Since I'm no longer blogging about Amanda's journey to her new family, I started a new blog: http://myobviousfamily.blogspot.com/. I'm not sure if I'll ever post there, but my husband thinks it would be good for my emotional brain. Maybe it will be about special needs kiddos, maybe it will be about homeschooling. It will probably be a catch all for everything.
Beth
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
One year ago today
One year ago today, we became the happy parents of a two year old girl we chose to name Amanda Grace Benson. It was the fulfillment of a prayer prayed in 1995. So, on September 14, 2009, we said hello to this little peanut:
Right from the start, she charmed everyone she came in contact with while at the same time, giving Brett and his Dad a challenge. Unknown to us at the time, she was dealing with a parasite and ear infections. She was one little girl who really needed to get some medical attention.
Coming home, she continued to charm everyone she met with little dances and little smiles.
She grieved China when she woke up from her naps and seemed like there would be no end to the tears (hers and mine). It was tough for our family and her. Somehow, we had to learn to be a family. Up to this point, all she knew how to be was an orphan. She needed to learn how to be a daughter. She had to learn that she was finally safe, that there were people who would never leave her, and that she would always find love no matter how she behaved.
She also had to learn how to get along with this crew of boys:
She's learned that Caleb is going to watch out for her, Judah is someone to care for, and Nathan is going to be a good one to fight with and play hard with. They all love her and know she's always going to be their true life sister.
She's grown a LOT also. She's gained 10 pounds, 4 inches, two shoe sizes and quite a bit of hair. Here are pictures of her in the same outfit:
Before:
After:
The sleeves are too short, the pants are too short, and the jacket barely covers her tummy. She had to learn how to eat food other than steamed eggs, rice, and noodles. She still LOVES her noodles, but now eats mostly what we eat. She still has quite an aversion to fruits and vegetables, but she's getting there. More importantly, she's healthy. There have been no ear infections or any reason for concern after all her initial problems were cleared up. She's a strong and healthy little girl.
She came afraid of things like wind, animals(stuffed and real), trees, flowers, and grass.
Today, she LOVES dogs and wants to hug and pet them. She loves outside and begs to run in that big outdoor world. She runs and jumps and climbs with scary abandon. She loves her stuffed doggy that caused her great concern and fear at first.
One year ago, all she could manage in speech was "ah ah ah" for what she wanted and a lot of whining. Apparently, the ruptured ear drums spoke of months and a couple of years of ear infections where she was never truly able to hear spoken language around her. She had no babbling sounds. Nothing more than "ah ah ah". Today she is telling her brother, "Don't hit doggie!" She is communicating her needs and wants with words instead of whines. A little help from hearing aids has really progressed her speech.
One year later, she has embraced being our daughter as we have embraced being her parents. Love at the beginning for us was a constant choice, but now has become a feeling. She sees us as Mommy and Daddy and knows that she can cling to us when she is scared yet be free to run and play knowing that we won't leave her alone. She is no longer an orphan, but a daughter.
This post concludes the story of Amanda as far as this blog is concerned. I wanted a place to chronicle her first year with us and this has been that place. I wanted to write down all that happened, so that she would know that she has always been thought of and always been loved since the moment she was conceived. Amanda, we love having you as our daughter and look forward to many, many more years of seeing you grow and change while seeing all the plans God has in store for you. We love you Amanda.
Right from the start, she charmed everyone she came in contact with while at the same time, giving Brett and his Dad a challenge. Unknown to us at the time, she was dealing with a parasite and ear infections. She was one little girl who really needed to get some medical attention.
Coming home, she continued to charm everyone she met with little dances and little smiles.
She grieved China when she woke up from her naps and seemed like there would be no end to the tears (hers and mine). It was tough for our family and her. Somehow, we had to learn to be a family. Up to this point, all she knew how to be was an orphan. She needed to learn how to be a daughter. She had to learn that she was finally safe, that there were people who would never leave her, and that she would always find love no matter how she behaved.
