I never thought I’d be at a place in my life where the word “Pee” is a logical response to the question, “What is that?” But, as I approach the end of my 27th year of life with two toddlers and a puppy that is exactly where I find myself. It’s always interesting to catch up with old friends on Facebook and see what they’re up to. Some have taken the path of starting families, some have started thriving businesses, some are balancing careers as well as families, and others are struggling just to become a functioning member of society.

As you reflect on what you thought they’d do with their lives it becomes easy to get introspective. Am I where I thought I’d be at this point in my life? In some aspects yes and others no. But, I realized something as I sat hoping that the suspected pee was on the hardwood and not the carpet again: I wouldn’t trade my life for anything. It’s been an adventure every step of the way and God is continually revealing more and more of himself through it.

What about you? Did you have aspirations to become a senator but couldn’t even get voted onto the board of your homeowner’s association? Did you want to be a pro athlete but pull muscles when playing Wii? Big deal! Stop thinking about where you are at and let God take you where he wants you to be. Pursue Jesus with everything you’ve got and you’ll find the journey of life to be much more satisfying.

Now, off to find that pee…

We borrowed a “Best of Looney Tunes” DVD set from our local library and I’ve been watching it with my kids (okay, so more like THEY’VE been watching it with ME).

I forgot how awesome those old school cartoons were. It really made me appreciate the old school animation in a day and age where all cartoons look like video games. There’s just no comparison to these oldies–except Jimmy Nutron, that show is freakin’ hilarious!

We often forget how perceptive our children are. I am reminded of this regularly when my kids, 2.5 & 1.5 years old, say something like, “Look dad, coffee” when we pass Starbucks on the road or “Ooh, daddy needs that guitar for church” when we’re browsing through a music catalogue. The reality is that although kids are loud, difficult to understand, and incapable of sitting still, they pick up on many of the things you do, say, or feel.

While we had a spell of nice sunny days last week I dug through my closet and blew the dust off of my shorts so my pasty white legs could be on display. I came out of our bedroom dressed for summer and my wife said, “You look really good honey.” My son, who was eating breakfast at the table started laughing and said, “Yeah, daddy’s cute!” We both began to laugh at my son’s proclamation but something really stood out to me at that moment: children perceive their parents in the manner they are portrayed to them.

As parents we need to be careful how we communicate to and about our spouses, especially around our children. Failure to do so can result in a loss of respect and a minimizing of their parental authority. I saw this a lot when I was a youth pastor. A parent would constantly belittle and vent about their spouse or ex-spouse either to their child or in front of them and sure enough that child would have absolutely no respect for the other parent. As a result the belittled parent would often disengage from even trying to be an influence which would just further frustrate the relationship with their spouse. I’ve even seen parents get on Facebook and publicly berate their spouse to everyone on the Internet—it’s pathetic and immature and there is no excuse for it.

I want my children to respect my wife. A lot of that respect will be earned by my wife’s relationship with them; however, some of that respect will be learned by what I demonstrate to them about her. Sure we all get frustrated and say things we don’t mean at times. But we need to be careful to guard our emotional explosions from our children who may not be around to hear us apologize for the things we said but didn’t mean. My kids have challenged me to make sure I honor my wife in front of them. What about you? What message are you sending about your spouse? Even if you’re not married to your child’s other parent, are you speaking things about them that will help them have a place to contribute and have positive influence? It may take some work to get a healthy habit established, but it will be worth it in the long run!

Yesterday we made a quick stop into the central hub of Sandpoint socialization (Walmart). They always have some really good desserts or pastries that are on sale right by the main entrance and I’ve never thought about how often we stop and look at those entry bargains.

We were kind of in a hurry so we walked right by them. Except Judah. He stopped and started pointing at them while saying, “Ooh, that’s a good deal. Ooh, that’s a good deal.”

I looked at Tamra, while laughing, and said, “Wow, he totally learned that from us!” Neither one of us realized that browsing the snacks had become part of our routine.

