Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Bracelets for Chappy

 ***I removed the link because we only have a few bracelets left and they will be sold at the Chip in for Chappy Yard Sale in Alpine, UT on September 21st.  Thanks so much to everyone who donated!  I am truly humbled by your generosity.***
 


 
As many of you know, my brother-in-law Jeff "Chappy" Chapman was in a horrific motorcycle accident two weeks ago.  He always wears his helmet, and for some reason, on August 6th he didn't.  His head took the entire impact and two weeks later, he remains in a coma. 
I'm not sure how to describe Chappy to you.  He is truly one of the most warm-hearted, kind, generous, hard working, caring and friendly people I have ever known.  He loves my children and they absolutely adore Uncle Chappy.  He is my four-year-old Jonah's very best buddy.
When it comes to his wife and children, there is nothing more important to Jeff.  He is an amazing husband, father and step-father and would do anything for his children. And Chappy is as tough as they come.  Any professional will tell you it is an absolute miracle that he survived.  We are hoping and praying for the best possible recovery but it is still not clear how severely the damage to his brain will affect him.  We do know that even in the best case scenario, my sister Andrea, Chappy, and their three beautiful children have a very long road ahead.
I ordered these bracelets in hopes of raising some money for Chappy and his family.  They say TOUGH LIKE CHAPPY.  There is just one size and they fit AJ and I as well as our children. Please donate any amount you'd like and let me know how many of them you want.  I will get them shipped out as quickly as I can.  Feel free to Facebook message me or email at Tobiblake@gmail.com if you have any questions. Thank you in advance for your generosity in helping my sister's family.








 
 
 
 ***I removed the link because we only have a few bracelets left and they will be sold at the Chip in for Chappy Yard Sale in Alpine, UT on September 21st.  Thanks so much to everyone who donated!  I am truly humbled by your generosity.***

