Tracy Brothers

Maria's Homemade Salsa

2011-12-29T13:57:00.000-06:00

One of the many great lessons my stepmom has taught me is how to make the best salsa ever. I thought I would share her recipe with you:

Maria's Homemade Salsa

4 cans of original Rotel drained completely
1 small white onion
1 fresh jalapeno pepper
1 bunch of cilantro
salt and pepper to taste

First drain all four cans of Rotel. Squeeze as much of the juice out as you can. I usually press the lid down into the can and drain the liquid into the sink and then pour the contents of all four cans into a food processor. Cut the onion and jalapeno into large chunks and add to the food processor. If you're concerned about the heat, you can cut the jalapeno in half first and remove the seeds. Wash the cilantro and then squeeze the water out by wringing it out like a cloth, tearing the cilantro into handfuls and add to the food processor stems and all. Add about 1 tsp. of salt and 1/2 tsp. of black pepper. You can also add a little garlic powder if you prefer. Then blend the whole thing until the cilantro gets pulled down into the blade and chopped and mixed throughout and there are no large chunks of onion or jalapeno. Enjoy! It is definitely better after it has been refrigerated for a few hours.

*By the way, another of my new favorite things is the whole grain Tostitos scoops. They're so good you can eat them plain.

Thanks Maria for making me an amateur foodie! Store-bought salsa was never any good after this.

Carpool Conversations with the Brothers Sisters

2011-06-13T19:07:00.007-05:00

For the last week, we have been using one car to try and save money on gas. It means a little bit longer ride for me, but I'm really enjoying spending that time in the car catching up with Jeff and the girls. We have been watching America's Got Talent this summer and this morning the girls provided some great entertainment. Each had a stuffed animal and they took turns "auditioning" for America's Got Talent. It went a little something like this:

Little Sister: Helloooo. And what is your name? (in her version of a British accent of course)

Big Sister: (holding up a stuffed puppy) My name is Carly.

Little Sister: Okay Carly, and what are you going to do?

Big Sister: I'm going to sing, and then I'm going to raise up, and then I'm going to do a flip.

Little Sister: Oh! Okay! Well, let's see it then.

(Big Sister sings a made up song while raising her stuffed animal in the air and then flipping it in the end)

Little Sister: Oh! I've never seen an act like that before. I can't believe you flew like that. It looked like you had a jet pack or something. I give you two yesses. Yes and yes! You're going to Vegas!

Big Sister: Yes! I'm going to Vegas!!! Okay now it's my turn to be the judges.

Little Sister: Okay.

Big Sister: Well, hellooo! What's your name? (in her version of a British accent)

Little Sister: (holding up her unicorn pillow pet) My name is Holy Spirit!

Big Sister: Gasp! (actually, literally gasps) No! You CANNOT name that unicorn Holy Spirit! There is only one true God and that unicorn is NOT Him!

Little Sister: Huh?

In the last few seconds before we pulled into Nashville Christian School to drop everyone off, Big Sister attempted to explain the Trinity. I'm not sure Little Sister got it but after hearing about the Holy Spirit in Sunday school yesterday, she is a fan. It's a start.

Little Sister with NOT Holy Spirit (now known as "Lily")

Would love to know what her talent was going to be...

Little Girls Goodnight Prayers

2011-03-01T18:54:00.004-06:00

I'm always interested in what the girls have to say in their prayers. Sometimes it's sweet, sometimes funny, and with Little Sister, sometimes it's just ridiculous. Here's what the Brothers Sisters had to say a couple of nights ago.

Big Sister: Dear God, Please help all of the orphans to have families very soon. Please let that happen Lord. Please help all of the poor to have more money…but not too much. Please help all of the boys to become nice people. Thank you for making us Christians, those of us who are, and please help all of the bullies to become Christians. Please let that happen Lord. Thank you for giving us your son to die on the cross to give us life and thank you for raising him from the death after the three days to give us hope. Lord, please give us love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control. We need all of those Lord, but mostly we need love and kindness. And don’t ever, ever, eeeeeeever let us follow the stinky devil, because we hate him. Please help everyone in the world to have sweet dreams. Help everyone to have a fantastic day tomorrow. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Little Sister: Um God…please let me have 5 sleepovers. Thank you for Nana’s iPad. Thank you for my mom, my dad, my stister (sister),and my world, and my town, and my road, and my phone number. Amen.

Big Girls Don't Cry...Unless Little Girls Make Them

2011-02-26T19:04:00.003-06:00

Let the Competition Begin

So two years ago, we signed Big Sister up for soccer. I was excited, I admit it. I played soccer and I wasn’t very good, but I did love it and I had some high hopes for my kids. Basically, Big Sister playing soccer? It was an exercise in humility…for me. She really enjoyed soccer. She enjoyed being filmed on the video camera. She enjoyed running around. She enjoyed talking to other little girls about…I don’t know…ponies? But she had no idea there was an actual game going on. I’ll never forget hollering from the sideline, “Go get the ball!” And her looking at me grinning and saying, “Where is it?”

We didn’t sign up again.

But now Big Sister has found her thing. Her school has a wonderful fine arts program and she loves trying out for and performing in the school plays. She’s done really well actually. She also discovered she loves basketball. Total shock. She is a lefty and appears to be more of an eye/hand-coordination-sport-type girl. She has a sweet little shot.

But now, Little Sister is 5 years old. And she has wanted to play soccer forever. We decided to sign her up for the local Upwards soccer program where, much to our dismay, “everybody wins”, but it was cheaper than city soccer and while we suspected she would like it much more than Big Sister, we weren’t taking any chances. They had two days last week where you could come by the church, register your child, pay your fee, and have them evaluated. Each child has to go through 4 drills to determine their skill level so the teams will be evenly formed. Whatever. Anyway, so we take Little Sister to sign up and she’s super excited. As we stood in line, someone asked Big Sister if she was playing, to which she responded, “No, I played before and I was horrible.” I immediately attempted to regain my status as competent mom by assuring her, “You weren’t horrible, you just didn’t like it very much.” Between you and me, she didn’t like it very much which translated to “she was horrible”. But you don’t say that to a seven-year-old.

When it’s finally our turn, Little Sister is ready. She does amazing in the first three drills, and then there’s the fourth, dribbling around cones. Well, you can imagine. The ball gets away from her and after getting around the first cone, it passes the next two and they holler, “Just bring it straight back!” She gives it a good hard kick which makes them think, “She’s having fun!” and makes me think, “Oh gosh, she’s pissed.” They smile big at her and say, “Good job,” and she just turns her back and runs toward me, barely holding in her tears. She cries the rest of the way home that she didn’t want to do a “good job”, she wanted to do a “great job”. She just cannot get over that she wasn’t perfect. Big Sister and I encouraged her as much as possible, but she is just as determined in her pouting as she is in her soccer performance. She is perfect when it comes to the pouting, let me tell you.

An unexpected thing happened in the midst of all this drama. Big Sister decided she wanted to give soccer another go ‘round. I had my doubts. After all, I had seen her play soccer before. I asked her to sleep on it as they had one more day of evaluations and I wasn’t ABOUT to get back at the end of the line. I also asked her to talk to Daddy about it and if, in the morning, she still wanted to play, I would bring her to the evaluation. I really did encourage her to try again; I didn’t want her settling for believing she was horrible. I wanted her to fight for it and try, try again…but I was concerned about Little Sister. She was already in full-on competitive mode.

We arrived early the next day and while we waited our turn, Little Sister whined over and over that she wanted to do it again. I braced myself for the Chrysler Town & Country counseling session I knew we’d have on the way home.

I need to add a side note here…

Big Sister has a tender heart. She weeps when we sing at church. Weeps. The girls recently went to my mother-in-law’s house while we had date night and they came home with one of Nana’s stuffed bunnies. When you squeeze the bunny, it plays Jesus Loves Me. A couple of nights ago, Big Sister came to me in tears saying, “You know how I’m kind of sensitive? And when I hear songs about Jesus it makes me so happy I cry? Little Sister keeps squeezing that bunny and it’s making me cry. Please make her stop!” My response was, “Oh honey, it’s so sweet that you love Jesus so much that the song makes you cry. Don’t worry about that. That’s a good thing.” Her answer? “But Mama! I don’t want to be crying all the time!”

Back to soccer, Little Sister had the bunny in tow when we went to Big Sister’s evaluation. Maybe you can see what’s coming, so here’s what happened. Big Sister shocked everyone, especially me, and did AMAZING! I’m not one of those parents, I swear. I’m married to a coach for Heaven’s sake and we know about those parents. But after the running drill, the guy who timed her came over and said, “Is she your daughter? She was really fast!” I about fainted. Those are words that have never been spoken about Big Sister before. I have sat in the car too many times to count, waiting for her to get her coat and shoes on, to ever think about her being “fast”. Anyway, she did great and then came that dreaded last drill, dribbling around the cones. She is a thinker and she took her time. She navigated the cones perfectly and came running off…all smiles.

“Mama!” she said, “That man said I ran really fast!” “I know!” I said, hugging her and smiling ear to ear. As we walked away, I noticed Little Sister lagged behind. She had her arms crossed and that bunny tucked firmly under her armpit. It was quite the dilemma, encouraging Big Sister quietly so that Little Sister wouldn’t get madder. Okay, I’m running out of steam so let me just say…Little Sister squeezed that bunny ALL THE WAY HOME in an effort to make Big Sister cry. And of course she herself cried at the top of her lungs. I was torn between laughing and crying. I tried my best and said, “Honey, she’s two years older than you.” To which she replied, “But I don’t want her to be older than me.” Hmmmm. Should be an interesting Spring.

The End of the Beginning

2011-02-22T20:00:00.004-06:00

If you haven’t seen Jesus in the story yet, and I bet you have, today is the day. If there’s anything missing from the kid’s version of the story of Adam and Eve, it’s that the story is about Jesus. Take a look at what my daughter’s Bible says.

Then God made clothes for Adam and Eve.

Yep, that’s it. That’s all it says. Now, I realize that the purpose of a children’s Bible is to simplify but the most important part of the story is missing! God’s plan for redemption is missing! (I find this is often the case and the reason this study came to be in the first place.) So let’s get to the really juicy part. This is the part that has kept me going and I can’t wait to study it with you. Read Genesis 3:21.

The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.

Are you thinking, “Huh?” Maybe you already know where we’re going with this but if you don’t, be encouraged that my first thought was, “Huh?” But look closely and think about the following questions.

Who made the garments?

What were the garments made of?

Where do you think the skin came from?

What had to happen to the animal in order to use its skin for covering?

Are you starting to get a picture here? They had attempted to cover themselves in verse 7 and apparently, their covering was insufficient. We talked about that in a blog post you can read here. So this time, the LORD God made the garments himself. These garments were made of skin, the skin of animals. In order for an animal’s skin to be used, the animal had to die. Something had to DIE.

Remember, death came into the world as a result of sin. There had been NO death up to this point. Adam had named every living creature himself. I don’t know how he felt about these creatures but I do know he had never seen one of them die. He had never seen one of them killed. He had never seen one of them sacrificed. Sacrificed to cover his shame no less. It was his fault that one of God’s creatures (and He doesn’t tell us which one) was sacrificed and died.

So here at the end of our study, let me take you back to the beginning. The whole Bible is about Jesus. The whole Bible is about God and His plan of redemption. The story is revealed progressively and our very first glimpse of what Jesus would do is right there “in the beginning”. For our sin to be covered, blood had to be shed. God himself provided the covering for Adam and Eve through the shedding of blood for the first time ever. This is a picture of what God would do to cover the sin of all mankind through his son Jesus Christ. Isn’t that awesome?!

I recommend that you read all of Hebrews 9 if you really want to get a picture of God’s plan for redemption fulfilled in Christ Jesus as the perfect sacrifice. But for now I want to leave you with a verse in Hebrews that sums up so well what we have covered in this study. We have looked at what we were created to do…serve! We’ve studied the path to sin which led to the worst imaginable consequences, death and separation from God. And finally we learned that even as God dealt us the consequences, he spoke of the freedom he would provide from those consequences through his own son, Jesus Christ. Read Hebrews 9:14 and really let it sink in.

How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!

And just in case you wondered, one day we will have access to the tree of life again. Revelation 22:14 says, “Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city.”

Ahhhhhhh! I LOVE IT! The first book of the Bible speaks of the tree of life and so does the last! I hope you’ve heard from the Lord with me. I have so enjoyed digging into the history of Adam and Eve with you. And when I say “history” I mean His Story. I hope you have seen that these aren’t just children’s stories. Every bit of the Bible is for all God’s children and we will continue to discover together that every page has his son, Jesus, on it.

I welcome your suggestions on which children's Bible study to break down next. Let me know what you think!

I Got A Spatula For Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T19:43:00.009-06:00

Yes, I said spatula.

We’ve been trying to eat healthier around here…lean meat, whole grains, no sugar, and lots of fish. And every time I put that tilapia, salmon, or grouper (if it’s on sale) in the pan to sear, I wish I had a fish spatula. Fish is so delicate and falls apart so easily. I usually end up with pieces rather than that perfect beautiful fillet. The kitchen gadget “powers that be” figured out that a long, slender, flexible spatula would do the trick. Now, a fish spatula is something you only ever think about when you’re cooking fish and it’s falling apart. What other occasion would you ever have to think of a fish spatula? So a couple of months ago, I got a "post it" note and wrote simply “fish spatula” and put it on the fridge. I figured maybe that would help me remember the next time I was headed to a mall or near a kitchen specialty store. But so far, no fish spatula. Just a frustrated glance at that "post it" note each time I make fish. Most of the time I kinda forget I put it up there.

So this morning while I was getting ready for work, I was summoned by my family to come out for a surprise. My husband and girls had packages and cards and yelled, “Happy Valentine’s Day!” First, I opened a new bead to add to my Pandora bracelet. Always a good easy choice for any gift giving occasion. (See, I actually got a Pandora catalog and circled all the beads I like so there was no guessing for the next several birthdays, Christmases, and such) But surprise, surprise, my next gift was this beautiful FISH SPATULA from Williams Sonoma! My husband had seen the note on the fridge, and after 13 years of marriage, quickly surmised that I was wishing for one. He tucked away the information for just the right occasion and WALLAH! The fact that he put some thought into it was what meant so much.

By the way ladies, once again, I beg you, tell your husband what you want for Valentine’s, Christmas, Birthday, Mother’s Day. It takes nothing away from the gift. It is a LIE to think that if you have to tell him what to get you, it’s not as good! Your husband will be happy because he knows you will be happy and hey…he still has to follow through and do it. Put it to the test. If you want pink tulips to arrive at the office for your birthday, be THAT specific. No "post it" on the fridge...come right out and tell him. That’s what I’ve done for years and guess what? I’m the happy camper who’s admiring her tulips when others wished their husbands were so thoughtful. Mine wasn’t… I TOLD HIM… and he gladly followed through! And the best part of all? After a while, he’ll get better at figuring out what you want and you won’t have to tell him all the time. And if you’re lucky, you may just find yourself next Valentine’s Day…holding a very special fish spatula.

Hmmm...maybe it's time to try a "post it" that says...diamond earrings? ;)

Broken Families

2011-02-06T13:38:00.007-06:00

Last time we learned that for all of mankind, sin meant death and separation from God. My daughter’s Bible simply puts it this way.

Sadly, he sent them out of the garden.

I’m still disappointed that this is all we tell our children. And that grownups rarely study the story in depth. Let’s look at the “big kid’s version” in your Bible again. Read Genesis 3:22-24

And the LORD God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

Before we move forward and get to the best part of the story, Jesus, I want to camp on this separation from God for a bit longer. It’s important to understand what was lost as best we can in order to understand the sacrifice that was made for us, the love God has for us, and what was gained on the cross through Christ. What I really want us to understand and consider is that when Adam and Eve were separated from God, they were separated from their father. Adam doesn’t call God “Father” directly in scripture but we know that was the relationship based on the whole of scripture. In Luke’s gospel, the genealogy of Jesus ends with “…Adam, the son of God”. When Adam was separated from his father, so was all of mankind. We are sinful and therefore separated from God our Heavenly Father.

Now let’s face it…the concept of God as our father is a struggle for many. Look at your relationship with your own father. Has it confused your view of God? Let me give you a personal example. My parents divorced when I was seven years old. When I was nine, my mom remarried a wonderful man and a year later, we moved 874 miles away from my dad. My stepdad has been an incredible father to me, but the fact remained that I was separated by divorce and by distance from my natural father. I struggle to this day with confusing my relationship with my earthly father with my relationship with my Heavenly Father. To be more specific, I tend to think of God as a father who I know loves me…but from a distance. A father who I know loves me but often wonder, “Does he know what’s going on with me?” Let me give you some other examples.

Was your father hard on you growing up, always demanding perfection?

Did your father dote on you as a child, always telling you how beautiful you are?

Was he too busy with “more important” things like work to have time for you?

Did your father attend every game or performance to cheer you on?

Can you see any way in which your relationship with your earthly father affects your view of God? How?

The world is full of sorry fathers that children have been separated from with no chance of reconciliation. Can I submit to you that this was Satan’s plan from the beginning? He was separated from God the Father permanently, so he sought to separate us from our Heavenly Father as well. In turn, he continues to make it his goal to separate children from their fathers in any and every way possible. If he can destroy your relationship with your earthly father, he can affect your view of your Heavenly Father.

You may not have the perfect relationship with your earthly father and there may be no chance of reconciliation BUT…NOT SO WITH YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER! We were separated from God the Father but His desire was to restore that relationship and only He could do it…and He did! It was in His plan from the beginning. If you haven’t seen Jesus in the story yet, and I bet you have, we’ll get really clear on it next time. That will be my final post on Adam and Eve so we’ll wrap things up then.

Meanwhile, consider how your relationship with your earthly father may be affecting your relationship with your Heavenly Father.

Adam and Eve Get Evicted

2011-01-10T20:44:00.003-06:00

Okay, so October 1, 2010 I started a series of blog posts on Adam and Eve. If you’re new to my blog, the first in this series is posted here. For anyone else who has been following along, I’m going to jump right in. Last time we looked at the consequences of sin as it related to Eve (and therefore, all of us). This time I’m going to look at what God had to say to Adam (and therefore, all of us). Read Genesis 3:17-24

To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’

“Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground, since from it you were taken; for dust you are and to dust you will return.”

Adam named his wife Eve, because she would become the mother of all the living. The LORD God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And the LORD God said, “The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of life and eat, and live forever.” So the LORD God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life.

Once again, we see physical consequences for sin. The ground is cursed and it will be difficult to produce food. There will be thorns and thistles. He will have to work hard to get something to eat now. If you’ve ever seen Little House on the Prairie you can kind of get a picture here. Can’t you see Charles plowing a field, taking off his hat in the hot noonday sun and wiping the sweat from his brow? But in our everyday world, this isn’t something most of us experience. We just run down to the grocery store to get food. We don’t have to work the ground because someone else does it for us. If you have a garden, you might have some sense of the care and hard work that goes into growing your own food but for most of you it’s something you enjoy. Something that is special or extra…not something necessary to live.

What no one can escape though, is the second physical consequence…death. “…for dust you are and to dust you will return.” Before sin came into the world there was no death! This was a HUGE consequence, a huge price to pay for sin. Genesis 2:7 tells us that “the LORD God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” After sin came into the world, man would return to the ground and lose his life. This had to be shocking and confusing to Adam and Eve. This was the real kicker. Man wasn’t just going to have to work hard to survive, he would fail. He would die.

But there was a third physical consequence even worse than death. They were cast out of the Garden of Eden forever, no longer able to walk with God, separated from their Father. Both death and being cast out of the Garden symbolized a spiritual consequence that was much more devastating. Even worse than death and eviction. Separation from God. That’s what hell is my friends. Permanent separation from God. And we deserve it.

Yep, I brought it up. Hell. Listen, I want to assure you…there is phenomenally good news ahead. But we’ve got to fully understand how BAD the bad news is before we can begin to grasp just how amazingly GOOD the good news is. So stay with me because we’re almost there!

My One Word...2011

2011-01-05T18:19:00.005-06:00

Wow, has it really been a month since I blogged? We're not done with Adam and Eve just yet but I wanted blog about something I've been doing every New Year for the past few years. No, I don't believe in New Year's resolutions. But I do believe in changing and growing. So rather than make some resolutions that I will surely abandon before the month's end, I like to do something I learned from the pastor of Port City Community Church in Wilmington, NC, Mike Ashcraft. I like to put my focus on...just...one...word.

In 2008, my word was contentment. I feel I learned a lot that year about not comparing myself, my life, my marriage, my everything to others. And I began to understand the truth of Philipians 4:12-13 - I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength. Did you know that last verse had to do with being content? I didn't before 2007 and in no way have I arrived or anything, but I am more content than I was.

In 2009, my word was self-discipline. Do I even need to explain what a challenging year that was? I purposely put myself to the test several times in an attempt to develop self-discipline. I made some progress, I did. But the jury is still out on how much.

In 2010, my word was finish. I get great satisfaction from finishing things. The problem is, I am much better at starting than I am finishing. I did a lot better with my word once I started my new job. I get to start and finish lots of projects there but it isn't always easy. There were a lot of spiritual applications to finishing but if you want to read more, you can see what I wrote last year here.

So, what about 2011? I didn't know until a couple of nights ago what my word would be. I begged the Lord to give me something...something easy. I said, "What about rest or...fun." But I felt like the Lord wanted to teach me something more. I'm pretty good at resting and having fun. There wasn't as much work needed there. For some reason the word "fearless" kept coming to mind. I have been really challenged at my job to push beyond my comfort zone. I have a real fear of failure and I have experienced it quite a few times since starting back to work, a humbling thing to say the least. It hasn't been very "fun" to fail. But I do have a supervisor, Eve, who really inspires me by how fearless she is. "Oh, I've failed so many times I'm not afraid of it anymore," she told me one day with a laugh and a shrug. That one simple statement left me in awe. You see, I think of her as a wildly successful, smart, and talented person. Her ability to fail, learn, and move forward has made me long to do the same. I have always sensed that if I would push past my fear it would be worth it. But I am not fearless. I am afraid. And at times it has stolen my joy. JOY! Now that's a word I'd like to focus on!

And then I had a thought. Joy is often what is waiting on the other side of fear. Sports are a great example of this. My husband is a football coach and I see it all the time. A big game against a formidable team. Wide eyed players in the huddle and my husband pacing the sideline. And then...victory! The joy is evident all around you. Players lifting a teammate to their shoulders, parents in the stands high-fiveing and hugging, and students rushing the field. Fear turned into joy. But you have to be brave enough to step on the field and line up.

I was talking to my friend, Whitney, about this today and she gave me a great example. She went skiing over the holidays, I think maybe for the first time. She described how she kept heading straight down the hill without ever cutting across the slope and by the time she was halfway down, she would pick up so much speed that she spent the entire time being scared to death. Her husband kept encouraging her to cut back and forth across the slope and learn to stop correctly. She had a hard time trusting him with this advice because although she was scared going straight down, she didn't fall. She was more afraid of changing things up and falling than moving at warp speed. Finally, she decided to take his advice and once she began to make her way back and forth across the slope in a controlled manner, she started to enjoy skiing. She had to decide to trust her husband and push past the fear and the result was JOY.

So that's what I want for 2011. I plan to be FEARLESS this year. I'm going to put aside my fear of failure, loss, imaginary dangers, and see what happens. I'll let you know how it turns out and if my theory that joy is waiting on the other side is real. I know it won't be easy and at times I may fail, but I plan to take a note from my friend Eve and learn from it and keep moving forward. Let me know what your "one word" is for 2011!

Sometimes, It's Hard...To Be...A Woman

2010-12-08T21:57:00.003-06:00

Did anyone hear the song in their head. No? Anyway...

Consequences, consequences. Usually when we use the word consequences…it’s not good. We’ve seen the consequences for the serpent and that mostly worked out good for us, but today we’ll look at what God said to Eve…the consequences for her…and therefore all women. Read what God said to Eve in Genesis 3:16.

