What is Growing On Around Here?

Sophie has nothing to do with this post, but she is so stinkin' cute, I just had to include this adorable picture of her in her bed. She's doing much better since her bout with vastibular syndrome in October. She's 14 and slowing down, but we are cherishing every day we still have her! I can't walk by her without a pat, a smooch, or a little sweet talk. She's just too cute to pass by!

I know, I know....mysterious brown seeds in a bag...looks bad, doesn't it? Well, they are for growing, but it's not what you think! Steve's new hobby is edible mushroom growing. Right now he has several different types of fungi growing in our various closets. Not only is he now the family "Mushroom Man", but he has really grown into a really "fun guy". Hey, a guy's gotta have a hobby. Why not a hobby you can eat?

Yep, this is exactly what it looks like. Mushroom spawn growing in toilet paper rolls. Oh, that sounds so bad and illegal, but it's more like a compost heap in a bag. He's growing oyster mushrooms right now. I hear they're "to die for". Let's hope not. Maybe if the mushroom thing doesn't work out, we can still use the toilet paper. Hmmm....maybe not.

Reach for the sky, amaryllis! It feels like spring in my kitchen right now. I'm just waiting for the blooms to "pop". Ironically, this is the gift I "stole" from my mother in law during our Christmas auction. That's right. I stole it from my mother in law. No one else was brave enough! (or maybe dumb enough, come to think of it)

My Jasmine tree blooms every so often year round, and I love it best in the winter when everything else is covered in snow outside. It smells heavenly, although my allergies don't agree. I don't really have much of an "indoor" green thumb, and I generally kill my indoor plants, but this one chose to live for some reason. Maybe it's all the coffee grounds I put in the soil, or that I sometimes decide to water it.

Winter blues getting you down? Grow something! Sea Monkeys, crystals, venus flytraps....check your potato bag...maybe there's already something growing in there. Don't overlook moldy bread or the back of your refrigerator! Have fun and let me know what you're growing. (unless it's illegal, and then shame on you!)

F E A R L E S S in Progress

The topic of fear gets overlooked so much that I think people forget its power over them. Think about it...Marriages. Why do people mess them up? I believe most if not all causes are due to some kind of fear. Fear of being alone, fear of not being valued. Fear of being hurt. Fear of not being able to measure up....the list goes on. How about the alcoholic? He is scared to death. Scared of real life. Scared he can't make it without the anesthetic. Just plain full of fear and he doesn't know why anymore. Why does the kid engage in things he shouldn't? Fear of not being accepted. Fear of being teased. Fear he'll never be good enough. Fear of not fitting in.

I can't say it enough and I'm a broken record because I've said for years. All things are either done out of love or out of fear. Those things we do out of fear are doomed to fail. Since most people are afraid of failure, you can see why this would be a self-destructive mess.

I'm no expert on this topic, but I know what it is to fear, and I know what it is to love, and I certainly know the difference and have seen the outcome. Think hard enough and you will find things in your own life that fit this description. It is an eye opener.

Max Lucado talks about Eve in the chapter "God's ticked off at Me" (Fear of Disappointing God). I think it's interesting how he sees this. So most of us know or should know by now that Eve went ahead and ignored God's command to "not touch the tree of knowledge". We all know she believed Satan when he said she'd be like God if she ate of this tree. Stop right there. Max puts it this way.....

"Most people would say she was defiant, pride filled and disobedient...but wasn't she first afraid? Afraid that God was holding out, that she was missing out? Afraid Eden wasn't enough? Afraid God wasn't enough? Afraid God couldn't deliver?" "Eve quit trusting God and took matters into her own hands" "They ran and hid" "they mishandled fear and fear did them in".

Whew! And that's just chapter three!

Hoops Madness and other Stories

On Saturday, Beaverton was hosting the basketball games, and we had one at ten and another at two. We played Clare at 10 and won...nice clean game, the girls all had fun. Everyone, including the other team played hard and did their best. Then came the game at 2 with Evart. We had already seen some of Evart's antics and frankly, we were not impressed. I don't like to talk against kids, so I will instead share my disappointment over either the parenting or the coaching this girl is getting. This girl singlehandedly knocked three of our girls to the ground, knocking the wind out of one, stepping on the head of another, not to mention her overly aggressive running over anyone in her way, ripping the ball out of her own teammates hands! The ref was obviously not very good, as it took him 3 times to finally call a foul on her! We have 3 girls in tears, and this girl was allowed back in the game time and time again to terrorize our players. We're not talking aggressive play. We're talking out of control roughness. Natalie heard the opposing team cheering when our girls were knocked down. It was the worst case of bad sportsmanship that I have ever seen at this level. We watched them play the team before ours, and the coaches kept walking over to talk to their coach about this girl's out of control behavior, but because she was the only one scoring all the points, nothing was done about her. We were really worried that someone was going to get seriously hurt, so it added to the stress of the game.

