25 rules for moms with sons

Thanks to my friend, Kadi Leiting, for posting this on her blog. And, thanks to Tabitha Studer, the writer. It is so beautifully written, brought tears to my eyes several times...especially, #20 -you're right, Kadi! And, even though I do feel most of these "rules" can be applied for moms with daughters too, the way it is written made me really think of Jackson. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did! 1. Teach him the words for how he feels. Your son will scream out of frustration and hide out of embarrassment. He'll cry from fear and bite out of excitement. Let his body move by the emotion, but also explain to him what the emotion is and the appropriate response to that emotion for future reference. Point out other people who are feeling the same thing and compare how they are showing that emotion. Talk him through your emotions so that someday when he is grown, he will know the difference between angry and embarrassed; between disappointment and grief. 2. Be a cheerleader for his life There is no doubt that you are the loudest person in the stands at his t-ball games. There is no doubt that he will tell you to "stop, mom" when you sing along to his garage band's lyrics. There is no doubt that he will get red-faced when you show his prom date his pictures from boy scouts. There is no doubt that he is not telling his prom date about your blog where you've been bragging about his life from his first time on the potty to the citizenship award he won in ninth grade. He will tell you to stop. He will say he's embarrassed. But he will know that there is at least one person that is always rooting for him. 3. Teach him how to do laundry ..and load the dishwasher, and iron a shirt. He may not always choose to do it. He may not ever have to do it. But someday his wife will thank you. 4. Read to him and read with him. Emilie Buchwald said, "Children become readers on the laps of their parents." Offer your son the opportunity to learn new things, believe in pretend places, and imagine bigger possibilities through books. Let him see you reading...reading the paper, reading novels, reading magazine articles. Help him understand that writing words down is a way to be present forever. Writers are the transcribers of history and memories. They keep a record of how we lived at that time; what we thought was interesting; how we spoke to each other; what was important. And Readers help preserve and pass along those memories. 5. Encourage him to dance. Dance, rhythm, and music are cultural universals. No matter where you go, no matter who you meet - they have some form of the three. It doesn't have to be good. Just encourage your son that when he feels it, it's perfectly fine to go ahead and bust a move. 6. Make sure he has examples of good men who are powerful because of their brains, their determination, and their integrity. The examples of men with big muscles and a uniform (like Batman and LaMarr Woodley) will surround your son from birth. But make sure he also knows about men who kick a$s because of their brains (Albert Einstein), and their pen (Mark Twain), and their words (Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.), and their determination (Team Hoyt), and their ideas (The Wright Brothers), and their integrity (Officer Frank Shankwitz), and fearlessness (Neil Armstrong), and their ability to keep their mouths closed when everyone else is screaming (Jackie Robinson). 7. Make sure he has examples of women who are beautiful because of their brains, their determination, and their integrity. The examples of traditionally beautiful women (like Daphne Blake, Princess Jasmine, and Britney Spears) will surround your son from birth. But make sure he knows about women who are beautiful from the inside out because of their brains (Madame Marie Curie), and their pen (Harper Lee), and their words (Eleanor Roosevelt), and their determination (Anne Sullivan), and their ideas (Oprah Winfrey), and their integrity (Miep Gies), and fearlessness (Ameila Earhart), and their ability to open their mouths and take a stand when everyone else is silent (Aung San Suu Kyi). 8. Be an example of a beautiful woman with brains, determination, and integrity. You already are all of those things. If you ever fear that you are somehow incapable of doing anything - remember this: If you have done any of the following: a) grew life b) impossibly and inconceivably got it out of your body c) taken care of a newborn d) made a pain go away with a kiss e) taught someone to read f) taught a toddler to eat with a utensil g) cleaned up diarrhea without gagging h) loved a child enough to be willing to give your life for them (regardless if they are your own) or i) found a way to be strong when that child is suffering...you are a superhero. do not doubt yourself for one second. Seriously. 9. Teach him to have manners because it’s nice. and it will make the world a little better of a place. 10. Give him something to believe in Because someday he will be afraid, or nervous, or heartbroken, or lost, or just need you, and you won't be able to be there. Give him something to turn to when it feels like he is alone, so that he knows that he will never be alone; never, never, never. 11. Teach him that there are times when you need to be gentle like with babies, and flowers, and animals, and other people's feelings. 12. Let him ruin his clothes Resolve to be cool about dirty and ruined clothes. You'll be fighting a losing battle if you get upset every time he ruins another piece of clothing. Don't waste your energy being angry about something inevitable. Boys tend to learn by destroying, jumping, spilling, falling, and making impossible messes. Dirty, ruined clothes are just par for the course. 