She also had to learn how to get along with this crew of boys:
She's learned that Caleb is going to watch out for her, Judah is someone to care for, and Nathan is going to be a good one to fight with and play hard with. They all love her and know she's always going to be their true life sister.
She's grown a LOT also. She's gained 10 pounds, 4 inches, two shoe sizes and quite a bit of hair. Here are pictures of her in the same outfit:
Before:
After:
The sleeves are too short, the pants are too short, and the jacket barely covers her tummy. She had to learn how to eat food other than steamed eggs, rice, and noodles. She still LOVES her noodles, but now eats mostly what we eat. She still has quite an aversion to fruits and vegetables, but she's getting there. More importantly, she's healthy. There have been no ear infections or any reason for concern after all her initial problems were cleared up. She's a strong and healthy little girl.
She came afraid of things like wind, animals(stuffed and real), trees, flowers, and grass.
Today, she LOVES dogs and wants to hug and pet them. She loves outside and begs to run in that big outdoor world. She runs and jumps and climbs with scary abandon. She loves her stuffed doggy that caused her great concern and fear at first.
One year ago, all she could manage in speech was "ah ah ah" for what she wanted and a lot of whining. Apparently, the ruptured ear drums spoke of months and a couple of years of ear infections where she was never truly able to hear spoken language around her. She had no babbling sounds. Nothing more than "ah ah ah". Today she is telling her brother, "Don't hit doggie!" She is communicating her needs and wants with words instead of whines. A little help from hearing aids has really progressed her speech.
One year later, she has embraced being our daughter as we have embraced being her parents. Love at the beginning for us was a constant choice, but now has become a feeling. She sees us as Mommy and Daddy and knows that she can cling to us when she is scared yet be free to run and play knowing that we won't leave her alone. She is no longer an orphan, but a daughter.
This post concludes the story of Amanda as far as this blog is concerned. I wanted a place to chronicle her first year with us and this has been that place. I wanted to write down all that happened, so that she would know that she has always been thought of and always been loved since the moment she was conceived. Amanda, we love having you as our daughter and look forward to many, many more years of seeing you grow and change while seeing all the plans God has in store for you. We love you Amanda.
Friday, September 10, 2010
How much does she know?
As Amanda has been able to hear more, we are understanding more of what goes on in that little head of hers. Yesterday, we were watching "Wipeout" - a classic boy show. There was an Asian woman contestant and Amanda proclaims "China Mommy". A few contestants later, an Asian man shows up. Amanda proclaims "China Daddy". We have never pointed out people to her saying what their cultural heritage is. We've never told her that this person is from China, this person from "name country here". We've told her she's from China, but never realized that maybe she sees her asian features as Chinese. This amazes me.
Beth
Beth
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Amanda's Compassion
It's been a rough few days at the Benson house. Judah, our oldest, went through spinal surgery a month ago and took a turn for the worse. Needless to say, I have been a puddle of tears. I took him to the doctor to see what they could do and as Judah was getting his blood pressure taken, Amanda pointed to the cuff and pronounced "boo boo". She then gave him her special sticker that she had picked out for herself.
Today, I was sitting in the bathroom crying from frustration. She came up to me and gave me a hug. Then she got "doggie" - THE doggie and gave me her security toy. She had doggie give me a kiss and then gave me another hug. Eight hours later, she came up to me with this little concerned look on her face and said "mama cry." The compassion in this child amazes me. It goes way beyond her years. God told me that Judah would change her life. I can already see it happening.
Today, I was sitting in the bathroom crying from frustration. She came up to me and gave me a hug. Then she got "doggie" - THE doggie and gave me her security toy. She had doggie give me a kiss and then gave me another hug. Eight hours later, she came up to me with this little concerned look on her face and said "mama cry." The compassion in this child amazes me. It goes way beyond her years. God told me that Judah would change her life. I can already see it happening.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
5...8...2
You know how a lead guitarist shouts 1..2..3 and then rocks out? Amanda has her own version. Today, she put her guitar around her neck and shouted, "5..8..2!" and then proceeded to rock out. And rock out she did.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Doggie
I've never had a child who had a "security" blanket or toy that they carried everywhere. Enter Amanda. She was terrified of this toy at first and now she carries it everywhere. She LOVES her doggie.
