She Flatters Us So

If what they say is true, that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and that flattery will get you anywhere, then I have two words for the fate of our parenting strategies:

Uh-oh.

Kaeta gives the sweetest hugs in the world. And when she hugs us, we can’t help but say, “Awww. What a sweet hug!” So recently she started saying “ahhh,” as she hugs us — that is what you say when you hug someone, of course!

And when she gives kisses, she’ll come at your face with her mouth wide open and plant one on you with a big “MWAH!,” just like we do to her. It just melts my heart a million times over when she shows such affection, because she is so young and she has seen so little, but one thing she does know is that you give the people you love big hugs and big kisses and you say “ahhh” and “mwah” to let them know you really care.

Last week as I was getting the bath ready for Kaeta, I did a little test to see if the water was too warm. One of her duckies has an indicator on the bottom that says “HOT” if the water is too hot. So as the water was running, I held the ducky under the water for a minute until I was sure that the temperature was good. So I put Kaeta in the tub, gave her duckies to play with (she has three — a darling little ducky family, complete with Mommy Ducky, Daddy Ducky, and Baby Ducky), and I looked up and she was HOLDING HER BABY DUCKY UNDER THE RUNNING WATER. Well? Isn’t that what we do with the duckies around here?

As touched and flattered as I am to see her mimic the things we do, I must admit that it scares the bejeebers out of me. This young, sweet child not only sees what I’m doing, but she soaks it in so completely that the next thing I know she’s doing exactly the same thing. And she doesn’t even know why she’s doing it. She doesn’t need a reason — she just knows that if that’s what Mommy or Daddy does, then that must be what we do. I can think of little else that is as sobering than that. So yeah, we need to think carefully about what we do and say around here, because someone is always watching. Like a hawk.

And as much as her reaction scares me, I have to say that my reaction is what scares me more. Because so far it’s always the same: utter heart-melting joy, pride, and adoration. “Aww, look at her holding the ducky under the water. Isn’t that adorable?… Aww, did you hear her say “ahhh” as she hugged you? That’s so sweet…. Aww, look at her climbing the stairs all by herself! She’s a pro!…. Aww, look at her trying to chop those vegetables with the sharp knife just like Daddy…” All she has to do is just give us her adorable little chipmunk grin and we’ll give her whatever she wants. After all, she just wants to be just like Mommy and Daddy. Aww. THAT’S what scares me.

Today when Derek came home, he put his hat on Kaeta’s head. She loves to wear Daddy’s hat.

But if I were to try to put a cute little bonnet on her head to match her pretty little Sunday dress, she would rip it off her head and toss it aside in a matter of seconds. She does not like to wear hats. She likes to wear Daddy’s hat. Imitation IS the sincerest form of flattery. You cannot get any more sincere than a ten-month-old baby. So we should not be scared by it but we should take this incredible opportunity to teach Kaeta about God’s love for her.

“Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Ephesians 5:1-2)

(Oh, and just so we don’t get bombarded with hate mail followed by a visit from CPS, NO, WE HAVE NEVER GIVEN OUR CHILD A SHARP KNIFE TO PLAY WITH. Nor a dull knife. Nor will we. At least not until she’s old enough to run with scissors.)

moose art procrastination

A few months ago we were at the German restaurant in Walburg … <pause for mouth to water just thinking about it> … and I tried drawing a picture on a napkin of a moose head that was hanging on the wall. The catch was, I wasn’t allowed to watch what I was drawing — I just kept my eyes on the moose as I drew. I think it turned out kind of neat!

That napkin has sat on my desk until tonight, waiting for me to decide whether to scan it or throw it away. It takes me forever to do things sometimes! I decided to post it here. If you’d like to see more moose pictures, let me know, and I will draw some, then take months to post them.

Got some catching up to do…

Hello, there! Haven’t seen you in a while, how’ve you been?

Somehow we went the whole month of July without posting anything here, so to make up for that, here are four new photo galleries.

SAHMommy Reflections: My Promotion

As many of you know, last Friday was my last day with the TCEQ. As I was walking across the parking lot to my car that afternoon, I was in a state of dumbfounded disbelief. It was so surreal to think that I was walking out of there for the last time — that I wasn’t just going on vacation for a week or something. Even now it still feels like a really long weekend. All last week I felt sort of numb about leaving. Then the emotions started to hit as I was walking over to Building A to turn in my badge and parking pass. I won’t be working here anymore. I won’t be coming back next week, or the week after that, or the week after that…. and I started to get really sad.

