Oct. 19, 2007 - Movin' on...
Come see me at:
www.myfamilyliferocks.blogspot.com
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Oct. 7, 2007 - Kylie's 4th Birthday!
We had an awesome day at Sommersby's Farm in Oviedo celebrating Kylie's 4th birthday party. It is hard to imagine that she is 4! Kylie's friends had a blast riding the pony and playing with the miniture horses and the resident goat. Enjoy the pictures!
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Sep. 30, 2007 - Uh... OK?!
I think my DH has taken this Homeschool thing a bit far. He is playing Scrabble with my DD. Did I mention that she was only a few days away from 4? 
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Sep. 21, 2007 - Help me out here!
Ok, so I have been playing around at blogspot now for a week or so. I am not great with computers but let me know which platform is better! This one, or my other blog...
www.myfamilyliferocks.blogspot.com
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Sep. 20, 2007 - Exhale.... Whew!
I have to admit, I have been wound tighter than a rubber band lately. With the move, the weddings, getting rid of things etc. I have just been plain ol' stressed. Finally today after a long days work at the old house, boxing and bagging things for the Salvation Army I see the light at the end of the tunnel.
~ Tomorrow between 9-12 the Salvation Army will take away 30+bags and 25 boxes of stuff!!!
~ The realitor will come at 2 to take pictures of our house and finally get the house listed!!! Whoooo hooo!
~ I have buyers for the last of my furniture!
Do you hear me exhale??
Now on to plan my DD's birthday party on the 6th...
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Sep. 3, 2007 - Whine ahead!
I am so thankful for things in my life so I probably shouldn't even whine about my issues but here goes. Maybe if I get it off my chest I will move on!
~ my son has just recently started getting out of bed and climbing into mine at 5:30-6am. Bless his heart, he just goes right back to sleep but then since I am awake, I want to get up! I can't move as he has crashed on my arm. So I usually drift back to sleep but my desire is to wake up around 6am to do my quiet time and excessing.
~ work. I dunno where to start with that one. I am thankful that I can stay at home with my kids. I pray that I can minister to the children who come through the doors but I am more and more convinced that it is a difficult place for a family to live. The desires of the Children's Home for me and my family are clashing with my goals as a mom. It is hard to raise your children up with such a lack of structure! I am praying for my DH to get a more stable job in the company so we can stay here just get me out of the cottage.
~ The boys attitudes. Sure, we all have our days but this is getting constant. We have a new boy here who is wonderful but he is an ex gang member. I mean, a real gang member - not one who just thinks he is in a gang, he was really shot at, shot at others etc. His gang culture is starting to seep into our cottage like colors and gang signs. I pray that we can show him the love of Christ and that he does have an identity outside of the gangs he is so close with.
~ I am just tired. I never feel fully rested even after 8 hours sleep.
~ Last but not least... Home school! How fun this has been. Pray that I stay on task and don't loose momentum as I am gone for 2 weeks. I am going to a dear friend's wedding and then my SIL's wedding back to back but I am so excited for both of them as they start off on their journey's.
And if you have read this far, bless you! Now go hug your kids and tell them how much you love them. Turn up the music and dance around the living room - act crazy and maybe we will all feel better!
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Aug. 24, 2007 - Tomorrow is the big day...
Finally, the day I have been waiting for. The day of our garage sale. I stand in the midst of chaos - literally standing as I am selling the bar stool that is normally in front of my laptop.
There is a flood of emotions that run through me as I am here in the late hours by myself. One part of me is excited on the new adventure of living in a new home but another struggles with letting go of the stuff. Every toy is a memory, every outfit might be worn again by a baby that isn't even conceived, and every item that I touch holds it's own story of our family together. What keeps me going is the anticipation of the new memories to come, in our new house.
My sweet husband and children are in their new home peacefully sleeping as I type. They have had a rough day of more packing, mommy shooing them off to busy themselves and just chaos. I can't wait for the day to day routine to start so we can all settle down, so I can love on my kids and my husband. I can't wait for the projects to be over so I can live life again. I miss my kids and my husband.
