Mother Of The Year!

Sunday evening while Brad was working the kids and I went to the grocery store and ran a few errands.  After we got home, Kayt was playing in the car.  I was in there with her until I stepped out to pick up her meme and walk around to the other side of the car to get her out. 

While I was out of the car, she locked the doors. The keys were inside. Dang it.

She proceeded to crawl into the back seat and buckle herself into her car seat. She is Miss Independent and LOVES to buckle her own car seat. 

I had to call a locksmith to come unlock my car and get my child out. 

This was not the first time I have done this. I locked Noah in the car when he was about eighteen months old.  The second time around is not near as traumatic on mama. I was calm as a cucumber and Kayt was a trooper until a big burly man walked up to her window and began prying. Poor baby. 

I think I have officially disqualified myself from any mother of the year awards there may be. At least for the next eighteen years. 

He interrupted my crying...

We had our hot water heater replaced today due to a leak. I am sure you can imagine the scene with two sick children, a house that was minutes away from being shown to a prospective buyer and a  garage that was a wreck with men working to replace our hot water heater and drilling holes in our brick. Don't ask. Just picture chaos. 

We fumbled out the door to feed our lil' ones dinner and get to small group on time. 

Hours later after small group, we pulled into our garage and were overcome by the smell of natural gas. Brad called the 24 phone number and they dispatched someone to our house.

At 11:00 pm, a man named Dennis rang the doorbell. Not once, but twice. Whattha? Then he proceeded to stomp through the house and he was not talking in his inside voice. 

Now don't get me wrong, Dennis is my hero because he solved the problem so that we would not die of toxic fumes and he took care of a second problem of low water pressure that we had just discovered, but my guess is that Dennis DOES NOT have children. 

What is yours?

When Dennis came I was sitting on the couch crying about India. Yes, India. Sometimes it still overwhelms me. But I will have to get to that post on another day because Dennis made me loose my train of though. 

Dennis, my hero, the man without children, who interrupted my crying. 

Is it me?

If we move, I am planning to re-do our bedroom. We have had the same comforter for three years. I'm over it.  

I don't really have anything particular in mind, but I found this and I think I like it. Granted, I do NOT like the sheets it is paired with nor the shape of the bed. I would do white sheets, fold them back further and lots of big pillows. You could do so many colors; orange, white monogrammed, brown...

This is not something that I would normally pick, but that is one reason that I like it. With light walls, it could add so much color to a room. 

Also, the reviews say that it washes beautifully (music to my ears).  Reason for liking it number two. And it's super reasonable. Number three. Something about knowing that little feet will be jumping on it and snotty noses will be rolling around on it makes me not want to spend lots of mullah. 

What are your thoughts?  I am NOT sold on this. At all. I just started looking. Have you found any great bedding lately? 

BE.

I wish you could have seen what I saw last night. Hundreds of women from our church and beyond gathered for an ALL women's worship night. A team of women led us in worship. A woman spoke. Women prayed. Women of all ages, shapes and sizes with one common bond were on their faces before the Lord.

The concept was great and the Spirit was heavy. God broke many women of who they have BE.en and he encouraged others to press into who they are BE.coming.  He encouraged us all to BE. an image bearer. 

Thank you Hillside Women and thank you to all of my friends who gathered for dinner before, hung out during, and had coffee afterwards. It was a great night!!!

Bye, Bye Birdie

Do you know this bird? Yeah, me neither until as of late. 

It's a dove. 

Not the sweet, white dove that you may think of or the cheery turtle dove that we sing about at Christmas time... no, not this one. 

It's the annoying kind of dove. 

The kind that lives in the tree just outside my bedroom window. 

The kind that wakes me up each morning hooting his brains out. 

That kind of dove. 

I am about to find a BB gun and shoot it. You think I'm kidding? No more playing nice gal for me. If this is illegal, please tell me now.  This dove hoots ALL day long and it is really getting to me. Obviously. For the last four months, I was convinced that we had an owl living in our backyard. I'm sure that shooting an owl is illegal. Owls are the mascot for the elementary school across the street. I couldn't shoot the mascot for crying out loud. But it's a dove. Not an owl.

I think I can shoot a dove. 

