresser turned her round to cut her fringe and Zoë launched into telling her all about Aunty Dizzy and Aunty James living in Peru and how Aunty James was stung by a stingray on his foot! The hairdresser didn't quite know what to say in response... :D Zoë loved getting her haircut and is looking forward to the next visit - which may be in a very long time as her hair grows very slowly.

 We've also experienced our first snowfall of the winter! This has made all of us very happy!

Bless the Lord, O my soul

Sometimes things just happen and they're very special... I noticed this week that the magnet Zoë had chosen to attach a photo of her and her brother to the fridge was a beautiful quote from Romeo and Juliet:
"When I saw you I fell in love, and you smiled because you knew." Whilst these two gorgeous children have their moments they certainly do love each other! And as their mother I want to do everything I can to preserve that love and encourage it as they grow up.

Alphabet Verses

We've been learning Psalm 103:1 this week: Bless the Lord, O my soul. It's been interesting trying to explain what our soul is to Zoë! We've enjoyed singing the Matt Redman song too - click here to have a listen!

Mummy Time

Other fun

Caleb has made a friend!

Mummy-daughter date<3

Driving to school!

As for me and my house

I'm much preferring the idea of writing once a week, rather than daily! It relieves the pressure somewhat.

On the bus to swimming lessons

So, we've come to the end of the first full week of 2015 and we've survived! Woohoo! Zoë was back at preschool and swimming, and our toddler groups restarted too. We've all been exhausted by the activity. But nights haven't been great as Zoë has been unwell and Caleb has been teething... Yawn!


As well as activities restarting we've started learning our Alphabet Bible verses.

Alphabet verses

Joshua 24:15

As expected Zoë quickly grasped the idea of learning a verse and is able to say 'As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.' and know what it means. We've also found a song with the same words which has helped her to remember it.

As for me and my house, as for me and my family,
as for me and my children, we will serve the Lord.
In this family, we're going to do things properly.
Read God's word everyday and then we'll try to pray. 

Although we get it wrong, we will still carry on, make Jesus number one. 

In this place we're going to say grace.
As for me and my house, as for me and my family, 

as for me and my children, we will serve the Lord.

I had some ideas for activities, but didn't really have time to fit it in as we had a busy week! Maybe next week...

Mummy Time

Been reading through the beginning of Matthew. It's been good to reread the Christmas story and then go straight on to the next part of the life of Jesus - it helps so much to read about Jesus' life in chronological chunks.

I've also been reading A mom after God's own heart: Chapter 3 is entitled 'Talk to your children about God'. Before I share what I've been reading I thought I'd briefly summarise the previous chapters:
Introduction: Focusing on the heart - this chapter considers the lives of some biblical mums (Hannah, David's family, Daniel's family, Timothy's family, Mary) and what the focus our our hearts should be:

"And since you want your children to love God and follow Him, set the focus of your heart on God and let them see you love Him and follow Him." p23

"Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it." Proverbs 4:23

The following 10 points were initially written as a list for Elizabeth George's daughter's baby shower and she has since written it up into this book.

Chapter 1: Take time to nurture your heart - Elizabeth George's challenge in the first chapter is to make sure that you nurture your own heart as the first way to love your children. It is important that as mothers we read the Bible every day. Deuteronomy 6:4-12 contains major instructions for us as parents:

"Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. 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. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door-frames of your houses and on your gates. ...be careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery."

One scholar summed up Deuteronomy 6:4-9 as:

"We are to love God, think constantly about his commandments, teach his commandments to our children and live each day by the guidelines in his Word." p39

Chapter 2: Teach your children God's word - Once we're nurturing our own heart we can start to 'teach [God's word] diligently to our children' through verbal instruction (reading the Bible) and visual instruction (plaques, posters etc).

Following reading this chapter I've been thinking a lot recently about how to help Zoë understand Bible stories better - we started to explore the idea of supporting activities in our Advent series (see previous posts) and am hoping to think some more about we can do this in our normal weeks.

I'll share my thoughts on Chapter 3 in my next post. :)

Other fun

Water painting

Eating dinner with a new 'blue' bib!

Plans for 2015

Alphabetical

So, our plan for the coming few months is to look at a Bible verse a week alphabetically. I'm very aware that at 3 years old Zoë is more than capable of learning songs and film quotes, and I think memorising Bible verse will be a good habit to teach her. I'm also looking forward to learning them too! I'm also hoping to plan some songs and activities for the week to help reinforce and teach the verse.

Now, there are 26 letters in the alphabet and 52 weeks in the year... This could mean that we go through each verse twice in the year, but I think a more realistic approach would be to expect some weeks to 'not happen' due to illness or holiday or similar. So we will just work our way calmly from letter to letter and not let the 'plan' dictate to us. This will definitely be a learning experience for me!

"In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps."
Proverbs 16:9

Mummy Time

I thought I'd also briefly share my aims for the year. They're not really New Year's Resolutions, just some ideas which I hope will become habits...

