Skip to main content

sadness

on the way home from DD {{bc apparently there was NO preschool today for jk...it's no prob, really...we just rushed around and scrambled and got in the car and then when we got there and there was no school...well, there were tears...thus DD}}, there came a moment of sincere sadness in my heart.

jk: "mommy, i want to look like brookie"
"why sweetie? you are the perfect jada"
jk: "i don't like my brown skin. i want peach skin like brookie"

i just sank. does that not make ur heart want to break? a 3 yo is struggling already with her skin being different. then, this happened:

brooke: "jada, god made you and he loves you. he does it all right the very first time"


then, i think my heart grew three sizes.

jada threw a big smile up on her face and said, "ok. god loves me"


now, if we all could just do that. god loves us...he doesn't make mistakes...he makes perfect works of art. sometimes there are scratches in the art. sometimes chips. sometimes we've been repainted. but we are all perfect works of art. it's a great reminder for me...

"i praise you because i am fearfully and wonderfully made."

another great reminder: raise your children in the faith of the lord...and they will be blessed...and, so will you. (proverbs 22:6)

come on by angie's for more wordfull wednesday posts...all the cool kids are doing it!

Comments

Unknown said…
That is a beautiful scripture and your daughter is so insightful. I am glad that she was able to help Jada. If you are not already doing so I suggest you read the mybrownbaby.blogspot.com I think you will like it.

Thank you for sharing this intimate moment with us.
Megan said…
What a sweetie. Both of them. Brooke is so right.
Rachel said…
What an amazingly touching post. You should be so proud of your little ones. God bless.
Sit A Spell said…
Just precious...God's love can do amazing things, if we will allow it.

Bless...shell
tiarastantrums said…
gorgeous words from gorgeous kids!
Michelle said…
What a sweet little sissy she has!
tara @ kidz said…
VERY cute pix! And I love the scripture too.

A merry Christmas to you!!!
You have so much to be proud of with those kids! Jada is beautiful just the way she is.
wow, this post is quite touching! your children are all just beautiful!
Lori said…
isn't it amazing how children know just the right thing to comfort another child!
Karol said…
Here is the proof that you are a amazing parent. That brought tears to my eyes. You have such beautiful kids, and you are wonderful.
GypsiAdventure said…
That is so sweet! You're right, there is only one YOU and God never gets it wrong!

Have a great day!
~K
Tabitha Blue said…
Aww, how sweet... you did great with that.... and great Scripture!!
Mandy said…
Beautiful. We all want what others have, the grass is always greener on the other side, this is a great reminder to all of us!
Anonymous said…
Beautiful beautiful story. If we could all remember that. Beautiful little girls!
Ashley said…
Wow! That Brooke seems wise beyond her years.
When my oldest was little (from about 1 to 5)she wanted to have dark skin. She asked me DAILY why she didn't get made with brown or black skin. She wanted braids with beads and sparkley dark eyes. She only wanted dark baby dolls too! :) She seemed fine with it though when I told her that's just how Heavenly Father made her. She still asked why he didn't chose to make her dark though! :)

MERRY SITSmas to you!
Laura said…
Wow what a great teaching moment. She is so beautiful!
Jen said…
that is so beautiful. as they say from the mouth of babes. she so right!
You brought a tear to my eye! What a wonderful post! We should all be like your little angel.
Jaysi said…
That is so sweet and truly brings tears to my eyes! God does always get it right! What a beautiful sweet girl she is. And the conversation between the two of them...priceless!!! They must make you so proud!
Carrie said…
WOW! That is really beautiful!

What a sweet little babe.

I think she gets it from her mommy...
Kacey said…
What beatiful and insightful girls. Waterworks over here. It's a true testiment at the wonderful Mother you are. The girls find beauty in eachother and when they grow up - beauty in others not only for the color of their skin but for the people they are.
I heart this post. When I had my eldest in VA many friends commented to me how dark he was while commenting how beautiful other babies in the same room were. I remember taking him home one Sun after church (6 wks old) and pulling up my sleeve and looking at him and thinking...hmmm we are the same color. What do they think of me? My friends of several years? And I told my mom the story. She is very fair. I was so shocked when she told me that she died her hair dark, dark brown when I was just months old because so many people assumed I was not hers. My dad thought she was a freak. ;) HA HA HA. I laughed so hard at that. Anywhooo.....your daughters are living a legacy of what you are teaching and what they have observed in your home...to feel safe and share their inner thoughts and also to share Jesus with one another. Many rich blessings to you and yours today!
Jess said…
That was so sweet!
I couldn't stop the tears from coming!
What a beautiful post--and beautiful words! Both of your daughters sound amazing, and I thank you for sharing this with us.