Well, before I become a blithering idiot, I must go to bed. It is an early morning to move everything on the driveway. I hope there aren't any early birds as I am starting at 8!
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Aug. 16, 2007 - So much!!!
I will do a quick update as I only have a second.
We are moved! On August 11th, a wonderful gang of people helped us move into our new home. While it is a lot smaller, I really enjoy the simplicity of it all. It is all new, all fresh and most of our furniture matches again! Everything goes! We are getting rid of the mismatched things on Aug 25-26 during our massive garage sale so pray for us as we get it all ready!
Work is well... going. I am just not happy of who we have become here. We want to advocate for the boys but we get so critical! Not of the boys mind you but of all the adults making decisions for the boys and the campus. We feel as we don't have a positive word to say about the decisions that are being made here. Blech. I don't think we will be making any career changes soon though as we now live on campus and depend on our job for our housing!
Our kids are as flexible as ever. Being a mom has been the most rewarding experience for me and if it wasn't for them I would go crazy. They love our new home and beg to go there every day. So refreshing to see life out of a child's eye.
Speaking of the children, we are officially starting school on Aug. 27th! Gulp! I have planned until I can plan no more so I feel as if *I* am ready. Hope the kids are! We will be doing FIAR, B4FIAR, Handwriting without Tears, Reading Made Easy and the Math-U-See Primer. Now I just hope I can implement my plan.
Well, that is it in a nutshell. You know, I haven't had a computer in my new house so maybe that is why I have gotten so much done. ;-)
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Aug. 10, 2007 - If you get a minute...
Pray for us. In one day we will be moving into a much smaller home. We love our home that we live in now but know it is the right thing to move into our "retreat." The Children's Home provides low cost housing for the houseparents as we don't really get a good salary to provide permanent housing every other week while we are not working.
I have packed most of our things, Jon's father and some other friends from the children's home are going to help us. We have the truck rented so we just need to do the grunt work.
I thought I was doing well with the emotions of it all but when the realtor asked if it was ok to put a lock box on the house, I lost it. My voice quivered a meek "yes" and my eyes quickly filled with tears as this is the home we have lived in for the past 5 years. I don't think in all of my life, I have lived in a home for such a long duration. That is including growing up. We have sweet memories here of our children growing and friends visiting. I know we will make new ones in our new home.
Well, the kids are out with dad so I better go get packing...
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Jul. 30, 2007 - My sweet husband!
I had to take a moment and brag on my man for a bit. So bear with me as you read through this post!
Last Wednesday we had a meeting with our Realtors. They came to look at the home and assess its market value. I was a bit daunted by this task but knew that our home had to be spotless! So I cleaned like a mad woman while Jon took the kids out. About 10 minutes before the Realtors came, my DH and kiddo's came home with bunches of flowers. I thought, "aahhh, how nice to add flowers for the Realtors! Nice touch." Anyone who knows my DH knows that he isn't mr. romantic so I just thought it was for the realtors. Nope! They were for me since he just wanted me to feel loved. It took me a minute to really "believe" him but as I distressed from cleaning I ended up really appreciative. Now as I see the flowers almost a week later, I am just happy that my DH thought of me.
Then if flowers weren't enough... I had some secret shopping to do so I left the troops on Sat. morning. I was gone for some time and when I came home, the house was empty. No note or anything! So I got a cup of coffee, my new FIAR planner and began to enjoy some quiet time. Ahhhhhh.... About an hour later my DH came home with quietly sleeping children who were quickly moved to their beds. (3 more hours of quiet!) He also had an Old Navy bag. I thought, "good, he got some new clothes for himself." Again, nope! It was a big bag of clothes for me! You know the drill... Mom always goes out to buy clothes for the kids but never gets things for herself. Well that is me. So I tried on all of my clothes and you know what? My man did a really good job! No plumbers pants at all!
I don't know what meant more to me. The fact that he bought me clothes or that he endured it all with the kids!
Oh, I almost forgot. He also rented 2 chick flicks for me to watch this week AND he watched them with me! Truly amazing.
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Jul. 26, 2007 - Random thoughts...
I sit here waiting for a realtor to come meet us at our home. I have just spent all day cleaning and cleaning. As I vacuumed I was thinking....
