7 Quick Takes Friday--Toddler Theology

~~1~~
We tell Steven Joseph about Jesus, who he mostly associates as being on the Cross at church. He is rather disturbed that Jesus is hanging on a Cross and was asking about the nails. He doesn't like this at all. So one day at Mass I was telling him it was Jesus coming at the consecration and when the priest elevated the Host I said, "Jesus loves you." He started yelling, "Me no yike Jesus! No yike him!"

~~2~~
During prayer time he pretty much always prays for the "boy at Astros game, ball hit his head." He is still very concerned about this baseball player who was hit in the head with a ball at the game he attended 2 months ago. But then sometimes he says, "Me yike go Astros game again. See 'nother boy, ball hit his head." I'm trying to help him understand we don't want that to happen again!

~~3~~
He is proud about making the Sign of the Cross. He touches his head and shoulders. But then he touches some other part of his body like his back or his leg, and just as we're all starting to pray he yells out, "Me do it on back!" or "Me do it on yeg!" while he's laughing hysterically.

~~4~~
This week we went to Daily Mass on Wednesday in remembrance of the birthday of my friend Kelly (who passed away in October after a long battle with breast cancer), as well as little toddler Gus and teen Hayden (children in our homeschool group who both passed away in drowning accidents) who also had anniversaries/birthdays this week. We stuck it out in the cry room, as his behavior is quite poor at Mass these days. I recall the girls improving their Mass behavior around 2 1/2, but don't think we're quite there with SJ yet. As we were walking up in the Communion line, I showed him how to cross his arms on his chest to get a blessing from the priest. After I received Communion, we rounded the corner and he yelled out in horror, "Mommy, I no get one!" and started crying. He thought he would be able to receive the Eucharist. After Mass the girls explained that he's going to have to wait awhile, and just how many years each of them had until their First Communion :)

~~5~~
Last week the girls were talking about Heaven while we were driving to my parents' house. Steven Joseph was not too keen on the idea of dying to be with Jesus (the man nailed to the Cross, in his mind), even when they told him that it was the most wonderful place we could imagine. So Ellie told him that Spiderman would be in Heaven. "Yay, 'Piderman! Me go see 'Piderman!" So now he'd like to die and go to Heaven to see Spiderman. Great.

~~6~~
He loves singing "Alleluia" during Mass. He loves singing it at the times when no one else is singing, or when only the cantor is singing. Everyone around us grins and dotes over him. He will sing and play with the hymnal for about 15 minutes before things go awry.

~~7~~
Last week his accomplishment during Mass was eating the songsheet. We're usually at the 11am Mass, which thankfully is the last one of the weekend to use the songsheets, so I don't mind too much if he plays with them or crumples them up. I assume they'll just be recycled. Last Sunday he decided to just take a bite out of it and start eating. What's a mom to do?

Anyone else have some funny toddler church/prayer stories?
Find more Quick Takes at Jen's Conversion Diary!
Have a great Independence Day weekend! We're just hoping the rain dies down enough to celebrate around here!