It is moments like those that remind us of one of the most important lessons about parenting: you are ALWAYS teaching your kids something. Always! Think the language you’re using out in the garage won’t be heard? Think the jokes you make with your buddies won’t be repeated? Think the way we act towards authority won’t be picked up on? Wrong! Those little ears and eyes are learning even the most simple lessons when we don’t even realize it.

There’s an old expression that says, “Don’t do or say anything you wouldn’t do or say in front of Jesus.” I think you could aptly say, “Don’t do or say anything you wouldn’t want your kids to do or say–because they’re watching, listening, and mimicking everything you do!”

My sons ability to communicate has really grown over the last couple of months and my ability to decipher what he’s saying has as well. In fact, even my daughter is starting to make some sense to me. The other day Elli spilled Judah’s cup of water on the floor and he began to cry about it so I decided to use my dad-skills and distract him while I soaked up the water. I told him it wasn’t a big deal (gotta love Pergo floors) and that I would get him some more water. Then I asked him, “Judah, do you know where our water comes from?” To which he boldly responded, “Yes!” I was a little bit surprised and thought maybe Tamra had taught him the concept of well water so I asked him, “Where does it come from?” He casually pointed to the kitchen and said, “Over there!” At that moment the concept of “child like faith” was made plainly evident. Read the rest of this entry »

I just wanted to take a moment and wish everyone a Merry Christmas, and more importantly, say,  ”Happy Birthday Jesus! Do you mind if I open presents on your birthday again? Sweet!”

This gives new meaning to Black Friday:

Click For Full Story Courtesy of FOXNews.com

NEW YORK —  Police were reviewing video from surveillance cameras in an attempt to identify people who trampled on a Wal-Mart worker killed when a crowd of post-Thanksgiving shoppers burst through the doors at a suburban store and knocked him down.

 

Criminal charges were still possible, but identifying anyone in the store’s videos may prove difficult, said Nassau County police spokesman Detective Lt. Michael Fleming on Friday.

Other workers were trampled as they tried to rescue the man, and customers stepped over him and became irate when officials said the store was closing because of the death, police and witnesses said.

The full article goes on to say that when announced that they were closing the store because of the death people continued to shop and complained that they had waited in line for hours. To think that some people would be more upset about time spent standing in line then the fact that someone had been trampled to death should make us all stop and do a gut check. What would your response be? I know that the economy is rough and these deals were great, but, I think sometimes our priorities get a little out of order.

Recently my wife and I bought a house here in Sandpoint which meant we moved for the sixth time in five years. This was the first time, however, that we’ve moved since having two children. Moving sucks, period. But, moving with two little kids shifts the suckiness in to a new dimension of suck–an uber suck, if you will.

We tried to just power everything out in a few days so that all of the frustration would end quickly. The result was that our kids were attention deprived for a couple of days while we moved and settled in. As I left for work one morning my son, Judah, kept saying, “Daddy, play cars. Daddy, play cars.” I realized how little attention I had been able to give him during the move and decided to have my first heart to heart talk with him.

I was sat him on my lap and said, “Son, I know that I’ve been busy this week and haven’t been able to play with you very much. I’m going to work today to finish up everything for the week and then starting tomorrow everything will be back to normal. I’m really proud of how well you’ve done with all of this and when I get home I’ll play with you right away! Okay?”

I felt like such a good dad at that moment. I acknowledged the situation and explained it to him. I affirmed how well behaved he had been during the move and made plans to meet his need after work. I’ll never forget what my son looked at me and said at that moment: “Mommy, play cars!”

I started laughing as I realized my son was only 2 and wasn’t concerned with any of the things that had transpired over the prior few days. His only concern was who was going to play Hot Wheels with him. I guess the lesson here is that kids are pretty forgiving and if you feel like you’ve been blowing it as a dad lately you can snap that streak by just getting on the floor and playing cars or whatever activity counts as quality time in your family. Start now. It’s never too late.

Have you been feeling like a total doofus lately? Chin up! Even superheroes knock themselves unconscious from time to time.

And just a reminder to anyone owning a full body spandex suit: Just because you DRESS like a ninja, doesn’t mean you ARE a ninja!