Saturday, November 1, 2008
poor Santa Clause
Tonight on the way home from church I was listening to the kids talk in the backseat about Christmas. Hope said something about Santa Clause and Camden said, "Mommy told me that Santa Clause lived a long time ago but then he died." Hope said, "He died? Why?" Camden said, "Cuz he was old." Then with a real sad, quiet voice Hope said, "Oh, poor Santa Clause."
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
UGHHH!!
On Saturday Blake and Camden were playing soccer in our living/dining room. Camden slid into the piano and he sliced his toe on one of the pedals. Blake hollered for me and when I came down and saw it, it looked like his toe was literally hanging off. Luckily my in-laws were here for the weekend and they pretty much took over. They decided that they didn't think that a Dr. would be able to sew it up because of it being on the inside of his toe. We didn't really have to worry about a scar - who cares if you have a scar on your toe? Plus we knew the whole hospital/stitches route would be very traumatic. They got the bleeding to stop, taped it shut and then taped his toe to his big toe to protect it. He cried and screamed alot - probably more from how it looked than how it felt. My father-in-law said that while he was working on it that he saw the bone. Camden has a soccer game this Saturday and we are trying to keep him calm so that it will heal by then. This picture was taken yesterday - 48 hours after it happened.
Most of the day I could tell that Hope was pretty shook up by the whole thing, but we were so wrapped up with Camden that neither of us really took the time to talk to her about it. So when I put her to bed I laid down with her and she immediately started tearing up and talking about Camden's toe. We talked about for about 5 minutes her asking questions about whether his toe was broken, whether he was hurting, if he would ever be able to walk again. I patiently answered all her questions but after awhile I started getting the feeling she was milking this so that I would stay. She was still sniffing and her lip was still quivering but I told her it was time to go to sleep now. She started crying a little harder and said, "But, But, But.....I really don't want Obama to win."
Most of the day I could tell that Hope was pretty shook up by the whole thing, but we were so wrapped up with Camden that neither of us really took the time to talk to her about it. So when I put her to bed I laid down with her and she immediately started tearing up and talking about Camden's toe. We talked about for about 5 minutes her asking questions about whether his toe was broken, whether he was hurting, if he would ever be able to walk again. I patiently answered all her questions but after awhile I started getting the feeling she was milking this so that I would stay. She was still sniffing and her lip was still quivering but I told her it was time to go to sleep now. She started crying a little harder and said, "But, But, But.....I really don't want Obama to win."
Saturday, October 11, 2008
dream
The kids and I were eating breakfast this morning and I asked them if they had dreamed anything last night. Hope said, "I did, I dreamed about Daddy." I said, "What was it about?" She said, "I dreamed he went on a hunt......and a deer killed him. I saw Daddy running and then the deer chased him and ate him." I asked her, "Were you sad?" She looked at me with this appalled look and said, "Of course I was."
Friday, October 10, 2008
maturity
Several months ago, I called my mom in need of someone to boost my self-esteem. I had been ignored by the popular girls. Seriously these women cannot help being well-liked. They are beautiful, funny, outgoing....its just amazing, really. My mom, as only a mom can do outlined all my strengths and attributes right out for me there on the phone. Then she told me a story that I had never heard. When she was my age and a mother of three children under three, she and my dad joined a church. The women at the church were about to go on a women's conference and my dad wanted her to go. "You need a break", he said. "But I don't know anyone, " she said. "All the more reason to go," said my "everyone I meet is immediately my best friend" dad. She went, reluctantly, but she went. On the way down to the conference the group of women stopped at a fast food restaurant for dinner. As luck would have it, my mom ended up the first one with her food so she had the awkward task of deciding which table to sit at. She finally just picked one, sat down, and held her breath. The next lady to get her food sat down a couple tables away from her and then....one by one the other ladies joined the second lady until no one was left. Everyone together....except for my mom. She ate her entire meal sitting completely alone. I was so angry when she told me that. (not her goal in telling me this story, I'm sure) Though she didn't give me any names, I was I was pretty darn sure I could name a few. In fact, I think I'll email them and invite them to read my blog. (Not really ) I got off the phone with her with my heart now hurting for my mom rather that for myself. I began to pray and really listen for what God wanted to talk to me about in this situation. These are some things I took away from my talk with the Lord and they are things that I am trying instill deep in my heart and let pour out into my life.
Number 1. I should be 100% ok with sitting all by myself in a crowded room. If I am sure of who I am in Christ, then no matter what happens around me - it doesn't change who I know I am or God's purpose for me. This will overflow into other areas as well: like when I am criticized or praised, shunned or lathered with attention. What others say about me or how others treat me should not increase or decrease how I look at myself. The Lord's opinion of me is all that should really matter.
