Yo Yo Yo, We Need Some Snow!

Last night, there was a hint / mention / small possibility of 13-15 snowflakes to fall in Birmingham. Since meteorologists are always completely accurate in their snow forecasts down here (ahem), the girls decided to work their snow magic and help bring the snow a little further south. A couple of years ago, the folks at the weather channel were also predicting snow, and my little southern girls wanted to guarantee it - so we searched online as well as talked to our friends to the north and asked for superstitions that helped bring snow.  I think we got 8 or 9 flakes during that time. But my kids are resilient and don't give up on their dreams of wearing 20 layers of clothing to play in wet, cold, slushy, mud. So again, pajamas were worn inside out, ice cubes were flushed (seriously, DOZENS of them - Camille fully embraces the "go big or go home" mentality), and spoons were placed strategically under their pillows. Actually Camille had a fork under hers. Apparently the "go big or go home" mentality is a little lax on rule specifics. They also made up a song to further their chances of snow. Spencer filmed it. Because he puts them to bed every night (praise the Lord - mama's work is done BEFORE bedtime) and because he rocks and wanted to share the awesome with me.


So, without further ado, I present to you "Yo Yo Yo, We Need Some Snow" - written by Mary Emma. Sung (and rapped - yes rapped) by Mary Emma, Tait, and Camille. Please excuse the cell phone quality - Spencer didn't want to miss the moment. :) Also pay close attention to Mary Emma's sah-weet beat boxing skillz, Camille's rhythm section (pat clap pat clap), and Tait's (my shy one) complete embrace of the gangsta attitude. You would never believe they are blonde headed little girls sitting on a Pottery Barn Kids bedspread if you didn't see it with your own two eyes. I KNOW.

Untitled from Robyn Davidson on Vimeo.

And just so you know, we didn't get any snow. However, after seeing this video, my happiness is complete - snow or not. :)

Raising Girls

Here are my notes from the Raising Girls breakout session at DotMom - lead by Melissa Trevathan and Sissy Goff. I will blog more about the conference later, but wanted to get these notes out asap. What a LIFE-CHANGING session.


I highly encourage you to also buy the book, All You Need To Know About Raising Girls by Melissa Trevathan and Sissy Goff. The notes from the session are basically a cliff notes of the book. The book is much more in-depth and specific than the notes are. But I was writing as frantically as possible in the hour long session. I could have sat there for 10 hours. GOOD STUFF.


Enjoy!

Raising Girls

The Discovery Years - Girls 0-5 Years

• She is…
• Relational
• Caretaking
• Baby dolls, mothering instinct
• Imaginative
• She needs from me…
• Boundaries
• These makes her feel safe
• Freedom
• Show her that you trust her by giving her some distance from you – like in a Chick-fil-A playground – but always stay near as she will constantly look for you and needs to be able to see you at a moment’s notice
• Delight
• She wants you to think she’s FANTASTIC
• When she walks in the room, she is WORTHY of my attention.

The Adventurous Years – Girls 6-10 years

• She is…
• Fearful
• Literal, concrete in their thinking
• Teach her that God is BIGGER than her fears
• Do not be grey – speak in black/white language only. (i.e. don’t shine a light under the bed to scare away the monsters. Teach her that there is no such thing as monsters. And then teach her that God will always take care of her)
• Relational
• Friendships are IMPORTANT
• Responsive
• Point this out to her when you catch her caring for a friend, being sweet to a sibling, etc. She needs to know that you notice.
• She needs from me…
• Opportunity
• They need something they can feel confident in (soccer, softball, art, piano, choir, chess…)
• Unity
• Especially between mom & dad
• Grace
• Teach her how to succeed AND fail.