MODNAR

- It has been a beautiful week here! We've spent 98% of our days outside taking in the sunshine with NO wind. Praise Jesus! I turned the air conditioner on for the first time on Monday. This is a big deal! And I don't want to hear any bragging from my friends who have had their AC running since January. Life's just not fair. 

-Have you ever heard of swagbucks? It's a website that you login to and use as a search engine. Unlike Google, you earn points for using it that you redeem for items (gift cards and such). A cool concept, right? I figure that I might as well be gaining something from all of the internet searching I do. Or maybe you don't call the internet your friend and consult it for everything under the sun, like me?!? 

-Happy Earth Day!

-Does anyone use Bare Minerals make up? I want to try it, but it is hard to find time to go to Ulta to let them demonstrate how to use it. What are your thoughts on it? I like light make up, but don't have the most even skin tone, would it work for me?

-I went on a shopping spree at Target yesterday. Why is that so easy to do there? I go in for one or two items and leave with bags full of randomness. It was fun though!

-Are you confused by my title? 

The Boy's Birthday Party

Noah's Birthday Carnival

Lots of Fun!

Thanks to Mandy for the super cool, yummy cookies!

Give the Ice Cream

Noah and I were laying down together this afternoon and he wanted me to tell him stories about when I was a little girl. I had to put my thinking cap on to come up with adventurous childhood stories. I've never big a big risk taker. Cautious, controlled, wise... these words have always been more true of me. 

One hot, summer day my brothers and I spent the hours riding in the back of our red mini-van running errands. I was eight years old and my mom came through with the most brilliant idea of the summer: ice cream! We rarely had treats like this when I was young; for much of my childhood money was tight.  This was a welcomed, rare treat and mom was most excited. My brothers and I had our ice cream cones in hand and we headed out the door of Baskin Robbins feeling proud. As we pulled into the driveway of our home my brothers, like all brothers, began wrestling around and my middle brother dropped his ice cream cone on the pavement. It was as good as gone and he was devastated. My mom walked around the car and handed her ice cream cone to my brother.  She wasn't angry or annoyed, she merely gave up her ice cream. I can remember feeling an overwhelming sadness for my mom because I knew that she wanted the ice cream. But more than anything, she wanted my brother to be happy. It was a moment that I learned about motherhood. 

I have thought of this silly story several times since I've had children. Chances are that my mom does not even remember it, but I do. There are days that I want to give my kids the world. Giving them the last bite, the only drink, the ice cream cone isn't hard. Then there are other days that I really want to eat my cookie, yet I have four eyes begging for the last bites. In those times, the words give the ice cream, run through my mind. Being a mother is a selfless act. It is giving fully of yourself to the little people you love most, yet it is fully knowing who you are and not getting lost in the identity of your children. Like all of life, it's a balance. 

It is finding joy in giving the ice cream.

That hot summer day, my mother taught me a lesson. She taught me that love is an action and when you love someone you give things up to see them smile and to take away the tears. When you love others, you will give the ice cream. And that will bring your more joy than eating the ice cream. Even if it is mint chocolate chip!

Room to Run

I am not usually one to make things known until the details are worked out and everything is finalized, but I am going to let you in on a little secret. 

We are putting our house on the market Monday and if things go as planned, we are MOVING! 

I'm a looker. I usually have an idea of what is on the market, but we were not planning to actually move anytime soon. I mean, come on, we are busy enough without moving and re-doing another house. But the Lord worked some things out and if He finishes what he has begun, and I'm sure He will, we will be moving soon.

It's exciting and overwhelming all at the same time. The house is great! It's in a great neighborhood, has an amazing yard and will give us much more room. But... it needs a lot of cosmetic work. The work always seems more fun in theory than when it actually comes down to doing it, ya know?

Pray our house sells fast, please. 

Today I cleaned seven trash bags full of clothes out of my closet. That's pathetic. Sometimes I disgust myself with the things that I think I need.

I would rather have been searching the pages of magazines looking at home ideas. It's fun dreaming up ideas for a new house! I'm open for suggestions...

A Growing Love

I love you more today

than I ever have before.

And there was SO much love 

the first time my eyes met your sweet body. 

But it has grown and grown because now I see your personality,

your sweet spirit, your genuine excitement, your pure love for life 

all I can do is say thank you Jesus

for giving you to me. 

You are the best and I love you with ALL of my heart.

Happy Birthday, my BIG three year old boy!