Still, let's face it, some of the ways they demonstrate their devotion and adoration for us can be down right annoying. I've come up with a few things that our Munchkins do that are killing us softly with their love.

1. Wake us up at night

You're in a deep, dark, blissfull sleep and then you're suddenly awakend by a horrifying sound. It's a sound you've heard before, and a sound you hoped you'd never hear again. The sound of your baby's sleepered feet padding down the hallway — straight for your bedroom, your side of the bed.

"I'm BAAAAAAACK!!!!!!!!!!"

It's sweet, really. Our darling, little angels wake us up because they're scared in the night, and our faces are the lights at the end of the long tunnels for them: the candles that are burning brightly in the bleakness. We comfort, hold and swaddle them, but for the love of all that's holy — get back to bed! Mommy needs her sleep to not act evil tomorrow.

2. Only sleep on us

You've nursed, cuddled, cooed, rocked and lullabied him into a sound sleep in your arms. You ever so carefuly lift him up, separate yourself and gently place him down in the crib. Then, like a horror movie, his eyes spring open bright and alive, zeroed in right on you. He beams up at you as if to say, "Peek-a-boo! I love you, and I still want to be up with you forever!"

How many long, fitful nights have we slept uncomfortabley in neck-kinking snatches because the baby refused to be disturbed or disuaded from their preferred sleep number — which is us?

3. Always acompany us to the bathroom

Babies don't like to be alone, so it's only natural for them to assume that we never want to be alone either. EVER. Bless their little smothering hearts.

They will graciously let themselves in through any accessible, open bathroom door to keep us company and ask questions about what's going on. If the door should happen to be closed, for some unknown reason to them, they will proceed to stick their lips under the door crack to demand answers to their questions. They will also wiggle their fingers under the door frantically, possibly getting them stuck, in which case, they will cry and kick the divisive barrier until you emerge from your confinement.

4. Refuse to be sequestered by any type of "seat"

Whether its a high chair, bouncer, stroller or the Great Wall of China, nothing will keep that baby from reaching their goal. And their goal is YOU.

You can see the determination in your daughters eyes and the fortitude in the firmly set pacifier as she manages to escape the narrow confines of her carseat. You're anxiously watching her through the rearview mirror as you're barreling down the intersate thinking "not again".

You know what baby girl is thinking, and you can hear the Star Ship ballad ringing out passionately, reverberating through the car, "And we can build this dream together, standing strong forever, nothing's gonna stop us now. And if this world runs out of lovers, we'll still have each other. Nothing's gonna stop us, nothing's gonna stop us now! I'm so glad I found you, I'm not gonna lose you, whatever it takes to stay here with you...."

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It's evident what the unpleasant side effects are about being poor. It's no fun dwelling on the negatives: worried, stressed-out parents, penny-pinching, late fines and over due notices. What's not as clear, are the positives associated with growing up broke. Here are some things I've come to recognize as pros to my underprivileged upbringing.

1. We learned to share

We shared bedrooms, beds, belongings and bike. (Singular bike). We had one bike between all of us kids for the longest time. That was the norm, and that was OK. We learned to take turns and enjoy watching each others turns. It didn't always have to be about "me". A lot of our bike time was devoted to watching our older brother put on "Evil Knievel" shows. We loved those death-defying exhibitions. It was entertainment at its best.

2. We used our imaginations

We didn't own much, so we imagined everything. We didn't have a traditional swing set, so we conjured up our own in the back of our property amidst a small grove of snarled, tangled trees. We had monkey bars, a see-saw and hanging vines to swing from. We were wild things straight out of the "Jungle Book".

3. We weren't materialistic

It was a rare occasion that we were given anything brand new. We were used to getting hand-me-downs, and we appreciated them. When an aunt sent over a brown paper bag filled with neatly folded clothes passed down from a cousin, we were delighted. It was always a little like Christmas opening up those troves. Much of our clothes shopping occurred at secondhand stores. We learned to look for good bargains, and we enjoyed the hunt.

4. We weren't greedy

Children love their parents. We knew our parents didn't have very much money, so we didn't want to remind them of it by constantly asking them for things we knew they couldn't afford. We learned humility. We were happy with smaller, simpler things. When we did receive something we really, really appreciated it. We knew what cost, thought and effort went into purchasing or making it, and we were grateful.

5. We learned to work

If we wanted something, we worked for it. We picked strawberries by the pound in the summer for extra money and cherries and blackberries by the bucket for snacks and cobbler. When we were younger, we spent a lot of our time sitting at our plywood built, Kool-aid stand trying to drum up business (which always proved difficult since we lived at the end of a very rural road). Our Dad was usually our only customer, coming home from work, and often paying with an IOU. We loved him for it.

As parents, we always want the best for our children. Generally we associate the best with "what money can buy". Ofttimes I reflect on my childhood and think I was actuallyenrichedwith experiences that helped me to look at the world through eyes of compassion, humility and creativity. There are excessively rich blessings born of desperately poor homes.

"The gem cannot be polished without friction, nor man perfected without trials." (Chinese Proverb)

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