Keeping Christ in Christmas

We haven't spent a lot of time preparing for Christmas this year.  In the past, the kids and I have gone through 4 weeks of Christmas-related Bible lessons and crafts by this time...not this year.  Something about moving half-way across the country (and perhaps the 70-degree weather) makes me feel like it couldn't possibly be the end of the year and the time to celebrate Jesus' birth.

We may not have gotten crafty and creative in our efforts to keep our kids' focus on the Lord this holiday season, but we did work hard on memorizing a scripture passage.  As a test, the kids recited their verses at the end of each week.  Here are two of our best takes.

Enjoy!

And yes, we do motivate through jelly beans around here!  :)

Bible Basics

Joshua and Hannah added verses to the following song today. I'm glad that they know enough about their Bibles that they can do this. They were starting some other verses - the debate was between Pharoah and Jesus - but they ran out of time. Enjoy!

Who did? Who did?
Who did? Who did?
Who did swallow Jo-Jo-Jo-Jo-Jo?
(Repeat)
Who did swallow Jonah?
Who did swallow Jonah?
Who did swallow Jonah down?

Elijah, Elijah
Elijah, Elijah
He told the ki-i-i-ing
(Repeat)
There will be no rain
There will be no rain
To help the crops grow up!

Abraham, Abraham
Abraham, Abraham
God gave Abraham a family
(Repeat)
God gave Abraham
God gave Abraham
God gave Abraham a big family!

*My favorite because they sing the first two lines in triplets :)
Josiah, Josiah
Josiah, Josiah
Josiah fixed the temple
(Repeat)
Josiah hired workers
Josiah hired workers
Josiah hired workers to fix the temple up!

Building the Christmas Tree

We've never had a Christmas tree. Well, that's only partly true. I, Becca, had a tree each year as a child but I've never been the one to put it up. This year we, the Chew family, were blessed to borrow an artificial tree from some friends - thank you Morales's! It was particularly exciting because Joshua has been talking about building a tree for a few weeks.

"First we'll get a column, like this. Then we'll attach leaves to it," Joshua explained. I actually didn't know how artificial trees were assembled but soon learned that Joshua was right - I think he's on the road to becoming an engineer.

The Lord obviously knew how important this was to Joshua. I also figured it out quickly after his preschool teacher asked me one morning, "So, Joshua keeps telling me that you're building some kind of Christmas tree at your house?" That's when I actually prayed for a Christmas tree. It was one, maybe two prayers and a thought of "how nice would it be to get a tree this year", but the Lord heard and He answered.

Our dear friends, Jes and Steven, heard about Joshua's tree building idea and offered for us to borrow their tree this year. They even delivered it to our door, complete with a tree stand, lights, ornaments, and a star to top it off.

Today we built and decorated the tree. Joshua was hard at work from the beginning. He enthusiastically unpacked all of the branches, sorted them by color, and started distributing ornaments before we had even begun. He put each branch into the center column and was instrumental in making sure the ornaments were evenly distributed - otherwise we'd have two very low branches bearing the load of an entire tree's worth of decorations.

And at Family Bible Time tonight, Joshua and Hannah initiated creating a manger scene under the tree. They gathered the soft toys and dolls, even some blocks to pose for gifts, and set up the cast of characters: baby doll Jesus in a plastic manger, Mary (the lamb) and Joseph (a very large Pooh Bear), the wise men (two monkeys and a wombat) accompanied by their small but trusty camel, shepherds of various soft toy races and creeds, and - my personal favorite - a hippo dressed as a ballerina playing the part of the angel. As a writer of Bible curriculum for toddlers and preschoolers I was particularly proud of the efforts involved in this hands-on lesson.

So, without further ado, here is a video of our Christmas Tree building extravaganza as recorded by our budding photo/video-journalist, Hannah Chew. Enjoy! :)

What Are You?

Our family was seated around the lunch table this afternoon when Joshua announced, "I'm Chinese!" He proceeded to point to each person, stating that they too are Chinese. Once he got to me, instead of shouting "You're Chinese!" he pointed and asked, "Mommy, what are you?" I found it so funny that I laughed, to which Joshua insisted, "But Mommy, who are you anyway?" Followed by more laughter, Joshua became a bit irritated. "Why are you laughing? Stop laughing, please. And what are you???"

When I Get to Heaven

I had a fun conversation with Joshua this afternoon. He asked me why everyone gets sick all of the time - all five of us are currently fighting a pretty nasty cold. I told him that sickness came into the world after Adam and Eve sinned. It's part of living in a fallen world but when we get to heaven we won't get sick any more.

