Overheard in Kindergarten

"I went on a roller coaster without even barfing!!"

10 Things Thursday

10 things about the Coeur d'Alene High School choir concert I went to on Tuesday.

1. It was certainly not like my choir concerts at CHS circa 1990.
2. Nowhere to be seen were the long, blue choir robes like the ones we wore. (I was assured, however, that they do in fact still wear robes at some of their concerts.)
3. It was "glee-ed" out. Popular music, funky costumes, choreography...
4. There was a lot of Lady Gaga. Now I appreciate talent and I believe that in her way she is talented, but isn't one of her songs enough for any concert other that hers?
5. There were some really good singers. Really good. I guess we had some good singers back in the day, but I didn't appreciate it like I do now.
6. Josh went with me and enjoyed it. He's turning out to be my music buddy.
7. I couldn't help but remember when I was 17 and singing with my high school choir. That was definitely my favorite part of each day and the part I remember best.
8. I also found myself wondering about my children as teenagers. Very daunting for me to think of it. I have a feeling I will be praying a lot. We've given them a good start and I trust that they will make mostly good choices in what they do. But this world isn't always an easy place to live a pure life.
9. Signs on the walls of the high school haven't changed. Still a big sheet of newsprint with one corner torn off painted with bright colors with the last word squished on at the end.
10. I'm old. I'm pretty sure I went to high school with several of the parents of the performers. And they are old. So I guess that makes me old, too. And besides that, only an old person would ever think there's any such thing as too much Gaga.

Bonus: I would not go back to high school for a million dollars. I don't even think I'd teach high school for a million dollars. Okay, maybe for a million I would.

10 Things Thursday

10 things that have happened this week.

1. The sun decided to shine two days in a row!
2. I figured out how to get Julianna to wear shoes...only buy sparkly ones.
3. The day came when my kindergartners declared school over by giving me the unmistakable sign of becoming unable to sit still. No more learning. They're done. Which is a great excuse for me to play with them more.
4. We counted how many days of school we have left. 13.
5. Our school administrator is out of town. When the cat's away...
6. We celebrated Adam's birthday with dinner at Outback. He had ribs.
7. I was enlightened on how to buy gifts for tweens. Take the brother shopping with me. He picked out Adam's birthday gifts and they were a big hit. I totally would have bought something else. Thanks, Josh.
8. I played with the dogs and cat out in the sunshine. I love them, but they make me sneeze and itch. Which is why they are outdoor pets.
9. Since visiting Marci's school last weekend, I have been contemplating my classroom for next year. Paint. Ceiling decorations. New library shelves. Comfy chairs. Fewer but better toys. Real art and more kids' art.
10. I've smiled and laughed a lot thanks to all of the above.

Adam D.

Today my baby turns 10. Now I'm fully aware that he's not my youngest child. But he was for 7 years until his little sister was born. He was, and still is, my blond, blue-eyed baby. Absolutely adorable and charming and funny before he should have been. Seriously. The kid has made me laugh everyday for the last 10 years. Sometimes by trying and sometimes totally by hilarious accident. He's smart, too. He has to work hard at school to overcome a major case of butterfly chasing,* but he gets great grades and remembers things better than I. Especially if he's interested in it. And frankly, I don't find multiplying fractions all that interesting either. It's hard to believe that I've been his mom for 10 years. This child who make his daddy and I look at each other and ask "where did this kid come from?" This child who can drive me to drink, or at least could if I drank. This kid who positively can melt my heart with a smile. He's something else, I tell ya. And I love him all to pieces.

Happy, happy, happy birthday, Adam!

*Butterfly chasing is when you are supposed to be going one way but see a butterfly and chase it in another direction. In other words, he's easily distracted by, well, pretty much anything.

Two For Tuesday

Two reasons I haven't posted much lately.