- why do we clean really hard only when company comes over?
- why do we decide to fix everything in the house only to have it go to another owner?
This bugs me! Don't we value ourselves enough as a family to make it the best for us?
Pray that my husband and I see eye to eye about moving. I just want to be free... free of debt, free of the responsibility of our house, free of hastles. We are growing in so many ways so I believe God is at work here. Isn't He always?
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Jul. 12, 2007 - The joys of home ownership...
Why is it that when you decide to sell your home everything breaks. Right now my sweet husband is under the sink fixing the plumbing. It all started with him cleaning out the drain, then he noticed a leak so he went down to fix it but found more problems. Now with all the pipes off, 2 trips to Lowes, he is putting it back together.
This morning it was fixing a broken sprinkler.
I have never seen my DH in this role before. Sure, he fixes things every blue moon but this has been all week! We have a lot to do before the house sells so I am happy that he is motivated.
We were supposed to leave for Sea World an hour ago but who can argue with a man who is fixing something for his family! He wants us to have fresh water and a receptacle to spit our toothpaste in.
This is why I am excited about living in the retreat. All the joys of your own space but none of the responsibility. We can live fancy free on our weeks off - we don't even have to do the yard!!!
I know home ownership is the American Dream etc. but I sure will be happy with my new place...
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Jul. 11, 2007 - Random thoughts...
You know what?? I would have a lot more time in my day if...
~ Instead of researching everything about organization and actually just organized, I would have it together!
~ Instead of researching everything concerning Homeschooling, I would actually teach my kids with the things that I have already!
Just my latest convictions about this dern computer. Blast.
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Jul. 8, 2007 - Female Hormones...
I have a love/hate relationship with being female. I love being a female because it is what God made me. I love the art of womanhood and all it entails but I hate the guilt I place on myself! The thought of being the perfect wife, perfect mother and perfect friend. One who has it all together... I try and try and try and still I am at the same place I was when I started.
I was listening to Nancy Leigh DeMoss the other day and she spoke about the Proverbs 31 woman. She mentioned that everyone wants to be that person but in no way is able to attain that position. God gives us a glimpse of who He is through that women but no one is perfect outside of Him! When we try and try, we are bound to fail. When we invite God into our lives and seek His will, only then are we able to reach such lofty goals.
Back to being female. I notice how I haven't even touched on my title! For the past few days, my family has been going, going, going. If you looked at my house right now you would pass out from the sight of green grass on my front yard. Grass?? Are you serious?! Yes, there is grass. The boys from the Children's Home were so excited to do some manly work and of course we added an extra bonus of getting to work with weed whackers and other assorted power tools they jumped right in. As a reward for working so hard, we took them on a trip to Busch Gardens. So two nights up really late.
Do you see where this is going? Two nights up really late and two children who don't understand the value of sleeping in make a bad mix for a momma.
What is it with being sleep deprived? Simple comments become personal attacks that you question every ones love for you or if you are worth anything at all! I mean, you really get unglued! My poor DH tries so hard but he really can't win if I am tired. So he just does his thing to keep safe but even that isn't safe. Why did God make female hormones??
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Jul. 2, 2007 - Our New Home!
We were able to go into our new "retreat" on Friday to measure the inside. It will take a bit getting used to the smaller space as it is half the size of our current home. I am looking forward to getting rid of our "stuff" that oozes out of our home now! Here are some pictures!
We will be in the middle triplex. This provides us with two parking spaces and two attic areas! In back, there is a large screened in porch that will be a nice area to have meals or playtime.
This is the master bedroom. It is all hardwood floors which will take a bit of getting used to. I am sure we will need to get some throw rugs around to muffle the noise of our two little ones tromping around. The closet is a lot bigger than our one at home so that will be a nice change.
I have always wanted a window that overlooks my backyard... This is a window that overlooks my carport. Oh well...
There is just a sliver of the window to the left that overlooks our backyard!
This is the kids room. Notice the big window that is really low?? Well, we will need to put a window lock on it as I can just see my kids opening it up and walking out on the roof below. Not good!