While our girls had every reason to retaliate, they did no such thing! I was so proud of them. We have some very talented players on our team. Each one contributes something different and they work so well together. They don't have to get nasty and they have great attitudes. After that horrible experience of playing an unfair team, they could still come off and say they had fun. Oh, and our team won by one point. Oh, yes, it was a very exciting game. We all peed our pants and screamed ourselves silly. In the last few seconds of the game, the nasty girl tried to rip the ball from our player's hands, and I guess she thought it was okay to push her in the process. She then took off down the court with the ball, thinking she was making the winning shot. The ref finally called that foul on her, and the game was ours. I just hope somehow she learns a lesson before it's too late. I really did feel sorry for her! I could see how much she wanted to succeed, but somewhere along the line, someone gave her the wrong idea about what success is.

Despite all of that, we have really enjoyed watching the games. We have great coaches and parents! The best part is, Natalie is having fun and she's excited about basketball! Serena thinks the best part is the concessions. Okay, I'll give her that.

I guess I have no other stories for now, since I went on so much about the game. Maybe I'll catch you next time. I do have some interesting things to share!

Beauty in the Backyard: Busted!

As you know, wildlife and I are pretty tight. The snakes love to hang out with me, although I've never been even remotely polite to them. The birds practically eat out of my hands, and the deer aren't even afraid of me anymore. Maybe they've found out what a pushover I am, so I'm the first stop at the backyard buffet. Since we're not allowed to feed the deer anymore, they just eat the birdseed and the compost pile. All of our shrubs are wrapped in burlap, and it looks crazy, but last year the deer and the rabbits made a mess of our landscaping. It's the country life. What can you do? Technically, we're living in their world.
We have several deer that come and eat at the bird feeders, so I keep my camera close to the windows. I often army-crawl through the living room to try to get as close as possible. You gotta do what you gotta do to get a great shot. A big telephoto lens would be great. Hint hint, Steve.

Mama deer takes good care of her kids, often stamping her feet at me. One time she kept walking toward the window, getting so close that I was afraid she'd charge me. I put my hands up and said, "I surrender!" That scared her pretty good. I wish it worked on the snakes!

You can't really see it well, but the birdfeeder actually has deer on it! So, I guess she thinks it's a "deer feeder". It's fun to watch them tunk it with their noses, watch it swirl around, then try to eat the fallen seed. It's like deer tetherball!

While I don't have a lot of time to stare out the window, I never walk by without taking a peek. Who knows when I'll see a bright red cardinal in the snowy pines...a chickadee getting a drink from the (heated) birdbath, a rabbit peeking out from under the deck...a giant hawk perched on the swingset...(not so good).

Thank God I'm a country (sort of ) girl!!

Reflections of Rubble and Repair

My heart is heavy today as I watch the coverage of the earthquake in Haiti. It's hard to feel happy when so many people are devastated by the biggest disaster in 200 years. That's a pretty big thing compared to my daily annoyances. Today it will be easier to keep things in perspective, as I pray for those in Haiti.

On the lighter side, last week I showed you the cute things that Patty sent me. Well, as we made it back to church on Sunday, I had 2 nice surprises in my box. One from Jenn Bovee, which was a little handmade calendar for my fridge (and it looks so cute there!) and a homemade card with cute little snowmen all over the front. I can't tell you how much joy it brings me to receive unexpected surprises. It's almost as fun as being the giver of unexpected surprises!
I also got Doug and Theresa's annual Christmas letter, which is probably the most well-written Christmas letter we get. Some of them are a little hard to read, but theirs is a beautifully written, humble, full of love letter. So, thank you Jenn and Theresa for being the sweet friends that you are. May God continue to bless you and our friendship.

