4 more days

Four more days until the Britney Spears concert. I'm so so so excited.

We bought the tickets so long ago that it's kind-of slipped my mind and just yesterday I realized it was actually time to get excited.

We never ever get a babysitter. It seems like everywhere we go, we just take the kids with us. It's always been that way, but this night - we're going all out - babysitter and all.

I've been listening to all her music making sure I know all the words so that I can sing at the top of my lungs :)

Sweet Don is going with me. What a trooper. Of course, Britney will be nearly naked and she is back to her pre-baby(s) body, so it's not like he's enduring much. But, I still appreciate that he got the sweet hook-up for tickets and is coming with me since he knows I love Britney so much.

If I make the news, or the fan page, you'll be the first to know.

Spring Break

We've had a busy week. I took a little blogging Spring Break ...

(1) My Aunt Tempa came to visit from Lexington. Everyone says I am more like Tempa than anyone else in the family. I hope that's true :) Well, we had a great time with her. The kids took to her immediately. Piper was INSEPARABLE from her.

We did several fun things. Saturday we went to the Museum of Natural Science. Dinosaurs, precious gyms, 3D IMAX movies, McDonalds, and a lot of exotic animals filled the day. We all really enjoyed it. Tempa's birthday was on Monday. What better way to spend the day in Texas than at the Rodeo. (I've still never seen an actual "Rodeo" and this was my third trip!) The kids had a ball looking at all the farm animals and riding rides. They LOVE the rodeo and we escaped without buying any western wear, so it was a full-on success.

Monday night, we treated Tempa to dinner at our favorite Tex-Mex restaurant "Ruthies". The picture here is just before they put whipped cream on her face. I totally would have opted to take her to someplace a little more civilized with the "celebration", but my mom (Tempa's older sister) insisted that she go there.

Tempa flew home on Tuesday. We were all sad to see her go and hope that she comes back to visit us soon. It was nice to visit with her and see my children loving her as much as I do.

(2) My mom has been here all week as well. She and Tempa flew in together last Friday. Mom has been keeping kids on opposite days this week. It works well for them. Each gets to have special time with her, but still go to school on the days that they do special projects. Avery's class went bowling one day this week and to a huge park on another day. Today Piper's class is doing Pajama Day - her favorite day of all time! The days that they've stayed with mom have been so pretty. They've walked up to the park and played outside a lot.

(3) Don has been home every night this week. With all the schools being on Spring Break, he's not been teaching. The kids have loved having him home as well. He's picked up whichever child from daycare and gotten a little alone time with them. For some reason, they love riding in his car. It's like an amusement park ride to them!

(4) The weather has been GORGEOUS. Since Monday, we've had temperatures in the mid-to-upper 70s every day. I'm glad that mom has had such good weather for her visit (last weekend was the pits), but boy has it given me Spring Fever! I'm ready to throw open the windows, do some spring cleaning, and start throwing stuff away!

For some reason, I get in a "throw stuff away" mood when the seasons change. It's a good thing :) I'm always amazed at how much C-R-A-P we have. Stuff we never use and just keep moving from house to house. It's insane.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. Enjoy your family and friends.

Come On Jessica!

This precious gal is my friend, Jessica. It seems like she's been pregnant for a year. Bless her heart, we've been praying for her angel, Quinn, to make an appearance and she's not ready yet.

I could go through the trauma of telling you what she went through last week thinking that she was going to be induced THREE different times, but I'll let you read it on her blog.

Let's all pray for Jessica and Quinn. Pray for a safe (and quick) delivery of this sweet little baby girl, and for them to get deluxe accommodations at the hospital when the time finally comes for Princess Quinn to make her grand entrance.

Our "Pet"

We have a pet. Well, Avery and Piper have a pet. Let me be more specific ... Avery and Piper have a pet that I care for and they rarely even notice.

It all started in June of 2006. We lived like this ...

For you that have children years apart in age ... I'm sorry. We lived by the "kill two birds with one stone" method and potty trained everyone at once. We're overachievers.

Honestly ... I wish ... We never set out to potty train both kids at once. During the course of events, Piper figured out that Avery was getting a lot of attention about this "peeing in the potty" business and hopped on board.

We didn't complain.

This is how I lived for about a month ... Cheering everyone on. Singing Silly Songs. Bribing with M&M's. I can still hear Piper saying to Avery "Come on Avery ... Come on Buddy! M&Ms!!!" She was clearly in it for the food.

We didn't care.

So, eventually it happened. We were officially "potty trained". Everyone at our address could use the bathroom on their own. It was a right of passage after having two kids in diapers for over 18 months. We felt like we had won the lottery.

Being the great parents that we are... we said the kids could have a pet, and then we picked it. A goldfish. Low maintenance. Pees in the bowl. Food is less than $4 and lasts for months. Our kind of pet.

The kids were very excited and named our new friend "Tico". We thought he might live a couple of months and then we'd move on to something else. (Not "something else" another animal, "something else" another toy/friend/new obsession.)

As our luck would have it ... here we are three years later and the fish is still alive. No one pays attention to the fish but me. In fact, it swims to the top of the bowl when it sees me. I should be flattered, but like everyone else in my house - it just means that they want something from me (food)!!!

