Gláucia Mir | artist » willik

Willik is 8

glaucia — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 16:30:21 +0000

As of Sunday, our first born, Willik, is 8. Happy birthday Willik!!

I can’t believe how big he’s getting.

He’s had a great year, and has transitioned very well. He enjoys the new house, especially the backyard, and will soon be enjoying the much desired tree house, as Fab is getting read to build it.

He has made friends easily, done a superb job with school, ace-ing everything on the report cards. He played soccer this spring and had a great time getting back into it. He’s very tall, loves to smile, and still will read anyone under the table. (Just this evening, he started and finished a whole book, Magic Tree House’s Christmas in Camelot) He retains all kinds of trivia, and continually wants to share it with all with us. He will talk to anyone who will listen.

He is extremely generous and sensitive, very much a perfectionist, and has grown a lot emotionally and spiritually.

He had a great birthday, which ended with me making a cake I’d never made before. Carrot cake with tart chocolate ganache icing. This was Willik’s request(it’s my mom’s recipe) and it turned out yummy. He took a version of these as cupcakes, as a treat to celebrate his birthday at school.

a broken pinky

glaucia — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 03:01:38 +0000

The news around our house is that Willik now has a broken pinky.

Specifically, he has a buckle fracture on his left little finger, in the middle phalanx.

Aren’t you glad to be able to learn about anatomy through my son’s tragedy?

Anyway, he broke it while playing with his uncle, down in Maryland. Tossing a football around, and then receiving one that bend his pinky back.

Willik seems to have a history of having bad injuries down in Maryland.

I, myself don’t have a very good memory of Maryland. I actually have Maryland labeled as a hot dog state. That’s a blog entry for another time.

Anyone have a bad relationship with any states? Please leave a comment. If you don’t have any bad relationships, leave a comment about good one. Just leave a comment!

weekend activities – in no particular order…

glaucia — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 19:24:51 +0000

school was cancelled on friday
we spent all day friday at home
I finally got over my cold
we spotted red cardinals in our backyard.
I chatted(over facebook) with an indonesian friend
the boys played lots of video games
fabio and I got to watch a movie and be cozy on the couch(yay! Thank God no more school!)
we moved Willik into the playroom. Now each boy has their own bedroom.
I made cookies
I shopped for Christmas
I took pictures of the ice in our backyard(check out my photoblog for upcoming photos)
we got all dressed for church, but unbeknownst to us, church was cancelled
Fabio shoveled(or better yet) chiseled ice, to get our sidewalk and driveway cleaned
lots of presents got wrapped

what did you do this weekend?

climbing the walls

glaucia — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 17:01:11 +0000

Our boys have been climbing the walls.

I mean, literally…. watch this video…

That’s the hardest thing about the summer. The boys just have energy galore. They have no school. So I have them all day, and I’m trying to come up with a variety of activities.

We’ve gone out everyday. Trips ranging from the library, to Botanical Gardens, to the beach. But still, if they’re home for any length of time, they are driving me up the walls. Though I cannot climb like Willik. Phoenix is desperately trying to learn, but his legs just don’t reach far enough yet.

So, if you think of it, say a prayer for my sanity in these last 2 weeks in this house. With no backyard. And mostly no Fabio.

And if you care to, you can take a look at some of my photos from our Canada week. Enjoy!

mother’s day poem and other goodies

glaucia — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:25:05 +0000

Mother’s Day is a wonderful day, and I’m glad Anna Jarvis wanted to honor her mom. That’s what kids should do. Honoring and respecting everyone is not just a nice thing, it is what makes or breaks any relationship.

So, mother’s day with young kids can feel at times, like more of a battle of wills than a celebration. That’s pretty much what I felt like, from when I first got out of bed. Right away I was having to “fight” to be listened to. That doesn’t get your day going well, no matter what day it is. I was glad it was Sunday, because after missing last Sunday’s service due to the Bike Tour, I was eager to see our friends, and help lead the music. I knew that just being at church would help me feel better about mother’s day.

The Friday night prior, the day we decided to make an offer on a house after yet another house hunting trip, Phoenix had already given me the gift he’d made at school. It’s a white plate which has the personalized drawing which Phoenix made for me, along with a card. It was a great drawing, and I’ll post it here later.

Willik had given me a note from the teacher to all the mothers, but had expressed that he had 2 more things to give me, which he’d give me on Saturday, and the the final one on Sunday.

