Christmas was wonderful! We stayed home this Christmas instead of heading to Oklahoma to be with my family. We definitely missed them!! But, it was nice to celebrate for days here at home without the hustle and bustle of travel. We opened a few presents four days in a row, had a Star wars marathon, played tinker toys, made lots of goodies, laughed a lot and spent Christmas day with good friends, great food and fun games.
Now that we are done with all that, I am ready to make some changes. Some people call them New Year's resolutions, but I don't really like that term. Years ago I heard a "professional" state that if you've had the same resolution for 5 years with no results, then you should forget it cause you won't make the change. I set out to prove her wrong. At the time I had reached my all time, high weight wise. In the next 5 months I lost 30 pounds. HA!!! Take that little miss know it all... In any case I no longer like the term "New Year's resolution," but prefer to think of them as life changes.
A few years after this happened, I made another life change. (not at New Year's this time) I made a huge diet change for the sake of my health and lost another 30 pounds, a little to much. That was 8 years ago and I have slowly started letting things go and I am ready to get my body feeling good again.
I went shopping last night and got some new workout clothes and tennis shoes. (clearance $15 for shoes and $21 for 2 pants and a top!!) Then, this morning as I was browsing netflix I saw a show about food and how terrible the processed food we eat today is. So... back to my vitamix I go to create yummy healthy shakes for our family. I was so good at doing this for a few years, but sometimes I need motivation and shows like this to help remind me of what I want to do. I just made a shake with a spinach base along with bananas, oranges, strawberries, kiwi, a handful of pea pods and carrots. My girls LOVED it even though it was so green and ugly!
Although I don't have much weight to lose, I am so excited to start exercising, eating better and feeling great!
Out with the old... In with the new!!
Huh?
Does anyone else ever feel like they live in a different universe than their spouse?
Recently we played the board game loaded questions. One of the cards told us to write one word that described our life. Instantly I knew what I would write...
We have been in the middle of a remodel since April. Dale started back to college last summer with some killer classes and tons of homework. He took this term off so we could focus on the remodel before he starts back in January. At the time we were playing the game we had out of town company and at one point while they were here, we couldn't take showers because of the grout in one shower and the caulk in another. We had one toilet out of commission most of the time. I was painting trim and a bathroom while they were here. So the word that came to mind was definitely CHAOTIC.
During that turn, Dale was the reader. So, he collected everyones answers to read aloud. When he saw mine he snickered and showed me his....calm. Like I said, I questioned whether we live in the same universe. CALM? CALM!! How could he say his life is calm??
He said, "Life is good. God has blessed us and we don't have any trials to speak of so I feel like my life is calm."
Well I just hope he never thinks our life is chaotic, cause that could be just too crazy for me.
My mom is here visiting and I helped her create a blog. For any friends out there interested, her url is blogginggma.blogspot.com I think she will really enjoy it especially if she can get comments (hint hint).
We have had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We were able to accomplish quite a bit on the remodel. About half of what we wanted to but isn't that how it always goes? We had some quality family time. Good stuff. Feeling very blessed.
Here's our new shower :)
Dad's Birthday Today
Just remembering my dad today on his birthday. It has been a little over 2 years since he passed away. We will always love you dad. I will always be thankful for the things he taught me. He would have been 64 today.
This photo shows my dad as the kidder that he was :)
A flood of thoughts
As I cleaned this morning, the house has been quiet. Kids are still sleeping, guys are at work, tv and computer were off. Very nice. It allowed my thoughts to flow without distraction, and here they are:
Great meeting last night! We are having called meeting this week and I so enjoyed it last night. It is wonderful when God reads my mind and allows the prayers, ministry, testimonies, and even songs to coincide with what I already felt. Of course, I think He allowed me to have those thoughts in the first place so that I could have the blessing of unity in that still small voice. Enjoyed a house full of brethren yesterday. That's always good!
Part of our company last night was Bro Joe AKA The Great Appliance Guru. He fixed my dishwasher. To truly understand how this makes me feel, imagine me dancing around, jumping up and down and singing a tune while I say this again, HE FIXED MY DISHWASHER, OH YA, OH YA, DOOO AH!! So this is why when Dale and Andy left for work this morning at 5:45 I cheerfully stayed up and loaded my dishwasher instead of heading back to bed. It's amazing how excited you can get to load the dishwasher after using a crippled one for a few weeks. As I was washing the dishes, I was thinking about some of the conversations I had yesterday. Good spiritual food, but also other good and inspiring talks about how each person cleans. So armed with the motivation from having my dished done a little after 6 this morning, I took some of the advice and cleaned my ceiling fan, the top of my refrigerator, and the greasy area above my stove. And it's not even 8 yet! Feeling good :)
In the midst of all this feeling good, I must post one tiny grr... We had a good Halloween, but I have no proof because the designated picture taker fell down on the job...Well actually he failed miserably. We went to a Halloween party and he took 9 pictures of other people's children. A few shots have the side or back of Ella too, but no pictures of Samantha. In all fairness and in his defense, he says I didn't tell him to take pictures of our children and he's not a mind reader... I'm sure it was tough to figure out why I brought the camera to the party. I need to be better at communicating and not rely on Dale's psychic abilities.
