Clay Jar People

Its been a while since I have done a real update on our family… if ever… oops! Well here goes…

In January, Chris found out that the company he is currently working for is going to add some clients to their repertoire that compromise everything we as Christians believe. This led him to resign his job, on faith. We trusted that God would come through for us, as we stood up for His glory. The job he would be able to get, which is with a great group of Christians, would only be able to start in July… which meant that from April to July, we would be without any income.

We prayed and trusted and stood on the Word of our Lord who is faithful, and good.

And He answered.

Last Thursday afternoon, my love received a call from the boss-man at the new company saying they can hire him from April! God really is Jehovah Jireh! They can afford to pay him just enough to cover all our expenses… co-incidence? I think not!

Not once in this time did either of us consider me going back to work. God led us to the decision to homeschool and for me to be at home teach, training and growing our family… and He provided all the work and money thus far, so we knew He would continue to honour us for doing His will.

God is really good… ALL THE TIME!

Job said: ”Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I will depart. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; may the name of the LORD be praised.” (Job 1:21)

We try to do this in all things… because ultimately the Lord knows what’s best for His children.

On another note… After spending time with my friend, Trudie of Fun with Little Mouse and spending hopelessly too much time on her blog… I am inspired to start slowly doing Tot School with Elijah. Basic things like encouraging fine motor skills, and showing him letters and so on… (there are soooo many resources for Tot School, like here and here) Its all going to be playful, but I feel its important for me to stimulate him more, and get my lazy brain thinking a bit more about his growth.

Another cool idea I found via Trudie’s blog, is Muffin Tin Monday. The basic idea seems to be to put the tot’s lunch/snack or whatever in a muffin tin and make some extra effort with it. I have done two now, and Elijah seems to enjoy it… its messy as all get out, but he eats a bit.

Sippy-cup with water, peanut butter bread, twistee chips, more PB bread, boiled egg and bread

I might feature this on my blog… but it won’t be regular.

Well, that’s our update for now…

Maggie, the farmer’s daughter receives a letter which says she will soon be receiving a gift. After much anticipation, the gift arrives… what is it?

Now that would be telling… all I can say is that this little gem of a book perfectly describes the gift of forgiveness to young children. It shows us how to understand God’s forgiveness of our sins in a simpler form. Its a great book for Easter!

This is a sweet 32 page little book, by renowned Christian author, Liz Curtis Higgs is definitely a book I would recommend to moms and dads, and anyone needing to buy gifts for a child. Ms Curtis Higgs has also penned a few more “parable” books that I would love to get my hands on for Elijah.

I fully intend to buy the hardcopy of this book for our collection, as my review copy is an e-book and around here, we love real books!!

(I received an electronic copy of this book, via the NetGalley program. I was not reimbursed for my review, and all opinions herein are my own.)

This weekend, we finally decided it was time to admit that Elijah is no longer a baby and move him to a real bed. He has a need for independence, and the cot was preventing him from being able to do things for himself, like get up and move, which meant that he would wake up and get hysterical if I didn’t come as soon as he was awake.

I was greatly motivated by my friend Grietjie, who has had her youngest two children in cot-free rooms since birth (excepting the co-sleeping as young babies). Her post here helped me finally get my butt in gear and make the shift. I am trying to incorporate some more montessori principles in our daily lives for Elijah to learn from and to be more independent. Its all baby steps though… I really love the ideas and the layout of this room, by Meg from Sew Liberated.

So, yesterday I dismantled the cot, it was bittersweet, I used the cot as a baby myself and I remember assembling it just before Elijah was born. But I feel that he will be happier and sleep better if he is able to move. So we brought in a decent single bed mattress, as I prefer knowing if he rolls off he won’t fall far.

Sleeping on my big-boy bed

Last night he slept on it for the first time. He woke up once in the early evening, but he was overtired, and then he wakes more and sleeps badly. It was very sweet seeing this sleepyheaded little monkey walking into the lounge to come cuddle with mama. I took him back to bed, fed him and he slept from there, with the occasional nightmare and weird whimpering. He woke up at about 4am, and I went to lie next to him, fed him and he slept until 5:30, at which time I moved him to our bed, as I was planning on feeding him to sleep, and getting up to do my biblestudy. He eventually went back to sleep… but so did I. We woke at about 6:30 and that was it.

All in all I think it was a great first night for my little-big-boy.

Really miss my tiny baby though…

Since its February and the month of loooove, my friend Julie, at Caramella Clan is doing a Love Story series on there. Today she is featuring US… Very sweet indeed.

Be sure to share the love and comment on her blog and follow it. She’s a sweet young wife to a great guy and they look after babies in need.

