What Do Kitties Eat?

As a parent, it's not unusual to have countless videos on file that really have nothing interesting on them.  You turned the video recorder on because your kid was in the middle of this super funny/super cute moment... and the minute you turned it on... they stopped. This happens to us all the time!

Our neighbors have this semi-natural looking pond next door and it is chalk full of frogs and water skippers.  One night before bed, the kids were staring out the window listening to loud frogs.  This video cracks Jeremy and I up for a couple different reasons...

• It's hard to hear in the beginning of the video, but Harper calls water skippers "skittles".
• Bentley is doing his adorable pointing motion... holding his finger up by his cheek to get us to look at something.
• Bentley is also mimicking Harper saying, "shhhh"
• Then, Harper goes on this wild, unexpected rant on what successive animals/sea creatures eat.  It goes something like this: frogs eat bugs, water skippers (bugs) eat fish, fish eat crabs, crabs eat dolphins, dolphins eat whales, whales eat kitties, and kitties apparently eat sponge bob!  I promise we do try to educate our children correctly and are not just trying to confuse them as to God's food chain design ;)

Funny kiddos... you keep your mommy and daddy smiling daily!  We love moments like this with you guys and will cherish them in our hearts forever!

Happy Belated Easter!

Our family enjoyed a wonderful weekend celebrating what Jesus did for us on the cross.  It was full of family, food, love and laughter.  On Saturday night, we hosted the annual Rispler German-inspired dinner which included an easter egg hunt for the kids, great conversations, and a meal I wish we could have more often.  Even though we were dead-dog tired the next morning, from the party and previous weeks of travel for Jeremy and life's usual hectic-ness, we got up to make it to our church's early service at 8:15am.  We are so thankful to have found a home church this year, a place that is authentic and makes Jesus and our faith come alive.  Church was immediately followed by Harper asking if we were going to get a scone... this is one of the negatives of our church... it's located next door to an amazing French bakery.  Trouble.

Yes, we went next door and had a small bite to eat and enjoyed the company of my sister who had come to church with us.  As soon as we arrived home, the kids crashed for their naps and Jeremy and I crashed on the couch while watching the Masters.  Silly as it may sound, because it's absolutely not the point of Easter, I love watching the Masters on Easter... something about it brings back so many family memories from Easters past.

Later in the afternoon, we drove up to beautiful Multnomah Falls to meet Jeremy's parents for lunch.  It was one of the more beautiful days (i.e., not raining) in Oregon as of recently.  We enjoyed their company, even though Jeremy and I cringed at how our kiddos handled sitting for this meal - just one of those days.  After our meal, we took a "hike" up to the first bridge of the trail to see the falls...  Bentley did quite awesome, wanting to walk most of the way!  That place is so breathtaking and our kids loved that ;)

On a serious note, apart from the normal hustle and bustle of seeing family, I am so grateful, thankful and awe-struck when I reflect on what Jesus accomplished on the cross and how he rose from the dead.  To be honest, sometimes I find it hard to wrap my mind around this sacrifice.  One thing I have experienced, is that ever since Bentley was born, this sacrifice means a little more to my heart.  I often find myself rocking him at bedtime and as I'm holding my precious little boy, I cannot escape singing praises to God in my heart for actually choosing to sacrifice his son for me and my brokenness.  Perspective.

This coming Saturday will mark seven years since my brother Jeffrey died.  It always seems to hit me just a little differently each year.  This year, with Easter just passing... I feel evermore grateful for the hope we have in Christ rising from the dead, conquering death.  I am so thankful that my brother was a believer and that Christ's actions allow me to hope... to not be overtaken by death.  Death may brush up against us for a moment, but the hope of life is eternal.  Thank you, thank you Jesus!

The Easter bunny came and left some goodies that our kids don't normally get!

I am trying so hard to watch my kids sugar-intake due to a handful of things I've been reading lately... but Easter sure doesn't make that easy.  More on that a different time.

Swift family 2012

Harper and OoOo admiring God's creation

Bentley was so excited to see the falls, he kept screaming over and over.

Harper and Bentley with their OoOo... sorry Nana, we didn't get a shot with you!

Short Video of Harper Bug

Short Video of Bentley Boo

Picture Love

I really need to update about the kiddos for our record... They have both changed SO much over the past handful of months. But a few recent pictures will have to do for now.

