Just up there being DEAD!!

The other night after saying our nightly prayers, Avery tells me "We forgot to pray for Nanny".  (Nanny is Avery's great, great grandmother that recently passed away at the age of 91.)  So we stopped, prayed for Nanny, and proceeded to our nightly rituals.  Avery, however, wanted to make sure that we knew that Nanny was still in the ground "in her casket" but was confused how she was also in heaven.

  I attempted (very good I might add) at describing death in this way:  "Avery, do you remember when you had that dream about flying in an airplane?  Even though, in your dream it was like you were in that plane, truly you never left your bed.  Your brain was in the dream but your body was still right here in this bed.  Dying is sorta the same way.  Nanny's body is still in the ground, still in the casket, still covered in dirt.  But her spirit, her heart, her soul, her brain...all of those things are up in heaven with Jesus and everyone else."

While I know this analogy is a bit off base spiritually, it seemed to have made sense to her.  Her body language and facial expressions made me think that this actually got through to her.  I felt pride in myself thinking that I had finally explained it in an understandable way. I liked the way this conversation was going.

Avery stopped and asked, "What do you think Nanny is doing right now?".  Well, knowing how much my Nanny loved to cook and understanding that she was the best cook ever, I responded by saying "Oh, Avery I bet she's up in heaven cooking up some good 'ole chicken and dumplings".  "I bet she's fixing some biscuits and chocolate gravy because that's my favorite" stated April.

Avery responded by saying "Well, I think Nanny is just up there being dead".
Not knowing how to respond, we proceeded right to bed.

Maybe, just maybe, the conversation wasn't as good as I had thought.....

A big heart....

Today, when dropping Avery off at school (day care) she received one of the nicest compliments from one of her teachers.  For the holidays, her day care was collecting canned foods and coats for the needy.  We brought in a few cans of food and Avery, very carefully and delicately, began placing them in the big box that was used for collecting all the food.  One of the teachers looked over and saw the pride and love that Avery had as she placed the cans inside.  This teacher stated: "For someone so small, Avery has one of the biggest hearts I know". 

That made me smile.....and feel very blessed.  Avery has a loving, caring, and giving heart.  I pray that her heart never gets hardened by circumstances or situations that happen in life.  She does have a big heart!!!

Off to the North Pole

On Sunday, April, Avery and I made a day trip to Chattanooga.  While there we visited Rock City (which Avery declared was "COOL") and took a train ride to the North Pole.

The North Pole, you ask?  Why yes!  We boarded our train at the Tennessee Valley Railroad Authority and despite a short ride, we certainly ended up at the North Pole.  While there Santa boarded our train car first.  Avery was like a deer in headlights.  She was a bit shocked that Santa came right on board and sat down with her.  "W", Avery's Magic Elf, went along with us, so Avery had to show Santa that she was taking good care of him. 

This was such an enjoyable trip for all of us.  Hopefully, this will be a memory that Avery holds special. 

Waiting....

During children's church last Sunday the topic was on Advent.  Aleesa, one of our ministers and a close friend, was leading the lesson and asked the question, "What are we waiting for?".  I'm sure Aleesa intended for the children to respond by saying "We are waiting for Christmas" or even "We are waiting for Santa".  Avery promptly raises her hand and responds "We are waiting for church to be over!!" 

I've got sunshine on a cloudy day...

Today the weather was very rainy and dreary.  In fact, it was one of those "stay in my pajamas and watch lifetime movies" kind of day.  However, when I dropped Avery off to school I realized that although it was a yucky day weather-wise I had more sunshine standing beside me than most people see in their lifetime.

I am blessed!!!

Picture

We went to Christmas Village and we got Avery's picture made by this really sweet Lady, Mary! Here it is!

Happy Trick or Treat!!

Last night we had a fun evening Trick or Treating.  Avery's Nana and Poppa drove down from Decatur.  Their reasoning was that "Avery is almost five and we have never seen her on Halloween".
We enjoyed their company!!

This year Avery finally understood the "Trick or Treating" concept.  She had a ball running from house to house.  She kept cracking me up by knocking on the door and saying "Happy Trick or Treat". 
I will post more pictures soon!! 

Here's more photos: