Messy Colby: Part 2

We were at my mom's house tonight for our monthly family dinner when someone came running into the room saying, "Mel, come look at your son!" Yes, that's right, Colby and powdered sugar--who put it right at "Colby-level" anyway? Well, to give mom credit, usually the pantry is closed, but lucky for him, he found it open today. . . which summoned the paparazzi. He wasn't loving the attention, but man was he ever loving the sugar rush!

What is it about boys?

I am a mother of 4. The girls came first. Life was tidy and clean, curls, bows and frills, dancing and tutus, pink and purple, calm and quiet (at times), sugar and spice and everything nice. Then came the boys. Everyone who has both will agree that there is a stark contrast between the two. Not a bad thing in any way, but a difference, nonetheless.

Let's take a for-instance. Kendra and Alli both hate being dirty. Even when they were babies, heaven forbid there be a fleck of dust on their dress or a crumb of dirt under their fingernails. Not so with my boys.

Take today, for example. I let the boys out to play in the backyard. They didn't go for the fun, little pink playhouse, nor did they look twice at the swings, but they headed straight for the sandbox, which, I might add, had WET sand in it today. Andrew was doing OK as he sat on the side of the box and made his piles of sand. As the baby crawled inside, I saw how just how messy it was going to be. After one attempt to remove him and the wailing ensued, I gently placed him back in the dirt and thought, "To heck with it, he's having way too much fun. I'll clean him up later."

They played a good 30 minutes until, Colby came crawling up to the door, prompting me to quickly grab my camera. Why? Well, somehow the wet sand adhered perfectly to Colby's dripping snot, making him look reminiscent of the Sandman from Spiderman 3, oozing sand from every hole in his body. See pictures below

After stripping both boys and literally hosing them down, I brought them inside and the fun was over. I smiled to myself as hindsight reminded me that I used to not be okay with dirt, grime and the extra work it takes to clean up a filthy mess.

I've changed my mind.

Kendra's Baptism

Yesterday was a good day. Our oldest daughter has turned eight years old and made the decision to follow Christ's example and be baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Todd performed the ordinance and it was beautiful. He also confirmed her and she was given the gift of the Holy Ghost. I asked her if she would let me share what she wrote in one of her many new journals she received yesterday: "Today I got baptized. It made me happy and glad. Why was I happy? Because I felt warmth coming out of the water. The warmth I felt was from the Holy Ghost telling me I made a good choice."

It is awe-inspiring to watch my children grow, mature and develop a pure testimony of their own. Kendra has grown so much this last year and I watch her becoming all that our Lord wants and needs her to be. She has a simple understanding of the gospel and of the Savior. She bore her testimony in sacrament meeting today for the first time. I'm proud of her choices and I'm proud of who she is. She is a girl who wants to do good all the time. I appreciate that attitude and hope it will continue as she gets to be a teenager. (Yikes!)

Family and friends were there to support her and we are thankful for their love and constant support. The BBQ here afterward was fun--thanks to everyone for bringing food, shade and chairs!

The only damper to the day was that my sister, Kilee, had her car window smashed in and her purse was stolen. Yes, in the church parking lot. Yes, during the baptism. Yes in broad daylight in our "safe", suburban neighborhood. She and Dainon immediately cancelled all credit cards, but not before the thief charged a few hundred dollars on one. It's hard to understand the nerve of some people. He truly must have felt desperate enough to commit this crime and that is a very sad place to be in life. I hope he or she is caught and that no one will have to suffer the way I watched them suffer yesterday. Truly Satan was trying his darndest to ruin a seemingly perfect day.

Watching my daughter be baptized has reminded me of my own baptism. I was baptized by my Grandpa because my dad had been called Home only a year previous. I remember never wanting to do wrong again. In fact, later in the day I think I got in an argument with my brother and I thought I had tainted my cleanliness forever. I wanted to go back to the water and do it over, start afresh. That's the wonderful thing about the gospel. We can be made anew any time we want, if we will only use the Atonement and ask. It's amazing! I love you Kendra and I am proud of the decision you made to be baptized. Just listen to that still small voice and you will never be led astray.