It seems like just yesterday we were making our way to DeKalb Medical. It's definitely hard to believe that our sweet Maggie has been a physical part of our lives for over a year now. I still remember her first cry and how so special it was to have just our party of 5 enjoy a family moment with her until the others came in. What a special day that was.
Maggie is doing so many things these days. She crawls around everywhere. She's slowly gaining the courage to let go and just stand there. She loves to "walk" around holding on to at least one finger from someone else. Or she likes to walk from one person to another within a few feet from each other. I'm not sure the word walk is accurate considering she takes maybe 2 steps and lunges forward.
She loves people. She says "hey" to just about everyone she sees. I think she's going to be smart like her brothers. She learns so quickly. Just today I did the "shhhh" with my finger at my lips and she copied exactly what I did. She will hold up her first little finger as if saying "1" when you ask her how old she is. She can point to her eyes, nose and ears when asked and she knows who everyone is. We will ask her "where's Bryce or where's Ethan" and she looks right at them and points.
Its been so different having just one baby this time. There's so many things that keep coming back to me from when the boys were that little. I still cannot believe we did it with two at once.
So, we had Maggie's party. Her birthday (8/17) was on a Tuesday and we did it the following Saturday. We did bright pink, green, purple and yellow colors. There were balloons everywhere. An amazing woman from our church, that was also Maggie's first Sunday school teacher) made her birthday cake and smash cake. It might of been the most beautiful AND delicious cake ever (and I'm a picky cake person!) We had a full house of family (and friends but they're so awesome they're considered family!) We took a few pictures but we didn't get any picture of the guests. Go figure!
We also celebrated her birthday on her actual birthday. Joe took the day off and we went to La Parilla for lunch. Maggie had her first cheese quesadilla and she ate every bite! Then for dinner we went to Olive Garden and Maggie had her first fettuccine Alfredo and garlic bread, which she also loved. We bought her an over sized cupcake and let her dig into that. She liked the cupcake OK. I noticed at her party she was the same way with her cake. I don't think she cares too much for the icing. That will make her daddy happy. He doesn't like icing either. We just enjoyed that week of celebrating our little girl.
Maggie definitely completes our family. Unless God chooses otherwise, we are finished with our baby making factory.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Never be the same
This summer has been quite a busy one! The boys went on many trips with their Grandparents and Joe and I got to go on our first Missions trip to the Dominican Republic.
It's amazing to see how God works but I really love seeing it when it is happening. That's what happened with this Missions Trip.
A few months ago, our children's minister put on his facebook status that he was looking for people that wanted to go on a Missions Trip to the Dominican. Of course, I was very interested but Joe was skeptical. As time passed we still were undecided about going. During the week of VBS, our friend Patti came up and asked me if Joe and I were going on the trip. She said that her daughter was probably going to go and wanted us to make sure she would be OK. Not that she isn't capable of doing so (she's an extraordinary girl) but because she's 16 and going off to another country. Then the same day, our children's minister came to me and said the airlines dropped the ticket prices $200. So, we booked the trip.
We arrived in Santo Domingo. We had a local Pastor waiting for us to take us to our Taxi. We went to our hotel to check in and I think we all thought the hotel was OK, nothing to brag about. We went sight seeing and then back to the hotel. Joe and I were terrified to brush our teeth with the running water so we kept a bottle of water in the bathroom.
The next morning we headed about 2 hours north to camp. We were going to a VBS type Christian camp to help with about 400 children from ages 5-16. I was not expecting to live the way we did for the next few days. It was so hot and so humid. The room we were in had a portable fan and that was all the air we had. The running water was cold and more of a drip than running, and the thought of washing my hands made me nervous. There were bugs, spiders and lizards everywhere. The shower water would come and go as it needed. We had to keep Off bug spray on us 24/7. If you know me, you know that this is a far stretch for me. I'm not the outdoorsy type much less the camping type. The first day at camp was one of the longest days of my life. I didn't know how we were going to survive 4 days living this way. That is until after dinner that first night. A little girl came up to me and grabbed my hand. I looked down at this beautiful little girl (about the same size as my boys) and said "hola." She spoke hardly any English and I speak little Spanish but I was able to learn her name and that she is 7 years old. She followed me to our room where we met the rest of the people in our group (there was 6 of us!) The little girl (Marie) showed me so much. She trusted me. She didn't know me and she came up to me, took my hand and followed me. The first night went a little quicker than the day.