To the woman he said, “I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”

As the mother of two, I wonder what in the world childbirth would have been like if not painful. Like the serpent who would now “crawl on [his] belly and eat dust for all the days of [his] life,” there is a physical consequence for the woman. In God’s mercy, she will still give birth, but again, there is a cost. It will be painful. Now let me tell you, I thanked God the entire time I was in the hospital for epidurals. Seriously. But still I did not escape the pain that comes with childbearing. I have a strong suspicion this is a larger reference. Let me explain…

My younger sister was the first to get pregnant in our family. We couldn’t have been happier. At 17 weeks, it was discovered her baby had severe birth defects, including his heart, caused by a chromosome disorder. Her baby died a couple of weeks later and it was one of our darkest moments. Pain in childbearing.

Before I was pregnant with my first daughter, I had a miscarriage. I was devastated. I hadn’t told my friends and family that I was pregnant so what would I say? I even felt guilty for being so sad because I didn’t feel it compared to the pain my sister had been through. Pain in childbearing.

A son is devastated at not making the basketball team…
A teenage daughter struggles with her lack of popularity…
A child screams, “I hate you!” when you have to discipline them…
Pain in childbearing.

As my children grow, I know that there will be pain. I know there will be times my heart will be broken either for them or by them. I know there were times I brought my own parents pain. It’s not just the act of giving birth that is painful but all of mothering children has become more painful as a result of sin. In God’s mercy, it has AMAZING moments and aspects…but as a result of sin, there is also now pain.

The second consequence is very important to understand as well. And it might explain a lot to you. I know it was an “Aha!” moment for me. It’s a little confusing at first but when we break down the language, I hope it will make a little more sense to you. Reread Genesis 3:16.

To the woman he said, “I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children. Your desire will be for your husband, and he will rule over you.”

Sounds a little confusing doesn’t it? But I think there is a little something lost in translation. I was listening to a series of sermons by Tommy Nelson of Denton Bible Church on women in the Bible. Naturally, the first woman in the series was the first woman, Eve. While listening to his sermon, I learned that a more literal meaning might be, “Your desire will be [to rule over] your husband, and he will rule over you.” Now that’s a little different isn’t it? The word translated “desire” comes from the Hebrew word Teshuwqah(#8669). This word can refer to sexual desire, but it has another meaning as well. Look at Genesis 4:7 where the same Hebrew word is used.

“If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.”

Clearly this is a different kind of desire isn’t it? The word used in Genesis 3:16 can mean sexual desire, but when it comes to your husband, that would be a blessing, not a curse. It is also used in terms of overcoming, “like a crouching animal ready to pounce.”

It still may not make sense to you so let me put it to you this way. Who wears the pants in your family? Who is the spiritual leader in your home, the one involved in Bible study, the one who makes sure everyone gets to church? Who makes the final call when there is a decision to be made? If you are blessed to be in a home where your husband is the spiritual leader, do you ever struggle with submitting to his authority? Have you ever wondered why it’s so difficult at times? IT’S PART OF THE CONSEQUENCES! Our sin nature wants the authority but God ordered things so that the husband is the one charged with that responsibility.

I’m not saying it’s easy friends. For the women, I know for a fact that LOTS of you struggle with this. And men, it’s not easy for you either. If this whole submission thing is new to you and seems old fashioned or unfair, I get it. I’ve been there. Let me just say, it doesn’t mean what you think it means. If you have specific questions, drop me a note and I would love to talk about it some more. But for those of you who know the Biblical meaning of submission, maybe this helps explain why it’s so hard with your husband sometimes. Anyway, on that note, next time we’ll look at what God had to say to Adam…

I'm Covered...Or Am I?

2010-12-01T19:36:00.006-06:00

So, Adam and Eve realized they were naked. What happens next is going to be something we can all relate to whether we want to admit it or not. Look again at Genesis 3:7:

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

They tried to cover themselves. Hmmm. Isn’t that what we do? Try to cover our sin?

Adam and Eve used fig leaves. What do we try to cover ourselves with?

I have tried through the years to cover myself with good deeds, acts of service, quiet times, tithes, etc, as if any of it would take care of my sin problem and my separation from God. What does scripture say about the coverings we make for ourselves? Earlier in this study, we looked up Isaiah 64:6.

All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags…

Those fig leaves are like filthy rags. But…we do need to be covered. Soon we will get to the clothing that covers all our sin and makes us righteous before God, but first let’s look at what else Adam and Eve do. Read Genesis 3:8:

Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.

They covered themselves with fig leaves and sensing that it still wasn’t enough, they hid. Again, can you relate? We all try to hide our sin. We hide it from other people, we even hide it from ourselves by refusing to think about it and somehow, in doing this, we think we are hiding it from God. Let’s go to scripture again to see what God has to say about that. Look at Hebrews 4:13:

Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

So we see Adam and Eve attempt to cover their sin and hide from God, both of which are impossible by the way. There was sin and there would be serious consequences. There were three involved in the incident and all will suffer the consequences for it and we’re going to look at it all a little more closely. If we don’t understand the consequences, we’ll never understand the grace. God had words for the serpent, for Eve, and finally, for Adam. Today let’s look at what God said to the serpent.

Read Genesis 3:14-15:

So the LORD God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, Cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

First, God tells the serpent he will be cursed…“Cursed…above all the livestock and all the wild animals.” So what does that mean exactly? The word translated as “cursed” is the Hebrew word ‘Arar. This word occurs 63 times in the Old Testament. It “has been interpreted as meaning to bind, to hem in with obstacles, to render powerless to resist.” Then God said, “you will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life.” This seems a little more obvious. Doesn’t this bring the image of a snake to mind? Apparently, the serpent had some other way of getting around before, but now will be crawling on its belly and eating dust.

Let’s read the second part again. Verse 15 says that God will put enmity between the serpent and the woman and between the serpent’s offspring and hers and that he will crush the serpent's head and the serpent will strike his heel. What do you think this means? Don’t know? That’s okay because I’m happy to tell you we’re getting to the GOOD NEWS! The Gospel! But wait, let’s slow down and take a good close look.

Now, the head of anything is its most important part. We can live without several of our body parts, but not without our heads (though sometimes I feel I’ve lost mine). The head of a company is the big boss, the one in charge. The head of the serpent being crushed means that the serpent will be defeated once and for all. An offspring of the woman would ultimately destroy the serpent for good. Any idea who that might be?

That’s right! This is the part where we see Jesus was there from the very beginning! So there’s no mistaking, get your Bible out. I want you to see in black and white where it is recorded that Jesus is Adam and Eve’s offspring. Look at Luke 3 starting in verse 23 and then scan through to verse 38. Seriously, stop and get your Bible.

Isn’t that awesome? But lest we take this lightly, there is an addendum to the promise that the woman’s offspring would crush the serpent’s head. Verse 15 ends with, “and you will strike his heel.” What do you think that means?

When you think of someone crushing a serpent’s head, what part of the body would they use? I would imagine it’s a foot. But that foot that crushes the head will be wounded. There is a cost involved. That cost is the cross. That "heel" delivers a death blow to the head but is itself wounded.

Look at Isaiah 53:4-10 and consider for yourself all the words and phrases that describe what “strike his heel” looked like at the cross. Please take your time with this and consider the cost.

Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. 6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. 8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Yet who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people he was punished.9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth. 10 Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand.

Wow. Can you see Jesus? It is powerful stuff and it is good news for us. Next time (and I swear I won’t take so long next time) we will go backwards a little bit and look at the specific consequences for Eve. We'll quickly discover how those consequences affect us all. But don’t forget there is good news.

Until then, consider how you are attempting to cover your own sin and how truly insufficient that cover is. We will soon talk about an effective covering that brings complete forgiveness and freedom.

I’d love to hear from you!

They Realized They Were Naked

2010-11-21T14:05:00.004-06:00

I'm hoping I got your attention with my title. :) I haven't blogged in a couple of weeks but I haven’t abandoned looking at the story of Adam and Eve. It's been busy around here with work and the high school football season coming to a close. So I’m just going to jump right in.

I really find this next part interesting. We looked at the progression of sin and broke it down into Take Notice, Taken Over, Take Actions, and Take Others. We touched on the consequences of our sin. But today we’re going to go a little deeper and take a close look at the consequences of Adam and Eve’s sin and what it means for all of us. Yesterday we looked at the twisted words, at what they said. Today we’ll look at what they did and what the consequences were. Look at Genesis 3:7-13.

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. But the LORD God called to the man, “Where are you?” He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.” And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?” The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Then the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.”

So let’s start breaking down what they did. Verse 7 says, “...the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked...” I have to say that when I started digging a little deeper into this story it made me think, “What’s the deal with them being naked? Why did that suddenly matter? They were naked before; did they really not realize it? They were husband and wife and God had never told them they needed clothes. It was perfectly appropriate for them to be naked. Genesis 2:25, the last verse before the serpent comes on the scene, tells us, “The man and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.” So. What was it about sin that made them want to cover their nakedness?” Let me tell you, what I found was fascinating!

First, I looked up the word “naked” in the original language, Hebrew. Here’s what I found. The Hebrew word used here is ‘Arowm or ‘Arom meaning “to be nude or naked”. Okay, no big deal right? But I want you to look at another word. Read Genesis 3:1 again.

Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made.

Now this word “crafty” in Hebrew is ‘Aruwm. Looks similar doesn’t it? Here’s the fascinating part. Both words come from the same root word ‘Aram. Why is that interesting? Here is the definition in my Key Word Study Bible Lexicon.

‘Aram; this root means to be bare, to be smooth; to be cunning, to be crafty; to act craftily, to form a cunning plan, to deal subtly; to act prudently. Since it is a neutral term, the context determines the nuance.

Can you see what I’m getting at? “The context determines the nuance.” So I ask you, in context, what definition makes the most sense? Yes they were “bare” and “smooth” so they were naked, but is it possible that when their eyes were opened, they saw that they were “crafty”? Could it be that what they saw was that they were like the serpent? I don’t know for sure, I’m just saying. Interesting.

There are many commentaries on what it means that they “realized they were naked.” No matter what, their nakedness was now shameful and they tried to cover themselves and that’s what we’ll look at next. In the meantime consider…have you realized that you are naked before God? What does that mean? And what are you going to do about it?

So What To Do?

2010-11-07T19:23:00.006-06:00

So sin and temptation isn’t unique to Adam and Eve and it isn’t unique to you and me. All of mankind has been enticed by his or her own evil desire. Let’s look at another example in scripture of this progression. Read 2 Samuel 11 and read verses 1-17:

David and Bathsheba
In the spring, at the time when kings go off to war, David sent Joab out with the king’s men and the whole Israelite army. They destroyed the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David remained in Jerusalem. One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful, and David sent someone to find out about her. The man said, “She is Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam and the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” Then David sent messengers to get her. She came to him, and he slept with her. (Now she was purifying herself from her monthly uncleanness.) Then she went back home. The woman conceived and sent word to David, saying, “I am pregnant.”

So David sent this word to Joab: “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent him to David. When Uriah came to him, David asked him how Joab was, how the soldiers were and how the war was going. Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house and wash your feet.” So Uriah left the palace, and a gift from the king was sent after him. But Uriah slept at the entrance to the palace with all his master’s servants and did not go down to his house.

David was told, “Uriah did not go home.” So he asked Uriah, “Haven’t you just come from a military campaign? Why didn’t you go home?” Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah are staying in tents, and my commander Joab and my lord’s men are camped in the open country. How could I go to my house to eat and drink and make love to my wife? As surely as you live, I will not do such a thing!” Then David said to him, “Stay here one more day, and tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day and the next. At David’s invitation, he ate and drank with him, and David made him drunk. But in the evening Uriah went out to sleep on his mat among his master’s servants; he did not go home.

In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it with Uriah. In it he wrote, “Put Uriah out in front where the fighting is fiercest. Then withdraw from him so he will be struck down and die.” So while Joab had the city under siege, he put Uriah at a place where he knew the strongest defenders were. When the men of the city came out and fought against Joab, some of the men in David’s army fell; moreover, Uriah the Hittite died.
What part of the story describes when David TOOK NOTICE?

In what way did David move to the next step until he was TAKEN OVER?

David definitely TAKES ACTION. How?

In what ways did David TAKE OTHERS?

So what do we do? We know sin is progressive but how do we keep ourselves from playing things all the way out? We can’t always control what comes before our eyes. It’s what happens in our minds afterwards that can lead us down one road or another. We might TAKE NOTICE, but how do we keep from being TAKEN OVER? This is where the battle is won or lost. In the story of Adam and Eve, it says, “When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom…” Can you see the dramatic buildup even in this one little verse? “…good for food…pleasing to the eye…and also (dun, dun, duuuun) desirable for gaining wisdom…” What does all that mean? While doing research, I found that the Hebrew for the phrase “desirable for gaining wisdom” is venechmad ha'etz lehaskil which more literally translated means “desirable to contemplate”.

What do you think “desirable to contemplate” means? How could that fall into the sin category?

What is something that when you look at it, you are then tempted to spend some time with it in your mind, going to places in your head that you shouldn’t?

This is the key. Once you TAKE NOTICE of something, you come to a fork in the road. The battle is won or lost in the mind first. To win the battle, to keep from being TAKEN OVER, we must be properly equipped.

Read Ephesians 6:10-18 :

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of
peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

We could do an entire Bible study on these verses but I wanted you to get the point that we need to be protected with the “belt of truth” which holds everything else up and then armed with the “sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” If Eve had gone back to what she knew was true according to God’s word (Eve didn’t have a Bible so I mean His actual/literal words), she could have stood up to the serpent’s schemes. In order to arm ourselves, we need God’s Word. When we face temptation, He can then call those scriptures to mind. Romans 8:5 says,

Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

I want to “set my mind” on what the Spirit desires. Let’s arm ourselves with some verses that we can commit to memory so that by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can be victorious when we are tempted.

2 Corinthians 10:5
We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

Phil. 4:8
Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.

Psalm 119:37
Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word.

Psalm 141:8
But my eyes are fixed on you, O Sovereign LORD; in you I take refuge – do not give me over to death.

Hebrews 12:2
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

As we draw to a close today I am reminded that it is easy to be a little hard on Eve. If you thought you couldn’t relate to Eve, if you thought you might have done better if it had been you in the Garden of Eden, I hope today’s study has caused you to take a good honest look at your own heart and the depth of your sin. I don’t believe we can truly begin to fathom what Christ did for us on the cross, and can rely completely on Him as Savior until we acknowledge that we’ve got nothing to bring to the table.

I purposely used the word “take” when describing sin’s progression because I want us to remember that sin is a taker. Sin is selfish. Sin puts my eyes on me and not on God. Sin has consequences. We looked at the consequences for David. We considered the consequences in our own lives, and next we will take a deeper look at the consequences of sin for Adam and Eve and in turn, for all of mankind. But don’t get discouraged friends. God has provided a remedy for our situation and we’re going to get to it. So hang in there and stay with it!

If you have stuck with this very long post…thank you.

Sin: Who is to Blame?

2010-11-01T18:59:00.006-05:00

Last time we looked at how and why we are tempted, and who does the tempting. I want to take it a little further this time. Look at James 1:13-15

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

In the Garden of Eden, Adam had the audacity to put the blame on God and Eve first. He said in verse 12, “The woman you put here with me – she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.” Eve doesn’t go so far as to blame God. Notice she doesn’t say, “The serpent you put here, he deceived me.” But she does blame the serpent for deceiving her and then admits she ate.

So what’s really going on here? Whose fault is it? Looking back at James 1:13 – 15, I think Eve got into trouble when she turned to her “own evil desire”. She got into trouble when she went from listening to God, to listening to the serpent, and from looking at the fruit, to looking at what was in it for Eve. She, “by her own evil desire”, is dragged away and enticed. Essentially, the serpent asked her, “But Eve, what do you want?”

Here is the verse again to refresh your memory. Genesis 3:6:

When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it.

Can you see the progression here?
1. Eve “saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye”
2. It was also “desirable for gaining wisdom”
3. She “took some and ate it”
4. She “gave some to her husband”

Sin is progressive. If we feed it, it grows. It starts with the eyes when we TAKE NOTICE. We don’t always have control over what comes into our line of sight, but when we linger on it, it often escalates to desire and we are TAKEN OVER. If we then feed that desire, if we are taken over, we will become increasingly agitated until we TAKE ACTION. Once we take action, we then TAKE OTHERS down with us. Even if we don’t intentionally seek to drag another person into our sin, our sin affects those around us. One of the lies we often tell ourselves about our sin is that it’s not hurting anyone else. But I can think of lots of examples, can you?

Now this situation isn’t unique to Adam and Eve and it isn’t unique to you and me. All of mankind has been enticed by his or her own evil desire. Let’s think through some possible scenarios. I will fill in the TAKE NOTICE. You fill in the rest. There’s no wrong answer here so really think it through and see what you come up with.

TAKE NOTICE = Had a fight with your husband last night and then see that cute guy at work who is always so nice.
TAKEN OVER =
TAKE ACTION =
TAKE OTHERS =

TAKE NOTICE = Watch a tv show about super skinny supermodels
TAKEN OVER =
TAKE ACTION =
TAKE OTHERS =

If you notice, no sin is happening in the initial phase. There might be something unwise for you personally in the TAKE NOTICE, but nothing inherently evil. We could probably think of lots of other examples. Sin has no prejudice. It can destroy us a million different ways. Next time we’ll look at another of the many examples in the Bible of this progression and how temptation is a struggle for even the most righteous men. But don’t despair, we will get to the, “So what do I do about it” part. Hang in there with me!

Bible Study - Why Do Diets Make Me Hungry?

2010-10-27T17:39:00.007-05:00

Something about being on a diet makes me hungry. The moment I start thinking about how I shouldn’t eat something, that’s all I want to do. If I had been Eve, I wouldn’t have needed a lying serpent. I would have probably eaten the fruit the second God said, “Don’t.” Last time our focus was the serpent’s deception but today we’re going to move on to Eve’s response.

I don’t know about you but I’ve often had to learn things the hard way. I’m a rebel at heart. I regret to say I learned very little about life as a teenager by just listening and obeying. I had to find out for myself, like I said, the hard way. (My parents are vigorously nodding their heads right now) Even now when I see a sign that says “wet paint” I still feel that twinge of desire to stick my finger on the wall. There’s something in us that doesn’t trust those signs. Something that doesn’t trust the wisdom of our elders. Something that doesn’t trust God. And I think I know what that “something” is.

In many cases, learning something the hard way is harder than we ever imagined. Not trusting God can have dire consequences. It sure did for Adam and Eve. Let’s get started by looking at the way this story is told in a popular children’s Bible.

The fruit on the tree looked good to eat. Eve took some and ate it. Then she gave some to Adam and he ate it, too. Then Adam and Eve saw that they were naked. They made coverings for themselves. Soon they heard God walking through the garden. Quickly, they hid. “Where are you?” God called. “Did you eat from the tree?” “The woman you put here gave me the fruit,” said Adam. “The snake tricked me, and I ate it,” said Eve.

Sounds like a kid version doesn’t it? They heard God coming so they hid. Like that’s even possible. The parent, God, asks, “Where are you?” Then a specific question, “Did you eat from the tree?” Adam blames Eve and then Eve blames the snake. In many ways, this story is very familiar to me as a mom of two little girls. Let me give you a scenario. I notice the girls are awfully quiet so I go upstairs to see what’s going on. I see the two of them hiding behind the couch and some interesting crayon drawings on the wall. I might ask, “What happened?” and then follow with, “Did you color on the wall?” One will say, “She did it!” To which the other will counter, “She told me to!” Then the first will reply, “No I didn’t!” And so on, and so on, and so on. Can you relate?

The kid version is clear but let’s look at your Bible now and read the story as it is recorded there.

Genesis 3:6-13 (New International Version)
6 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. 8 Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 9 But the LORD God called to the man, "Where are you?" 10 He answered, "I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid." 11 And he said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?" 12 The man said, "The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it." 13 Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" The woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."

I can relate to Eve. And not just because the temptation involved food. I can relate to Eve because I am familiar with the process here. First, she looks at the fruit and sees that it is “good for food”. And it’s also desirable for gaining wisdom. This is the point where I would start to talk myself into it. The really dangerous part. Adam and Eve had surely seen the tree before. They had looked at the fruit and seen that it was good for food…but they weren’t tempted before now. I think this is an important point. God doesn’t tempt us. It’s not until the serpent comes into the picture and twists the truth that Eve begins to look at the fruit in a different way. The serpent is the one who tempts her, but ultimately, Adam and Eve are the ones held responsible.

Can you think of a time you were suddenly tempted by something that had never been tempting before? What changed?

The Same Old Lies

2010-10-25T20:19:00.003-05:00

I find it interesting that Satan targets Eve in the Garden of Eden with his lies and deception. There are lots of theories about why he focuses on her, but whatever the reason, he causes Eve to doubt God’s words. I think he knows that if he can cause her to doubt God, then he can cause her to fear.

I believe one of Satan’s most effective tools against women is fear. Most of the women I know struggle with fear and that fear leads to worry. We worry about what others think. We worry about the finances and the future. We worry about our children, having them, not having them, and everything to do with them. I’m not saying men don’t worry, I’m just saying some women I know tend to think it’s a spiritual gift. We worry as if it wards off anything bad happening in our lives.

So why do we worry? I think it’s because we believe the lie. Satan is still telling the same lies he told in the garden and we are STILL believing them! Let’s face it, “you will not surely die” might as well be, “God is a liar.” And then we have, “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” which is basically, “God is keeping something from you. He can’t be trusted. If you trust Him, you’re going to miss out! Or worse, he’s going to let something bad happen.”

Read John 8:44-45 to get some perspective on how “crafty” the serpent is, Jesus is speaking to the Jews who sought to kill him,

“You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s
desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for
there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is
a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe
me!”

Satan is the “father of lies”! There is no truth in him. In fact, lying is his native language. Jesus says that because he(Jesus) is telling the truth, we don’t believe him. Not, “I tell the truth and you don’t believe.” He says, “Because I tell the truth you don’t believe.” So…I have to ask myself…why do we trust the lie more than we trust God? Think I’m wrong? When we worry about our kids, we’re believing the serpent. When we worry about our future, we’re believing the serpent. When we are afraid to give everything over to God because we’re afraid of what he’ll do with it, we’re believing the serpent’s lies. So again, I ask, why do we trust him more than we trust God? Is it because sometimes we are more like him? Is it because deep down (and sometimes not so deep down) we want to be God? We want control? We want to decide what’s best? Are you getting as uncomfortable as I am?

In what way are you still believing the same old lies?

John MacArthur said of Satan, “He wanted to be like God, so God made him as unlike God as possible.” If Satan is the father of lies then our Heavenly Father is the Father of Truth. Jesus said, “I tell you the truth,” more than 70 times in the Bible. Let’s end this section by looking at what God says about the truth and who He is.

Psalm 31:5 Into your hands I commit my spirit; redeem me, O LORD, the God of truth.

Psalm 40:11 Do not withhold your mercy from me O LORD; may your love and your truth always protect me.

Psalm 86:11 Teach me your way, O LORD, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.

John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, full of grace and truth.

John 14:6 I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

Next post, we’ll move on but in the meantime, let’s remind ourselves of the truth…and then believe it.

Twisted Truths - Part 2

2010-10-20T18:06:00.003-05:00

Not so long ago, we had what I might call The Year of Twisted Truths…otherwise known as a presidential election year. In 2008, when I googled the phrase “twisted truth”, I got a page full of articles about politics. Not all that surprising I guess, but it strikes me that during that election, my friends, family and yes, I myself, heard some twisted versions of the truth and often believed them. Not unlike the garden, many of the advertisements and accusations during any election have some bit of truth in them, but have been tweaked just enough to confuse and alarm, to cause us to question what we think we know.

Can you think of a time you were deceived by a lie that sounded true?

So in my last post, Twisted Truths, we started comparing what each party said in the Garden of Eden. I want to continue making the comparison between what God said, what the serpent said, and what Eve said. Once again, I have underlined some words to help you see the sometimes subtle differences.