It's amazing how insightful our kids can be, isn't it? But I want you to understand this: Your 3-year-old probably said she wanted skin like Brooke's because at the age she is, she's just noticing the differences. She's not capable of assigning anything more to it than that--it's simply different. I learned this after my daughter came home saying she wanted to look like a blonde-haired, blue-eyed classmate of hers. After my heart attack and signs of the cross, I did a little research to figure out where I went wrong, and came across that tidbit.

Don't be sad, my love; Jada will be fine, so long as you embrace her differences, nurture her curiosity, open her eyes to this incredibly diverse, beautiful world, and continue to let her know that every inch of her is spectacularly beautiful just the way it is. Isn't this what ALL moms should do for their children?

Good luck!

D.
Ashley said…
that was beautiful. i had my hand on my chest and tears in my eyes!!!
Belinda said…
That was so special, what a smart little girl Brooke is:)
We had a somewhat similar topic of discussion at our dinner table last night.

My daughter Jenna is 5 and is Chinese. We are Caucasian. Her school voted for the presidents and she voted for "Bac Bama." I asked her why him? She told me it was because his skin was the same color as hers. I told her that was an interesting way to pick and let it go.

But last night she asked me if she was "white." This was after asking if her friend Tate was "black." You know, its funny, I never thought about checking those ethnicity boxes Caucasian until I had an Asian child. But last night I began to wonder why we have those descriptors. Why can't we just be people? How did I answer this?

I told her that although her skin color and my skin color were almost exactly the same, I was considered Caucasian and she was considered Asian and her little brother and sister are too. It really didn't make a difference, we are all people and God made us exactly how we are. God loves us all.

I know this won't be our last conversation but I hope I handle the future ones well.
Laura Marchant said…
You brought me chills. I hope one day kids never have to think about this stuff.
Sandra said…
You my dear... have a beautiful family.

Inside and out.
Sera said…
Feel free to steal the "no biting!" letter - good luck with that... :)

What a sweet post this is. I've always loved that verse. Your kids sound so sweet.
Lindsay said…
Your kids have beautiful hearts - and really amazing for their age, too. I love then end of Proverbs 22:6...and so will you. You saw that today!

Way to go momma!!
Lorie said…
I LOVE that....my heart grew 3 sizes too, and they're not even my daughters.
Anonymous said…
This was an awesome post! Your children are beautiful inside and out!
Unknown said…
i think i'm going to cry...love my girls
Aubrey said…
Oh! My eyes just welled up. Beautiful.
CntryMomma said…
Reminds me of a picture that hung on my Sunday School wall at church as a youngin' ... "I know I'm somebody 'cause God don't make no junk!"

They both are BEAUUUUUUUTIFUL!! What a moment!

LORI
Tori said…
Oh how exactly the way that question should be answered--from the mouth of babes!

What beautiful girls you have.

I love your blog too, great layout!

Merry Christmas!
Kathleen W. said…
That was a wonderful way to explain that to her, and both of your girls are adorable, truly.
jenn said…
Wow. I think this is the best WW I've read yet... ever. Thank you for sharing this moment with us. So beautiful.
Jenni said…
They are both beautiful girls! That was such a wonderful post!
Anonymous said…
I ran across your blog via the SITS site. I love this story, it reminded me of when my youngest son (now 18)went to his first day of preschool. The teacher took each student & told something about them. There was one little boy who had one blue eye & one brown eye. So to nip the questions in the bud so to speak, she told the kids that he had one blue eye & one brown eye because God couldn't decide which eye he liked better on him so he gave him one of each. Surprisingly enough that was all that needed to be said.
Ahh the tender hearts of God's children!
Happy to have found your blog!
What a sweet little precious girly!!! You have a beautiful family. Thanks for stopping by my blog, too!
debi9kids said…
No sweeter words were ever spoken :)

Happy WW!
Jaime said…
I can totally imagine your heart stopping...and then swelling with these conversations. Thank you for sharing this.
I really needed to read this today. I stumble your post:)
That is precious. I LOVE what Brooke told her! SO sweet!
Christy said…
Such sweet little girls. Super cute blog too. I'm new here, but am sure I'll be checking in for updates!!
Amy said…
Completely tender! Thank you for sharing. I think we all need reminders once in awhile that we are made from God and that all he creates is perfect.

It's been a while since I've had a chance to check out your blog. It's been fun catching up. I love the new look.
Rebekah said…
What a precious story. And a good opportunity to show Gods love and perfection in what He has made
Abby said…
Oh I love it!

