All EYES on Me!

As promised.

While typing my eye make-up removal tip, I was flooded with thoughts of the day I learned this valuable, well-earned tip. 

Go with me there...

It was 2 days before the biggest day of my life, my wedding day. I was overjoyed with excitement as all of the last minute details began to fall into place. I am sure you remember the days before your wedding. Full of phone calls to the flourist, errand running, tanning sessions, and all of the other blissful tasks that need to be accomplish. 

On my list of tasks: getting my eyebrows waxed and my eyelashes dyed. 

Now let me explain the eye lash dying.

If any of you have naturally blonde hair, like I do, you know that your eyebrows are a shade of blonde(or rather light brown), as well as, eyelashes.   

For our honeymoon, we were going to Maui, which meant days full of the beach! And we all know that a day on the beach means no make-up.  Don't get me wrong, I'm all about no make-up.  In fact, I have none on at this very moment.  But my honeymoon was different. I wanted to look just perfect for my groom.  

Having my eyelashes dyed seemed to be the answer. It's great. They simply dye them black and therefore, you appear to have mascara on without having to apply even a dab.  It is super cheap, $10-$15, and leaves you with smudgeless eyes for weeks!

As I entered the spa, I became engulfed in the tranquility.  

This was just what I needed. 

In the midst of last minute details, I could use some pampering.  

I was in for a treat.  

The sweet woman who assisted me, flattered me with talk of the upcoming event. 

While laying on my back with my eyes lazily closed, we chatted on and off and I listened to the elevator music that faintly played in the background.

I felt the hot wax smooth across my brows and my thoughts drifted off.  

"What color dye do you prefer? Maybe a light brown?" she asked.  

"No. Let's go with black." I replied

Again, for those of us who are blonde, it is recommended to use a dark brown mascara instead of black. Dark brown colors are dark enough, but not as 'raccoon-like' as black. But for the honeymoon, I knew I would rarely, if ever, be waring make-up so I wanted something a little darker.

With hesitation in her voice, she shyly answered me with an okay?!.

Back to relaxation.

Within 15 minutes she proceeded to tell me she was finished.

"Did you already do my eyelashes?" I asked with eyes still tightly shut. I had not felt her touch my eyelashes, but then again, I was quite relaxed. 

"Your eyelashes?" 

"Yes, did you already dye my eyelashes?"

"I have down here that you wanted your eyebrows waxed and your..."she paused..."oh no! I misread my order!!!  I thought you wanted your eyebrows waxed and dyed." she apologetically said.

I sprung off of the table. 

Forget the music, forget the tranquility. 

That *blasted* woman had dyed my eyebrows BLACK!

Not only had she done that (and who in their right mind would ever do such a thing), but it was 2 days before I was supposed to be a beautiful bride.

Holy Cow!!!

As I looked in the mirror, I shuttered at the person staring back at me. 

I looked fretful. 

My blonde hair glistened as my BLACK eyebrows glared back at me.

Oddly enough, all I could do was laugh. 

Don't they say everyone has to have something to this nature happen before a wedding? As I lay back down to have my eyelashes dyed, I could only imagine Brad's expression as I walked down the aisle. 

I told her I would go home and scrub my eyebrows and she agreed that if they weren't much better by the following day, we would re-dye them a lighter shade of brown.

After pulling up at my parents house, I was greeted by my (at the time) 7 year old cousin. He took one look at me, stepped back and so gently stated "What happened to you? You look like a freaky clown!" 

~you've gotta love the honesty of kids~

At the time, taking a picture seemed so unfitting, but looking back I desperately wish I had one on file. 

Needless to say, I wore a baseball cap for 24 hours and scrubbed that black dye with every ounce of energy in me.

I ended back at the spa the following day and was quite impressed with the outcome.

Moral of the story: there is a BIG difference between eyelashes and eyebrows. If you choose to be a make-up artist, learn one from the other!

 

We had a wonderful week in Maui, all the excitement was definitely worth it! 

Here's to Happy Honeymooners!!!

Works for Me!

I've seen Brittani post her Works for 

me Wednesday tip, and I've even checked 

out a few others so thought it would be fun to give it a try for myself! 

I may not always have a good, helpful idea to share, but here's to insightful hopes...