As it turns out, he’d left his presents at my parents’ house, so he was not able to give me the gifts until yesterday evening, There was a wardrobe sachet, and a little fill-in the blank book about what to give your mom.

But the real treasure was a poster laminated to work as a place mat, which had a drawing and a poem. The poem is what is really amazing. Read it for yourself.

Just so you know, I cried as I read thru it, and I cracked up too. The day ended on a good note, and I’m so glad I get to be the mom to these 2 wonderful, rambunctious and sweet little boys. I pray for much wisdom, patience, and sense of humor, as I attempt to lead them to follow God’s ways. Keep me in your prayers.

Proud moments – part 1

glaucia — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 17:45:19 +0000

I don’t know how much I’ve talked about this before on the blog, but I thought I should tell you about how incredibly generous Willik is.
Probably about 8 months ago, he decided that he wanted to give money to World Vision, because he heard or read about kids starving somewhere, and he was moved and saddened by it all. He got some money together, and we sent it to them, with his name on it. Now I’m partially regretting having put his name on it, because whenever the mail from World vision comes, he feels as if he has to give.
A couple months ago, he emptied his bank, and gave me everything he had, in order to send it to hungry people. I even argued with him, reminding him about how he would have nothing left to possibly buy something he might want later on, but he was unconvinced, and said he understood, and he wanted to send it anyway. That was something like $32.
Well, yesterday, he read some other letter from World Vision, and they had pictures of little kids in Africa going hungry. He wondered whether he’d have any money in his bank.
Now just so everyone understands, he’s been getting a bit of an allowance for the past couple months, usually $2 or $3 depending on what he does as far as chores. He knows to give 10% at church, so there’s not much he gets. Not only that, but he wants a Nintendo Wii, and so he and Phoenix decided to join together and gather the money they got, so they can save up for a Wii. They are about half way there, so far, with all the Christmas money.
Well, yesterday, when he did look in his bank, he had $10. I reminded him about the Wii.
His response was “A Wii is not more important than kids starving in Africa!” and with that he pointed his finger out the window saying “SEND IT!” This time around I didn’t even argue. I just cried. And hugged him!
It’s one of those moments I always want to remember. It makes me happy and proud to think of what kind of man he will become! Praise God!

Track meet at 6

glaucia — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 23:09:46 +0000

When I was 6, I guess I was learning to read and write, and playing with friends from church. Mostly good, clean fun, but uneventful.
Willik, on the other had, has been in a free summer program, learning all about the sports of track & field.
Cityparks Foundation is a nonprofit organization that promotes events in the nyc parks, and they provided this as well. Twice a week there was a track & field training, where they learned the different sports like long jump, javelin, relay, and hurdles. It was an hour long for the PeeWees, and longer for older kids. They learned to stretch and warm-up before racing too.
Yesterday was the big track meet, including kids from 13 parks, from all over the city! It was a great sight, and alot of fun. It was a beautiful day. Fabio took off from work, and we were joined by my sister to see Willik compete. He competed in Long Jump and 55m hurdles. He did awesome. His personal best at long jump is 7ft.2in.

he’s a big boy now!!!

glaucia — Tue, 06 Mar 2007 18:11:57 +0000

A few weeks ago, Willik showed signs of his first loose tooth.
I was kinda shocked by it, because I thought it didn’t start til 6 or 7. I guess I’ve just seen another boy from church who is 7 with a few windows, and I figured that was the beginning. Willik is 5 and a half.
Anyway, on and off, he was touching, feeling it, complaining about it. I was telling him to leave it alone, because I din’t want him to hurt himself.
Well, you can imagine my surprise, when he runs out of school, yesterday, with a big toothless “window” grin. He was so excited, and he had his tooth in a little tooth-shaped necklace.
Apparently, he pulled it off on his own, during carpet time in class. “And it didn’t even hurt one bit”, he said.
The tooth fairy did make her visit, though he didn’t realize it at first, cause he didn’t really know how and where he would find evidence of her visit. He did say that she “flies to the house of the person that looses their teeth and leaves them money.” I told him to check under the pillow. He found $5.
Anyway, all this to say that this is a big sign of him growing up. Another little kid milestone completed. I’ll just keep praying hard, that he will become the great man God wants him to be!