I also got a nice email from my brother Jeff, which made me smile. One of my longtime prayers was that I would one day have a close relationship with each one of my family members again. Without going into personal detail, our family was rocked and tipped over for a very long time. It affected me very deeply, and has taken a lot of time to recover and repair the damage in me and around me. It finally feels like our family is focused on repairing relationships and moving forward, and I know Who is responsible for that. Believe me, this couldn't have happened without God's hand. So, to get a nice email from my brother, it just made my day. He wants us to take a bike trip and spend some time up at the cottage with our families. Praise the Lord is all I can say with tears in my eyes!

My sister and I are also turning the page, as we began studying the Bible together awhile ago. Our relationship is now based on positive things and not rehashing the past. Only God can do that, my friends. For a long time, I substituted friends in for family, and what a blessing it was that they understood what I needed from them. It's hard to explain to your children why your family is in shambles, and it's not the legacy I wanted for them. These "aunties" stepped in and loved on my girls and me too. It is nice to be able to share my siblings with my daughters and show them what family means. Thank you, God for all of the miracles. Yes. Miracles.

So, today as I reflect on Haiti and what those families must be going through, I am blessed to have mine intact. I am blessed with friends who invest in me and let me invest in them! Take some time and think about what and who you have in your life. Are you appreciating it enough?

Fearless Too

Today was the first day of our "Fearless" book study. (that's Max Lucado, in case you were wondering) While I won't discuss who was there and what we talked about, I can tell you a little bit about what we're learning and what is being reaffirmed.

Of 125 Christ-issued imperatives in the Gospels, 21 urge us to"not be afraid". That means we are being told not to fear more times than we are commanded to love! God sure knew what fear would do to us as humans, didn't he? (of course, he knows everything)

How I view fear is like that of the hub of a wheel. If fear is in the center, the wheel won't move, and all the spokes around it are paralyzed. If courage is in the center, the wheel can function freely. Like Max, I use metaphors to learn. That's why his books are so easy to comprehend, especially for a person who doesn't enjoy reading. I know, how weird is that?? :)

Here are some things Max has to say about what fear can do to us:

"fear corrodes our confidence in God's goodness".
"fear turns us into control freaks".
"the more insecure we feel, the meaner we become".
"fear releases the tyrant within."
"fear makes us forget what God has already done and can do".
"fear sucks the life out of our souls...drains us dry of contentment"
"fear-filled people cannot love deeply or give generously".
Fear, while not a sin, can lead to sin.

My favorite verse is 2 Timothy 1:7...

"For God did not give us (or insert your name) a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline".

I'm holding on to that one, my friends. I know a lot of what is "wrong" in me is rooted in fear. But like one person said today, "God will use your fear to help you." I truly believe that, and I can tell you that it is not easy!

Next week we're talking about the fear of not mattering. This book was not written for insecure, unstable, emotional, hysterical fraidy cats. This book was written for anyone, including the most secure Christian! Why? Because everyone at some time in their lives will encounter fear. Whether it's losing someone you love, or public speaking, a financial mess, a marriage or lack thereof, fear will knock on your door.

Max's advice? Don't let it in, and certainly don't let it sleep in your bed!!

Be blessed and be fearless! God is in control!!

Fearless

On Saturday, we went to Clare for the first 2 of Natalie's travel basketball games. Our team is new this year and has only practiced a few times together. Many, if not all, of the teams we play have played much longer. Well, that was no intimidation for our fearless 6th grade girls!

Natalie loves to play basketball, but she's admittedly not super athletic at this time in her life. A lot of the girls have played other sports and are more experienced. That would have made me so insecure at her age! Instead, Natalie plays to her strengths--being tall, for one. She handles the ball well, shoots well, but is clearly not aggressive! I laughed as I watched her, thinking, "i have made her much too polite for this game!" I guess watching her play sports always touches me. I know how her scoliosis affects her physically. She can't run as fast and coordination is more difficult to master. Guarding speedy little athletic girls proved to be quite a challenge, but she never gave up!!! That is what makes me most proud of her, for sure.

Watching the first 2 teams play before our game started, I became very nervous. Some of these girls were super aggressive, knocking other girls down, and stealing the ball. They were calling out plays and switching and all that other basketball stuff I know nothing about. I turned to Steve and said, "I am scared!" Yes, I got the little "what???" smirk, and then the "why are you scared" obligatory (is that a word) question. "These girls are animals out there! They'll tromp all over our girls". (shows my confidence, eh?) I was more afraid that Natalie's confidence would be shaken and she would forget to have fun. Of course, I didn't want her to get knocked down out there either!