(on a side note: some of the image on my blog are broken… we’re looking into it… thanks for the patience…)

My Oma is 88(?) and she loves Elijah

Opa turned 81 on Sunday and he enjoys this funny little boy.

Um… our family has a thing with wigs…

Reading a book with Papa

(all photos taken at Riverside close to Mosselbay by Danie Pretorius – my uncle)

source: Pinterest

Elijah is a whole year and 2 months old… I can’t believe it. We no longer have a baby but an incredibly active toddler.

• he runs… everywhere…
• he chats up a storm, to anyone who’ll listen
• new words: buite (outside), nyamnyamnyam (yummy), Mudgy (Smudge the puppy), bad (bath), nee (no), ja (yes), vliegtuig (airplane, it sounds like it), myne (mine), eina (if he’s hurt, basically like ow)
• he shakes his head to say no, or if you shake your head
• he loves braai-meat (barbeque)
• his hair is finally growing, slowly but its getting there
• he had his first bad fall 2 weeks ago, when he walked down the steps without holding onto anything, and grazed his head…
• he can sleep on a  bed without rolling off and when he wakes up he gets up and comes to look for me (almost time to move to his own big-boy bed)
• he loves to sit in the front seat of the car with Chris and pretend to drive
• he also loves those coin-operated cars/planes etc, without coins in though
• if you ask him in Afrikaans, “where is the airplane?” he points at the sky

I’m looking forward to every other moment with him and getting to see this little personality grow… Its awesome!

(i can’t believe a year ago this was my tiny little boy)

 listening… chirping birds, a noise-with-dirt-on-it little boy, and my brother making lunch

eating… ate bread with jam

drinking… heaps of water

wearing… embroidered skirt and a black PeekaMoo top

feeling… hot hot hot hot… and tired

weather… hot

wanting… the car to be healthy so we can safely go on holiday this weekend

needing… a fixed car, sleep, rain

thinking… heat + little boy + tired mama = unpleasantness

enjoying… access to a garden so E can play

This is a true story from “Bringing up girls” by Dr James Dobson. A friend posted it on a Facebook group wall, and I had to share. Its so amazing… I wish my folks had done this with me, and I want to do it with my daughter, should I have one eventually.

(image source)