"Isn't that good?" I asked.

"Yeah," Joshua replied, a big blue grin creeping up on his face. "And when I get to heaven I'm going to be with Jesus. I'm going to walk with Him!"

I was definitely on the verge of tears. Maybe I'm just overly emotional, but something about hearing my 4-year-old speak so excitedly, so assuredly, and so joyfully about being with His Lord and Savior was simply amazing. It is one of the best things I could ever ask to hear from my children. Praise the Lord!

Joshua with his blue marker face. :)

Conversations

When you spend your days with a 4-year-old, a 3-year-old, and a nearly-verbal 13-month-old you never know where the conversations will take you. Many times they flop and other times they take flight in ways you never imagined would be possible.

Yesterday and today we had a few conversations that made me smile. I'm sure these aren't as engaging to you as they are to me, but in a few years I'll be glad to have a record of them.

Enjoy!

The Identity of Jesus
Hannah: "Jesus is the kinged of kings."
Joshua: "No, He's the Son of God."
H: "But He is the kinged of kings. (Pause) Jesus is the Majesty."
J: "No, He's not the Majesty."
H: "Yes, He is."
J: "No, He's not."
H: "Mommy, Joshua says that Jesus is not the Majesty. (Pause) Is Jesus the Majesty, Mommy?"
Me: "Well...yes, He is the Majesty."
H (singing to "Michael Row Your Boat Ashore"): "Jesus is the Majesty. Alle-yoo-yah. Jesus is the Majesty. Alle-yoo-oo-yah."

Prophet or King? And Other Curiosities
Joshua: "Obadiah was a king."
Me: "No, Obadiah was a prophet."
J: "Well, he was just a king."
M: "No, he was a prophet."
J: "Obadiah was a king."
Hannah: "No, Joshua. Obadiah was a prophet!"
J: "Well, when I was little, before I came home from the hospital, Daddy used to call me Obadiah."
M: "We never actually called you Obadiah, but Daddy thought we should name you that."
J: "But before I came home from the hospital you did call me Obadiah. And then Daddy put me in a car seat and I cried and then I fell asleep in the car and then I was home. And that was while Hannah and Abby were in your tummy, Mommy, after I came out."
M: "Ummm....Hannah and Abby were not in my tummy then."
H: "Yes, we were. We were in your tummy together."
M: "No, you and Abby were never in my tummy at the same time."
J: "Why weren't Hannah and Abby in your tummy at the same time, Mommy?"
M: "Ummm..."
Abby: (cries from the other room)
Me (thinking to myself): "Saved by the bell!"

Hannah's Creation Song

We had an outdoor church service today. We learned about creation through the Word, teaching, dance, music, and poetry. I didn't think the kids were paying attention, though. Somehow barges heading upriver demand more attention than Bible reading and creative demonstrations of the Word.

I was wrong, however. Joshua and Hannah were very attentive to the service. They let us know by telling us about our creation lesson on the way home, singing variations of the worship songs that we sang, and tonight they have been singing their very own creation songs as they go to sleep.

Here is a short excerpt of Hannah's creation song, sung with no particular melody but with a lot of enthusiasm. Enjoy!

"God set apart the light from the dark
Separated the light from the dark

Then Adam and Eve lived in the garden
It was their home
Then they had to leave
They ate fruit from the good tree

God separated the light from the dark
The light from the dark."

From the Mouths of Babes

An excerpt from a loooong bed time song. Sung to a variation of the verse from "Jesus Paid It All".
By Joshua Chew, 4 years old

"I let Jesus in, into my heart
He forgives me for my sins
Then I can go to heaven with Him

You are mighty and compassion God
You are much more than us
I like meeting you
You are mighty but I am strong

You do not like when I'm unkind
You like when I'm kind
I get sad when I'm angry or upset
You get sad too
We need to forgive others

We do not, we do not discipline
We do not, we do not
Dad or Mom can discipline us
If we are disobedient

Jesus says if the Bible tells us
In the Bible says
Obey Daddy. Obey!

If you obey, you will obey
The commandments of God
If you don't you will get a little bit sad
If you do you will go with God
The God of the earth
God will be with you

You died for my sins
You died for my sins
Died for my sins
You died for my sins
Hmmm-hmmmm hmmmm-hmmmmm
Hmmm-hmmmm hmmmm-hmmmmm!"

Up to No Good

I should have listened to the little voice in my head that said, "It's a bit quiet in the bedroom. Maybe I should go check on Joshua and Hannah." But instead of heeding that almost-always-right voice, I continued to prepare the afternoon snack.