God – Genesis 2:17 “but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil…”

serpent – Genesis 3:1 He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

Eve – Genesis 3:3 “but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it…”

First of all, I find it interesting that Eve doesn’t call the tree by its name, “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.” She simply refers to it as the “tree in the middle.” Then even more interesting, she also adds another restriction, “…and you must not touch it.” Did God say they couldn’t touch it? No. Now as I mentioned last time, when God gave Adam instructions about the tree in Genesis 2:16-17, Eve hadn’t been created yet, so as far as we know, Eve didn’t get the instructions directly from God. Maybe Adam added the “no touching” rule just to make sure she stayed away. I guess it’s possible she made this rule for herself. It’s probably not a good idea to touch food we’re not allowed to eat, right? Why would I want to touch a cupcake when I’m on a diet?

I don’t know why she said what she said or what it means but what I do see is this…maybe Eve was beginning to speak the serpent’s language. Exaggeration…subtlety…it’s just a slight variation. I’m just saying…but let’s finish by making one last comparison.

God – Genesis 2:17 “but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die.”

serpent – Genesis 3:4-5 “You will not surely die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Eve – Genesis 3:3 “but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

Now, when the serpent told her that she would “not surely die”, that was an outright lie, and that lie alone probably would not have deceived Eve. So the serpent continues with the language he speaks best…the almost truth. “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God knowing good and evil.” Suddenly, it gives Eve pause. You can almost see the wheels turning in her head. The tree is called “The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil” after all. Consider the serpent’s words. In what ways was what the serpent said true? In what ways was it a lie?

Please understand that the serpent’s lies were no accident. They were carefully crafted. He was there when God was looking for a servant. And he sure wasn’t it. John Milton said of Satan that he “[preferred] to be the king of hell, rather than the servant of heaven.” Satan wanted to be God and he’s counting on Adam and Eve being tempted by the same possibility. For now, think about this. There was no such thing as salvation for Satan and he wanted to take down the ones who walked in the garden as well. Once he knew God had a plan of salvation for man he must have become FURIOUS. And now we are the center of his focus. In what ways are we believing the same old lies?

My 100th Post...Looking Back

2010-10-17T17:12:00.005-05:00

I was going to post the next in a series on Adam and Eve I've been working on. But then I realized...it's my 100th post. I don't know why but I just feel like I want to do something fun for this one. It's taken me forever to get here and writing this blog has meant so many things for me. This is where I really discovered how much I love to write. This blog helped me get my job as a writer for Mercy Ministries. It has been an outlet for expressing myself and what I've learned in life. I just turned 40, another milestone I'll write about soon, but as I look back, I thought it might be fun to share some of my favorite of the last 99 posts. Mostly they are the ones that made me laugh at myself and the ones you responded to the most. So here they are if you have the time and need a good chuckle:

My Very First Post

How to Extract Top Secret Info from Spies

and the follow up to that fun night The Secret Life of a Toddler

We're Breaking Up

The First Day of School...Again

Little Sister has been the star of many a funny blog post and at times has provided some hilarious video. Here they are:

Knock Knock

Long Day

Jingle Bells

And then there are the lessons learned

Rubies

Sanctuary

Lost and Found

If you made it to the end of this post, you're awesome. Thanks and I look forward to the next time. Tune in for more soon!

Twisted Truths

2010-10-14T20:59:00.005-05:00

My brother Joshua loved to quote scripture as a young child. It was obvious my dad and stepmom would often say, “Now Joshua, the Bible says…” Soon, he was quoting his own scripture…and I do mean his own scripture. I remember once when my uncle was visiting.

Uncle: Josh, it’s time to go. Go get your shoes.”

Joshua: I don’t know where they are.

Uncle: Well, go and find them.

Joshua: But…the Bible says that when you lose something, someone else has to go and find it.

We may not be making up our own scripture, but many of us have been taught things (and then repeated things) that we thought were in God’s Word. And sometimes they sound right, they might even be almost right, but they’re not in the Bible, or they twist the truth of scripture...just a little bit. Just enough to send us down a dead end road. Some examples of quotes you may have thought were in the Bible are:

God helps those who help themselves.
Cleanliness is next to godliness.
Spare the rod, spoil the child.
Money is the root of all evil.
This too shall pass.
The eyes are the windows to the soul.
The lion shall lay down with the lamb.

Now these sayings are probably familiar to you. In some cases they might even be true. Some of them are similar to verses in the Bible, yet by changing a word or two, they say something completely different. Too often, a twisting of the truth, a misquote of God’s Word, whether purposeful or accidental, can have dire consequences. Today, we’re going back to the garden to look at how Satan and maybe even Eve, twisted the truth.

Read Genesis 3:1-5.
1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God really say, 'You must not eat from any tree in the garden'?" 2 The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, 3 but God did say, 'You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.' " 4 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. 5 "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."

Let’s break it down a little bit by making a comparison. Let’s look at what God says, then what the serpent says, and finally, what Eve says. We will look at partial verses today in order to make more direct comparisons. I have underlined some words to draw attention to the differences.

God – Genesis 2:16-17 And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but…”

serpent – Genesis 3:1 He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

Eve – Genesis 3:2-3 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but…”

Do you notice the subtle differences here? Read what the serpent said again and put the emphasis on the word “really”. Can’t you just imagine the doubt the serpent tried to raise in Eve’s mind? Can’t you hear him say, “Did God really say…” Now read it again and this time put the emphasis on the word “God”. Imagine he says, “Did God really say…” Maybe he wants Eve to question whether it was actually God who gave this directive. When God is speaking to Adam in Genesis 2:16-17, Eve hasn’t been created yet. Maybe the serpent knows a good way to separate them from God is to first separate them from each other, so he tries to cause division by suggesting maybe this was just something Adam came up with.

He also twists the truth, right from the beginning, with over-exaggeration. He suggests that the rule is that they can’t eat from any of the trees. Even though Eve answers with the correct information, you can see the serpent’s craftiness. He’s trying to confuse things and raise doubt. Consider this…Eve had never heard a lie before. And she going to soon discover that someone is lying. This must have seemed so strange to her. Until next time, let's consider how Satan twists the truth in our own lives...and why we so often believe him.

Acts of Service

2010-10-10T13:48:00.002-05:00

During college, I had a job as a server…otherwise known as waitress. I didn’t know how to cook the food, I didn’t tell people what to order, I simply interceded on their behalf. I asked what their need was, I told the person who could meet that need, and then I delivered the answer to that need. It wasn’t about me. In fact, aren’t the best restaurant servers the ones you don’t really notice at all? They don’t interrupt your conversation, they don’t let your glasses get empty, and they don’t leave you wondering where they are. You couldn’t pick them out of a crowd the next day but they are always there right when you need them, eager to serve.

Now, serving others doesn’t come naturally apart from God. When there’s something in it for us (like tips), when it fits easily into our schedule, when we’re getting the credit…serving is easy. But when it requires something more of us…our time, our money, and there’s nothing in it for us….not so much. Ever since the fall of man, it’s been hard. And at this point, you might be tempted to think, I’m going to buckle down and do more. I’m going to volunteer for this or that. But then you might be missing the point. Service isn’t just volunteering at every opportunity. It isn’t about doing really at all. It’s a matter of the heart.

Read Mark 12:28-31. What does Jesus say are the two most important commands?

One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that
Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments,
which is the most important?" "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is
this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God
with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all
your strength.’ The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is
no commandment greater than these."

See anything in there about how important you are? See anything about “looking out for number 1”? Loving God is serving God and serving God is loving God. Augustine put it this way, “Love God, and do what you want.” If we truly love God, service will be a natural outpouring. We willingly and selflessly serve those we love. Service, if not done out of love for God, is not even service, it is our own self-righteousness. Look at what the Bible says about our righteous acts in Isaiah 64:6:

All of us have become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags

One of the best examples of loving God and serving is brother Lawrence. Brother Lawrence was a monk in the 1600’s known for his closeness to God. He wasn’t famous for his service, though a true servant he was. In fact, he worked in the kitchen for most of his life and repaired sandals in his later years. He was known for his love of God. In a book compiling some of his letters and conversations, the practice of the presence OF GOD, brother Lawrence said, – “Never tire of even doing the smallest things for Him, because He isn’t impressed so much with the dimensions of our work as with the love in which it is done.” I love that!

Are you starting to see how rich this story is? Adam was created to serve. We were created to serve. And what are the prerequisites for the job? Loving God. As we work through this story together, my prayer is that we will grow in our desire to study God’s word so that we may know Him and love Him with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. Next post we will move forward in our story and look at what happens when things start to unravel.

A Servant...That's Who

2010-10-05T17:58:00.005-05:00

So in my last post, we discovered that the word “work” in Genesis 2:4-15 can also be translated as “to serve” or “to worship.” Rather than rehash it all, if you want to go back and review, you can find it here. But today, I’m going to take it a little further. I wanted to find other places that showed our God was looking for a servant. What I found encouraged and convicted me at the same time.

Look at 1 Kings 3:7-9 and see what stands out. These are the words of King Solomon.

"Now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. 8 Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. 9 So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?"

Did you notice that three times, Solomon refers to himself as a servant? It’s almost redundant. But this is whom it pleased God to make king. But now look at 1 Kings 11: 9-11 in the English Standard Version… just a short time later.

The LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods. But he did not keep what the LORD commanded. Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, “Since this has been your practice and you have not kept my covenant and my statutes, that I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom from you and will give it to your servant.”

What happened? God initially chose to give the kingdom to Solomon. When He took it from Solomon, to whom did He give it?

God gave the kingdom to Solomon’s servant! Once again we see that God is looking for a servant. A servant to worship the one true God of Israel. Especially in His leaders. Think about that why don’t cha?

So we were created to serve from the beginning. Even in the Garden of Eden. And in due time, God sent us a perfect example of the ultimate servant leader.

Look at what Jesus said about himself in Matthew 20:25-28.

Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Jesus was God as man and even He came to do what? To serve.

I’m telling you…I love this stuff! Even...no especially, when it brings conviction. The Word of God truly is ALIVE! I only wish I could talk to you in person! Thank you for your comments and keep them coming!

Tell Me Again...

2010-10-01T20:24:00.004-05:00

A couple of years ago, I was having lunch with my dad. He was wound up and talking about how the gospel should be preached in every single sermon because it’s what the whole Bible is about. He was using David and Goliath as an example. He said something like, “It’s not a story about how to face your giants or what a great and brave hero David was, it’s a story about Jesus. It’s a story about how God uses one man...an insignificant, unimpressive son, to intercede on behalf of his people.” There was more to it than that but you get the idea. Suddenly, as I read through the Bible, I saw Jesus everywhere. And in places where I missed him, there were other mentors who pointed him out to me...and it’s never been the same.

Another thing that happened was I realized through friends and family how many parents send their kids to Mother’s Day Out and VBS and the only Bible teaching they get are the little story pages their children bring home and the songs they sing. Other adults who attend church for the first time (or maybe just attend a Bible-teaching church for the first time) hear references to David and Noah and Moses and Abraham and Daniel…and they’re intimidated because they don’t know anything about those people and they think everyone else does. It struck me that we rarely go back to the stories that are taught mostly to children and how much I’d missed. So I began to study. I didn’t want anyone else to be stuck with the kid’s version only, so I started to write what turned into a sort of Bible study and I thought I would share it with you a little bit at a time.

I guess there’s no better place to start a retelling of children’s Bible stories than “In the beginning…”. Adam and Eve is a story that most adults know to some degree. Even non-believers know there was a garden, a piece of fruit that was eaten, and that eating that fruit was a bad thing. But many of us, believer and non-believer alike haven’t looked much deeper than that. This introduction to our God is a rich story full of essential truths about the trouble with man and what an amazing God we have. It’s a story of lies and deception, of jealousy and blame, of consequence, of sacrifice, and it’s ultimately our first introduction to God’s unfolding plan to redeem the world through his son, Jesus. Yep. Right there “in the beginning”. The word Genesis means “beginning” and God had the sacrifice of Christ in mind right from the start. So let’s take a grown-up look at the story.

I would recommend you start by reading Genesis 2:4-15. I’m going to spend this blog post on one word highlighted below:

v. 5 and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground,

v. 15 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

Maybe your translation says “to cultivate” or “to till”. These are all easy to understand when it comes to a garden. Whether or not we’ve ever lived on a farm, planted a garden, or mowed a lawn, we can imagine what “working the ground” looks like. Do you imagine someone digging, ploughing, or pulling weeds? Do you imagine tools like rakes, shovels, maybe even tractors? Adam doesn’t appear to have had tools. And doesn’t it make you wonder? Did God really look at his creation and think, “Now who’s going to pull the weeds? Hmmm, there’s no one to do the pruning and fertilizing. I’d better make someone to take care of this garden.” Did God need someone to take care of the earth? I mean, wasn’t creation pretty much perfect at that point? Could it really be that the only reason the idea “man” came to be was because God needed a gardener? Yet, there it is in black and white. There’s no one “to work the ground”. God creates man, and then in verse 15, God puts him in the Garden of Eden “to work it and take care of it.”

I decided to “dig” a little deeper (pun intended). When I have questions or have a hard time making sense of something, I often find it helpful to go to the original language. Oftentimes, the English translation doesn’t tell the whole story. So let’s investigate further by looking at the original language. The Old Testament was first written in Hebrew. The Hebrew word translated as “to work” is ‘Abad. Here is a more complete definition of ‘Abad.

‘Abad; to work, to labor, to toil…to serve; to be served or honored; to worship; to cause to worship…

Here’s what I find most interesting. The word ‘Abad occurs 290 times in the Bible and over 200 of those times it is translated in some form as “serve”. Is it starting to make a little more sense? Maybe God didn’t need a gardener. He didn’t look at his creation and think, “Now who is going to water, prune, and fertilize?” Maybe that was part of it. Work is a good thing for man, especially if it’s in a world where there’s no sin. But maybe God also looked at it and said, in essence, “There is no one to serve,” or maybe even “no one to worship.”

I’d love to ask you what you’re thinking right now. Are you as surprised as me? This story is so rich! I can’t wait to share more of what I’ve learned with you. Chew on this a bit and if you would be so inclined, leave a comment. I’d love for you to come on this journey with me!

Which Voice are You Listening To?

2010-09-29T20:40:00.005-05:00

These days we are getting up EARLY in the morning. It's quite the hike from Hendersonville to Nashville Christian and Mercy Ministries. I actually tracked it the other day and for me to go from home to work, pick up the girls, and back home again and nowhere else is 91.6 miles. I just got my oil changed and it's already time to do it again! But it's worth it. That time in the car alone is some of the only time I get alone. Ever.

So, a couple of days ago, Daddy went upstairs to wake Big Sister and Little Sister. I do the follow up about 5 minutes later and Big Sister was still in the bed. I "encouraged" her to get up and get going so Daddy wouldn't be "frustrated" that they were running late. I use the terms "encouraged" and "frustrated" loosely of course. She showed up downstairs after a few minutes and once they were in the car, Daddy told me about their conversation on the way out.

Big Sister: Dad, you know what I did this morning when I was deciding what to do?

Daddy: What?

Big Sister: I used my conscience!

Daddy: Really? That's good. You should always listen to your conscience.

Big Sister: Yeah. That's the first time I've ever used those guys.

Daddy: Really? (Thinking..."those guys"?)

Big Sister: You know the bad conscience tries to get you to do the wrong thing.

Daddy: Yeah. You should always listen to your good conscience.

Big Sister: Yep. I just flicked the devil one right off my shoulder. (along with the visual of her flicking an imaginary devil off her shoulder)

Maybe she's beginning to understand the Holy Spirit. Maybe she's watched one too many cartoons. Either way, as long as she listens to the "good conscience", otherwise known as the "God conscience", and keeps flicking the devil off her shoulder, she'll be doing better than a lot of us.

Been Wondering Where I've Been?

2010-09-14T19:52:00.008-05:00

Well, I know, I said I was going to be blogging again and then...nothing. But I have a really good reason. Something amazing has happened. It has been a year long process for us but I thought you might be encouraged to know how trusting God has been so worth it. His plan is always best. But here's the background.

2009 was a tough year. It is truly by the grace of God that none of us realized just how tough it was until we were clear of it all. Basically, The Coach had it pretty rough for the last couple of years. I won't go into details but suffice it to say, it was hard to see my husband so miserable and feeling so powerless to change the very things he was being held accountable for. We would often quote James to each other saying, "Consider it pure joy my brothers when you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. And perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." Eventually this got shortened to, "Pretty soon, we'll not be lacking anything."

As for me, I knew I had one more year with Little Sister at home and was wondering and praying about what God would have me do. Although I believed that God had spoken to me that I would one day be a writer, I was certain it was something I would do for free and on my own time and that maybe one day, someone would read my words. I also felt a calling towards ministry. I began to wonder if I should go to seminary and if maybe God would allow me to write Bible studies one day. I felt pulled in so many directions and I couldn't see how these things could happen so I started to think about going back to teaching. I began substituting in January of 2010 for a Mother's Day Out program and figured I'd better get back in the swing of things. My thinking was that I would teach, and in the summers, I would pursue writing.

Then in the spring of 2010, when we were at our wits end and feeling very discouraged, the call came in. A new opportunity for The Coach. We saw real ways the Lord used our trials to move us in a new direction. He was offered the head coaching position at a new school that seemed to be the perfect fit for us. The school is K-12 with a great 5 day a week PreK so to my amazement, Big Sister and Little Sister would be able to go to school with Daddy! I suddenly found myself free to work a year earlier than I had planned and I wasn't sure what to do. I thought I had another year to figure out what God had in store for me, but I put together my resume and started the job search...for teaching positions.

One of the things I included in my newly updated resume was my volunteer work at Mercy Ministries. Mercy is a free-of-charge, biblically based program for young women ages 13 - 28 dealing with life controlling issues like sexual abuse, drug and alcohol addiction, unplanned pregnancy, self-harm, eating disorders and most recently, sex-trafficking victims. The unwed mothers at Mercy Ministries spend six weeks deciding whether to place their babies for adoption or to parent and some of those who decide to parent don't have the resources that most of us do.

When my friends and I became mothers, we decided it was time to reach out and help mothers in need so in 2007, we started volunteering with Mercy Ministries. We had each other to throw baby showers and make sure we had everything we needed to get started but many of the girls at Mercy Ministries have been abandoned by their families and friends. We decided to be "stand in friends" for the girls. We call ourselves "Blessed Beginnings" and we have about 3 - 4 showers each year where we provide food, cake, flowers, full travel system, diaper bag, clothes, and all that other fun stuff. It has been such a blessing and I have loved being a part of Mercy Ministries in this way. About a year ago, one of my girlfriends with "Blessed Beginnings" even went on staff at Mercy in the Development Department.

So back to the story... I had been searching for jobs, contacting former employers and such and...nothing. But I have to say, I was so encouraged by what God had done for my husband and how it was so clear that all of the trials had been preparation, that I believed the same for myself. I prayed over and over, "God, I didn't see this coming, but it was no surprise to you. I don't know what I'm going to be doing this year, but you do. After seeing what you did for my husband and children, I can't wait to see what you have in store for me."

On June 5th, I was at Mercy for a baby shower when I overheard my friend who works there talking about a job opening. Somewhere in there I heard the word "writer" so I wandered over to ask what she was talking about. She told me they were looking for a writer at Mercy and suddenly her eyes opened wide and she said, "I forgot you were looking for a job, you should apply! I think you might be a perfect fit! You have that blog!" While the job sounded amazing, I didn't really think of myself as a "writer" and was pretty sure no one else would. I felt wary but something stirred in me and the picture started to come into focus. Could this possibly be where God was leading? It seemed too good to be true! All this time, I could have never imagined that God might allow me to be a paid writer...in ministry...with a ministry I already loved! Even if I could have thought of that, I would have never had the guts to ask Him for it!

Well, in the end, I got the job! I am now the Coordinator of Marketing and Media, more often referred to as "the new writer", and I LOVE it! I collect news, photos, and video from the four Mercy homes across the country and write stories for the main website. The job has evolved some since I started at the end of June and I'm learning lots of new skills but the writing is my favorite part by far. Needless to say, while writing for Mercy makes me think of a million things I want to blog about, I'm often too tired to get it out by the time we all get home.

But...I can't wait to tell you more about this new journey God is taking us on. It is a LOT of change. The Coach has a new job, I have a new job after being home for seven years, the girls are at a new school, Little Sister is at school five days a week, and of course, it's football season! Praise God we are 3-1 so far! It's all change for the better, but it's still a lot of change at once and we are all adjusting. Pray for us as we make this transition and be sure to check out Mercy Ministries. You won't see my name anywhere...it's not about me. My job is to learn to be the voice of Mercy Ministries. But I think you will understand how blessed we feel when you understand the amazing work that God is doing there.

I plan to write here more often too. I MISS YOU! Let me know how you're doing and I'll write back soon!

P.S. If you would like to get involved with Blessed Beginnings, leave a comment here or look for us on Facebook!

Lessons on Marriage...Sort of

2010-06-26T13:41:00.005-05:00

Little Sister: Mama, after you are dead, I going to marry Daddy!

Me: Really.

Little Sister: Yeah...after you are dead.

Me: Well, I'm not planning to die anytime soon. And besides, you can't marry someone in your family.

Little Sister: Right. So I can't marry you or Annie or Daddy.

Me: (Not wanting to address the gender issues) Right.

Big Sister: (finally weighing in) You can only marry someone who is in someone else's family. And besides, Daddy is already married to Mama. You can't marry someone who is already married. Right mom?

Me: Right. You can only marry someone who is single. Someone who is not married is called "single".

Pause for about one minute.

Little Sister: I think Santa Claus is single.

Ebenezers

2010-06-20T11:36:00.005-05:00

I'm getting ready to go through another "blog spurt". I suddenly have inspiration everywhere I turn. We have gone through lots of changes in the past year and I want to add them to my "Ebenezers" so I don't forget God's incredible faithfulness. Don't know what I'm talking about? Let me explain.

A few yeas ago I went to a women's retreat where the speakers were the Women's Ministry Director from out church, Lisa Harper, and an amazing woman named Eva Whittington Self. It was a great weekend but what I remember most is a talk Lisa gave on 1 Samuel 7. Basically, the story goes like this:

Under Samuel's direction, the Israelites had assembled at Mizpah against the Philistines. Though God's people had repented, fasted, and poured out their offerings and their hearts to the LORD, they were still afraid when the Philistines came out to attack them. They begged Samuel to keep crying out to the LORD on their behalf and he did. That day, when the Philistines came near, scripture says that "the LORD thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites". There's lots of rich stuff there but the part I remember most is what Samuel did next.

Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen.
He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far has the LORD helped us."

The word "Ebenezer" actually means stone of help. Lisa had big bags of flat river stones that she poured out on the table. She invited each of us to come forward and pick up a stone and a sharpie and to write something on the stone that would remind us of a time when the LORD had helped us. I participated in the exercise and I can still remember what I wrote on that stone. In fact, I still have it. I kept it in a drawer for a while and it amazed me that every time I looked at it, I remembered what God had done. (Guess that's why they built altars back then, huh?)

Why is it so hard to remember anyway? I can't even remember what I had for lunch yesterday. You'd think it would be easy to remember the Lord's goodness but can you recount three times recently that the Lord helped you? And I mean in a way that goes beyond I got the kids to bed early, or I made it home from work safely. I'm not saying those aren't important, but what are the times that should be memorialized? The biggies that will help you get through hard times in the future?

All throughout scripture God admonishes Israel to "remember" and I wanted to make sure that I remember too. So I had an idea. I went to Hobby Lobby and bought a big decorative bowl, a couple of bags of large flat river rocks, and a black paint pen. I put them in the bowl and then put my one old rock on the top of the pile. I placed this "Ebenezer" bowl on the table in our entry where everyone could see it and I asked God to remind me of the other "Ebenezers" in my life. Over the next couple of days, I would remember, pick up a rock, and write something down. When the girls had prayer requests they saw answered, I let them get a stone and write it down. Through the years, we have filled our bowl with "Ebenezers".

My favorite thing about this bowl is when someone sees it on the table and asks what it is. It has been such a great tool for giving testimony to others about our awesome God. I also treasure the times when the girls want to bring it to the dinner table and go through them. They love hearing the stories behind each rock. When we get discouraged, we go to the bowl and talk about the times God has been so faithful when when didn't understand the trials we were going through. I strengthens our faith to remember how faithful God has been. (I guess that's why he keeps telling us to remember!)

So back to the beginning. We've had lots of Ebenezer's this past year and still see more to come. It's been a difficult, stressful, challenging, wonderful, encouraging, blessed, amazing twelve months. I look forward to sorting through my stones with you. And I invite you to start your own Ebenezer bowl so you can say with confidence and hope, "Thus far the LORD has helped us!"

LOST - My alternate ending

2010-05-24T19:13:00.009-05:00

This would have made sense:
The island is the singular source of life on earth and it's location must be closely guarded and protected in order to preserve life on earth. Scientists (like the Others and the Dharma initiative) have been able to locate this source and have done numerous studies, yet the heart of the island is known only to the guardian (Jacob). Evil is also present on the island and is bound to some degree. And there are rules the evil one must follow.

The evil one is growing stronger and the island is in danger so the time is drawing near for a new protector to take over. This is a very important job and one must show oneself worthy of this high calling. Jacob chooses some candidates (the survivors whose names are written in the caves) and he brings them to the island to test them. Like his mother before him, he is unclear on who will rise to the occasion. He chooses people who are flawed and gives them the opportunity for redemption through these tests and trials.

Five seasons of crazy stuff happens that puts the candidates to the test ending in an explosion that only partially sets things straight.

In season 6, we discover the effects of blowing up the swan station. The candidates experience life without a plane crash, only instead of the doomed lives they once had, they have life as it should be. However, these people are not yet completely redeemed. They are also still present on the island, a candidate has not been chosen, and evil is still present and powerful and able to destroy them.

Just when it seems evil will prevail and the earth will be destroyed, a leader finally emerges (Jack), a man who has come full circle and he saves the day. With the help of Desmond, who is able to go down into the well and remove the stone, Jack is able to stop evil for once and for all. It was a two person job (one to remove the stone and one to kill the smoke monster) but there is one job left to do. Jack must turn the light of good back on at the heart of the island and Desmond must reunite the others in the alternate timeline in order to save the world. Jack sacrifices himself and replaces the stone saving the world, securing the island and completely redeeming their lives by ridding them of the threat and danger of the evil one. Desmond succeeds in reuniting them at the church.

There is a final blast of light, the island "disappears" keeping it forever safe, and they are all in the alternate timeline where they are coupled with the one we want them to be with, they are able to parent their children, they are law abiding contributors to society, and they are healed of their diseases. They all meet at the church to destroy the lamppost (or whatever that place was called in the church that helped scientists find the island). They destroy the lamp post so that no one can ever find it and threaten it again.

The End

Okay, maybe my ending isn't perfect but at least it makes some sense and explains some things. I was loving the finale. I got chill bumps every time someone remembered their experience on the island. I got tears in my eyes when the couples found each other and when their bodies were healed. I was totally loving it and though I didn't understand everything that was going on, I felt like I was tracking along with it. And then the last ten minutes I was like, "Huh?" They're all dead? When did they die? Where were they? What is the island? How did scientists find it and what did the Dharma initiative have to do with anything? What was real and what wasn't?

I get that a little bit of mystery is a good thing. I didn't have to have ALL my questions answered, but it had to at least make sense. I didn't need to know what made Desmond special, I didn't have to know what "the box" was or even how/why they tested Sayid in the temple to know if he was good or bad. I love the idea of the ending being satisfying while at the same time giving us things to discuss and speculate on for the years to come. But the ending they gave us made me feel like four of the six last years were completely pointless. You know, all that time spent on The Others, the Dharma films and stations, the experiments, the NUMBERS! I'm going to stop before I blow my top.

Feel free to comment on my idea of a satisfying ending if you wish, or post ideas of you own. And while I still love the show and will certainly buy the DVD's hoping for more answers, I think from now on I'll wait until a new show runs it's course. And if everyone concurs that it was worth their years of loyalty, I'll get the DVD's for all the seasons in the series and take a week's vacation. At least that way I won't have to wait so long for a new season that I can't remember how the last one ended. Love and miss ya LOST...

Our Little Rock Star

2010-04-26T17:08:00.005-05:00

Little Sister did this randomly yesterday so I had to get her to do a repeat performance for video. Enjoy!

Summing Up the Holidays

2010-01-06T13:22:00.017-06:00

I know this is late in coming but we had some notable moments this Christmas. A few years ago we made the decision that we'd "just say no" to 90% of what we were invited to do in December. It's so easy to get to the end and realize you didn't do any of that special family stuff you intended to do. We may have squeezed in one thing to many, but it was fun.

Little Sister's birthday was in December. She was due on Christmas day but we intervened and brought her into the world a little bit earlier. It's still so hard to keep her birthday and Christmas really separate and special.

A few days before our family party, Big Sister decided to make special party hats. Somehow I managed to avoid having to wear one but the stuffed animals were not so lucky.

We got invited to go to Opry Mills to see Charlie Brown ICE! They give you huge blue coats to wear and you walk around freezing looking at all the ice sculptures. There's an ice slide to go down and the nativity in ice was beautiful. It was neat but had it not been free, I would have never paid the $28 or so per person to see it. We were done in about half an hour.

Speaking of money, shopping was interesting this year. For the first time ever, we were done on Black Friday. The most difficult part was that we officially became those parents who go bonkers looking for this year's hard to find toy, Zhu Zhu pets. Big Sister had some advice about shopping.

Big Sis: Mom! You need to go to Walmart and ask them for Christmas!
Me: What?
Big Sis: The commercial says Christmas costs less at Walmart!

Her solid belief in commercials is why we ended up searching for Zhu Zhu pets in the first place. I had to draw the line at the "As seen on TV" brownie pan with built in dividers (I don't like the edges, I like the middles anyway) and the buxton bag (The BIGGEST little bag ever!). She is convinced I must have these items because the commercials say I can't live without them.

We saw Santa a couple of times. We saw him at the mall as usual but we also saw him at one of our family traditions. Every year we drive out to Lebanon to a house that has a HUGE drive through light display. Towards the end, you drive through a barn that looks like Santa's living room and he gives out candy canes. As we waved goodbye and started to drive off, Little Sister yelled, "But you forgot to give us presents!" To which he replied, "Three more days!"

One of the most hilarious moments happened at a "dirty Santa" party. Some people brought gag gifts and some people brought real gifts. As a former Jersey girl married to a football coach it was ironic that we ended up with these gifts.

On Christmas Eve, we got everyone prettied up to go to church. Before we left, we were able to watch my sister on live feed from her church in North Carolina reading the Christmas story.

The church service was really sweet. The pastor does a children's time at the end of the service where all the children come sit with him up at the front and talk. For much of the service I worried about Little Sister going up there. She's the child most likely to say something embarrassing or raise her dress up around her shoulders. In an act of divine intervention, she fell asleep moments before he called the children forward.
Yes, my husband took a picture in church.

Anyway, when we got home they were ready for bed but not before setting out cookies and milk for Santa along with a note that said, "Dear Santa, I have a question for you and that would be what is Mrs. Claus' first name?" To which Santa replied, "Jessica." If you've ever watched Santa Claus is Comin' to Town you'll understand. Soon enough, there were "visions of sugar plums dancing in heads". :)

So Santa came through and a merry time was had by all. That's it! Hope you had a Merry Christmas and here's to a Happy New Year!

My One Word 2010

2010-01-04T10:13:00.010-06:00

So it's a new year. Hmmm.

If you haven't heard or read about how I like to do new year's resolutions, I'll quickly summarize. If you have, you can skip the rest of this paragraph. In 2008, my sister's pastor, Mike Ashcraft of Port City Community Church in Wilmington, NC, challenged his congregation. Instead of making new year's resolutions that they'd never keep, he encouraged them to focus on one word. It's much easier to make progress if you put all of your focus on one goal.

In 2008, my word was contentment. Last year it was self-discipline. By no means have I gotten where I need to be with both of these goals, but I made progress. Both years, the word I chose was constantly in the back of my mind and I thought about, prayed about, and worked on it a lot. Choosing my word in the past has been an interesting process. This year, I knew what I wanted my word to be long before the breaking dawn of 2010.

My word for 2010 is finish.

I like finishing things. It makes me feel like I accomplished something. It gives me peace. It feels good to look back at the journey from beginning to end. The problem is, I'm much better at starting things than I am finishing them. I have started diets, exercise programs, books, bible studies, daily planners, craft projects, cleaning projects, gardening projects, budgets, businesses and yes...even blogs...only to abandon them for some other new exciting idea.

I often have great vision but I really stink at follow through. So it's time for me to become more focused. It's time to finish. I'm going to choose a couple of specific major things that I want to finish before the end of 2010. And then my goal will be to finish lots of little things as they come up through the year. I guess part of this exercise will be thinking long and hard before I start something because starting something is going to require finishing something from now on.

Some things are never finished. And it's frustrating. Laundry for example. Even if every piece of clothing we owned was clean and put away leaving the hampers completely empty (which has never actually happened), there's always the clothes on our bodies and soon...more laundry. Don't even get me started on cleaning. Cleaning with small children is like shoveling snow during a blizzard.

On a spiritual note, sometimes I get discouraged in my christian walk knowing that I will never be "finished" in this life. God has a plan for my life but alas, I will not be glorified here. As much as I desire to be more like Christ, I will never be completely Christ-like as long as I live. As long as I have this flesh and live in this fallen world, I will not finish the process of sanctification. But it's not about my glory, it's about God's and he promises in his word:

...he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

And while I may not be "finished" until heaven, the work that was done on the cross was complete to cover my sin and get me there.

When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. John 19:30

In about 361 days, another year will be finished. And I hope to cross a few things off my list as well. Please feel free to share your "one word" in the comments if you have one. Or better yet, blog about it and leave a link. Happy New Year!

Turning 39 For The First Time

2009-10-18T18:04:00.009-05:00

A couple of weeks ago I turned 39...for the first time. I don't know what it is. I LOVED turning 30. I looked forward to it. I wrote about what a great day it was here. For some reason, now that my 30's are drawing to an end, I'm not getting quite the same excitement about turning 40 next year. I'm kinda thinking there's a lot to accomplish before then.

I went for a full physical last year and I'll never forget my conversation with the doctor.

Doctor: Well, your BMI is a little higher than it should be...
Me: Mmmm hmmm.
Doctor: But as you approach middle age that's a little more normal.
Me: I'm sorry...did you just call me middle aged?

Now, I have had a GREAT life so far. We have been so blessed. But now I'm looking forward and wondering what's ahead. I think that's a fairly normal part of being a stay-at-home mom whose kids will both be in school soon. What will I do then? I didn't consciously think about certain things I wanted to achieve before I turn 39 for the second time (some people call it 40 but whatever). But I do have a "bucket list". You know, things I'd like to do...well...one day. I thought I'd share it with you. It's not necessarily in order of importance and I'll go ahead and tell you it's not especially deep. Most of it's not serious, spiritual, character changing type stuff. Some of it is just stuff I'd like to do...just because.

See the Holy Land
Stay in an Irish cottage and visit lots of pubs
Eat something with black truffles
Memorize one book of the Bible
Gaze at the ceiling of the Sistine chapel
Give to someone in a way that changes their life
See the Great Wall of China in person
Drive Route 66
Fly on a trapeze
Learn Italian
Audition for something
Learn to salsa
Write a book
Sing karaoke solo
Be completely debt free including the house

Now, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be debt free including the house in the next year. I'm not even sure I'm going to be debt free except for the house next year. But I'd like to cross something off my list before I turn 39...again. Do you have an opinion? Suggestion? Favorite? Addition? Let me know. It's time for me to get going on this list.

I'd also like to leave you, young and middle-aged alike, with a few things I did in my 30's that I'd recommend for your bucket list if you have one.

Have a couple of babies.
Take a trip to the Grand Canyon on a train with a sleeper car.
Make a job change.
Move to a new city.
Go to St. Lucia and have Delbert plan a day excursion for you.
Throw a surprise party for someone you love.
Go to New York City at Christmastime.
Go to a high school reunion.

The Problem With Christians

2009-09-20T17:59:00.010-05:00

One of the biggest problems the world has with Christians is that they don't look very much like Christ. That bothers me. Not that the world thinks that of us...that it's true. But I have to ask myself...am I guilty of looking no different than the rest of the world? What does it look like to "look like" Christ? What is the most defining characteristic of Jesus? What would make us look most like Him?

What do you think of when you think of what it means to be Christlike? I think some Christians believe it means living by what they consider a "higher standard". Don't smoke, don't chew, don't go with girls who do. Tithe generously. Dress modestly. Attend church regularly. And, can I say it, vote the right way.

Recently I was at a women's event at our church and out of nowhere, and completely having nothing to do with the speaker, I heard the voice of God in my heart.

"You've been sliding by for a while now. You've been getting away with some things you know you need to repent of. I'll not allow it much longer. I love you too much. There are those who are watching to see what you will do and they will follow suit. So, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. One of your favorite verses is Daniel 10:12 'Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.' My dear daughter...you have set your mind to gain understanding...but you have not yet humbled yourself. It's up to you. You can humble yourself, or I will humble you."

Whoa. Seriously. I was a little scared. I could feel it coming. Something was brewing and I needed to take a good long look at my life. I had to ask myself, "What does it mean to humble yourself?" Here's the dictionary definition of the verb humble:

1. to lower in condition, importance, or dignity; abase.
2. to destroy the independence, power, or will of
3. to make meek

I'll just say it...I like to be right. I like to get my way. I often feel very justified in my bitterness. And you might even agree with me if I explained in detail. I can be very convincing. But if I refuse to humble myself...will I be different? Is it Christlike? Am I making choices that would cause the nonbeliever to say, "How does she do that?" or "I want what she's got." I don't think so. I felt the loving conviction of knowing that God had His best in mind for me but I was often choosing something else, something less.

Can I make the case that the one thing Christians can do to most look like Christ would be to humble ourselves? Christ was the picture of love, of justice, of forgiveness, but think about how huge this one truth is...God, the sovereign GOD of the universe, the creator of all things, the one and only, all powerful, perfectly just, almighty God, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords (who owes us nothing but hell by the way) humbled himself and became a man of all things. And then he died in our place, taking on the full penalty for our sin against him, just so we could spend eternity in heaven. Does any other religion have a God that would do that for you?

Growing up, I often chose to learn things the hard way. And I sense he's giving me the choice again. "Humble yourself, or I will humble you." Today in church, he gave me a new verse that articulates it perfectly.

But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment. When we are judged by the Lord, we are being disciplined so that we will not be condemned with the world.
1 Corinthians 11:31-32

I'll be honest. God's given me some pretty specific direction regarding what this will look like in my life. And it isn't going to be easy. But it will bring Him glory. It will point to Him because it will look so unlike Tracy. I'll leave you with this.

He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

Preakness 2009

2009-09-04T17:00:00.000-05:00

So, here it is. My blog about The Preakness. Just in case you didn't know, The Preakness is the second leg in American horse racing's Triple Crown and usually attracts the Kentucky Derby winner. It's held in Baltimore, Maryland and for the past two years Jeff and I have been invited up for the weekend by his college roommate, Billy. The night before the race we went to a huge party at Sagamore Farms. It is a huge, beautiful farm owned by Billy's friend who basically created UnderArmour. We parked in a field and were taken up to the house by golf carts. When we arrived at the party, we were blown away. It was decadent. Because there was an UnderArmour connection, there were lots of sports figures there. Boomer Esiason, Rick Nueheisel (head football coach at UCLA) and if you look in the picture below, right under the sign, you can see Cal Ripken.

There was so much going on at the party. There were gambling tables (of course), a big movie screen set up in a field showing movies like Seabiscuit, and hot air balloon rides.

There were several tents that were all connected. They all had delicious food and in every tent there was a different kind of bar.

There was a cake made by none other than the Ace of Cakes himself, Duff Goldman. We heard he was at the party but never saw him. Here is the cake.

In one tent there was a band playing and in the corner was a mechanical bull. Here's my husband thinking he can outdo everyone else.

I, of course, did not attempt the mechanical bull as I would surely hurt myself and the pervert running the bull made the bull shake and shimmy whenever a woman was taking a turn. Just use your imagination...no, wait...don't.

The day of the Preakness was a little rainy and cloudy but for the most part we stayed dry and the cloud cover insured that it wasn't blazing hot out. Here is the group we were with.

The tables were once again dressed beautifully.

Two of the girls we were with amazingly (and unfortunately) wore the same dress. From what I heard, one was designer and the other was a knock off. I didn't have the nerve to ask which was which.

One crazy thing happened that day. Spike and Kelsey from Top Chef and Next Food Network Star were there. They have an internet show on http://www.food2.com/ that they do for the Food Network.

I was approached and interviewed for their show and I just checked this morning and I made the cut! Nutty! Maybe I'll be the Next Food Network Star! Ha, ha, ha!

You can see it here.

One of the really fun things about being on the infield is all the special treats. There were ice cream carts everywhere that you could just open up and take what you wanted.

There was a place where you could get cigars. I'm not sure if those were free.

But there was an open candy tent with table full of candy bins. You just grabbed yourself a little fancy bowl and loaded up.

That's about it. A great time was had by all. Rachel Alexandra was the big winner of the day. We bet $5 for my stepdad on her and I think he got back $9. Woo hoo!

We are really making some budget cuts this year so I don't know if we'll make it for 2010, but I sure hope so.

Catching Up

2009-08-31T11:21:00.029-05:00

Well, if you used to read my blog (like a million years ago) I know you're shocked that I've finally decided to start posting again. And if you've been here before you might notice that I've also got a new look. It was time. The other blog picture is two years old and about 15 lbs. lighter (hence the rest of my face being cut out) :) This picture is from this past spring at the Preakness which I'm going to do a post about next time. It was definitely a blog worthy experience so I'll have to go back and catch you up. But first a summary of the past few months. Easter was my last post so I'll take it from there. In May, my husband and I flew to Baltimore for the second year in a row to visit our friend Billy and attend the Preakness. And once again, we had a fabulous time!

When we returned, there were only a couple of weeks of school left. Big Sister played a beautiful flower in the end of the year program and even had a line.

The year ended with a semi-field day (because rain cancelled the actual field day) and the always exciting kindergarten tug-of-war.

Most of the summer was spent hanging out at our local pool for hours on end and having fun with friends. We spent several nights in the back yard around our fire pit making s'mores with our neighbors. Super fun!

Thanks to some friends who have box seats and no small children, we got to go see Thomas the Train. The girls LOVED it! Mom and Dad? Let's just say I'm glad we had box seats with food and drinks.

We had a great time vacationing with my sister, her husband, her daughter and the Russian boy they hosted for six weeks this summer, Vinya. He had a much longer name and some of the kids choose American names like "Scott" or "Mike" but he settled on a shortened version of his actual name. He was hilarious and sweet, poor thing, surrounded by all those girls. He is nine now and my sister can have him back every summer until he's seventeen which I think is SO cool.

I went on my annual girls' trip in July...

I know, the green dress was popular this summer but I love that dress!

Big Sister had a birthday at the end of the month. She wanted to have a pretend slumber party and she wanted it to be a surprise. This was not an easy thing to pull off let me tell you. She wanted to plan everything, she just didn't want us to tell her when it was. We invited a few of the neighborhood girls over (to keep it simple) and asked them to wear pajamas and bring their sleeping bags. We did manage to surprise her and she absolutely loved it. We played musical sleeping bags, hot potato with everyone's stuffed animals, and had sleeping bag relay races. They made jewelry, painted nails, and ate pizza. At 8:30pm, everyone went home (hence the "pretend" part). They had a great time and it was the best budgeted birthday party we've ever had. I highly recommend this idea.

Our system changed to a modified year-round schedule so it wasn't long before it was time for the first day of school. I can't believe Big Sister is a First Grader this year! She seems so big. You may also notice that she got a "big girl" haircut. This is code for Mama could no longer endure the crying while trying to comb out the knots. Little Sister is staying home with me this year. No Mother's Day Out for her this time around as we are trying to get serious about our budget and finances...but more about that later. Little Sister is still a nut as you can tell from all the pictures of her so far.

Big Sister has a wonderful and creative teacher who just so happens to be an old neighbor of ours. The first two weeks of school they act like they are at camp. They brought their sleeping bags, there was a tent set up in the room, they wrote and received letters from home, and learned about all kinds of bugs. This is Big Sister wearing her camp hat on the first day.

And of course school starting means...yep, you guessed it...a new football season for Daddy.

Did I mention Taylor Swift filmed her video "You Belong To Me" at Daddy's school? He got to coach Lucas Till and after about 40 passes, he finally caught one. Our team was playing both sides and when he caught the ball, everyone got so excited that both teams rushed to congratulate him. Needless to say, not a very realistic scenario so they had to shoot again. All the players, fans, and people attending prom are our students. They had such a blast.

We've had two games so far. We won the first one in a nail biter and lost big in the second one. I pray it gets better from here. At the first game, Little Sister did this...

And Big Sister did this...

Although I can't say for sure that either was aware that there was actually a football game going on.

So that's where we are. Fall is in full swing and today is a beautiful cool fall day. I've missed writing for the blog though I have been writing. My writing these past few months has taken the form of a Bible study. I don't know if anything will ever come of it but I have definitely found a passion I never knew I had. Now that I am officially a football widow, you can expect to be updated here much more often now. Maybe I'll have something funny or interesting to say, I don't know. Chances are with Little Sister at home this year I'll have something funny to say now and then. I love hearing your comments if you feel so inclined and I look forward to sharing more with you about all that God has been doing. For now I will leave you with a great photo of Little Sister at the end of a long day.

Easter 2009

2009-04-15T16:45:00.012-05:00

Well, this will be short and sweet but we had a great spring break and Easter. My sister and niece flew into Nashville and hung out for the weekend. Then my sister and I and all the little girls headed to Florida to stay with my mom for the week. The Daddys met up with us later. As we headed down, Big Sister and her cousin both discovered that they had a loose tooth. Oddly, it was the SAME tooth...and on the SAME day...weird. My niece called two nights ago to let us know her daddy had pulled her tooth. Big Sister called her tonight to tell her that our daddy pulled her tooth. (Of course she also wanted to know just how much money the tooth fairy brought.) The girls loved seeing their cousin.We had some cool weather in the beginning but eventually it warmed up and we were able to get some good time on the beach. On Good Friday the girls went to an Easter egg hunt and had a great time.

We colored eggs and amazingly, Little Sister managed to stay clean for the most part. There was one scary moment where she leaned on the table. It tipped and all the cups full of dye started to slide her way. Daddy and I were able to make a good save.
We went to the sunrise service on the beach again and once again, it was beautiful. I wrote about my experience last year which you can read here. Here are three pictures I took in succession. One to the east, one in front of me and one looking to the west. It was cool to see the moon and sun and all the colors in between like that.

After the sunrise service we ate breakfast a the world famous Oasis. Thankfully we didn't have to sit at the bar like last year. After filling our tummies we headed for home. It was a long trip but a great one. Hope you had a wonderful Easter too!

Nothin' But Drama

2009-04-01T19:31:00.010-05:00

Wow, I didn't realize it had been over a month since my last blog post. I don't know why I haven't written except that I just didn't have anything to say. Not to mention that we've had a few warm days lately and I've wanted to be outside and running around and pretty much ignoring my computer completely. Maybe I just needed a break from technology.

But I've been lured back by the drama of life. Some people love the drama...want to get right in the middle of it, or if no drama is to be found...they create it. But many others hope to avoid the drama completely. I love a good story, a little drama...as long as it doesn't involve me. I'd prefer as little drama as possible in my own life.

With the little bit of drama I've been around lately, I've started to wonder...maybe sometimes a little drama is necessary. Let's face it, we have a dramatic God. You can't read the Bible and not come across story after story of romance, betrayal, murder, suspense, and most of all, a God who uses drama to show His glory, His love, and His absolute commitment to His people. What's the reason a writer might add a lot of drama to a story anyway? Isn't it to make a point? Isn't it to draw attention to a pivotal moment? A crucial decision? Doesn't drama in our own lives tend to do that at times?

