How then, should we pray?

Most adults, particularly those who have been Christians their entire lives, pretty much figure they have praying down-pat.  Maybe some are more formal, starting out with a "Dear heavenly Father", while other people are more casual.  For some reason, I think almost every 20-something girl leading prayer in a group starts off with, "Dear Jesus, we just come to you right now..."

But you know who really has prayer figured out?  Pre-schoolers.  On any given Sunday, my children's church kids range in age from 2 to 5.  Lately, they've all gotten more comfortable, and they all really want to pray.

Of course, it's normally, "Oh, I want to pray!" followed by 30 seconds of throat-clearing, and then something disjointed and totally unrelated to the lesson.  Pretty soon, everyone in the room wants a chance to get to say a prayer.

And I let them.  It may take up a few extra minutes we really don't have, but I'm never going to tell a child, "No, we don't have time for you to pray right now."

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Notes on a Toddler

My son is now right around 20 1/2 months, and I feel that 2nd birthday fast approaching.  I'm crazy excited about his birthday and throwing a big party and getting an excuse to spoil him even more than he usually gets.

But milestone pediatrician visits make me nervous.  They give you that little sheet where you check off what things your kid is doing yet.  My son has always done great developmentally, has actually always been ahead for his age.

But I still dread my imaginings of his doctor peering at the checklist through her glasses.  "Oh, he isn't counting yet?  Not at all?  Oh, I see."

So I've been paying close attention to my son's recent accomplishments.  This has been difficult, however, because there's a ton of stuff it seems like he just started doing overnight.  Recently, he has:

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