Crazy Oregon Weather

Four days ago, we experienced near 70 degree weather... To which our kiddos were immediately playing in water! Today we woke up to a handful of inches of snow on the ground... You just have to be prepared for it all during this time of year ;)

Things That Look Too Perfect... Often Are

Valentines day passed a few weeks ago... and in all the excitement of preparing, I posted a picture of the valentines we - excuse me - I made for a couple of Harper and Bentley's friends.  In clear gift bags we put little sand shovels and gold fish crackers (our non-candy attempt this year), tied it with leopard print ribbon and a tag that read "I dig you!".

I posted the picture on Instagram and Facebook and received all kinds of positive feedback from mostly mommy-friends.  Immediately, I was struck by truth from the Holy Spirit: "this looks perfect... and you know, Audi, it was not perfect.  Other women need to be reminded of this."

I set out that day to create fun art projects and activities that Harper and I could do together, bond together over.  My intentions were pure, but I pictured this perfect craft day in my head and became determined for it to happen.  We made hand painted cards for dada and the grandparents; we made our kid valentines and thought about baking something yummy... but by the time it came to that, we had already had a major melt down... and by that, I mean ME.

You may now think this is the norm for me (if you remember a post about a major meltdown just a few weeks ago), but we've been in a rough little stretch with Harper - whining, pushing the limits, disobeying and asserting her three-year-old will... all amidst me being bone-tired.  I learned a lot on this particular Valentines Day, after I wound up on the kitchen floor (once again) welling up with tears because I felt like my three-year-old was pushing me to the brink of insanity.  Thankfully, Jeremy came up from his office at that exact moment - me in tears on the floor - and he asserted a much needed break between Harper and I.

As I laid in bed later that night, mulling over my little girls' behavior and my response, I was struck by a few things:

• I had set out that day to be perfect, not real, but perfect.  I had fallen for the trap of comparing myself to other mommy-friends who always do the craft-holiday thing well, and their kids seem to be completely compliant with the process.
• I had gotten caught in the "I am the parent, you need to obey me" trap... I realized that I had completely allowed myself to get too busy, too overwhelmed to stop and respond appropriately to the specific needs of my child.  Very often, I forget that my day needs to allow for fluidity - meaning, sometimes the check list needs to wait... because my children's emotional and physical needs can be unpredictable and are far more important.  I have learned that my daughter does SO much better when she is about to head towards a tantrum, when I stop and try to verbalize and validate what she may be thinking and feeling and then redirect her.  Very often, I've found that this disarms her frustration and she easily moves on.
• I also was falling into the pattern of not drawing a hard line.  I was turning into the "parent of the grey area".  I wasn't ever saying "no"... just "maybe".  This is a deadly trap for a parent to get caught in.  Kids need boundaries and they need clear, firm answers in order to be able to respect those answers.  I needed to start fresh and let my "yes" be "yes", and my "no" be "no".
• I also, and most importantly, realized I had let my schedule and to-do list control me and had set my priorities on the back burner - I had not been spending my regular time in my Bible and in prayer.  This is the foundation on which all of my values and beliefs stand.  Without intentional focus on these things and listening to the Holy Spirit, I am lost and chaos and confusion set in.

In reality, my perfect Valentine picture wasn't all that perfect.  Behind it was a genuine heart to love my kids and our friends - but the tides of perfectionism and comparison pulled me in that day...  I share this because I desire women, especially my friends and family, to not get sucked into the comparison, perfectionism worldly trap.  I want to be real, transparent and supportive of each other as we all navigate these sometimes rough, sometimes beautiful waters of parenthood and life.

I read a quote recently by Theodore Roosevelt that said, "Comparison is the thief of joy".  I read about this concept, particularly, how it plagues and poisons women, in one of my favorite books, "You Matter More than You Think" by Leslie Parrott.  This is the truth:  We live in a culture that thrives on comparing people, looks, talents, worth, status, careers, etc.  Everything within me says, "this was never Jesus' intent for us!"... it makes me think of Psalm 139:14,

"I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well."

It's a life lesson for me, but I want to be real about my struggles and I want to be constantly striving for growth.  I am pushing to appreciate who God has created me to be, to be grateful for the gifts and talents He has blessed me with; and to be joyful for the gifts and talents He has given to others.  I want to be a woman, a friend, who brings refreshment, truth and the love of Christ to those around me.

Today, I am going to lay aside the facade of perfectionism and not allow comparison to steal my joy... for I am fearfully and wonderfully made... my soul knows it very well.