Gobble, Gobble

Yup, that's exactly what I did-all weekend. Gobble. Gobble.

In the week between my last Weight Watchers weigh-in and Thanksgiving, I lost 4 pounds. This is a fantastic feat for me. My average loss per week is around a pound. You think this would be incentive enough to avoid all of the extra food at the table...nope, I gained it all back. I'm back to where I started a week and a half ago!! ARGH!!

But this is the time of year to reflect on all of the things in our lives for which we are thankful. I'm thankful I have a roof over my head. I'm thankful I have food to eat and clothes to wear. Did you know that having those three things puts me among the wealthiest 25 percent of the people on our planet?

I'm thankful I have two beautiful, healthy kids; and a husband who loves me. I'm thankful I still have both of my parents, and my husband's as well. I'm thankful for my 5 siblings, and 12 brothers- and sisters-in law.

My brothers: David, 17; Paul, 21; Dan, 14

My sisters: Ruby (my foster sister who unfortunately doesn't live with us anymore; Liz, 12; Becca, 18; and Me.

I'm thankful for twenty-three years of life in a free country, and not only that, but for fellow Americans who are and were willing to be away from their families so that the wars and issues in other countries wouldn't have as great an impact on ours.

*Sigh*

So after that "Perspective-Check", I'm ready to stop complaing about those four pounds...

I'm Still Here

So it' s been awhile since I've posted any new blogs. Life's been busy lately, and I don't expect it to slow down much until after Christmas.

Tomorrow night is our Apples of Gold "Finale". (For those of you who aren't familiar with Apples of Gold, it's a mentorship program where "Mature" ladies of the Church fellowship with the younger ladies: opening up their homes, sharing wisdom and life experiences, demonstrating various cooking or decorating tips, and just showering the yung'ens with love and hospitality.) I'm excited, yet part of me is disappointed that it's over. We get to bring our husbands (or special guests for those of us who aren't married.) it's truly been an honor getting to know these ladies.

Seth and I have been working diligently on finishing our front hall. We're hoping to finish tonight. I'll have before and after pictures when it's all done.

Madison's turning 4 on Sunday. I can't believe she's that old already! It seems like it was just yesterday that she was only a tiny baby! Time flies! What a blessing she's been to us these past four years!

So there you have it: our lives in a nutshell :D

Free Carwash, Anyone?

Packers WIN: 23-17!

So last week, a co-worker of mine, "Joe" came over to my desk and said, "wanna bet on this weekend's game?" (He's a Vikings fan.) And I said, "I don't bet." "No," he replied, "I'm not talking money, I mean we could wager something embarrassing." So I asked skeptically, "Like what?" "Well," he said, "You could wash my car." "Ooo," I said sarcastically, "That is embarrassing. And you mean, 'you could wash my car.'" "Well, we'll see." He replied.

I took the bet, and we shook on it.

So this morning, I get to work, and there's a note on my desk that simply states: "You win. I will wash your van."

So a free 'van' wash it is! Thanks, Pack!

'Bye for Now.

From Left: Chelsea, Justin, Maddie, Kameron, Baby "Unborn", Teresa, Me, Seth

Friday we had to say "goodbye" to our friends. Kameron, Teresa, Maddie and Baby "Unborn" moved to Chicago early Saturday morning. But it wasn't "goodbye", really. We'll visit each other often. And when you share a friend in Jesus, it's never "goodbye", just "'bye for now".

We met Kameron and Teresa the Sunday Kameron was baptized. His story was so moving that it prompted Seth to go introduce himself. I had already headed off in the direction of the nurseries to rescue my children, but when I got there, another mom was picking up her own little "Maddie"! We talked casually about the similarities of our daughters' names, and when Seth found us, he introduced us: The mom I had been talking to was Kameron's wife, Teresa. (They were separated at the time, but Teresa came to church with Kameron to support his decision to be baptized...you'll have to ask them about the rest of their story. I've posted a link to their blog in the column on the right.)

A few weeks later, a woman in our Sunday School class held a "Women's Tea" at her home, inviting lots of new women from the class. I sat next to Teresa and we chatted again about our daughters. Eventually all of the ladies at the "tea" were seated in the living room and we got to some interesting discussions. Teresa shared her story, which brought tears to my eyes. (Again, you'll have to ask them :)) When the "tea" was over, I asked Teresa if Kameron had any christian friends he could talk to/hang out with? She said, "no, but he really could use some right now." So we exchanged phone numbers and the rest is history!

Over this past year, an incredible friendship has developed. It was hard to let them go, they'll be sorely missed. Maddie, Madison and Malachi have become "best friends", as have their mommies and daddies. But this move isn't "goodbye", it's merely "'bye for now."