When I entered the bedroom to call the kids to the table, I noticed that it was still silent and there was no sign of either munchkin. Where could they be? The best hiding spot in the bedroom is pretty easy to spot: Joshua's bed tent. I peeked inside expecting to find something from a mommy horror film.

Here is what I saw: Joshua and Hannah feeding each other a snack-sized treat from Hannah's birthday party. Nutella and cookie crumbs covering their faces, they looked pretty guilty. They knew that they weren't supposed to be eating on the bed. Neither were they supposed to be eating that particular snack. Why else would they be so quiet? And why else would they both be huddled into the corner of an already sheltered tent?

Normally I may have overreacted, but I was relieved to see that the scene held no more horror than a couple of Nutella mustaches. The kids, too, were relieved when they witnessed my reaction. As I laughed, the fear of being caught washed away from their faces. They smiled, smeared a bit of Nutella on the bed sheets on their way down from the bunk, and proceeded to tell me how wonderfully they were sharing with one another.

While I should have paid closer attention to the little voice in my head, I'm glad we have this little story to share - and praise God it is G-Rated. The Lord (and a few people who will remain nameless) knows that I've seen much, much worse - stories that would not be suitable for the general public. Unless of course any readers out there are also moms (or childcare providers) with at least a couple of curious and energetic kids under their watchful eyes. You may have some stories to compete with my humble experiences in the realm of childrearing.

Hannah Girl

Hannah according to Hannah
From a little activity we worked on during our "Car Preschool" time.


My name is Hannah Elizabeth Chew.

I am 3 years old. (Almost...Sunday is only two days away.)

I live in Hartdsale, New York.

My favorite color is green. (I think that's actually true, but she may have been inspired by the green construction paper that we used.)

I like to play with trucks. (Does this mean that she won't like the doll stroller we're giving to her for her birthday???)

Happy Birthday, Abby Joy!

On Sunday we celebrated Abigail's first birthday. It's crazy to think that an entire year has passed since her birth. At this point in my life I have fully joined the ranks of parents who constantly say, "It goes by too fast!" Didn't we just get home from the hospital???

Miss Abigail started walking about a month ago. She says "what's that?", waves good-bye, blows kisses goodnight, and hugs her baby doll. One thing I just love is when I'm putting her to sleep - I always say, "Good night, Abby Joy. I love you." Each time she looks up at me and smiles a big smile. And can this girl ever smile! :)

Hopefully we'll post a video or two of Abby eating her birthday cupcake and opening her gift. However, in the very likely event that we never get around to it I'm posting a few photos here.

Enjoy!

She couldn't wait to get her hands on a cupcake, but in the end I'm not sure that she enjoyed the texture.

She did enjoy the taste, however! :)

Once the gift was in her line of sight, Abigail all but ran to it. I was amazed because she hasn't really seen us open gifts before, but she knew it was for her and she was excited. Once she reached the bag, she quickly grabbed the tissue paper and started playing. It just goes to show that kids play with the wrapping just as much as the gift.

Picking out a gift for a one year old is pretty challenging, especially when this one already has toys passed down from big brother and sister. I noticed that she was taking Hannah's doll a lot - and that was causing some friction between the two. So, we opted for a very girly gift: a new doll. Just like with the wrapped present, Abby knew that this was for her. Once she got over playing with the tissue paper, she grabbed the doll out of the gift bag, and picked up (as shown above). She proceeded to hug and carry her doll for several minutes. And now she sleeps with her baby for naps - very cute indeed!

Abby's Early Keyboard Skills

Abigail has discovered the keyboard. She walks over, stands on her tiptoes, and reaches up to play whatever keys her little fingers can hit. So, I decided to pull up her high chair and let her have a bit of "practice time". Here's a video of her early keyboard skills. I am her mom and I think she's fantastic in every way, so does it surprise you that I think she's pretty good for an 11 month old? :)

Enjoy!




P.S. After Joshua ruined Abby's piano time, he attempted to console her by singing "Abigail, Jesus loves you! Abigail, Jesus loves you!" He may have done better to kindly move her high chair back to the center of the keyboard and wait for his own turn, but the song was thoughtful.

P.P.S. Please accept my apologies for another dark video. I know...it's hard to see what's going on, but what can I say? The iPad with all its video quality goodness was with Claude at work. :)

Hannah's Head in a Pail

I don't need to say much more. Enjoy! :)

Acts 1:8

There are a hundred posts that I've wanted to put up in the past several months. There just isn't time! So, instead of trying to catch up I'll just start with something recent - and hopefully I'll keep posting so that this isn't so out of date.