Also, it bares noting that the fish is no longer Tico. The kids decided last year that they would now like to call the fish "Goldie". This alone is a testament to why we can't have a dog or a cat. Can you imagine how confusing that would be to an animal?

A couple of nights ago Don and I noticed that the fish was turning flips horizontally. Very slowly the fish would roll over. It was strange. We assumed that "the time was near" if you know what I mean.

Every now and then, I'd look over and the fish would be upside down floating at the top of the water. I'd go over, knock on the glass, and he'd roll over and start swimming again.

Bizarre.

I have a friend at work that has a degree in Marine Biology and I figured, although a slim chance, I would ask him about Goldie/Tico.

I'm amazed that he immediately diagnosed the problem. It's called Swim Bladder Disease.

It can be caused by dirty water. Oops. (Look closely at the picture to the left and you'll notice that the fish is upside down. See the eye at the bottom of the body. The quality of the picture stinks, but whenever the fish sees me looking at him/her, it turns right-side-up.)

I hate cleaning the fish bowl. It's not as bad as other housework tasks, it's just the easiest to put off until tomorrow. And, let's be honest, no one complains about it. In fact, no one but me and Tico/Goldie even notices.

I'm glad, at this point, that it seems to be non-fatal. I haven't looked forward to the day that I have to explain death of a pet. But, really, who am I kidding. Would anyone even notice? Actually, I guess they would after a day or two.

Oh, and we are off to a good start in healing. The article says to "withhold food for a day or two". No problem. I fed the fish last night and couldn't remember the last time I fed it before that.

Oops.

TGIF

Thank God (literally) It's Friday!!!

This day has been a trainwreck for me. Anyone else see a recurring theme? I'm planning to spend a lot of time this weekend reflecting on what the obstacles are in my life that are causing me to stumble ... almost uncontrollably. The past three weeks have been out-of-control and I am ready to get the reins hauled back in. It's driving me nuts and making me unproductive to everyone involved in my life.

Tonight and tomorrow morning I'm attending a Women's Conference at church. I'm a little apprehensive about it because I don't know anyone else going. Originally, I had planned to invite some girls that I work with to join me, but something inside me said that I really needed to step out in faith and go this one alone.

I've spent a lot of time praying for a girlfriend that I can do things with and connect with. I have several that I love dearly, but don't get to see often enough. And, it's hard with the kids. Don works long hours and travels so much that it makes it hard to do anything other than work and wrangle kids. And truthfully, I'm nervous. The idea of walking into that big room all alone is terrifying to me. I'm not a loner. I need someone to walk in with ... you know what I mean. Someone to meet in the lobby. Someone to download with during the break.

This weekend will be uncharted territory for me.

But, I'm praying nonetheless and have had a strong feeling that I'm going to get something big out of this conference. It's testing my patience to see it revealed ... and I'm smart enough about this God-business to know that I probably won't see it revealed for some time now. And that's ok.

The Bachelor

I think I can finally talk about the Bachelor and not get in a tizwad.

I was so mad on Monday night that I could have chewed through the couch cushion. I cried, I cussed (yes, I said it), I almost threw something.

I really liked both girls, but let's face it - we all knew Melissa was the girl for him. I was crying right along with her when he got down on one knee.

I wonder what the heck Molly is thinking. I wonder what her family is thinking. You know that they must have some reservations. I'd love to be a fly on their wall.

I think the main problem is that Jason doesn't have a faith foundation to base his commitment on. I'm not saying that everyone that's NOT a Christian is going to get divorced, I just think that perhaps it gives MOST PEOPLE a better grasp of forgiveness, grace and mercy. He seemed very quick to move on to the next flavor.

I hope that they work out. I certainly wish them no ill will, and how horrible for Molly if he drops her in 6 weeks too.

And, I can't even talk about the example he is for his son. Good grief. I bet his first wife is beyond frustrated. How do you explain what's happening to a child of his age. Yes, I know he's tried to shield him, but kids are smart. They know way more than we give them credit for.

And, now I can watch the Bachelorette and hope for less drama and try not to get as personally invested. Jillian is a smart smart girl. I can't wait to see how she does.

Was anyone else surprised that Stephanie wasn't chosen as the Bachelorette? I really felt like they would use her. Who knows? Maybe there's a reality show that they are casting her for this minute.

The Mom Quiz

I gave this quiz to my kids tonight. I had them come in one at a time so they wouldn't influence one another. The results are ... well, thought provoking.

1. What is something mom always says to you?
Avery - "I love you"
Piper - "Stop being mean!"
(Funny how the personality of each child is exposed in question #1)

2. What makes mom happy?
Avery - Me doing what you ask
Piper - Listening and saying nice words

3. What makes mom sad?
Avery - When I don't do something you ask
Piper - Being bad

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
Avery - Making funny faces
Piper - Doing silly faces
(Apparently, I make funny faces ... who knew?)