The Narcissistic Years – Girls 11-15, 16, or 17 Years

• She is…
• Relational
• She needs friends.
• They are a POWERFUL force in her life. Help her choose them wisely and steer her away from bad influences. We still control where they go and who they hang out with outside of school.
• Insecure
• When guys fail, they blame others. When girls fail, they blame themselves.
• Ambivalent
• Her lack of decision-making skills is NORMAL.
• She will switch from loving you & hating you in a matter of seconds.
• As grown up girls, we will blame ourselves for this behavior. This is NOT our fault. Her brain is malfunctioning, and is a normal part of growing up. Love her through it – she will realize that she can count on you even when she isn’t nice to you.
• She needs from me…
• Space
• PRIVACY
• She’s working very hard to make and keep friends.           
• She needs time to decompress
• Allow her an hour or so in her room alone after school.
• Then require her to come out and be social with the family.
• It is not good for her to never have privacy. It is also not good for her to not be required to emerge and be social.
• Strength
• She needs me to be stronger & more powerful than she is.
• If she feels stronger than me, she will feel unsafe.
• She needs me to be her mother. NOT her friend.
• We want her to be excited about the day when we can be friends (not till after age 23ish)
• The Back Door – Sissy wrote a book about this. The Back Door To Your Teen’s Heart: Learning What They Need And Helping Them Find It  - Can find it on Amazon.com
• I need to be unpredictable in the way I communicate with her. If she thinks I’m looking for info from her, she will shut down. (i.e. have a friend pick up siblings from school one day. Take her, alone, to “run a few fun errands.” Stop by Starbucks (which she will think is cool) & just chitchat. She will tell you so much during this time because she won’t feel like she is required to.)

The Autonomous Years – Girls 16-24 Years

§       She is…

o      Relational

§       She will gravitate to 1 friend – often a guy. She wants to belong to somebody.

§       This is where some girls experiment with homosexuality. When they gravitate to a GIRL, who shows a special interest in them – some of them mistake this for love.

§       SHE NEEDS STRONG VOICES SPEAKING TRUTH INTO HER LIFE. This needs to be another adult. Not you. Youth groups / small groups are KEY here. She will listen to what she hears. We need to make sure the right people are talking. It’s key that when they are children we steer them toward friends who have parents who raise their children like we do.

o      Post-pubescent

§       Her body will be curvier

§       EMBRACE THAT. No girl has ever heard her mom say, “You need to lose weight” and has thought, “she’s right. I’ll get right on that.” This is where a lot of eating disorders start – when their mother tells them constantly that their body is wrong or should be changed.

o      Her own person

§       She needs from me…

o      Respect

o      Room to learn

§       Give her a few more privileges. We want them to make mistakes while they are under our roof where we can protect them, instead of sheltering them and then sending them off to college where we can’t protect them when (not if) they make mistakes.

o      Wings

§       Be CONFIDENT in her.

All About Me. In ABC Form.

A. Age: 36
B. Bed size: A king. Spencer and I had a queen forever, but switched to a king when we moved to Bham. We have topped it with super soft mattress pads and awesome sheets - we often lay in bed at night and say "I love my bed." It's the best bed in the world.
C. Chore that you hate: Cleaning the kitchen. Hate isn't even a strong enough word for it. HAAAAAATE.
D. Dogs: Piper. Adore.

