Monday morning Kyleigh was in a grumpy mood and came down the stairs piping mad that B was using her fruity pebbles cereal that she felt was "hers" (because she picked it out at the store when we purchased it). There would only be a couple spoonfuls left for her after B poured his bowl. She pouted and stomped to the stairs when she realized that she couldn't do anything about the situation. B was already down in the kitchen and had poured his cereal before she came downstairs...the battle was fruitless and she had lost the last bowl of Fruity Pebbles.
I leaned close to B and semi-whispered, "How do you think Kyleigh will feel if you give her your bowl of fruity pebbles and pick another cereal? It's up to you, bud. You can choose to keep the cereal or give it to Kyleigh." I wanted the choice to be entirely up to him, with no force, so that he could enjoy the good feelings that would come if he took the unselfish route.
He didn't take very long to decide. He pushed his bowl aside and went into the pantry to find a new box of cereal. I called to Kyleigh to come over and see what B had just done.
When she saw that the fruity pebbles was hers, a grin slowly crept into the corners of her mouth, then grew until she couldn't hide her pleasure anymore. She went into the pantry and gave her brother a hug from behind. No words. Just happiness and gratitude being expressed.
As B ate his Cinnamon Toast Crunch, I'm not sure he was bothered that it wasn't fruity flavored.
And, if that wasn't cool enough, the good feelings lingered into the next morning. Kyleigh forgot that she had the very last bowl of fruity pebbles and asked for them that next morning, but I reminded her that her brother gave her the last bowl, and she once again had a big smile dominate her features.
I love it when the kids love each other.
Kent was coming down the stairs, stopped at the landing and spotted something amiss and tried to have me correct it immediately. :)
He said, "Mom! B. La-Lee. Baby Neena."
He was worried that B wouldn't want his La-Lee soiled by another person. (Because to Kent, NO ONE is allowed to play with or use his la-Lee. So, naturally, B would feel the same.)
I thought it was cute that Kent was looking out for the goods of his older bro. :)
We were having Family Home Evening, Kyleigh and Brenden were in charge, and put on a skit for Trent and I on Loving one another. It was cute. They pretended to run into each other, then had a dialogue to make sure the other one was alright. I had forgotten to relay to Trent the nice thing that Brenden had done for Kyleigh with the cereal, so I told them I had a story to share about loving one another. After recalling the cereal experience, I remembered another thing B had done that showed love to another.
We were at DQ for free cone day. Steph, her 2 girls, Mom, Dad, and my crew of 4 kids. After the kids finished their ice cream, they played while adults talked. Suddenly, we heard Maya cry. Her arm was stuck in an empty arcade/toy game. She could not wiggle free! Luckily Poppy was there and held her, spoke to her on what to do with her hand to get free, and called out orders for us to find a spray of water or oil. With all the commotion, I see Brenden running to the door. He opens it, I call out, "B! Stay inside! Don't go out there!" Luckily, I had the sense to trust him when he called back, "Mom! I have to do something important!"
I watch as he takes one knee, bows his head, folds his arms. He prayed for his little cousin, knowing that's the only useful thing he could do to help. I was taught by my son. I hadn't even thought to pray, yet it was the first thing that came to his mind. And he tried to find a quiet place outside, but also wasn't afraid that the two big guys with beards and tattoos were watching him from the other side of the window. Had I not relayed the incident to Trent, I'm not sure anyone but me would have known what B did...it's as if it was just the only right answer in that situation in his mind and done instinctively.
Then, to make sure Kyleigh didn't feel bad, Trent said, "I've seen Kyleigh do nice things like that, too." I hadn't paid attention to put together something I had seen Kyleigh do as something that shows love to another in the same manner as B...until Trent said that. So I shared with Trent and the kids how Kyleigh doesn't jump out of the car when we get to our destination like others do. She thinks about her brother, Kent, and that he's stuck in a car seat and unable to jump out like the others. So she works on his buckles as much as she can to get him free...at least until I'm able to come around to that side of the car with Dean.
Sharing all these instances of love and goodness between the kids that I witnessed, made me think....how grateful I was to see them all first-hand. Also, that I was glad we held FHE, and that the kids thought up that specific topic which sparked my memory of these happenings so that I could relate them to their Daddy. I might have forgotten otherwise, and that would be sad. Trent would have missed out on being able to praise his kids for the good they did for one another.
It was a great day.
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