I am not sure why they put the mirrored doors in the bedrooms but I almost want to take them down and put up curtain type deviders. I can see those being a problem as well as it won't lock like the ones at home. I just don't want them to get broken as we are basically renting the place.
I think the kids will like the upstairs/downstairs of the townhouse but we shall see if it gets old. I am looking forward to the health benifits that stairs provide! Hope you liked your mini tour!
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Jun. 21, 2007 - Beach trip...
Well, since we stayed at home all day yesterday due to sick kids, I decided that we needed to venture out of the virus infected house and go to the beach. It was just what the Dr. ordered as the kids had a great time and forgot that they were a bit under the weather.
The kids were so cute walking down to the beach. They got out of the van and immediately held hands until they reached the sand.
I just wanted to snap some pictures while they were playing in the sand. Kylie played along but Luke, well, the picture says it all.
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Jun. 19, 2007 - Day at Butterfly Encounter!
This morning we ventured out of the house and went to Lukas Nursery. This place was amazing! It had acres and acres of beautiful plants all grown here in Florida! This put the Home Depot's and Target Garden Spots to shame. I can't wait to go there for a few hours by myself so I can just brainstorm what to do with my yard!
They also have the Butterfly Encounter. We entered into a hot steamy greenhouse that had hundreds of beautiful butterflies in them. I wish I had the kids on videotape when we first entered the greenhouse as their expressions were priceless! They were in awe of the butterfies that greeted them!
Luke wasn't being to social towards the camera this morning. Every time I came near him he told me "no camera" and proceeded to look down. Humph.
There was an area where you could touch the butterflies and attempt to feed them off of your finger. They had cups of gatorade that you dipped your finger in and then chased around the poor guys that were in the "refueling station." Needless to say, they didn't really want the gatorade.
We had one guy that rested on our finger but he didn't stay for long!
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Jun. 19, 2007 - Uuugghhhh!
Boy, have I been a slacker! I have a new hobby of mystery shopping and that takes up a lot of time these days! We have been able to go to different restaurants, activites and retail shops that put a bit of change in my pocket so that has been good. If it sounds as if it is something you might want to do, a good starting point is Volition.com. Just go to the Mystery Shopping link and a whole list of places to sign up is on there.
Jon is up in Maryland right now to complete some training for work. My mom came down for two days and we went to Sea World yesterday. We had such a good time with her at the park as she hasn't been to a Sea World for nearly 30 years!
Better go see what my kids are up to as now I don't have my second pair of eyes!
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May. 27, 2007 - My husband loves me...
Today I feel loved. My DH is cooking dinner which consists of turkey breast, mashed potatoes and veggies. Of course turkey has to have cranberry sauce. I saw a can on the counter and it was the whole berry kind. YUCK! So ya wanna know what my wonderful DH showed me after I made a comment about the cranberry sauce? He pulled out a bowl of pureed cranberry sauce that he blended just for me. Awwwwww...
I am easy to please.
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May. 19, 2007 - I feel honored!!!
Today is the day! I feel like I am part of the "blogging club" as I have been tagged. Lynn over at A Mother's Journal got me!
Here’s how it works: Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. You need to tag others and list their names. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog
7 Random Facts about Kristina
~ My dates with my DH were either working with his Youth Group, transporting children on each other's caseload (we worked for the State of FL) or helping a single mom with her 4 kids. We definitely knew each other's parenting style by the time we were married! Talk about romantic huh??
~ Upon being married, we already had a 14 year old son. I was 13 when I had him!! Ok, not really, we adopted a boy that my DH had on his caseload (also from the state of FL.!) He has since returned to his bio mom.
~ My secret passion is scuba diving. When my kids get old enough to snorkel, we will be living in the ocean! I haven't gone since I have been married which is 6 years. It is dern expensive to take a trip when you aren't working for a dive shop - which I did when I was in college.
~ I never thought I would homeschool. I thought the PS system was foolproof... Then I moved to Florida.
~ Out of all my friends, I think I have the fewest kids (2). My friends who were childless not 7 months ago, just got pregnant with triplets! Everyone around me seems to be pregnant or with a new baby so I have the itch BAD! Pray for my poor DH...
