Happy birthday Isaac Boy!

   * I wrote this post last night....I just had so much trouble getting the video added that it didn't get posted until today.  Please humor me and pretend that it was posted on April 30...;)

  Today is Isaac's 9th Birthday. Each time one of my boys has a birthday, I find myself amazed at how old they are, amazed at how quickly the days, weeks, and months passed since their last birthday, and amazed at how much they've grown and changed in the year that has just flown by. And this day is no exception. Isaac is growing and changing so fast, and the sad thing is that life gets so "full" (the nice way of saying hectic and busy) that I often find I've missed the process and just get a glimpse of the results!

      We looked through his baby book today, and the reality of all this development and change was poignantly clear. I found myself missing that baby... the soft, snuggly baby skin, the sweet, toothless baby smile, the unmistakable sweet baby lotion smell, mixed with the genuine article! Yet in the midst of all of this sentimentality and nostalgia, I realized how thankful I am for the boy that I have, and how blessed I am to have a healthy, energetic, intelligent, "normally developing" (whatever that means!) son. The challenges are certainly different than in babyhood...then it was changing diapers, multiple nighttime feedings, and fussy evenings. Now we have to check to see if homework and piano are done, remind this boy a zillion times to pick up his clothes, and, on occasion, check his attitude. But the "fruits of the labor", so to speak, have remained, and maybe even increased over the years, as well! When he was a baby I got to watch him sweetly sleep, giggle at whatever tickled him, and celebrate as he achieved new milestones. Now, I can still climb up to his bed and watch him sleep (if I just slow down and put down the laundry to take the time to do it), watch him laugh and giggle ( unfortunately often at things I find rather dumb or gross...typical, so I hear), and definitely celebrate as he achieves new milestones. Being able to time travel back and forth within the stages of his childhood and relive the sweetest moments would be lovely, but obviously not possible. What's a mom to do? Pray, pray, pray...that we bring him up to love and honor God, that he undoubtedly knows the love of his parents and brother, and that we train him up in the way he should go, so that as he grows older, he will not depart from it. And while I pray, I intend to pay attention... to watch him sleep now and then, to try to laugh and giggle here and there with him, to absolutely notice and celebrate my boy's achievements and milestones, and to thank God every day for the blessing of being his mom.
                  Happy birthday, Isaac-Boy. You are loved.

Meet my Little Basketball Enthusiast...

I told you that posts will be random and not chronological...at least for a bit.  Case in point... I just wrote about the Royal Wedding that took place only today, and I now revert back to another Spring Break moment. 
I case you aren't aware, Grant loves basketball.  Loves. it. period.  His daily routine when he gets home from school is to go down to the basement to play at least one game in which he chooses two NCAA teams to pin against each other, and then  play out the game, in which he is the only player on each team, keeping track of the score, and then report the outcome to Mike & I when he's finished. He revelled in the NCAA tournament, and was really disappointed when his beloved Purdue Boilermakers were taken out by VCU. Even his teacher at school commented that "Grant bleeds pretty bad for those Boilers!"  He is looking forward to the beginning of next year's season and Robbie Hummel's triumphant return.  He's adopted another team to love, however, in the Butler bulldogs.  This worked out well for him as they made it to the final dance in the tournament.
The final games of the tournament took place over Spring Break. Here's a glimpse of Grant's dedication to the game.

We had dinner with Angie's cousin and her husband this night. They were very accommodating to Grant's need to post his sign:)

Kye really could have cared less about this Butler/VCU game, but he worked hard to be a supportive friend to Grant!



Grant was happy to call Mike and PopEd with the game results!



Princesses & Weddings..and Such

It seems to be that the majority of my friends and acquaintances aren't all that interested in the Royal Wedding that took place today.  As I took an informal poll the range of enthusiasm for the wedding went from lukewarm to utter disgust (Grandma!). Oh, there were a couple exceptions...my mom finds it intriguing, and my Lori (who has been lovingly dubbed "Queenie" in our family for almost as long as I can remember) does too. And, I enjoyed a long post-wedding chat about the event with my sister.
       Now, I find this general lack of enthusiasm unfortunate... anyone who knows me knows that I Love, Love, Love all things "princessy", "weddingy" and romantic. A friend/former roommate once claimed that if I ever had a daughter she would probably look like pepto-bismol exploded all over her.  That's a bit harsh, I think! 
Well, guess what...I have two sons and no daughters... and there is a distinct lack of most things pink or "princessy" at our house, and a plethora of light sabers and balls and cars and planes. Please don't mistake this for a complaint...of course I love my boys and would never,ever trade them for any little girl.  But one does crave a feminine fix now and then, doesn't one?  And, Angie, the Warrior Dash certainly doesn't qualify :)!!!
This morning's Royal Marriage fit the bill quite nicely. And, to make things even better, Mom came over just after 5:00 with fancy tea cups (so what if we filled them with java instead of tea!), and English muffins. We sat together and enjoyed a very peaceful early breakfast and kept our own running commentary of all the different ensembles and head wear displayed. The bride was stunning, the flower girls were precious, and my inner princess is content and satisfied, shored up and ready to jump back into the world of soccer, boats, and bikes just in time for Isaac's 9th birthday dinner tonight!