~For the best eye make-up remover, simply mix equal parts Johnson and Johnson baby shampoo and water.~

TaDa!

That's it.

It's much cheaper than the Clinique remover I had been buying for years and works even better! As Johnson and Johnson promise, No More Tears. (I'm sure you can use any brand of baby shampoo, but J&J is what I've happened to have.) 

I've used the same miniature bottle of shampoo for 3 years and I just continue to refill my old Clinique eye make-up remover bottle each time I reach the bottom. It's great. Three plus years of removing eyeliner and mascara for less than $0.99. Can't beat that!

I learned this great tip from a make-up artist who once dyed my eyelashes. Yes, you can dye your eyelashes. It is actually a really great thing.  I rarely do it, in fact, I've only done it 3 times or so in my life. The last time being my wedding, which is another story.

Actually, come back tomorrow and I will share the saga of MY wedding catastrophe! 

TRUST ME, you will want to hear this. 

So for more on eye lash dying and lots of laughs, I'll meet you at the same place tomorrow! And for more Works for me Wednesday tips, go to Rocks in My Dryer.

Go Dubba-Tee!

My son is an avid sports lover. 

And I mean AVID to it's greatest extreem! 

He loves any and all sports and spends the majority of his time involved in such activities.  If you question my sincerity at all, just ask someone who spends any amount of time with us and they will affirm my validity.  

He loves basketball and football and baseball and golf and soccer and frisbee and I'm sure if he knew about lacross, he would love it as well! 

In our house, we wake up to sporting talk and activities and we go to sleep at night to the same. We read books about sports, we have the Harlem Globe Trotters Pamphlet memorized and own more balls than a school gym class!  

We watch football and basketball on t.v. and have even resorted to YouTube when desperate times call for desperate measures.

 --Most basketball videos are put to not-so-lovely rap music, be warned.--

It is sports insanity at its worst! 

We eat, breathe and dream about sports.

I know he dreams about such because ba-ket-ball, tech-ee-tech football and Go Noah Go are common phrases to hear over my baby monitor at three in the morning! 

He sleeps with a football and basketball pillow and often our friend, frisbee, ends up in the bed as well.

You get the point.

So, while Brad was out of town this weekend my dad was so kind to treat us to a Division 2 college basketball game. 

As you can imagine, we Noah loves these events...

 

And of course, youknowwho enjoyed the game in style!

As I've been writing, Noah is in the adjacent room chanting "Go Dubba Tee, Go Dubba Tee!"

Thank you Dad for a wonderful time and a memorable ba-ket-ball game! We love you!

p.s. Noah has the same obsession with music. Let's just say he has a very passionate

 personality! 

Maybe we can get to that another time :)

p.s.s. I get to go on a date tonight. We previously had other plans, but Brad insisted that since we already had a sitter, he was in need of some "Ash" time.  Isn't he great! And he's right. We could use some uninterrupted time together. I am so excited! Although, wouldn't you know, I happened to refrain from a shower today in hopes of accomplishing more. Oh well, I may not look great, but I'll try my best to be good company!

 

Ten Toodles

Let me start by saying that the only reason I am writing a post is because I am ready to see something a little more cheerful when I open my blog. Due to that insincere reason, I actually have very little to say. I do have a few fun pictures to share, but I will get to those later. For some reason, getting up out of the chair, getting the camera and downloading the new pictures seems really strenuous. 

With that said, I just thought I would give 10 facts about myself that you peeps might not know.

 Now I know what you are thinking..."Why would I want to know this," and the answer is...you probably don't. But I have nothing else.

I'm actually quite exhausted right now and should probably be sleeping. 

You may begin to notice that when I get tired, I ramble!

Onto the facts:

1. I love the smell of skunks! Truly I do. I cannot explain why, I guess the Lord just tuned my nose to those black and white creatures. The only reasoning I can conjure up is that it reminds me of a time when I was young and my entire family went on a ski trip.  The condo in which we stayed housed a spraying skunk underneath. Maybe the smell triggers a special "I love great memories with my family" place in my brain. I've met one other person in my life who had the same skunk-love and she was one of the neatest people I've ever known. So, after meeting my nose-mate, I didn't feel like such a quack!

