It's not all about me!

Today's kind of a big day for Jasper: he's taking his last set of Board examinations to become a real doctor. My prayers and heart go out to him as he takes the 9 hour test. I'm sure he'll be fine, but in the past he's gotten really nervous when taking these kinds of standardized tests. I think he'll feel a little better knowing that he's already been accepted into his program, and that all he has to do is PASS. That's it. Just pass. Good luck Jasper.

In other news, I think my two boys are preparing me to parent better. For about a couple months there, they were playing SO WELL together, then it seems like Christmas time came about and it all unraveled. Like today, just before I put Varick down for his nap this afternoon, I run out of the office when I heard screams of pain coming from each of my children in turn. These are the REAL screams we're talking about here, not the whining screams. They had both bitten each other. Varick first then Kai. Of course they don't even remember why they were biting each other, but they do remember the pain inflicted. This was the worst I'd seen them in quite a few months, and I'd seen things building up over the past few weeks. I'd tried time outs and "talks" and attention getting swats to the behind, but none of these has worked (obviously). I've begun watching them more closely to intervene by saying "if you feel like you're going to hit someone, turn around and walk away." "Use your words" has become meaningless in these more heated situations.

So this time, I had them say a pray to Heavenly Father to say sorry for biting each other after they'd consoled each other (hey, THEY caused the pain, THEY need to make it right and comfort the other person). I know that little children aren't held accountable for their sins until they're eight, but I know that I always feel like I'm able to do better after saying sorry to Heavenly Father for making a mistake. Kai offered it, and (I'm getting teary eyed recalling it) you could tell he was really sorry, that he really wanted to do better. Varick was even reverent during the prayer, too. They hugged again, and then I put Varick down for a nap to allow him the chance to do better after a good rest. That probably didn't help his two-year-old demeanor that he'd been up too early this morning. Oops.

Anyway, that's my successful moment du jour. I'm learning right along with them, and it's definitely a work in progress for us all. Sometimes it seems like nothing will work, with all these habits and tendencies to overcome. ...Aaaaaand most of these tendencies can be found in these darling children's parents. :) Hmmm, coincidence? I think not. Even with all these tendencies, I know there's hope for us all!