Fellowship Friday: Prayers with our Preschoolers

But Jesus called to him and said "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these" Luke 18:16

photo courtesy of TPCC: Spring 2014

Ryan and I have been very blessed to find brothers and sisters in Christ over the course of our marriage. My last year in teaching, I was lucky enough to get to know one of these brothers and his families. Adam and Casie are two of the most loving and gracious people. They walk the walk.

After Briggs was born, I remember Adam telling me how he and his wife prayed with and over their children every night. With an infant son, I hadn't thought to start praying with him so early. He wouldn't understand. We'll start once he can communicate with us. But Adam and Casie's story made a huge impact. I felt God's whispers telling me,"Start it now. Pray over your son. Pray with him. Let him know I'm here. There should never be a day where he doesn't know me." 

So we began to pray over our baby. We prayed of course for his well being. We prayed for our family. We prayed for his future friends. We even prayed for his future wife. We prayed for her parents. To help guid and protect their own hearts so that they may raise a beautiful God-fearing young lady. We pray that together, they can impact this world for Christ. These are still the prayers Ryan and I send to the Lord. So now the question is...

How do we pray with our babies?

My dad taught me at a very young age a format to help structure my prayers using the acronym, ACTS. It has been around for decades but it truly helps you focus in your prayer. (Especially when learning how to pray as a little.) This model is something we've carried on with our kids. With Kerigan, we lead. But with Briggs, we make it a question and answer guide so that he is "leading" the prayer.

A-Adoration

How great is our God? How much does he love us? How big is God? How good is He?

C-Confession

We're sorry for ________ today. Please help us learn from our mistakes. Next time this comes up, help us handle it this way.

T-Thanksgiving

Thank you for....(family, friends, school,) whatever is on their little hearts to be thankful for that day. Sometimes its as simple as...popsicles.

S-Supplication

Please help us...(have a great day tomorrow, find a yellow shirt to wear, take care of all the zoo animals) you, know the things a three-year-old thinks up :)

I'm so thankful we are getting into the habit now to get them comfortable with talking to God. It's so sweet because even Kerigan knows when to say "Amen" during prayer. We bring it down to a preschool level. The two main things that are our focus now are: 

1. God loves them 

2. He is our friend. 

As the kids get older, I would like to implement prayer sticks and/or journals. One of my girlfriends uses Christmas cards she receives from friends. After Christmas, she and her children cut them out and glue them on popsicle sticks. Then they put them in a jar and pray for the someone they draw out that day. Awesome idea! 

When it comes to our minds and hearts, what goes "in" comes "out." If we raise our kids with prayer, conviction and compassion for others, that's what we are going to see when they become adults. I'm so thankful for our church community and the loved ones who not only influence my children but help Ryan and I become better parents and stewards of Christ. Happy Praying!

Kerigan's First Steps

At 16 months old, we finally have a baby girl walker! Yay Ker! We are so proud of you little bear!

Preparing for D-Day on Team Green...with a Toddler

Hospital bags are packed, pumpkin seat is taken out of storage, the jeep now has TWO carseats installed, the neutral clothes and blankets are washed and ready...

I still love the idea that we are on Team Green. I can't wait for that moment! However, I didn't realize it would take twice the planning until recently. (It has saved me some money on not buying too many new clothes...yet.) You have to come up with twice as many names (we have known our boy name for a long time but just recently barely settled on a girl name.) and you have to prepare your toddler on the possibility of having a baby brother or baby sister. When I say prepare, I do mean mentally prepare but also logistically prepare him as well.

With Baby 2.0, I am much more aware of how to efficiently pack for the hospital. Despite planning to go natural, I believe my bag weighs about 20 lbs. less. However, this time around I am not just packing for me and my baby boy. I am packing for me, my toddler and for a girl baby and a boy baby.


As far as the baby's packing plan, I had decided I would take a few boy outfits (Briggs's hand-me-downs) and a few girl outfits (Kinsie's hand-me-downs) and one or two neutrals new to this particular little one. Plus, I had to include my two onesies- each with a respective girl name and boy name for the birth announcement. After that, the hospital has all the essentials.

