I read my sister's post today about the role model my sweet nieces father is for them. I am so happy that he is such a great father to them. When I see my nieces with their father, he is their protector. You can see it from the way he gets down on his knee to their level to talk and from the way he holds them in his arms. My sister and I had that type of father. Yes, when we were young he was busy with work, racing etc. But our dad was Always there for us when it counted. He understood our needs to do our own thing. At times when we thought we would get a good shouting at from our father, he didn't. He talked to us from the stand point that he already had been through what we were going through and could understand why we did what we did. I have so much respect for my father and the lessons he taught me.

My sister also raised a point about the values and morals that are given to kids. I feel that kids make choices and decisions on what they see in their life. I want my boys to have very high standards for their friends and even the adults that they come into contact with. It is up to the boys to tell their friends the rules of our house. Big son has actually made a friend bring out the vacuum and clean the kitchen floor because he didn't take his shoes off when they had mud in them. From what I have seen, their friends have respect for them, husband and I, and also our house. I try and teach the boys the basics of right and wrong and explain to them the difference between the two. Lies are never allowed in my house. I have told both boys that I will not respect them if they lie. I also said that they I'd rather they say the truth to me, even if it will hurt my feelings, than lie. The truth makes people stronger, lies make people weak. I have never played a game with my boys and let them win. All of this sounds pretty basic, but if you hear stories from some people, their kids are saints. My boys aren't and they have to earn privileges just like I do.

To me, it is very important to spend at least 20 minutes talking to each of my boys separately each day. Sometimes it's hard to come up with something to talk about, because, lets face it, not to many boys want to open up. Sometimes I talk to them about what is happening on the news, in our life, a comment that was said by somebody. But we do talk and that is important. Also, dinner time is a no TV, no radio time. There are many nights when the TV never comes on because the four of us are sitting at the table talking.

I'm currently reading a book that I have to keep putting down. Not because it is bad, but because the issues that are raised make me have to stop and think about what I would do it the mother's position. The book starts out with a car accident in which her husband dies and her daughter hurt. The daughter lives and the mother meets someone else, gets married and pregnant again. They hire a handy man to renovate a room in their house for the baby. The man ends up killing the new husband and killing her daughter. What is thought is that the handy man was molesting the daughter and the new husband walked in on it. The handy man is sentenced to death. The mother has her baby. Fast forward 11 years, the baby is in need of a heart transplant and the man sentenced to death wants to donate his heart to her when he is finally put to death which is to take place within the next 2 months. WHAT WOULD YOU DO? On the one hand, I would want anything to have my child live. What mother wouldn't. But to have a part of your first child's murder inside of your baby? I don't know. I would have to have any extra time with my children that was promised. Even if it was one more day. Could you really deny your child life because it was an evil person who could give it to them? Think about all the organ donations that happen. It is not known who is giving their organs. A person could be evil and just never caught for what they did. If you got that persons heart, you would not have known what they did while alive. I'm not even half way through the book.