2. I am unbelievably indecisive! Wait. No I'm not. I mean, yes I am. NO, I'm not. YES, YES, YES I am...final answer.  It causes many of those closest to me a great deal of frustration, but again, just the way God made me. I have this "every minute decision has lasting effects, therefore I must always make the BEST decision" complex. What side should we have for dinner? Asparagus or green beans? Which color shirt should I buy? Hang the picture at this height or that? It's even to the extent that I honestly analyze the order in which I wash my color-coordinated loads of laundry! I know,pathetic! My brain, oh the spinning wheels. No wonder I'm exhausted.

On a positive note, my husband is very decisive.  I'll add that to my list of reasons why I love him. 

3. I do not like hyenas.  I've never actually seen a live one, but after The Lion King I was apprehensive of the devilish creatures.  Then, the trip to Gander Mountain sealed the deal. One glance at the awful, awful stuffed hyena and I was a gonner. Eeeek! I can't even write about it. They give me the heeby-jeebys.

4. When I was young, I thought Hollywood was going to knock on the front door of our house and insist on their need for me to be the next child star. I just knew they were out searching for me. I also thought Hollywood was a person! So, Mr. Hollywood, if you're still looking for me...I'm right here baby!

5. I can touch my top lip to my nose. Is that unique or can everyone do that? Well, even if  you can do it, I bet you cannot hold a marker in between them and write your name. Hmmm, gotcha there didn't I?

I think I'll stop there for tonight. 

If you've stuck it out until the end, I'm sure you are thanking me for sparing you the misery of 5 more. 

Or, if anyone is actually interested in what makes me so gosh-darn special I can finish the remaining 5 in the future. Doubtful though.

Maybe I'll be back with more in-depth thoughts tomorrow.

Until then...

**I almost signed my name. Then I thought "wait. you don't sign your name to a blog. or do you...I cannot remember" so I had to go look at my other entries. And the answer is no. You don't sign a blog. I warned you: Rambling**

Precious Baby Girl

My day. 

My day has been fine, nothing out of the ordinary. I've showered, played with  my kids, made breakfast, taken Noah to "school", spent time with a friend, had lunch with another friend, tutored 4 kids, and enjoyed the brisk chill in the air.

But who cares?

 

Surely not our sweet friend's the Rushes'.  Their 3 1/2 month old daughter, Ryane, passed away yesterday.  We received news that their precious, lively little girl had gone to be with our Jesus. What, you ask, happened. They really aren't sure. When her daddy went to pick her up from day care, he pulled around an ambulance to enter the building only to find that it was HIS baby they were there on behalf of. What an awful, awful day. They still are not sure what took her from them. Choking on an object, or merely the breathing subsided? They don't know.  

My heart hurts so much.  My mommy-love is aghast. I just don't know how you pick up the pieces.  

Ryane was a month and a half younger than Kayt, therefore we journeyed through our pregnancies together.  They were sweet to think of our arrival in the midst of preparing for their daughter.  We, of course, did the same for them. Sending gifts and sweet notes of love and encouragement. We even spoke about how precious it would be when we were well along in years, both dropping our girls of to be Red Raiders. (Seeing as that's how we met the two of them, at Tech) We agreed we would sob together as our little princess parted from our homes of provision to make a life of their own.

But somehow their little blessing left their home before anyone intended. So, I sob with them now. 

Only she will not step into the classroom at a university, rather onto streets of gold. Nor will she ever walk down the aisle to meet her groom, but rather sit in the lap of her bridegroom. Though mommy and daddy won't rock her to sleep another night, Jesus will. Or maybe Paul. Or the Great-Grandfather she never met.  Have you ever wondered what kind of lullaby the angels sing? Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty. My heart tells me that heaven's lullaby's are more beautiful than mine could ever be.  And my mind knows Jesus' love reaches a greater level than a parent's can ever dream of. 

Although true, do those thoughts heal a wounded heart? Does it give clarity to a situation without an answer? Thankfully for us, when we don't have the answer Jesus reminds us that he IS the answer.  Just Jesus. 

But the thought run ramped in my mind. Why not us? Why them? My baby. Oh how I love my babies. How? How do you arise the next morning when your heart seems to heavy to lift from the pillow?  My fingers tremble while I attempt to envision the pain the must be feeling. Although I can try, I cannot feel their pain. And to be frank, I hope I never do.