So, I tapped on Serena's shoulder and said, "Hey, shut off your i-pod. This is important. You have to pray!" She said, "okay, what about?" "Well, that your sister has fun, for one, and that her glasses don't fly off her face, and that the team has a really good time". She promptly bowed her head, right there in the stands and prayed. Then I tapped my mom and said the same. Steve just kept smiling at me, and in his head, probably kept asking himself which planet he met me on. I prayed too, then I settled in to bite my nails. I mean, watch the game, of course.

Our girls went out there and played their hearts out. I was so proud of them! Each one put out their best effort and it showed. They won their first game and lost the second. The games were back to back, so our girls were pretty tired by that second game. I'm sure some people cared about the score, but I was just watching my girl try her best and not give up. She kept finding me in the stands while she was waiting to go out and I'd give her my 2 signals. The "ok" sign, and the "thumbs up"!

Go #1! I'm your biggest fan!!

Double Digit Deenie

I know it's a typical "mom" thing to say, but one of the happiest days of my life was the day our daughter Serena was born! She was actually due on Christmas Day, and I'm so glad she slept through it and gave me a couple extra days. Aside from 6 months of colic, she's been a pretty easy and enjoyable kid. Here are some moments from her 10th birthday celebration.

The girls are watching video of themselves being crazy. I loved the way Serena had her hand on Natalie's head. They have their spats, but for the most part, they are inseparable and each other's best friend.

A tradition around here is to receive a birthstone ring on your 10th birthday. We still have to go have it sized. Double digits warrant a commemorative gift. Maybe I should get one too! :)

Grammy and Grampy L. (and Pee Wee) always come to celebrate birthdays with us. It's all about family when we celebrate birthdays!

Grandma and Grandpa R. always make an appearance too. This year Grandpa showed off his Wii bowling skills. He almost fell in my lap twice because he got so into it!!

You can't have a birthday without cake, and because of the crazy rush of holiday stuff, I rarely bake her cake myself. This year we ordered from Meijer and we couldn't get the Tinkerbell that came with it, so I had to buy a fairy to put on top. Serena never cares...just give her a corner piece and she's happy!

So Serena, "Reenie", "Deenie", "Reenifer", "Deen Deen", "Reen", and all the other pet names we have for you....Happy Birthday again!! We love and adore you and can't imagine life without your smile, your sparkle, and your love!!

Special Delivery and another Tribute

I opened my mailbox yesterday and got a special treat from Patty! The small wallet style scrapbook on the bottom left and the "hello" card on the right. She also made the other 2 cards, which were hand-delivered, the best kind of delivery! Reading her note made me a bit teary in the car at the school, but they were happy tears for a change!

I have a friend who I can talk to about anything and never feel anything but acceptance from her. What a gift she has been in my life for 30 some years. I can honestly say that apart from moving so far away so many times, that girl has never hurt my feelings! Not one bit, and believe me, it is an easy thing to do sometimes. She doesn't tiptoe around me, and she doesn't have to. Know why? Because I trust her, I know my position in her life, and I am secure in our friendship and what it means to both of us. That is a rare gift these days. I have never felt second best to her, although her list of friends is long. I have never felt left out of her life. She would never pass up a chance to spend time with me, and neither I with her. I am never too busy to take her calls, and she looks forward to mine. We spend 80% of our time laughing and sharing funny things no matter what kind of mood we are both in. We bring out the best in each other. That is a true blue hands down friend. We have history, it's true, but a friend to her never feels new. Any friend she makes feels special and becomes a friend for life. She doesn't "weed people out". She doesn't assume someone doesn't have enough in common with her to hang out. She doesn't overanalyze their spiritual condition and make them her "pet project"or care too much about their economic status. She doesn't care if they're 20 or 55, rich, poor, snarly, or good-natured. She tends to attract good-natured people anyway, probably a safe thing with her!