The next day, many of the children were coming to our group. Throughout our time there we led praise time, we led an entire worship time (with a translator of course), we presented cardboard testimonies translated in Spanish and we prayed with the older kids. We helped with crafts and played sports. We sat talking to the kids, teaching them English while they taught us Spanish. The time flew by. We had such a great time with the Dominican children and Joe and I had a great time with our new friends or family which we now call them.
This trip has forever changed me. I realized what a spoiled American I am. I have so much to be thankful for and all though I am, it wasn't enough. The people in the DR have so little material wise. Their houses are as big as a shed. For most, camp is the only time they even get to look at a pool. But they're happy. The love of Jesus is more than enough for them. They didn't complain they praised. That first day, we all complained and we didn't realize it until our attitudes had changed. I am so thankful God showed me how He blesses me each day. I have forever been changed. I've learned that material things are just that...material! Life is about relationships, especially with Jesus.
It's amazing to see how God works but I really love seeing it when it is happening. That's what happened with this Missions Trip.
A few months ago, our children's minister put on his facebook status that he was looking for people that wanted to go on a Missions Trip to the Dominican. Of course, I was very interested but Joe was skeptical. As time passed we still were undecided about going. During the week of VBS, our friend Patti came up and asked me if Joe and I were going on the trip. She said that her daughter was probably going to go and wanted us to make sure she would be OK. Not that she isn't capable of doing so (she's an extraordinary girl) but because she's 16 and going off to another country. Then the same day, our children's minister came to me and said the airlines dropped the ticket prices $200. So, we booked the trip.
We arrived in Santo Domingo. We had a local Pastor waiting for us to take us to our Taxi. We went to our hotel to check in and I think we all thought the hotel was OK, nothing to brag about. We went sight seeing and then back to the hotel. Joe and I were terrified to brush our teeth with the running water so we kept a bottle of water in the bathroom.
The next morning we headed about 2 hours north to camp. We were going to a VBS type Christian camp to help with about 400 children from ages 5-16. I was not expecting to live the way we did for the next few days. It was so hot and so humid. The room we were in had a portable fan and that was all the air we had. The running water was cold and more of a drip than running, and the thought of washing my hands made me nervous. There were bugs, spiders and lizards everywhere. The shower water would come and go as it needed. We had to keep Off bug spray on us 24/7. If you know me, you know that this is a far stretch for me. I'm not the outdoorsy type much less the camping type. The first day at camp was one of the longest days of my life. I didn't know how we were going to survive 4 days living this way. That is until after dinner that first night. A little girl came up to me and grabbed my hand. I looked down at this beautiful little girl (about the same size as my boys) and said "hola." She spoke hardly any English and I speak little Spanish but I was able to learn her name and that she is 7 years old. She followed me to our room where we met the rest of the people in our group (there was 6 of us!) The little girl (Marie) showed me so much. She trusted me. She didn't know me and she came up to me, took my hand and followed me. The first night went a little quicker than the day.
The next day, many of the children were coming to our group. Throughout our time there we led praise time, we led an entire worship time (with a translator of course), we presented cardboard testimonies translated in Spanish and we prayed with the older kids. We helped with crafts and played sports. We sat talking to the kids, teaching them English while they taught us Spanish. The time flew by. We had such a great time with the Dominican children and Joe and I had a great time with our new friends or family which we now call them.