So pray with me.

Please! 

Take a moment and pray for the Lord's peace over the Rush household. 

If I were in this situation, I would want everyone petitioning heaven on my behalf. 

Even strangers. 

Now go. 

Play.

Read.

Laugh. 

Tickle.

Make Messes.

Let the Laundry Go.

I bet my friends wish they could.

But their hearts are too heavy, too grief stricken. So let sweet Ryane's life touch you. May it spur us all on toward knowing Jesus more, enjoying life, and remembering that the days are fleeting and our lives are but a vapor. 

Sweet Jesus, I beg and plead for your peace to flood the hearts of this wounded mommy and daddy.  Remind them your love is sufficient. Please rock their tired bodies and whisper sweet lullaby's of love into their aching hearts. Holy Spirit intercede for this Saint who has no appropriate words to pray. 

One Small Step for a Bargainer

At what point do you cross the line from being a girl who loves a bargain, to just plain CHEAP? I am not quite sure what constitutes this crossover, but I feel I may have taken the giant, or rather small, step. 

I have yet to mention that I tutor 5 hours a week at the elementary school directly across the street from my house. When I say across the street, I mean across the street!  My short walk and few hours of work have proven to be very beneficial to my family and me. It's been a bit of extra income (and who can't use that),yet it doesn't really take any time from my kids. With the way the schedule works, most days I am gone during nap time and return home just in time for the after-nap snack. Plus I've really enjoyed putting my degree to use again, it's really great! One of the 4th graders I work with told me on my first day of meeting him that he was too good for coupons.  

Although I had never thought of it in that light, I'm sure I know many people who are too good for coupons.  I know other who just don't want to go to the trouble of coupons, however I would fall into neither category. I am NOT too good, nor too lazy for a good deal. Well, in all honesty, I am sometimes too lazy, but never too good.

My husband often rolls his eyes at my attempts to save a few dollars, but the fruit does not fall far from the tree. Those few dollars add up quickly!

With that said, I may have taken this whole 'save a penny' hope too far. 

For Christmas my mom gave me several really cute articles of clothing.  She knows me so well and of course chose things that I just loved. But at Christmas I was just 2 months post-baby. The pants fit great during the holidays, yet I was sure hopeful I still had a few pounds to shed in the weeks that followed. Rather than return the clothes immediately, I waited a little over a month to re-try them on. Just as I suspected, the pants fell right down to the floor.  

Last week Kayt and I ventured out to the store to return the clothes. After getting a fairly large sum of money, I was off to find better-fitting replacements. They were having a great sale on children's clothes and as you moms know, it's impossible to pass up great deals on cute, cute clothes for the tots.  So after several tiny outfits for the upcoming season (and a season or two down the road), I was off to the big girl section. **Side note: I got Kayt the sweetest bathing suit for her first pool adventures. It just makes me giddy!**

I found many items that would have felt right at home in my closet, but after the dressing room adventures I decided on a select few. How is it that whatever you really want seems to be missing your size? I just always take it as the Lord's way of telling me NO! I guess I don't take subtle hints well, He has to really spell things out for me!

Today I ventured back to the store to get one last shirt that I had really liked, but didn't have the refund money for. I also had a gift card to the store from my birthday. 

Okay, so I'm not only thrifty but a saver. I will save anything for just the right time. But sometimes the right time never comes and I end up being a waster. Just like all of the Dr. Pepper Smackers chapstick I got when I was younger...oh brother, I have issues.

So instead of pay for the shirt, I went in today to buy it with my gift card. And, lo and behold, EVERYTHING I had purchased only 3 days before was on SALE! Holy cow! Upon seeing this, the Thrifty Monster in me went nuts. 

So, you guessed right. I re-bought everything I had previously purchased and I fully intent to return the originals for the full price. 

There. 

I said it.

That's what I did.

I'm a little ashamed, and I'm definitely too embarrassed to tell my husband face to face (here is to happy reading Brad). I think I know his reaction. But now I'm telling the world.  I'm shedding light on my little 'issue'. 

Who knows what I'll do with the $30 I get back. 

Buy another shirt?

Give it to people with bigger 'issues' than mine?

