Summer days

This past week I've been thinking, what do I want my summer to look like? What do I want to have accomplished at the end of summer? And while I have many things on my "to do" list, I'm trying to look at the bigger picture. At the end of the summer I want to feel relaxed, replenished, energized. So how to I get to that? I'm not sure, but I'm certain it includes several days filled with "nothing". Those days when nothing is planned, I just go as the wind blows or wherever my kids take me with their imagination. Perhaps I read a book or take a nap or sip lemonade or sit quietly and listen to the sounds around me (like that of of my children laughing their way thru childhood) or watch what birds fly up to my feeder. Perhaps I bake cookies or call a friend or go for a walk or run thru the sprinkler with my girls. And while I looked forward to some very planned days and some wonderful vacations (to Wisconsin; to Boston area; to Lake Michigan) -- I'm also really looking forward to these "nothing" days too! The other great things about "nothing" days is that my kids have the opportunity to use their imaginations... their days aren't planned for them... they get make their own fun! Sadly, I feel that is a essential piece which is slowing slipping away from many kid's childhoods.

Also upon reflection, there are 2 things I'm planning to make a priority this summer. The first is to get caught up on my scrapbooking... I want to remember these years and it will be easier if my pictures aren't sitting on my hard drive, but rather in an album to flip thru as the years go by. Second, I'm writing a memoir. I received a phone call in 1996 that forever changed the course of my life...it changed my dreams, refocused my priorities and made me reexamine who God really is. It's a phone call I have to tell my kids about one day. And the best way I know to capture the depth of that journey is thru the writing of my own memoir.

So as the summer stretches before me, I find myself thankful for the gift of time and for the hope of fun-filled, sun-filled days ahead of me. Speaking of which, the girls and I are heading for a water-filled day at Silver Dollar City today. I can't wait for them to wake up and surprise them with this news! :)

Beagles

It has been such a challenge to train our dog. We've been doing a lot of the "right" things they recommend, but not making much progress. We finally decided to buy a book specifically about beagles. Here's what the author says about a beagle's "true character: stubborn, willful, determined, independent, obstinate, unyielding, uncompromising, strong willed, bullheaded, muleheaded, pigheaded, intractable, headstrong and tenacious. I hope I have made myself clear." Yep, that about sums it up! We are in over our heads! The message at church yesterday was about "stress" and he went thru this list, "This message might be for you if...." and I finished it "you are training a beagle!". Good thing she's at least a cutie!

Summertime!

Here are a few pics celebrating the girl's friendships during their last week as a Kindergartner and 2nd Grader. Really, someone please tell me how they grew so big already! This week was a fun week with Beach Day and Park Day for Sarah. Lucky me, I got to attend both since I work there! She also walked to E1 where she'll attend 1st grade next year. For Morgan she had Friendship Day and Park Day. She also got to walk to E's Inn for soda and ice cream and I took off a 1/2 day to go with her! Lucky me! What joy it is for me to see the friendships they've developed this past year. And I was so worried about it a year ago with moving!

And I also must add that I am SO looking forward to being home with the girls this summer. I've really missed being a stay-at-home mom this past year. We have 3 vacations planned and in-between I hope to just have some lazy, giggly, water-filled days enjoying this season of motherhood! Welcome summertime! I think I'll make a pitcher of lemonade today.

Fast Forward

If anyone knows how to slow down time, please let me know! I've been feeling this pull again at how quickly the girls are growing! These childhood years are going TOO FAST! I just want to hold these years forever...and yet I know it will be a joy to watch them continue to grow...I just wish it was in slow motion and not in fast forward! I'm really looking forward to summer beginning on Friday and having lots of summer days making memories. And hopefully scrapbooking too, so that I can remember all these good times in years ahead! I LOVE being a mom!

Strength

I have been thinking about internal strength today. Where does it come from? How does one get it? How can I get more of it in my life? I know I need to exercise. I know I need to eat better. I know I should drink more water and less soda. And yet I have been unable to find the strength within me to begin to change these simple things in my life. While I want these things to be a part of my life, while I see the value of them being in my life...I continue to not change. And then there's the bigger things. Where does one find the strength to begin again? New friendships, new jobs, new seasons of life. Some days depression wells up inside of me...and I can not find the strength I need to move forward. I wish I had this amazing strength that moved me forward, but reality is proving otherwise.

Tonight, the girls are gone with Mike (they are buying my Mother's Day present). And I am enjoying the gift of a quiet evening at home. Reading my bible, reading a book, listening to the christian radio station and blogging. Trying to forget all those things on my "I should..." list and just enjoy the gift of this free time.

The book I'm reading is called Anonymous (by Alicia Britt Chole). Her words seem to capture the feelings of my heart. She writes...

"When you're living the gap between your dreams and life's realities...you're in an anonymous season of the soul."

"Have you ever moved to a new place or entered a new environment where no one know who you were, what you could do, or what dreams ignited your soul? Have you ever crossed the threshold into another season of life, like parenthood or extended studies, where you shifted from recognition to anonymity?"

