"Protecting the sheep"

"Protecting the sheep," with our mighty sling shot.

So I'm going to level with you … mama hasn't been healing well since the surgery two weeks ago. As much as i try to stick to a homeschool schedule, it's been very challenging to say the least since the surgery. Creed knows mama's tummy has been hurting. It really breaks my heart when he wants to play and rough house, which I can normally do, but can't right now. What do you do in a similar situation? Myself, I try to keep my eyes on the goal and just plow through. Is there another way? I don't know, but I'm seeking the answer. Another topic includes Creed merging from the terrible twos to the terrible three's. I hear there's also a terrible fours, but I'm choosing to ignore this possibility. He's been exceedingly loud the past two weeks. I keep wondering if it's a hearing problem or just the rambunctious reality of living with a toddler. The decibel has been off the charts in the past few days. We are not a loud household. It's usually as quiet as a library. We don't whisper all day long, but mama does talk in a soft tone, and in turn Creed was also speaking in a soft tone. I've been praying for divine intervention and trying to lay it ALL at the foot of the cross.

3d animal puzzles

With Creed's growing interest in David and Goliath, we actually found a sling shot today at a really reasonable price - a dollar. It's a plastic sling shot that comes with four balls the weight of ping pong balls, but when it reaches maximum speed from the sling shot, this proves to be a weapon, not intended for toddlers, especially since the most fun target is smallish in size and stands on four furry legs. Creed was pretending Nokie, our beautiful tabby kitten, was Goliath. To remedy the situation, we found a softer "stone" substitute using pom pon balls. Very effectively, Nokie chased them, which brought much delight to Creed. I also found suitable targets - 3d animal puzzles, also a dollar. The only thing we didn't have was a "pouch" for the five smooth stones, but we were able to easily remedy this with a green string and coin purse, perfect for stuffing with pom pons. For so little money, the quality was astounding. As we set them up Creed was telling me he needed to "protect the sheep." He said we could take turns being David. Then he mightily said I'm Goliath and tackled me. Itty bitty ouch. I can not wait until I'm completely healed. Right now I'm concentrating on getting the gospel into his heart. 

getting them all in line

"Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the door frames of your houses and on your gates." - Deuteronomy 11:18-20

Creed's imagination is thriving and reaching unlimited lengths. I'm continually in awe. His vocabulary is also exceeding very quickly. I wonder if all of this progress brings about a change in behavior as well? To say it's been taxing would be accurate. I want to discipline in a loving way, talking about what behavior is acceptable and what behavior isn't. I know some of you are laughing, as I'm writing this I, too, think it sounds laughable. Having a conversation with a toddler isn't hard, it just needs to be short, like their attention span and repeated often unfortunately. We've been reading those books about behavior, which he genuinely loves, though I don't know why because they're kind of boring. It seems to drive the point home . . .  at least for the moment.