Mail it to YOU?

Doesn't seem so bad in that case, hugh?

You draw the line, I'll take the plunge over. Just be sure and draw it front of a store with a good sale! :)

King Kong Has Escaped

A late night, a quite house, a mug of hot tea and a question...

You know those moments in life when you think 'this will be funny someday?' Well, today we had such an incident in our home. Here is the problem: it is funny to me right now. This is my struggle with parenting. I am so captivated by my children that I feel everything they do is wonderful, glamorous, breathtaking and so on.  Hence, the problem comes when I must put on a straight face and deal with the issue at hand. Sin is sin. Disobedience is sin. I must call it that.

I must begin by saying that my precious 22 month old (today, happy birthday Noah) is just that...precious. He has such a sweet nature and disposition.  He, overall, is so obedient and has made parenting a breeze. 

Onto the story: we converted Noah's baby bed to a toddler/day bed about a month ago.  After falling out of the the two-foot, unprotected gap 2 nights in a row, my carpenter-of-a-husband solved the problem. He simply placed a 2 ft x 4 ft leftover piece of laminate tile flooring in the gap. Please do not re-read that sentence, yes I said a piece of laminate tile! If it sounds sounds a little tacky and unfitting for a toddlers bed, then just imagine how it looks. 

Bottom line; it solved the problem so I was a happy mamma. 

Fast forward to today.

As I changed Noah's crib sheet and moved the make-shift wall, I saw the light bulb go on! He realized how easy an escape from this low bed would be. Dang it! 

Fast forward to nap time.

As often happens in our home, I put Noah down for a nap and with Kayt asleep as well, headed for the shower. I had been in the shower less than 5 minutes when I heard the sweet, unexpected  pitter-patter of toddler feet running down the hallway. 

King Kong had escaped! 

Brad poked his head into the bathroom to affirm my fears, we had a child on the loose. As is routine in our home, daddy explained the situation to Noah, told him it was nap time and let him know time-out would be a subsequent consequence if such offense were repeated. 

--Now, time-out has been very effective for us (until this point).  Noah rarely visits his friend Mr. Time-Out, but when he does, we see great results.--

 

It was back to bed for Noah. As expected, he got out again. Time Out. Back to bed. Out again. Spanking. Back to bed. Out again. This time Noah willingly bent over for his spanking. If he hadn't felt his daddy's firm hand the first go-round, he felt it this time. Back to bed. Finally...ten minutes of silence, thoughts of victory flooded my mind. Oh wait. What is that I hear? King Kong on the loose AGAIN?

By this point Brad and I had already discussed the realization that when our parents told us spanking hurt them more than it hurt us, they meant it. It was heart-wrenching watching my husband swat that sweet little bottom.  Each time he came jolting out of his room he would say "Noah get out!" with such pride.  He was so proud of himself for getting out alone. He would giggle with delight as we scooped him up. 

So after 2 more rounds of the previous routine, he lay down for a nap. The battle at hand was over! Finally!  

Fast forward to bedtime.

He couldn't wait for bed so that he could escape. It was a game. NO! Only 2 rounds of the previous monotony and he was asleep. As you can see, we are making headway. 

Now this may seem like a small issue and, relatively speaking, it is. But to the one dealing with a 30 minute nap time battle it is an issue that needs a solution. He needs to be trained on this. I believe that this issue will soon be resolved, but I am sure there will be more training issues creeping their slimy heads around the corner soon.

I'm confident that my little guy means no harm in his fun. But I see a greater picture of responding to and respecting authority.  

I only bring this issue up for responses because I have been seeking the Lord and godly counsel concerning child training/discipline lately.  I believe there is a lot of godly counsel from my blogger friends and I want to hear how you have chosen to handle such situations. 

Consistency is key, what else?

So, you parents, I'm open for suggestions. 

A King Kong Size Valentine

It's a great day when you can have your children help pull off your holiday surprises!  Noah ran into the house this afternoon dragging a red rose for me and a white one for his sister. He had picked out cards for both of us and signed them with a precious scribble. I just thought I would share the funny  sincere card he chose for his sister on her first Valentines Day... 

Sibling Affection? or something like that! 

I'm sure she will adore the big ape as much as you do soon enough, Noah.

