Lamenting, Soldiers, Compassion

I came home the other day and this is what I saw. There was much lamenting and sadness, although Laura had tried earlier to fix it Dad had to save the day. I am amazed by Shanes ability to repair, build, take apart, put together...all the things he can do. He is quite amazing. He has taken apart a deck and reused the wood to make tables and shelves in the garage. (Those pictures are coming). I was glad the Kitchen Aid got fixed cause the pictures to follow are what Laura does for us when the Kitchen Aid works.

That day she had made bread...oh she is really good at that and then she made more zucchini bread. That bread has carried us through most of the weekend. She is using half white, half wheat. Delicious...She is going to be an amazing mom. 

John has been working on his scouts and he made the delicious dinner. For his first try it was pretty great. It is a pork roast, potatoes, carrots and onions. He really made a delicious dinner. Sure it was cooked a bit too long and the fat was down instead of on top but hey, i am glad dinner was made. He is really working on his merit badges. His goal is to reach eagle scout by next year. I think he is almost there. He is a smart kid, tenderhearted, and lovable. Makes life an interesting place to have him around. 

On another note, below is a photo of our dear friend Kip Weybright. He decided to re-enlist in the Navy as a Medic. He is pretty amazing. We were invited to see him re-enlist. Unfortunately, his wife could not attend his big day as she was ill. So we showed up as his family. We ARE his family. Kip often introduces Shane as his brother. Shane does the same for him. 

Here is the family watching him and his men. My girls and boys were quite impressed by the formation and the importance of the moment. There is nothing quite like watching a group of men who have the utmost respect for Kip watch him re-enlist to be there for them. Everyone of them stopped to say thank you to him for being there. 

It was quite an honor to be there for Kip. We were all a bit emotional. Kips involvement in the Armed Services has been an inspiration for my boys. Kip will take the boys to the base just so they can climb on the tanks. The love him just like they love their dad. Kip doesnt roughhouse so much but he does talk to them straight about life. Kips wife Heather is an amazing woman as well. She has dealt with many physical issues in the past year which have brought her down a bit. It was nice to stand in for her. She has a contagious laugh and is really positive and the best part she loves my humor. 

I was talking to some folks the other day from work. I discovered that my children are quite different than others. I have some good kids. I dont have kids that are smart mouthed(well not without being funny), yell at me, are not grateful for things they have, play video games instead of work, not responsible. In any case, I thought of this quote i found. 

Are we hard on our kids. I think for a while we may have been, as we get older the punishments changed, we got softer, our children became more vocal and we learned how to discuss the world, religion, music and all other things to make them become more well rounded. Shane gives them what he has, I give them what I can. My boys can iron their own church clothes, make their own food from scratch, wash clothing, dry clothing(with a dryer and on the line) They can take care of themselves in all ways. My girls work, budget, drive, aspire to greatness....I am pretty glad about that. I am more glad they are not jerks. 

We have much more to learn as a family, but I like it the way it is now. I like that we are always growing and becoming stronger. I love that my children can show compassion to each other when it is needed. John and Makayla have been fighting illness for a week or so. I finally too them to the clinic. When Makayla had a breakdown John immediately got up walked over, hugged her and told her that she was going to be ok. These 2 kids have been through so many physical ailments they understand when going one step more is too much. I looked at him after and he had tears in his eyes, his compassion is overwhelming. 

So maybe we have done something right in all the years we have worked on our kids? Not sure but so far the fruits of our labors are shining through pretty well.The children have compassion and understanding for others not of our faith, include others who may be left out, give of their talents and time to whomever needs it. Sometimes at the detriment of themselves ( something we are working on). Not sure where we went on this path of life or how we got here but i am liking it. 

All of this pondering makes my head hurt, but I realize that I must be a good mother. This goes back to the idea that we all struggle with our own self worth. It is something I work on constantly, as I see the progression of my children it gives me a bit of joy. So the question is what about you makes you have good self worth? What about you to you feel makes you who YOU are? How do you find ways to be positive about yourself? as well as how does the joy come from that? Do you get joy from that? All things I still have to ponder...things I still have to work on.