But THEN I had another thought that made me smile. I’m glad to be sad about leaving. Because if I was glad to be leaving, then that would be sad. I’ve always felt very blessed to have my job — getting to work in meteorology, doing something meaningful, and getting to work with some pretty great people. Very blessed indeed.

That said, I am even more excited about my new job. So far it’s been very challenging, but oh so rewarding. I get paid in hugs and smiles and sweet little raspberries. And sometimes even naps.

Ear Tubes: What They Do, and Why Doctors Are Awesome


Kaeta has had recurring ear infections, so today she got ear tubes. Thanks to a poster in the ear doctor’s office, I learned (more or less) how they work.

Behind your eardrum, you’ve got 3 small bones — they have latin names, but on the poster they were called the hammer, anvil, and stirrup. Sound waves vibrate your ear drum, which passes the vibration along these 3 bones. The last bone (the stirrup, which really looks like a stirrup) is connected to your cochlea.

The cochlea looks like a snail, and it’s full of liquid. The sound vibration now passes into that liquid, and it’s somehow converted to an electrical signal that passes through your cochlear nerve to your brain.

Meanwhile, your eustachian tube connects from your throat to somewhere behind your eardrum. Its purpose is to equalize the pressure behind your eardrum. The tube widens when you yawn or swallow, which is why that can make your ears pop when you change altitudes on an airplane.

Kaeta’s problem, as I understand it, is that her eustachian tube isn’t developed enough yet to really be doing its job. When she gets an ear infection, her middle ear (right behind the eardrum) gets inflamed and filled with puss, raising the pressure, and there is no way to release it.

Sometime between Friday and today, Kaeta’s left eardrum ruptured. It will heal back, but I’m sure it was really painful for her, and that explains her attitude the past couple of days. But it just confirms that getting tubes was a good idea — by rupturing her eardrum, her body was doing (in a less controlled way) the same thing the tubes do — poking a hole in the eardrum to help the pressure equalize and to let the fluid back there drain out.

Already, Kaeta is seeming to feel somewhat better, and I’m sure that will continue as her eardrum heals. One thought I had was this: This operation wasn’t something we could do for her; we had to rely on the doctors and nurses. They studied hard for years and went through a ton of training to be able to do this for our daughter. God gave them the skills, interests, and drive to become excellent doctors, and they are using those skills to love and serve their neighbors — us! We’re really thankful for them!

Goodbye, Grandma

It was a call I was not expecting. I don’t think any of us were. But nonetheless I knew exactly what it meant: packing up the car and setting out on a whirlwind trip to Kansas. And the reality of it didn’t sink in until the visitation, when I saw my Grandma lying so still, so smile-less. I think that may have been the longest I’d ever seen her face without her sweet smile, or hearing her sugary “Hm-hmm” chuckle (yes, just like the Pilsbury Dough Boy).

It’s hard to fight the “if-only” thoughts in moments like that. If only I had given her one more hug the last time I saw her…. If only I had sent her more pictures of Kaeta… If only I had called her on Mother’s Day…. If only we had made the trip to Kansas sooner, so that Kaeta could have met her Great-Grandma Berniece. I take comfort, though, in the realization that someday Kaeta will get to meet her and I will get to hug her again, though maybe not for a while. In the meantime, she will be sorely missed.

We had another girl’s name in mind when Kaeta was born, but I have absolutely no regrets about naming her Kaeta Bernice, after her Great-Grandma (her first name was Katherine, so they are both K. Berniece, just spelled differently). Grandma was without a doubt one of the sweetest, most loving people I’ve ever met. The thing I remember best about her is that smile of hers, and how she was always ready to drop anything for a hug. Hers is a legacy of love and thoughtfulness that I pray will live on through my daughter. Who knows, maybe someday there will be another K. Berniece in the family.

Dear family and friends, I invite you to share your best memories of Grandma here in the comments. What will you miss the most about her? Got any good stories to tell?

Remember that Memorial Day?

…When Kaeta tried to help Mommy do the laundry? And she climbed into the laundry basket all by herself??


Well we weren’t quite quick enough with the camera to capture her actually climbing in, but honest to goodness, I sat there and watched her do it. She pulled herself up on the side, and oh-so-gracefully dove head-first into the basket of (clean) towels I was trying to fold. Oh, was she proud of herself.

Then she proceeded to STAND in the laundry basket, as if it was a completely normal thing for her to do in a completely normal place for her to be in the first place.

…And she gave me this hybrid expression of utter innocence and mischief.

THAT’S our girl!