Adriu's 8th Birthday Party

Adriu was so excited for his 8th birthday! He confessed that the excitement did not allow him to concentrate in school. He forgot to hand in his homework two days in a row. He invited Miss Haws' 2nd grade class, plus the kids in primary class at church and of course all of his cousins. Boys and girls alike...He wanted to make sure no one got left behind. We had been talking about what he wanted to do for his birthday to make it special, but he could not settle on anything. Several weeks before his birthday, Leone and I took the Adriu and Aaliyah to a movie called, "THE TOOTH FAIRY" with Dwayne Johnson (THE ROCK). I was surprised by how much he laughed throughout the entire movie.

As we left the movie theater, he said, "that's what I want to do for my birthday. I want all my friends to watch the movie with me." So we borrowed a movie projector and watched a movie for his birthday. More than half of the kids ate their entire body weight in popcorn, cake, and ice cream. At the end, we had a lot to clean, but it was all worth every tired bone in my body. Thanks to all that helped in the cleaning and keeping the kids out of chaos.




He loved all of the gifts, but most of all he loved the time spent with friends, neighbors, and family. A few people were not able to make it to the party, but in the end he said it was the best party EVER! SO cute!

June 5th 2010 Adriu's Baptism

Invitation created with Smilebox

GREAT TO BE "8"

Great to be Eight!
This is the program given at church to tell parents a little about activities open to children once they turn eight. At the program we also learned about the baptism program. We have been talking to Adriu about getting baptized once he turns eight. He seems excited about it and we hope that he feels ready for this step.

Adriu is vibrant and very smart. Yet he is sensitive and super observant. It is often hard to deal with someone like him. He is a child yet he acts like an adult at times. Don’t get me wrong there are times when his temper tantrums get exceedingly out of control. It’s at those times when my (our) patience is seriously tested. But there are times like Sunday at the program when he wins my heart over and over again.

He was so proud and happy to sing a song that his class had practiced. As he stood there, I could tell that he was happy to be there and that he was in control of his emotions. The song started and he began to sing along side his classmates. When the song was done (one verse), he said out loud, “Oh, I wanted to sing the second verse”.
Song

I’m Trying to Be like Jesus

1. I’m trying to be like Jesus;
I’m following in his ways.
I’m trying to love as he did, in all that I do and say.
At times I am tempted to make a wrong choice,
But I try to listen as the still small voice whispers,
2. I’m trying to love my neighbor;
I’m learning to serve my friends.
I watch for the day of gladness when Jesus will come again.
I try to remember the lessons he taught.
Then the Holy Spirit enters into my thoughts, saying:
Chorus
“Love one another as Jesus loves you.
Try to show kindness in all that you do.
Be gentle and loving in deed and in thought,
For these are the things Jesus taught.”

A few days later, I was having a conversation with him about wanting the best for him and letting him know how much we love him. We want him to be successful at school, with friends, and in anything he wants to do. He is such a special little boy. He is my special little boy. He quietly said, “You are so sweet mom”. He was so emotionally moved by my words. I know he will be successful at whatever he decides to do in life.

I think as a mom, I can say that it’s a sure thing that all moms have at one time or another thought about the future of their children. Our kid’s future is something that is out of our hands as parents once kids reach a certain point. We teach, guide, care, love and many other things for our children, but there comes a time when our children’s future becomes their responsibility.
I know as for me, I will always think, “did I do enough”.

Do you beleive in the tooth fairy?

Losing your two front teeth is one of life's inevitable conditions. It happens to all of us once permanent teeth decide to come in. Aaliyah is losing both front teeth almost at the same time. She lost the first front tooth thanks to a fruit leather this past weekend. The other tooth just hangs by a thread for dear life to her gum. Even though she truly believes in the tooth fairy her fear of bleeding to death is in the fore front.

This morning she expected to receive a gift in place of her lost tooth. She was in complete disappointment when she found a dollar bill underneath her pillow. I guess the tooth fairy doesn't grant specific wishes. Specially when mom and dad are the worst tooth fairies in the world. We knew that she was very excited about the tooth fairy yet we still managed to fall asleep before replacing her lost tooth with her wish. My resolve was that at least she got something.

When is the right time to tell her that the tooth fairy is mom and dad?

I never knew the tooth fairy as a child so this experience is new for me. I do hope to be a better tooth fairy in the future. I was glad that my little princess had not woken up when daddy remembered about the forgotten tooth exchange. It was a race to exchange it before she woke up. If she only knew...

Where does kindness come from?

