family times

Theology of a Three Year Old

mommy — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 02:01:39 +0000

This is going to be the longest, most rambling post ever, but I can’t think of a better way to capture the amazing conversation I had with Emily at prayer time right before bed tonight. I asked Emily to start the prayers tonight and she counted to ten so we thanked Jesus for counting. Then she said we needed to pray for Mr. Jason because the owie in his head is “getting worser”. She then asked why this was and I said we don’t know what God’s plan is. For simplicity’s sake, I will now designate the rest of the conversation with M for Mommy and E for Emily.
E: No, God has to go to work.
M: You’re right, God is going to do His work but we don’t know what His plan is.
E: No, he has to go to work on his computer.
M: I don’t know if God has a computer. Someday when we get to heaven we can ask Him.
E: Yeah, I want to go to heaven now to ask him!
M: Honey, we can’t go to heaven right now.
E: When can we go?
M: We don’t go to heaven until we die.
E: When are we going to die?
M: I don’t know sweetie. Only God knows that.
E: When we are dead can we play with God?
M: Yes honey.
E: I think Norah is going to die. (ok, way to freak me out!)
M: Well, we will all die eventually. But I am glad that we are not dead yet so we can be here with each other. When we die we are in heaven forever and we don’t come back.
E: The big dog Jack is in heaven. (note - this is our friend’s dog that passed away last year and Emily has never forgotten him)
M: Yes, you are right. (some people may disagree with whether animals go to heaven but that is not a discussion to have with young children in my opinion)
E: Heaven and Haiti are really far away.
M: You are right honey, but they are different. Haiti is a country, you can find it on a map. Heaven is God’s house, it is up there, you can’t see it.
E: Yeah…in Haiti, there are boys and girls that don’t have mommies and daddies. That’s why Aunt Jen is there to help them!
M: Yes, that’s right honey! But Aunt Jen will come back from Haiti. Heaven is forever.
E: Why is heaven forever?
M: Well, when we die, our bodies stay here, but do you know the special part that is inside of us?
E: Yes…
M: Well that part goes to live in heaven with God. You know how we say heaven is God’s house and Jesus is the key to God’s house?
E: Yeah, Jesus is the key.
M: Well, we get to live in heaven with God someday because we believe in Jesus.
E: Yeah. Jesus is in heaven with God because Jesus is dead.
M: Well, no honey, actually Jesus is alive!
E: Why isn’t Jesus dead?
M: Remember how at Easter Jesus died on the cross but then he rose again and now he’s alive?
E: Yeah…
M: He is alive in heaven. And that’s why we get to live in heaven forever with God.
E: In heaven can we play with Jesus and God?
M: Yes honey, I am sure we can. That will be fun.
E: I think God has cars for us to play with.
M: I’ll be you are right.
E: Mommy, will you be in heaven with me?
M: Yes, I will be there because I believe in Jesus. Honey, do you believe in Jesus?
E: Yes, I believe in Jesus.
M: Do you believe he died and rose again so we can be with him forever in heaven?
E: Yeah.
M: Me too. So that means we will both be there with him forever!
E: And we can play with Jesus and God!
M: Yes honey.
E: I love you mommy.
M: I love you too sweetie.

Whew! My mind was very tired after that. Dan of course pointed out after I told him the story that if God has toy cars He almost certainly has a computer! Yes, I suppose so, but look at the awesome conversation I would have missed out on had I taken the “easy way out” on the original question.

I want my babyback ribs

daddy — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 18:45:03 +0000

We have taken to really liking ribs grilled here at home, why pay to go out when we can get awesome tasting ribs right here at home. The other night we did just that, while sitting down at the table Emily turns around and said “daddy, I love your ribs”. Wow, warmed my heart. This from the BBQ covered face of a toddler.

Family Photo

daddy — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 12:52:54 +0000

Thought we would share our latest family photo with everyone. This was taken at Jim & Suzie’s wedding this last weekend. Emily is three and Norah is 7 months… we don’t need to comment on daddy and mommies ages.

Water Baby

mommy — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 21:06:06 +0000

We have discovered lately that Norah LOVES being in the water. Whether it is a bath or the swimming pool, she practically jumps out of your arms with glee into the water. I wonder what she will think of Emily’s favorite summer hangout, the splash park?!

Monster Truck

mommy — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 21:04:36 +0000

Emily has been quite excited lately to be playing with the Matchbox cars that Dan played with as a child. One night as we were playing with them she was showing me one that she correctly identified as a monster truck (I later learned she had picked that up from playing with Olivia). We were driving cars and she was driving a race car. Then she grabbed another one and asked, “Is this one a race car?” I looked at it and saw that it was a delivery truck for Kellogg’s Rice Krispies, so I told her excitedly “Emily, this is a Rice Krispies truck for taking Rice Krispies to people!” She then picked up another one and said, “Yes, and this is a monster truck for taking monsters to people!” I didn’t want to laugh for fear of making her self-conscious of what she said, but I had a hearty belly laugh over it later and still can’t tell the story to anyone without laughing. What a sweetheart.

Here, Not There

mommy — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 20:59:51 +0000

“Norah’s on Emily’s on Mommy’s on Daddy…and none of the family is in the kitchen!” - comment made by Emily as we all cuddled together in the living room earlier this evening

Which one is mine?

daddy — Fri, 30 May 2008 16:23:13 +0000

The other day I caught this photo… I was staring down at the couch trying to figure out which one was daddy’s and which was Emily’s. It is very fun listening to the “conversations” that she has on her phone. Something similar to the following:

Hello there Uncle Marc, how are you?

Good? Good.

Good Bye

Half a Year

daddy — Thu, 29 May 2008 19:10:21 +0000

Can you believe it? It has been half a year that Norah has been with us on this side of birth. Happy Six Month Birthday Norah.

So what is happening right now:

trying out some new sound, we can’t tell if it is “B” or something like “nuba”
sitting up all the time now
dislike any tummy time
re-learning to put yourself to sleep
sitting up in the high chair for meals, great to have you at the family dinner table
…
amazing blessed little daughter of God

We love you Norah.

God Bless,
Daddy

Prayer Request

mommy — Fri, 23 May 2008 12:55:06 +0000

For those who may not have heard, there is some very sad news in the world of Christian music. Steven Curtis Chapman lost his youngest daughter in a tragic accident at their home. In addition to the incredible music he has contributed to this world, Steven and his wife are active advocates in the world of international adoption. Maria was one of three daughters the Chapman family adopted from China. Dan and I have always had a heart for China and are big fans of SCC’s music, so I was literally crying as I read the news yesterday. My heart goes out to the Chapman family and I pray for peace for their aching hearts. You can read more about the family at www.stevencurtischapman.com and there is now also a link to a new blog set up in Maria’s memory with some very precious videos of this beautiful 5 year old girl. Please pray for this family.

New View

mommy — Fri, 23 May 2008 12:41:52 +0000

Norah has a new view of the world these days because she has learned to sit up on her own! She still tips over sometimes but is getting a lot more stable. She still is not a big fan of tummy time even though she knows how to roll off her tummy on to her back. She tends to not practice that skill much. She prefers to be on her back or her side, even when sleeping. By contrast, Emily had already started sleeping on her tummy (much to Mommy and Daddy’s dismay) by this age. Norah, we are constantly reminded that you are not your sister. You have your own personality, your own preferences, and your own timelines for doing things. In other words, you are keeping us on our toes!