13. Learn how to throw a football or how to use a hockey stick, or read music, or draw panda bears (or in my case alpacas), or the names of different train engines, or learn to speak Elvish, or recognize the difference between Gryffindor and Slytherin, or the lyrics to his favorite song. Be in his life, not as an observer but as an active participant. 14. Go outside with him turn off the television, unplug the video games, put your cellphone on the charger, even put your camera away. Just go outside and follow him around. Watch his face, explore his world, and let him ask questions. It's like magic. 15. Let him lose Losing sucks. Everybody isn't always a winner. Even if you want to say, "You're a winner because you tried," don't. He doesn't feel like a winner, he feels sad and crappy and disappointed. And that's a good thing, because sometimes life also sucks, no matter how hard (as moms) we try to make it not suck for our kids. This practice will do him good later when he loses again (and again, and again, and again, and again.....) Instead make sure he understands that - sometimes you win - sometimes you lose. But that doesn't mean you ever give up. 16. Give him opportunities to help others There is a big difference in giving someone the opportunity to help and forcing someone to help. Giving the opportunity lights a flame in the heart and once the help is done the flame shines brighter and asks for more opportunities. Be an example of helping others in your own actions and the way your family helps each other and helps others together. 17. Remind him that practice makes perfect. This doesn't just apply to performance-based activities (like sports and music) but also applies to everything in life. You become a better writer by writing. You become a better listener by listening. You become better speaker by speaking. Show your son this when he is just young enough to understand (that means from birth, folks - they are making sense of the world as soon as they arrive), practice trick-or-treating at your own front door before the real thing. Practice how you will walk through airport security before a trip. Practice how you order your own food from the fast food cashier. Practice, practice, practice. 18. Answer him when he asks, "Why?" Answer him, or search for the answer together. Show him the places to look for the answers (like his dad, or grandparents, or his aunts/uncles, or his books, or valid internet searches). Pose the question to him so he can begin thinking about answers himself. Someday, when he needs to ask questions he's too embarrassed to ask you - he'll know where to go to find the right answers. 19. Always carry band-aids and wipes on you. especially the wipes. 20. Let his dad teach him how to do things ...without interrupting about how to do it the 'right way.' If you let his dad show and teach and discover with your son while he is growing up, someday down the road (after a short period of your son believing his dad knows nothing), he will come to the realization that his dad knows everything. You will always be his mother, but in his grown-up man heart and mind, his dad will know the answers. And this will be how, when your son is too busy with life to call and chat with his mom, you will stay connected to what is happening in his life. Because he will call his dad for answers, and his dad will secretly come and ask you. 21. Give him something to release his energy drums, a pen, a punching bag, wide open space, water, a dog. Give him something to go crazy with - or he will use your stuff. and then you'll be sorry. 22. Build him forts Forts have the ability to make every day normal stuff into magic. Throw the couch cushions, a couple blankets, and some clothespins and you can transform your living room into the cave of wonders. For the rest of his life, he'll be grateful to know that everyday normal stuff has the potential to be magical. 23. Take him to new places Because it will make his brain and his heart open up wider, and the ideas and questions and memories will rush in. 24. Kiss him Any mother of sons will tell you that little boys are so loving and sweet. They can be harsh and wild and destructive during most of the day. But there are these moments when they are so kind and sensitive and tender. So much so that it can cause you to look around at the inward, reserved grown men in your life and think, 'what happens in between that made you lose that?' Let's try to stop the cycle by kissing them when they're loving and kissing them even more when they're wild. Kissing them when they're 2 months and kissing them when they're 16 years old. You're the mom - you can go ahead and kiss him no matter how big he gets - and make sure he knows it. p.s. (this one is just as important for dad's too). 25. Be home base You are home to him. When he learns to walk, he will wobble a few feet away from you and then come back, then wobble away a little farther and then come back. When he tries something new, he will look for your proud smile. When he learns to read, he will repeat the same book to you twenty times in a row, because you're the only one who will listen that many times. When he plays his sport, he will search for your face in the stands. When he is sick, he will call you. When he really messes up, he will call you. When he is grown and strong and tough and big and he feels like crying, he will come to you; because a man can cry in front of his mother without feeling self-conscious. Even when he grows up and has a new woman in his life and gets a new home, you are still his mother; home base, the ever constant, like the sun. Know that in your heart and everything else will fall into place. © Tabitha Studer www.studerteam.blogspot.com Nov.2011