Number 2. When my mind is on myself, then I miss being able to be used by God to reach out to someone else. The day I felt left out - did I look around for someone else that felt the same way? No....I didn't. I was to absorbed in myself. How many other women might have left that day feeling the same way? Maybe only one other, but if I had been in-tune with the Lord, I might have walked out with a new friend and a much better attitude.
Number 3. And what about the times I've been on the other side of this story? How many times have I been so wrapped up in my life and my friends that I've missed opportunities to bless someone? How many times have I left someone at a table by themselves?
My mom and grandma have both told me that the older I get the less I will worry what other people think of me. This is good news to me! I had a lady tell me recently about the group of women she oversees in her ministry. She told me that the women that are over 50 are so much more pleasant to work with. They come in do their job with a cheerful attitude and then they go home. The younger women are DRAMA. Someone is always offended, or mad, or on some obvious self-promoting quest. As she was talking to me about this, I began to have a huge desire well up inside of me. I don't want to wait until I am 50 to know who I am and be confident enough to not let things offend me or hurt my feelings. I want to be Christ-like. Someone who serves, who blesses others, who loves the unlovely. I want to make my life count for things that matter. I want to grow up now and not waste the the next twenty years worried about what people think about me. How amazing would that kind of life be? I don't think that a life lived for someone besides myself will leave any regrets....but a life spent fretting over who likes me and who doesn't......no thank you! I know it in my heart....now I just need to live it!
Number 1. I should be 100% ok with sitting all by myself in a crowded room. If I am sure of who I am in Christ, then no matter what happens around me - it doesn't change who I know I am or God's purpose for me. This will overflow into other areas as well: like when I am criticized or praised, shunned or lathered with attention. What others say about me or how others treat me should not increase or decrease how I look at myself. The Lord's opinion of me is all that should really matter.
Number 2. When my mind is on myself, then I miss being able to be used by God to reach out to someone else. The day I felt left out - did I look around for someone else that felt the same way? No....I didn't. I was to absorbed in myself. How many other women might have left that day feeling the same way? Maybe only one other, but if I had been in-tune with the Lord, I might have walked out with a new friend and a much better attitude.
Number 3. And what about the times I've been on the other side of this story? How many times have I been so wrapped up in my life and my friends that I've missed opportunities to bless someone? How many times have I left someone at a table by themselves?
My mom and grandma have both told me that the older I get the less I will worry what other people think of me. This is good news to me! I had a lady tell me recently about the group of women she oversees in her ministry. She told me that the women that are over 50 are so much more pleasant to work with. They come in do their job with a cheerful attitude and then they go home. The younger women are DRAMA. Someone is always offended, or mad, or on some obvious self-promoting quest. As she was talking to me about this, I began to have a huge desire well up inside of me. I don't want to wait until I am 50 to know who I am and be confident enough to not let things offend me or hurt my feelings. I want to be Christ-like. Someone who serves, who blesses others, who loves the unlovely. I want to make my life count for things that matter. I want to grow up now and not waste the the next twenty years worried about what people think about me. How amazing would that kind of life be? I don't think that a life lived for someone besides myself will leave any regrets....but a life spent fretting over who likes me and who doesn't......no thank you! I know it in my heart....now I just need to live it!
older brother say it to ya straight
Preface: Camden went on a ride with Blake at Disney World that scared him pretty bad. It had a really fast/long drop. The ride was Expedition Everest. He said the first drop hurt his stomach like a one and the big dropped hurt his stomach like a 101. Sounds serious, huh? I wouldn't let Blake take him on anymore big rides after that.
Fast forward two weeks: Hope makes up songs all the time. Sunday night on the way to AWANAS she was singing a song about how she would not be afraid at AWANAS because she never had to be afraid because Jesus was always with her. After about two minutes of signing about not being afraid, Camden said to her, "Well, I'll tell you one thing: If you go on Expedition Everest you'll be as freaked out as a bunny."
Fast forward two weeks: Hope makes up songs all the time. Sunday night on the way to AWANAS she was singing a song about how she would not be afraid at AWANAS because she never had to be afraid because Jesus was always with her. After about two minutes of signing about not being afraid, Camden said to her, "Well, I'll tell you one thing: If you go on Expedition Everest you'll be as freaked out as a bunny."