Isn’t he cute with his “open window”?

a sensitive boy!

glaucia — Tue, 24 Oct 2006 12:02:36 +0000

I think it’s an important quality to have. Being sensitive, that is. I treasure that in Fabio. I believe when men are senstive they have better relationships with the women in their lives. But especially compassion. Having compassion is huge. It’s what Jesus was like, and it’s what is asked of us in the bible several times, including Colossians 3:12 where we are to “clothe [ourselves] with compassion”.
Well, that is a characteristic which Willik has had since he was very young, but I recently noticed it again one day when we were in the car, on our way home from school. This happened within the first month or so of school, when we were still struggling with Willik cring and not wanting to go to school, and hating the cafeteria in the morning, cause it was so big, and there were so many people.
Anyway, we were listening to a song by Kirk Franklin named Lean on Me.
As Willik heard this song, he started to cry, because of the boy it mentions, and what the boy was going thru. Go listen!
Anyway, as me and Willik talked, I was all choked up and teary-eyed too. I loved it that Willik could cry because of someone else’s pain. In that moment, I was very thankful and very proud as a parent. It didn’t really matter that he was struggling at school with being a small kindergarten guy, or that he was having some “behaving” troubles. At that moment, I knew that part of his character was awesome, and it was a lot more valuable than anything he or anyone else could learn in school.
Praise God for the compassionate man that Willik will grow up to be!

Kindergarten butterflies

glaucia — Wed, 06 Sep 2006 06:35:46 +0000

The day started with a very tired Willik, having arrived from Florida around 10:30, but going to bed around midnight, it wasn’t the ideal restful night before the big day, but… such is life.
Since Fabio wasn’t working today, Phoenix got to stay with dad, while Willik and I made our way to his new school.
We didn’t encounter much traffic, and after a short go around, I found a spot just down the block from the school.
We took our time getting out of the car, and then Willik started to express his feelings of shyness, hurting stomach, and general unhappiness about what was to come. I told him they were butterflies in his tummy.
We made our way to the front of the school, and I took this chance to get some photos of him, which clearly show his “unsure” expressions.
We hung around for a while before attempting to enter the school. I was going to get to stay in his school for an hour, and then it would be students only…
The guard told us to wait at the side entrance, and at this point we saw a familiar face–someone from Rainbow; that immediately made Willik feel a bit better, and just a bit more relaxed.
Finally, after standing around for several minutes, we were ushered inside, toward his new classroom. Everyone slowly made their way into the class–kids getting name tags, parents shaking the teacher’s hand and introducing ourselves.
Everything looked neat and colorful. Everything had a place and everyone had a place to sit with their name on it. A unit wth 4 desks, each with his or her own sopace for storing all the new school supplies we brought in.
They started right away working on a craft project, and as time passed, Willik seemed really into it, getting 2 instead of 1 “person” made. I took more photos, and tried to take it all in.
After everyone finished their projects, some parents started to leave.
Then came a story, “The Kissing Hand” with another related craft, intended to help the children feel okay about missing mom and dad, and what to do when missing them.
At this point, I started getting ready to leave, and this is when, again, Willik started to get very attached to me; he wanted to sit on my lap, he wanted to hug me, he wanted me to stay, or to go with me.
I expected that this would be hard for the first few days, but I guess I didn’t imagine what it might “look” like.
Willik is generally easy going, loving and playful, but he’s not usually very attached to me, or clingy. He likes to have fun, and genrally speaking, is pretty well-adjusted, but he definetly was showing a different side today.
I managed to encourage him to stay and try to enjoy, and that I’d be back soon. I left, and at my last glance, his attention seemed to have gone to other things.
In less than 2 hours, I had to be back at the school, so, I ran a couple errands, got Fabio and Phoenix, and we made our way back to P.S. /I.S. 499. We were early, we got a good parking spot, and we waited a long time before dismissal. The teachers only released the kids to us when they saw our faces.
Willik looked happy, and well adjusted, and happy to see us.
He said he will only have “a little bit” of butterflies tomorrow…

He did look very cute in his uniform clothes, and his teacher, Mrs. Shirata seems really nice. I even hear she’s one of the top teachers for the lower grades. Yay! Click on the link belo for pictures, and let me know what you think…
One down, One to go –Phoenix’s first day is tomorrow.

kindergarten slideshow

Willik is in Florida

glaucia — Tue, 29 Aug 2006 17:31:24 +0000

Willik left for Florida sunday night.
He’ll be away for 10 days.
My parents and sister took him, as a present for his 5th birthday.
They’ll go to all the parks in Orlando, and also a brazilian churches conference over the holiday weekend.
When Phoenix was saying his final goodbye to Willik, and realizing that he really wasn’t going along, he got very sad, his bottom lip came out, and his voice quivered, as he said “But I want to go too!”
We managed to divert his attention and he’s doing fine, though when waking up the next morning, he called for Willik, first thing.

