Callaway Gardens

We visited Callaway Gardens today as I had learned from a neighbor that admission was free during the months of January and February. We all had a blast despite the drizzly weather. Sophia did not nap until we were exiting the park. And we also got gated in (dead bolt and all) as we didn't leave the park until after 6 p.m. Fortunately, we found a phone number on a pamphlet, so hubby called to get help. They directed us to another exit with a gate arm that lifted.

I learned later in the week that Annabelle was actually worried that we would not be able to exit the park. On the Wednesday following our Callaway Gardens adventure on Tuesday, Annabelle attended a Bible Study at the church where she learned that she needed to let God do the worrying. They asked the children what worries were on their mind, and Annabelle had told them that she was worried that we would be stuck in the park last night. Neither hubby or I had a clue that she was actually worried.

On the way to Callaway Gardens, we played a game to determine who could identify the most objects along the way that began with the letter B. Hubby took the gold! And now I cannot even remember who came in second as it was definitely a close run between Annabelle and me. On the way home, we changed the letter to C. It was dark by this point though, so it was definitely more challenging. I was quite amazed at the things Annabelle identified for both letters.

Here is one of my favorite pictures from our visit. It is definitely a beautiful place! I would love to visit again soon when the azaleas are in full bloom!


And you cannot tell from the picture, but Sophia is actually wearing Annabelle's fleece. It was supposed to be in the 70's, but it was actually a bit chilly. We visited the Butterfly Center first. Sophia found some water to splash in and before I even thought twice she had soaked herself including her own fleece coat and long-sleeve onesie. Since I expected a high in the 70's, I only brought another short-sleeve onesie and jeans. So, we had to improvise. Sophia borrowed Annabelle's fleece jacket and Annabelle borrowed mine. I stayed cold most of the time because hubby decided to not bring a coat at all so he didn't have anything to pass down to me! By the looks of this picture though, I had apparently selfishly snagged my own fleece jacket for the moment.

To the Mother with Only One Child...

This is such a beautiful blog post that I have to share it. And, hopefully, this won't offend anyone. Hopefully it will lift all mothers up (even the mothers with only one child).

http://www.ncregister.com/blog/to-the-mother-with-only-one-child

I wish I had read this 5 years ago! Though I'm not sure if would have had the same impact on me as it does today.

Experience Book

While we played outside this morning and I attempted to insert some of the Bible activities from Little Hands to Heaven into our play, Annabelle got a mind of her own (as usual) and decided she wanted to make an "Experience Book" as she called it.

She ran inside and grabbed two sheets of blank copy paper (though she had requested three but got turned down by her mean mom) and stapled them together using two staples along the vertical edge. She then insisted that I tell her how to write "Experience Book" at the top of the first page. So this was a perfect opportunity for me to correct her letters formation.

After she had written "Experience Book" in blue at the top of the first page, she wanted to go back outside to record her "experiences." First, she glanced across the street at a young tree growing in a neighbor's yard. "Is that the same type of tree that is in our backyard?" she inquired. Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding! I realized even more at that moment how important it is to just let a young child play without the pressure of reading, writing and arithmetic. She WILL learn the three R's! But if I had pressured her into early reading and such, she would have missed out on so much! Her imagination continues to explode! And I'm astounded by her observation skills at such a young age!

We studied the two trees together, and she noticed so much! And as a result, she learned more than I could ever teach her from a textbook.

While pulling English ivy in our backyard later this afternoon, Annabelle broke down into tears! Her experience book had been pooped on by passing birds. Hubby and I both tried to calm her down by explaining that she could use this opportunity to practice her handwriting by rewriting what she had already written. And I tried to explain that this was just another experience for her. She didn't seem to buy into that one though!

By the way, she insisted that she wanted to record her findings with words. I tried to encourage her to draw pictures, but that wasn't in her plan of attack.

Valuables

If someone were to ask you...

"What is the most valuable thing you own?"

How would you respond?

Annabelle shocked us with her answer to this question in front of the entire church congregation during children's time this morning. Annabelle almost always wants to answer the questions asked. We see her hand raised and waving constantly because she is so anxious to answer any and all questions. We'll whisper to each other, "Uh oh, she's got her hand raised again." It is frightening the beans she is going to spill in front of the entire church congregation!

Well, this morning, her answer took me by complete surprise. And it literally brought tears to my eyes!

Ms. Cody (to all of the children): What is the most valuable thing you own?

Annabelle: My Bible

We laughed when we got home about how we should tell her to only respond to any of these questions in front of the entire church congregation with Jesus, God, Lord, or Bible. But, we've never had this conversation with her. Her answer was honest and sincere. The girl LOVES her Bible, and she cries at night if she doesn't complete her chores fast enough to read the Bible every single evening. I had decided that maybe it wasn't right for me to take the Bible reading away from her at night since it is so important to read the Bible often. But I've learned that she'll dawdle long enough to forgo anything else, but if the Bible isn't read due to time constraints, it hits home with her.

I know. I am a horrible mom to take away something so precious from her. And I am really struggling with this. So, I need to figure out something that is going to upset her enough to do away with the constant dawdling. And I don't want her privilege to read the Bible to be it. Any ideas?