The beautiful recipient

Sending you lots of love, extra kisses, sweet chocolates and King Kong wishes!

To our Valentine!

I yuv you Da-eee!

I yuv you because you are really tall and you put me high on your shoulders. I yuv you because you are good at every sport and you throw the fu-ball hiiiigh. I yuv you because you always have time to play catch with me. I yuv you because you watch me build really tall Lego towers. I yuv you because give me a bath and 'wash my booty clean'. I yuv you because you eat oranges with me and let me stay up extra late when football games are on t.v. I yuv you because you watch youtube videos with me over and over and over. I yuv you because you take me outside in the middle of the night when my hurting lungs need cold air. I yuv you because you pray with me and for me, even when I'm not around. I yuv you because we have so much fun together and I want to be just like you when I grow up.

Doe Da-eee Doe!

Eeeeeeeeeeee!

(translated: I love you daddy!)

Eeeeee because your big hands hold my little body and make me feel so safe. Eeeeee because you make funny faces just to see me laugh. Eeeeee because you tickle my belly. Eeeeee because you tell me I'm beautiful everyday. Eeeeee because you will always make me see how beautiful I am to Jesus and remind me of how much my Jesus loves me.

Eeeeeeeeee!

I love you babe!

I love you because you are such a great leader for our family. I love you because you pray for me more than I pray for myself. I love you because you provide for our family. I love you for being such a great daddy to our beautiful children. I love to spend time with you. I love you because you love to spend time with me. I love you because you are so funny. I love you because you don't take life too seriously. I love you because you teach me not to be too hard on myself. I love you because you are so special to so many people in this world. I love you because you are great at your job. I love you because so many people entrust you with their secrets. I love you because you rarely finish a book you start. I love you because you take out the trash. I love you because you wash my car. I love you because make me coffee. I love you because I could write forever and never run out of reasons why

I LOVE YOU!

It's True

Went to the dentist. Have 10 cavities. Can't write a post. Must wallow in self-pity and shame. Off to brush.

Real Us

Over the Christmas holiday, Stevi, a dear friend from high school was in town. Lucky for me we were able to spend a good deal of time together, seeing as she was here for a few weeks.  Stevi is just one of those people. You know? One of those great, kind-hearted, easy-to-be around, gentle nature, sweet-spirited people. Those people. I enjoyed her so much, and to top it all off she photographed my kids!  Stevi is an independent photographer in Chicago and does beautiful work. On one of the days she came to the house, she captured some of our normal activities. She came on one of those days. You know? One of those days where you've been too busy playing to comb hair or fix yourself up. Those days. When she came both of my kids were dressed. By the time she left, they had both gone through a 'no-pant' phase, as well as a 'diaper only' phase, and they each had new outfits on as she walked out the door. Although Noah was overdue for a hair cut and I was in VERY unphotographable (yes I made up this word, but if you had seen me you would see a need to make up this word too) form, I love the pictures. They are just so real. Like most of our days: real.  Real playing. Real laughing. Real love. 

Here are a few favs...

Found you Mr. Football. Now you can join your 46 other football friends.

Gotta love 3 month old toes. Yummy!

Self-explaitory

Precious Kayt

Are we finished? I neeeed a nap.

Hope you enjoyed our real day pictures. Thanks Stevi! I love you for more than your photography skills, but what a nice perk. 

Attempt

Last night as I listened to my husband preach to a room full of high school students, I found myself getting lost in his words and the beauty of the subject. Prayer. The statement that stuck with me through the night and into this new day is prayer is an attempt to communicate with our father.  An attempt? Yes, it's just that.  Though we may not know the words to pray when our heart is so overcome with grief, nor be able to find just the right word to express our grateful heart when God has so graciously blessed us, we still attempt. We fix our thoughts on the Lord and begin the conversation.  We keep our heart holding steadfast to his goodness and mercy.  As Romans 8 clearly states "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit interceded for the saints in accordance with God's will."  We attempt to take our words, our thoughts, our heart before the Lord and then the Spirit intercedes on our behalf. When you are in the desert and feel like David crying aloud to the Lord, where are you, take heart! Take heart because in your attempt to reach the throne with words and tears the Holy Spirit is going on your behalf.  