So when we get a little complacent, stagnant, or ineffective, I think God sometimes uses a little drama in our lives to get our attention. He uses it to make it point. Dealing with drama propels us forward. It often requires us to finally make a decision. And in my case anyway, it usually causes me to run to Him.

Drama is especially effective at revealing character. My dad often uses an illustration in his sermons where he takes a glass of water and shakes it. As you would expect, water splashes out of the glass onto the floor. Then he asks the question, "Why did water come out of the glass?" And someone always says, "Because you shook it." But then he points out that the real reason water came out of the glass...is because there was water in the glass. If there had been jellybeans in the glass, would water have come out? If there had been no water in the glass, it wouldn't matter how much you shook it...water wouldn't come out. In Luke 6:45, Jesus puts it like this:

The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For out of the overflow of his heart, his mouth speaks.

So when you get shaken, when there's drama, what comes out in you? I'm sad to say that what comes out in me isn't always pretty...but it is revealing and for that I'm grateful.

Baby Phillip

2009-02-20T13:26:00.006-06:00

Little Sister has a new favorite toy. She calls it her "baby". She holds it lovingly, takes it everywhere with her, and speaks to it in her sweet little mommy voice. Here they are.

Can you tell who her baby is? Not sure?

Yep...it's a bobble-head. A bobble-head of my brother-in-law Phillip Wellman to be exact. The umpire scolding, base throwing, grenade launching Phillip. Still not sure who I'm talking about?

Ain't he sweeeeeet?

You Snooze...You Lose

2009-02-12T10:53:00.009-06:00

Or so I hope anyway.

A while back I wrote a post called We're Breaking Up about my struggles with my weight. I have this...shall we say...bootylicious problem that I continue to struggle with. Anyway, this past Monday, The Today Show on NBC did a story on how your sleep habits affect your weight. I heard about it from a friend (I'm a Good Morning America gal) and had to check it out.

Apparently everyone (but me) knows that lack of sleep can contribute to weight gain and getting the right amount of sleep can actually help you lose weight. What?!?! So all I have to do is sleep MORE and I'll lose weight? Of the women who participated in the study, nearly all of them lost weight and one who lost no weight, still managed to lose inches! Over the course of 10 weeks they lost anywhere from 6 to 15 pounds! They made no other significant changes except to sleep at least 7 and 1/2 hours each night.

Okay, think about it. When you become a mom, it gets harder to keep your weight down...when you become a mom, you also get a lot less sleep. We live in an obese country...we live in a busy, sleep deprived country. I'm just putting two and two together people. The studies show that those who "sleep 5 hours or less a night are 30 percent more likely to gain 30+ pounds than those who got more rest". "The average woman gets 6 hours and 40 minutes." The healthy minimum is 7 hours 30 minutes! Go to the article here to read all the details. It's fascinating.

I'm a night owl. After the girls go to bed, that's MY time. Just me and Daddy. I like to savor it as long as possible so I always go to bed LATE. Unfortunately, the girls always wake up at 6:15 on the dot. I'm not missing the healthy requirement by a whole lot, but that 7.5 hours is a minimum! At this point, I have about 2 non-elastic waist pairs of pants that fit so I'm willing to try anything. And I do love to sleep.

So Monday night, my Bible Study was cancelled and I was in the bed by 8:30pm and asleep by about 9:30. That would be 9 hours of sleep...except...Little Sister was up at 4:30am. 7 hours! Just short by 1/2 an hour! I tried again Tuesday night and the SAME THING! I'm starting to think she likes me big and soft and these are her attempts to keep me that way. Finally, last night, I went to sleep at 10:00pm and the girls came downstairs at 6:15am. That's a little over 8 hours...and I feel thinner already.

So how much sleep do you get each night? And what do you think about this study?

If You're Happy And You Know It

2009-02-06T21:08:00.006-06:00

Tonight, on the way home, we were singing songs in the car and we decided to sing "Jesus Loves Me". When we finished, Big Sister said in a choked up voice, "That kinda made me cry." It was so sweet. She couldn't speak for a minute. Oh how I pray that the thought of how much Jesus loves her will always produce such a stirring in her soul.

On a funny note, check out Little Sister's version of "If You're Happy And You Know It". Please excuse my singing. I was more interested in capturing the choreography. Especially when she gets to "then your face will surely show it." Here goes...

Blurb It Baby!

2009-02-03T10:02:00.004-06:00

I might be the last one to know but I made an amazing discovery this weekend. You can turn your blog into a book! Check out www.blurb.com! It seems fairly affordable as well. Wouldn't it be cool to have a hard copy, pictures included, to look through in years to come. Wouldn't it be neat for your children to have something each year that chronicled your thoughts, struggles, interests, recipes, photos, etc.? I've heard it is time consuming but easy. I was at a SuperBowl party and a friend showed me a copy of a book done by one of her friends. The friend had spent a year in Italy and blogged about it. At the end of the year she had this beautiful book with all of her travels and pictures of all of the sights. It was AMAZING! So if you're like me and you're not good at journaling but you love blogging, check it out!

Aha!

2009-01-31T16:24:00.008-06:00

Don't you love those "aha!" moments in life when something suddenly makes sense? In my last post (I know, it was like, ages ago) I said I'd share an "aha!" moment I had while practicing self-discipline.

First, an update. When the votes were tallied that Sunday night, the verdict was in and I could not spend any money for the entire week. It was really close (thanks Ashley, for voting for all three...I thought we were friends). Anyway, I was hoping you all would choose #3 - not spending money, because I figured it would be the easiest. (See why I lack self-discipline?) But as it turns out, it was quite difficult at times. On Tuesday morning, I got my weekly email from Southwest Airlines about their deals for the week. Trips to Seattle were featured and what do you know, my husband is going to Seattle on business soon. I thought, "What a great opportunity to get away!" I had already made sure my husband had his own room for the trip and made arrangements with my mother-in-law to keep the girls when it dawned on me...I can't buy a ticket to Seattle, I can't spend money! Of course, my sinful self tried to think of some loopholes around this rule. If I had my husband get online and purchase the ticket then technically I wouldn't be spending money...right?

There were other challenges as well throughout the week. Ashley offered to pay for my parking when we took the girls to the Nashville Public Library. I had to plan meals strategically a couple of times so I wouldn't be tempted to stop and get something on the go. And we ate everything in the refrigerator and pantry which made for a couple of interesting meals. All in all, it made me realize how much I can live without.

This leads me to my "aha!" experience. What these exercises in self-discipline have taught me more than anything is to be mindful. I am reminded of a verse from Beth Moore's study on Daniel. It has always stuck with me. Daniel 10:12 says

Then he continued, "Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since, the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them."

You have to "set your mind" on the right things. That's what these exercises are doing for me. As a mom of such little ones, there have been days where I'm on auto pilot and realize when I lie down at night that I haven't thought about God ONCE. (Except maybe, "Lord, help me!") But busyness is an excuse. Since the Garden of Eden, Satan's greatest trick has been to set our minds on something and someone else. For Eve, it was the forbidden fruit and what was in it for her if she ate it. For us it is a million things. Worry about our kids, the stresses of our jobs, what to make for dinner, our appearance, the big football game, all the mysteries of LOST :), and on and on and on. (Maybe that's just me) We are a culture, much like the Babylonian culture Daniel lived in actually, that fills our minds with so much...junk.

So how do we live a life of self-discipline? How do we live by the power of the Holy Spirit? How do we love God? We've got to "set our minds" first. On the right things. On the right One. Romans 8:5 has been a key verse for me.

Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.

Could it be more clear? Living by the sinful nature? Then I've got my mind set on what that nature desires. Living by the Spirit? Then you've got your mind set on what the Spirit desires. I also love 1 Peter 1:13

Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.

I love that verse because it reminds me that while I must "set my mind" and "be self-controlled" that my hope is not in those things. My hope is not in me. My hope is set "fully on the grace to be given [me]". So while I practice self-discipline, while I set my mind in the right place, my hope is in Christ alone. Remembering that is the only way to keep these exercises from turning into the legalism I loathe. So as I continue to "set my mind to gain understanding and to humble [my]self before God," I am encouraged to know that my "words [will be] heard, and [He will] come in response to them." And may my "Aha" moments always lead me back to His amazing grace.

Cream, Glorious Cream

2009-01-16T13:34:00.006-06:00

I made it through the week of black coffee and have really been savoring drinking it the way I like it again. I hate to admit this but it really did require some self-discipline for me to drink it black. A couple of times I really thought, "This is stupid. Who cares about cream and sugar? This is a dumb exercise, I'm going to do something else." But that's what I always do. I'm very persuasive when I want to talk myself out of doing something I don't want to do.

My favorite thing about this exercise was that it started my day. First thing every morning I was reminded that I desire self-discipline. It made me think about how I need to rely on the Lord for everything in my day. I would wake up and before I ever got out of bed I would first think, "coffee" and then my next thought would be, "Lord, I need you." I'd spend a few minutes talking to God about my day and then roll out of bed to get my cup of hot dirt.

But it's not about the coffee. It's about developing self-discipline and I've had an "Aha!" moment that I'll share in my next post. The coffee was the specific challenge but I've been trying to exercise self-discipline in many areas. For now, I figure it's time to up the ante and do another, slightly more challenging, exercise. I've struggled to think of something good. I really want to do something this time that matters. Something that might stick or at least be a baby step in the right direction. Something that will get me what I really want in the long run. So I'm asking you to vote. I'm not sure if there are enough of you reading to make this work but I'm going to throw out three ideas and have you vote. Whichever exercise gets the most votes will be the one I tackle. So here it goes...

1. Leave at least one bite of anything I eat. (I'm a plate cleaner so this could be a real challenge)
2. Get up at 6:00am whether anyone else is up or not...and NO NAPS. (I'm a night owl)
3. Spend NO money for one week. (Not even $1 for coffee at the church's coffee stand)

Okay, so my parents are laughing right now. Which give me another good idea. As a second part to the challenge, I vow not to complain...at all...no matter what...at least not out loud...or at least not about the exercise anyway. Can you see why I need this self-discipline? Anyway, voting will end on Sunday night (in case I need to get up at 6:00am Monday) and then I'll get started. Thanks for your support. I love hearing your words and how you are being challenged. Hang in there!

The First Day...In One Word

2009-01-05T21:37:00.006-06:00

Challenging.

Today was my first day of really focusing on my "one word" for 2009...self-discipline. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm convinced that self-discipline is a muscle (a much atrophied muscle in my case) that needs to be built up over time. For my first wimpy workout, I gave myself a little, meaningless, yet attainable task, to begin to build my confidence. I decided to choose an exercise that didn't matter at all, but would be uncomfortable enough that I would actually have to be mindful and make a choice, the choice to follow through. What is my exercise this week?

Drinking my coffee black.

I know that sounds ridiculous. Who cares how you drink your coffee? It's not like it's a bad thing to use a little splenda. It's not like I can't count a few creamer calories into my diet. It's just that I don't really like it that way all that much but I can do it. My desire for caffeine is motivation enough. Or so I thought. I could drink no coffee. I could have a coke instead. But that's not the point. The point is to do something I prefer not to...just to prove I can.

Well, I did it. I drank two cups of coffee (again, my desire for caffeine is great) and no sweetener or creamer. It wasn't entirely terrible after a while although I know now why my husband hates coffee and refers to it as "hot dirt". It is better hot though. The temperature is much more important with black coffee. I'm a girl who likes splenda and flavored creamer and a starbucks peppermint mocha is my favorite...but I did it. And I will do it until Friday. After that, I will resume drinking coffee the way I like it. (It's not about the coffee in case I haven't made that clear) Starting next Friday, I will attempt something slightly more difficult. I have some ideas. I'm not looking forward to any of them. But as I begin to build confidence, as I begin to strengthen this muscle, I know it will feel waaaaay better than my life right now. I'm not doing this to torture myself, after all. I'm doing it because I know that in the end it will put me in the center of God's will for my life, it will bring me more peace, more joy, more faith, more hope...I will be stronger, smarter, more healthy, a better wife and mother, a better friend and family member, and more like Jesus.

That's what I'll think about while I'm drinking hot dirt in the morning. Gotta love it.

My One Word 2009

2009-01-02T21:20:00.008-06:00

In my last post, I wrote about the concept of ditching new year's resolutions and instead, choosing one word. So I've thought long and hard about my word this year. It was actually pretty easy to choose. What I need to work on is clear. My word for 2009 is self-discipline. Do hyphenated words count as one word? Anyway, every frustration I have with my life all boils down to one thing...a lack of self-discipline. My budget, my weight, my spiritual growth, my unfinished projects, my yet unreached goals...you name it.

I'm pretty sure I know how I got this way. I have such an aversion to legalism that I have swung the pendulum too far in the other direction. More on that later though.

When I looked up the word self-discipline at dictionary.com, here are some of the definitions I found:

-discipline and training of oneself, usually for improvement
-Training and control of oneself and one's conduct, usually for personal improvement.
-the trait of practicing self discipline
-the act of denying yourself; controlling your impulses

Compare that to the definition for self-control:

-Control of one's emotions, desires, or actions by one's own will
-the trait of resolutely controlling your own behavior

Seems to me, self-control is something people have...self-discipline is the training you need in order to develop self-control. And training means exercise. Speaking of exercise, many things I've read on self-discipline compare it to a muscle that needs to be built up little by little. I need to lift some small but challenging weights to build a little muscle in order to handle some heavier things over time. In other words, it wouldn't help me to set a goal of "run a marathon". It's impossible, I haven't trained to run a marathon. I already believe I can't do it. It makes more sense to set a goal like "run for 20 minutes 3 times a week". Start small...be specific...set attainable goals and meet them. I need to prove to myself that I can follow through on the little things and build on that.

Now, I have no desire whatsoever to run a marathon...EVER...but there are many things I would like to do...achievable things...things I don't have now because of my lack of self-discipline. I'm ready to start training. So many things have been written about self-discipline, I feel like I have some good ideas about how to get started. I'll keep you updated as I begin my training.

Meanwhile, my first exercise, and the real foundation of everything, will be to be mindful each morning of the power of the Holy Spirit at work in me. 2 Timothy 1:7 says, "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline." He has given me all I need. Now I must submit to his will. Romans 12:2 says, "Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing, and perfect will." I will definitely do some tangible, hopefully life-changing things along the way. But I won't do it alone.

I've come up with a pretty good first challenge starting Monday. Tune in to see how it goes and feel free to share your "one word" if you like. Happy New Year!

My Resolution...In One Word

2008-12-30T08:01:00.005-06:00

We've all done it. Made lists of our New Year's resolutions. And year after year, we not only fail to achieve those goals, we forget what they were in the first place. Two years ago, my sister introduced me to a life changing concept. Her pastor, Mike Ashcraft of Port City Community Church, did a series called One Word. Because a long list of resolutions is so daunting and we don't really believe that we're going to be successful...it's pointless. So maybe we don't even try any more. But what if we took a different approach? We can't do everything...but maybe we can do one thing. One word.

Mike challenged the congregation to choose one word to focus on for the coming year. Just one word. Surely we can remember one word. And focus on making that word a part of you. Build on it all year so that by year's end it is ingrained in your character. That first year, Mike's word was finish. He had lots of half-read books on his desk, lots of unfinished projects at home...lots of beginnings with no ends, so he wanted to focus on finishing. He even suggested creating opportunities to practice your word. For example, if your word is patience, then purposely get in the longest line at the store. Focus on your word.

After a couple of weeks that first year, Mike told a story of a woman who came to him and said that her husband wouldn't reveal his word. "Pastor," she said, "tell him he should tell me his word." Mike wisely replied, "Let me think about that." His conclusion was this...wouldn't it be incredible if by the end of the year, your word became such a part of you that your spouse knew what it was without you having to say it?

So this is my challenge to you. Choose one word to focus on for the year. Be creative. Pray over it. Ask God to reveal that thing he especially wants to develop in you this year. And then look for opportunities. Be mindful. I've done this for two years now and it's really been incredible. If you did this last year, reflect on how you've done. Has the Lord done a work in you? Have you been changed?

In my next post, I'm going to share my word for 2009. If you decide to join the challenge, please share your word in the comments. Maybe it will help spur some ideas in others. And get ready for an incredible year of change. Remember, you can't do it all...but you can do one thing.

Top 10 Christmas List

2008-12-26T09:33:00.003-06:00

Top ten things heard at the Brothers' house on Christmas day.
(Mostly while playing Wii with Jody and Dina until 1am)

#10 You're up first next.

#9 No, Fats Domino.
Did you just call me fat?

#8 Did you say underpants?

#7 Speaking of handsome, we put in our wedding video today.

#6 You're full of Shatner.

#5 Can I just recommend that you not sing?

#4 Okay Cosell, I don't need your comments.

#3 She went ass end over tea kettle and meatballs went flying everywhere.

#2 He beat me at bowling right handed and left handed.
Well, you know...he is amphibious.

#1 That's what I like about the holidays at the Brothers'....no blah, blah, blah.

Hope you had a wonderful Christmas!

It's Potty Time!

2008-12-21T19:22:00.005-06:00

We have a little test in our family that we give anyone new who comes in. We always like to ask, very early in the relationship, if the person is a folder or a wadder. If you're not sure what I'm talking about...I'm referring to your toilet paper. Do you fold neatly? Or do you wad it all up? We have very strong opinions about which is best and what it says about you. The more anal (no pun intended) people in our family tend to be folders. On the other hand, the...shall we say... freer spirits...tend to be wadders. Everyone has their opinions about which is best. There are issues of padding, maximum coverage, comfort, cleanliness...you name it, we've discussed it.

Now when I first started dating my husband, I learned something very intriguing about him.. He might be the only guy on the planet who doesn't think poop jokes, farts, or other related potty talk is funny. I mean, I know lots of women grossed out by the topic (they have all probably quit reading this post by now) but most men I know don't fall into that category. For years, YEARS, he refused to tell whether he was a folder or a wadder. We often speculated about which he was much to his dismay and our lively analysis would always send him running to another room. He HATES talking about anything related to the bathroom.

Now, obviously he's had to adjust his tolerance levels a little since we've had children. (Although, he still claims he may vomit whenever changing a dirty diaper.) He's had to learn to tolerate the randomly emitted gas at any and all locations, mostly in public, and smile along with the fits of giggles that follow. It hasn't been easy my friends. That is why I had to smile tonight when I heard his voice yell with great enthusiasm from the upstairs bathroom, "Mama! Little Sister just went poo poo on the potty!"

Yes, dear friends. Little Sister has reached that all critical milestone in life...learning to tee tee and poo poo on the potty. We have been telling her for two months that once she had her birthday, that she had to go tee tee and poo poo on the potty like a big girl. We haven't even attempted sitting on the potty this entire time, just prepping her for what was to come. Well, I'm happy to say that yesterday, our first day of trying, after wetting her pants all day long, she finally did it right before bed. We had quite the party and had to put off brushing teeth until after marshmallows. Today has been great as well. She's only had two accidents. The rest of the time she's gone on the potty including POO POO! She got marshmallows and M&M's for that.

And...of course...we're working on wadding. Considering she wads her paper into the smallest possible ball she can form, I'm thinking of teaching her folding. But I don't want her to need therapy later. What do you think? Defend yourselves folders and wadders of the world!

Jingle Bells

2008-12-11T07:47:00.019-06:00

If you don't look at anything else in this post, please go to the end and see the video of the girls.

A few nights ago we decorated for Christmas. I LOVE Christmas decorations. I don't like putting up all the stuff but I love when it's finally up. Here are some pictures of what I did this year. This is our card tree. It sits in our kitchen. The branches are nice and stiff and by the end of the season it is full of Christmas cards. I'd like to find another one like it.

This is my bedroom. I love reading at night by the twinkle lights. I found this ribbon and these ornaments this year so these are new.

I also changed my arrangements on the mantle to look more wintry.

And I even decorate the guest room.

Here is the girls' room. They get their own little tree to decorate. If I could have a tree in every room, I would.

This is my favorite. The dining room. I got these ornaments for 50% off at Lowe's and I stole the idea of hanging them like this from another house I saw. I also love having all my fine china out. We rarely use it so it's nice to look at it for a while and it always looks like I'm about to have a dinner party.

This is my village which has been discontinued. It's mine, but I beg my husband to set it up every year.

Finally, this is our real tree. I love the smell of a real tree at Christmas. This is where we hang all the special ornaments. I even have some on there I made when I was Little Sister's age. (see videos below). This is where Santa leaves three gifts for each girl symbolizing the three gifts given to the Christ child and helping us to focus on the real meaning of Christmas. Decorating this tree together was especially fun this year. The girls are at that age where it is all so exciting to them. We got some great video that I hope you'll take the time to watch. Each one is just about 30 seconds long and I think they're hilarious. Especially funny is the last one of Little Sister singing "Jingle Bells". Hope this brings joy to your day and inspires you to get into the spirit!

The Class of 88 is Great!

2008-12-05T17:10:00.029-06:00

And do I mean great! Everybody looked wonderful. I might have been the only one who added a pound for every year we've been out of school. We had a blast! Well...let me start at the beginning. After finally making it out of Nashville with only a couple of bumps in the road (see here), we landed in Philadelphia. We rented our car and drove straight to Millville, NJ. We got off at the old exit next to the mall so we could drive by my old house and BOY HAS IT CHANGED. There used to be a bunch of nothing there but now there are huge strip malls and shopping areas and loads of restaurants that weren't there before. I still managed to find the way to our old house. Not much had changed in the neighborhood but the tree to the left of the house was one my parents planted. It was tiny back then so that was weird. We were starving so I headed to Jim's Lunch. Jim's is famous for their burgers which you must order with "everything". Oddly, "everything" just means cheese, onions, and secret sauce. They're also only open from sometime in November until the end of May. The last time I was in Millville, it happened to be August so I missed out but I was ecstatic to find it open this time. We sat at the counter and my husband ordered a cheeseburger with lettuce, tomato, and mayo and then I proceeded to tease him, much to our waitress' delight, that at Jim's you order a cheeseburger with "everything". I savored every bite, it was soooo delicious. I think the waitress was confused by this clearly southern sounding girl who was so knowledgeable about a Jim's burger. I have been gone for 20 years and I definitely sound like it.

We then headed a little further down the road and stopped at the Harley Davidson dealership to see my old friend Sam. His family has owned the shop forever and it was BUSY. Guess the Harley crowd isn't suffering from the economy too much. My husband enjoyed finally meeting my old friend, Sam. He's the epitome of a 100% Italian guy from Jersey. So sweet and funny, he was a good friend. He's married with four kids now, bald, and still looks like he lifts weights daily and is really enjoying life. We laughed about the old times.

Next we went to Amy's house. We were staying with her overnight. She ran through the list of everyone who was coming and gave me the latest scoop on everyone. I was happy to have the last minute cramming session on who's who. We got dressed and headed to my friend Mary's. This was in large part the group I hung out with in school and in the neighborhood. I moved to Millville in the middle of my junior year so these were some of my first and closest friends.On the far left is Mary who often drove me to school and was a regular at the Jones/Carter house. The two in the middle are Amy (who we stayed the night with) and Susan. They both cheered with me in high school. Amy taught me to do a back handspring and Susan was our captain. She's the one who convinced me to try out. Gretchen is next. She is loads of fun and we often looked for trouble together. Robbie is on the right and he lived in our neighborhood too. Robbie rode the bus with me on my first day. I guess you could say he was the first person I met when I moved to Millville. We also got to see my friend Kenny who graduated a year earlier. I met Kenny at church camp before I moved to Millville.My husband and I ran into Kenny in New York City around New Year's Eve in 1995 when we were first dating and I brought him home with me to New Jersey for the first time. I hadn't seen Kenny since then and I was happy to tell him about all that had happened.

We finally headed to the Elk's Lodge and met up with the rest of my classmates. The time FLEW by. I didn't have any of those uncomfortable moments where I didn't remember someone. In fact, I didn't have time to talk with everyone I wanted to see. Some people didn't recognize me because I didn't have such HUGE hair. My husband was great. He didn't need to be babysat at all. He even made a few friends of his own.