Hearing aids
When you have cleft lip/palate, they automatically put in ear tubes along with one of the surgeries. Cl/cp kids tend to have multiple ear infections and all over too much fluid behind their ear drum. Amanda never got ear tubes. When she came home, she was working on a duel ear infection and as a result of two years of ear infections, she has two permanently ruptured ear drums. Amazingly, she has never had an ear infection here. So, two permanently ruptured ear drums = automatic hearing aids until she gets older to repair the problem.
All that to say, Amanda finally got her hearing aids. They were put in her ears and she just sat there very still for a minute. It was like a whole world suddenly opened up to her. She cried just walking into the audiologists office and had moments of panic and moments of peace like the moment when she could finally hear. On the ride home, a bird tweeted and she turned her head with a little surprised look as if to say "what was that?" Yesterday, she took them out once. I told her that was fine, but then she needed to come inside. She quickly decided (saying "ears, ears!") that outside with hearing aids on was a better option. She has kept them in all morning today without complaints. A blessing to be sure since getting a kid to wear these things sometimes takes time and a lot of bribery. We tell her how pretty they are (which is the reason for pink and purple) and how wonderful her ears look with them on. She has a giraffe clip that attaches to the hearing aids in the event that she takes them off. Less chance of losing them...It will be interesting to see how her speech changes for the better. Yay for prayers answered.
Monday, August 9, 2010
The Wiggles
Amanda loves the Wiggles. It's one of those kid things that makes you cringe a little as a parent. I like seeing my kids enjoy something, but seeing four grown men having this as their full time job leaves me feeling a little embarrassed for them. But, Amanda thinks they're great. And when they cease to be great to her, we will willingly say goodbye to the Wiggles forever. And no, she will never see a live performance. We have limits to our Wiggle love.
She will ask for "usic" (music) and usually what she wants is a Wiggles video. What she doesn't like is Henry the Octopus. She's afraid of that fun loving eight legged creature.
There are limits even with the beloved Wiggles.
She will ask for "usic" (music) and usually what she wants is a Wiggles video. What she doesn't like is Henry the Octopus. She's afraid of that fun loving eight legged creature.
There are limits even with the beloved Wiggles.
Saturday, July 31, 2010
Monday, July 26, 2010
Hep!
Amanda likes to climb. She's an amazingly strong little girl and not afraid of anything it seems. She sometimes gets into trouble. I was at the park one day and she was being safe. I looked away for a couple of minutes, turn around and hear "Hep, Hep!" She hasn't quite gotten the "l" in help pronounced yet. She is hanging from a bar around 2 1/2 feet above the ground. Just calming handing there - no look of panic on her face - just "hep"! Amanda, you are hilarious.
Beth
Beth
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Riding a bike
Yes, she has finally gotten tall enough to reach the pedals and ride a bike. Go Amanda!
The great crib escape
We got Amanda a crib tent 4-5 months ago. It worked well keeping her in her crib. She sleeps better and longer when she doesn't have the ability to get out. Then, she discovered she could get out. She broke the zipper fully and completely. She was up at 4 am. We turned the crib to the wall. She figured out how to climb out. I sewed half the crib tent opening and put it in a corner. She army crawled over the crib and tent area. We safety pinned it. She escaped. We used diaper pins to keep it shut. She escaped. I actually sewed the entire zipper part shut with quilting thread (which is super thick). She actually started ripping apart the thread. So, we bought a new one.
Hope you're happy Amanda!
And for those who are wondering --- she can get out of the house on her own and has been known to scale the closet organizer in her closet. She needs her sense of safety to catch up to her ability. As we say, she's three going on two in many ways.
Hope you're happy Amanda!
And for those who are wondering --- she can get out of the house on her own and has been known to scale the closet organizer in her closet. She needs her sense of safety to catch up to her ability. As we say, she's three going on two in many ways.