My heart is prayerful today; mindful of all the Lord has done in my life. I'm recalling the place from which he has brought me and finding joy in the new, fresh works he is stirring in my soul. I'm prayerful for my loved ones, prayerful for those that are hurting, prayerful for his fire to fall down.  

Brad spoke of the story from Luke 11 in which the friends persistence in knocking prompted his needs being met. Jesus parallels the story to prayer saying that through boldness and persistence your prayers will be answered. For if we, as earthly parents, love to lavish good gifts upon our children, how much more does our heavenly father love to lavish gifts on us? 

So I ask you to join with me. Let us move the heavens with our attempt. 

Attempt to pray. 

Pray!

Holy Spirit Intercede!

Tookies for Ty-Ty

I've tried explaining that the tube of sprinkles Noah is so drawn to are actually cookie decorations.  After a few empty promises of "those are for making cookies and one day soon you and mommy will make yummy cookies," I decided I was up for the task.  Messy cookies, here we come.  "Tookies for TyTy?" Noah asked.

TyTy is my 6 month old nephew that's coming to visit all the way from our dear state capitol. We talk about TyTy on a daily basis, but our TyTy conversations have increased greatly with his anticipated arrival.  Rather than explain that TyTy doesn't have teeth and therefore won't be able to eat our cookies I decided that we would just make tookies for TyTy.  Besides, if we designated the cookies for TyTy but due to a no-teeth violation he can't eat them that means more for me...right?  So my sweet nephew, this one is for you!

Yes, he is eating the dough. Cookies anyone?

Sugar cookie kisses are even sweeter than the norm!

Can't wait to see you Tyson. We will bring you a cookie or two!

Mars vs. Venus

That's what they say right? Men are from Mars, women are from Venus.  Or something like that. Simply put, we are two very different beings with different thoughts, emotions, outlooks and desires.  Men come from Mars, women come from Venus meeting at the central planet, Earth, where we find our common ground.  Or rather spiritually, we are both created in the image of Christ displaying the vast array of qualities our father possesses.  Though sometimes I forget how different my husband and I are in our 'wiring' there have been a few instances lately that may have reminded me.  

The following events may or may not have occurred in the Ingram household.

Scenario 1: 

As the couple prepare for bed the husband states "I've worn this pair of jeans for the past 4 days."  

At that the wife's thoughts begin.  --I could have sworn I washed all jeans 2 days ago.  How could that be? I guess it's been longer, time does pass quickly in the world of laundry.  He's upset with me. I'm a terrible wife.  All I'm expected to do is take care of our home and family and I cannot even keep up with that.  Tomorrow. Tomorrow I will do all of the laundry. Oh I feel awful.--

Upon waking the following morning she's intent on getting the house in order, all of the laundry washed and becoming Susie homemaker.  As she sorts the laundry (and I must say that for 4 people there is not very much) she sees only the one pair of her husband's jeans.  The thoughts creep in --What?  I thought all of his jeans were dirty.  Well then where are they?  Ah Ha! Just as I suspected, they are hanging in his closet where I KNEW I put them 2 days ago. Did he even look? Of course not!  I knew I washed those jeans.  grumble, grumble, grumble.--

Upon his homecoming that evening the wife feels compelled to let him know his jeans were clean all along.  

So the conversation goes:

wife: Babe, all of your clean jeans have been hanging in your closet.

husband: Hugh? Yeah, I know. 

wife: I thought you didn't have any clean jeans though.

husband: Clean jeans? Yeah I do, they are in my closet.

wife: I know. That's what I'm saying. Yesterday you said you had worn your jeans for 4 days.

husband: I did.

wife: Well, why did you say that then?

husband: I was just telling you.

wife: So you wern't saying you had no clean jeans?

husband: No. I was just telling you I had worn those for 4 days.

wife: You don't think I'm a bad wife because I get behind on the laundry sometimes. You aren't upset with me?

husband: What are you talking about?

wife: Nevermind.

Maybe I, I mean the wife, should listen to what her dear husband is saying rather than what she thinks he's saying!

Scenario 2: 

After lunch the husband enters the kitchen carrying 4 broken Fossil watches (let's just say he's hard on watches). 