I can only aspire to be to others what she is to me. What she has over me is a complete trust in people. I do not. While she has better reasons for not trusting people, she does it anyway. In a lot of ways, her heart is much bigger than mine. I love her for that, and for the mentor she has been in my life. While some friends will let you down, disregard you, put a place value on you, choose someone else over you, or ignore you altogether, a true friend wants you in her life, whether you are a new friend or an old one, a mess or a masterpiece. A true friend knows when you need them, whether you call or not. It's funny, this parallel life my friend and I have. I've talked about it before, but it really does happen so many times. Her van breaks down, mine breaks down. Maybe it's like a twin thing, but we're constantly comparing the same situations, and it is a level of connection I've come to expect and depend on.

What kind of friend am I? Well, to Patty, I'm pretty sure she'd say I'm top of the line. Dedicated. Devoted. Loyal, honest, truthful, loving, kind, accepting, attentive, funny, and willing! I don't know what my other friends would say, and maybe that's something I need to work on. It's been said that you need to be the kind of friend you want to have, and I have tried that, but it doesn't always work. I know I could be a better friend, that's for sure. Can't we all? While it sounds like I put her on a pedestal, believe me, I don't put anyone on a pedestal. Mainly because I don't believe anyone deserves that kind of elevation, but also because it sets you up for a sure disappointment. But expressions of love and admiration and an occasional thank you for being you? Yes, I will do that for someone I love, for sure!

Glowing Tributes to the Kids in My Life

One thing I am passionate about, and the one thing I am certain about is that I absolutely love kids!! Here are just a few of the kids in my life......

Natalie, Serena, Justin (6 and missing his front teeth!) Jarred (13, going on 30) These boys hail from New Baltimore, the sons of my bro Jeff. They are so much fun to talk to, play games with, and get to know. Jarred played us beautiful songs on his keyboard ( including Journey, one of my all time favorite groups), and Justin showed us his amazing Wii skills. On their way home, they stopped here to play in the snow with the girls. It is so great to see our kids make such a great connection. My brother and I were never that close, but it is a blessing that our kids have brought us closer together. That, and Jeff brings the chocolate fountain every year. Hey, what girl can resist constant flowing chocolate? Not me!

Oh my...let's see..bottom row l to r...Alex, Serena, Natalie, middle row..Mariah, Katrina, Jessica, Allison and fiance Josh. Top row... Nicole, Grace, Riley and Chelsea..

(missing...Cass and James) What a great group of intelligent, kind, and talented kids, if I do say so myself. Katrina is studying in France, and has a great blog called "Adventures Abroad", Cassie is a talented writer. Alex is athletic, Nicole plays hockey! They all have special gifts to offer. These kids are doing things I would have never dreamed of at their ages. I can't wait to see who they will become and all the great things they will do with their lives. When Steve and I met, Allison was three....she is now 24 and engaged to be married. She's in her final years of graduate school at U of M and will become a nutritionist. How the years go by. We are proud of all of them.

Old traditions always last! New jammies on Christmas Eve...socks to match. This is the favorite gift to open every year! I get new jammies too, which either match or closely match theirs. What can I say about my own girls? If you're a mom, you know the kind of love you have for your kids. I continue to be amazed by them daily. Their kindness, their wit, their love for one another and for others. I am truly blown away that God gave these two beautiful girls to me. He must love me a lot!!

Natalie holding Reagan (2) and Serena with baby Kendal (3 months). Talk about your beautiful kids! These little ones are my great nieces (mom, Sara), and they add such joy to an already joyous occasion. I was about Natalie's age when I became an aunt for the first time! Sara is a great mom and my sister makes a wonderful "Mimi Mama". I missed seeing my other great niece, Reese, who is also 2, with blonde, naturally curly hair and big blue eyes! Smart as a whip and fun! God has worked blessings into my family that I never thought possible. He has united us in a whole new way and given us many new beginnings.

Merry Christmas? You bet it was. There are no greater gifts than the people God chose carefully to be part of our families. Yes, that includes old weird Uncle Harold who smells of moth balls and old cheese. :)

Fatigue

I have been really tired lately. I mean, not just tired, but fatigued. Like a mac truck is coming at me, and I don't want to get out of the way kind of tired. Who knows why..could be the many nights of insomnia winter tends to bring. Could be the 4 hours I spent cleaning the basement today. Could be the weather, could be my weird heart thing, who knows. All I know is it's affecting my writing. I read back some of the posts I've done recently, and all I can say is whoa. Too many words and too much jumping around. I have a lot to say and I'm too tired to arrange it the way a good writer would. I even confused my husband, who simply said, "you just had a lot going on and a lot to say, didn't you?" What a nightmare to think that I call myself a "writer", yet can't even take the time to do it right. Well, I'm no longer a "writer", but a dabbler...again.