~ I think about moving almost daily. I love where I am but I enjoy the excitement of being somewhere new. My DH shares this passion thankfully!
~ We go to Theme parks almost every other week! Hey, we live in Orlando. I just pray that my kids grow up normal. I mean who can compete with a theme park - they think it is a normal outing just like a playground or the library!
DONE! That was hard! Now the really hard part starts... Tagging someone else. I am going to tag two people I would love to see around blogsphere more. I love their stories and their humor just cracks me up. Now Megan is someone I work with. She has one of those new babies I was talking about! He us a cutey by the way. If you click on the link, you will see his picture. And Shay, well she also has a good excuse of why she isn't blogging too much. She also has a sweet precious new bundle. And a bunch of other kids too. Her heart is so sweet and I really miss hearing what she has to say! So now you have been tagged.
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May. 7, 2007 - I did it!
Me at the starting line before the race.
We started the race and I swore I was a part of the Boston Marathon. It took awhile to "find my place" but after I did, it was all good. I had been feeling a bit ill a day or two before the race so while running, I knew I didn't have the same amount of energy I usually do. My goal pre race was not to walk any, but it soon became just finishing!
The kids also got to run in a Kid's Race. It wasn't too far but they got their own bibs and ribbons at the end. It was great fun for them!
Waiting to race...
My time was 35 minutes which isn't so bad so it will give me more opportunities for better times on other 5K's. I was 351 out of 1108 people so for my first race which is pretty neat!
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May. 1, 2007 - Blueberries for Sal
This week we "rowed" Blueberries for Sal. It is such a sweet story that teaches so many wonderful things to our kids!
It all started when I was driving a Florida backroad and I saw a sign for blueberry picking during the months of April and May. I thought to myself, I must do Blueberries for Sal and take them blueberry picking! So I got out my B4FIAR manual and poured over what I wanted to do with the kids. Then that week I went to Target and found the cutest little tin pails that would be perfect for picking!
So during the week I started looking up blueberry farms in Fl. Guess what. No blueberries. The birds were all taking advantage of the yummy fruit and there was nothing. So when my kids heard me drive up to a local grocery store, they asked "what are we doing?" I replied, "picking blueberries at Publix!" My poor DH jumped out of the van and went into Publix and came out as white as a sheet. He found blueberries alright. At $4.00 for a miniscule container. My DH is more than frugal so I was very thankful that he did this wonderful gesture for our kids.
I ended up cutting out green construction paper for the leaves and put toothpicks inside of them to attach the blueberry on. It worked out fine and they were able to pick all they wanted and listen for the famous "kerplink, kerplank, kerplunk!"
Click here to see the video!
I am so thankful to have a DH that loves "rowing" books as well. He had such a fun time reading the story while the kids picked their blueberries.
Luke had a good time learning about the color blue. He enjoyed coloring his blueberries as shown here.
Kylie and Luke also got to do a collage of animals that they picked out of a magizine. In Blueberries for Sal there were a number of animals such as crows, bears and partriges. So we cut out pictures of bears, birds and spiders (?) and matched them all together.
We did so many fun things, mostly from the B4 manual but this picture was so funny to me. At night snack, I let them have blueberry yogurt. Kylie I think was a bit burnt out from all of the picture taking so this is what I got.
In Blueberries for Sal, the mother and child become lost from eachother so when we took a family trip to Sea World, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to discuss safety. Kylie and I pretended to be the Mommy and Little bear and she payed special attention to not get seperated from me.
To end up the week we had an impromptu Blueberry picnic for dinner. My DD had pulled out a blanket and was having her own picnic when she said "let's have a cereal picnic!" I looked in our pantry and what did we have? Blueberry Morning cereal! "Ok" I told her so we all sat down and had cereal for dinner. Stellar mommy moment there... Fun none the less.
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Apr. 25, 2007 - Oh how she made me stretch...
Through the eyes of a child... Being a mom has taught me so much about life, God and true priorities. Almost daily I look at things differently because of my children. Today God worked through my daughter.