Friday, July 9, 2010
4th of July at Grandma's house
We all went to Grandma's house for the week of July 4th. She lives in the Chicago area among many of my siblings. Amanda was able to play with her 6 cousins 3 of whom are 3 years old. It's interesting to see the vast difference in ability between all these 3 year olds. It will be fun to watch them all catch up to each other as they get older.
As an extra added bonus, Nana and Papa came for a short visit from Wisconsin where they were seeing some of Nana's relatives.
Nana was able to bring some new clothes given by a woman she met out in California. Amanda is one well dressed little girl!
This is her real personality. When you wonder what she's really like, take a look at this picture and it pretty much sums it up. Look at the eyes - it's all in the eyes.
And, just because this was a cute shot of her bunny that was found in Grandma's crib
As an aside, Aunt Mary, when she was still living there, put stars on her ceiling in her room. Amanda was not fascinated by them in the least. She was a little afraid of them. We wised up around night 3 and did not turn on the light so the little stars wouldn't light up. She wondered where they went, but seemed relieved they were gone.
All in all, it was fun and exhausting. Traveling with a toddler is not for the weak of heart!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Freedom
I've been thinking a lot about freedom lately. Amanda went from a place where she had very little freedom just mostly due to being in one room all the time, to a home where there is a lot of freedom. She hasn't always handled it well. For example, we still need to keep her in a crib (with a tent on top much less!) because she can't handle the freedom of being able to get out of bed. She does it too much and we are honestly afraid of her roaming the house in the middle of the night. She can unlock doors and climb over baby gates. She still needs to be strapped into a booster seat because otherwise, she's all over the place and up and down and in and out. She's not really focused too much on eating.
She's earned some freedom too. She is now listening to us and obeying us when we call to her to not run ahead or to "come here". As a result, she doesn't have to wear the dreaded toddler harness and she doesn't always have to stick close to our sides.
This freedom factor works much the same with our other children. Caleb obeys our directions for his bike, so he gets to ride to more interesting places. With obedience and a simple following of the rules, more freedom is granted.
The same goes for countries. We are seeing more and more rules imposed upon us as a country. Maybe we are seeing the result of not really handling freedom too well. Not a lot of rules are required for a citizenship that self governs. Our constitution is made for a people that does not need a heavy hand. "Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." John Adams.
So, that's what I've been thinking about lately as I parent this little girl who is learning about freedom in little bits and pieces.
She's earned some freedom too. She is now listening to us and obeying us when we call to her to not run ahead or to "come here". As a result, she doesn't have to wear the dreaded toddler harness and she doesn't always have to stick close to our sides.
This freedom factor works much the same with our other children. Caleb obeys our directions for his bike, so he gets to ride to more interesting places. With obedience and a simple following of the rules, more freedom is granted.
The same goes for countries. We are seeing more and more rules imposed upon us as a country. Maybe we are seeing the result of not really handling freedom too well. Not a lot of rules are required for a citizenship that self governs. Our constitution is made for a people that does not need a heavy hand. "Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other." John Adams.
So, that's what I've been thinking about lately as I parent this little girl who is learning about freedom in little bits and pieces.
Thursday, June 24, 2010
"Real" pictures
A friend of ours at church took some WONDERFUL pictures of our kiddos. Go check them out at:
http://www.ahphotos.com/blog/?p=443
Just scroll down past the beautiful teenagers and you'll get to it eventually.
Beth
http://www.ahphotos.com/blog/?p=443
Just scroll down past the beautiful teenagers and you'll get to it eventually.
Beth
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Sunday, June 6, 2010
Expanding the menu
Amanda has decided she wants to branch out into other food groups; especially the fruit and vegetable category. She is now eating real apples - not applesauce - real cut up apples. It proves my theory that she didn't need a feeding specialist - she just needed a drive to try something new. Yesterday, she ate a real carrot. Wonders never cease. She is also trying the daily smoothy her brother Caleb makes for the family. I especially like the way Amanda's mustache turns up on the sides. Very well groomed I must say.
