Sunday, October 23, 2011

Hanging out w/ my mini-me. Watching Decemberists on Austin City Limits. I'm working, she's crafting, we're both singing along.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Ahh, the three-vaccines-at-once backlash. Whining, crying & general carrying on. We expect fever and more tears on Monday. But if it results in no flu or polio, I'm cool with it.

Monday, October 10, 2011

In a follow-up to my last post, I wanted to add that we did, in fact, go to church this past weekend.  When the priest started talking about God, Charlotte leaned over to her dad and stage-whispered, "God! I know God! Mom and I talked about God!"  So clearly it made some sort of impression.  She was much more interested in what her cousin was doing than what the priest was talking about, though.  I can live with that.  Though I can cross, "Priest quotes 'Auntie Mame'" off my bucket list.

Friday, October 7, 2011

Theology 101

After pretty much avoiding the topic for 4 years, I decided to give Charlotte a quick run-down on some uber-basic Christian dogma.  Matt is Catholic in name, but uncomfortable with Catholicism in general, and I'm kind of vague on most religious topics.  I am very well-read and well-researched, but I am culturally somewhat Christian with some pagan/Buddhist leanings.  I am, however, a HUGE fan of Jesus, so that keeps me as kind of a lowercase "c" Christian.  Organized religion in general drives me nuts, because it tends to lose what I love about religion (love your fellow man! communicate directly with God!) and hammers home what I don't like(don't trust yourself, you must to through clergy to talk to God! women can't lead! hypocritical hierarchies! corruption!).  The majority of our family is pretty Christian, though, and pretty Catholic, too.

So during snack time I hit some major talking points - we believe that God is a loving and protective (and I may have said "magical" - I have my reasons) spirit who watches over us.  I said that God is powerful, and while we can't see God, God is always there.  I did point out that we often call God "He" or "Him" because it's easier, but God isn't a person.  I told her that when we ask good for help, or celebrate him, or offer him thanks, it's called praying.  And that when you are very happy, you can feel God in your heart, or if you are lonely, you can ask God to help you in your heart.  I threw in that we believe that when you die, you get to go to be with God in heaven, and that he will keep you safe there forever, and you can be with all your loved ones that die before you.  I asked her if she remembered when we talked so much about Jesus at Christmas, and told her that God sent Jesus to be with Mary and Joseph, and to be born as a baby.  Jesus was sent to teach us to love each other, and to be kind to everyone, and to help others when we can, and to learn how to forgive.  To forgive is to say, "I'm sorry," and "It's okay."  (Charlotte pointed out that those are the rules for pre-school, and I said, "Exactly!")

This was a big whammy of information, and while Matt thought that she would probably ask me a million questions, my theory was that she would kind of brush it all off and move on, while it percolated in the background.  And that seems to be what happened.  She mentioned Littlefoot's mom (a dinosaur that dies in The Land Before Time, and the first instance that Charlotte really started grasping "death") once, and wanted to know if God dies.  (Well, honey, there is this guy named Nietzsche....)  But that was pretty much it.  I expect her to lay something wildly inaccurate and inappropriate on her grandmother this weeked (capital C CATHOLIC) because that is the way these things work.

Oh, Charlotte did have one other profound connection to make.  "I know God!  And Jesus!  It's like when you say 'golly geez.'  That's God."

Crap.  I guess she really did grasp the whole taking-his-name-in-vain thing.

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Oblivious Mom moment.

As I was getting Charlotte ready for school yesterday, I was going around in circle trying to decide whether to put her in her raincoat (waterproof but not warm) or her hoodie (warm but not waterproof).  Around and around I went on this, finally deciding to send her in her sweatshirt, because she wasn't going to be outside for that long at recess, and I'm sure she wouldn't soak through in 15 minutes.

I pulled into the parking circle at school and as I pulled Charlotte out of the car, I realized that I could have just put her in her winter coat - both warm AND waterproof.  DUH, Mom. 

I put her in her winter coat today, and, of course, it was sunny & gorgeous at school today.  Whatever, I will take credit for the beautiful blue sky today just by Murphy's Law.