We love you and miss you Kameron, Teresa and Maddie!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

My husband and I were talking this morning about things I want for my birthday. I've listed quite a few things lately, just trying to give him ideas. But my most recent request was for a digital camera. "What's wrong with the camera we have?" he wondered. "Nothing." I replied, "but it would make it a LOT easier to scrapbook and post pictures on my blog if I had one of my own." "Well maybe you shouldn't scrapbook or blog then." He joked. Pleading my case, I pointed out that I am merely trying to preserve the memories we have of our family while we still can. I don't want to wake up in 10 years and wonder why my kids never did the cute things other little kids do...maybe not realizing that they DID, I just didn't remember because I never recorded them. He agreed. So, just to let you know, I'll be posting cute little kiddie sayings on my blog from time to time, as a way to sort of Journal them. And they may come with a little "life lesson" or they may not...

Madison, my almost 4 year old, likes to think she's pretty grown up. In other words, she can get a little bossy and lippy from time to time. (We're working on it.) Today I was helping her climb out of the van and she "tooted". Usually I just ask her to be polite and say "excuse me", but today I thought I'd try to discourage her from doing that in public: "Madison, we don't toot loudly when we're around other people, unless we're in a bathroom." "Well," she replied, "Jesus makes me toot." She said this in a sort of "so there" tone of voice. I had to look away to supress my giggle. *I shake my head* She also says some of the cutest things: I love it when she tells me, "Mommy, you're my favorite mommy."

Malachi's my mild-tempered little man. But the things he says sometimes just blow my mind!

His most recent little anecdote is something we can only guess he picked up from one of his favorite movies? He lately likes to tell us: "I have a plan...." And that's it, when we prompt him for the details of his plan, all he says is, "I have a plan." Then a few nights ago my husband and I were bathing the children and he looked up at us, shook his head and said, "I don't have a plan anymore, sorry."

I often wonder what kind of legacy we're passing on to our children: Do they pick up on the important positive things? Or is it just the "ugly" mommy and daddy that will stick with them? One thing Malachi asked me today made me feel like we're impressing the right things onto our children: "Mommy, can we pray for my owie ear?" Oh! My melting heart!

Thank you, Madison and Malachi, for making me feel like a good mommy!

I love you Both,

Mommy

Break Time

Today was supposed to be a relaxing day, all to myself. My husband is hunting near his parents' home in a town about 40 minutes from here. My kids are there too, spending time with their Nana and Papa...and I have time to myself to get some projects done, like painting our front entry...But first, the removal of the dreaded: WALLPAPER!! Dun, dun, dun!!

Aarghh!! Wallpaper!

I've tried everything: steaming, DIF, even a combination of Fabric Softener and good old H2O. But NOTHING works! I know part of my problem is that I'm trying to remove wallpaper from paneling, but I'm about "up to here" with the darn wallpaper!

I'm okay, I just needed to vent a little. And I'm over halfway done, so the hard part's almost over. The next steps: sanding, priming, taping and finally, painting!! It'll be gorgeous when it's all over. I'll have to keep that in mind when I can't feel my arm anymore, and just keep scrape-ing. (sorry, "scraping" just didn't look right.)

Is it noon YET?!

I don't know about you, but Daylight Savings is really getting to me this year. I went from being able to occasionally skip lunch, (or at least postpone it) to actually hearing my stomach around 11am!!

Isn't it funny how God wired our bodies so intimately that even when we try to "fix" things (like our daylight hours) we're really not fooling anyone? He even gave us our own little internal clocks to give us a head's up that lunch is around the corner!

So next time instead of complaing that I'm so hungry, or tired, or whatever the case may be; I'll use those cues as reminders from God that He's in control and that He'll take care of ALL of my needs.

But for tomorrow, a small morning snack may be in order...what do you think?

Halloween!

I love this time of year. I love the colors, the smells, the sounds. I DON'T however, love the cold!

Last night my friend Sarah and I took our kids trick-or-treating in the frigid tundra of West Central Minnesota. The kids had a blast: Madison was a beautiful freckled butterfly, Noah (Sarah's little one) was a scary Spiderman, and Malachi was a frightening tiger!

The kids started out at Sarah and my place of employment, reverse trick-or-treating: handing out candy to everyone. Then we went "Trunk-or-treating" at Sarah's church across the street. And who can forget the local downtown shops? After about an hour of this, the kids started to get antsy. Well, who can blame them when the temperatures dip into the 30s?! So we decided to head home to feed our little munchkins, let them warm up, and then let the daddies have a turn ;)

Right about here would be a great place for a few adorable pictures...but I can't figure out how to add pictures to this blog! (I know, I know...it's probably quite elementary, but not for me.) So as soon as I get around to figuring that out, you can basque in the gorgeousness of happy little trick-or-treaters in the glorious halloween spirit. Thanks for stopping.