I'm planning on reading a chapter from the 5 Minute New Testament every morning at breakfast. This is a dated reading plan which I have tended to avoid in the past as I get behind and then feel guilty, but this year I think that dates may be the impetus I need to keep reading my Bible. I'm going to be reading in front of Zoë and Caleb so that they start to see that reading my Bible is important to me - how will they learn if they never see me reading the Bible? I'll give you a brief update each time I post.

I also have a pile of books on my bedside cabinet which I am in the process of reading (see my updated Shelfari bookcase for the definitive list!). Although I can multi-read, and frequently do, I have decided that I need to commit to finishing one book and then move onto the next. So my book for the beginning of 2015 is A Mom after God's own heart by Elizabeth George. I have been reading this book for a couple of years now as well as working through the study guide and am finding it a brilliantly challenging read.

A verse for the year

For the last 12 or so years I have selected a verse to ponder on for the year. Last year's verse was:

"I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people and his incomparably great power for us who believe." Ephesians 1:18-19a

This morning I selected this year's verse after a friend shared it with me:

"But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." Matthew 6:33

That is my aim for the year: God first, and then everything else should fall into place behind...

I also want to choose verses to pray through for Zoë and Caleb, but need to pray some more for the right verse. I will then write it onto an outline of their hand and have it in my Bible. This is an idea I read on a blog last year and think is a great idea. 

Reviewing Advent

Hello and Happy New Year!

I'm finally back on my laptop after a busy Christmas and New Year period with our extended family. We enjoyed having my parents to stay for a few days over Christmas and then went and visited Steve's family in Herefordshire for New Year. Whilst we had a lovely time, it is also nice to be back home and returning to our normal rhythms and routines.

Our Advent series is now over and I'm looking forward to what we have planned next, but first I'd like to review how it went:

Jesse Tree Story (or 'From Creation to Christmas') and activities

I've loved doing a sweep of the Bible with Zoë (and Caleb) and she's really grasped the different stories and how they all point to Jesus and his birth. But, and this is a big one... if you plan a series of stories and activities with your husband make sure that he tells you exactly what he was thinking at the time, otherwise you may well be left with a verse or 'story' and no idea why it's included!! We'll spend some time over the next 11 months padding out the story section of our plan so I have a better idea of what I'm doing

Before next year I'm hoping to sort out the 'labels' to hang on the tree as Zoë lost interest in drawing and colouring these about halfway through the month. I'd much rather put her effort and interest into the activities which support the stories.

The activities seemed to work well; though as I mentioned in a previous post I need to make sure that I go with the flow and don't stress about 'following a plan'. Toddlers and babies are fickle creatures who don't follow plans, and other activities can happen at the last minute.

24 books

I loved this, as did the children. We got to read all our Christmas books at least once as they were opened rather than the favourites being the only ones read. I think next year Zoë and Caleb will have to take it in turns to open a book as he'll be much more interested! A lesson in 'taking turns'!

Lolly Sticks

Again, another idea which I enjoyed as it helped us to make more of the season. We've done Zoë's Summer List of Fun and Autumn List of Fun and I'm looking forward to writing a Winter List of Fun. These lists are more for me to make sure that we fit some fun stuff around the daily tasks of housework.

We squeezed in some of the remaining lolly stick activities into the days following Christmas. Here are some photos for you to enjoy:

What next?

Advent is over for another 11 months (or less than that now...), but we need to continue to share the Bible with our children. Steve and I have been chatting through some ideas which I'm looking forward to sharing with you in my next post.

Christmas Day

Happy Christmas!! 

Advent is over as Christmas is here... Today we celebrate the amazing event of God becoming man, not even a grown man, but a tiny baby. And this is all part of his salvation plan... If you're not a Christian make sure you take some time to consider what Christmas is all about this year - if you have any questions just ask!

Anyway, no more from me today as I'm off to spend time with my family.

Caleb enjoying his new caterpillar toy and Zoë dressed up in her new fancy dress outfit!

Advent: Christmas Eve

Grandma and Grandpa arrived today - Zoë spend a good amount of the morning standing at the back door waiting for them to drive the 3 hours from my sister's house! I managed to convince her to leave her post to do some activities but she quickly returned to wait...

Jesse Tree Activity

I had planned to make some cotton wool sheep but Zoë wasn't interested in doing anything really this morning, plus we needed to finish our handprints...

24 Books

I have photographic evidence of our Christmas Eve books! Caleb opened a Peter Rabbit book:

And Zoë opened the last Mr Men and Little Miss book which she enjoyed reading with Daddy.

Lolly Sticks

Today's activity was finishing off the handprints. I painted the basic hand shape from the impression they'd made and then Zoë decorated with red and gold sparkle paint. Unfortunately I forgot to put holes in them so I'm not sure how we'll hang them on the tree... I'm sure the grandparents won't mind!

Jesse Tree Story

Tonight's story was one that is often missed in the Christmas narrative. Anna and Simeon are two people who met Jesus when he was 8 days old and was presented at the temple. They had been waiting to meet him for many years.

Mummy Time

One of the highlights of my Christmastime is the Christmas Eve carol service, and this year was no different! Great to sing some carols with gusto!