And last but certainly not least, it is evident God has been working with Andy just lately. It is wonderful to be able to share in that with him and hear the humbleness in his prayers and the thankfulness of his testimonies in and out of church.
God is my heavenly father and he surely knows all about me and is so good to me, even though I am just an unprofitable servant.
First snow day fun!
We had our first snow day and here's how it went:
Last night before bed it started snowing.
This morning we had 3-4 inches covering everything and even more here and there.
Samantha and Ella were SUPER excited and gulped down their breakfast so they could head outside.
Adorned in blanket sleepers, (they will have to change when they get back in anyway, so why not stay nice and cozy in the meantime) snowsuits, boots, mittens, hats, and winter coats they scurry out.
I grabbed the camera and snapped a few shots before I headed back inside because I am a boring mom who HATES being cold.
I get all snuggled back in my bed armed with my snow pictures for a facebook share (oh and my amazon shopping cart on another page doing some Christmas shopping)
Knock, knock, "Mommy...Mommmmmy?"
I get out of my cozy bed and open the back door...BRRRRrrrrr!
"Mommy I got the wrong gloves. These is cold and wet. I need mittens like Ella."
I trapse down to the basement so my darling Samantha can have warm hands like her sister.
She goes back out and I head back to my warm comfy bed.
"Mommy, Mommy, MOMMMMMMY!"
I sadly, once again crawl out from under the warmth and head to the freeeeeeezing cold. (The girls were warned in the beginning that if they came in even one time they would be done, so they are being so good just standing at the back door yelling for me lol)
"Mommy, we have a carrot for our snowman?" They are soooo cute! Truly!
I pack a baggy with a pickle (fresh out of carrots...), olives for eyes, and raisins for a mouth. "There you go sweetie, now off with you."
Do I dare even set back on the bed? Oh yes, it is just too inviting...
"MMMMMOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMYYY!!" I should say that in all of this calling me, there is never an urgency in the tone.
Sigh..., "Yes, Samantha?" Of course it is Samantha. It is ALWAYS Samantha. Let's just say that she's the squeaky wheel.
"Mommy, you help me build the snowman? I can't get his eyes to stay on, or his nose and mouth."
"Yes, honey. Let me get my boots and coat."
We finished our snowman and then the girls decided they were cold and wanted to come inside.
All in all I think they played out in the snow about 45 minutes. It's a good thing I didn't help them sooner or it may have only been 15 minutes. LOL
I have been having some trouble with the blogger website lately, but it finally came up on my computer. Yeah!
We (or should I say Dale) is working on the remodel this weekend. It seems like so much has been going on for months now, that we haven't had much time for it. Tile being installed as we speak!!! I am a happy girl. Hopefully tomorrow we can get it grouted and paint the bathroom. It is finally coming together....
M.I.A.
I think we all have those things that we "save" for a future project only to have the said item or items under foot and in the way right up to the time we actually have a need for them and then they are MIA...Missing in action.
That was what happened to me today. I went looking for some foam board that I had saved for the girls to do crafts with. It has been in Samantha's room for months now, but when I went to get it, it was missing. I did some deep cleaning last week but I can't remember where I moved the foam to. (I'm hoping it wasn't to the garbage can!)
I searched and searched to no avail and had to use cardboard instead. So, I'm sure now that I don't need it anymore it will turn up. Isn't that how it always works??
Toddler in toe
I took an online class this morning about keeping your toddler entertained while homeschooling the other children and boy did I need that! Lately I have felt like I have been neglecting Ella and not giving her her share of me. There were so many fabulous ideas on how to keep them happily occupied, and that sparked some of my own ideas of things that Ella would love to do. She was still sleeping when I took the class and I was so excited to try some things, I could hardly wait for her to get up. Here is a list of some of the great ideas...
A box of special toys used only for school time
blocks
paint (we have an easel on the back porch so this is an easy one for us)
special "school" books (reading, coloring, and drawing) again just for school time
dominoes, cards
online learning sites (we do abcmouse.com love it!)
a game where they get to cut up junk mail as long as they sit in a laundry basket
play with letter magnets and puzzles
string beads or macaroni
bubbles
chores
and her favorite...
a bath!
