What's love got to do with a roach?

What a way to start the day! The morning routine was anything but predictable, what with me grabbing the toilet roll only to realize that I held in my hands a roach that writhed and wriggled for its dear life! I dropped that despicable thing and it fell on my lap!! 

Screaming at the top of my lungs, I ran out of the toilet and the hubby said calmly (as though this was an everyday occurrence), "I should have filmed it down." 

I was expecting nice-sounding, loving, sympathetic words to precede a heroic act. After 14 years, I'm still trying to get used to the fact that his love language is acts of service and not words.

But in a life and death situation such as this (life for me and death for the roach obviously), actions are most definitely valued over words.

In hindsight, the whole episode was rather hilarious. Imagine a half-crazed woman dashing out of the loo to be faced with a very willing audience of two. The kids respond to screaming of the blood-curdling type very much faster than the yelling of the high strung mum sort.

Bear in mind that I was answering nature's call when it all happened. My reflex action was to dash out and not pull up.

No nurturing mum image here. It looked like I was caught in the act with my pants down (literally). That was the sight that greeted the kids. Throughout this whole saga, the hubby was sitting in bed, looking at his phone. 

And he said those words.

He then proceeded to confront the enemy and deftly defeated it.

Who knew that a random incident such as this could stir up feelings of love very unexpectedly. I started to recall the many acts of love he had shown consistently over the years. It was easy to take for granted the seemingly mundane acts which often pale in drama to the romantic allure of flowers, gifts, fine dining and heart-melting declarations of love.

As I type, the hubby is helping me pack my laptop and stuff so that the bag can be ready for work tomorrow. He bathes the kids more often than I do, reads to them before bedtime (covers my reading duties when I'm feeling lazy), babysits them without complaint when I hang out with my friends. And not forgetting exterminating pests and bugs of all kinds and training our son to do likewise. (E now picks up dead baby lizards with a tissue and tries to gross his sister out with it.)

The list of mundane acts goes on. 

Gosh, this is beginning to make me sound like a sloth. I work hard. I do. Really. Real hard.

I am guilty of placing a lesser value on those little acts of love. Today, I remember and I am thankful. I now know to look beyond the words (or the lack of) to find one who will rise to the occasion, whatever the need.

Not ending this with "I love yous" and other mushy gushy WORDS. I'll go make him a cup of hot drink instead.

I couldn't resist including this photo :) My man of action!

Thankful Today: Smile

I remember it was a bad day. But I forgot to gripe about it.

It was time for bed and what greeted me were the smiling faces of my beloved trio.

All snuggled up in a toddler bed.

The perfect finale to an imperfect day.

I am thankful for little things that make my day and I am learning to open my eyes and heart to recognize that the blessings of God abound even in a seemingly bad day.

Linking up with:

Lessons on Wheels

The value of learning a new sport goes beyond the obvious physical benefits. E had his first inline skating lesson on Sunday and it was very interesting to see him in action

The first part of the lesson was monotonous and exhausting. E had to practise the basics repeatedly on a grass patch. He sneaked longing glances at a group of kids who were whizzing around on their blades. He must be feeling somewhat immobilized and bored stiff, performing what seemed like meaningless and repetitive tasks. He wanted to soar but had to first go through the grind. 

It became even more challenging when he moved from the grass patch to the ground. He kept falling and had difficulty getting up. So it was back to the grass patch to relearn the basic techniques. I think it is especially frustrating for a kid with his personality. He is impatient, likes to take short cuts and has trouble focusing on the task at hand (when it gets boring). And that is precisely why this sort of training is ideal for him.

Progress was painfully slow. It did not help that his instructor was getting impatient with him. E was getting distracted and the instructor kept on saying,"Are you listening to me?" 

What happened next was very enlightening.

Another instructor took over. She was patient and affirming. She praised E for his effort and for whatever little progress he made. The change in E was evident. He was struggling a while ago but progressed quickly with coaching from the second instructor. 

What I witnessed here made me realize (with a stronger conviction) what I've always known but failed to take seriously. E needs a lot of affirmation in order to be motivated. Seeing the power of affirmation at work before my very eyes jolted me out of my complacency. I was complacent with my young child's vulnerable self-esteem. I was dishing out affirmation in bite-sized portions but was generous with angry, careless words.

With this new found confidence, E started to give instructions to another boy who was still a little wobbly. The bossy side emerged or to say it affirmatively, it's the leader in him :)

The instructor asked E to rest but he said he was not tired and wanted to keep learning. I was pleasantly surprised. I hope the process of learning a new sport will teach E perseverance. I want him to experience for himself, hard work pays off. The joy and satisfaction of accomplishment will not elude him if he puts in his very best. 

I'm so proud of you, my boy, for not giving up even when you were discouraged and tired.

What an enriching lesson for both mummy and son. In fact, it was an enriching time for the whole family. Hubby and I took turns to jog and Baby C had fun picking up sticks and leaves. After procrastinating for ages, I'm glad to finally put on my running shoes.

It's going to be a regular affair because E will be having lessons twice a week. Since we are at the park, we might as well go for a jog. Looks like the decision to sign E up for lessons is a very wise one! 

E and I at the trial class

E's first lesson the next day. Trying to keep his balance

A new friend

Yippee! On the move at last!

Baby C loves the great outdoors too