Makes me really question whether this writing thing is for me or not. I have to admit, I've been a dabbler. I've dabbled in so many things, I should have it embroidered on a patch on a boring white shirt. I've done photography, insurance, cake decorating...ugh. Nothing sticks. The only thing that sticks for me is parenting. Is that sad or what? There must be something else out there for me. Something I can do when my parenting days are "shorter".

So what is it? I sure wish I knew. Sometimes life is just one big bag of unanswered questions and a whole lot of wandering. I know that I'm on a journey, but truly, I feel like the plane has been circling for too long, and the train won't slow down. Don't think I haven't taken this to God. He is well aware of my restless heart. I trust that He'll land my plane and stop my train and give me patience (and sleep) while I wait.

Yawn....night night.

Momservations

I remember saying to someone years and years ago, before thoughts of being a mom even crossed my mind, "my kid will be the square wearing the hat." It got a lot of laughs back then, and it's funny to me how that has come to pass. No, my kids aren't "square", and they often try to sneak out without hats, but my point was this: I will do what is best for my kids whether it's the popular thing to do or not. Whether they like me afterward or not. I will do what is best. I really don't care what other parents are doing. We do what we feel is best. Not always an easy answer for a pre-adolescent, but I guess if Steve and I lived through it and came out okay, then our kids will too.

I have kept that commitment, and thrown out all other misconceptions about the mother I would someday be. I would hear a mom admonish her child in the store, and I'd think to my ignorant un-mother self, "I would never be that mean to my child." Ha! I'm sure I've said and done worse than that tired, over-worked mom in the store that day! The point here being, you can't really predict what you'll do when you are put in those situations, and you certainly can't predict who you'll be after you become a mom. You will change, and it will be a good thing. Kids have a special way of transforming and transfiguring a perfectly sound minded adult! They turn you to mush and take out your attitude. Again, it's a good change.

Lately, I've noticed that as parents, we're a bit different than some others. Not better, mind you. Just different in the way we think about certain things. Please don't be offended if you fit in one of these categories. I'm simply noticing, not comparing. So, we decided to let Santa bring us a Wii this year. You know, the now-dinosaur video game that almost everyone already has? So what? we didn't have it because we aren't ones to go out and get the "latest and greatest" of anything, and believe it or not, our kids didn't ask for it in the first place. Funny thing about kids. It really doesn't take that much to please them. It's the parents who are more worried about earning their kids' love that causes the problem in the first place. Anyway....

One of the kids came home and said, "you know, everyone else already got a wii last year....some kids even got the i-pod touch....a few kids got their own cell phones...." The tone of this conversation was not meant to imply that she was disappointed in what she got, because she wasn't at all. She was simply noticing these things and thought it was unusual. See, the year that all the kids got the i-pod nano, my kid got the i-pod shuffle (the one below that). The year she gets the nano, they all get the "touch". I guess to a kid, it would seem like she's "behind". Well, that depends on who you're talking to, because I happen to know that not "everyone" was that blessed on Christmas morning. I also wanted to define the word "behind" as it applied to this situation. In our case, "behind" means "on the right track for our family".

I started out by asking if these kids who received cell phones as gifts had gotten jobs over the break. Well, how else are they going to pay for it? Do they pick up their rooms enough to have time to text people? What do they text anyway? Don't they talk enough at school? My kid barely even likes to talk on the phone let alone have her own. My kid has to be reminded to take lip balm out of her pocket every time she brings down her laundry. Can you imagine a cell phone going through the wash? Nope. Not responsible for one. For two, why does an 11 year old need her own phone? It's amazing to me that I lived without a cell phone all through high school, all through college, and much of my married life!! I don't text and I still don't care to. And yet, I survive. Thrive, in fact.

Why would I buy an i-pod touch (pretty costly) for a child, when it has wireless internet capabilities built in? Our values require that our home computer is in a central location with the door left open while on the internet. Giving them free reign with the internet before they are ready spells disaster to me.
While I understand parents who want to give their kids great things, there are greater things to be given. I explained (though I know I didn't need to) that the things Daddy and I want to give them far exceed anything we could buy them. I asked them what they thought those things were.