So, here's Hannah, who was very proud to recite the memory verse from our church nursery - Acts 1:8. I actually had no idea she could do this until she took the picto-verse from my teaching folder and started "reading" it. Good job, Hannah!

"I Have Decided..."

Hannah started singing this today. If you're wondering, the toy she is holding up is meant to be a camera - she was taking a video of herself. :)

Enjoy!

Abigail's First Laugh

We caught Abigail's first laughs on video. Enjoy!

Humpty Dumpty as Told by Joshua and Hannah Chew

The kids are well-versed in Bible stories but seem to be nursery rhyme illiterate. Here is their version of Humpty Dumpty, or Hunty Dunty as they say. Please note that text in italics is from Hannah. The rest was told by Joshua.

Enjoy!

Sat on a farm. Hunty Dunty.
Sat on a wall. Hunty Dunty.
Had a king. Hunty Dunty.
All the king's animals. Hunty Dunty.
All the king's horses. Hunty Dunty.

The Train

The kids are traveling today. Grand Central Station, White Plains, Costco, and Montana. And they are visiting a host of friends and family. "I'm going to call Pastor Linda, Rebekah, Rich, Pastor Joyce, Daddy..."

Here you can join Joshua and Hannah on the train to see "Gampa and Gampa in Montana.

Enjoy the ride! :)

Bed Time

Joshua and Hannah often spend a bit of time talking and singing to themselves as they drift off to sleep. Tonight they're more awake than normal, so Claude and I are getting an earful. But what a wonderful earful it is!

From Joshua...
A song.
"Jesus. Jesus. I love you. I love you. I love you, Jesus. You died on the cross for sins. For sins. For sins. For sins. Jesus, I love you."

Immediately followed by...
Another song.
"The wheels on the bus go round and round all day long."
"The Jesus on the bus goes bye bye bye all day long."
"The disciples on the bus go bump bump bump all day long."

And from the other room we hear Hannah singing...
"The wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, all through the town."

Tonight we also heard the following...
After naming a large number of our dear friends from Westchester Chapel Joshua concludes, "These are all our family." I couldn't agree more! :)

And to top off the night (both literally and figuratively)...
I looked over at Joshua--he goes to sleep in the living room while Hannah falls asleep in the bedroom, otherwise no one would ever be sleeping around here!--so, I noticed that Joshua was zipping up his footed pajamas.

"Joshua, what are you doing?" I asked.

"I'm just feeding my baby," he replied matter-of-factly. "And now I'm going to work."

Apparently he was not only feeding his baby--which is really a stuffed lamb--he was breastfeeding his baby. Claude had a short conversation with him about the impossibility of the situation. It went something like, "Um, Joshua... Only mommies can feed their babies like that." This was followed by a suggestion that Joshua use a bottle to feed the baby.

After using the bottle he came out with this song...
"It was hard feeding my baby. It was hard breastfeeding my baby. And it was hard going to work."

I guess Claude and I spend a lot of time saying how hard our working and breastfeeding lives are??? I hope not!

The talking and singing haven't ceased yet and we're about an hour in to bed time. Perhaps there will be more to add to this post. :)

Pretend Play

Now that they're both entering the age of pretend play, I love listening in to the conversations between Joshua and Hannah. And since they read their Bible and Bible stories more than anything else (with the exception of books about vehicles of all sorts), much of their pretend play involves characters and places from the Bible.

Over the weekend, Joshua came rolling into the kitchen on a small ride-on car. "I'm entering Jerusalem," he said. "Here I am. I'm coming to Jerusalem on a donkey."

Hannah has been telling me recently how Jesus does his morning responsibilities. She says, "He puts on his pants. He puts on his shirt."

This afternoon I overheard the following exchange from the kitchen:
Hannah: "Look, it's Jesus on the train."
Joshua: "It wasn't Jesus, Hannah. He's on in the air."
Hannah: "Bye bye, Jesus! See you later!"

Bible play even shows up in cooking. Yesterday Joshua picked up "The Joy of Cooking" cookbook and stated, "I've got to read this fat book!" He went on to "read" aloud this recipe, "One half quarter teaspoon flour. One mushy banana. The glory of God."

The very first pretend play that I overheard was from Joshua when he was about 18 months old. At the time his favorite story was Esther, so I'm sure it was fresh in his mind when he started calling out, "Mordecai, where are you? Come here, Haman!"

I'm sure that many more amusing episodes will occur over the next several years, especially once Abigail is old enough to participate. I look forward to recording as many as I can remember as the days go by.