1. Blogger was down for a few days.
2. I didn't want to.

Morning Call

This morning while I was brushing my teeth, my phone rang so Josh answered it. I knew it was my sister because it was her ring that I heard. I heard his side of the conversation which was mostly "okay"s. When he hung up and I finished brushing, I asked him what she wanted. He said that she wanted to borrow "a loaf of bread or two." "A loaf of bread? Are you sure she didn't say a slice of bread or two?" "No, I'm pretty sure she said a loaf." I figured that she was out of bread and needed enough to make a sandwich for my nephew's lunch so I went to the kitchen, opened the bread, and got out a baggie all the while wondering why Josh had said "loaf." So I called her back. "Josh said you needed to borrow a loaf of bread or two," I said laughing and knowing she would say "slice." But to my surprise, after a brief hesitation, she said, "Umm, I asked to borrow a roll of toilet paper or two." I'm so glad I called. She really would have been confused if I had shown up at her house with two slices of bread.

Wednesday WORD

Matthew 6:34 (various translations)

Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don't get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.

Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

So do not worry or be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will have worries and anxieties of its own. Sufficient for each day is its own trouble.

Don't worry about tomorrow. It will take care of itself. You have enough to worry about today.

Confession

Here's today's confession. I watch reality tv. And I let my kids watch reality tv. We watch it together. We watch The Amazing Race, American Idol, Deadliest Catch, and Survivor every week. Josh and I watch So You Think You Can Dance when it's on. And the boys in the family watch lots of reality tv on Discovery like Swamp Loggers, Ice Road Truckers, Swamp People, etc. (Are those reality or documentary?) Usually these shows are just purely entertainment. I can't even tell you who last year's winners were or how much crab was caught. But it's fun to watch.

This year's Survivor, however, has proven to be more. There's a contestant on the show who is very open about his religious beliefs which happen to be very similar to mine. He's a Bible believing, praying, God fearing Christian. Which has caused trouble for him from the very beginning. You see, after the very first challenge when the other team won, he went over and congratulated them and shook hands with one of their competitors. A few members of his team didn't like that and voted him off first. They saw what he did as weakness and a threat to their tribal unity.

But this year there's a twist. When voted off, the contestants go to Redemption Island and get the chance to compete to re-enter the game. Well, Matt won every challenge and rejoined the tribe a few weeks ago. Where once again he was promptly voted off and sent back to Redemption Island. He was discouraged to say the least. But the show, on national tv, showed him praying and crying out to the Lord. Amazing. And guess what? He's still in the game. He has won his way to the last few weeks of the show and has a chance to join the tribe again. Which in itself is quite an accomplishment. But even more so is the effect he's had on the other contestants. When Julie lost her challenge against Matt, she was okay with it and said that he had inspired her to go home and find a church family to be a part of.

And last week, when Mike, one of Matt's opponents who he's been having Bible studies with on the island, had the choice to spend time with his mom who had been flown in or give this gift to the other contestants, the very ones who had voted him out, he talked about reading Matt's Bible and referred to the verse where Jesus tells us to love others more than ourselves. And then he gave his "enemies" his prize and they got to spend time with their love ones while his mom left without even getting to hug her son. When she was asked about it, she said she wasn't surprised. She was proud of his decision and thought he did the right thing. (Here it is if you want to watch. It's about 14 1/2 minutes into the episode. Matt's the young man with longish blond hair in the yellow tee shirt.)

I couldn't believe what I was watching. This young man competing on a tv show was living for Christ. He was sharing his Lord and Savior. He was saving others. And they were showing it on national television! The truth is, Matt has had times when he wanted to go home. He's wanted to be done since he's been by himself almost the whole game. But he prayed that God would keep him there as long as he needed him there. And he's still there. He's still there teaching others through his words and actions. He's teaching his fellow contestants as well as the Survivor audience. And he's taught me a few things as well.

So I just want to say, "Go Matt! May God bless you in this game and all the others you play in your life. If you continue to play for HIM, you will win no matter what."

Blessed Sunday

For Blessed Sunday this Mother's Day, I have had many ideas for the blessings I could write about. Obviously I could write about the blessing my children are. Or I could write about my mom or other moms I know. I could even write about the blessings of motherhood in general. But the blessing I decided on for today is what motherhood has taught me about God.