E. Essential start to your day: Don't really have one. I hit the ground running every morning. I would love to have my quiet time before the kids get up, but that never happens. So I have it after everyone's at school.
F. Favorite color: Pretty much anything in the blue family. If you sit outside on a cloudless day and look straight up into the sky, that's my favorite shade of blue.
G. Gold or Silver: Definitely silver. But gold is making a comeback in my heart. Slowly.
H. Height: 5'3". Shorty McShorterson.
I. Instruments you play: Well, I took about 200 years of piano lessons, so I play piano. But Mary Emma is taking guitar, so I'm learning that with her. So far, I can play B,C,D,E,F,G and the G chord. Go ahead. Be impressed. ;)
J. Job title: Mommy, wife, taxi driver, team mom, cheerleader, nurse, homework helper, cook, housekeeper, & dog sitter. My favorites are mommy and wife.
K. Kids: 3. My heart.
L. Live: Birmingham - I have always wanted to live here and I love it now that I do.
M. Mother’s name: Gini. Short for Virginia. Named my middle daughter after her. Love her!
N. Nicknames: Don't really have any. Have been called Rob or Robby in the past. Had a friend call me Bird for all of high school. Lisa calls me Hosay. My maiden name is Hose. Yes, I've heard every possible joke about that one.
O. Overnight hospital stays: 3 kids, 1 gallbladder, and 1 food poisoning. Boo on the last 2.
P. Pet peeves: Shallow people, rude people, and food smacking.
Q. Quote from a movie: I don't know that I have a favorite quote. I definitely have favorite movies. But not really a quote. Lame. Sorry.
R. Right or left handed: Right hand all the way! Not sure why God even gave me a left hand. It's basically useless.
S. Siblings: One brother, Adam. I adore him. I also really really REALLY love his wife, Lindsay. I'm also a HUGE fan of Spencer's brother and sis-in-law, Stuart & Angela. Good people.
U. Ultimate Vacation: Australia. Or one of those houses with a glass floor that sit out in the ocean in Bora Bora.
V. Vegetable you hate: Cauliflower. It's broccoli's mean cousin.
W. What makes you run late: See letter K.
X. X-Rays you’ve had: Nothing exciting. Broke my foot once. BORING.
Y. Yummy food that you make: I can make a mean lasagna. And the white BBQ sauce that I make has been known to make grown men cry.
Z. Zoo animal: Giraffe. Or lion. Fascinating. Why? No idea. But just roll with it.

Thanks, Lindsee, for this idea! It was mindless and fun!

Let The Deliciousness Commence.

We are currently 3 days from the start most wonderful time of the year for most people in the South. College football season technically begins tomorrow night with a couple of Thursday games, but REALLY begins Saturday. And as you already know, last year was a pretty successful year for my Tigers, so I'm really looking forward to this year.

My real life friend, Boomama, is hosting a DipTacular bloggy event where bloggers post their favorite dips on their blogs and then link over to her blog. Football Saturdays are about football watching, but are also about fellowship, neighborly get-togethers, and tailgaiting. And none of these can happen without food. The better the food, the better chance your team has to win. I fully believe that. So there's a LOT at stake here. Bad food = bad game = you will most likely be excommunicated from the next game day party. And that would be A SHAME, friends.

So I'm participating. All to keep the Tigers winning. And because it's fun. :)

My first dip was one of those "required foods" at every youth group event when I was in high school. The parents always served it with fruit, but let's be honest -we just wanted a spoon. It's that good. I've made it for many wedding/baby showers as well. It's pretty, and it's best served with strawberries (or, again, just sit down with a bowl & a spoon). And you won't believe how easy it is.

Ingredients:
1 large bowl Cool Whip
3 Butterfinger candy bars

THAT'S IT. To make it, put the unwrapped Butterfingers in a ziploc bag and smash them with a hammer or a rolling pin. They crumble easily, but not if you hold them - they melt. Once crumbled, mix them in the cool whip and place it in the refrigerator overnight. The Cool Whip makes the Butterfingers almost dissolve - leaving the flavor and only a few larger pieces. It's DELICIOUS on fruit - we always ate it on strawberries. Your guests won't know what they're eating, but they will LOVE it.

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My 2nd dip is one that I can't possibly improve upon. So I'll just link it. The Pioneer Woman's Queso - here's the link. It's DELICIOUS and lasts for a while in the crockpot. It also freezes beautifully (name that movie). It's a required food on game days at my house.

Be sure to link over to Boomama's DipTacular '11 and let the good times roll. And, of course, I hope you have a successful football season - unless you're Alabama or are playing Auburn. Then I just hope no one on your team is injured during the game.

Happy dipping and War Eagle.

Catching Up.

Sweet mercy it has been forever since I've posted anything. I always say that our summers are going to be quieter and less busy, and they are always jam packed and full of obligations. But even though we run non stop, we love it. So here are a few pics to catch you up.

Mary Emma & Tait both played All-Star softball this year. This was ME's 5th year and Tait's 1st year. We had a BALL!

Daddy turned 37! I would call him an old man, but I'll be 37 in October. :) So I'll refrain from doing that...ahem.