They called us last night to let us know how they are doing. I think Willik talked to me for about 20+ minutes, telling me about all the rides and things he could remember. I don’t think he’s ever talked that long on the phone before. I guess that’s what the world of Disney does to ya.
Yesterday was Epcot, today will be Magic Kingdom.

Unfortunately for him, the day after he returns will be his first day of Kindergarten, so he won’t have any time to readjust, share stories, or rest. Life is tough sometimes!!!

a summer without water

glaucia — Thu, 13 Jul 2006 07:16:42 +0000

That’s what Willik is in for.
Yesterday, while playing at school, he fractured his wrist, while landing hard on his left hand.
We’d hoped it was just a sprain, since he seemed able to move everything well, and though in some pain, it didn’t seem out of the ordinary.
After a night of very disturbed sleep, as well as a complaint of pain right after waking up, a trip to the emergency was definetely in order.
We chose to go to a hospital close to my parents’house, as the energency would be treated quicker than any hospital in Queens. We were right as triage, registration, and x-rays all happened within about an hour of our arrival. Unfortunately, pediatrics got busy, and x-rays weren’t analyzed for another hour and a half. By this time it was time for lunch, and Willik enjoyed a nice plate of chicken nuggets and fries. Not so bad from a kid’s point-of-view. We even played chutes and ladders, I had brought along a hand-held tetris-like game, and Willik loved that!
Finally, it was confirmed that he had fractured his radius bone, with an impacted fracture, which seems to be a “good” one, since there are no small pieces briken off, It just broke into itself. And there was also a bend, to the ulna bone. But that seems to really minor, because he doesn’t seem to have any swelling or pain in that area.

All in all, a good day was had. He has a cast all the way from the base of his fingers, all the way to just below his armpit. Apparently, the reason for such a big cast is due to the fact that, he shouldn’t rotate his forearm, and casting all the way up is the only way to keep it safe from moving.

Now, he has to not have any water in/near the cast. Now, that means a crummy summer, with no sprinkler, or pool, or water balloons. I think he will have to stay home from school/summer camp, since he can’t play in most of the outside activities.

Phoenix just got lucky. He gets to go to school instead. We weren’t gonna enroll him til September, but I think we’re gonna switch their enrollments, that way, Phoenix gets to start experimenting with school (which he askes about every day), and Willik gets some along time with me, and we work on some cool projects together, before he goes to Kindergarten and becomes a big boy who doesn’t care about mom.

I’ll try and post a picture tomorrow.

the end of the saga…

glaucia — Tue, 16 May 2006 19:47:12 +0000

about where Willik will attend Kindergarten.
I’ve been meaning to write about it for some time, and by now many of you know that Willik did get in to the special lottery school I wrote about before.
I have been hesitant to write, as I’ve almost been in disbelief over it, though I have been equally excited, if not more than equally thankful, about how good God is!!!!

I guess about a month ago, we got a letter in the mail, saying that Willik got a spot in the school, if we wanted it. We had to send a postcard with our reply, which we filled out immediately, and dropped off at the nearest post office, praying as we did, that the postcard would arrive safely. We then received a registration packet, and then I went and registered him yesterday, and in the evening, we attended an open house at the school.
Now that all that is done, I feel like I can really say with confidence, that his school is set, and we’re golden.
God is amazing, in what he’s accomplished, because with only 12 seats available, and all 7 districts being represented, the chances were small to begin with; and then within our district, he came in 4th, which by all intents and purposes, was impossible to get in, but God knew what would be good for Willik, and he is in.
We loved the tour last night, and now it will make it harder to leave New York, having such a good school for him, but again, God has great plans for our family, whatever the case.
So thanks again for all who prayed, and please continue to pray and thank God for this, another of his miracles and provisions!

soccer mom beginnings

glaucia — Sun, 26 Mar 2006 06:32:24 +0000

Willik had his very first soccer practice and game this morning, at 9 am.
He’d been excited about it, and so was I, being from brazil, soccer is in your blood, even as a woman. The whole family woke up early, including Fabio, and my sister, who was sleeping over to join us this morning, and we made our way to join the Woodhaven Soccer Club.