This trip has forever changed me. I realized what a spoiled American I am. I have so much to be thankful for and all though I am, it wasn't enough. The people in the DR have so little material wise. Their houses are as big as a shed. For most, camp is the only time they even get to look at a pool. But they're happy. The love of Jesus is more than enough for them. They didn't complain they praised. That first day, we all complained and we didn't realize it until our attitudes had changed. I am so thankful God showed me how He blesses me each day. I have forever been changed. I've learned that material things are just that...material! Life is about relationships, especially with Jesus.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Absolutely Pooped!!!
Yesterday started out in it's normal chaos. Procrastinating to get out of bed and get ready for church started it, as it normally does. We walked out of the door all with little attitudes. We apologized and everything was great from there. Typical Sunday morning...Satan tries everything he can think of to prevent us from going to church.
After church we came home, let Maggie take a nap and the boys go down to Joe's mom and dad's. After Maggie's nap, we went to Tanger Outlet. Shopped for just a few minutes then went to Babies R Us to buy Maggie's big girl nap. I have been quite excited about getting her this seat for quite sometime. Maybe it's because I did so much research on the "best" seat or maybe because it's a cow print. The lady at the checkout register said "that is the Lexus or Mercedes of car seats" so I was even more excited. We paid and came home. I got the seat out and begin looking it over making sure I knew how to operate it. Joe and I went out to the Pilot (yes! We traded in the van and got another black pilot, except this one is much better :) ) Here we are, in the hot hot sun trying to install this seat. I promise this is not the first convertible car seat I've ever installed but if you would have seen us, you would have thought differently. So, like I said, here we are in the HOT sun, getting extremely aggravated that we cannot figure this seat out. We get an attitude with each other and become quite snappy. Yes, it came with instructions but like I said...this isn't my first rodeo (I know, not an excuse.) FINALLY! We got it, duh...the instructions work! We got the kids and gathered in the pilot. Wait! Maggie's belt buckle was too far back! I told Joe I would just stay at home and he said, "it will be fine just to grab a bite to eat." So we did.
We got our food and got back in the Pilot. Joe made the comment about smelling poop. He asked if Maggie pooped and Bryce said that he had passed gas. So, we're heading home. I was riding in the middle with Mags when I look over at her and see that the bottle that she's playing with right next to her mouth. I grabbed the bottle and realized it was POOP! We made it home. Getting aggravated once again, thinking that we just spent a good bit of money on this "Lexus" car seat and Maggie has had a blowout in it. Of course, I didn't realize just how bad it was. I went to unlock the buckle when I see this big brown blob. EEEEK! Poop was EVERYWHERE! All over Maggie, all over her seat. I got her out, holding her at arms length. Joe is trying to get the boys and my niece Taylor inside, carrying all the food and turning off our home alarm. He came back to help me and just as I passed Maggie to him we hear PLOP! We look down and poop is falling onto our carport. So, I tell Joe to take Maggie straight to the bathtub. I needed to clean the carport off (flies are SO NASTY! They came right over!) so the poop wouldn't dry and needed to clean the seat off so it wouldn't dry on there. I got it all cleaned and went up to tend to Maggie. I walk in to the bathroom, where my niece and the boys were now watching Maggie and began choking. My boys had sprayed so much of our home fragrance spray from Bath and Body Works that I couldn't breath and it was all over the floor making it slippery to walk. I got the windows opened and the fans going. Now when I asked Joe to take Maggie to the bath I told him that it would be fine to keep her in her clothes. I was assuming that he would go ahead and run some water to make it easier for me. There is a reason we are not to assume. Maggie is in a dry tub, poop is all over the tub and she is crying. I get the poop off of her, let Joe take her in his lap and get the Clorox out to clean the tub. I get the tub cleaned and I'm running super hot water to make sure all the bleach is out and then run bath water to actually bathe Maggie. Joe says "I'm glad I put a pair of shorts underneath her since she doesn't have a diaper oooooon." Then I see him grabbed Maggie up and move her over as if she was....yep...peeing, and all over Joe and my bathroom rug. At this point the aggravation is at an all time high. All we could do was laugh. If you could only imagine what we went through in less than 2 hours.