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Granny
My great-grandmother passed away this morning. I am trying to process a lot of thoughts right now, but the feeling I keep having above all is gratitude. Not many people ever meet their great-grandmother much less have her around for twenty-seven years of their life. When I was little she was the Granny that came at Christmas, made yummy food, and just made Christmas even more fun. She rode in an innertube behind the boat with me when I was nine and she was 73. When I got a little older she was my pen pal faithfully responding to every letter I wrote to her about what was going on in my pre-teen world. She cooked dinner for us every Thursday night for the year she lived in the same town as us. She told us story after story enriching our lives as we learned about generations before us and the lives they lived. She is a lady that I heard on several occasions praying out loud beside her bed at night. She loved her friends and family fiercely and had a joyful and peaceful disposition despite the tragedies and losses that she experienced in her life. She was an amazing woman that left a legacy that I am proud to walk in and hope to leave for my own children and grandchildren one day. A legacy of strength, inner and outer beauty, loyalty, and selfless love. She will be truly missed and dearly remembered.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Disney World
We had a REALLY great trip. We left early Sunday morning (the 21st). We spent the day swimming at our resort and at downtown disney shopping and eating. Monday we went to Magic Kingdom. Tuesday we went to Epcot. Wednesday we went to Animal Kingdom. Thursday we went to Hollywood Studios, and Friday we went to another resort for breakfast, downtown Disney again, back to our resort to play on the playground and an early dinner and then flew out that night. We touched down at DFW about 8:30 pm.
A few things:
1. Crocs are awesome!! As ugly as they are my feet NEVER hurt. Even after 14 hours in the park my feet felt great. They were worth every penny even if I never wear them again!
2. 95% of everyone that works at Disney is extremely sweet especially to the kids. I think it would be awesome if the whole world treated kids like they mattered as much as they do at Disney.
3. The magical express is awesome. They picked us up at the airport and took us to our hotel. Two hours later, they knock on our door and deliver our bags. Every day they have busses that come by every 15 minutes or less for each of the 4 parks, 2 waterparks, and downtown Disney. We never had to rent a car, pay for parking, worry about finding a parking space, or waste energy on walking from the parking lot to the park. Oh, and the last day we checked in our luggage at the hotel during check out and when it was time to go to the airport all we had to do was go through security and sure enough there it was on the belt at DFW. I was in awe!!!
4. The dining plan rocks!! We are family that does not go out to eat very often. The kids and I go to ChickFilet once a week with friends and as a family we go to the Donut Shop, Sonic, or have pizza two or three times a month and then go out nicer: Chilis, Cheddars, ect. once a month and we share meals. So for the dining plan.....we paid about $85.00 a day ahead of time and got 20 Table Service Meals, 20 Counter Service Meals, and 20 Snacks. The counter and table service meals included a drink, entree, and dessert. The only thing we had to pay was tip for the table service meals. We felt like we were SOOOOO splurging. We would split two counter meals at breakfast (for instance that would be two big egg, ham and cheese crossiants, 2 giant cinnamon rolls and 2 big milks), split two counter meals at lunch ( for instance 2 good size personal pizzas, 2 giant cookies, and 2 drinks) and then we'd have a big dinner. Most of our table service meals were buffet - all you can eat. When you added it up we would have spent way over $85 if we had eaten that much NOT on the dining plan. We ended up with a ton of snack credits on the last day because we were just never hungry between meals - we were always afraid that we would ruin the next meal if we ate a snack and then after a buffet dinner there was no way we could stuff in a snack!! Even with all the walking in the parks, I gained 2 lbs on this trip! On the last day we went to a bakery/candy store and used up all our snacks credits to bring goodies home in our suitcases.
5. Animal Kingdom and Epcot were our favorite parks
6. Magic Kingdom was fun and did make you feel like you were in some type of "magical" place but it rained the last 6 of the 13 hours we were in the park. It puts a little damper on your day when you are walking around in a plastic poncho sticking to you and wet pants from where you've sat on the wet curb waiting out the never ending rain storm!!!
7.Hollywood Studios is a good place to end on. There is not as much to do and there are a lot of shows so you do a lot of sitting and watching. It was good for us because we did it on our last day so we were all a little tired and Hope and I had colds that we had gotten the day before. Oh, and our favorite things was at this park. Its a new ride Toy Story Mania. Its the one thing that I REALLY wanted to do again, but the line was 70 minutes!!
8. Fastpass is genius! All the popular rides have fastpass. You go to the ride, put in your cards (everyone has their own card) and it gives you a time to come back and ride with a minimal wait. You can get one every two hours. So you go get your fast pass, then go do a bunch of rides that don't have long waits and then at the appointed time come back and get on the popular ride in like 5 minutes - when the wait time in the regular line could be over an hour. We worked it pretty good and never waited any more than 20 minutes for any ride. Every ride told you how long the wait was. It always over-estimated. That was VERY helpful for someone like me - that likes to have everything scheduled and planned ahead of time! I loved it!