Friday, May 11, 2012

A Few Ideas from a Single Mother of Four



I haven’t written in a while, and the longer I stay away, the more overwhelmed I get with things to write about. In the past year, I have left the religion I was born into and believed in wholeheartedly for 26 years, ended a 9 year marriage, and last month me and my four children moved from Utah to Texas to be closer to their daddy. It has been a crazy year, but one that has brought more happiness and pure joy than any other. There are so many things I want to write about, but one thing in particular has been weighing on my mind lately so I figured that might be a good place to start.
I have a friend who is set to adopt 3 children from Africa anytime, and she and her husband recently found out that they are pregnant! I honestly can’t imagine going from zero to four children, but if anyone can do it, it is these two amazing people. They truly are an inspiring couple. Anyway, she recently mentioned, “You’re going to have to give me some pointers on how to be a mommy of four!” and it got me thinking. Since that day, I’ve thought of several things that might be helpful to her and others, and I have yet to put them down on paper. This is mostly because I don’t think I’m anything extraordinary when it comes to stay-at-home mothering, and I definitely do not want to come across as boastful or condescending. I do my best as a single stay-at-home mommy, and I love my job, but most days I feel like I’ve failed in at least a few areas.
Having not had the best experience with my own mother growing up, I was always determined to be the kind of mom I never had. While I feel like most days I’m just trying to do my best and barely succeeding, there have been a few things that I’ve found to be really helpful, and I thought I’d share them with you here. My hope is that other moms might read this post and share with me advice that they’ve found helpful, and maybe we can all just be better mommies for it! So here goes…
“Sit on the couch and think of a solution.” This is a sentence my children hear often. One child wants the toy, the other says it’s his, they come whining to me, and, you guessed it: “Go sit on the couch and think of a solution.” This has helped my kids in a lot of ways, and it takes me out of having to be the referee, one of my least favorite jobs as a mom. My rule is that they sit on the couch (or park bench, or floor, wherever we may be) until they’ve reached a conclusion that they are both happy with. Sometimes it takes 20 seconds, and sometimes it takes 10 minutes, but it works every time. While it is incredibly tempting, I try not to get involved at all in coming up with ideas for the solution because I want them to gain confidence in their problem-solving abilities. Sometimes one of them will whine to me something like, “Mom! He is saying he won’t let me have a turn!” I usually respond with, “I just know that you two can figure this out together.” If one of them is rude or says something inappropriate, they lose the right to come to a compromise and usually end up on their bed or in the corner for a few minutes. But that is rarely the case. The majority of the time, they will discuss the problem until they both have come up with a solution that they can live with, and then they go back to playing. It’s been fantastic. This works for all of my children (ages 8, 6, 4, and 3). I’ve found that the amount of contention between my children has greatly decreased since starting this practice. These days, they usually come to a compromise on their own so that they don’t have to hear me say, “Sit on the couch and think of a solution.”
As helpful as that is though, it is inevitable that my kids will fight and yes, even hurt each other at times. When they are being mean to each other, they serve their time in the corner, and then they “hug it out.” Usually, this means a solid 20 to 30 seconds of hugging. I think this physical contact is important, and it really does help all of the tension between them disappear. They start with a grumpy, dreading look on their faces, and by the end of holding each other for 20 seconds, they are almost always smiling and laughing. If one of them is not willing to hug it out, they go back to the corner until they’re ready. But that very rarely happens. I honestly think that they love it, even when they pretend that they don’t.
"Hug it out."
It is very important to me for my children to understand why they are being disciplined when they make negative choices. My ultimate goal as a mother is to teach my children how to live a life of happiness. When any of my children misbehave, one of the things they hear most often is, “I love you too much to let you behave that way because I know you won’t be happy making those choices.” Or “I love you too much to not teach you the right way to behave because I want you to be happy.” You get the picture. This seems to go over better than yelling, chastising, condescending, or berating.
In fact, most of my disciplining is done in a very unemotional, matter-of-fact tone. This has taken years of practice, and of course I have plenty of set backs. When I had my first child, I would take it personally when he misbehaved. I was incredibly hard on myself and I would get extremely frustrated wondering, "What am I doing wrong?" Usually I would take that frustration out on him through raising my voice when he made a wrong choice. I have learned though that a child misbehaving is just part of the process of learning and growing. It is my job to calmly let them know that they are still loved, that they are still good, but that the behavior will not be tolerated.
When I was married, my husband and I would take turns each Thursday night taking one of our children out for a “one on one” date. Since this is just not practical anymore, I now do one on ones each night. Every night, 3 of my children go to bed at 7:30 and one child stays up with me for 30 or 45 minutes. I silence my phone and put away any distractions, and we do whatever activity that child wants. We color, play legos, build a train track, play cards, take funny pictures, read books, watch a movie, whatever they want. During that time, I try and talk to them about how they’re doing, and give them what I call “positive affirmations,” which are concrete, simple, positive statements about him/her. I like to use their name when I say them. For example, I say, “Thomas, you are such a good boy. I love you.” Or “Chandler, you are the bravest boy I have ever met. I love being your mom.” Or  “Anna, I am very proud of you. You are such a good big sister to Jonah.” Or “Jonah, I love you. You are so special. I am so thankful to be your mommy.” I got this idea from my wonderful sister-in-law Kim. She gives her son positive affirmations each night at bedtime. These are things that I think every child would benefit from hearing. At first, it was a little uncomfortable for me to make such blunt statements, but now I absolutely love it. Their faces light up, sometimes they get bashful and giggle, or sometimes they just snuggle into me and wait for more. That’s my favorite.