Wikipedia says-Kindness is the act or the state of being kind and marked by charitable behaviour, marked by mild disposition, pleasantness, tenderness and concern for others. It is a recognized value in many cultures and religions (see ethics in religion).

In philosophy

• According to book two of Aristotle's "Rhetoric" it is one of the emotions (see Plutchik's wheel), which is defined as being "helpfulness towards some one in need, not in return for anything, nor for the advantage of the helper himself, but for that of the person helped".
• Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche argued that kindness and love are the "most curative herbs and agents in human intercourse".
  
• Kindness is considered to be one of the Knightly Virtues.

In religion

• It is considered to be one of the seven virtues, specifically the one of the Seven Contrary Virtues (direct opposites of the seven deadly sins) that is the direct opposite to envy.
• The Talmud claims that "deeds of kindness are equal in weight to all the commandments."
• Paul of Tarsus defines love as being "patient and kind..." (I Corinthians).
• In Buddhism, one of the Ten Perfections (Paramitas) is Mettā, which is usually translated into English as "loving-kindness". Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama wrote "my religion is kindness" and authored a book entitled "Kindness, Clarity, and Insight".
• Confucius urges his followers to "recompense kindness with kindness."

In psychology

In a study of 37 cultures around the world, sixteen thousand subjects were asked about their most desired traits in a mate. For both sexes, the first preference was kindness (the second was intelligence).

I have often wondered if I am truly a kind person. I deeply care about others, and would literally do anything in certain situations. It's hard to watch others suffer and not be able to do much but watch. Haiti, now Chile, Japan and all others suffering from natural disasters get immediate attention and concern from us, but what about people currently suffering from "life". What about the people from Iraq, Africa, and all other smaller yet significant people throughout the world who haven't suffered a natural disaster? What about them? What about the countless orphaned, trafficked, and or abused children, battered, abused, slaved women, the forgotten aged men and women. What about them? It breaks my heart that we are so quick to move when natural disasters strike and so we should, but we live within confined natural disasters within our daily lives.

kindsness-charitable behaviour, marked by mild disposition, pleasantness, tenderness and concern for others.

So what is kindness? Am I kind because I think of other people and constantly feel hurt by their pain? I am conflicted because the definition states that kindness is also a mild disposition and that I do have... but in my book, "mild disposition" means that I do nothing to show my kindness. What I mean is are my prayers and thoughts "ENOUGH" to call myself kind? If you are like me, you are probably asking yourself the same question.

A friend posted on her blog,"Anytime there is natural disaster, or any disaster, it really makes me think and ponder and step out of day to day life as we live it. But, it is always far, far away and we just pray and contribute what we can."

As I read her words, it filled me with sadness the same as whenever I see pictures from Haiti, or Chile or when I think of the huge disaster in Sri Lanka a while back. We are truly blessed to have and live the lives we live. The trials and tribulations we have are not less just different and yet I can say that we are blessed. Sometimes I feel that I should be doing more...I just don't know what more I should be doing. So am I really kind?

Is there anything a mom won't do when your kid is sick? I think not...This past weekend Adriu had a fever and was not feeling his best. Yet he was super excited to go play with his cousin Michael. Although, he said that he did not want to miss his aunt Lizzy's birthday celebration. I don't think that I saw him a minute by anyone that wasn't Michael. He really looks up to him and likes spending time with him. So I hope he did not get Michael sick...Is it my fault for not taking him to play with the cousins more often? It might be my fault...Not sure...I'll let you know when I figure it out. This morning Aaliyah said that she wasn't feeling her best either and she had the saddest eyes as we dropped off at school. It broke my heart to see a tear roll down her chick. But then again, is there anything I wouldn't do for my two loves? No...

However, she did end up going to school. But those eyes could convince me of almost anything that at times is hard to let go. Letting go is something all mothers must learn to do.

One of life's important lessons...

Santa Clause arrived early at our house this year. Wait or was it Santa's helpers? Adriu and Aaliyah really enjoyed Christmas this year. They loved visiting with Santa. They did however, have a hard time believing that Santa would have time to visit with them. Specially when there are so many kids to visit across the world. However, they were convinced that their Santa letters would be delivered on time. Secretly hoping for all and every item on their wish list to be under the tree on Christmas morning.

This year we shared, contributed, assisted, and gave to others the best we could so that Santa would visit our home. We are so proud of Santa's little helpers because they really tried many times over to GIVE and GIVE this past year. They know that it's important to give before you can receive.

They also learned that it's really hard to keep Santa hats and beards on when they are made out of bubbles. ;)