Another great book choice for you

I like Myself. Adorable brown girl in the book that my daugther loves and relates to!
CC said…
You go Jada!!!!!!!!
Pam said…
LOVE IT!!! It will be a continual struggle for our kids... but like everything else... we will overcome-together-with God- oh and all our weirdness!! ;)
Solei said…
This just goes to prove what a GREAT job you're doing of raising your kids!
BRAVO!!!
=0D
Unknown said…
How beautiful and what a blessing you are to your children to find just th eright words to say.

Thanks for commenting on my blog.
Carla said…
I believe God speaks though children, if we will just be still and listen. I have been taught! Thanks for sharing the joy:)
LaTonya Yvette said…
This post brought tears to my eyes. Those were powerful, life changing words from Brooke.
Charmaine said…
You've taught them well. Congratulations!
{leah} said…
kids are smarter than there years and know more tha we think they do. I guess we all need to take a step back and learn from them.
Dee said…
beautiful!
jori-o said…
It's a big credit to you that you have such a sweet, compassionate little girl. You should be proud!
Vodka Mom said…
That was very sweet.
April said…
Happy SITS Day...such a beautiful and touching post!
Laurel said…
Ohhhhh. Yeay that love broke through!
SO Awesome! What a perfect response:)
Amy said…
Over from SITS, happy Feature-day for you!

Great post, sometimes our kids teach us the greatest lessons :D
Anonymous said…
beautifully put...children can be so wise sometimes.
Jewel Allen said…
Very sweet. You have beautiful children...each and every one of them!

Congrats on your SITS day!!
Mandy said…
Is it not amazing the insight our children have? They teach us so much. Jada is gorgeous and Brooke is, too. What a wonderful thing to overhear and be a part of. You TRULY are blessed!!
Anonymous said…
Sigh - that is so incredibly sweet.

Sometimes it takes a child to say what most adults cannot express.
Heather said…
We are all beautiful in our own way and Brooke put that perfectly. What a beautiful post!
Decor To Adore said…
Out of the mouths of babes: perfection.
Christy said…
so cool, and she is so beautiful!
Cammie said…
what beautiful daughters you are raising....a reflection of their mother no doubt....
Whitney said…
The fact that your daughter,Brooke was able to say that to your daughter Jada means that you are doing a great job! How wonderful is the bond between SISTERS, it transcends all things. How wonderful!
Anonymous said…
Precious! I am so thankful that God doesn't make mistakes and that He made all of us works of art! Even as a grown woman, I have to remind myself of this fact!
Brandy said…
From the mouths of babies... What she said was so true.
Anonymous said…
88wipes her eyes** out of the mouths of babes...so true, so true. don't we have an awesome God?? Really, we do!! Give your kids a squeeze for me today, would you , tell them Jo-Jo from Michigan loves them and is praying for them. I will be praying for all of you, Be Blessed!!!
Anonymous said…
That is perfectly beautiful!

Your girls are gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous and have such wonderful spirits. I really needed to SEE and READ this post today.

Linked from SITS and I'll be back...for sure!
Anji said…
I love your family! So unique and perfect. Congrats on being saucey!
Anji said…
I love your family! So unique and perfect. Congrats on being saucey!
Anji said…
I love your family! So unique and perfect. Congrats on being saucey!
Unknown said…
Good job mom. You said the right thing. God loves you both.
Alicia @ Oh2122 said…
How sad and how sweet. She's lovely, just the way she is, and I hope she remembers that. Too many adults don't.
Kristy said…
aww your daughters are so sweet. my 7 year old wants to have blonde hair like her sister because she thinks everyone with blonde hair is pretty like all the disney princesses. they start so young. :(
Vickie said…
What awesome children. What a great thing to say! Awesome, awesome, awesome!!

They start so young, my daughter say she is fat and she is going to be eight next week! What!!
Brittany said…
I love how God always seems to give us moms the right things to say. And how I'd love to have her faith and trust. I wish I could really accept that He loves me.
Anonymous said…
Wow! What innocence! And what sweet girls you have!
Mrsbear said…
What a lovely moment. You have to love when a child finds the perfect, simple words to access that kind of wisdom.