I have been going at this school stuff all wrong, trying to get us all ready in the morning and house clean before starting school. This morning I had Samantha quickly get ready and start school but had Ella wait for her bath until Samantha and I were working on phonics. Ella will be 4 in just over a month and our bathroom is centrally
located on the main level, so I could hear her without staying right in the bathroom with her. She is always begging to take long baths but we are always rushing to get ready so this was quite a treat for her and we were able to finish phonics! Everyone was happy :-)
She also did her school books and computer preschool program. This is the first day we were able to have school done by lunchtime!
Little Prayers
Last night at bedtime we were all knelt beside Samantha's bed so the girls could say their prayers (that's where Ella likes to say hers too). It was Ella's turn to go first and recently she has become quite the little pro at saying her prayers by herself, of coarse you never know what she might pray for...
Last night she got a good start, praying for mommy and daddy, her and sissy, and Andy- "help him he won't pick his nose," at which point Dale laughed aloud, which caused me to start laughing.
She puked a few weeks ago, so now she prays all the time that she will never puke again and has now started praying that sissy will never puke again either. Samantha has thrown up maybe twice in the past 2 years and the last time was well over a year ago. She prayed that God would help us on our trip for weeks after we got back home. Her prayers sound very sincere. She gets a little tiny voice and even has a catch in her voice ever so often like she is crying. If you try to help her at all she says in a stern whisper,"I CAN DO IT!"
Though her prayers sound silly at times, I am glad that she doesn't just say what I tell her, but is trying to develop her own relationship with the Lord!
Word Power
We have started doing school and the girls are loving it. Ella is doing it right along with Samantha, and even though she is two grades behind, she has amazed me. We are learning about the 5 senses and I was quizzing Samantha the other day. She could only remember seeing, feeling, smelling, and tasting, when from half way across the room Ella nonchalantly says, "hearing," and continues with her coloring. It was pretty funny.
We are learning to use all 5 senses to observe and describe things, but I am aware that each individual has a different view than another. I remember when Andy was still homeschooling and we were using Understanding Writing (love it btw!!), they showed 2 descriptions of the same motel. One described a cozy, rustic getaway, and the other a run down, old dump.
When I was in Home Depot lately scoping out the different paint colors I came across one called vintage antique. It reminded me of understanding writing and I had to giggle, but I did bring the paint sample home and I think I might have to use it. I love the color (a dark turquoise), but the name just seals the deal!
A Startling Discovery
The girls did a self portrait the other day. It was a lot of fun. I gave them each a hand mirror and we explored each feature in detail. Their eyes; the pupil, the whites and different colors, eyebrows and lashes, their noses and how they start up by their eyes, their lips, color and shape, teeth, ect. When we got it all done Ella suddenly looked at her whole picture as if seeing it for the first time, and cried out in dismay, "I look like a monster!!" I did try to comfort her, but I agree with her. LOL
I so enjoyed my trip! I had a great time with friends and family. I got to see the beautiful landscape, and God showed me some very thought provoking things about myself. So thankful I was able to go. Here are some pictures of my trip, but I need my friends to share their pictures too because I didn't get any photos of us all together.
I am getting very excited about our trip to Washington. I have gone back and forth about going because I will have to do all of the driving until at least Portland, OR. I am really starting to look forward to the trip though and can't wait to spend some quality time with family. Walks, dress up and tea parties for my girls, not to mention cousin time, beach and just good ole visiting with loved ones. I know God will watch over me and help me. He has given me a peace about it the last few days. Can't wait!
I am so glad for the time I have spent blogging. Today I have enjoyed going back over my old ones and remembering... Life is always changing and it is wonderful to go back and read. One of the things I was giggling over today was back in 2007 when I resolved to do better about getting around in the mornings. Still one of my battles. Another one was when I looked into my future and saw empty, lonely days with Andy grown. God is so good! One of the comments I received on that one was from a sister who stated that she would have kids in the home until at least 2025. Well, now for me it will be at least 2026 and I couldn't be happier about it. It is hard to read comments from Trina, but so glad they are there. Gale I SO miss you! Hope we get some walks soon. Thankful that I have this to look back on with my dear friends adding to it along the way :)
Food for thought
Often children get upset because they don't get what they want. They throw a little fit and fall into a "poor me, life isn't fair" attitude. As a parent, I don't have a lot of patience or compassion for this line of thinking. I might start listing the good things in their life and have them take over the list, letting them know it is ridiculous and unacceptable to have this frame of mind. Lately I have started seeing much the same attitude in myself. Discontent and ungrateful. It wasn't as easy to recognize as it is when my kids want candy or toys, but I'm sure God sees it just the same. My big one has been not living where I want to live. Just the thought of how much heartache this has brought me makes me very ashamed. I know God had a huge purpose in sending us here. The most obvious is our girls. We would have never encountered their situation or been blessed with them if we hadn't been here. God has granted so many blessings since we've been here. We have had several strong families move into our little body of brethren. Last night as we pulled into the filled church parking lot, I remembered many night meetings of just 3 or 4 of us there. Another blessing since we've lived here is Dale's job. He has had it for over 3 years now, in construction and during this recession. Amazing. Ok so I do miss being around family, but in this day and age they are only a phone call away (another blessing!). God has truly blessed me and I want to be more than content but very thankful for all He has given.