Here he is with the husband of my crazy friend, Rhonda. I had such a blast catching up with her. She's a flight attendant with Jet Blue and he's a pilot. They just got married recently and were such a hoot. I bugged them to death about coming to visit us. You can see our husbands had fun acting goofy and trying to embarrass us and each other.

It all went by way too fast. We got up the next morning and had to head back to the airport. There are talks of a 25th reunion. They're thinking of having it in the summer. I'm all for that as it will be easier to get there and stay a couple of days and at least I might have a tan. Either way I look forward to seeing them all again. Thanks for the memories!

So Much To Blog About, So Little Time

2008-12-01T19:37:00.008-06:00

Okay, so I've been pathetic with my blog lately. It's not that there's been nothing blog worthy, it's just that there's been no time to do it all justice. I've got three must tell stories in the works. Today you will get Thanksgiving, next it will be my 20th high school reunion (yes, I'm that old), and finally, decorating for Christmas.

So...Thanksgiving. I've turned making Thanksgiving relaxed and low key into an art form. It is my goal in life that holidays be as stress free and Norman Rockwell as possible. We're staying home and whoever wants may come and join in. We eat what we want and don't feel the need to eat "thanksgivingy" things we don't like. And we don't have a formal time of stating what we're thankful for, but it does come up in regular conversation. No pressure. Just, you know, conversations like this:

The Coach: I'm so glad we don't have to go anywhere today.
Mother-In-Law: Yeah, me too, and thank the Lord for Honey Baked Ham.
Grandmama: And I just LOOOOVE those sweet potatoes.
Me: Well thank you grandmama.
Little Sister: I'm sleepy.
The Coach: I'm so glad we don't have to go anywhere today.

So, you see, there are general expressions of thankfulness all the way around.

But after stuffing myself (pun totally intended), I was thinking of my 20th high school reunion. The Coach and I would be leaving Friday morning and my mom, my sister, and her husband would be staying with the girls overnight. I wasn't concerned about the girls, I admit, I was concerned as to whether or not I could still fit into my pants. But chubby or not, I knew I would be one of the happiest girls there. How could I not be? More about the reunion later.

Friday morning, we left for the airport at 7:30am. We had plenty of time and were sipping coffee in the terminal when the phone rang. It was my mother. Already. Here's how the conversation went (basically):

Me: (laughing) Having a problem already?
Mom: (not laughing) Everything is fine. The girls are fine. Everything is fine.
Me: (not laughing anymore) Ooookay.
Mom: I just wanted to call in case one of your neighbors called you to see what was wrong.
Me: (dead silence, heart pounding)
Mom: The fire department is here.
Me: What?
Mom: I was trying to clean your oven.
Me: What?
Mom: I set your self-cleaning oven...and...well...something caught on fire.
Me: What?
Mom: (in a rush) Erin called 911 and then it went out and then we hung up but then they called back and we said everything was fine and then they said they wanted to come check it out anyway so they're here now and they're checking it and the girls are fine and everything's fine.
Me: So did the smoke alarm go off?
Mom: No.
Me: Is the oven broken?
Mom: No.
Me: Why are you trying to clean my oven? I've only been gone an hour and you've almost burnt the house down?
Mom: I don't know. You know, the firemen said those self cleaning ovens are so dangerous. They said it was a good thing I didn't open the door or the house would be full of smoke. But they're down there now with some big fans and they're checking it out and everything's fine. I don't think the girls even know anything happened. I was just afraid your neighbors would call you and tell you something was going on at your house and I didn't want you to worry.
Me: You didn't want me to worry? Huh. Well, that's what you get for cleaning.

Well, turns out everything was fine. I did get one more call from my sister about 15 minutes later because the TV wouldn't work. Turns out the HD cord unplugged when she was vacuuming. So I gave her the speech about how they were supposed to be watching the kids, not cleaning. I swear, my house is pretty decent. It's not like I live in filth. I don't know what they were thinking but I did come home to all the laundry, dishes, and floors clean. I can't speak for the oven. I guess they reminded me how thankful I am to have a home. And I'm definitely thankful to have family who loves me and doesn't mind too much being the object of my blogging sarcasm. Hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving.

Gold Rush!

2008-11-21T14:35:00.003-06:00

Okay, it's been a while since I last posted but for some of you, this post will have been worth waiting for.

Do you need some extra Christmas money? Are you glad gas prices are going down but still you seem to be in a budget crunch? Did you grow up in the 80's? Then, like me, you probably have lots of old gold jewelry that you never wear. I dug around in my jewelry box a while back and put all the gold jewelry together in one little bag. Broken rope chains, a kinked herringbone chain, several cheesy gold charms and a few little rings were just gathering dust and taking up space. They weren't anything that had true sentimental value. Most of them were broken, had one earring missing, or were something an old boyfriend gave me.

Well, I've been hearing that people are paying the best price for gold in years so I decided to find out. I grabbed my little bag of trinkets and went to Berry's Pawn in Madison. Berry's is a very reputable pawn shop owned by Herb Berry. Herb went to our church for a long time and is a friend of my dad's. Jeff bought my engagement ring from him. You might be familiar with the shop as Dave Ramsay often mentions it on his show. So anyway, Herb wasn't in but I was helped by a friendly young man. He examined and weighed each piece and made notes on a piece of paper. In about 15 minutes he made his offer. Now, their motto is, "Give the customer more than they expect." But are you ready for this?

$415.00!!!That's right! Four hundred and fifteen dollars! He counted out the cash and the security guard walked me to my car. I thought that was kinda funny but there are some characters in that area and everyone in the store did just see him count out a load of cash. No worries though, the shop is very nice and I had Little Sister with me. It's not really scary and dark like you might imagine a pawn shop would be.

So look out Black Friday and thank you Lord for providing some Christmas shopping money to buy gifts for those we love. If you decide to go down there, please comment and let me know how you do.

Jesus on Politics

2008-11-04T19:58:00.006-06:00

I was listening to a Bible study my dad taught last week to a group of men at his church. He taught on Matthew 25:15-22

Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him in his words. They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. "Teacher," they said, "we know you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren't swayed by men because you pay no attention to who they are. Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?" But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, "You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? Show me the coin used for paying the tax." They brought him a denarius, and he asked them,"Whose portrait is this?" "Caesar's," they replied. Then he said to them,"Give to Caesar what is Caesar's and to God what is God's." When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.

The Pharisees opposed the Roman government while the Herodians were Jews who supported it. The only reason these two groups would come together to question Jesus was to set a trap. Both sides, much like we see today, believed that God was on their side. Basically what they wanted to know was, whose side are you on Jesus? Jesus gives a lot of "yes" and "no" answers in the Bible, but not here. It's not really a "yes" or "no" question. But His answer amazes them. He looks at the denarius, a coin representing a day's wages, and says, "Whose portrait is this?" Caesar's image was on the coin. When he says, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's," He's essentially saying, "Give Caesar that which bears his image and give to God that which bears His image." The coin bore Caesar's image...what is that which bears God's image?...you and me...that's what we are to give him...ourselves.

We may not agree with our leaders, but our hope is not in our government. We need not despair if our candidate loses, nor become too proud if he wins. "...for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God." Romans 13:1. His will, whatever it is, will be accomplished. And we should pay close attention. Exercise your right and privilege to participate in government, but understand that our God is sovereign. We are made in His image. We belong to Him. The ultimate authority. The King of Kings. And we already know that in the end...He wins.

All Things Sacred

2008-10-31T09:07:00.003-05:00

I recently read a great post by my friend Ashley called Sacred or Secular. It reminded me of a book I read right after college, the practice of the presence OF GOD by brother Lawrence. Brother Lawrence was a lay brother in a Carmelite monastery in the 1600's. He spent most of his life in the monastery working in the kitchen (sound familiar?) and in his later years he repaired sandals. Exciting huh? He had a lowly position yet because of his peace and character, others were drawn to him and often sought his wisdom on spiritual matters. His secret was continually practicing God's presence. In every moment he constantly practiced turning his thoughts, his heart, his worship towards God. He was in such constant fellowship with the Father, he said, "I have given up all but my intercessory prayers to focus my attention on remaining in His holy presence." Can you imagine walking so closely with God that you no longer had to stop and pray? What if it just flowed naturally out of every little thing you do?

Now don't misunderstand. His message is not about doing things for God. It's about loving God. Loving God without restrictions on when and where and how. This small book is a collection of letters and conversations and I highly recommend it. I don't have much analysis, I just wanted to share some of my favorite quotes and be reminded that all things can be done to the glory of God.

Men invent means and methods of coming at God's love, they learn rules and set up devices to remind them of that love, and it seems like a world of trouble to bring oneself into the consciousness of God's presence. Yet it might be so simple. Is it not quicker and easier just to do our common business wholly for the love of him?

Never tire of doing even the smallest things for Him, because He isn't impressed so much with the dimensions of our work as with the love in which it is done.

If we only knew how much we need God's grace, we would never lose touch with Him.

It isn't necessary to be too verbose in prayer, because lengthy prayers encourage wandering thoughts...If your mind wanders at times, don't be upset, because being upset will only distract you more.

We must try to converse with God in little ways while we do our work; not in memorized prayer, not trying to recite previously formed thoughts. Rather, we should purely and simply reveal our hearts as the words come to us.

The most holy and necessary practice in our spiritual life is the presence of God. That means finding constant pleasure in His divine company, speaking humbly and lovingly with Him in all seasons, at every moment, without limiting the conversation in any way.

I could go on and on but the book is so little, I wanted to save plenty for you to discover on your own. Meanwhile, as you change diapers, return phone calls, fold clothes, attend meetings... whatever you do, remember that He is with you. Practice His presence.

Tricky Treats

2008-10-23T13:37:00.011-05:00

Okay, for those of you at MOPS yesterday who wanted to know how to make the cute little pumpkin cakepops, here you go.

First, no I'm not that creative. I didn't make these up, I'm just good at copying. As you can see, the originals look much cleaner than mine. I'm not sure how she gets the candymelts that smooth. If anyone has any tips, please share. I wish I had a picture of mine but, thankfully, you ate them all up! My cakepops were a combination of these amazing treats invented by the ever so talented and widely famous Bakerella...

And these sweet treats inspired the insides of my pumpkin pops...

Thanks and full credit for the pumpkin spice cake idea go to Bridget at bakeat350.blogspot.com. LOVE her site. She is so talented and I found her blog courtesy of my sister-in-law Montee. Okay, so here's what I did.

1. I bought and baked a pumpkin bread from a mix right out of a box (no cans of pumpkin or anything hard like that). I let it cool completely and then crumbled it all up with my hands in a large bowl.
2. I used about 3/4 of a can of ready made cream cheese icing and mixed it completely with the caked. It ended up looking like a bunch of mush. Add the icing a little at a time so you don't get too much. You want it to be sturdy enough to shape it.
3. Shape the mixture into truffle size balls and put on wax paper on a cookie sheet.
4. If you're going to do pops, dip the tip of stick in a little bit of melted orange Wilton candymelts and then still into the cake ball.
5. Put the whole thing in the fridge to let them get a little more solid and sturdy.
6. Dip the balls in melted orange Wilton candymelts and then stick pops in styrofoam to dry. If you're not making pops, just put them on more wax paper. Bakerella used tic tacs for the stems, I used green cereal pieces from a sugared kids cereal. You could also probably use pretzels for stems. Stick on the stems before the candy can harden.
7. When everything is completely dry, use an edible pen from Betty Crocker to draw on faces. Done.

I got the lollipop sticks and orange Wilton candymelts in the craft section of Walmart. I got the pumpkin bread mix, icing, and edible ink pens in the baking section of Walmart. It was really super easy and fun and here are some examples of some of the other spooky treats Bakerella made.

You can use any cake mix and icing so I am going to try some different combos. Red velvet cake with cream cheese icing dipped in white or dark chocolate, chocolate cake with chocolate icing dipped in a minty dark chocolate coating...the possibilities are endless. Let me know if you try these and how it works out. If you want more detailed instructions, check here.

Teaching Children Spiritual Truths

2008-10-17T07:34:00.007-05:00

Last night while we were on our way home from dinner, Big Sister and I had an important conversation about deep spiritual truths...sort of.

Big Sister: Mama...what is faith?

Me: Well...faith is when you believe something even though you can't see it. Like, we believe in God even though we can't see Him.

Big Sister: (Very joyfully) And I believe in God so I have faith!

Me: Right! (Whew) Why did you ask me that?

Big Sister: Wait mama, first I need to ask you about two more things.

Me: Okay.

Big Sister: Okay mama, so...what is trust?

Me: Ummm...it's kind of like faith. It's when you can believe that something someone tells you is true...or when you can tell someone a secret and you know they won't tell? (Okay so I kinda struggled with this one)

Big Sister: Hmmm.

Me: It's like when I tell you I'm going to take care of you, you can trust me because you know I'm telling you the truth.

Big Sister: (Smiling again) Okay so I trust you so I have trust!

Me: Right! (Thinking we're on a roll now and ready for number three) So what's the last one?

Big Sister: What was it again? (thinking very seriously) Oh yeah, so I believe in God so I have faith...

Me: Yeah.

Big Sister: And I can trust you so I have trust...

Me: Yeah.

Big Sister: Faith...trust...and...oh yeah...pixie dust. I don't have pixie dust.

Me: What?

Big Sister: Tinker Bell says if you have faith, trust, and pixie dust, you can fly.

Turns out, what I thought was a spiritual conversation was actually a Peter Pan conversation.

If One is Good, Two is Better!

2008-10-12T21:42:00.004-05:00

This is what happened when Little Sister found her other passie tonight.

Mmmm, mmmmm, good. What do you think my chances are of ridding her of this vice by the end of the year? I'm thinking it could be a little...challenging.

Protection

2008-10-10T12:53:00.011-05:00

Little Sister baffles me sometimes. She's so cuddly and sweet and full of smiles but...she's about to turn three. Everyone talks about the terrible twos and no one tells you about the torturous tantrum throwing threes. She'll be three soon and she's already showing the signs. By three they can speak well enough to really bless you out and embarrass you in public. I've mentioned before that we walk to school (when it's not raining of course). Big Sister is in kindergarten and I had all these Norman Rockwell visions of what that would be like. We'd wake up with birds singing, eat pancakes shaped like Mickey Mouse, put on our cute new school clothes, grab the tote bag and lunchbox and walk to school, all the while singing songs, picking flowers, and waving to friends.Well...

Honestly it's not that far off. Really. With one exception. I wasn't factoring Little Sister into the equation. This child wants to sit on my lap, climb on me, and sleep in my bed. Basically, she gropes me all day long. Whenever we go up or down the stairs she insists on holding my hand. Now here's the part that baffles me. For some reason, when we're walking Big Sister to school and we get ready to cross the street, she WILL NOT hold my hand. She throws a huge fit and spends the entire time screaming, "LET GO ME!" (yes, that's "let go me" and not "let me go") and trying to wrench her hand free from my death grip. We go through this routine every day. I've even started leaving a little bit early just to deal with it. It now includes every parking lot. The church, the store, the park...whenever there are cars around, she refuses to hold my hand. Finally, one day I got down on her level and said calmly, "Do you see all these cars? They're very dangerous. You have to hold my hand. I'm going to keep you safe even if it makes you mad." I grabbed hold of her hand, squeezed tight, and dragged her across the street. We have to have this little talk now several times a day. I've shortened the speech to simply, "I'm going to keep you safe even if it makes you mad." Over and over. Sometimes, she will reluctantly and loosely take my hand and pout.

Last week, my Bible study was called "The Hedge that Protects". We studied verses that all had to do with how God protects us. When we were watching the video of Priscilla Shirer talking about this "hedge that protects" it made me think about Little Sister and me. When I'm wanting to do things my way, when I'm trusting in myself and not God, am I any different? How many times have I misread his protection for punishment? His rescue for restriction? How many times were there dangers lurking out there and when God stuck out his hand to me I threw a big ole tantrum and screamed, "LET GO ME! I DO IT MYSELF!" Or maybe sometimes I reluctantly gave Him my limp hand and loose grip and pouted the whole way?

I can already imagine how He might really bring this lesson home to me. I'm stuck in traffic and fuming over the hold up and then he condescends to me and calmly speaks to my heart, "I'm going to keep you safe, even if it makes you mad." I've once again gotten in the slowest line at the grocery store and while I tap my foot impatiently he whispers, "I'm going to keep you safe, even if it makes you mad." The refrigerator breaks down again taking all of our "fun money" and while I'm pouting over the missed restaurants and movies I hear, "I'm going to keep you safe, even if it makes you mad."

I don't know how it all works. I'm not even as perceptive as an almost three-year-old compared to God. I'm infinitely more clueless. Those speeding cars look like lots of fun to me. But I hope that more often I will trust Him. That I will grab hold of His hand, hold on tight, find security in his grip and say, "Okay, LET'S GO!"

Sanctuary

2008-09-24T18:40:00.011-05:00

This week I was able to really put into practice a lesson I learned early in our marriage. I learned to make my home a sanctuary.

Early in our marriage I had lots of ideas and expectations. Unfortunately, my husband is not a mind reader so any time he fell short of those expectations I made him miserable. When he had a stressful day at work and the boss kept him late was often the same night I prepared an elaborate meal and made plans for us to go out and do something fun. (That was when we had no kids, two jobs, time, and money) Anyway, the dinner would go cold, we'd have missed the movie, and the more minutes that ticked by, the worse it would get. Concern would turn to irritation, irritation to frustration, frustration to anger, and anger to bitterness. By the time he walked in the door, he didn't stand a chance. As you can imagine, after a couple of years, home wasn't a place he looked forward to at the end of the day. If his day at work was difficult, he knew that often his home would be worse. He would often stay later to avoid it which made me madder. When given the silent treatment, he often gave the silent treatment...probably just grateful that he wasn't being nagged to death. Irritation turned to frustration, frustration to anger, and...you get the picture.

Thankfully, through a series of events, and often painful pruning, the Lord spoke to my heart. I learned that if I wanted things to change, I had to change. If I wanted my husband to look forward to coming home then home needed to offer something to look forward to. Our home needed to become a sanctuary. Look at the definition of sanctuary.

sanc·tu·ar·y [sangk-choo-er-ee] –noun, plural -ar·ies.

1.	a sacred or holy place.

Judaism.

a.	the Biblical tabernacle or the Temple in Jerusalem.

b.	the holy of holies of these places of worship.

3.	an especially holy place in a temple or church.

4.	the part of a church around the altar; the chancel.

5.	a church or other sacred place where fugitives were formerly entitled to immunity from arrest.

6.	immunity afforded by refuge in such a place.

7.	any place of refuge; asylum.

He needed a place of refuge, he needed immunity, he needed a place where he felt safe and loved and accepted. Those words did not describe our home back then. Now I'll just tell you, it didn't change overnight. After a week of holding my tongue, putting him first, letting the little stuff go...I wanted to give up. It didn't seem to be working. He was still coming home late. He was still withdrawn. Basically, he wasn't buying it. But the Lord reminded me I didn't need to change what I was doing in order to get my husband to change. I had to be who God called me to be as a wife regardless of how my husband responded. Besides, it had taken almost two years for me to teach him that home was not a refuge. It was not a place where he could feel safe and loved and accepted. He was definitely not getting immunity. It probably took another year for me to prove to him that things were going to be different. I would fail miserably some days...I still do. But as I take refuge in the Lord, our home is becoming a place of refuge for my husband.

These past couple of weeks have been rough. Work has been especially draining and challenging for him. But in those difficult moments in his day he called us for comfort. He looked to me for encouraging words and a listening ear. He couldn't wait to get home at night. Because this week when his nights were especially long, when his job was particularly frustrating, when it seemed he was being attacked on every front, he had a sanctuary.

Random Thoughts

2008-09-20T20:23:00.006-05:00

I think it's called being an emotional eater and it's supposedly bad for you, but sometimes when your down and feeling low, you just want to eat something good. Mexican food and chocolate chip cookie dough is good for the soul in my opinion.

Is it just me, or does it seem like a backhanded compliment when a girl you graduated from high school with leaves you a note at classmates.com that says, "Wow Tracy you've changed and look fantastic! I had to click your THEN pic to make sure it was you."

For the first time in my adult life I am actually feeling the effects of a "bad economy". Teacher/coach salaries didn't increase at the same rate as gas prices. I can actually imagine a little bit what it was like to wait in bread lines. We're not going to starve by any means but why does our area have NO gas?

I volunteered at the First United Methodist consignment sale today. I don't usually do consignment sales because it's not worth the work but I made myself do it for Christmas shopping money (see above random thought). I was helping sort things when it was over. There's actually something therapeutic about putting the clothes in number order and then stacking them neatly underneath the consignor's numbers around the room. Bringing order to so much chaos was surprisingly satisfying. In one small corner of the world, everything is as it should be...and I made it that way.

I always read magazines from back to front. Why save the best for last? You might not get there. Look at any magazine table of contents and you'll find the article you're looking for is probably somewhere in the last third of the magazine.

It seems to make no difference what time I put the girls to bed. Whether it's 8:00p.m. or 10:00p.m. they will wake up on the dot at 6:00a.m. However, the bedtimes seem to have a profound effect on me.

I'm thankful that pasta is so cheap. It's one of my favorites. Everyone in my family loves it. It cooks up quick. You can add almost anything to it. Variety baby. And it's soooo cheap!

Imagine your husband does his job while thousands of people watch and judge. Imagine they feel free to comment on everything he says and does even though they don't know anything about the intricacies of a job he is highly qualified to do and at which they would fail miserably. Imagine they even yell out rude comments in front of you and your children. Imagine he has a bad month and they print his sales stats in the paper. Now imagine his total job success rides on 14-17 year old boys doing exactly what they're supposed to do. This is my life.

Pink used to be one of my least favorite colors but now that I have two little girls, I love it. I also used to hate blue cheese dressing, green olives, and cottage cheese but now I like them all. A lot. Wonder why?

Why is it that no matter how tightly or how loosely I wrap the cord around the vacuum cleaner hooks, it always turns out that the plug ends on a curve so I can't secure it?

L.A. Confidential is a great movie. Even at 7:30 in the morning.

You know how sometimes you drive all the way from the grocery store to home and you can't remember one thing about the drive? Like you don't even know how you got there because you were on "automatic"? I have entire days like that.

If "all the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players", in my scene, I'm surrounded by the most talented, beautiful, amazing cast. I wouldn't trade a single one of you.

Lost and Found

2008-09-11T09:12:00.009-05:00

A couple of months ago I lost my car keys. I have a little hook that I'm supposed to hang them on whenever I walk in the door but with two little girls, I often end up carrying someone to bed, rushing someone to the potty, or any number of things and my keys end up lying around somewhere. So a couple of months ago, on a Monday morning, I couldn't locate my keys. I knew I had them on Sunday when I drove home from church and I hadn't seen them since. The only things I took to church were a small diaper bag and my Bible. So of course, the first places I looked were in the diaper bag and my Bible (I have one of those little zip up Bible covers). No keys.

Over the next several days I would search whenever I could. I checked every pair of pants and every coat even though I hadn't worn a coat or pants. I checked every junk drawer, junk box, junk basket and found nothing but...junk. Then I would check the diaper bag and my Bible again. I tore the van apart thinking I must have laid them down while taking the kids out in the garage. I took out the car seats, I emptied the storage compartments underneath, and I got a flashlight to look in all the dark crevasses. I found a few old french fries and a couple of ponytail holders but no keys. I checked the garage thinking maybe they fell somewhere. I pulled out shelves in the laundry room to look behind them. I even got my flashlight and checked behind the washer and dryer. Then I would check the diaper bag again. I even asked friends to pray. I figure finding keys is nothing for God and I waited expectantly for them to show up. Weeks went by with no keys. I couldn't understand why he was holding out on me. Occasionally I would get an idea...

Several months before that we lost one of our remotes for the TV. (I know, heaven forbid we actually had to get up to change a channel.) We looked everywhere knowing it had to be in the house only to find it months later INSIDE the little tikes basketball goal. Yep, Daddy noticed it was standing a little taller than usual and in fact it appeared to be about the length of the remote control. He pulled out the top and WALLAH! there it was. Can you say Little Sister? This got me thinking she must have been playing with them. This meant they could be anywhere. I emptied every toy bin, looked in every drawer in the girl's room and unfolded the fold-out couch. No keys. Then I checked the diaper bag...again.