As you can see, this was the blueberry special. She does love the smoothy thing and keeps saying "me" or "I" to get some for herself. She can't decide which pronoun she likes better.
The other day, she also got to spend time with "uia" aka Julia. She loves her much older friend also from China. They have a bond...
Got to have some girl chat time you know! They both have 3 older brothers.
Last but not least in the random things post that has been made, apparently everything can be made into a guitar or a violin as Amanda is demonstrating here:
What is it about my children and stringed instruments?
As you can see, this was the blueberry special. She does love the smoothy thing and keeps saying "me" or "I" to get some for herself. She can't decide which pronoun she likes better.
The other day, she also got to spend time with "uia" aka Julia. She loves her much older friend also from China. They have a bond...
Got to have some girl chat time you know! They both have 3 older brothers.
Last but not least in the random things post that has been made, apparently everything can be made into a guitar or a violin as Amanda is demonstrating here:
What is it about my children and stringed instruments?
Monday, May 24, 2010
Happy Birthday Amanda!
On May 20th, we celebrated Amanda's 3rd birthday. This post is all about the pictures. So here we go!
First you must start with cake
It was well enjoyed
Caleb gave her a board with pictures of things with which she could practice her talking.
She got a baby doll that looks like her courtesy of the Neumann aunties.
She really thought this doll was a good deal.
A good mommy knows how to teach her baby to be quiet.
She also got pots and pans to practice her culinary skills.
And to top it all off, Elmo has entered the house.
All in all, a good birthday.
We just love to make her happy. It's a family thing.
First you must start with cake
It was well enjoyed
Caleb gave her a board with pictures of things with which she could practice her talking.
She got a baby doll that looks like her courtesy of the Neumann aunties.
She really thought this doll was a good deal.
A good mommy knows how to teach her baby to be quiet.
She also got pots and pans to practice her culinary skills.
And to top it all off, Elmo has entered the house.
All in all, a good birthday.
We just love to make her happy. It's a family thing.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Her past life
Amanda is fully acting like a natural born child of ours. We tend to forget now that she spent the first two years of her life in an orphanage. Every once in a while though, we get little glimpses of her life pre-Benson.
I was watching Oprah yesterday and they had a preview to the Baby movie. It's about four babies and their first year in different parts of the world. I know she likes to see babies so I told her to look at all the babies. She was having a good time until it came to one baby whose older sibling pushed her over and she started crying. No one came to her rescue. This REALLY upset Amanda and she came to me sobbing and crying wanting to be held. I just held her and kept telling her that I'm your mommy, I'm your mommy. That seemed to calm her down and she got up and went back to playing. She has either a soft heart for those in need or a wound of what she didn't get. This has happened before when she saw a similar situation with a baby. Love can heal a lot of wounds, but only time helps you to forget.
I was watching Oprah yesterday and they had a preview to the Baby movie. It's about four babies and their first year in different parts of the world. I know she likes to see babies so I told her to look at all the babies. She was having a good time until it came to one baby whose older sibling pushed her over and she started crying. No one came to her rescue. This REALLY upset Amanda and she came to me sobbing and crying wanting to be held. I just held her and kept telling her that I'm your mommy, I'm your mommy. That seemed to calm her down and she got up and went back to playing. She has either a soft heart for those in need or a wound of what she didn't get. This has happened before when she saw a similar situation with a baby. Love can heal a lot of wounds, but only time helps you to forget.
Friday, May 14, 2010
The dark side
Yes, we have entered the dark side of girlhood. Things that I thought would never enter my home. My lego/match box car/anything sports related boy home. My pretty pony is in the "howse"...we found these at a garage sale. Four for $2.
Of course they came with accessories like a hairbrush and underwater snorkle (not shown) so my little pony can go swimming in the great barrier reef.
Overall, Amanda is happy with the purchase.