If you were out in New York the last few days, you know that it’s been pretty nice, reaching into the 50s this week, and I walked around with only a sweatshirt, but boy, was today different. It was cloudy and windy, and probably in the 30s, and freezing. Most parents were saying “this is crazy” as kids attempted to play, with winter jackets on, covered by the team colored shirts over it. It was indeed just one part of the craziness.

If you know Willik, you know that he is a perfectionist already; he’s very happy when he’s good at something right away, but if something is a bit more challenging, he’s usually quick to give up trying. We’ve been encouraging him to try, but not with much success.
So, you could imagine what it was like, as halfway into the game, he started to cry, and wanted to stop playing. He’d been running around, like the other kids, chasing the ball, sometimes getting to touch it, but in his mind, he wasn’t doing very well…
He thought:
1) that he’d lied, because he hadn’t scored a goal yet, and he’d told us he was going to.
2) that since he’d fallen, and got “run over” that he wasn’t doing good.
3) that since he wasn’t in control of the ball at all times, that he didn’t want to play cause it was “too hard”

We, on the other hand, thought he was doing really well, because he was actually chasing after the ball, when some kids were just standing there, not moving at all. We were also really proud of how he kept going after it, even when he wasn’t the quickest, or the most powerful one.

When half time came around, both me, my sister and Fabio really tried to encourage him, even after he’d gotten a bit hurt, that he should keep going, and that he was doing great. We told him that everyone was still learning, and that all this was what soccer was all about. Team effort, and trying something that you aren’t perfect at; and that we were proud of him for continuing, and that it didn’t matter what he scored or didn’t score, that we still loved him, no matter what. Phoenix, when he wasn’t running around chasing his own mini soccer ball, was also cheering for Willik. It was so cute!

It was hard to keep telling him to go on, even as he was crying, saying he didn’t want to do play. I think it was a stretching time, as a mom, to let it go, and realize that letting him suffer a little now, meant less suffering later on; if you never try hard at anything.
I had to keep reminding myself that being good at everything all the time doesn’t just happen, and that those hard times come, when we struggle to learn something new; it’s a huge part of our existence on earth.

Well, by the end, he was having a good time. He didn’t become a star, and he’s still unsure about how great this soccer thing is, but he kept on. He got better, and he didn’t fall as much, and most of all, he didn’t quit!!! We were soooo PROUD!!!!

When asked what he wanted to do to celebrate, to eat, he said he wanted to go to the restaurant where the man cooks in front of us, so we went to Benihana’s– a japanese hibachi grill restaurant. It was a good family time!

Fabio should probably write his take on it as well. It was amazing to see the effects of his words on Willik, as opposed to mine. Dads are so important!! And Fabio is such a great one!

The pictures are courtesy of my sister, Raquel, who helped us out with the “recording of the occasion” as Fabio and I were too busy taking in all the soccer issues, or chasing after Phoenix, playing his own soccer game. Thanks Rock!

willik cracks me up…

glaucia — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 04:29:53 +0000

It’s so funny to get a glimpse inside the head of a 4-year-old.
Today, just as Willik was finished eating lunch, he just said, “I know “Bother Abraham”.”
I couldn’t stop laughing for some time, and he kept asking me what was so funny, and when I finally could speak, all I could tell him is “it’s “Father” Abraham, Willik.” To which he replied, “Oh!”.

green eggs and ham

glaucia — Mon, 30 Jan 2006 23:21:32 +0000

Coming in March, will be the anniversary of the birth of Dr. Seuss. Willik’s school decided to celebrate early, by emphasizing Dr. Seuss, his stories and activities related to his stories during this month.

Willik’s teacher really encourages parents participation, and Fabio and I had not had the chance of going into the class yet, during this school year, so it was definetely time. When I heard about the Dr. Seuss celebration, I decided to volunteer myself and Fabio. I told his teacher that Fabio would read a Dr. Seuss story to the class(he’s really spectacular at all those tongue twisters) and I would make green eggs and ham with the class.

