Soap Deodorant Eaters...

Okay, okay...DadE was right...soap deodorant (ya know those roller soaps from Avon) is a horrible invention for children under 5! He meant that it makes a horrid mess and they scream when you take it away...

...I meant that Sweet Boobahs think it might taste how it smells...yummy pina colada! Ewwww!

*Yes, the blog is now fixed and improved with nifty border...tada. There are minor things to work on but overall I've beat the learning curve once again and messed about in the html! Woohoo!*

Construction!

Well...some things worked and some things didn't...

As you can see I got the nifty new border in...but sort of lost my three columns. I plan to read up on things and get them back asap. For now, you'll have to scroll on down...every thing's still there but sort of off kilter!

I'm learning lots about HTML! I love learning...just wish I had more time!

Stellan's Going Home!

For anyone who's noticed I moved the "praying for Stellan" button down into my bloggy bling...it DOES NOT mean that I've ceased to pray for him. I just decided it was a good way to show rejoicing over his recent honorable discharge from the hospital in Boston. They are waiting for their flight home to be truly home. There are definitely still many things to pray for...that he'll stay home and out of SVT...that his heart will stay strong...
Go to My Charming Kids for the updates!

Tube Tuesday...It won't be like this for long...

Cassandra at Momma Needs A Timeout shared this last week...and I figure if it makes me all teary than it's worth sharing with ya'll too!

MMM- Enough already...Be thankful... ya ingrate...

I have been down in the dumps, depressed, cup half empty, whiny, and just plain miserable. I'd say ask my hubby and kids...but let's not and say we did. This morning at about 5:16...God kicked my little ungrateful buns...and boy, was it over do. I'm now very motivated to be thankful and be done with this pity party I've been sickly enjoying.

Some thankfuls to start it off...

My LoverBrains has a job, he enjoys his job (almost to hobby proportions), and his job allows me to stay home with my sweet boobahs. Praise God!

My children are beautiful and intelligent with the smarts to be able to push every button MomE has...PTL! Even when they are sick...we are blessed with health insurance so I can take them to a wonderful Dr. I love and trust who helps them get better. God is tenderizing their hearts to Himself even now...and that is most precious! Praise God!

My house regained some semblance of order this weekend. The LoverBrains took me out for dinner sans kids. The weather has been gorgeous...and today looks beautiful! Praise God!

I have no reason...no excuses...for being down in the dumps. So, enough already...Be thankful...ya ingrate! I'm motivated to praise Him because He doesn't give me what I deserve (eternal death) but blesses me beyond measure (eternal life, His love). His grace is more than sufficient!!!

Fabulous Father Friday...

Here is yet MORE proof that LoverBrain is the best father! Here he is having a bedtime picnic with the kids. You can tell that he even makes the appropriate pouring sounds when serving tea! See the little lady with her upturned toes...and the studious little man...
Ah...precious precious moments!

Wordless Wednesday...

High Hat fashion...

Just a quick post to share our high hat fashion...gotta loved brimmed hats...hehehe! I thought we were so cute!!!

Looking at this it occurs to me that red wagons have really become swanky...haven't they? Look at those reclining seats...man!

We love our suburban walks...it sort of cracks me up..."oh look kids...a house, and...another house...and oh look...another house...ooooo ducks and a widdle pond with a fountain."

Okay, I wasn't raised exactly country but definitely not this CITY...it's weird sometimes. Oh, the humanity...it's everywhere!!!

MMM- He's STILL there!

I just recently (okay just two weeks into it) had started getting up at 5...to "redeem the time" and was pumped. No... truly... I was pumped...excited...eager for "my time" with God in the mornings. I even planned a way of staying on schedule amid family visits, etc.

Then, I got sick...ahem...WE got sick...the WHOLE family! At first I was totally bummed...feeling defeated...until it occurred to me that such feelings would just be something Satan would love to use as a foothold in my life.

So, I started thinking about God's character...His LOVE for me, His understanding...And it occurred to me that my horrible cold wasn't a shocker to God...nope...not a bit. He is patient...

...and He gave me what I'd been praying for in that first week...a DESIRE for His Word...for time with Him...that did not change one bit during the week of sickness. He also moved me towards trusting Him more...something else I've been praying for...because it wasn't about me, my strength, or my timing.

And now, this morning...He is still waiting...ready to meet with me again! I'm not suggesting you shouldn't make time with Him of the up most importance...I'm just saying that it's not all over if you get behind or things come up. He is forgiving and is still waiting for you!

Hopefully, this will motivate any of ya'll out there who've fallen off the schedule...and are feeling down...to smile and try, try again! He's still there!

TT- Finish strong...

Resurrection Cookies 2009!

We beat the nuts to remind us that Jesus was beaten for our sins...
We smelled the vinegar to remind us of what Jesus' was given when he was thirsty...