You guys are blessed to have each other. What a wonderful family.
Melissa Lester said…
Sometimes children say it best! I'm sure it saddens the Lord when any of His children fail to see their beauty and uniqueness. But I'm so glad He still loves us!
Team Och said…
What a wonderful blog post. My oldest had to struggle with being a different color (he's Filipino) in the midst of a predominantly Caucasian school. I completely understand. It shows what a great foundation you are building for your girls that Brooke re-assured Jada in the way she did. I applaud you. Oh, and your family is beautiful!
Anonymous said…
I'll never forget the line you gave Jada! I definitely need to apply it to myself too. :)
Lindsey said…
What a great post!! Very touching...you have wonderful children!! :) Congrats on being the featured blogger!
Katie said…
That's so precious!
Ashley said…
Congrats as the FB! This post just goes to show the power of Godly parents! Thank you so much for what you are doing in these girls lives that makes them overflow with Gods love for each other!
Rachel Ann said…
Aw..that made me sniffle! Your daughter is precious (both of them), but more importantly, she had to learn Godly wisdom from Godly parents...kudos for raising your children in a Godly manner.
Anonymous said…
Isn't incredible how our children can be so wise?
How wonderful....
Live.Love.Eat said…
Beautiful.......
Children are MUCH smarter than we often give them credit for. Your girls are absolutely beautiful!
Marrdy said…
You are both right. God loves us no matter what. Thanks for sharing.
Clippergirl56 said…
We are all made in His image...and you are right...He makes no mistakes....and He made no mistake when he brought Jada to your family. Your family is a blessing
Unknown said…
That is beautiful
S Club Mama said…
I have a friend whose youngest daughter & granddaughter are only months apart in age. The granddaughter's dad is African-American so she's got dark skin and thick, curly dark hair. Well, the grandma and all of her kids are either brunette or blond, but all have really light skin. The girls are only 5 but I remember a few years ago, Aquina saying she wanted skin like her grandma. I also remember her grandma saying something similar to your daughter.
I think they are both beautiful the way God made them!
Preston said…
Wow. You handled that so beautifully. (Congrats on your SITS feature)
Margaret said…
That is so sweet.
This Little Hen said…
This is such a beautiful story! I t hink my heart just grew 3 times as well. your children have learned great lessons! Merry SITSmas.
Mimi said…
Wonderful goosebumps from this post! Thanks for sharing.
Unknown said…
This is very inspirational. Thanks for sharing this with us.
Darn it, SITS warned us to have a tissue and I didn't listen. Now I am blubbering all over my shirt.
Pam said…
came via SITS

that was a very sweet post. you have beautiful little girls :)
momma said…
so precious and so right! (visiting from sits)
MaricrisG said…
OMG! It took me forever to find the comment button. I almost gave up! HA! For some reason it is invisible at the bottom of the posts. I just kind of hovered around the bottom with my cursor and Eureka! whew! Anyway, This is a very nice post. I hope my daughter doesn't end up questioning her skin color too. It sure will break my heart.
Michelle said…
Aww, how sweet! It always amazes me when the little children are the ones who find the right words to make people feel better. Yay to you for raising her so well!
mommytoalot said…
Out of the mouths of babes,
Just beautiful
Becky said…
I can see why you're the featured blogger!
Leslie said…
Out of the mouths of babes. Truly an inspirational story!

- a SITSta
Rhonda said…
Oh, sigh! Wow!
Mammatalk said…
What a wonderful post. You must have been so proud!
Rachael said…
Absolutely beautiful.
Shannon said…
Aw, so sweet!

Popular posts from this blog

random acts...GNO

over at GNO, there's a few of us who decided to challenge ourselves last week to perform a random act of kindness.   i talked with my girls and hubs about what we could do... we reserve some funds each month out of our giving to put towards a current or urgent need that we find.  i think it's important to let the kids see how we give as family...and they should be part of that decision too . as we were talking, and eating chinese...come on, you know there would be eating...i open my fortune cookie.  and this is it!! i was out getting a few minutes of alone time and decided to pay hubs forward by getting jiffy lube to do the oil change.  while i was there, i remembered how hard it was being a single mom.  i remembered that the little things, like oil changes, suddenly became bigger things and honestly, more expensive things.  *light bulb!!!* thomas rang me up for my oil change and asked if they had any scheduled appointments that i could pay for.  he looked at me a little odd...

tuesday tribute---for tuesday

go blog yourself has been on my reading list for quite sometime...and so i really came to love little tuesday whitt and her whole sweet fam and became involved in praying for them in tuesday's battle with that stinky neuroblastoma . tuesday's parents are totally amazing...they inspire me! although tuesday went to play with jesus not so long ago, there have been so many people that are changed because of the courage and strength and honesty of the whitt family. on the day of celebration of tuesday's life, a number of folks who couldn't make it out to the funeral, took their kids on a 'wagie ride', which was one of tuesday's fav things. we all posted up our pics...shared our experiences with each other...and hugged our kiddos a little tighter. my kiddos wagie ride is here . from that precious little tuesday and her honorary wagie ride, a blog spawned...of course...and it is dedicated to nothing more than, in their words, "to keep track of lives touc