Photo Disclaimer:
Please remember that it was early...just after 5:00 a.m.!  I came straight from sleeping in bed to the "telly"...hey we didn't attend the wedding, no need to get gorgeous!  Still, I loved making these memories with Mom this morning!

Memories of Spring Break... # 1

Spring Break has come...and gone. And I would have told you about it sooner, honest I would have, but we have had some major internet problems...like no internet at all at home, since the very day we got home from Spring Break.  So...be prepared for post palooza ( my fancy shmancy title for catching up on blogging!) Because, as any teacher or parent knows, MUCH happens in the life of a youngish family during April.
I make no promises of any kind that posts will be in any type of chronological order, only that I hope to write them!  Now, back to the topic of this one...Spring Break.

The heart of every child beats a little quicker at the mention of those two words..Spring Break...(pitter patter, pitter patter)  The heart of every teacher nearly goes into cardiac arrest (beep!beep!beep!) at the mere mention of Spring Break, we are so excited.  So imagine the atmosphere at our house, with two children and two teachers.  Gravity did not exist.  I should write a quick disclaimer right here ... we get this excited when we have somewhere to go. While we prefer a balmy destination, we are still rather content just to have a destination. Preferably with loved ones.  This year did not disappoint.

This year we went to Kentucky with our dear friends, the Grants, ( in case I've not previously introduced you all to them, these people are so special that our children consider each other cousins, and the terms Aunt and Uncle preceed the first names of all four adults to the corresponding kiddos. This being said, our kids do actually realize that they aren't biologically related, which is a good thing, because Isaac is betrothed to their only daughter, Kenna. Yes, that's right, we are very much in favor of arranged marriage.) We began the trip as soon as school let out Friday afternoon, as we could wait no longer to escape the cold and rain and see our friends. On the way we stopped in Indianapolis for dinner at Bob Evans with Kelly & Hoff ( my sis & brother-in-law).  Why Bob Evans you ask? (just pretend you asked, okay?) Because when I asked Grant to think of one thing he really wanted to do on Spring Break for fun, his answer was,"Let's go to a restaurant, like Bob Evans! Yeah! Let's go to Bob Evans!" The child is just so hard to please.
Then, it was onward to Louisville.

The beginning of our little vacation was spent with the families divided...Mike and Isaac went with Darin, Kohl, and Klay and some other friends to Red River Gorge near Lexington for some hiking and camping.  Angie and I opted to stay at her cousin's house in Louisville with Kenna, Kye, and Grant, sleeping in real beds with real showers, and familiarizing ourselves with nearby parks, cupcake shoppes, and gelato shops.  Mmmmm!  

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How His Mind Works...

In our family, we enjoy reading The Jesus Storybook Bible together before bed almost every night. If you are looking for a new Bible/devotional to use with your kids, I highly recommend this one... it was suggested to me by a friend, and my boys love it. It does great things for a mom's heart when her boys want to read "just one more, pleeease?"

We've gone through it a couple of times, and when we finish it, we just start back at the very beginning.  My hope and prayer is that as we read through this bible, the history and themes of God's Word will be carved into my boys' hearts and minds, and that they'll always know the depth of God's love for His children.

Woven into each of these stories the theme of a wonderful rescuer (Jesus) that will come, and then come again, to save the world.  Last night we read about the tower of Babel (taken from Genesis 11), and how the people tried to build the tower to reach up to Heaven, all with their own strength and power...without God.
The story goes on, as I'm sure you know, to talk about how God confused their languages and stopped their plans so that they would see their need for Him.  The last part of the story goes like this:
     "Because the way back to heaven wasn't a staircase; it was a Person.
     People could never reach up to Heaven, so heaven would have to come down to them.
     And one day, it would."

So, following the reading, I say to the boys,
   "How did Heaven come down to us? What day do you think that was?"
Grant's reply:
    "Saturday."