We put in the egg whites...to remind us of Jesus' life given to us so that we can have life eternal...

We tasted the salt to remind us of the tears of Jesus' followers and of the bitterness of our sins...

We tasted the sugar to remind us of the sweetness of salvation...

We watch the eggs beat for a LOONNGG time...11 whole minutes....

MomE put little rocky tombs on the cookie sheets....

If I look really cute...maybe they'll give me a cookie...???

We sealed the big tomb to remind us that there was a big stone in front of Jesus' tomb...

He is RISEN...in the morning we discovered the cookies were hallow...just like the tomb after three days...

Did we mention that there was sunrise service at church this morning...couldn't get picture of Sweet Boy with his eyes open!

If you want to see pictures of our family at in our Sunday finery you must head over to my other blog....Blogging Along....

Happy Easter!

Brrrrr!!!

It was chilly at the library today...and no I'm not talking about outside.

Nope.

Today I encountered some Queen Bees, sidekicks and wannabees...swarming with their larvae in the play area.

Yup, a good ole Momma Clique.

I recently read a great article about these horrid little phenomenon written by Rosalind Wiseman of Parenting magazine. Right now, with all the recent happening of my life, I fall into the: Floater/Reformed area...

Floater Moms can move easily from one group to another without arousing resentment. They embody "nice popularity" in that they're genuinely liked for who they are. The Floater Mom dresses "appropriately" -- she doesn't stand out. Her house isn't over the top, and her car isn't fancy.
Reformed Moms are able to analyze their behavior and make improvements when and where necessary. These moms -- especially the ones who used to be Queen Bees -- often have the best sense of humor. Reformed Queen Bees have kept all their positive attributes (they're charismatic, fun to be around, intelligent, capable, and can make fun of themselves) and lost most of the attributes that made everyone (including themselves) miserable.
Reformed Moms aren't just former Queen Bees, either: There are lots of former Sidekicks, Wannabes, and Outcasts walking around who have become genuinely amazing women you'd want as friends as you go through parenthood.
This doesn't mean that Reformed Moms don't have moments when they revert to old behavior, but when they're called on it, they can admit it, apologize if necessary, and move on.

Although today wasn't pleasant for me, or my kids, it's part of life...and I'm going to live through it...

...hopefully be humbled by recognizing myself in it all...and work toward being more like Christ.

There is freedom in calmly looking at it all, remember you're not in high school anymore...and if you're like me you reach out to all the outcasts about you...cuz you are finally able to feel for them...

So, if you're a mom reading this I really urge you to challenge yourself. Are there ANY situations where you are a part of a Queen Bee court...are you a Queen Bee, sidekick, ...are you aware of those around you...really aware...feeling for them with an open, compassionate heart? Remember, it's not all about you...its all about HIM!

Bring on the Bragging...

So, there is another mom carnival topic at It's Almost Naptime...

I laughed out loud when I read this...[Missy says,] "Because you know what, we all KNOW that 75% of the time - give or take a few percentage points depending on the child - your precious offspring is driving you up the wall"...as a reason she wants us to brag on our kids a bit.

So, in reverse order...cuz, well I loaded the picture in here backwards...hahaha...

Sweet Boobah Caleb

Oh, what can MomE say...he's a snuggler. He's sweet and sensitive. He is a BOY and gets an incredibly cute impish grin upon his face when he throws things....which is often. He has the most mechanical mind...he can open anything (DVD's, childproofed cabinets...)...so watch out! I love that after spending all day, every day, with him I can understand his toddlerese. He very kindly told his DadE that the library book was broken so he was throwing it out...He was totally shocked and crushed when then DadE yelled at him for throwing it away! HA! I love his morning stand in the booster seat...bleating, "Sauss...age!" His early speech thrills me to my toes...he'll count (doesn't know what for but it's fun to copy his sister)...he says, "don't wanna"...and I can hardly keep a straight face to make him do it anyway! I love to breath him in when he first wakes up in the morning! Still, for a bit longer, he will snuggle as my baby boy!

Curious Georgette Emma

She is so bright and cheerful. I love the desire for independence (yes, even as much as I loathe it at times)...the "me dos" and the wearing the same Nana dress day in and out! I love her tenderness towards Christ right now...A few days ago, while I was fixing breakfast, she said, "Mom, the bread's God's body." I paused trying to figure out what to say about this...not wanting her to think all bread was God's body but not wanting to reprimand in any way. Seeing my puzzled expression she said,"It's a symbol!" Uh huh! Then she explained her wordless bracelet....for all ya'll interested (and too bad if you're not cuz this is my bragging time...Missy said so)...Black is for bad stuffs you do....Red is for washing...White is for washed...Yellow is for gold heaven...Green is for life with Jesus. Oh, it blesses my heart and I so want to tell anyone who will listen...cuz I'm so excited. It is my BIG DESIRE...for them to "know Christ and Him crucified!"