Of course they came with accessories like a hairbrush and underwater snorkle (not shown) so my little pony can go swimming in the great barrier reef.
Overall, Amanda is happy with the purchase.
Monday, May 10, 2010
Friday, May 7, 2010
Last months zoo trip
Judah is just happy to be with us. He could really care less where he is:
OOOOOHHHHH.....Fish! (we're still trying to get the fff sound to come in front of the ish sound. It usually comes out "ish")
Nathan just takes a good picture. What a smile!
Caleb found out that if you put your fingers near the chicks, they all congregate there. He had a chick monopoly.
Amanda and her Nana (Brett's mom). I'm sure Nana is not that crazy having this picture here because the coat she is wearing is less than attractive, but she had to borrow it from me....she is soooo not in the cold weather anymore.
OOOOOHHHHH.....Fish! (we're still trying to get the fff sound to come in front of the ish sound. It usually comes out "ish")
Nathan just takes a good picture. What a smile!
Caleb found out that if you put your fingers near the chicks, they all congregate there. He had a chick monopoly.
Amanda and her Nana (Brett's mom). I'm sure Nana is not that crazy having this picture here because the coat she is wearing is less than attractive, but she had to borrow it from me....she is soooo not in the cold weather anymore.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Potty Time!
Since Amanda was showing us how totally ready she was to re-learn the whole potty thing, I decided to bite the bullet and go with it. She kinda sorta not really learned in the orphanage. We have pictures of her and her room buddies half naked. But, with all that was tramatic in all of our lives, we decided to skip adding a "go to the potty" thing. Her indication that she was ready to begin again? Strip down into nothing every time she peed in her diaper. One day, she was awake in her crib for around 10-15 minutes while I finished up some things I needed to do. I walk into her room (equipped with crib tent) and (insert whistle sound here) there she is au natural. Happy as a lark. My usual way of potty training is to just put them in the thick underwear and deal with the accidents. I just. couldn't. do. it. again. There are two things that make me cringe right now in life. Teaching a child to read and potty training. So, needless to say, I'm trying pull ups and continuing to support the economy in the diaper area. You can thank us anytime.
Now, I always thought training a girl would be easier since you don't have the extra equipment to malfunction. Yup - it's easier. A girl just sits down and that's all there is to it. A boy has extra steps you have to remind him of every single time. But the main reason I'm posting about all this is that I always know when she's done her deed. She'll be sitting there with an expressionless face when all of a sudden BIG SMILE. She's done it. It's hilarious. She basically is working for cookies right now, but hey- cookies are a lot cheaper than diapers. As an extra added bonus, I have two helper boys who will also get whatever treat Amanda has earned if they help and encourage her. I'm all about the bribe.
Now, I always thought training a girl would be easier since you don't have the extra equipment to malfunction. Yup - it's easier. A girl just sits down and that's all there is to it. A boy has extra steps you have to remind him of every single time. But the main reason I'm posting about all this is that I always know when she's done her deed. She'll be sitting there with an expressionless face when all of a sudden BIG SMILE. She's done it. It's hilarious. She basically is working for cookies right now, but hey- cookies are a lot cheaper than diapers. As an extra added bonus, I have two helper boys who will also get whatever treat Amanda has earned if they help and encourage her. I'm all about the bribe.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
Hearing test #2
Amanda and I (Beth) went in for another hearing test - this time a sedated hearing test. It's somewhat scary how fast a drug can put someone to sleep, but anyway...She was having a hissy fit even before she got to the room. She was hungry with a capital H. She couldn't have food or water in her system for this test. She also knew something was going on and it wasn't going to be fun. They had to put an IV in. They try to numb up the site, but it only works so well. It made me wonder what kind of attention she got with her surgeries in China. There seems to be some indications she didn't get enough pain medication or maybe even a nice snuggly person to hold her when she was afraid. We bonded. She's never been as snuggly as she was this morning. It was nice to be her security blanket.
They found out she had mild hearing loss (which I knew) and that it seems to be mostly because of her eardrum rupture. Her inner ears seem to be working fine which means that she has the capability to hear near normal someday. So, now we see what Dr. ear nose throat says about all this.
