Quick Takes: Daniel is Four, Faith and Giving

"He's not ready for that!"

Daniel just turned four a couple of weeks ago, and as I watched my husband take the training wheels off his bike, my gut reaction was to blurt out those words.

I shouldn't have said them, because I was wrong. Matthew placed our littlest guy on his small bike and gave him a push, and Danny Sam pedaled forward with a smile and no inhibition. I may not have been ready, but he was. He may still have some trouble negotiating the turns and getting started on his own, but the boy is indeed learning to ride a big boy bike. And he just began Sunday!

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Beware of saying the words, "I have to go to the bathroom," in this house. Danny will start singing to you:

When you have to go
Stop!
And go right away
Flush and wash
And be on your way!

He learned it from Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood on PBS. I don't mind, really, because I love PBS. (I joke that I've raised my kids on PBS - hours and hours of it.) He also loves the Special song and the one that encourages, "Keep trying - you'll get be-et-ter!" I miss Mr. Rogers; I'm glad they found a way to bring him back to us.

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I've discovered a lot of great blogs lately, this one just this morning. The writer is a Catholic mother from the Newtown community. Her life, the lives of everyone in that community, was changed by the horror at Sandy Hook Elementary, and she decided to write more openly about her faith. I love her post today: Living by Faith. I am often a fearful person, and I do not have the reason to be fearful that so many do. I find that whenever I feel hampered by my fears, I am able to move outside their influence primarily because of my faith.

Speaking of faith, Jennie from A Lady in France regularly writes faith posts on her blog. I don't always agree with her completely, but I like her courage and appreciate her knowledge of scripture. Today on her post, On Being Good, she is helping to raise awareness of a non-profit that sprang from a beautiful collection of stories by grieving mothers, to which she contributed, who have lost a child: Sunshine After the Storm, Inc. They are working toward donating 100 copies of the book to hospitals and bereavement groups on Mother's Day and are accepting donations now. Please consider giving. I think it is a beautiful idea brimming with love for our fellow mothers. To find out more about this campaign, please visit Jennie's blog through the above link.