This sweet one turned SIX in July. She also lost 3 teeth, including 2 at the same time. She's growing up FAST!

Camille finally conquered her fear of the ocean and is now a queen of the Boogie Board. She's also pretty cute.

These 3 continue to make me laugh, warm my heart, and thank God for his blessings in my life. School starts in less than a month and our days will be back on a routine and our bedtimes will be early. But for now, we're enjoying being together and making memories as a family.

Radical Together

This officially releases today.



If if changes my life like its predecessor, then I'm. In. Trouble.

But an awesome kind of trouble. Looking forward to that trouble. To God be the glory!

Perspective.

My family sponsors a child through Compassion International. His name is Nevine, he lives in Kenya, and he just turned 17 years old on Valentine's Day. We have been sponsoring him for about 5 years and have enjoyed writing him, and learning about him from Compassion and from the letters we receive from him. We love LOVE getting letters from him. It thrills my girls and absolutely makes our day when we see a Compassion envelope in the mail. Letters that are sent to the kids and letters that they send their sponsor family are screened, and translated if necessary. Nevine can write and speak English (thanks to the schooling he receives through Compassion), and the only translation that takes place is an occasional slang word or geographically specific term that I might not understand. But for the most part, his letters are all him. And I love them.

Because of the screening/translating/distance, it takes a couple of months for letters to get from him to me and visa versa. This week I received a letter from him thanking us for the Christmas money that we sent through Compassion to him. He is allowed to use the money, with direction from his family and the Compassion staff, to purchase Christmas presents for himself. This is a picture of what he wrote.



If that doesn't put life into perspective, I don't know what will.

I'm so thankful that there are organizations like Compassion that allow me to be a part of his life. I'm so proud of him and his willingness to take care of his family. What an amazing young man he's turning into.

If you would like to sponsor a child from Compassion, click the link above. It costs $38 a month and you will be a part of releasing a child from poverty in Jesus' name. There's no bigger blessing on this planet.

Good Good Good.

I read a lot of blogs every day. So many people can write so much better than I can. So many people are so funny that my sides hurt from laughing when I read their posts. So many people are informative. And I love reading and knowing these people - some in real life.

But few are life changing. Few posts make your heart ache or your spirit stir. Few posts make me think until my brain hurts. And few posts bring me a step closer to my Heavenly Father.

This post does all that. And it was written by a sweet friend of mine, Melanie. If you don't read her blog (she's hysterical), bookmark it and read it everysingleday. While, on a daily basis, her blog is one of my favorite things to read, her heart, as evidenced in this post, is sweeter than anything on this planet. I adore her. And you will too.

Thanks, Mel.

Hey, Guess What?

WAR EAGLE!!!!

Scripture Memory

A couple of years ago, Beth Moore challenged all of those who read her blog to memorize scripture twice a month. Because we live in a world where we Christians are not only a minority, but are persecuted because of our faith daily, we are called to know His word - so that we are equipped when we are tested, tempted, or need to defend our faith (Psalm 119:11). And I know that I need to do a MUCH better job of this.

This year (2011) we are doing the scripture memorization again. And I'm really excited about it! My first scripture - which is also my theme for the year - is Galatians 5:1 - "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." I know that I tend to find a fault that I have, tell myself that I'm the only person on the planet with that fault, and then build a house and join the neighborhood association in the middle of that fault. But the Lord has called me to something different, and I will spend every single day this year reminding myself of the truth promised in Galatians 5:1. Because when I live in the yoke of slavery, the focus is on me - not on the Father. And the purpose of my life is to glorify Him.

So. On the 1st and 15th of every month, I will memorize a new scripture. If you'd like to join me, and the rest of Beth Moore's blog peeps, head over here and leave a comment with your chosen verse. I also ask (beg, plead) you to hold me accountable. When you see me in Publix, carpool, or gym, ask me what my scripture is. Let me know if you want me to do the same to you! Let's see how many people will join and stay the course for the whole year. We will be a POWERFUL force for our God when we are filled to the brim with the Word.

And I can't wait to see what will come of THAT.