Beth
They found out she had mild hearing loss (which I knew) and that it seems to be mostly because of her eardrum rupture. Her inner ears seem to be working fine which means that she has the capability to hear near normal someday. So, now we see what Dr. ear nose throat says about all this.
Beth
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Judah and Amanda
Judah is our first born. He was born with a rare chromosome disorder that has left him with multiple issues including mental handicaps. He's very young in his mind. Amanda seems to get that. She doesn't treat him like she treats her other brothers. She seems to understand that he needs her to be gentle around him. Last night, when I was putting Judah to bed, she climbed into his bed and started kissing his cheeks. Then she took her hand and started smoothing his hair and "cooing" a little. She was treating him as his mental age dictates. It was so incredibly sweet. She understands exactly what he needs - a gentle touch and a lot of love.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Guitar family
Caleb got the first Benson kid guitar in 2002 for his second birthday. Little did we know what was to be unleashed in the house. Caleb loved that guitar. Instead of making everything into guns, he made them into guitars. Spoons became guitars, sticks became guitars, well, you get the idea. Everyone said, "He'll grow up to be a worship leader". Then, the phase fizzled out.
Enter child #3.
He also joined the guitar obsession at age two. Everything became guitars and he played with all his might. He loved the guitars we had which had multiplied into three. We had changed churches by this time and everyone commented, "He'll grow up to be a worship leader." This too fizzled out. All just a phase.
Enter child #4.
It didn't even cross my mind to get the guitars out. After all, we had a little girl who was not even genetically a part of the guitar gene that seems to run in our house. But, the guitars came out and she loves them. She plays them all the time and sings her little songs. The only difference is that she wants me to sing some songs with her guitar. It isn't in the genes - it's the house and the father who only encourages this behavior with showing you-tube videos of 80's rock bands that he loves. Can we say "Rush"? No longer does anyone say, "She'll grow up to be a worship leader" because by this time, they all know it's a phase every Benson child must go through between the ages of two and four.
One change on this child is that she has her "fierce" guitar look. As a girl, she doesn't just have to have the good guitar moves, but the emotion behind it as well. Sigh...I am outnumbered.
Enter child #3.
He also joined the guitar obsession at age two. Everything became guitars and he played with all his might. He loved the guitars we had which had multiplied into three. We had changed churches by this time and everyone commented, "He'll grow up to be a worship leader." This too fizzled out. All just a phase.
Enter child #4.
It didn't even cross my mind to get the guitars out. After all, we had a little girl who was not even genetically a part of the guitar gene that seems to run in our house. But, the guitars came out and she loves them. She plays them all the time and sings her little songs. The only difference is that she wants me to sing some songs with her guitar. It isn't in the genes - it's the house and the father who only encourages this behavior with showing you-tube videos of 80's rock bands that he loves. Can we say "Rush"? No longer does anyone say, "She'll grow up to be a worship leader" because by this time, they all know it's a phase every Benson child must go through between the ages of two and four.
One change on this child is that she has her "fierce" guitar look. As a girl, she doesn't just have to have the good guitar moves, but the emotion behind it as well. Sigh...I am outnumbered.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Easter
I was a little excited. There are so many "firsts" this year with Amanda. Yes- Easter is about Jesus rising from the dead. I never want to forget that, but the whole Easter dress thing is fun also. Brett brought this absolutely gorgeous dress with him from China. So, Amanda was finally big enough to fit into it. It was a fun day.
All I can say about the above picture is: look at my little girl's hair! She's finally got some and she has a LOT of it.
What?!?! There are eggs over here too?
What do you mean MY eggs only contain goldfish crackers and honey bear cookies? Where's the chocolate?
All I can say about the above picture is: look at my little girl's hair! She's finally got some and she has a LOT of it.
What?!?! There are eggs over here too?
What do you mean MY eggs only contain goldfish crackers and honey bear cookies? Where's the chocolate?
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