After church we came home, let Maggie take a nap and the boys go down to Joe's mom and dad's. After Maggie's nap, we went to Tanger Outlet. Shopped for just a few minutes then went to Babies R Us to buy Maggie's big girl nap. I have been quite excited about getting her this seat for quite sometime. Maybe it's because I did so much research on the "best" seat or maybe because it's a cow print. The lady at the checkout register said "that is the Lexus or Mercedes of car seats" so I was even more excited. We paid and came home. I got the seat out and begin looking it over making sure I knew how to operate it. Joe and I went out to the Pilot (yes! We traded in the van and got another black pilot, except this one is much better :) ) Here we are, in the hot hot sun trying to install this seat. I promise this is not the first convertible car seat I've ever installed but if you would have seen us, you would have thought differently. So, like I said, here we are in the HOT sun, getting extremely aggravated that we cannot figure this seat out. We get an attitude with each other and become quite snappy. Yes, it came with instructions but like I said...this isn't my first rodeo (I know, not an excuse.) FINALLY! We got it, duh...the instructions work! We got the kids and gathered in the pilot. Wait! Maggie's belt buckle was too far back! I told Joe I would just stay at home and he said, "it will be fine just to grab a bite to eat." So we did.
We got our food and got back in the Pilot. Joe made the comment about smelling poop. He asked if Maggie pooped and Bryce said that he had passed gas. So, we're heading home. I was riding in the middle with Mags when I look over at her and see that the bottle that she's playing with right next to her mouth. I grabbed the bottle and realized it was POOP! We made it home. Getting aggravated once again, thinking that we just spent a good bit of money on this "Lexus" car seat and Maggie has had a blowout in it. Of course, I didn't realize just how bad it was. I went to unlock the buckle when I see this big brown blob. EEEEK! Poop was EVERYWHERE! All over Maggie, all over her seat. I got her out, holding her at arms length. Joe is trying to get the boys and my niece Taylor inside, carrying all the food and turning off our home alarm. He came back to help me and just as I passed Maggie to him we hear PLOP! We look down and poop is falling onto our carport. So, I tell Joe to take Maggie straight to the bathtub. I needed to clean the carport off (flies are SO NASTY! They came right over!) so the poop wouldn't dry and needed to clean the seat off so it wouldn't dry on there. I got it all cleaned and went up to tend to Maggie. I walk in to the bathroom, where my niece and the boys were now watching Maggie and began choking. My boys had sprayed so much of our home fragrance spray from Bath and Body Works that I couldn't breath and it was all over the floor making it slippery to walk. I got the windows opened and the fans going. Now when I asked Joe to take Maggie to the bath I told him that it would be fine to keep her in her clothes. I was assuming that he would go ahead and run some water to make it easier for me. There is a reason we are not to assume. Maggie is in a dry tub, poop is all over the tub and she is crying. I get the poop off of her, let Joe take her in his lap and get the Clorox out to clean the tub. I get the tub cleaned and I'm running super hot water to make sure all the bleach is out and then run bath water to actually bathe Maggie. Joe says "I'm glad I put a pair of shorts underneath her since she doesn't have a diaper oooooon." Then I see him grabbed Maggie up and move her over as if she was....yep...peeing, and all over Joe and my bathroom rug. At this point the aggravation is at an all time high. All we could do was laugh. If you could only imagine what we went through in less than 2 hours.