I used to think we were busy...
Busy times here at our house. Dale is going back to college so for now that means he's gone from 6am till around 9pm three days a week, not to mention about 30 hours of home work per week and working full time. The girls and I are finding ways to stay busy too: swimming, yard saling, shopping, going to the zoo...lol But really, this means more work on me than I'm used to. I have started filling the big dumpster out front with all of our remodel trash. I now have all the yard work on my list of to do's, I'm trying to get things ready to have a yard sale, helping a neighbor 2 hours a day for 2 weeks, car shopping (3 days this week with 2 toddlers... yuck!), ect. I did find a new car though!! It is a ford focus hatchback and I love, love, love it! I can cross that off my to do list now, but I am still shopping for Dale a different vehicle. He doesn't have air conditioning and that is miserable here. And we used to think we were busy...Ha ha.
I have been searching high and low looking for a small container of paint (1/2 pint) that I started painting my window sill with a few months back. We have been remodeling in the meantime, and the closet that the paint used to be in has been torn out. Our paint supplies were all moved to under the basement stairs, and I have gone through that box several times... Maybe I should start by stating why this paint has so much importance. You see, back in January, when Dennis and Trina were here, we all went to our little ace hardware store and I picked just the right brown for what I wanted. She was very supportive and we came right home with the color and put a dab here and there to make sure it was the color I wanted. I love it, but life got busy and I haven't finished my painting. After I came home from Trina's last month, it was one of the first things I wanted to do in memory of her, but the paint was missing in action. I have searched all three levels of the house plus the garage. I kept going back to the paint box in the basement thinking it MUST be there only to be disappointed again. I have uttered many prayers about it and knew in my heart that it would be found. Well... Yesterday I went looking for our polyurethane and guess what I found? Yes, that's right, my chocolate brown paint, Trina Approved. It was right behind the box and I'm really not sure how I missed it. But God knows. Thank you Lord for hearing my prayers and answering in your time.
Today it is sweltering! I think it must be our hottest day this year. So, you can imagine that my girls were jumping up and down with excitement when I suggested that we should go get a new pool. Just the little kiddie pool with the built in slide but it was enough to get them super happy on this miserably hot day. I even took a little break and put my feet in the water at one point...Ahhh
Wow I just realized that it was 2 years ago today that God blessed us with our girls. Time really flies. They have grown so much. God is so good. I have so much to be thankful for!
We all have fears. Some are worse than others. One of my worst fears has always been city driving. I grew up in the Portland OR metro area and truly some of my worst nightmares are of driving through that crazy place with all of its tunnels and bridges. You see Portland has 2 large rivers flowing through it and many large hills so there are 3 level bridges and several tunnels. It makes you feel a little claustrophobic with all that concrete everywhere. Fast forward several years and now I am in the Denver area. I have really tried to work on my driving fears and can manage to drive through the city if I stay on major highways. Today I met up with some friends and went to the zoo. I picked up one of my friends on the way, in downtown, and then headed on to the zoo. I mapquested the exact directions for both legs of the trip and just figured that I would follow the directions backwards to get back home. No problems, right? Well, first of all, the time at the zoo went by all to quickly and soon I found myself on the far side of the zoo at 4:30 pm...Traffic time. Yikes! It took almost 30 minutes to get the kids back to the van and head out. Then, it seemed to have slipped my mind that downtown is full of one way streets and strange diagonal roads. It wasn't as simple as I had hoped, to follow the reverse directions, especially at 5:15 downtown. After a quick call to my honey he sent me down the right path to I-25, the parking lot of highways here in Denver. Amazingly, traffic wasn't backed up tonight, FRIDAY NIGHT, at 5:30 pm. It just moved right along and I was home by 6:00. Boy, do I feel good! I faced those fears and it all turned out good. Now, time to give credit where credit is due, Thank you Lord!
Wow it has been a while since my last post. So many changes have occurred in my life. Major life changes. God is good and He is in control. He has a plan that is beyond our understanding. That doesn't mean that we don't feel pain and sorrow when trials come, but we have comfort that He knows and gives us the strength to go on.
