Get Off My Back....

My kids educate me all the time on conservation. Jia was just explaining to me at the cabin this week that we have to take care of the Earth because when we die, there will be a whole new "school" coming up. They tell me not to let the water run too long when I'm brushing my teeth. They tell me which items are to be recycled and which can't be. Another thing that I hear about is gasoline conservation, a GREAT topic for a family of six driving a Yukon XL!

I see all of the cute little mini-SUVs driving around town, and I'd love to own one. The Toyota Prius is adorable and fun to drive. I also think that the Toyota Venza and the Nissan Murano are great-looking cars, and I have driven a Honda CRV that I really enjoyed driving. Rowland and I even spent an entire day trying to figure out how our family could down-size. The problem is that we can't! Carson is in high school now, taller than I am; William is right behind him, gaining on me; and then there are three more of us, not including our huge Lab Sage.

Just this past week, I took the three younger kids to the cabin for a week while they're off track. By the time that we had the car loaded, there was barely room for Sage to lie down in the back. Reality is that we needed every single inch of that monster SUV. We didn't even have room for Rowland and Carson! (Of course, after shopping during the week, we barely made it home! That's a whole different issue!)

I appreciate the Cash for Clunkers idea. I would love to be able to help out by driving a less fuel hungry car. I hear the comments about my tank. Bottom line, though...all of that to say....I'll do my best to conserve. In fact, I even have re-usable bags for groceries. I'll be as green as I can be, but I'm driving my big SUV as long as my family needs it. The rest of the world, including my kids, can just GET OFF MY BACK!!

Everybody in the Car!

I was having a mommy memory a couple of days ago and have been thinking about it each time that we load up the fam lately. When the children were smaller, and there were only three of them, I remember one of my greatest frustrations. I could NEVER get the children in the car with one simple command, "Everybody, get in the car!" Instead, I would have to say it over and over and over again as I would run around the house doing last minute things. In fact, my goal was to get them in the car so that I could pick up the house quickly on my way out the door. (This worked GREAT when we were selling houses!)

I remember talking to Lisa S who was the Teaching Pastor's wife at our church in Little Rock. She had four children, and her youngest was in second or third grade. My oldest was in first or second grade with the younger two being around two and three, I think. She made a great observation in that conversation. "Don't tell them to get into the car over and over again. Wait and tell them when you REALLY mean it." Good point, Lisa!! Her advice didn't solve my problem, though, because I, of course, didn't change!

My problem has been changed, though, because my children DID change! We spent a few days in Breck while the kids were off track, and I noticed that every child can pack for him/herself, prepare a bag of toys or electronics, put their stuff in the car, AND get in the car with one simple request on my part! While I definitely enjoyed their babyhood (probably not a word), I DEFINITELY enjoy EVEN MORE that when I say, "Everybody in the car," the car fills with people, and those people even have my keys waiting for me when I finally get into the car!!! Now, that's what I call progress!!!!!!

Everybody in the Car!!!

Just Doesn't Get It

Jia's in first grade this year and having a great year. She is also the child who shares EVERYTHING - TWICE! (Must've gotten it from Rowland?) She came home from school a couple of days ago and asked me if I'd like to hear what happened at school that day. Not wanting to disappoint her, I said, "Sure."

The conversation went something like this:

"I had to change desks today because I was looking on my neighbor's paper."

"Honey, why were you looking on your neighbor's paper?"

"Because I didn't know the answer."

Duh! "Did you feel badly when the teacher moved you?"

"No. I got to move back when the test was over."

"Honey, you understand that you can't look on your neighbor's paper anymore, right?"

"But, Mom, what if I don't know the answer?"

Hmmm......

She also shared with me that she had never "gotten" to sit in the "private office" chair. Thinking that this was a great privilege, I asked her what she needed to do to be able to sit in this special location. Jia: "Talk to my neighbors instead of doing my work."

Just not sure she gets it.....