Sweet sixteen had finally come! I never thought I’d make it. But I did. And it was amazing. My parents threw the birthday party of the century, and I has more people over than I could count. The whole day had been awesome. But as I watched the sun begin to set, I knew the best part was soon to come. It was late in the evening. Confetti had been swept up, helium balloons had started to sag, and gift wrapping had been folded neatly and tucked away for my mom’s later use. As I sat at my window studying the dusky sky, Dad peeked into my room with a smile
“Ready to go , Sweetie?” He asked.
Was that a trick question? I wondered as I scrambled to my feet. I’d been waiting for this night for five long years, and it was finally here! I was now officially allowed to date!
The plan was for my parents and me to go to my favourite restaurant on the night of my sixteenth birthday and officiate the agreement, go over standards, and discuss rules and such. And now we were finally on the way.
I sat across from my parents in a quiet corner booth. Having just placed our orders I figured it was time to get on with it. “So. I can go out with any guy I want to, right?” I squealed, hardly able to contain my excitement.
Mom and Dad chuckeled. Dad answered, “Well, we agreed to that, didn’t we?”
“Sweet!” I exclaimed, doing a little victory dance in my seat. My parents had held me off for years, but now that the time had come, they would let me date any guy I wanted! Of course they knew I had a good relationship with God and wasn’t too short on common sense, either.
“Now wait just a second” Mom interrupted with a smile. “You have to agree to a little something yourself”
I was expecting a lecture of some sort so I was already prepared. ‘”So what do I have to do now?” I asked, leaning forward on my elbows.
“Just open this,” Dad answered, producing a small white box. He gave a mysterious smile. I Hesitated a moment before removing the curly pink ribbon. I slowly opened the lid and saw a beautiful silver bracelet. But not just any bracelet. It was a charm bracelet. And they weren’t just any charms. They were gemstones, small but gorgeous. A dozen dainty charms dangled gently.
“Wow.” I didnt know what else to say. I wasn’t expecting this at all.
“Now you have to understand this isnt just any bracelet,” Mom informed me.
“I know” I said. “It is so beautiful!” I studied it closer.
There were six small charms alternating with six tinier ones. The smaller ones were a deep blue. Sapphires, I guessed. And the other six were each different. One appeared to be just a rock, one was pink, a white one, a red one, green, and…whas that a diamond!?
“This charm bracelet is symbolic” Dad explained, leaning in closer to study it with me. “It represents you and your purity. This is what will guide you through your dating relationships. Your mother and I can only tell you what’s right. We can’t make you believe it yourself. Hopefully, this will.”
I looked up solemnly. “I’m Listening.”
“This represents the first time you hold a guy’s hand”
Mom said, pointing to the gray one. “It’s just a piece of polished granite Seemingly cheap, yes, but it’s still a part of your bracelet. This is pink quartz.”
Then she gently rubbed the next one between her fingers.
“It represents your first kiss”
“This green one is an emerald,” Dad continued. “This is your first boyfriend. The pearl is the first time you say ‘I love you’ to a man other than me.”
I giggled. This was so amazing. The ruby stands for your first engagement. And the diamond represents the first time you say ‘I do’” Mom finished.
After letting it all sink in I cleared my emotion-clogged throat. “What do the six tiny sapphires stand for?” I asked.
Those are to remind you how beautiful and valuable you are to us and to God, ” Dad replied. “Now here’s the hitch in all this, the one and only rule you’ll ever have to follow when it comes to dating. ”
Only one rule. Sounded good. But little did I know…
“Whenever you give one of these actions of love – a kiss, an ‘I love you,’ a hand to hold – you also have to give the recipient the gem to match.
I must’ve misunderstood. “I have to give him the gem?”
“You have to give it to him” Mom restated.
I was silent for a while. I thought they must be joking. But they weren’t even thinking of cracking a smile. “But Daddy!” I suddenly shrieked. “These are insanely expensive! I can’t just give them away!”
He gave a soft, loving chuckle. “Did you hear what you just said?”
I thought about it.
“Baby, your purity, your heart, they’re far more valuable than a few little rocks. If you can’t find it in your heart to give away your little charms, I don’t think you should be giving away the things they represent.”
I could feel my insides melting, ready to gush out my tear ducts. On the one hand, it made me feel valuable and precious. But on the other, it made me furious. It made no sense. But it would.
A few weeks after that night, I was hanging out with my friends at the beach. Chad wouldn’t swim because I wouldn’t swim. I was more interested in reading than getting caked with sand, and he was more interested in sitting with me than swimming with his buddies. He was sweet. He was cute. And he tried to hold my hand.
I was thrilled for a nanosecond when a certain peice of ugly granite flashed through my mind and made me move out of his reach. I was severely annoyed – annoyed at my parents, annoyed at my bracelet-turned-handcuffs, but most of all annoyed at myself. I was letting a little rock dominate my romantic life.
I furiously glared at it during the whole embarrassing walk to the bathhouse But then God hit me upside the head with a shocking epiphany. I couldn’t give up my little chunk of granite. It was a part of my bracelet, which in a sense made it a part of me. I wouldn’t be whole without it. It wasn’t a priceless gem, yet it was still valuable. It made sense after that.
Kevin came along eventually. We had fun. We hung out a lot. I thought I might love him. I thought I might tell him so. I thought of my pearl. It turned out that I didn’t love him as much as I thought I did.
So my parents had been right. They couldn’t make me believe the things they wanted me to believe. So they let God and my bracelet do the word instead. Among the four of them I figured out how valuable I was. How valuable my purity was.
How not valuable guys were who were just wasting my time and emotions. If they weren’t in it for the whole bracelet, why should they get one part of it?
Nate. He thought my bracelet was awesome. So he never tried to hold my hand. He never tried to kiss me. But he asked me to marry him.
I never knew that so many years of torture could amount to so much happiness. I’d thought it was silly. I’d thought it was overrated. But now, I have never been more glad of anything in my life.
As I gave my husband the charm bracelet in its entirety. I wondered why I had found it so hard to hang on to those little rocks when it was so amazing to give them all to the man I truly love.
But it didnt end there, now our daughter wears it…

I’m not sure who the author is… but this is such a sweet poem.

Real Mothers don’t eat quiche;
They don’t have time to make it.

Real Mothers know that their kitchen utensils
Are probably in the sandbox.

Real Mothers often have sticky floors,
Filthy ovens and happy kids.

Real Mothers know that dried play dough
Doesn’t come out of carpets.

Real Mothers don’t want to know what
The vacuum just sucked up.

Real Mothers sometimes ask ‘Why me?’
And get their answer when a little
Voice says, ‘Because I love you best.’

Real Mothers know that a child’s growth
Is not measured by height or years or grade…
It is marked by the progression of Mummy to Mum to Mother…

(the awesome mom in the photo is my gorgeous sister-in-law who has 3 kiddos that she homeschools and manages to run a shipshape household… I love you Kim!)