Thomas and I playing the original Nintendo (the only video game I allow lol) and
Chandler and I making cookies on our One on Ones.
One of the most significant things that I feel like has helped our family is the lack of television in our home. I don’t have any TV channels and haven’t for years. I had Netflix On Demand for the past little while, but it hasn’t worked in Texas, so I decided to just cancel it and it hasn't been missed. I know this seems extreme to some, but I am really thankful that they are not exposed to the mainstream media. I love that they don’t see all of the advertisements that trigger all kinds of wants and “needs” in them. I remember watching commercials as a kid and thinking all of those sugary cereals looked so magical, and every toy was so enticing. It’s honestly really nice not to have to deal with them wanting everything they see on television. Speaking of sugary cereals…
I like to feed the kids a good breakfast. But they naturally love the sugary sweet cereals. I find a happy compromise in what the kids and I call “Saturday Cereal.” They look so forward to Saturday morning when they get to eat all the sugary cereal that their little hearts desire. I love not being begged for sugary cereals every other day of the week. It is reserved for Saturday morning and Saturday morning alone and they know that there are no exceptions. They each have their own special Saturday cereal bowl and they love it. I feel like it teaches them moderation and gives them something exciting to look forward to each week.
Thomas (left) makes me laugh in this picture. He said, "Mom! Did you see how I was crossing my eyes?!"
My oldest, Chandler, was born with a bilateral cleft lip and palate, and after 19 surgeries, he is doing pretty well. But bullying has definitely been an issue that we’ve dealt with. It can be difficult to get a little boy to open up about what he’s experiencing at school, and if I asked how his day was, no matter what the situation, I would get the same “fine” answer. So I started asking each of my children to tell me their favorite and least favorite part of their day on the drive home from school. I’ve found that this opens up a lot more discussion and doesn’t allow for a one-worded answer. I also try to ask them each day what they did at recess, and they’re usually excited to tell me about a new game they learned or what friends they played with, etc.
I do something similar when my kids return from their dad’s house. Every other Thursday when they’ve been with their dad for a few days, they come back to my house and we have cookies and milk. Each time, a different child gets to choose what kind of cookies he/she wants. We go around the table and each person (including me) gets to say their favorite and least favorite part of the past few days. This helps the transition go more smoothly from daddy’s to mommy’s house, and helps me stay informed about how they’re doing with their dad.
Another weekly tradition that my children look forward to is pizza and movie night each Friday. I make a homemade whole-wheat pizza (super simple recipe) with turkey pepperoni and then we have popcorn and watch a movie together. They love it. I believe that it builds a good foundation of trust and makes my children feel secure (even in the midst of change) when they have routines and happy traditions that don’t change.


Pizza and Movie Night
Finally, I want to share what I have found to help my stress levels more than anything else. As a single stay at home mother of four with MS, believe it or not, I sometimes have stressful days. My days are the worst when I have a lot on my plate, and my children just become an annoyance or an obstacle in the way of getting other things accomplished. I have found that the best thing to do when my children are driving me crazy and it seems like they won’t stop misbehaving or bothering me is to drop everything and have fun with them. Sometimes I fight it because I have too much to do, but it really always ends up saving me time and stress and brings me more happiness than most things in this life. I’ll get out a game, we'll play outside, or I'll read a book to them. My favorite is to find a way to make them laugh and get me laughing. We’ll tickle or wrestle each other, or turn on the radio and have what we call a “dance party." Sometimes, all we need is to lay down on the couch and snuggle together. They get the attention that they are craving, and I am reminded of what is most important. Usually after a little while of focussing on them, their needs and mine are met and they go off and do their own thing and I can get something else done.

Stress Relief.
So there you have it: Sit on the couch and think of a solution, hug it out, “I love you too much to allow you to behave that way,” nightly one on ones with positive affirmations, getting rid of TV, Saturday cereal, asking the favorite and least favorite part of their day or time at Dad’s house, pizza and movie night, and dropping everything to have fun with my children when things get too stressful.
 
If you’ve made it to the end of this rather boring novel, thanks. I hope you found something helpful.
Being a mother is my greatest joy. It’s all I have ever wanted to be. It has been the most incredible blessing of my life. I would love to hear any and all of your ideas on how to make it a little easier for all of us. Signing off for now. Anna and Jonah are driving me crazy. Time to have some fun. :-)

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Embrace the Chaos


We gave up television about 5 years ago. And I will never go back. After a few months without it, I wondered how we ever had time to watch anything on TV in the first place. There were walks to be had, books to be read, better, more healthy meals to be made, and, perhaps most importantly, quiet time to be savored. I have come to really appreciate and revel in quiet. And when I say quiet, I don't mean that my home is silent. Let's be real here. I have four kids, ages 8, 5, 4, and 2. Silence is a rarity in my home. And it's not always necessary. My children will tell you that some of our favorite times are our "dance parties" in the kitchen, where we turn up the radio and all go crazy busting out our best dance moves! But some of my most treasured moments as a mother are when all of the games, movies, fans, radios, and cell phones are silenced, and nothing is to be heard but the sounds of my children, laughing, playing, and yes, sometimes screaming and whining. I take a deep breath and with that breath, I try and take in all of the beauty that surrounds me. I know this may sound odd, but it really has helped me stay calm in the midst of the craziness of having four little children. Many of you who know me are well aware of my personal motto that I adopted after little Jonah was born: "Embrace the chaos." When things get crazy, and chaos abounds, it helps me immensely to just close my eyes and find gratitude in the noise...find gratitude for these precious little monsters. :) Because my life would be empty without those noises. It would be empty without the yelling, laughing, crying, stomping, begging, hugging, hitting, giggling chaos.