So, about 2 weeks ago, we had our chance. I went in, read green eggs and ham to them, and afterwards, we made a huge batch of scrambled green eggs and ham. That is, a total of 18 eggs and a pound of honey ham. A little milk, about 3 or 4 drops of green food coloring, and a little salt too. That fed 16 kids, and 3 adults.

The kids helped to break the eggs, cut the ham into squares, mix the eggs, and even cook the eggs. It was really fun, and they really enjoyed it too. All the kids except 1 really enjoyed the finished product. Some even wanted to eat “seconds”. There wasn’t anything left to share with other teachers or other classes.

Fabio apparently did an awesome job reading “Fox in Socks” a few days later. But you’ll have to ask him about that.

Look below for some photos, and click for a closer look.
Let me know what you think.

let Willik come to me…

glaucia — Tue, 18 Oct 2005 05:42:17 +0000

Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” Matthew 19:14 (NIV)

Wow! I’m not even sure how to go about writing about this, but I have awesome news.
Tonight, in the middle of dinner, Willik prayed to ask Jesus to forgive him, and be in his heart.
Yeah, I know that some might think he’s too young to do this. Some of you might be wondering how I know this to be true. So, let me tell you about the unfolding of the event, and you can decide what you may. Either way, God knows…

The conversation that led to the prayer was one where Willik was telling me about who his school “buddies” are. He then went on to say that his brother, Phoenix was a best buddy, and so was I. Then I reminded him about how his brother should be always be a “best” buddy, and he should treat him right, and teach him right, cause his brother loves him and looks up to him so much.
We continued talking about how Phoenix “copies” Willik, weather he does good or bad things, and so, to make things better, and happier for everyone, Willik should try and teach him the right things.
Willik went on to say, that way Jesus can be happy, and we (mom and dad) can be happy too.

Then Willik said that “when you do things wrong everyday, Jesus throws you into the place with the fire.” I took the chance to explain to him that we need to ask Jesus for forgiveness for the things we do that are wrong, and when we do, he helps us, and he lives in our heart so that he can always help us, and if we believe that Jesus died on the cross, and we really believe and want that, then he won’t throw us into the fire.

To back up, you have to understand that Willik has been very interested in the subject of death and dying, and he knows that when you die, you will see Jesus, and he’s very happy with this knowledge.
If you’ll refer to a previous blog about his persistence in telling classmates about “everyone dies someday”, you will get a better sense of what I mean.

Back to today’s story, as I was in the middle of telling him this, he was interrupting me, and he told me he wanted to pray. I asked him to hold on, cause I wanted to finish speaking, plus I wanted to make sure he understood, cause I too, had my own skepticism about whether or not he understood. Throughout all this, Phoenix is making lots of noise, pushing off his high chair tray, and just making it very hard to have a conversation, much less pray. But even before I had a chance to get things quiet, Willik started to pray. As he began, and I tried to be praying alongside him, despite the noise, he started to pray for forgiveness, and without any prompting from me, he started to cry as he prayed.
He asked Jesus to be in his heart, and help him for the many wrong things he did, and he’s still crying, but now he starts to laugh, cause he feels funny and embarrassed that he’s crying…

At this point, I’m crying right along with him. I managed to get Phoenix out of his chair, and told him to go read a book, and I told Willik that it was okay to cry, because God likes it when we can feel sad, and we can let him know, and that he wants to know how we feel. So he continued praying and crying, and said that he believed that Jesus died on the cross, and the he wanted him. Amen.
We both wiped each others tears, and after a few minutes, we went on about our business. He finished eating his soup, I called Fabio, and then he talked to Fabio and told him.

If you’d asked me whether I thought he would pray this prayer this soon, I’m not sure I would have answered yes. I too wondered how I would know when that moment did happen for him. But now, as I was part of that moment, and saw his little 4-year-old brokeness before God, I know it was real.

So, I was gonna post a bit about the retreat our church had this weekend, but instead, I’ll leave that for another day.
For now, just shower Willik with your prayers, that he can be a wonderful man of God, someday, and that God will continue to use Fabio and I to help him get there!

i love you more than…

glaucia — Thu, 29 Sep 2005 14:30:00 +0000

Today, Willik was on my lap, after putting some toys away, a little before we started getting ready for bed.
He was being cozy and cuddly with me, and then he said [half portuguese, half English],
“Mamae, you know the holiday, with all the hearts”
I responded “yeah, you mean, valentine’s day?”
“yeah”, he said. “you know what? I love you more than that holiday with all those hearts. I love you much, much more than that!”
“Wow”, I said. “you love me that much everyday?”
Willik said, “yeah!!”
So I responded, “Well then, I guess everyday is ‘Willik loves mamae more than valentine’s’ holiday.”
Willik laughed, and smiled and said “YEAH!”

