reality check

One of the biggest things I would say about bringing home older children- at least in my daughter's cases- is their lack of reality.

 

Think about it- they grew up in rural Africa in a mud hut for a decade.  They went to school but their school did not teach about the 'world' (explained in last weeks 'school post')

 

They are taken in a car for the 1st time. Put on a plane and landed in America.

 They saw elevators, escalators, modern technology, and more in such a short time.

I always say it's like they went on a time wrap.

Sooooo....with that being said...

 

when they watch a cartoon about a space adventure and we explain that there are fast airplanes that have taken people to the moon- they were shocked.  But when we read a fictional bed time story of kids bouncing on the moon- they asked if we ever did that! 

 

Looking back- books and movies seem to be the culprit.  We never talked about santa or made a big deal about him- BUT they watched one of those cute santa classic movies and then went to the mall and saw 100 kids in line to see him!  Just yesterday (march) he got brought up and I said he is not real- "but mommy, I saw him in at the big store!!"

 

Disney Princess's- they LOVE.  Sova showed pictures of her standing w/ one of them in front of the castle.  They went nuts and said, "wow, mommy Ethiopia has no princesses."

 

They have asked me how Tinkerbelle can fly and Jerusalem who made gingerbread houses around the same time that she watched Cinderella- calls Cinderella, "Gingerella."  It's so funny because she loves 'Gingerellla' and talks about her alot!

 

A friend let them borrow some American girl doll movies- they are not cartoons they are real actress's...so when they asked me if we can ever go see them- and I said- no they are just in books- they protested, "no, I see in movie!" 

 

Even with words:  Sova was eating a hotdog  - "ewwww DOG! "  When Jacob said, 'no- it's not really a dog- it's pig!"  That did not help any...ewwww you eat pig!"  

 

Coming home in October it wasn't long before we started heating our house with our woodstoves- that 's our only source of heat and the only heating they ever knew too. 

So when we would go over nana's cold house (w/ no woodstove) the girls would say, "oh no- nana no fire!?!"

 

I have explained to them that some people  have hot air instead but to this day when we walk into a cold house or building (church and  gym class every time!)  Jules will say, "oh no- where's the fire?  No fire! Oh no!"  That just cracks me up every time!

 

They still find the washing machine to be the biggest mystery in the house...where DOES that water come from...

 

The kids play a game in the car- every time they see a yellow car they yell- 'skittles!'  Once day Jerusalem figured it out and after seeing a yellow car said,, "oh oh oh BINGO!!!!!"

 

We toured a Titanic exhibit at the aquarium- with all of the pictures and artifacts it was easy to explain to them what happened.  While walking out, one of them said, "See mommy, Ethiopia- no boats- we no die- that good!!"

  Oh no, it may take lots of convincing that there are no icebergs on the lake when we go on grandpas boat this summer!

 

One time the girls were going to play outside but I told them to jump in the shower first.  It was December and around 4 something.  They came out of the shower and I see Jules run to the window and say, "Oh my goodness!  Bed time!  No sun!  What happened!  America crazy- no sun!"  LOL  light going into the shower- dark coming out...just another ride in their twilight zone...