So, I can't wait to hear all the other braggings...Gotta go snuggle a boobah or two!

WW-Grandma Wells reads to Sweet Boy!

Tube Tuesday- Hope of Easter....Veggie style...

Marriage Monday...Friendship!

Chrysalis says: Scripture teaches us to phileo our husbands (Titus 2:4). This is a human brotherly kind of affection and love. For most men, phileo translates into side-by-side companionship. What do you two love to do together that fosters good feelings between you?

LoverBrain's is truly my friend. We do love to be together...and lately that means when we are very tired. Being the parents of two toddlers is exhausting...and so we are...exhausted! We still enjoy the rare times alone together just side by side. We enjoy watching "Good Eats" together. It's a show that combines my love of cooking and his love of science...so...there ya have it folks! We enjoy working crossword puzzles together. We enjoy reading together...oddly enough I even count it as romantic...the companionship and quiet of it!

I feel that planned/scheduled date nights are important to our marriage...because it preserves our friendship! When the majority of our time is spent exhausted and scrambling to double team the kids through meals, washings, bedtimes, etc. it seems we lose each other. It is nice to get away for a few hours and reconnect..."Oh yeah, I remember you!" I'm tellin' ya folks...it's the best money I've ever budgeted! It's even more fun when he plans the dates...check out my Date Guru!

We share our dreams (figurative and literal) with each other. I love to talk about my future plans. What am I dreaming of doing to the house. Hokey retirement dreams about being like my grandparents and walking early in the morning together. Oooo...I had the weirdest dream last night...and laughing together. Speaking of which...I was talking to Darren about this post...we had a rare Sunday afternoon lunch alone cuz both kids fell asleep in the van on the way home from church... and he was sharing how he actually remembered one of his dreams...I'll share it...
He had a sort of science fiction dream (gotta love my LoverBrains, eh?)...and there were worms eating cows like in Dune and he talked to me in his dream about being upset and freaked out by it and I said something like, "Hey, it's okay they eat things like that all the time in Italy!" HA HA HA...oh that is so funny...cuz I'm totally into exotic foods...LoverBrains, um...not so much! That is totally something I would say to him while watching something squishy being consumed...or whole cows eaten by worms...snort, he he he!

Oh, sigh...*wipe tears from eye corners*...Remember you're friends...Remember why you fell in love...Remember to work on the friendship! Married friendship makes the exhausting times of life bearable! Trust me...zzzzzz!

Hosanna! Save!! He is Mighty to Save...

Just for fun...

I enjoy prowling the Etsy shops attached to various blogs to see what ideas I can steal (er, I mean copy) for Christmas gifts, etc. I'm getting lots of ideas so watch out ya'll! Anyhew, I saw and loved this plaque at Able Mabel's Etsy shop...for $18.50...which I have to say isn't an unfair price...but...you know me...I squeak I'm so cheap these days...
So, I thought I'd do a cheapy version...and I like it...so, it works for me! It makes me smile...and points out to my dear hubby how I often feel!

Train Up A Child...APRIL...

Did you try any ideas from March...? Here are some more for April. This is one of my favorites...I love love love sharing the Easter story with my babes! It renews it in my heart too! THE HOPE OF EASTER....HE IS RISEN...just like He said!

April-
Week 1- Easter Week- 5-11
S- Palm Sunday...re-enact the story....Use Mustard Seeds palm tute for extra fun!

We're reading "Benjamin's Box" by Melody Carlson and Jack Stockman. We will be opening a few resurrection eggs per day. We love that the book guides along the eggs!

M-Blue, Pink
T-Purple, Orange
W-Green, Yellow
R-Dark Yellow, Light Green
F-Purple, Cream
S-Dark Pink Make Resurrection Cookies
S-Light Blue Easter Morning PRAISE GOD...HE IS RISEN!!!! Set off helium balloons!


Week 2-Spring Growth Week-12-18
M-Eggshell flowers
T-Play dough critters
W-Animals stationary
R-Potato Porcupine
F-Measure kids height and talk about growth...



Week 3-Science and Environment Week-19-25-
M-Crystal Rock Candy
T-Plastic Egg hunt (parenting)
W-Pasta peek-a-boo (parenting)
R-Apple Painting
F-Pine Cone Chimes



Week 4-Old to New Week-26-2-
M-Coasters
T-Flower Pots
W-Napkin Rings
R-Piggy Banks
F-Memo Holders



Many of my ideas came from an ECO craft book...ECOART by Laurie Carlson and 132 Gift Crafts by Highlights...the rest are from online...parenting.com, etc. If you have any questions or can't find something...let me know.

Wordless Wednesday of the past....

Spring 2008