This went on for about two months. Now and then, I would get an idea and resume the search. Just to show you how extensive the search was, I flipped our living room couch on it's back and cut the lining on the bottom so I could stick my hand in there to see if they had fallen between couch cushions and then through a rip in the lining. I found some leggos, more ponytail holders, and a few raisins. I was starting to give up. I figured Little Sister must have put them in the trash can and they were in a landfill somewhere.

Now this will seem kind of random but there was something else going on in my head and heart during this time. I was having one of those seasons where the more I learned about God, the less I knew. I was studying the Word and digging deep and the more I dug, the more mystery I found. My dad told me once that there's not all that much in the Bible, it's all about Jesus. As I have read through the chronological Bible (makes a lot more sense chronologically by the way) I've seen this to be true. It's not a bunch of stories about people, it's one story about God. Sounds simple but suddenly I began to see the big picture. This brought some big questions. Unanswered questions it turns out. Questions that if answered, I probably wouldn't be able to fathom anyway. I began to feel small. Very small. I suddenly couldn't imagine how such a HUGE, GREAT, HOLY GOD could use me. I started to wonder if much in my life really mattered. I'm just one person who stays at home with two little girls and doesn't seem to have much impact on the world much less on the universe and all of eternity. I began to struggle as I often do with feeling I had a God who loved me...but from a distance.

I was lying in bed on a Tuesday night reading my chronological Bible and was in 2 Kings with some Isaiah and Amos scattered in. I didn't get anything earth shattering from it. It was mostly, so-and-so was king, and he was a bad king, and when he died, his son became king and he was bad too. I did read one thing that was interesting in Isaiah 7:10-11.

Not long after this, the LORD sent this message to King Ahaz: "Ask me for a sign, Ahaz, to prove that I will crush your enemies as I have promised. Ask for anything you like, and make it as difficult as you want."

I went to sleep feeling nothing but more distance and little purpose.

I woke up at about 3:00am, wide awake. I decided to do what I usually do when that happens and thought I would pray. Oddly, I was speechless. I didn't even feel like I could talk to God. I had nothing to say. I just lay there thinking how anything I said right then would just be words. So I just told God I had nothing to say. Thankfully, He did have something to say. He brought to mind what I had read that night. It was as if He said, "Ask me for a sign. Ask for anything you like, and make it as difficult as you want." "I can't do that God," I thought. But then he reminded me that King Ahaz had that same response and it didn't go well. So I just prayed, "Lord, I need a sign. I need to know I matter to you. I need to know I serve a purpose in your plan. I need to know you hear me. I need a sign and I need it to be clear and specific. It's got to be obvious Lord or I'm afraid I'll miss it."

The next day I went about my business and never thought about my request for a sign. I wasn't looking for it. I had a busy day and the last thing on my agenda was taking a meal to a couple in White House. I was driving a car that we borrowed from the dealership while waiting for our brakes to be fixed. After dropping off the meal, I was driving down the long driveway and reached for my cell phone. I'd left it in the cup holder and suddenly couldn't find it. I stopped the car, put it in park, and got out. I looked under the seat and in the center console. I checked my pockets. I went around to the passenger side of the car and looked under that seat. I figured I must have tossed it in the diaper bag so I reached inside...and immediately felt something in the side zipper pocket. It felt HUGE. "Did I actually go to the trouble to zip it up in the side pocket?" I thought. Wait...I started to sweat and get cold chills all at the same time. I felt around the edges of the item in the pocket and thought, "It can't be." I opened the zipper and lying there neatly, all alone, were my lost keys.

I heard the still small voice of God saying, "Is that specific enough? It's a small thing but it matters to me. It all matters. You matter." I was blown away. Did I mention I had checked this diaper bag no less that 20 times? Not only that but I took the diaper bag with me nearly every day. I unloaded and repacked it several times a week. I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time but mostly I was just in awe. I walked around to the other side of the car, sat down, and shook my head. I thanked God all the way home and all night long. I still thank Him now when I think of it. And mostly, I think of it when I am feeling small, or pointless, or lonely, or confused. I don't know the mind of God. I don't know all the answers. In fact I don't know most of the answers. I don't know His plans. But I do know one thing...it all matters...I matter...you matter. And if you are lost, he can find you.

Scary Mary

2008-09-03T12:19:00.005-05:00

Since we are fully immersed in all things political, let me just say...I hate politics. I don't like all the fluff...I don't like the mudslinging...I don't like the worthless promises...I don't like the fake smiles...I just don't like it. I don't EVER like to talk about it because it just seems so pointless sometimes. It's so frustrating to have to sift through all the baloney to figure out who would be the least horrible...though sift you must. But please, I beg you, don't let it come down to the advertising and emails you've been exposed to.

You also need to know that if you send me emails with political ads, statistics, little bits and pieces of info, and especially quotes taken out of context...I delete them. I don't read them. So often when I have wasted precious time reading them and thought, "Did they really say that? I don't remember it that way?" I research only to find something taken grossly out of context. So think for yourselves, people. Do the research for yourselves. Even though it often seems futile, look at the whole picture...and then try not to lose all hope. And above all, be wary of anything that may be taken out of context. Because they may just be using crafty editing and slick words to turn Mary Poppins into...SCARY MARY.

The First Day of School, Again...Only Worse

2008-08-25T16:48:00.021-05:00

So today was the actual first day of kindergarten. Brace yourself, it was a doozy. This is a long post but I think it will be worth it. Once again, my children went against the norm and instead of waking up between 6:00 and 6:30, they slept until 7:15. Big Sister needs to arrive at school between 8:15 and 8:30. Any earlier than 8:15 and we have to wait in the cafeteria with a bazillion kids for dismissal. We prefer to aim for 8:20 so we can walk directly to the classroom. It's okay with the teachers if we walk them to their rooms until around October. After that, we have to cut the apron strings and let them go...oh boy. So anyway, we have exactly fifty-five minutes to feed and dress everyone before leaving the house. Sounds doable...if you have a family that operates at normal speed. However, apparently I am receiving payback for all those times in my childhood when my mother was waiting in the car with the motor running while I continued to look for my other shoe. Big Sister takes her time. Little Sister moves at a little faster pace, hence the problem. You have to catch her before you can dress her. And then there's me, the mama. I can't walk into that school (and I am walking into that school until October) looking like I normally do. These people don't know me. I am putting my firstborn's life in their hands until 2:15 p.m. I must make a good impression!

So anyway, we're well on our way to making good time and then Daddy hollers as he walks out the door, "It's raining." WHAT!?!?! Rain!? I wasn't prepared to deal with RAIN! We walk to school for crying out loud. I haven't practiced driving to school yet. How long will it take? Can I park somewhere when I get there so I can still walk her in? Where? Front of the school or back? Now, in my defense, it hasn't rained in like...forever. I haven't watched the news in like...forever. How was I supposed to know I must prepare the "rain plan" on the first day!? Let the madness begin.

After running up and down the stairs about 10 times, not drinking any of the coffee I made, and holding Little Sister down to yank her hair into a beautifully coiffed "do"...we headed out the door at 8:14. Perfect if you're walking...but if it's raining....and you're driving....and you've never done this before? Well, I was able to snap a couple of pictures before we left.
On a side note, the heinous "tote bag" is a requirement at our school for all kindergartners. It is so they can easily be identified as a kindergartner (seriously, how could you miss these things?) and so that papers don't get lost in lots of zippers and pouches. Okay, like, could you have let us know that in a letter over the summer before money was invested in a perfectly pink zippered and pouch covered princess backpack that Big Sister picked out herself and now I have to explain why she can't take it to school even though I built it up earlier like it was so perfect for kindergarten and made her look like such a big girl and now I have to make it seem like that heinous "tote bag" is awesome!?! Aaarrrghhhh! We were permitted to decorate the heinous "tote bag". Notice the ribbon around the edging and the bow. Aren't I crafty? Big Sister drew on the bag while I restrained myself from adding multiple sequined iron on transfers. Here is a closeup.

In case you couldn't tell, that thing to the right is a fish standing on top of it's fish tank. (Isn't she creative?) and the word CIDRGORDIN is the word KINDERGARTEN using ebonics...I mean phonics. I'm not sure what the squiggly yellow things are. Anyway, I praised her artistry to the high heavens and somehow managed to convince her that the "tote bag" is the way to go because it's what all the hip kindergartners are wearing this year.

So we walked out to the garage at 8:14 a.m. and I immediately realized I was in trouble. I laid my eyes on the car we've borrowed from the dealership while our minivan is being fixed and remembered that I have NO umbrellas. All three umbrellas that we own are in the minivan. Because Daddy doesn't use an umbrella (he's so manly he'd rather be wet than carry some girly umbrella I guess) and because who needs an umbrella at home? All our umbrellas ride around with us... only today, the first official day of kindergarten, we didn't have our ride.

On another side note, I dropped off the minivan LAST Monday because the ABS light was on. ABS=Anti-lock brake system. I asked them to call us before doing any work and let us know what work needed to be done and what it would cost. That was a week ago and we haven't heard a thing or had any of our calls returned. While I was happy to drive around using their gas for a few days, I've now had to put more gas in their car ($10 at a time because heaven forbid I buy gas I don't get to use for a borrowed car) and I DON'T HAVE UMBRELLAS FOR THE FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN AND IT'S RAINING! I mean, do they still not know what's wrong? Do I need to call them and go, "Hey guys, let me help you out...it's the BRAKES."

So as we buckled in I began to formulate a plan for getting in the building. First, I found out that it takes waaaay longer to drive to school than it does to walk. I managed to figure out where to park and I got everyone unbuckled and ready to bolt for the door. I got soaked, which is fine, and I ripped the girls out of the car at the same time, placing one on either side, slammed the door, and yelled, "Run!"

Now imagine the Chariots of Fire music and us running for the door in slow motion. Me in the middle, Little Sister on one side trying to break free from me and go her own way, Big Sister on the other side carrying her cool "tote bag". As we reach the median and are almost home free, Little Sister hits it first (because she's trying to get away from me), I cross the median next, and as I easily jump and clear the small river forming against the median...Big Sister trips (or I pulled her down but...whatever) and she sprawls out half on the median and half on the road directly into the mud. I yank her arm up in the air in an attempt to keep her from hitting the ground and all I manage to do is save the "tote bag". Her left hand firmly plants in the mud and her left leg goes all the way down from hip to toe into the muddy river. Yep. I dragged my child through the mud on her first day of kindergarten. We're all so shocked that she doesn't even cry at first and I don't even wonder if she's hurt herself. I look at her wide eyes and say, "Let's just get inside the building and then we'll figure out what to do."

When we got inside I checked her for injuries. Physically she was fine but here's the worst part. She looked at me with a giant tear rolling down her cheek and said, "I just wanted to look nice for my first day of kindergarten." Okay, I'm not the emotional type. I've been cool with this whole new chapter of life for the most part but I almost lost it. It was all I could do to keep from bawling hysterically. Then we heard the announcement that all children need to get to their classrooms so they won't be counted tardy. Tardy! We can't be tardy on the first day! So I took her to her class, washed off her hands, wiped off her leg with paper towels as best I could, and sent her in the door. Her teacher was somewhat sympathetic, somewhat annoyed, and suggested I leave her there and go home to get another pair of pants and bring them back to the office. She missed the pledge of allegiance and everyone was staring at her, the girl with the muddy pants on the first day of school. Without thinking, I dragged Little Sister back out to the car, rushed home, got another pair of pants, shoes and socks, and rushed back. And of course, it was no longer raining while I was doing any of this. The ladies in the office were somewhat sympathetic, somewhat annoyed, and were at least gracious enough to let me take the clothes to her room. I quickly changed her and snapped her picture again.

She seemed fine and I think she was starting to think the whole thing was kind of funny. I still wanted to cry. But I didn't. I'm just not that emotional I guess. Besides, I was beginning to think about how I couldn't wait to blog about this first day fiasco.

When I picked her up she went on and on about the strawberry milk, eating in the cafeteria and learning about how to "live above the line". She also went to music today so that was big. Nothing about "the incident". It was like it didn't even happen. When I asked her on video what happened that morning and why she had on different pants she kind of looked at me like she didn't know what I was talking about. THANK GOD! I guess in the end it was a raging success. She loved her first day.

I guess tonight I'll watch the weather forecast...right after I head to Walmart to buy three umbrellas...just in case.

The Good Ole Days

2008-08-16T08:37:00.021-05:00

Okay, I have been staying up waaaaaay too late watching the Olympics. So in my effort to drink coffee in peace this weekend before dealing with perky little princesses, I turned on the TV in search of some entertaining Saturday morning fun only to find...there's nothing on.

What happened to those good ole days of waking up EARLY, letting your parents sleep, and perching in front of the TV for the long awaited Saturday morning lineup? Now, some of you may not be old enough to remember the same shows I used to watch but these were some of my favorites.

The Smurfs

I'm guessing that even if you aren't old enough to have seen them on Saturday mornings, you know the smurfs. That jolly band of mythical blue creatures that live in the forest? There was only one girl smurf that I know of and since she was the only one, she was simply referred to as Smurfette. Makes me wonder if a woman created this world. Maybe there were more and I just don't remember. Anyway, who didn't love to hate Gargamel and his cat Azrael? We had some smurf Christmas ornaments (I think we still do actually) and my sister and I bought my dad a smurf keychain that he carried until all that was left was a head.

The Harlem Globetrotters

Somehow the creators turned this basketball team into crime solving villains with a few super powers thrown in and we bought it. But doggone it, who doesn't love crazy basketball stunts from cartoon heroes with huge afros?

Scooby Doo

Now, I'm talking about the old Scooby Doo. Remeber the ones where the ghosts were really just people dressed up. Nowadays, the sleuthing team is dealing with the "real" thing. I liked it much better when it ended with them ripping off the mask and the nasty crook saying, "And I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you meddling kids!"

The Jetsons

Now, I don't know anyone who didn't love the Jetsons. I still have moments to this day where I wish I could stand on a little conveyor belt and ride along while being showered, styled, dressed and made up...all in less than 30 seconds. Who wouldn't want to be able to push a button and have a 5 course meal pop out of a slot? Not to mention, trips to Mars and flying cars. Luckily, I can occasionally catch this one with On Demand in the Kids section under Boomerang. I've gotten my kids hooked on this one too.

The Flintstones

Basically, the Jetsons, only in the Stone Age. ("Flintstones. Meet the Flintstones. They're the modern stone age family") Again, you can sometimes see it on Boomerang. Yabba Dabba Do!

Captain Caveman

Does anyone remember this one? He was a goofball "superhero" who would flip out, turn his club into any number of things and pull whatever else was needed out of his fur. Who comes up with this stuff? I don't care, I loved it.

Bugs Bunny

Okay, now how could I leave out such a classic? And it's not just Bugs, but Daffy, Roadrunner, Sylvester and Tweety, and all the other lovable Looney Toons. Whenever we can catch it on TV (never on Saturday morning mind you) the girls love it as much as we did.

Land of the Lost

I'm really going to show my age here. Is anyone out there old enough to remember this one? It was LOST for kiddos. I'm telling you, I've been saying that the current primetime hit, LOST, was about people lost in time for the last couple of years. I got this idea from my childhood memories of Land of the Lost. It was a show about two kids and their dad (I think) who go on a camping trip and while canoing, end up going over a waterfall only to find themselves in Land of the Lost. There are dinosaurs, apemen, and the scary sleestacks.

So, there you have it. I really could go on and on but this is way too much energy already devoted to something so random. But please, share your favorite cartoons from your Saturday mornings as a kid. Which ones do you miss?

Wanna See Something Scary?

2008-08-15T13:43:00.014-05:00

Me and Big Sister - Both at the age of 4

Daddy and Little Sister - Both at the age of 2

Scary, isn't it?

The First Day

2008-08-12T18:52:00.007-05:00

Sort of. Monday was Big Sister's first day of kindergarten...sort of. She only went for a couple of hours. She basically was just given some testing and more orientation with the building. And she doesn't get to go back until next Monday. Then another week of waiting. We're just telling ourselves that the 25th is really the first day. So that's when we'll take pictures and all. But here's how it went.

We walked to school (how awesome is that?) and waited in the cafeteria for the bell. She showed no hesitation whatsoever but I have to admit, I was a little nervous seeing her in the mix with all those "big kids". Finally, 8:15 came and one of the teachers did a little clapping thing to get everyone quiet. She asked the kindergartners to line up by the front windows. Big Sister was oblivious. "Great," I thought, "if I wasn't here would she just sit here all day?" I explained what she was supposed to do and she promptly and confidently walked over and lined up...with the 5th graders. I seriously think she could have wandered all day and not known the difference. I finally got her to her classroom and she walked right in and said, "Bye mom!"

I didn't get teary. It was too chaotic. It all happened so fast. Both girls slept in for the first time in months leaving very little time to get breakfast and get dressed. At the last minute I decided Little Sister was dressed too warmly and changed her clothes. Five minutes before we walked out the door, Big Sister started whining that her shirt was "itching" her. I calmly explained that she was in kindergarten now so she had to act like a big girl and kindergartners don't whine. (How many times will I use that one this year?) But as I walked home with Little Sister in tow I have to admit I had that feeling that this was a big moment...and then...I got over it.

I really did have a great time with Little Sister. It's so rare that it's just the two of us. She was really confused and kept asking where Big Sister was but for the most part I think she didn't mind being on her own with Mama.

When we went to pick Big Sister up, she didn't see me at first so I just watched her for a minute. She looked pretty much the same. (Whew) I'm happy to report that when she finally saw me she yelled out, "Mommy!" with a big grin on her face. When I asked her about her day, the first thing she told me about was the lunch. (She is her mama's girl after all) "Guess what I had for lunch Mama?...Pizza and baked beans and a special surprise!" "Oh yeah, what's that?" I asked on cue. "Strawberry milk!" "Oh wow," I exclaimed. "Oh gross," I thought.

But I did have another moment as we walked home. I asked her what her favorite thing about the day was. Her reply? "Well, I had lots of favorite things. My first favorite thing was strawberry milk...aaaand my next favorite thing was seeing the gym (I guess she's her daddy's girl too)...aaaaaand my other favorite thing was...when I saw you walking towards me just now to come pick me up." Does it get any better than that? Now that's a moment I'll probably never get over.

Great Deal!

2008-08-06T18:24:00.008-05:00

Check out these cute outfits I got at Target. If you have girls sizes 5T or smaller, Target had these for $4.00 per piece. $8.00 for an entire outfit and it's cute. Notice the detailed applique. I don't think I could do that well at the consignment sales. (Sorry about the sideways pics)

My Claim to Fame

2008-08-03T21:23:00.003-05:00

Well, not really my claim to fame. Many of you are now familiar with my sister-in-law Montee. She has a blog, she reads your blogs, and she frequently comments. What you may not know is that Montee is the wife of a well known minor league baseball manager for the Braves organization. Sometime last year, her husband was featured on SportsCenter for the following incident. I hope Montee doesn't mind me sharing this. I'm sharing it at the request of a couple of you who have heard the story. It is hilarious and although it doesn't come across on the video, he had legitimate reasons for such a tirade. Maybe Montee will comment on it sometime. I love it and I love him so enjoy!

More Thoughts on The Shack

2008-07-31T20:17:00.005-05:00

There's so much controversy with this book and I really don't get it. If you understand that William P. Young wrote it for his children, if you understand that he makes no claim to be a theologian, if you understand that it's fiction, why all the fuss? There are lots of criticisms but I want to focus on the one thing that seems to bother people the most. Much of the talk and outrage seems to be over the way God is characterized. This afternoon I was lying down with Little Sister, trying to get her to nap, and I don't know what got me thinking about it but I wrote this blog in my head...so here it is.

Big Sister asked me yesterday, "Mom, why can't we see God?" What a question. I wasn't really sure what the five-year-old answer is supposed to be. I think I said, "I don't know, but He's always with us and one day we will see Him and it will be great!" But as I lay there this afternoon with Little Sister I thought some more about my answer. The truth is, in a way, we do see God. All the time. It occurred to me that I ought to point Him out. Kind of like this:

Remember when you hurt yourself today and Daddy held you in his arms and kissed away your tears? That's what God looks like.

Today when your friend gave you her toy to take home just because she wanted to and she didn't ask for anything from you? That's what God looks like.

In fact, I ought not just point Him out, I ought to show her myself. We always talk about wanting people to see Jesus in us. What does God look like? When someone forgives...that's what God looks like. When someone makes a sacrifice for someone else...that's what God looks like. When someone gives to the poor...that's what God looks like. When someone adopts...that's what God looks like. I'm sure you could add many more and I'm sure you could think of at least one person in your life that in at least one moment, showed you what God looks like. And those people are men, women, young, old, black, white, rich, poor.

Is it really so terrible that a regular guy used the characters that he did to show a little bit of what God looks like in a story for his children? Why is it okay that C.S. Lewis portrays Him as a lion? Why is it okay that Evan Almighty portrays Him as an African-American man? 1 Samuel 16:7 says, "Man looks at the outward appearance but the LORD looks at the heart." I guess I think the critics of The Shack should look at the hearts of the characters. After all, we are all made in His image. And while no one on the planet could personify or even describe God completely, He is always there. And we can know Him. And like I told Big Sister, one day we will see Him and it will be great!

All I Really Need To Know I Learned in Kindergarten

2008-07-25T08:32:00.005-05:00

Or did I? Sometimes I think all I really need to know got ruined in Kindergarten.

A lot of my friends have first time kindergartners this year and a couple have written about it. You can read those posts below.

Amy
Sarah

I've had thoughts about this new phase of life as well. Big Sister couldn't be more excited about going to school. If she were apprehensive it would be really tough but she can't wait. She's definitely ready. For her birthday, she received a computer game called Jump Start Kindergarten and she's all over it. She loves to learn and can't wait to really start reading. She can't wait to play on the playground, eat lunch in the cafeteria and make new friends. And there are things I look forward to as well. Big Sister got good one on one time with me on the front end. Now it's Little Sister's turn. I'm looking forward to some special times with just me and her. I'm looking forward to getting to know some other people in our neighborhood. I'm looking forward to getting involved in her class, school, and ultimately, our community. I love school. I was a teacher, I'm married to a teacher, I'm the daughter of former teachers. WE LOVE all things SCHOOL.

But I worry...a little. Is she really supposed to go in that big building ALL BY HERSELF every day? What will happen after she walks through those doors? How will I know she made it to her room? We live right near the school and will walk most days. What if she gets in there and I leave and then she thinks she left something at home and then she tries to walk home and then...do you see where I'm going with this? I mean, the child still can't wipe her butt all that well. How's that going to work? Is she going to sit on the toilet yelling, "Teacher! TEACHER! CAN YOU COME WIPE MY BOTTOM?!?!"

But the thing that really gets me...the thing that makes me tear up when I look at her is this.

She's entering the real world.

Right now she believes that she's beautiful. She believes that she is smart. She believes that she is special. She likes what she likes and she has great enthusiasm about it. Right now she loves her little sister. Right now she wants to please her mom and dad more than anybody. But what will she learn in kindergarten? What will happen when another mean kid calls her ugly or stupid? What will happen when someone tells her Dora isn't cool anymore? And Little Sister is an annoying baby? And moms and dads don't know anything and are to be rebelled against? What if she's the mean kid and I just don't know it? Will I be one of those parents? Up until now I've been there to protect her. And I want to protect her from all that heartbreak and dysfunction that you learn in the real world. I want her to go on forever believing she is beautiful and smart and special. I want her to pave her own way and find her own passions and follow them despite what her peers think. I want her to want to be with her family more than anyone else in the world. But...

I keep thinking of something one of my mentors, Peggy, once told me. If I could be the perfect parent and if I could protect her from the troubles of this world, she would never know she needed Jesus. These things have to be faced. And I must point her to Jesus. She needs to know that, "Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Proverbs 31:30" She needs to know that smart is good but wisdom that comes from the Lord is what she really needs. She needs to know that Mom and Dad love her but we will fail her and no one can love her like Jesus. She needs to know that her life is not about her but about God and his glory. She needs to have her heart broken over sin. Lord, help me! I'm not ready for this! I know I'm being a bit melodramatic. Maybe she'll love her teacher. Maybe she'll make some great friends. Maybe she'll thrive. And maybe she'll learn to wipe her own butt in the next two weeks.