Here's what the girls decided we gave them: love, attention, fun, and time. Not to mention lots of nice things, whether they're the "in" thing or not. I told them that dad and I could see the "big picture", much like God sees ours. That we wanted kids who weren't "entitled" or spoiled because the world preys on people like that. We wanted them to value things and earn things, and learn responsibility. My dad taught me that value a long time ago, when my mom wanted to get me something really expensive one year. He said simply this: "what are you going to do for an encore?" It sunk in with my mom, and there went my pony. Just kidding, it was probably a Beamer. (still kidding)

I find myself saying those same words. I want our encore to be love, attention, time, and fun. It will always be the "latest and the greatest" in my opinion. Though I can't control my kids internal thinking, I can show them that happiness doesn't come from having things. I know all kids want to be accepted and they want to fit in. I don't object to that in "doable doses", but what will always win out is doing what is best, and loving them through any disappointments.

The square with the hat? Yeah, that came from a customer who commented that if I made my kids wear a hat to school, he'd get teased. I replied, "Maybe so, but he'll be a warm little square wearing a hat." I see myself as a big "square" wearing a hat. I don't do as people expect, I don't always say the "popular" thing. I don't fit in everywhere I go, and I don't care if my clothes and my car don't meet your expectations. However, I can be happy with that, and I can always count on a great encore!

Be blessed!

Update

Helllooooo.....anyone out there...ere....ere......

I know I've been off the hook lately, and even now as I sit here, i don't really want to post. It has been a tough December! I am still trying to catch up on rest.

Let me just say that next year, things will be vastly different. I will be saying the word "no" more in the month of December. My last post described a frazzled mom, trying to prepare for the season. The day after that, my kids became ill with the flu. The kind of flu that has mom running from one room to another, carrying soiled sheets and clothes in one hand, and the Lysol in the other. It was bad. Steve came home and I said, "here is what I need. A badge of courage, a medal of honor, and a high five. I have just been through a war zone".

So, my dad's belated birthday celebration was canceled yet again, and we spent the weekend getting the kids back in shape. All the while, I really didn't feel right either. I wasn't eating much and just felt so tired. On Sunday morning, about 3 am, I found out why. I became very sick with the flu, and it just kept getting worse by the hour. As the day went on, I realized Steve hadn't been coming in to check on me, so I went to find him. I had the worst headache, along with the other typical flu symptoms. I found Steve, sick on the couch, and the kids were gone. He called my parents to come and get them. They stayed with my parents the next 2 days.

He recovered much faster than I did, and thinking back, I probably should have gone in to see the doc. I think I was pretty dehydrated when all was said and done. I don't think I have ever been that sick before, and boy, I don't ever want to go through that again, especially when I have a million Christmas things to do. Oh, the stress of lying in that bed, thinking of all the things I had to do.... I prayed for people going through Chemo, people with sick kids in hospitals, people in nursing homes, the list went on and on, anything to keep my mind off myself.

So, I still had to take the girls shopping for Daddy, and I had the Rogers Christmas to get things for too. There was no way I could shop in my condition, so I had to wait until Wednesday. I dragged myself out and it was a struggle, but I got the shopping done. Of course, I still wasn't eating, and I had no energy at all. It took me until Christmas night to finally eat and feel like a normal person again. This did very little for my Christmas spirit, but I tried to remember the reason for all the celebrating, and I tried to enjoy each person and each moment. I took lots of pictures, of course.

I will be posting just a few of those pictures soon. The highlights of Christmas were having it snow on Christmas Eve and seeing my great nieces playing with my girls. On Christmas Day I loved getting up with my family and making our traditional breakfast and seeing their bright faces lighting up. Most of Steve's family was up, and we all enjoyed visiting and laughing. Serena turned ten on the 27th, and we celebrated again! My brother and his boys came up on the 30th and we celebrated again! New Years Eve was quiet and uneventful this year, but we needed some quiet family time, so we played wii til the wee hours, just the four of us. It was bliss. We celebrated my dad's birthday, my sister's birthday, and Steve's dad's birthday. Lots of cake and lots of presents. Finally things have slowed down and it's time for the girls to go back to school. We didn't have nearly enough time to do all the things we planned. Gee. I wonder why.

Well, like I said, I didn't really feel like posting, and I don't know when I will post again. I hope to be my old self again soon. If not, well, then I hope you like my new self better.