And oh, they are boys! Since I found out Ty was going to be a boy, I've been very interested in the art of raising boys. I've read books and blogs, talked to friends, and watched shows. But what's stuck with me the most so far actually came from Dean's sermon this past week. In my opinion, it was one of his best, and one of the most needed sermons that I've ever heard. Besides challenging the men to actually be men and quit being "ben"s, it continued to instill the importance of my role in helping our boys become men. Men of God. It's a little daunting, I must add. And let's face it, when it comes down to it, I really feel like I don't know what I'm doing because I'm not a man (yes, that was Captain Obvious there)! But there are a few things I've picked up along the way.
Right now, I have to start with the basics. I understand how important it is for Dean and I to value our marriage because that's the model that Tommy and Ty will use in the way they treat women. So we have a date night tomorrow night! We try to always let the boys see how much we love and respect one another.
I engage Tommy in lots of theological discussions. This morning on the way to school we talked about what happened to the people who died in the flood during Noah's time (didn't fully discuss Hell, just talked about separation from God), which transitioned into what an incredible gift it was that God would give Jesus to die for our sins so that we wouldn't have to take that punishment that we so rightly deserve. I think he is able to understand snippets from all of these conversations.
I let them be boys. Tommy's really into wrestling (if you couldn't tell from the picture), and as much as I hate it, I let them watch it with Dean and make an effort to know what's going on in the wrestling world. John Cena's my favorite.
Lots of times I put my own "mommy" spin on things. For example, Tommy loves to play out back and he pretends he's hunting for animals in our backyard. He wants me to do the same and we each have sticks for guns. I can't bring myself to shoot an animal, even a pretend one with a stick, so I always say that my gun shoots something other than bullets. Today it was jelly beans. And he was fine with that.