As you can see, the meaning and theme of these passages is seeping deep into his soul ;)  Still...I think I love how his mind works.

Happy Monday!

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Yesterday the sun was shining.  Yesterday there was a carnival, and I ran...a lot. Yesterday is over.

Today it is raining. It is chilly, possibly even cold.  There is no carnival. I have not run yet, and who knows if I will muster enough energy to get up and do so.

BUT... I got another piece of pie from Mom and I got to eat it while sitting on her couch:)  My boys are playing war (the card game) with a very enthusiastic PopEd, and not getting into any trouble at all:)  The kiddos and I went to Grant's favorite spot The Chinese Buffet for lunch today, and while I find the quality of the cuisine lacking a bit, my boys were happy and I didn't have to clean up the kitchen this afternoon.  I took a nap before we walked over here.  Mike will be home at this time tomorrow.   So, while I began this note  with a crummy view on my day, once again my perspective has changed a bit during the writing process.
Although I still wouldn't mind if the the rain, rain would go away.
Just thought I'd share:)

I am NOT in Florida!!!

              So, my brother-in-law got married at Ft. Myers Beach at 3:30 today. A beach wedding...it's about 87 degrees there... one of my top two all time favorite places happens to be the beach...one of our best-ever family vacations as adults with children was at (just guess, I dare you!) yep,  the beach...Ft. Myers Beach, to be exact.
      My husband flew out yesterday... but when we booked his flight in January we just didn't think we could swing the cost of three more tickets for the rest of us. We were right, and I know in my heart that this was really the only financially responsible decision, something we are far too often not so good at making. I had every intention of handling this quietly and gracefully.
     Someday I will succeed at acheiving my good intentions. Not so with this trip. As the day grew ever nearer, I felt something akin to panic within me as time passed and I had not yet found any last minute deals that would get me and the boys to the beach for this wedding for a realistic amount of money. I have exhausted every option and made a Herculean type effort at finding a way to justify us going to Florida, and being able to do it on a dime. My friends and family are all quite aware of where I would like to be today, and have been quite gracious as they listen to my moaning and complaining ( By the way, thank you, my loved ones, for continuing to put up with me these days!) 
     Finally, I have resigned myself to the fact that Isaac, Grant, and I are spending this weekend in Indiana, and, as I oh-so-often make my children do when they are acting ungrateful about their circumstances, I have decided to do my best to focus on my blessings rather than on Florida's beaches. Bear with me as I perform self-therapy and list a few of them:

1. The sun is shining here in Indiana today, and the temperature is actually 20 degrees above freezing.
2. No one in this house is either running a temperature or vomitting!
3. It is the weekend of the elementary school carnival, giving the three of us an economical way to spend the afternoon and distract ourselves.
4. With my dear friend and running partner's help, I was able to run 45 minutes without stopping, then continue for about 40 more minutes with minimal walking, for my longest "run" ever...while her husband kept track of the kiddos and delivered gatorade and sport beans at that ever so crucial 45 minute mark.
5. Spring break is just around the corner, and I get to spend it with another fabulous friend, one of my kiddos, and a couple of hers, while our husbands take the older boys on a big hiking/camping trip.
6. A youth from our church came over this morning to work at cleaning up my back yard because I  purchased his time and effort at a labor auction last spring that helped him go on a missions trip to Honduras. I hate cleaning up leaves and debris in the spring when I want to plan my flowers and landscaping.
7. I have not recently experienced a tsunami, and feel fairly confident I do not live in a  tsunami danger zone.
8. My children are currently spending a couple hours at a friend's house, and I get to blog and mindlessly surf the internet while they are gone.
9.  My mom purchased one of my all-time favorite types of pie @ the aforementioned carnival, and beofre I plugged myself in to the computer I enjoyed pie and coffee while I leafed through my brand-new BH&G magazine, alone.
10. My wonderful husband will be home on Monday...not even a week, month, or year from when he left. To all you women who have military husbands or husbands that are in a line of work that keep him away a lot, way to be strong! I am a pretty big wimp, and I miss my man.

Those were the first 10 blessings that came to my mind...and as I wrote them I realized I could keep going on, and on, and on...so although I am NOT in Florida, I am also NOT suffering the way I may have made it seem in the past days and weeks. Thanks for bearing with me as I used this spot in cyberspace as a little bit of therapy and a little bit of a reality check.
Have a great Sunday tomorrow:)

A Sick Day = Unexpected Opportunity

Yesterday I posted on this blog for the first time since its launch date in 2008...I spent much of the day experimenting with fonts, colors, backgrounds...you know, things that are much more important than laundry, mopping, dinner....