We were driving towards our house and on the way home, we usually pass a man begging by the side of the road. My daughter has asked about him before and now because of him, she knows the meaning of poverty and what it is like to be hungry. Today she saw him and as we were driving the little way home, she could not get him off her mind.
Again we talked about poverty and then she said "he must be so sad." I agreed with her, that living a life like his must be sad.
When we got home, I began to prepare lunch. I asked my kids what they would like to do after lunch and my daughter replied "go give that man some food so he won't be hungry!" My heart sunk. I must admit that the stereotypical roll of a beggar went through my mind. "If I give him money he will just spend it on alcohol etc." I hesitated and then answered "ok honey what should we give him?"
The next 10 minutes or so was spent looking around for things to pack him in a sack. Kylie picked out an apple, an orange, two containers of applesauce, a Pepsi and two granola bars. She carefully packed them up and then took them out to the car. She was so excited that the man would not be hungry anymore!
As we went by the man and gave him his sack, my daughter yelled out the window "God Bless You!" How that made my heart sing! I am so proud of my 3 year old little girl for having such a heart for the hungry. Isn't that what God wants us to do? Isn't that so out of our comfort zone? It is for me but yet it was so easy for Kylie. What a lesson I have learned today...
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Apr. 3, 2007 - Contentment at it's finest...
This morning I woke up and got ready to take my daily walk. When I put on my iPod, I discovered that the battery was dead! Oh, how could I walk without my music??
I got on the road and began my walk and began to spend some quiet time with the Lord. I prayed for various things but I became very thankful for where I was at this part of my journey. How blessed I am to be able to take walks, have a wonderful area to raise my kids etc.
For those of you that know me in real life, you know that I struggle with being content. I love the idea of moving anywhere other than Florida, I want, I want, I want... Today I was just thankful for where God planted me. What a concept.
Today I have just revelled in my kids. We planted some things in the garden (if you could call it that) and the kids just had a blast. I caught myself getting frustrated when the kids weren't digging in the right place but I took a step back and just let them do whatever. What would it really hurt? So they had so much fun including when they watered everything BUT the plants! I was content.
We came back inside and I promptly threw them in the shower. The sounds of their giggles (screams too) resounded through the walls of our house. What a blessing the sounds of laughter are to the ears of a mom.
My husband is a wonderful provider and friend to both myself and our kids. It isn't uncommon to see him on the floor with the kids playing a board game. He even took them out for a 3 hour bike ride the other day! I am blessed.
So, I say all of that to say this... I love where I am for this point of my life. I am sure there will be other chapters in the Jackson story but I think I will linger in this one. Being content is such a joy.
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Mar. 24, 2007 - Our boys...
Florida statues have relaxed a bit and now I can put pictures of our boys on our website!
Can I just tell you what a blessing our boys have been this week? They have had fun running around and playing outside and being boys! Fishing, biking and exploring in the woods. I don't think the video games have been on all week long! 
They have also been incredibly kind to Kylie and Luke which makes a Momma's heart proud. They have taken the kids by their sides and gently guided them and kept them safe. They have played with them endlessly without a cross word or complaint. Truly a joy to be around!
I hope you enjoy the pictures of the boys and if God prompts you, please pray for them. Thank you!
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Mar. 16, 2007 - Animal Kingdom
Here are a few pictures from Animal Kingdom. We had a wonderful time while Rob, Heidi, Anna, Zach and Wes came for a visit. A few days before our visit, we watched The Lion King so Kylie and Luke would "get" some of the shows. They were about to explode when they saw their favorite character Rafiki!
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Mar. 11, 2007 - A milestone in our family!
Forget sitting up, crawling or walking. Welcome to milestone 101 - Jackson style!
Yesterday Luke rode his first roller coaster!!! Twice!
The kids know that before we venture off to a theme park (which is every other week) they need to be measured. Kylie usually prompts us to measure by using a play measuring tape from Luke's Home Depot tool kit. So we line the kids up on the wall and measure away. Following the measure is usually a hoop and holler that our child has reached a height that will allow them to ride a new ride or a low groan which means they still aren't tall enough to ride a specific ride.
