Questions They Ask

I have to share two of our conversations with you. And no, the picture has nothing to do with them, it's just cute. Ready?

Nate and i were outside yesterday waiting for Ev to get off the bus. He's digging in the dirt and scoops up some worms as is very excited, especially since in church on Sunday morning my friend Beth got it in her head she needed worms for her lesson. And you know what it had rained overnight? Yup. Worms. I'm talking worms like you've never seem worms before. ALL over the parking lot. (we get out of the van and lizzy halts in her tracks: Snake, mommy!!!!! SSSSSSSSSSSSSS!--- that was a bonus conversation you're privvy too). Boy, i wish i'd taken a picture. Anyway, she grabbed some and the kids thought they were way cool. Anyway:

He spots a poor causality in the driveway, the poor thing is long gone. i can tell that from my perch near the garage.

Nate: Mommy, another worm!!!!
Me: oh, i see it. (i pause while he inspects it very closely) I think he's dead, buddy.
Nate: (processing) He could be asleep.
Me: yeah, i suppose he could be...but i think he's dead.
Nate: (processing...he does this a lot...and sometimes it takes awhile...like days...to come back to a question, but he's fairly prompt this time) Do worms take naps?
Me: (stumped) Uh. Well...uh...i guess?
Nate: He could be taking a nap.
Me: (i'm totally gonna leave it at that) He may be. You're right.

Later that day...

A little background: Evan had taken his sunglasses (yes! we needed them yesterday!) up to the crappy park at the end of our street. And using "crappy" to describe this park is nice, trust me. The equipment is falling apart and it's way too big for little ones like Lizzy to be on, but that's not even the main reason i don't like it. Instead of mulch or rubber pieces under the equipment, it's got those tiny little rocks. You know, the ones that get in your shoes and the kids underwear and the dust from them ensures that they have to have a bath even though they just had one that morning... ok, done. i don't like it. But his friend from school was up there so i conceeded.

This is what i find out ten minutes after the fact: Evan had asked his friend, Sam, if he looked cool in his sunglasses. Sam apparently told him no he thought they were ugly. (nice, right? kid's not earning points in my book, thus far) Sooooo.....instead of just taking them off or shrugging it off or setting them on the picinic table or putting them in his pocket (are you gettitng the point? there were several options here) He buries them in the rocks and loses them.

i bring the two little ones up with me to meet Evan after we cleaned all our paraphanelia out of the cul de sac and see Evan digging all in the rocks. He confesses. I'm not happy. But i help him look. I even go to piles he claims he was nowhere near.

We don't find them. I tell him it's time to go home and eat and i guess they're just gone.

He's sad. I'm unhappy.

But i make pancakes and sausage. That makes everyone happy right?

So we sit down. Evan says the prayer. He thanks God for our food and adds at the end: "God please help me find my sunglasses."

After we sit down, i tell him it doesn't matter what that kid thought of him. i tell him i thought he looks good in his glasses, Nate thinks he does. His buddy Brayden had just told him, "i think you look cool in those glasses!" I tell him the only thing that matters is what God thinks.

He was quiet for a couple minutes while we started to eat.

Evan: Does God control us?
Me: (last question i expected) No, God lets us make our own choices.
Evan: (nodding in understanding) oh. (slight pause) How does He make our skeleton move?
Me: (where's daddy when i need him?) God made our bodies so that we can make them move by ourselves.
Evan: (i guess this was a good enough answer) oh. cool.
Nate: (finally piping in) God made us!
Lizzy: (waving her fork filled with pancake in the air for emphasis) God made da fishies!!!!!!

They listen! They really do! Well, sometimes. ;)

And, for the record, Dustin took Evan back up to the park after dinner and found those silly glasses. Thank you God for paying attention to the little things. :)