The husband states: "I'm going to go wash my car and mail my watches off to get them repaired. I'm just trying to do a little (remember this word) multi-tasking today."  

He leaves. 

After he's gone, the wife puts a load of clothes in the dryer so that they will be ready to fold after cleaning the kitchen and begins cleaning up lunch dishes. She puts the food away and begins to load the dishwasher while on the phone with a friend.  (Did I mention there is a baby on her hip?) As she's working she pauses to take the notepad off the refrigerator jotting down to call the garage door repair man (again) to come look at the garage door (again) which is still having issues.  While writing she makes a mental note to change the dry-erase calendar in the pantry because it is ALREADY February.  At that, she begins thinking of all the dates that have pre-planned activities.  Dentist appointments, birthdays, baby showers, the list goes on.  She finishes loading the dishwasher -all the while still carrying on an in-depth conversation with her dear friend- just in time to hear child #2 awake from a nap.  She gets him out of bed (did I mention she has a baby on her hip?), changes his diaper, and off they go to the living room to read a book.  

The husband returns home from his multi-tasking and asks what they did while he was gone, to which the wife replies "nothing really."

Which way of thinking is right? 

Neither. 

Just different. 

Might I add that this wife is absolutely crazy about her dirty jean waring, multi-tasking husband!

Lesson Learned

Recently Noah and daddy curled up in their leather chair to partake in their nightly routine of eating an orange.  This night, instead of being content with just eating (and Noah is always content with eating) he climbed down and scurried off to his room.  Much to our delight, he walked in carrying his little blue Bible (yes, like the ones the Gideons give out).  He climbed back up in the chair, opened his Bible and read aloud about "Zhesus".  May I add that the Bible was upside down?  After a few minutes of reading, he closed the Bible and said "bye-bye Zhesus". Being the prepared mother I am (snicker), I sat down and reminded him that Jesus doesn't live in the Bible, he lives in our hearts. I pointed to his heart as I continued to tell him that when we close our Bible we aren't saying bye-bye to Jesus, he is always with us.  On and on I went, trying my best to explain salvation to my 21 month old son.  He listened eagerly with a very intuitive look in his eyes...he was getting it!  I eagerly awaited his response.  Then it came: "Noah's ba-ket-ball?"  At least I tried, right!?  

The following morning we were getting Kayt dressed and Noah leaned down into her sweet gaze, pointed to his belly and said "ZHESUS!"  He proceeded to point to his head, ears, and feet stating "ZHESUS!" with each bodily point.  Maybe he did understand.  Maybe he knew before I told him; blessed are the pure at heart for they shall see God. 

Noah may have been reminded of our sweet Jesus, but I was reminded of something as well.  The Lord does live in our hearts if we allow him.  But also his goodness should be in the thoughts on which we ponder, his favor in the words we allow our ears to hear and we should take his grace and peace to all the places our feet carry us.  

Thank you Noah! Mommy's ba-ket-ball?

How Times Have Changed

 Much as the young adults of the sixties remember their location and reaction to hearing the news of President Kennedy's assasination or even those of the 40's their whereabouts upon hearing of the attack on Pearl Harbor...we will remember life's monumental moments of our time.  Those events will include the Oklahoma City bombing, the explosion of the spaceship Columbia and of course 9-11.  I have to believe that some of our most vivid memories will include technology.  For instance, when I was in high school I did not have a cell phone.  Now that is almost unheard of among high schoolers. I signed up for an email account during a computer class my sophomore year and I can specifically remember acquiring an AOL account (thanks Sam).  This is where so many of life's changes have risen from in the past decades.  We feel vulnerable when leaving the house without our cell phone, out of the loop when we aren't apart of the latest social networking sites and even consider the internet our surest form for information. We are a technological generation.  

My thoughts on this stem from being curious where the word "blog" originated.  As I'm sure most of you already know (I'm a little behind), blog is short for the word weblog.  A weblog is simply (or not so simply) a web site the contains an online journal with reflections, thoughts and hyperlinks.  The word blog entered the dictionary in 1999 and was the word of the year in 2004. Within a decade a new phenomenon has emerged.  

So here's to my newest memorable moment...my weblog.

Government Warning

Do NOT swallow chewing gum!

--I received this from a friend and thought it was funny. Don't say I didn't warn you!--