So they lined up as usual and nothing too spectacular was learned. They can't grow too much in 2 weeks time even if they *do* eat all of the vegetables. (yes, I admit, I use it as a bribe...)
Off we go for a fun day!
When getting the kids out of the car, Jon asks me what shoes to put on the kids. Sneakers I yell as that adds another inch to Luke's height. Ok, he replies!
We get to the moment of truth. We are in front of the Flying Unicorn and we measure Luke again. Jon tells him to stand tall and he does. His head hits the bottom of the measuring stick and we are IN! He rides it twice and has a blast. He gets off yelling "again! again!" We don't ride because you can only take soooo much without finding out what you ate for breakfast.
Kylie is excited for her brother and now is telling him of the Woody Woodpecker roller coaster. He kinda pouts because he can't ride the Flying Unicorn again.
So a few hours later, we are at Universal Studios. We again don on Luke's tennies and head off for another roller coaster. We get past the first measuring stick, second... Nobody has stopped us yet... Then we sit down on the coaster. One lady comes by, unlocks our lap bar and say's " I need to measure him." What? My son is confused but gets up and walks off the car. They measure him and low and behold he is an inch too short. They kick him off the ride.
He just doesn't get it. He howls and the lower lip protrudes as he cries "Roller coaster! Roller coaster!" I explain that he is too short but it does no good. Not even Barney next door can ease his pain. It was the most pathetic thing ever to watch his despair.
So then we figure it all out. When Jon asked him to stand tall, he got on his tip toes. Boy after my own heart.
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Mar. 5, 2007 - My best accountability partner...
So yesterday I was spending a little one on one time with my daughter. All she wanted to do was play horses with me. I had some fun with her but I wasn't really "there."
The boys were gone with my husband so the house was semi-quiet. Luke was asleep and so I thought, humm... what a great opportunity to watch some girlie TV! Wrong.
About 5 minutes of playing horse but really trying to watch a great episode of some organization program on TLC, my daughter looks at me and then grabs the remote and turns off the TV.
"I don't want you to watch TV mommy!"
All she wanted me to do was play horses with me. My job at that moment was to be a mommy horse. She wanted my focused attention and boy did she let me know. I wish we could all voice our concerns that succinctly!
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Feb. 27, 2007 - I am no Bible scholar!
Please take my words as a grain of salt. This is just what was bouncing around in my head at 6 am while I was walking!
Genesis 2:16 is a passage right after Eve took the apple. God is speaking to her after she disobeyed his request of not eating from the Tree of Knowledge.
To the woman he said,
"I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing;
with pain you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
and he will rule over you."
Notice the last sentence - "Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you."
I don't know about you, but I think I have a large library of self help books on how to be a better wife etc. After reading these books I am filled with guilt for what a horrible wife I am! I *want* to do everything the book says but I find it to be overwhelming. How can I do all of these things? Rise early, go to bed later, be fit, cook good and healthy meals, make sure the house is sparkly and the list goes on. My DESIRE is for my husband. To please him, to make him happy etc. This is a consequence of sin!
I drive myself crazy with comparing myself with all the other "perfect" Christian women out there when I should really just be seeking His will for my life. God will use his Word to convict me on the changes of my life. God will breathe life into me, not all of those self help books!
God will only give you as much as you can handle. While I love all of the self help books I find that it is more than I can handle! What can you handle?
For the next 21 days, I am going to try to take a break from all things "self help." I am going to seek God's Word first for my life and go from there. I am longing for peace only He can provide!
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Feb. 25, 2007 - Aaaahhhhh... It is over...
How I love my kids birthdays. It gives me a reason to have people I care about over at my house and let the kids run wild. I enjoy the short lived chaos but note the word, short lived.
Now as I sit near my kitchen the house is stragely quiet. Luke is sleeping with not one, but two Mikey dolls. His room has been taken over by Thomas the Train - it is supposed to be a train table but for the moment doubles as a stage, remote control car road and a house. I love their sense of imagination.
All day Kylie has used her best drama voice and eye rolls and said "Mommy, my tummy is VERY hungry for cake." I am sure...
So now I have a 2 and a 3 year old. How fast they grow but I am loving every second.
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