A few thoughts

I don't know how I got out of childhood alive. If my parents knew half the shit I pulled behind their backs, I would STILL be unable to sit!!!!
So my mother "cursed" me by saying "I hope you have a kid just like you some day"
and I got TWO OF THEM!
Have you ever noticed that most parents choose a parenting style, or method, based primarily on what they will and won't live with?
I think the battles we choose to fight as parents, and the skills we emphasize, the values we instill and the lifestyle we inflict, are all based on our own preferences as people.
I had a really great coffee with my amazing friend, Sandra. We were talking about parenting philosophy and about how "baby wearing" fits into parenting philosophy. I wore both my girls in a sling style baby carrier, till Jaala was 3 and Lei was 2 (Lei was way too independant to want more). Sandra shared what she'd been reading about how baby wearing benefits children both in the short term as infants, and in the long term, regarding the independance, parental trust and bonding they experiance, which serves them well as they get older.It was so fun to discuss it with her, most of my other friends have vastly different baby parenting idea's than I did (Char called me a hippie LOL!)....(which is funny because Faron calls me his hippie girl, "do we have any soap besides that hippie stuff?" "what's this hippie music?" teeheee!) and so having a friend who thinks very similarily (word?) to myself, is really awesome!
My children. Lately we've been talking about the fact that the bible jesus and god are not the only god's people worship and love.Jaala's response was "it's the true one though" and I asked her how she would feel if someone who worshipped their own god, told her that her god wasn't true. She said she would be upset, I said "exactly" you worship your god, and it's the only true god for YOU, but others have a god that is true for them, that gives them peace and direction and courage, and some people have no god, they have other things that give them courage and peace and happiness.Lei is a lot different of a thinker. She is linear, she wants proof. In fact, her favorite phrase is "can you PROVE it to me????" (said with hands on little hips) cracks me up!

Today, the girls school is having a "joint" chapel....that's not the puff puff pass kind, they're joining with the other campus for a christmas type service. This morning the girls were raving about it and invited me to come. I declined, Leisha said "it's the no god thing eh, well did you ever wonder how you don't believe in god, but you have TWO kids that do?" hahaha! I love them!

I just watched a documentary called 10 Questions for the Dalai Lama. It was so good.
When asked about religion being a source of strife and warfare His Holiness said "intolerance, self righteousness, greed, that is what is wrong with people, but the religions have the ability to make people at peace inside themselves without those things."
I loved that, He also commented about the "out dated" ways that countries are ruled and says, "don't go to war first, talk instead, but before you talk, have a party, a festival, tea, get to know eachother, have fun together, then talk."
What a great idea, essentially he's saying, meet eachother on neutral ground, create a common experiance, and build a repoire before trying to engage their trust in negotiations.
He's brilliant and I think we can all take something from what he said, whether we revere buddah or not.
My Faron is gone now till friday, on a training course for the Department of Justice's new software.
Which makes me the garbage lady, and the snow shoveler this week.
(and I miss him!)
Last night, Jaala said "mom, don't be surprized if it's a hard day for me" Concerned, I asked her what was going on. "one, faron is leaving tonight, and two I HAVE HOMEWORK!"This morning, when I went in to wake her up. She pulled the blankets over her head "no faron, no jaala. Wake me up when he gets home."awwwww! she misses him! They really love eachother. Jaala is so comfortable with Faron that not even her father's presence last night (mid week visit pick up), stopped her from running and jumping into his arms, when he arrived home from work.
Lei goes back and forth. This week, so far, she's had nothing to do with him. Usually that happens after she comes back from her dad's house. After the weekend, she'll be on him like fur on a weasle.
I'm in the middle of finals now. If you don't hear from me for a while, it's cause I'm neck deep in it!
*smooches*