I don't know what the future holds but it reminds me of my own need for Jesus. It reminds me of all He's taught me and how he's brought me through difficult times. It reminds me how blessed I am in my life. It reminds me that He is in control. It reminds me that the difficult times have driven me to His Word and to my knees. It has been the difficult times that have taught me the most. I had difficult times in school and magical times in school. I'm sure there were times my mom thought we'd never survive it. But we did. And so will Big Sister by the grace of God. I guess it's best to just take it one day at a time, pray like crazy, and savor every moment. And God grant me grace if on the first day I stalk her on the playground.

The Secret Life of a Toddler

2008-07-18T14:14:00.006-05:00

It was 11:00p.m. when I finally got in the bed. I knew my alarm would go off at 4:00a.m. I was leaving town for 4 days to visit with my dad and sister in North Carolina and I had stayed up late making sure everything was in order and easy before I left. My plane was leaving at 6:20a.m. so I had to allow time to look decent, get to the airport, park in economy and check a bag. 4:00a.m. was the goal. I lay there thinking of how I needed to fall asleep in the next 30 seconds or I was going to be exhausted. I lay there thinking that I really should check the answering machine before I left. I lay there thinking there was one more book I left in the van that I wanted to be sure and grab to take with me. I lay there worrying about our babysitter taking the girls to the pool on Friday while my husband was at work. At 12:30a.m. I knew I was in trouble.

About the same time, little sister began to cough...and cough...and just when I'd begin to drift...she'd cough. At 1:38a.m. my husband got up and went upstairs. When he came back down about five minutes later I knew I had my next blog post.

Me: What did you DO up there?

Him: I gave her some cough medicine. (with a slight "duh" tone to his voice)

Me: WHAT cough medicine?

Him: There's a whole bottle of PediaCare cough medicine in their medicine box. It said for ages 2-6 give 1 tsp.

Me: The non-drowsy cough medicine?

Him: (Hesitating) I don't know, I didn't look.

Me: The last time we gave her that medicine, she was down here an hour later and tortured me for the next 5 hours.

Him: (Long pause for effect)...She'll be fine.

Great, I thought. She'll be fine. I have 2 1/2 hours left to sleep and he just gave Little Sister the kiddie cocaine. And I'm leaving town. So she'll torture me and then he has to deal with her in the morning. And then he's taking her to Danielle's while he has football practice so she can torture Danielle. Oy. I thought about this for the next 58 minutes...while he slept. That's when she arrived, almost on cue. I picked her up, took her upstairs and put her back in her bed ready to wait for the next time. By now I was down to 1 1/2 hours and so I just prayed, "Lord, let me fall asleep in 30 seconds and let that 1 hour and 29 minutes feel like 8." But alas, I lay there listening to Little Sister tossing and turning and doing who knows what, hoping for the best, expecting the worst, and not sleeping. At 3:30a.m. I didn't even want to fall asleep anymore for fear that I wouldn't wake up and would miss my plane completely. So I turned off the alarm and began to mentally write a list for my husband.

1. Don't forget to take a diaper bag to Danielle's.

2. Let Little Sister sleep until you're ready to take her.

3. Take her in her pajamas and have Danielle put her in a bed.

4. Don't forget the passie!

5. Don't let the babysitter take them to the pool.

6. If you do let the babysitter take them to the pool, don't tell me.

7. BUY THE RIGHT KIND OF COUGH MEDICINE.

8. Be patient. This is our fault after all. (Notice the use of the word "our"?)

At 4:00a.m. I went up to check on Little Sister. As I climbed the stairs, I heard voices. It took me a minute to figure it out. I began to realize that despite the dark, I could see remarkably well. Then I noticed a soft glow coming from the bonus room. There sat Little Sister, watching TV, at 4:00a.m. Wow. She very matter-of-factly informed me that she had a "poo-poo diaper". I changed her and put her back to bed, explained that we don't watch TV in the middle of the night and it was time to sleep. I went downstairs to get ready. My husband woke up long enough to ask, "Is she asleep?" "Nope," I said, "she was watching TV in the bonus room. I put her back in her bed."

At 4:45a.m. I was ready to go. I put my things in the car and came back in to say goodbye. I checked her one last time and when I opened the door she sat up and looked me right in the eye. Poor Daddy. Poor Danielle. I'm outta here. I said goodbye and left it in Daddy's hands and prayed all the way to the airport.

Turns out the Lord came through. The kiddie cocaine actually sustained her throughout the day. She was still her perky little self when I called to check on them last night at 7:15p.m. (I might need to try some of this stuff) I think we all slept pretty good last night. And I'd bet the house Daddy went to Walgreen's at some point yesterday...just in case.

Kids Meal Deals

2008-07-15T17:43:00.003-05:00

I recently wrote a post for isurfsumner.com on Kid's Meal Deals. To find a list of weekly deals for eating out with kids, check it out HERE. Please feel free to add any additional deals you know about in the comments section. I'm going to print out the list and keep a copy on my fridge and in my car. Today, we were all in the car at lunchtime and Jeff said, "Hey, let's go eat where the kids are free." Turns out Tuesday is a big day for kid's meal deals. We ended up at Dos Margaritas where kids eat free all day. I was so glad I had done the research and thanks to all those who helped compile the list! Check it out!

Wedded Bliss

2008-07-11T19:38:00.012-05:00

On Saturday, June 28th, my brother-in-law FINALLY got married. The best part? He waited all those years for the RIGHT one. Just love her. The wedding was held at a beautiful home in Mt. Juliet right on the river. My dad did the service so it really was a family affair. So sweet. I thought I'd post some pictures for you. Montee also posted on the wedding here.

The happy couple

My husband, my mother-in-law, and my girls.

Big Sister

Little Sister

Little Sister shaking her "booden" (bootie)

Little Sister shaking her "booden" after confiscating and eating as many custom M&M favors as she could find.

I Love Camping

2008-07-07T08:42:00.004-05:00

At least I thought I did. We bought a tent, sleeping bags, a lantern, a Coleman cooking stove, all the best stuff years ago with the intention that we would be campers. We wanted to retreat to the quiet of nature and explore with our daughters all the wonders there are to be found.

We went camping this past week (yes, I said "week") in South Carolina at Hartwell Lake. We met my sister and her husband and several of their friends who have huge, plush RV's so I was excited that we had some backup for our first camping venture. I love my sister, her husband, her baby and her friends. You wouldn't believe the food they cook and eat when camping. Smoked chicken, ribs, wings, pancakes, eggs, biscuits and sausage every morning. My sister and her husband took great care of us. But camping wasn't quite the romantic ideal I had in my mind. The sites were tight and we barely had room for our tent. Now I will say that Big Sister LOVED camping. She can't stop talking about it. Little Sister, on the other hand, heard the word "NO!" all day, every day. As in, "No! Don't eat that!" or "No, don't touch that!" or "No, don't stick that in the fire!" We had a lot of laughs but there were some challenges along the way. I learned a few things over the course of those few days. Here are just 10 of them...

1. Camping is not fun when you have a fever.
2. When you have a fever, an air conditioned RV comes in handy.
3. When you need to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night, an air conditioned RV comes in handy.
4. When the kids are bored, an air conditioned RV with Direct TV (no, I'm not kidding) comes in handy.
5. When your 2 year old is begging for a nap at noon, an air conditioned RV comes in handy.
6. When your 2 year old is begging for a nap at noon, mama has to stay behind while everyone else goes out on the boat swimming, fishing, and exploring...every day.
7. When your 2 year old is begging for a nap at noon and mama stays behind while everyone else goes out, it's the only time there is actually quiet.
8. In the dark of night, lying in a tent, nature is LOUD!
9. When you go camping, you must embrace the dirt. Thank God for it, because it will cover your children, your clothes, your food...everything. Uncle Pete really embraced it by wearing the same outfit every day. I'm pretty sure we will end up throwing away Big Sister's bathing suit.
10. They don't allow fireworks at state parks, not even on the 4th of July.

I learned so much more but I'll stop there. Notice there are no pictures from this trip. Remember what I said about the dirt? And the fever? We'll do it again though...someday.

The Choice

2008-06-29T18:32:00.002-05:00

My brother-in-law finally got married yesterday! We love his new wife and family and it was an incredible day I will write more about later. It's today that was tough. It was today I had to make a choice.

We were all exhausted from the weekend's activities. Sunday is the morning that I usually wake up and gladly make my family a wonderful breakfast all in an effort to start the day off right. (Saturday is Daddy's day to get up) The idea was that I wanted to avoid what I experienced as a teenager. You know what I'm talking about...by the time everyone gets in the car to go to church you've had several arguments, you all hate each other, and worship is the last thing on your mind. Well, I know when the girls are teenagers, it will be a bigger challenge but I'm still hoping to set some precedents now. The girls get up EARLY and every Sunday my husband and I would both lay there praying the other would get up and deal with them. Needless to say, that system didn't work very well so that's when we came up with the Daddy does Saturday, Mama does Sunday plan. No excuses, Sunday is my day and I will set the tone, and we WILL go to church happy.

Well, I haven't been feeling well this week and though I toughed it out some yesterday, I wasn't perky this morning. I got up, made cereal (some special breakfast huh?) and went back to the bed. To make a long story short, by the time we got in the car, both girls were crying and I wanted to leave them both on the side of the road somewhere. Then the Lord reminded me. He taught me a long time ago that I don't have control over much in this world but He has given me control over one thing...my choices. I make them. I can choose the flesh, or I can choose the Spirit...but I choose. So this morning on the way to church I made a choice. I chose to use a different tone of voice with the girls. I chose encouragement over sarcasm. I chose to ignore my flesh and ask the Holy Spirit to be my guide. I sure couldn't get going in a different direction without that power. Worship was amazing. I could write another post about that alone and maybe later I will but anyway...We got home and I still didn't feel too good, so I put everyone, including myself down for a nap as soon as we walked in the door, but as I laid down, I felt victorious...at least for the moment.

Whenever I think about choice, I think about something I read by Max Lucado years ago. I thought I'd share it with you. I hope it will remind you, you can't control all the circumstances of life and you can't control all the people in your life but God has given you control over one thing and it's HUGE. He's given you control over your choices. What will you choose?

Author, MAX LUCADO

It's quiet. It's early. My coffee is hot. The sky is still black. The world is asleep. The day is coming. In a few moments the day will arrive. It will roar down the track with the rising of the sun. The stillness of the dawn will be exchanged for the noise of the day. The calm of solitude will be replaced by the pounding pace of the human race. The refuge of the early morning will be invaded by decisions to be made and deadlines to be met. For the next twelve hours I will be exposed to the day's demands. It is now that I must make a choice. Because of Calvary, I am free to choose.

I choose Love.... No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness. I choose love. Today I will love God and what God loves.

I choose Joy.... I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical...the tool of the lazy thinker. I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings, created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God.

I choose Peace.... I will live forgiven. I will forgive so that I may live.

I choose Patience.... I will overlook the inconvenience of the world. Instead of cursing the one that takes my place, I will invite him to do so. Rather than complain that the wait is too long, I will thank God for the moment to pray. Instead of clinching my fist at new assignments, I will face them with joy and courage.

I choose Kindness.... I will be kind to the poor, for they are alone. Kind to the rich, for they are afraid. And kind to the unkind, for such is how God has treated me.

I choose Goodness.... I will go without a dollar before I take a dishonest one. I will be overlooked before I will boast. I will confess before I accuse. I choose goodness.

I choose Faithfulness.... Today I will keep my promises. My debtors will not regret their trust. My associates will not question my word. My wife will not question my love. And my children will never fear that their father will not come home.

I choose Gentleness.... Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice, may it only be in praise. If I clench my fist, may it only be in prayer. If I make a demand, may it only be on myself.

I choose Self-Control.... I am a spiritual being. After this body is dead, my spirit will soar. I refuse to let what will rot, rule the eternal. I choose self-control. I will be drunk only by joy. I will be impassioned only by my Faith. I will be influenced only by God. I will be taught only by Christ. I choose self-control.

Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control. To these I commit my day. If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek His grace. And then, when this day is done, I will place my head on my pillow and rest.

Miami

2008-06-22T20:30:00.017-05:00

Wow, I am so far behind on my blogging. It's been a fun-filled summer so far. With my husband home a lot more, I feel guilty getting on the computer all the time. But...I did want to show some pictures from my trip to Miami. My stepdad has worked in Miami for the last few years but whenever we've visited, it's always been back at home in St. Augustine, FL. Well, for the first time, my two sisters and I met in Miami for a girls and dad weekend. What a great time!
We got there early on Friday and checked into our hotel. He lives in a one bedroom bachelor pad so the girls spread out at a comfy hotel. We hung out at the pool and caught up with each other until my stepdad got off work. Finally, he picked us up, took us to his condo and then off to Coconut Grove. It was so beautiful and there were so many restaurants to choose from. We settled on something outdoors and had an amazing dinner. (By the way, I stuck to the Atkins diet the entire weekend!) Afterwards we were walking around and spotted a guy with some beautiful birds. The next thing I knew...After some dancing to an outdoor band and a little shopping, we finally crashed back at the hotel. We had a big day planned. My stepdad works for a yacht company and he arranged for us to spend the next day on a 67 ft. yacht. Wow, we were spoiled.
I felt like I was on an episode of Miami Vice. The boat had three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and air conditioning on the OUTSIDE. It was beautiful. As we rode around, we saw dolphins swimming with our boat several times. Miami is a beautiful city from the water. We cruised around in an area called Gables Estates (at least I think that's right) and saw homes like this. What do these people do?!? That night we ate a great dinner at Smith & Wollensky and then headed to South Beach to walk around and see the sights. We saw some beautiful hotels, amazing cars, and then a weird guy with snakes. The next thing I knew... We finally went back to the hotel and crashed. The next morning we went to see the grandparents, had lunch and then headed back to the airport to go home. It was such a fun-filled special weekend. I can't wait to do it again! Thanks Don! I love you!

Knock Knock

2008-06-13T09:27:00.003-05:00

This is little sister telling Knock Knock jokes. She and Big Sister love making up their own jokes which they think are hilarious. Little Sister uses the same punch line every time. Hopefully this won't ruin it for you but I think you may need some interpretation. Her punch line is always "Apple Juice".

The Valley of Achor

2008-06-12T08:17:00.008-05:00

I've been doing a new Bible study on women in the Bible. I learned something that first week that I haven't been able to get off my mind. We were studying Hosea and I came across a verse I hadn't read before. At least, I didn't remember it. But first, for those who aren't familiar with the story of Hosea, here's a little background.

Hosea was a prophet who married an adulterous woman. And it wasn't any accident, God told him to marry an adulterous woman. He married a woman named Gomer. As with many prophets in the Bible, Hosea's life reflected the message God spoke through him. Even the three sons Gomer bore represented part of the message. With names like Jezreel (God scatters), Lo-Ruhamah (not loved), and Lo-Ammi (not my people) it would seem the message is one of despair. Gomer represents Israel who, over and over again, turned to the worship of false gods and in essence committed spiritual adultery against the One True God. Israel was driven into a period of exile as Gomer was driven from her home. But it was for the purpose of purifying. Like only God can do, the message is not, "You've screwed up, so get out." God longs for His people to turn from their sin and He always takes them back. Hosea is ordered to continue loving Gomer. Not to tolerate her, not to put on a happy face for the outside world, not to lie about her, to continue loving her. And to go get her and bring her back. This is the message of what God does for Israel and for us.

God even changes the names of the sons to represent what He does. In Hosea 1:11, 2:1-2, He changes "God scatters" to "God sows", He changes "not my people" to "my people" and "not loved" to "my loved one". Incidentally, the name Gomer means "to complete". It comes from the root word, gamar, which means "to perfect or to finish". Cool, huh? It's easy to be hard on Gomer though. It's easy to think we're better. But Gomer represents us. We may not actually commit adultery in the sexual sense, but how often do our hearts turn to something else instead of God? He brings us back and we always find him the faithful one. Like always, it is not a story of what we do for God, we are the adulterous Gomer, it is a story of what God does for us. And one of the things He does for us is that thing I learned that I can't stop thinking about...

I can't get over Hosea 2:15.

There I will give back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope.

Let me explain. While Gomer/Israel is in exile, God says "I will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope." The word "Achor" means "trouble". I will make the Valley of Trouble a door of hope. I will make your Valley of Trouble a door of hope. I can't get that image out of my mind. And I can't help but think of where that door leads. How cool that Jesus says in Revelation 3:19-20

Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent. Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.

Our hope is in Christ. And he's not just waiting behind that door, he's knocking! He's calling out, "Here I am!". Oh how I pray that when I am in the Valley of Achor, I will quickly go to the door of hope.

Now the Valley of Achor in our lives may not always be a place of discipline. Maybe sometimes it is illness, or job loss, or unexplainable tragedy, or a million other difficult and confusing times we find ourselves in. I heard a story recently of a pediatric nurse who lost some fingers on her left hand in a lawnmower accident. She is still able to work because her right hand was not affected and she often deals with children who have suffered similar injuries in lawnmower accidents. Although she has suffered with her loss, she has said she will be a nurse like never before. God says He will turn the Valley of Achor into a door of hope.

I challenge you to write a post about a time when God turned your Valley of Achor into a door of hope.

Something New Under the Summer Sun

2008-06-04T18:23:00.009-05:00

Remember the days of old when there was nothing new under the sun? I'm talking about summer television. It used to be that the minute school let out and you actually had time to veg in front of the boob tube...nothing but reruns. Remember when the only thing to look forward to was Sunday night when they showed a Walt Disney World special, or as my husband remembers, The Wild World of Sports? Not anymore my friend. The networks finally wised up and started introducing new shows during the summer. Now, it's definitely questionable at times. Some summer shows seem like experiments before delving into the fall, but some are just great hits in my opinion. Now, if you're not a TV watcher, just go ahead and roll your eyes and skip this post. It's all about summer previews...what I'm already watching, what I can't wait to watch, and what is so ridiculous or foul I can't even believe they are trying it. First off...

STUFF I'VE BEEN WATCHING

The Mole - LOVE The Mole! Have you ever seen it? It's where twelve people come together to complete several missions to add money to a cash pot. Only there's a catch...one of them is THE MOLE. The mole tries to sabotage their efforts. Each episode, the cast takes a quiz on who they think the mole is and the person who answers the most questions wrong is eliminated. It's really interesting because many of the contestants are sabotaging in an effort to make the other players think they are the mole when they're really not the mole. I have my opinions on who the mole is but no one, including the television audience knows until the final episode. The editors do a great job of really keeping it hard to tell but there are clues along the way. Love a mystery? This is the show for you. And if you missed the first episode, you're not too far behind. It comes on ABC Mondays at 9 p.m. central.

Million Dollar Password - Remember this show? I love password. I have to say it is definitely one of those games that seems super easy from the couch but I'm sure it's extremely difficult in real life. If auditions ever come to Nashville, I am definitely IN! Sundays on CBS at 7 p.m. central.

So You Think You Can Dance - Worst name of a television show ever, but...very entertaining. Right now they are in the audition stages, American Idol style. There are lots of the terrible, embarassing, questionable auditions but there are lots of incredible auditions. Seriously, sometimes it brings tears to my eyes. I watched last year too and there were some performances that I saved on my Tivo for weeks because I watched them over and over again. You can see it on Fox Wednesdays at 7 p.m. central.

The Next Food Network Star - I've been dying for this show to come on. This is where contestants take part in culinary challenges and try to win their own show on the Food Network. They've had enough regular people on this show that I've considered auditioning in the past. I know that sounds nutty and I'm no culinary genius but I love the Food Network. How cool to travel to New York and film some shows! There's only been one episode so far and the challenges aren't super complicated. The Food Network aims to teach us regular folks some cooking skills so it can't get too difficult for their stars. It actually counts against the contestants if they're too fru-fru for the average Food Network viewer. Watch it on the Food Network Sunday nights at 9 p.m. central.

Top Chef - Like I said, I love a good cooking competition show. This one is a competition of great chefs from varied backgrounds competing for $100,000 prize and the title of Top Chef. This is not Hell's Kitchen...it's got way more class. These chefs are over the top good so I have no intention of picking up some good recipes but they are amazing to watch. The personalities and types of food are very diverse. And who wouldn't want to watch Tom Colicchio and Padma Lakshmi? It's almost over but you can catch the two part finale on Bravo Wednesdays at 9 p.m. central. If you've never seen it but think it sounds good, there are usually marathons that air periodically, especially before the finale.

The Bachelorette - I know, I know...it's like porn for women. I can't help it. I love seeing the romantic dates, trying to figure out who she's really into and who she's going to send home next. I watched The Bachelor when DeAnna got rejected and I want her to find LOVE. I'm addicted. The record for finding lasting romance is not very good on this show, but I'm a romantic at heart and I have hope. I'm not sure you can really be dating one guy one night and getting engaged to another the next but I try not to analyze to much. Calling it reality TV is a stretch, sure, but I don't always want reality when I'm vegging out, sometimes I want Cinderella. If you're not already watching, you're probably not going to start but it's on ABC Mondays at 7 p.m. central.

STUFF I'M LOOKING FORWARD TO

Design Star - Same thing as the Food Network Star, only with designing. I know tons of people that should audition for this show. Again, when I watch it, I'm tempted. The winner gets their own design show on HGTV. LOVE IT! It airs on HGTV starting June 8th at 8 p.m. central.

Nashville Star - Nashvegas has hit the bigtime baby! I have to admit that for unknown reasons, I couldn't get into American Idol this year. The contestants all seemed a little...plastic. They were very talented, just not all that engaging. Maybe I'm just over it. But as a true blue southern girl, I have high hopes for Nashville Star. It's been picked up by NBC and will start Monday, June 9th at 8 p.m.

Wipeout and I Survived a Japanese Game Show - Have you seen the previews for these? I'm sorry, I know it's cruel, but there's something about people flailing around, falling down, and looking like fools that makes me laugh hysterically. It's my natural reaction to laugh first and find out if you're okay second. I don't know what it is. I don't even know how to describe this show and if you've never seen those Japanese Game Shows, you are missing out. They both air on ABC starting June 24th at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. central.

Celebrity Circus - That's right people! Remember Circus of the Stars? Is anyone out there old enough to remember that? (Please say yes) This is where celebrities live the dream of every small boy and girl and train for the circus. It's some kind of competition but I haven't quite figured out how that works. The downside? I only recognized two of the celebrities, Christopher Knight, and Rachel Hunter. I'll still be tuning in. In the spirit of Wipeout (see above) maybe we can see some celebs make fools of themselves. Here's hoping. It's on NBC June 11th at 8:30 p.m. central.

Shear Genius - I know, you're like...what? It's on Bravo and it's along the lines of all the other reality TV competitions only this time...hairdressers! That's right people, cutting, coloring, and styling in a competition. If you're interested in the latest and greatest in hair, you've got to tune in. And yes, there will be hair disasters and crying clients as well. Now, I don't want to be judgemental but let's just say the personalities of the contestants are what you imagine them to be. And even better, it's hosted by Jaclyn Smith (she's from the original Charlie's Angels for you young ones) and her hair has always been fabulous...not Farrah mind you...but fabulous. It airs on Bravo June 25th at 9 p.m. central.

WHAT I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY'RE PUTTING ON TELEVISION

Swingtown - Seriously? A show about swingers in the 70's on regular prime time television. Now I'm no prude as you can see but the commercials make me uncomfortable for crying out loud.

Fear Itself - Can you say scary? I'm a big wimp when it comes to horror flicks and this looks like Friday the 13th. When you pull it up on NBC, a little box pops up letting you know it's rated TV-14. Enough said.

Well, enough for now. I did delete my other blog that was completely devoted to TV because although I'm a fanatic, I don't have time to blog about it all so this is my compromise. Let me know what you'll be watching and why. And while I plan to spend plenty of time travelling, being outside with my family, camping, and hanging out at the pool...here's to hoping there really is something new under the sun!