16 hours ago
Showing posts with label Daily Snapshot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Daily Snapshot. Show all posts
It is snowing outside right now.
It seems a bit early for the first snow, but that's only because the weather has been so nice lately. We've had a bright, warm fall up until now. In truth, we were probably overdue for some cold weather.
Today we are working on some unusual schoolwork. My big kids have a chance to participate in a program put on by a local bank, where they will learn about global economics and work together to "run" faux trading between 16 countries for the day. They'll be doing that in November, and we have a whole semester's worth of curriculum to go over in the next couple weeks. Normal school is on hold so we can finish as much as we can before our training days next week.
I never thought I'd be explaining the definition of a tariff and how a trade war works to my elementary school students, but I'm actually amazed at how much they are retaining! I also credit a lot of their understanding of some of these complex eceonomis concepts to the Tuttle Twin books. One of the videos we watched mentioned protectionism, and Wyatt said, "Oh yeah, it's just like in The Tuttle Twins And The Food Truck Fiasco." I'm amazed at how much my kids enjoy those books, and clearly the concepts are sinking in.
We made it through four global economics lessons today, and right now Gwen and Wyatt are playing a trading relationships and transportation game, involving a worksheet, a globe, and a pair of dice.
It started snowing around lunch time, and we have about an inch outside right now. My little kids emerged from their rooms (where I had relegated them for the morning so the big kids could focus), and they immediately dug the snow clothes out of the closet, and they've been traipsing in and out of the house every few minutes for the last half hour. I'm definitely going to have to mop the floor now because of all the melted snow, but they were so excited, I couldn't say no.
In about an hour I'm going to have to start getting the big kids ready for soccer practice, and we'll probably have to find some extra layers since it's a cool day. Christmas music may be played in the car on the way down. I may even treat myself to a coffee since I'm going to have to stay warm on the sidelines during practice.
Between soccer practice and trying to catch up on our global trade lessons, I didn't have a lot of time to be creative today, so this is what you get - a little snapshot of our Tuesday.
(Written last Thursday.)
As I am typing this, my kids are sitting on the couch across the room, watching Rio. I don't typically let them watch a full-length movie in the middle of the week, but this was been a particularly long week, and a particularly long day near the end of a particularly long week. I decided I'm allowed.
Though the day was busy and a bit exhausting, it was good too. We went to our mom group this morning, and as I picked up the kids from their classes they handed me their crafts. "This is for you, Mom", they always say, and I grin and say I love it, even if it's just a paper with stickers on it. It's sweet that they want to give me presents (even if I sometimes suspect it's just to get me to hold said crafts and papers for them).
We had a few errands to run, and I felt like we were a bit of a mess, as I usually do. When I take all the kids into a store - especially a store with no carts - I feel like it's a constant stream of "Come here {insert child's name}", "Don't touch that {insert child's name}", and "Don't lay on the floor {insert child's name}". People ask me how I do it with four (soon five) kids, and the truth is that when we are out in public I try my best to keep my kids close by me and not breaking anything, and I feel like we are a mini circus. A happy, adorably cute circus, but a circus nonetheless.
Sometimes I even feel a little sheepish, like we are a bad advertisement for a big family. But today the cashiers smiled at me and told me how adorable my kids were, even when I was too busy wrangling them to properly respond. I kick myself for that now. I've gotten used to not-quite-positive-not-quite-negative comments from strangers, to which I usually give a closed-lipped, nondescript smile, but the comments today were sweet and encouraging and deserved a big grin.
I was getting the kids packed back into the car when a lady came up to me.
"I just wanted to say, you are amazing. I have trouble with two kids, and you have four!" she said with a smile. I laughed and said "Well, thank you! I feel like we're always a bit of a mess." And she said, "No, you are doing an amazing job. Your kids were so well behaved."
I thanked her again, and I guess I am thanking her a third time here. I doubt she even realizes that her words will be remembered, but they were what I needed today. Sometimes an encouragement from a stranger can make you see yourself in a better light, and sometimes in the middle of the minutia of motherhood you need that. I looked at my kids and realized they really were quite well-behaved, despite my constant stream of directions that felt so chaotic to me. They listened well, overall. They walked in a row, like little ducklings, to the door. They climbed in the car and got so excited over the clementines I gave them for a snack, patiently waiting while I peeled them.
They really are very cute, and very good kids.
During a week when I am feeling overwhelmed and when I feel like I'm failing at this whole motherhood thing, I needed that reminder to step outside myself for a minute and appreciate my kids for the little people they are, the people they are becoming, and to comprehend the role I am playing in that. To look at the day, and my whole mothering journey, with fresh eyes.
I am thankful that God let that lady cross my path today, and I hope immortalizing that brief little encounter here will help me remember to refresh my eyes on rough days in the future.
I also want to remember it here, because maybe it will remind me to offer encouragement to a stranger myself sometime. If I notice someone doing something well, or even just trying their best, why not offer a word of encouragement? The gift of fresh eyes can so often be given this way, and it is worth a lot.
Has a stranger ever encouraged you when you needed it?
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