As for my toddler, he takes the cake. We have an outfit with a blue bow tie if he gets a brother and a pink bow tie if he gets a sister. He also has changes of clothes, entertainment including videos and books, supplies to throw a birth day party (he is really into singing the birthday song to everyone right now) plus a brand new gift from his baby sibling. He also has an overnight bag for Yaya and Bapa's while we are at the hospital.

I don't blame you if you think I'm going over the top, but if you have a child, you know you can never be over-prepared. Now, prepare for one of the biggest moments in your child's life plus the welcoming of a new life. It makes my mind spin. I think this nesting mother of 2 needs to go to bed...

Soaking in the last few (days and/or weeks) with this baby always with me.

Fourth Quarter Frenzy

I always preach that you have to purposefully slow life down and enjoy the moment. The month of September has really challenged me in practicing what I preach.

This month, we have officially reached 30 weeks! 10 more until our due date.
HOW?

In the meantime, we have had a wedding scheduled every weekend (which were all a ball), we closed and moved out of our house on Abundance, we temporarily moved in with my parents, we welcomed a new niece- Miss Kinsie Kay, all while raising a creative, hilarious and energetic toddler. Oh yes, I'm also still working full time.

It would be so easy to get caught up in all these major life events, however, those big brown eyes stop me in my tracks every time. He helps me stop and breathe and enjoy who he is right now.

He reminds me to not stress about everything I have to plan and do while fighting the urge to nest a home that we don't have possession of yet. He has uttered the phrase "love you" for the first time this month. How can you not stop and just melt after hearing those words for the first time?

He reminds me that although its all happening at once, all of these major events are wonderful things. He helps me find the joy in the small things too. I have made it a priority not to miss any of his music or soccer classes. I love our time together then because I put my phone and planning book (more like binder) away and just focus on my growing toddler.

They say your life gets crazier and more hectic when kids come along. However, who are the real culprits of making life so chaotic? Kids just want to be present with you. So mommy, put your distractions down and just be.

Big Brother loving "Baby" at 30 Weeks

The Well-Rounded Toddler

I have to have a little brag sesh for my Briggy Boy real quick. I am so PROUD of him. Around 18 months, I was started to get really concerned with his separation anxiety. He would not willingly go to anyone besides myself, Ryan and my parents.

So Ryan and I started brainstorming and we decided to enroll him in a couple of programs that 18+ month olds can participate in. We just finished his 4th week with Kindermusik. You would think that he was a completely different kid compared to week 1. I'm not sure if its his involvment, his age, or just us constantly working with him, but his social and fine motor skills have grown exponentially in just a few short weeks. He went from never leaving my lap, to knowing and singing all the songs, dancing, putting toys away and interacting with the other toddlers. This mama is so proud. Kindermusik- worth. every. dime.

The second program we started last week was Lil Kickers. This is a soccer program to help develop social and motor skills. Although we have only gone one week, Briggs quickly learned how to a kick a ball (his instinct is to pick it up and throw it-natural baseball player perhaps?), stack cones, and run through an obstacle course with mommy. He still has a lot to master but I still believe this is going to be a great developmental program for him.

Lastly, his vocabulary has increased by 100000 times (exaggerating) the last month! He went from knowing about 15 words to knowing over 100+. (Not exaggerating). It started out with a lot of mimicking but soon I realized that he could actually comprehend what the word meant. He is like a sponge- all he wants to do is learn new words and read more books. This morning when I was changing his diaper, I asked him to point to his eyes, nose, mouth, ears, toes, knees, tummy and head. (I never specifically went over knees, tummy or head- but he KNEW them without me pointing to them first!) So two things to pick up on here for mommy and daddy- 1.) Be careful with EVERYTHING we talk about in front of him now. Not only will he repeat what we say, but there is a chance he could UNDERSTAND what we are saying. 2.) Continue to find resources to stimulate and teach him. I never want to be satisfied in what he knows. He has always been a very verbal kid- so I want to continue to help him expand what he is capable of at every walk of life.

Who would have thought program involvement was so crucial at just a year and a half? But I have WITNESSED results in such a short amount of time. I am not an expert with early child development.  However, being so astonished at what he can pick up, I am now challenging myself  to learn how to help the development in all aspects of this growing little toddler's life.

What programs or activities have helped your toddler skills develop?