You see, for me motherhood has been the greatest catalyst in increasing my relationship with God. I feel like I know and understand him better. I feel like I love him more deeply since I became a mother. It started at the very beginning of my mom journey. I had a little bit of trouble getting pregnant with Josh. In my control-freak manner I prayed for a baby. My time. My terms. My plans. He said "no." Finally after a while I gave it to him. I literally prayed, "Okay, I'm giving it to you. Do what you want." Josh happened. That was my first lesson. One I still remember and am blessed by to this day. His time. His terms. His plans.

Since I became a mom I've also learned about God's love. The love I feel for my kids defies understanding. It's an instinctual, intense, amazing love. God's love for me, and you, is like that, too. Only his love is perfect in every way. Perfect and unconditional and so much more amazing than any love we can feel on earth. I also can finally understand a little better how God can love us all with that awesome love. When I was pregnant with Adam, I wondered how I could possibly love him as much as I loved Josh. And then I did. With Julianna I knew I would love her as much. I understood that love is in no way limited. There's always enough to go around. If I had 6 billion children like God does, I would love each and every one just as I loved the first. Each differently but equally.

And then there's grace. You know, when we're given something even when we don't deserve it. Over the last 11+ years I have learned a little more about God's grace given to me. And I've learned a ton about giving grace to others. I give of myself to my children 'til there's no more to give. And then somehow I find more. Most of the time they take it for granted. Most of the time they take advantage of it. Most of the time I don't mind. Beyond that, I sometimes don't give them something they do deserve. Like consequences or lectures or worse. That's grace, too. Just like God's grace. I don't deserve so much that he gives me. And I certainly do deserve so much that he chooses to not give me. Hallelujah! Amazing grace!

I truly count motherhood as one of my greatest blessings. For so, so, so many reasons. Honestly, I can't imagine how I could even begin to understand my Father if I weren't a mother. Josh, Adam, and Julianna are a part of me just as I am a part of him. The rely on me just as I rely on him. They are my greatest joy in this life. I pray and hope with all my heart that I can be a great joy to the one who gives all joy.

10 Things Thursday

10 things about Julianna.


1. She is getting over laryngitis and has a voice that has been described as sounding like a "small, 40 year old man."
2. She describes her voice as "broken."
3. She says words that start with sm and sp like they start with sf--sfile (smile), sfecial (special), sfarkly (sparkly), Sfarties (Smarties). And yes, the boys think that last one is hilarious.
4. She has begun naming her stuffed animals. They are all named Sweetie Pie.
5. She is a girly girl. She likes pink, clothes, and especially shoes. And if the shoes are pink and/or sfarkly, she likes them even more.
6. She is a "very mature 2 year old" according to her Bible class teacher.
7. She is bossy. She is perfectly capable, and more than willing, to keep my kindergartners in line when she joins us in the afternoon.
8. She knows what she wants. As in clothes to wear, food to eat, books to read, and especially shoes to wear.
9. She loves animals and if they are baby animals they are especially loved.
10. She will turn 3 in 26 days. Oh my goodness, how time flies.

Wednesday WORD

Proverbs 24: 16-20

For though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again, but the wicked are brought down by calamity. Do not gloat when your enemy falls; when he stumbles, do not let your heart rejoice, or the LORD will see and disapprove and turn his wrath away from him. Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of the wicked, for the evil man has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.

Blessed Sunday--Easter Weekend

This post is a week late, but it definitely qualifies for Blessed Sunday.

On Saturday our church hosted an Easter egg hunt. Adam and Jules were very excited about it. (Josh chose to go turkey hunting with Pappy instead.) Before we headed out, I painted Jules' fingernails for her. Pink, or course. She loved it. She's trying to show me her nails in this picture.

The two cutest girls at the egg hunt--Jules and Abby.

Jules with one of her eggs. See the pink fingernails!

Jules coloring eggs.

So how many more years do you think I have when all three of my kids actually want to color eggs with me?
Nice!

Easter at Pappy and Grandma's. Cute girls in pretty Easter dresses.

JoJo and JuJu. She loves this dog and hugs her every chance she gets. Such a patient puppy.

The find at Pappy and Grandma's!

This is what happens when my sister, my pregnant sister, is put in charge of desserts. Yumminess to the extreme.

It was a good weekend. Family, fun, food, and SUNSHINE!