Moms...

love to hug their grandkids... love watching the kiddos (all sizes)... chill, and look good doing it... chill, and look big doing it... teach the next generation important stuff... hold their own babies (and love it)... cook... give a listening ear... provide their children with high quality reading material... get a lot of personal satisfaction because they make the cake from scratch... make sure the kids have a "special place" to eat during family dinners... give their children the freedom to express themselves... celebrate their babies, even when they're not babies anymore... play... save their baby's toys so their grandchildren can play with them too... love the excitement of special holidays like Christmas... savor the moment... Happy Mother's Day to all of the wonderful mothers I know!

Late to Bed, Early to Rise, Makes for Monsters, Though Pint-Sized

Today my children win the prize for most hours bickered in in a single day. Well, that might be a tiny exaggeration, but what was up with them on this otherwise lovely Saturday? Oooh, I know, I know!  Pick me, pick me! I had forgotten momentarily that they had a very late night last night with their dad, looking for a non-existent Jamba Juice, rounding up baseball gear, and sucking down milkshakes at midnight.  Ha!  Just kidding!  I think it was more like 9:30 when they had the milkshakes, and some mac and cheese at Steak 'n' Shake.  But the point is by the time they got home, had showers, got into bed, and fell asleep, it was right about 11:00 p.m. And that, my friends, is exactly why Mike and I were dealing with two very fussy, cranky kiddos today (think Attila the Hun and Wonderland's Queen of Hearts). At dinner, my two older children could not stop the picking.  And the telling on one another.  And the complaining.  Finally I went and got the camera...I said,"Show me the face that he made at you, Michaela."  She said,"Why?"  I told her I was going to put it on the blog.  She wouldn't do it. So I pointed the camera at Christian and told him to make the face Michaela made at him.  First there was this: Then this: (and I am so sorry about that food in his mouth. I think that was an addition to what Michaela did, I do not believe he copied her on that.) Oh, now she wanted to show me what Christian did, so: and then there was also this: All of these faces led to a lot of this: and some more of this: And surely you cannot think that this one will be left out of anything... She must hold her own around here, you know. Thank goodness for bedtime tonight.

May 9, 2009

You need to cut out the cokes (raise eyebrows) and the brownies [which I-Christina-was in the middle of making tonight], get more sleep each night, and exercise regularly.  It's a brilliant plan...it's called the "Don't Be a 'Dumb-Ass' Diet". -Mike to Christina...this advice was not unsolicited, in case anyone wondered.  And it made me laugh out loud.

When the Bottom Falls Out

No, I really mean it.  When the bottom falls out...it's the fastest way to get a box unpacked. It's not terribly organized, but it's closer to empty than some other boxes I know. And you thought I was kidding when I said there was a chalkboard in with a train car and seat cushions!  I'm not foolin', man.  This stuff is RANDOM, therefore very difficult to unpack.  You go to put away one thing, but there's this morphing action.  You think you're putting away school supplies, BUT NO!  You're putting away toys.  You think you're putting away toys, BUT NO!  You're putting away household paraphernalia.  You go to put away more household paraphernalia, BUT NO!  You're putting away...Hey, I don't even know what that is!  Can I throw it out?  Anybody?  Can I?  Please? Our garbage can runneth over.

65

Do you know what today is?  Well, it's so late, that it's already tomorrow, but for me it's still today, so what I'm talking about is my Dad's 65th birthday.  Yes sir, he is 65! My dad...is so special.  He's quiet, gentle, kind, supportive.  I'll never say he's perfect, because no one is.  But he has been such a good dad. Hey Dad, remember that time at Matthew's birthday party when you held your hands in front of my face and had one of his friends throw a nerf ball and then at the last minute you moved your hands apart so that it would gently pouf on my face, but then after it hit my face we realized that it was actually a real rubber basketball, just small size?  That was so funny! Seriously, I could say so many great things about my "diddy" (that's how you talk when you grow up in the East End of Richmond).  He always has a hug and a big smile for me.  And he always tells me I'm his favorite daughter.  Wait a minute...I'm his only daughter. I am blessed to have a father who loves me so much, who encourages me in so many ways (he even comments on my blog!), who loves our whole family.  Here are a couple of my favorite pictures of us... Check out those underpants, and my dad's sweet shorts.  The '70's were good times. We are an awful lot alike.  We're both really great people.  Ha!  Just kidding!  He really is a great person, but we both do get really mad at inanimate objects.  Really mad.  We are also great at puzzles, and we can pack one mean suitcase. This is just before he gave me away.  I'll never forget it-just as they opened the door for us to walk out, I squeezed his arm tightly, you know, that feeling right as you're about to walk down the aisle?  He was right there, steady.  And then we walked confidently down together.  And he performed a one-man show for our wedding!  He gave me away, sang a duet, and with another pastor gave us our vows.  That was a special day. He's been there shortly after all the kids were born.  He's been at all of the big deal events in our lives that he could be at and would have been at all of them if possible.  I love my dad. One of my favorite things to watch is how the kids love my dad.  It is a beautiful, unconditional, precious love, and it brings so much joy to me. Of all the dads in the world, I got just the right one!  How lucky!  Awww, I know luck didn't have anything to do with it.  God put this family together, and while no family is flawless, our family is full of love.  And love covers a lot, doesn't it? Colossians 3:21 says,"Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged."  Thank you, Dad, for encouraging and not casting down.  We love you, and Happy Birthday!