9. I think the best part was just being able to focus on having fun with my kids. I didn't have to worry about dishes, laundry, straightening, cleaning, or school work. It was just about having fun and being together. I REALLY needed that and I'm sure it was good for the kids too.
10. When it was time to leave Blake and I realized how blessed we were that although our vacation was awesome that coming home was awesome too. We love our life. Blake enjoys his job. I enjoy homeschooling the kids and taking care of our home. Everyday that we are together is fun. We are very blessed.
A few things:
1. Crocs are awesome!! As ugly as they are my feet NEVER hurt. Even after 14 hours in the park my feet felt great. They were worth every penny even if I never wear them again!
2. 95% of everyone that works at Disney is extremely sweet especially to the kids. I think it would be awesome if the whole world treated kids like they mattered as much as they do at Disney.
3. The magical express is awesome. They picked us up at the airport and took us to our hotel. Two hours later, they knock on our door and deliver our bags. Every day they have busses that come by every 15 minutes or less for each of the 4 parks, 2 waterparks, and downtown Disney. We never had to rent a car, pay for parking, worry about finding a parking space, or waste energy on walking from the parking lot to the park. Oh, and the last day we checked in our luggage at the hotel during check out and when it was time to go to the airport all we had to do was go through security and sure enough there it was on the belt at DFW. I was in awe!!!
4. The dining plan rocks!! We are family that does not go out to eat very often. The kids and I go to ChickFilet once a week with friends and as a family we go to the Donut Shop, Sonic, or have pizza two or three times a month and then go out nicer: Chilis, Cheddars, ect. once a month and we share meals. So for the dining plan.....we paid about $85.00 a day ahead of time and got 20 Table Service Meals, 20 Counter Service Meals, and 20 Snacks. The counter and table service meals included a drink, entree, and dessert. The only thing we had to pay was tip for the table service meals. We felt like we were SOOOOO splurging. We would split two counter meals at breakfast (for instance that would be two big egg, ham and cheese crossiants, 2 giant cinnamon rolls and 2 big milks), split two counter meals at lunch ( for instance 2 good size personal pizzas, 2 giant cookies, and 2 drinks) and then we'd have a big dinner. Most of our table service meals were buffet - all you can eat. When you added it up we would have spent way over $85 if we had eaten that much NOT on the dining plan. We ended up with a ton of snack credits on the last day because we were just never hungry between meals - we were always afraid that we would ruin the next meal if we ate a snack and then after a buffet dinner there was no way we could stuff in a snack!! Even with all the walking in the parks, I gained 2 lbs on this trip! On the last day we went to a bakery/candy store and used up all our snacks credits to bring goodies home in our suitcases.
5. Animal Kingdom and Epcot were our favorite parks
6. Magic Kingdom was fun and did make you feel like you were in some type of "magical" place but it rained the last 6 of the 13 hours we were in the park. It puts a little damper on your day when you are walking around in a plastic poncho sticking to you and wet pants from where you've sat on the wet curb waiting out the never ending rain storm!!!
7.Hollywood Studios is a good place to end on. There is not as much to do and there are a lot of shows so you do a lot of sitting and watching. It was good for us because we did it on our last day so we were all a little tired and Hope and I had colds that we had gotten the day before. Oh, and our favorite things was at this park. Its a new ride Toy Story Mania. Its the one thing that I REALLY wanted to do again, but the line was 70 minutes!!
8. Fastpass is genius! All the popular rides have fastpass. You go to the ride, put in your cards (everyone has their own card) and it gives you a time to come back and ride with a minimal wait. You can get one every two hours. So you go get your fast pass, then go do a bunch of rides that don't have long waits and then at the appointed time come back and get on the popular ride in like 5 minutes - when the wait time in the regular line could be over an hour. We worked it pretty good and never waited any more than 20 minutes for any ride. Every ride told you how long the wait was. It always over-estimated. That was VERY helpful for someone like me - that likes to have everything scheduled and planned ahead of time! I loved it!
9. I think the best part was just being able to focus on having fun with my kids. I didn't have to worry about dishes, laundry, straightening, cleaning, or school work. It was just about having fun and being together. I REALLY needed that and I'm sure it was good for the kids too.
10. When it was time to leave Blake and I realized how blessed we were that although our vacation was awesome that coming home was awesome too. We love our life. Blake enjoys his job. I enjoy homeschooling the kids and taking care of our home. Everyday that we are together is fun. We are very blessed.
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