Grace, Strength, and a Sense of Humor

It is amazing how much grace and strength God gives us as parents!  This past week was quite a whirlwind.  James was sick with non - stop diarrhea and a fever.  Sorry if this is too much info, but i want you to know the extent of this week.  In 3 days, he had gone to the bathroom 24 times!  All throughout the night and throughout the day.  Sometimes he would not make it to the bathroom in time.  We finally had to put pullups on him just so his bed would not be a mess.  As exhausted as we were from late nights, cleaning, cuddling, and wiping...James was even more exhausted.  We had taken him to the dr. to see what was going on.  They told me i would have to get 3 stool samples and bring them back in the next day.  I just laughed!  I remember when we took our dog to the vet and they asked us to bring some "samples" back of our dog's...we said, "no we are good." haha!  So i had to do one of the most disgusting things i have ever had to do.
They wanted to check him for E coli and salmonella.  Because, no one else within the household was getting sick - usually at least 1 other will catch it.  We are still waiting for the results, but James is doing completely better - no fever no...the other thing.  :)  I am still curious what it was that he had. 
Throughout this entire week of craziness, you just have to have a sense of humor.  That is something i always pray for "God give me grace, strength and a sense of humor for today." 
We were pretty much cooped up in the house...i almost forgot there was a world outside of our house. 
I planned a few things to help us get through the week...whether your child is sick, its a rainy day, or you are just stuck at home - you can try these simple things.

#1 - teaching them about Thankfulness

- "Thank you Lord for Color"
*have them paint or color on paper...use lots of colors!
*teach them that God made color

-"Thank you Lord for my body"
*Give them a mirror and have them list the parts of the body that they see
*Tell them that God made everything about them...and that they are awesome!

-"Thank you Lord for the Bible"
*Read a story from the Bible (James wanted to do the Walls of Jericho - he likes acting it out with blocks - fall down!)
*Teach them that reading the Bible teaches us more about God

- "Thank you Lord for Family"
*God around the house or whip out photo albums of pictures of your family.
*Tell them that God gave them a family that loves them!

-"Thank you Lord for Creation"
*Go outside - look at the clouds, trees, flowers
*Go out at night and sit and look at the stars
*Teach them that God made all of this for us!

-"Thank you Lord for taking care of us"
*Go into the kitchen and have them see all of the food - tell them that God takes care of us by providing us with food, clothes, a house, etc.

Get creative!  Use this as an opportunity to teach them about how much God loves them and how important it is to be thankful.  The plan was for me to teach him...but i found myself realizing how much i have to be thankful for!

#2 - TREASURE HUNT!
You can go extreme or keep it simple.  This is just something fun to do as a family.  While Ryan was playing with the boys i set up the treasure hunt.  We planned it for after dinner - their snack time before bedtime.  Their "treasure" was their snack for the night - James~ fruit snacks and a cereal bar for another time. Adam ~ a squeezy and goldfish. You can feel free to go and actually get them  something, but i kept it simple and just used what we had. The bags are extra little Christmas bags from last year. haha!
It was fun seeing James trying to figure out the clues.  Adam enjoyed it too - he loved holding the papers.  Ryan went around with them (read the clues).  I said i kept it simple by using the snacks that we already had...but when James found the treasure at the end...you would think he found a $100 bill or a huge Steam Engine (he's obsessed with trains)!  We don't always have to give them extravagant things...just taking time out for them and jumping in and having fun is what really matters!

#3 - Reading by candlelight
I have not done this one yet.  But i am thinking of either making a sheet tent and bring in flashlights to read them bedtime books.  Or setting up a bunch of candles in a room (out of reach of course) and reading that way?

There are lots of things you can do with your kiddos...simple and inexpensive things. 

Another note:  My mother in law had given us a corner cabinet.  I have always wanted one!!  The cabinet needed a lot of work - there was mildew on the inside and water damage.  needed new paint, the windows needed to be scraped of the old paint,...lots of work.  We finally finished it!  It was an annoying a long road, but we did it!
BEFORE

DURING: Ryan put a new back on where there was water damage.  I painted and sanded.

 AFTER: We spray painted the hinges black (they were gold)
I spray painted the knob that was on the bottom of it...money saved!
And the handles are from a cabinet that my brother was getting rid of... they fit great! Another money save!

I am so happy with it!  My mom recently gave me my mamaw's dishes.  I had no where to place them in the kitchen - no room.  So when my mother in law gave us this, i knew it would be a perfect place for both of my grandmother's dishes.

Last note: My older brother and his family have moved up to KY from NC!!!!!!  I am so happy!  Since James is better, we are getting ready to head over to see them now - it will be so neat to see my boys grow up with their cousins. 
The Lord has truly blessed our little family!  Thank you Lord for your grace and strength that you give me daily!  Thank you Lord for healing my baby boy and not letting anyone else catch it!  Thank you Lord for this awesome corner cabinet and the time Ryan and i got to spend together working on it! And thank you Lord for finally bringing my family closer to us!
Have a thankful day everyone!!