Those are the moments that make up for the screaming banshee’s days!

heaven, hell, death and a 4-year old

glaucia — Mon, 19 Sep 2005 06:32:05 +0000

It’s been so long since I wrote, that I’ve been trying to figure out what to write about.
Ultimately, i turn to my kids for inspiration.
Being that Willik is 4, he seems to come up with the best analogies, and most memorable comments, as is common in that 4-year-old world.
Anyway, he’s been sorta obsessed, about death. He’s been asking us alot about that, and what happens to us in general, and also what would happen if one of us died, etc.
So naturally, we’ve had great chances to remind him about God’s love, and accepting his gift of salvation, and about how we’ll get to see Jesus if we trust him… all that stuff.

Well, apparently, a couple days ago, armed with all this knowledge, somehow, the topic of death came up during lunch with his classmates at school.
He proceeded to tell the others that everyone dies someday, but that then we get to see Jesus, and that is a good thing. Well, one of his classmates wouldn’t have it. She started to cry, saying that her grandma said that she’ll never, never die.
Willik continue with his theory about death, excitedly talking about meeting Jesus. The girl started to cry more and more.
At this point, Willik started to get a bit confused and concerned, I am told, so he said something like, “Well, I’m not saying that she’ll die now. Only when people are really old!” That seemed to get more kids in an uproar, with many saying things like “well, my grandma is old, but she’s not dead”. Willik continued on with his theory, not once giving up, even when the teacher was asking them to change the subject of conversation, as the one girl was still crying and distraught about her grandmother. He still asked the teacher, who is a christian, one more time… but it’s true, everyone does die, and then we get to see Jesus, right?! And the teacher reassured him that yes, if we believe in Jesus we will see him, but some people don’t know this, and that is why they get sad.
That seemed to satisfy him, and so, the subject ended!

[the boys in my parent's backyard, hanging out with a friend's rabbit named Radar]

Wow, it’s amazing to me that I have a part in shaping him, and teaching him about God. It’s crazy because I mess up so much and I often feel so inadequate to be a model of a good relationship with God for my boys.

What a priviledge, and what a joy to be running alongside him, as he begins his walk with the Lord.

Thank you Lord, for fights and screams and sweet kisses, and impromptu “i love you’s”. Being a mom indeed is the best rollercoaster ride!

willik and that old cartoon

glaucia — Tue, 05 Jul 2005 09:13:19 +0000

I’m not a fan of Beavis and Butthead at all. I probably only watched a total of one episode, if you join all tiny pieces I’ve seen, here and there. But I have seen “the great cornholio”, and I must admit, that when I experienced this moment, it was the only thing I could think of.

Of course, Willik had no idea why we were all laughing so much. He probably thought that he was very funny, all on his own.
Anyway, isn’t that a great resemblace?

Willik is 4

glaucia — Sun, 26 Jun 2005 09:25:33 +0000

Yeah, so Willik turned 4, and I don’t know about terrible 2s, but 4 is pretty hard for us.
In either case, he is a blessing, and we get to look at the world as a 4-year-old sees it.
As I thought about how big he’s getting and how much he can do, I had to look back at how little he was. And I thought you might enjoy seeing the “THEN and NOW” shots too. So here they are…

Yeah, I know… pretty cute kid.

winter blues

glaucia — Thu, 20 Jan 2005 05:40:06 +0000

Kids say the darndest things, right?!
Well, my 3-year-old, Willik, doesn’t like the cold weather much. After all, he’s so skinny, I think he just can’t stay warm.
Anyway, yesterday, it was extremely cold. Something like 17� F. After trying to be as quick as possible in getting the boys into the car, I too got in, turn the car on and was about to take off to school, when Willik said[translated from portuguese],
“Mom, can you please turn off the winter?”.
I told him that God made the winter and we couldn’t turn it off. And although it was cold, if we didn’t have winter, we woudn’t have snow and we wouldn’t have skiing. And that we needed all the seasons, in order to enjoy different things.