Harms Family News

If you are my friend, you are probably already tired of hearing about this, but this is my blog and, well, I need to put some things out there to get them out of my head. So if you're tired of hearing about it, stop reading now. Miss M. For the past two and a half days she has behaved as a potty trained child, making all of her "business" in the potty. Today, she started pooing in her undies again. I admit, I am tired beyond measure of changing these messes. I have been at this for about three weeks, and I'm tired of the mess. Being tired is not a reason to quit, and i know that. In my heart of hearts I know that she can do this - goodness, she did it for 2 1/2 days without a problem, even "holding it" for a full 25 minute ride home from church and doing it successfully in the potty. But then, I read things. Things tell me "Start at 2 and potty train for a year. Start at 3 and potty train for a week." Honestly, it's cheaper for me to throw away...

Miss N: Mommy, today at recess me and Benjamin were playing Star Wars! Mommy: That sounds fun. What's Star Wars? (She's never seen it) Miss N: I don't know because Benjamin hasn't told me yet. We just chase bad guys with our pretend, um, gun hands.

It was the perfect fall day for a trip to the apple orchard. Slightly overcast and cool, with rain earlier in the day to drive off the big weekend crowds. Somewhat on a whim, we packed up the kids after nap and went on our way. Apple cider donuts and cold cider drinks were calling our name. Miss M is smack dab in the middle of the potty training stage, and is doing fairly well. While we are primarily in underwear, we stuck a pull-up on her since the potties at the apple orchard are not very convenient. Off went to have some family fun. We arrived, did the potty thing, and then saw the animals. We played, we picked berries, we ate donuts. In the midst of all this fun we had several trips to the potty. Through it all Miss M stayed clean and dry. Donuts were a hit, as was the “juice,” (cider). Miss N played reverse psychology on me, pointing out a toy she wanted and then saying, “But I have enough toys, right mom?” This is the phrase I always say when she’s begging for something (because ...

When thinking about what to write for post high school, the answer was not as clear as you might think. I could write about God leading me to Maranatha, a small Baptist college in Wisconsin. That was, after all, pivotal in developing some of my friendships and my meeting of my husband. I could write about the spiritual journey I went on through my college years, discovering who I was and what I believed. I could write about the birth of each of my children, which was certainly life changing for me. But, I guess the most important event that has happened to me since graduation from high school was meeting my husband. Even in that story, God’s hand was clearly seen. Most people in my circles meet their significant other in college. I went off to school, honestly, with that as one of my goals. I had a date my freshman year, arranged by two good friends, and went into the summer with hopes that it would develop into something. It did not, and that was OK. I went to several formal events, w...

I admit I don't fully understand prayer, it's purpose, and the way it works. Some day when I have some time it is something I intend to study further. However, I am thankful for the fact that God knows what we need, even when we don't, and sometimes when we don't even know how to pray. About three weeks ago I applied for a writing gig (I work from home as a freelance writer) that I really, really wanted. It took hours to prepare the application and sample, because I wanted it to be just right. I knew the job would stretch my writing style, but it was a challenge I honestly welcomed. Sadly, I don't think I got the job. I haven't heard "no" but it's been long enough that I think I didn't get it. Often in my line of work you don't hear "no." I prayed for that gig. I prayed that I would get it if it was something I could handle. I admit, I am disappointed, but I know God answered my prayer. However, I do need more work. Just this week...

"Dear God, please let me be a farmer when I grow up so I can have a pony."

My eldest shocks me with her whit and wisdom sometime. We've gotten past the endless "why" world of three year olds , the nonsensical world of toddlerhood , and are suddenly shooting into the world of young lady-hood. My girls are both now in "school." Miss N attends a traditional K4 program three days a week, while two of those days Miss M goes to Mom's Day Out at a nearby church so I can work. Mom's Day Out gives the kids a small candy at the end of the day if they are good. Preschool lets the kids earn "Dinky Dollars," which they turn in on Fridays for a prize from the "Dinky Store." Both reward good behavior, but in different days. This Friday when I picked up Miss N from school, she had a toy rooster she had purchased from the store. We drove to get Miss M, who got her candy. While we drove, Miss N was questioning me about whether or not I brought her a lollipop. I assured her I did not, and she was working herself into a state...

One of my senior portraits - notice Beauty and the Beast in the background? The senior year of high school is, in many ways, a transition between childhood and adulthood. When you graduate, you enter that world of not quite grown up, but no longer a kid. It was a transition I was not excited to make. The summer before my senior year I embraced a new form of communication – e-mail! I think I was the first person in my class to use email, but we had a classmate whose parents were missionaries in Italy. She was coming back to our area for her senior year to live in the states and graduate from an American school. After writing paper letters forever back and forth, letters which took weeks to cross the ocean and end up in her hands, my dad introduced me to a way I could communicate via the computer instantly. Amazing! I still printed out each of her emails and kept them in a notebook because they were precious to me. Felicia K and I didn’t end up being incredibly close when she came back ...

I think my child potty trained herself. I am not joking. Here was my plan. Miss N started K4 this week. I wanted to get her settled in K4 for the week, then I was going to make the switch to undies for Miss M the following week, and basically stay home except for when we had to go get Miss N from school. Well, here's what happened. We ran out of diapers. With Miss N I used pullups for nap time for a long time as she had about a 50-50 track record of waking up to go potty, and quite frankly, since I work during nap time, I'd rather dispose of a wet pullup than deal with a wet bed. So, when we ran out of diapers I bought pullups knowing the training time was coming. Incidentally, because Miss M had to wear Huggies diapers (pampers and luvs give her a rash, and the generics didn't come in a big enough size) the pullups (I bought generic) were cheaper. To save you a long saga of pee and poo, let's just suffice it to say that I put the pullup on her, showed her how th...

My little girl is growing up. Here she is on her first day of K4, all ready for school. But this post isn't about school. I just thought you might want to see her pretty face. At night before bed I try to ask her, "What was your favorite thing about today." This question, hopefully, will get her mind thinking on positive things, and in future years when she is older, give an open door for good conversation. We recently went shopping for a birthday present for a friend. Miss N is obsessed with horses. The only toys she would look at were horses. When we found some in our present-buying price range, she finally made her choice. She played with the toy, in the box of course, the entire way home, and proudly showed it to daddy. I was very afraid she was becoming overly attached to it. We talked much about how it was for her friend, not her. She seemed to understand, and she was seemingly very excited to give it to her friend. Today was the party. I assumed that her response ...

This is one of the last posts for Mommy's Piggy Tales. To get in on the next session, click the link at the end of the post. It's been fun! My junior year marked the addition of driving to my list of talents. Unlike many newly turned 16 year olds, of which I was the last in my class, I had no desire to get my license. Part of my fear was the fact that my birthday was in the dead of winter when ice and snow regularly covered the ground, and the other part of my fear was the fact that I had never successfully driven on the freeway. I was perfectly fine with letting my parents chauffeur me around. Sadly, my dad disagreed, and he put down the ultimatum. I would get my license before summer or I would not be working. The driving test was the closest thing I ever came in my life to failing. My car was a two-toned Oldsmobile Caprice Classic station wagon in with deep blue on the topand sky blue on the bottom. That car was HUGE. I completely failed parallel parking, but I still say to ...