Throughout the day I realized, as I later posted, that I am finding this to be rather enjoyable and may need to give myself a time/frequency limit for this new activity. I really think this is indeed going to be required, as I find myself sitting at the computer even now. Tuesday is a teaching day for me...so I should really be at school actively playing dodgeball and hula hoop freeze tag with my students. And that was the plan, really! You see, last night, Grant looked like this:

Happily playing a game of SORRY! before bed with the rest of us...

Today, however, he looks like this:

The poor little guy has an ear infection and a temperature of 102...thus resulting in a trip to the doctor's, a stop at the pharmacy for antibiotics, and a pitiful little boy on the couch not feeling well at all. Going to the doctor's office entails a  35-40 minute 1-way trip, plus wait time and appointment time.  Therefore, having any kind of chunk of time to be truly productive today is pretty much shot.  At least that's the excuse I'm using for why I'm spending my time on this blog rather than doing the housework I ignored yesterday. Grant may not agree, but I'm labelling his sick day an "Unexpected Opportunity!" Do you think he'll be proud of me for finding the silver lining in his cloud? I suppose he may have appreciated me bringing him juice and toast a little more... Doc says he'll be home

tomorrow as well ~ maybe I can redeem myself as a mother then!  Then again, maybe I'll go see if my boy needs that juice now.

Oh, Dear...

Oh dear, this could be a problem. This could be an addiction. This is not exactly something I anticipated...my fear was whether or not I would be a consistent blogger. That has changed. My NEW fear is whether or not I will be able to do anything else with my days...I think I really could love this...I think I have been anxiously awaiting each comment, secretly hoping someone out there in blogland would leave a little comment, a morsel of proof that I actually did it...I actually posted on my blog and someone read it!!! And then Anne did, then Abbi, then Bethany... and I am officially hooked. Oh Dear...

Hmm...

I think I'd really like to try to blog. Here's the problem...I've been saying this for years now. Literally. Years. There are many things I'd really like to do, aspirations I have, ideas, thoughts to share...you get the picture. I have an issue with inconsistency. I begin, yet do not continue. Case in point: I created this blog in 2008. Today is March 7, 2011. This would be post #2.... Hmm...enough said.


As I thought about reasons I haven't done anything with this blog, I came up with 3 main ones. If you are still hanging in there and reading, then - WOW!- but, still, allow me to share:)
1. I am still not sure about the ins/outs of blogging, posting, adding pics, etc.
2. I am rather embarrassed at the amount of time that has gone by, and don't exactly want to draw attention to it, and...
3. I am somewhat disorganized, ADD, and yes, as I said, inconsistent.
Hmm...


I have attempted journaling since my middle school days, and while I have several journals around my house, none have more than one or two entries. reasons # 2 & 3 for not blogging also apply to this situation. Hmm...


Scrapbooking is the same story...although I have more accomplished than in my journals. Still, my precious six year old's baby book is not even complete to his 1st birthday. We have an entire huge red tub filled with unorganized photos that we only see when I re-organize my craft area. Hmm...


Here's the thing...I do want to be able to look back on this life God's giving me the chance to live, and to remember it! I want to remember the sweet moments that create our family life, the struggles and truimphs of my faith, my marriage, my mothering, my relationships, and everything else that there is.


This weekend I was at a women's retreat. Our speaker was great! Very genuine, very practical, and very honest. She spoke about prayer... but I think this particular comment applies to many parts of life, not only our prayer life.
She said, (and I am paraphrasing), that shameful, condemning thoughts about how we have failed at consistency are not from God, but from Satan. God convicts, He points out places to us where change is necessary, but He does it with a gentleness...welcoming, inviting, and encouraging us to change and improve...not beating or guilting us into doing so. She told us to think on what we want our [prayer] life with Jesus to be like, rather than what it should be like. What a refreshing perspective!
So...this I am doing. I'm spending time thinking, and praying, and yes, possibly blogging, about what I want my life with Jesus to be like...and what He wants it to be. But in a happy, anticipatory way! And the feeling of freedom this change in perspective is creating within me just happened to ooze over into the realm of blogging...at least for today! I feel excited to try again to preserve little thoughts, moments, blessings, whatever! through blogging...rather than embarrassed at the amount of time that has passed, or the lack of accomplishment I've felt. And maybe someday my children will try something they'd all but given up on because I tried again. Maybe not.
Hmm...