PS  One of my very favorite quotes is from the book Mitten Strings for God, which I highly recommend. It says, "When I come to a stop myself, when I draw a circle of stillness around me, my children are drawn into that peaceful place. They visibly relax, as if my very calmness nourishes them. The impact of just a few minutes of quiet attention can be profound, changing the mood of an entire day, restoring equilibrium to a distressed child, and to a frazzled mother as well."

Saturday, July 30, 2011

What's in a Name?

Figured I should let my readers know that there's another change I've made recently...I'm changing the spelling of my name from Toby to Tobi.  :-)  Here's how it happened....
We were sitting in mediation and the mediator asked, "Do you want to change your name back to your maiden?" And I said, "yes" and he said, "Do you want to change anything else about your name?"  And I was like, "HUH?  Didn't know I could..." and I said, "No thanks."  And then I got to thinking...I've always hated the masculine spelling of my name...so I called my Dad and told him that I had the oppurtunity to change it and I thought it would be cool to finally spell it the feminine way, but only if he was ok with it because it wasn't a big enough deal to me if he didn't want me to and he was like, "I couldn't care less! Do it!" So I called the mediator and told him that I wanted to change it to Tobi.  :-)  Maybe I won't get quite so much mail for Mr. Toby Bushman anymore.  hehe

Divorce and the Disease.

Well, this is a post I've been avoiding for a long time.  To be perfectly honest, it's humiliating.  I have put on a "happy marriage" face for a long, long time and my blog has been no exception. It's been a rough few months to say the least.  I've been under a lot of stress and undergone a lot of heartache, as have my children and my soon-to-be ex-husband.  But I'm thankful to report that my symptoms have been surprisingly few for the amount of stress I've been under.  Getting used to life as a single mother, accepting the failure of my 9-year marriage, moving out of our beautiful home into a small apartment, and trying to figure out how to survive on what little money I have, among other things, has been incredibly difficult.  There are days where I just want to lay in bed and cry, and yet, my four precious children need me.  They need me to be strong, and positive, and courageous.  These sweet kids have kept me going.  They are my motivation...my purpose.  I am so blessed to have them. 
I have decided to return to the Swank diet.  I went on the Swank diet a few years ago because my neurologist thought it would help me.  I was on it for about 9 months.  And help me it did.  Then I got pregnant with Jonah, and never really went back to it.  For those of you who are unfamiliar with the lifestyle, it's basically a fat free diet with a few other details.  There is plenty of info at http://www.swankmsdiet.org/.  Want to start together?  Join me!  Let me know how you're doing!  We can help each other. 

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Big Day for Thomas

Sorry, I'm really bad at figuring out how to arrange these pictures.  We had Thomas' preschool graduation yesterday and it was so cute.  He did great and was really happy and proud of himself.  Thomas is such a special little guy.  He's incredibly tenderhearted and he's got a definite fear of being vulnarable or embarassed in any way.  So I was so proud of him for staying up there with his class and singing all of the songs, and just smiling when people clapped and laughed at the cuteness of it all.  He's come a long way this year and I couldn't be more proud.  His teachers, Ms. Lindsay and Mrs. Webb have been amazing and I'm sure he will miss seeing them.  I love you Thomas!!!


 





Monday, May 23, 2011

Random Pictures of Recent Happenings

Here are a few pictures I just uploaded from my phone. 

The kids had a car wash and started with the go-kart.  Then they helped their daddy wash the van.  Funny how exciting this is for little kids.  They had so much fun.

 They love bubble baths.
 I got to go with Chandler on his fieldtrip to the zoo.  We had a blast!  He's on the far left.
 Caught Anna and Jonah sitting like this watching a movie and had to take a picture. 
 This was Jonah during family prayer tonight.  He is such a character.  Wore that medal around his neck and a head band in his hair all day today.  He's hilarious.  I know, I shouldn't be taking pictures during prayers but I couldn't help myself.  haha
 And Thomas learned to tie his shoes!  So proud of my litte man.