Fun at the Minnesota Zoo, June 2012

Our zoo gang - Grandma Barb, Uncle Ryan, Maddy, Logan, Jason, the kids and I. ___________________________________ Jackson's favorite part of the day - Seeing the tigers. not pictured. ______________________________________________ Jessica's favorite - Petting and feeding the goats. not pictured. ______________________________________________ Lia having fun playing peek-a-boo in her stroller:) Lia didn't care much for the dinosaurs...too scary! Jason's favorite animals to see - The wolves. My favorite - The grizzly bears. All the fun and excitement left the kids feeling exhausted! It was a pretty quiet ride home...

Gunderson Family Visit

Nerf gun wars: Making necklaces and Perler bead projects: Deep conversations: Tickle fights: Happy times: Fifteen pictures to tell the story of one great day! Thanks for the fun visit Uncle Mark, Aunt Brenda, Lee, Kyle, and Emily. Love you guys!!

Jessica gets the "Super Sister Award!"

As a mother, I have proud moments of my children all the time. Some are small... "You shared your toy so nicely, Lia, good job!" or "You zipped your zipper all by yourself, Jessica, way to go!" or "You ate all your vegetables, Jackson, good for you!" And, some are big... "You went pee-pee on the potty, Lia!" or "You wrote your name so nicely, Jessica!" or "Jackson, you're reading!" Every day, I look forward to these moments, big and small. And, I'm sure all parents would agree, it's a wonderful thing to witness your children make good choices; to watch them turn into the good people we, as parents, work so hard to teach them to be is very rewarding! The other day, Jessica had a proud moment that sort of took me by surprise because I didn't know she was yet capable of being so helpful without me asking her to do so... Lia had fallen down on the sidewalk and skinned both of her knees, bit her upper lip, and scraped her face a bit from falling onto the pavement. She was, of course, quite a mess --crying and bleeding! So, I was doing the best I could to soothe Lia, carry her back home (we were on a walk and about a block away), and to keep the rest of the daycare kids calm. This was Jessica's role: To Lia she said, "Are you ok?" "It'll be alright." Then, without another word, Jessica raced back to the house. By the time I arrived home carrying Lia in my arms, Jessica had cleaned up all the outside toys and was waiting patiently in the garage with a kleenex box in one hand and a box of wet wipes in the other. As I was cleaning Lia off and placing a band-aid on her knee, Jessica asked me, "Mom, is Lia going to be ok?" I'd like for this proud moment to always be remembered, and for you, Jessica, to know that you are indeed a "Super Sister!"

Not all "firsts" are good ones

It's inevitable...all kids are going to fall down at one point or another. All kids are going to have bumps and bruises from time to time. In fact, every child is almost certain to know what pain feels like by the time they are 2 years old. True, scraped knees and pinched fingers are minor pains in life, yet seemingly so cruel and wrong when the victims are children. As a mother, I feel like I go through the same pain my kids feel whenever they get hurt. As much as I wish I could take the pain away instantly for them, I realize it's a part of growing up. So, as a mom, I'm going to continue to be strong for my children; for each occasional boo-boo, and every infrequent owie, I will be there to wipe the tears from their eyes and tell them "it'll be alright." Which is exactly what I did for our little Lia, who just received her first scraped knee.