"Concealed for months or years or decades, our potential seems to hibernate like a bear in winter, and over time we begin to wonder if spring will ever awaken it again."

She goes on to explain in her book how "Jesus' hidden years (anonymous season) empowered him to live an eternally fruitful life." (For 90% of His life he was actually anonymous/ hidden.) Her words are helping me to appreciate this anonymous season and giving me hope! Is that where strength comes from...from hope?

This n That

We have been having lots of fun with our new puppy. She's often called "Miss Daisy" or "Daisy Waisy". She's just 4 lbs, but of lots of energy. She loves to bite, especially my feet! We love her, even if she is a lot of work at the moment!

Sarah's Kindergarten Musical was tonight. It was called "How Does Your Garden Grow?". It was adorable! She had lots of fun with it. After we took the 1st picture, I asked her where her missing arms were. So in the next picture, she said, "Here they are!" and did a wave dance with them. We then went out for ice cream afterwards...yum! Sarah was eating her cone from both ends...great smiles, good memories!

Last week Morgan broke 2 bones in her arm when she fell off the Monkey bars. She didn't get a cast, just a brace, which is nice for bath time, but not so protective when she accidentally bumps it (ouch!)! Hopefully it's enough to keep her arm steady enough to heal in the next 4 weeks. She's hardly missed a beat. We even went to Silver Dollar City Sunday (avoided most rides, just went to shows...which were amazing!).

Only 16 more days left of school! I am really looking forward to summer vacation! But for this weekend, we have a date night for Friday and a Cinco de Mayo party on Saturday evening. Mike's also hoping to fix the boat this weekend, so we can get it out soon! :) Should be a fun weekend, even if it's rainy and cold!

The Price of Children

I just got this email...thought it was good enough to post!

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family. Talk about price shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition. But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into: $8,896.66 a year, $741.38 a month, $171.08 a week. A mere $24.24 a day! Just over a dollar an hour. Still, you might think the best financial advice is don't have children if you want to be rich. Actually, it is just the opposite.

What do you get for your $160,140.00?
Naming rights. First, middle, and last! Glimpses of God every day. Giggles under the covers every night. More love than your heart can hold. Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs. Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies. A hand to hold usually covered with jelly or chocolate. A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites. Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up. You get to: finger-paint, carve pumpkins, play hide-and-seek, catch lightning bugs, never stop believing in Santa Claus. You have an excuse to: keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh, watch Saturday morning cartoons, go to Disney movies, and wish on stars. You get to: frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.

For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for: retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof, taking the training wheels off a bike, removing a splinter, filling a wading pool, coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the: First step, First word, First bra, First date, First time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren.

You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Meet Daisy

We've been talking about it for awhile now and today we finally did it, we got a dog! Meet our newest family member...Daisy. She's a 6 week old beagle (born 3-7-09). Isn't she sweet!?! Can I just stay home from work this week and love her?

Easter

What a beautiful day today was (and I'm not talking about the weather!). This morning began with the girls searching for candy eggs in the house and then we headed out for church. I actually thought I would miss Easter at Woodcrest... but Northpoint's Easter service was so moving that tears snuck out near the end. Oh the message of Easter... that of a creator that loves us so much that he pursues us throughout our lives. I thought Northpoint captured so well the heart of God towards us in their Easter service and I loved every moment of it... from the 3D glasses, to Slumdog Millionaire clips and dance, to the message and the worship "Oh, happy day!". I love that the girls are always excited when we leave church and eager to tell us what they are learning.

We returned home to a treasure hunt to find their Easter baskets (the baskets were hiding in the dryer). We then finished preparing Easter dinner and Darian (our friend and sitter) joined us for dinner and a relaxing afternoon. We all smile and laugh a lot when Darian is around and enjoy her company very much! Morgan said her favorite part of the day was Darian coming over and Sarah said hers was the treasure hunt. My favorite part was being moved by the love of my Creator once again. I love this life I get to live!

Oh yah, did you notice Sarah's new toothless grin?

Something Right

Most days I wonder if I'm making the right choices as a mom...saying the right things, doing the right things, am I building character into my kids, raising them up to be proud of the person they are. It's probably why I like the saying "I'd like to be the ideal mom, but I'm too busy raising my own kids." There's no set of instructions or set formula for raising kids...it's a complicated journey with lots of risk. And yet lately, I've received a few glimpses that perhaps we, as parents, are doing something right.

Like tonight, when Morgan prayed, "Thank you for giving me life, so that I can live with you!" Wow! At some level she's beginning to understand relationship with the creator!

And last month both girls won awards at school.
Sarah won a Caring Kid award. Her teacher wrote, "She is always honest and has a great attitude. "
Morgan won a Super Citizen award for self-discipline (her classmates nominated her).

It's nice to know that they make wise choices even when I'm not around. They are great kids and I'm so proud of them! And every night I thank God for letting me share life's journey with them!