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Avery - Just like me
Piper - Good

6. How old is your mom?
Avery - 41
Piper - 50
(We'll be working on this on quite a bit in the coming days.)

7. How tall is your mom?
Avery - Bigger than me
Piper - Medium

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Avery - Boss me around
Piper - Make money
(If I had bet a million dollars on this question, I would have lost every penny. These are the furthest things from my "favorites".)

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
Avery - Play with Piper
Piper - Do your work

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Avery - Movie Star
Piper - Praying to God
(Look out Beth Moore! I'm hot on your trail.)

11. What is your mom really good at?
Avery - Writing stuff on the computer
Piper - Putting your hands up on a rollercoaster
(Why Piper thought this was something I was really good at is beyond me. I must have made quite an impression on her at Disney World.)

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Avery - Touching bottoms
Piper - Being mean to me
(Apparently, I'm not good at being the disciplinarian. I stink at spanking and being mean.)

13. What does your mom do for a job?
Avery - Work
Piper - work

14.What is your mom's favorite food?
Avery - Hamburger
Piper - Salad
(Neither of these ... Hello, Spaghetti!!!)

15.What makes you proud of your mom?
Avery - Getting money
Piper - Speaking good

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Avery - Cat
Piper - I don't know

17. What do you and your mom do together?
Avery - Help each other out
Piper - Doing puzzles

18. How are you and your mom the same?
Avery - same hair and same skin color
Piper - We have the same face and the same hair

19. How are you and your mom different?
Avery - not the same eyes
Piper - we don't have the same hands

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
Avery - when she smiles at me
Piper - cause she loves me very much

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
Avery - kissing him
Piper - kissing him
(Don will love this one!)

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
Avery - Friday's
Piper - work
(I can't remember the last time my foot graced the door of a Friday's ... I knew in my heart of hearts that they would say "CVS". I'm shocked that they didn't!)

What A Day!

Yesterday was not my best day to say the least.

(1) My hair was a wreck. More than it is on an average day. I'm over it. I want to get in cut completely off and start all over.

(2) Couldn't get ahead at work. Seemed to take two steps forward and one back all day.

(3) Came time to go home and my keys were gone. I mean G-O-N-E. Don had to pack up the kids and come to get me. He was thrilled.

(4) The Bachelor ... I could have choked him. I'm still mad when I think about it today. What a jerk.

I needed to go to sleep and start a new day.

Thankfully, I did ... and today has been much better.

Praise to the LORD for making today lighter and helping the things from yesterday fall in line. I certainly needed a break, and He came through!

I love my church ...

.... for things like this - Changed Lives. Real people. Proof that God is alive and that he's not finished with his work.


Changed Lives 2009 from Second Films on Vimeo

If you can't see the player above, please click HERE to go straight to the video.

Sibling Fun

I'm lucky that on most days, my kids play well together. I think this has to do with three things:

(1) Boy/Girl
(2) Their close proximity in age
(3) Their personalities are SO different

But, they have figured out that nasty word "competition" this year. Everything is a competition between them. It's a race to get up the stairs, it's a race to get shoes on, if you compliment one - the other will immediately say something wonderful that they've done. We've been working hard on this. And, for the most part, we've gotten it under control. (I think the race up the stairs will live on regardless of what we say ...).

It's days like yesterday that make me love these kids even more, and KNOW that they love each other and are really the best of friends.

I bought each child a small sandcastle set at Hobby Lobby. They were only $1.99 a piece and it made not breaking anything in the store more of a reality to grab something off a shelf when we walked in. They were so excited to take them outside and play in the sandbox. They talked of all the amazing things they were going to do and I got to shop in relative peace.

Yesterday was a little cool and a whole lot windy, so Avery asked to take his out of the bag to play with in the kitchen. Before I knew it, he had a spoon and in the pail was mixing up a (pretend) cake for Piper's Birthday! I was completely unaware that it was her birthday, but she acted like it was completely planned. When the cake was done. He took her into the den. Lit the imaginary candle and proceeded to sing "Happy Birthday" to her. It was precious. Just him in his little 5 year old voice singing to his little sister that was thrilled to death to have his full attention.

Piper blew out the candle and they pretended to eat cake.

Then, she came in the kitchen and in the same pail, made him a birthday cake. She stirred and mixed the pretend batter so much that MY arm hurt! She baked it just right and even pretended to put frosting on :) Then, she "surprised" Avery for his birthday. With the same energy and pride, she sang "Happy Birthday" to him and he was so happy! She lit the candle on his cake, and he made a wish and blew it out. It was amazing.

I stood at the sink pretending I wasn't watching. (You parents know how kids will quit doing cute things if they know you're watching them!) I was so blessed to know that should anything ever happen to me that they have each other and that they will take care of each other.

After the parties concluded (there were 4 in all), it was medicine time. Avery took his medicine like a champ, but knew that Piper was dreading hers. She's still doing breathing treatments and she doesn't mind the treatment as much as the fact that she can't play while she's doing them. Since I couldn't take a picture of the "birthday parties", I did manage to get a picture of Avery being a great helper with the treatment. He knew she was sad, so he agreed to stay with her and be her helper.

Is Avery going to be a great husband or what? I love these precious kids.