Lia is 2!

Dear Lia, We can hardly believe you are two years old!...and what a wonderful two years it has been. Your birthday fell on a Sunday this year. We already had the big birthday party celebration; so, we decided to keep things simple with a cake, a few happy birthday songs, and the enjoyment of watching you blow out your birthday candles one more time...

Lia, you are a very special girl! Beginning with your birth story -having been born "in the caul"-- is unusual and special in itself. You slept through your birth, snuggled your way through your first birthday, and melted the hearts of all your family members on your second. If we had to describe you in only three words, your dad and I would say you are: Loving, Quiet, and Determined! We very much enjoy how snuggly and affectionate you are. Each morning when we go into your room to lift you out from your crib, we are greeted with a smile, a "Hi Momma/Daddy," and open arms just waiting for us to embrace you. Throughout the day, you find several opportunities to share a hug, kiss, or cuddle --whether it be with me, your daycare friends, or your puppy and blanket. And, nothing beats how genuinely happy you are to see your Dad and I return home, even after a half hour errand, it's wonderful to come home to see you waiting at the top of the stairs with your arms wide open waiting for a big hello hug and kiss. At this point, your Dad and I are indifferent about your quiet disposition. We can say that we find it rather refreshing to listen to your soft, sweet voice in our otherwise noisy house. And, as for your dermination--we don't exactly care for this particular trait of yours...at this point in your life anyway. While we know someday we will be grateful you have been blessed with a strong will to persevere, that day is not today! As a two-year-old, your determination can be a bit of a struggle at times for your Dad and I. "I DO MYSELF!" we hear from you quite often. "OK." is what we tell you --as we've learned not to intervene until you ask for help. Luckily, you have a stay-at-home mom with a very seldom need to be "in a hurry" to go somewhere or do something. While we stick to a very strict routine at daycare, if the need for you to practice doing something on your own happens to arise, I simply let you "do it yourself" until one of two things happen: 1) you do it yourself! yay!, or 2) you surrender to your frustration and ask for help. While this can be a difficult stage, we realize you are becoming more and more independent with each day that passes. In the meantime, your dad and I have learned how to maintain expert control over our patience. Lia, here are a few random "noteworthy" thoughts about you as a 2-year-old: -You are a "momma's girl" right now...which I do love, and know won't last long. -You sleep with four special buddies at night: puppy, baby, panda bear, and baby genius dog. You also sleep with your special blanket, aka - blanky, or "neeny" as you call it. -You love to dance! Kidz Bop CD and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse 'Choo Choo Express' are a few of your favorite music choices. -You LOVE to be read to, and also enjoy paging through piles of books independently. -You can repeat most anything we say, and you're learning to make sentences. -Your laughter and the way you can find joy in anything you do always make us smile. Like I said before, you are a special girl, Lia. We are very proud of you! Love, Mom & Dad

Birthday party for Jessica and Lia

Jason and I decided to combine Jessica's and Lia's birthday parties this year. We figured we can get away with doing that for at least one more year as well, before Jessica will want to have a seperate party with her friends. The big event was held on Saturday, March 31; all sides of the family came to our house to help us celebrate. Here are a few pictures of the girls opening their gifts...

I made a Dora cake per Jessica's request, and we bought a Mickey & Minnie Mouse cake at Linda's bakery for Lia. They each had a seperate cake to blow out their candles.

Singing 'Happy Birthday' to Jessica and Lia...

Mom's home-made Dora cake...

Bounce house fun!--Always a great party idea!...

The "King of the grill" --aka Jason Mahlum - did a hec of a good job supplying our party guests with some delicious burgers :)

A few pictures taken with some of the grandparents...

Thanks again family, for joining us, and for helping make Jessica's and Lia's big day so special!