Thursday, May 20, 2010
Pay attention to now
Joe and I were watching videos of the boys when they were little. Oh how cute they were (and still are!) But we noticed something, all though they have changed physically and mentally...they are still the same. When Bryce was little he was anal about everything. Everything belonged somewhere and if it wasn't in it's place he would get all bent out of shape over it. He also loved playing with the broom. This sweet little one year old would try his very best to sweet our kitchen. When the broom fell, he would try desperately to pick it back up. It usually got caught in between his legs. And Ethan, he LOVED to fight. We would ask him "ya wanna fight?" and he would ball his little fists up and come over and to start fighting. There was one part of the home video where Joe was playing in the floor with the boys and they were "fighting." Ethan jumped on top of Joe, took his little hand, hit the floor saying "1, 2, 3...ding ding ding." I won, I won! If only we would have took a second to pay attention to what they were doing then we would have been able to see what they're doing now. Bryce still loves to clean. He will make his bed without being told, vacuum his room and help me. He loves doing the dishes, dusting, cleaning the cars, etc. He just doesn't like cleaning his own room. Ethan still loves to fight. He recently earned his gold belt in karate. This is his 3rd belt (white, white/gold, gold.) He wants to earn his black belt so bad. It was so sweet watching them on the video. It reminded me of so many things. It's hard to believe that my boys will be graduating kindergarten next week and in less than 3 months my little girl will be 1. Time flies. I am trying to cherish every moment I have with my children.
Monday, May 10, 2010
50? Hmmm....Now what??
For my 50th blog I decided to follow a friends idea.
Here are 25 things you might not know about me...
1. I am shy! I know I can talk to anyone but you have NO IDEA how many times I tell myself "you can do it!" Once that happens the shyness wears off.
2. I am scared of the dark but I LOVE to be in it as long as someone else is with me.
3. I am terrified of being all alone (especially at night time.)
4. I would rather hear sounds than pure silence, which is why I sleep with a fan at night.
5. If I have a story to share and I know in advance, I will practice it out loud over and over again to make sure I include every fact that I find interesting.
6. I tell the longest stories and I don't mean to. I just like to talk.
7. I am insecure.
8. I have the WORST memory! I NEVER intentionally forget something, it just happens!
9. I can look at you in the eye as you're talking but have the hardest time having eye to eye contact when it's me doing the talking (goes back to my insecurity)
10. I learn from my own mistakes and not from self help books or someone elses mistakes.
11. I purchased my wedding dress before I purchased my senior prom dress.
12. I do not know how to swim underwater without holding my nose.
13. I love organization, so much so that my DVDs are alphabetized and my clothes are categorized by colors in the Rainbow pattern!
14. As much as I love organization, I HATE cleaning! I wished we had a maid!
15. When I get nervous, I tug on my ears.
16. I am not good at keeping a conversation going and I sit and think about what to say.
17. I am not good at apologies. I feel like I can never make up for what I did.
18. I shave my arms! I do not like hair on my body!
19. I am a natural blond, especially before kids!
20. I wear kid shoes! Seriously! All of my tennis shoes are a size 3-3 1/2. I can wear a 5 1/2 in women's heels.
21. When I was little, I did not like my name so if I met a new person I would tell them that my name was either Monica or Tracy. By the way, I like my name now.
22. I've had 3 different last names!
23. When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a boy! All of my friends were boys so I didn't really know better. I even tried to potty like the boys. Now, I'm a high maintenance diva.
24. I cannot donate blood. I nearly died giving birth to our twins so they gave me a blood transfusion. Because of the transfusion and a blood clotting condition, I cannot give. So, side note: Please donate blood. It might just save someones life!
25. I hate confrontation. I want everyone to be happy and I struggle when they're not.
25 things I've come to know about myself:
1. The more I learn about Jesus, the more I learn about myself.
2. It's ok to admit you've made a mistake. People are more forgiving than I realized.
3. Loving Jesus more allows me to love others more.
4. I am a better person because of my husband.
5. I am a stronger person because of my children.
6. Believing in something that isn't true is still a lie, no matter how I word it.
7. I can be 100% of myself around the people that care.
8. Some people will never like me no matter how much I want them to.
9. If I put my mind to it, I can accomplish it.
10. I will not stop trying no matter how many times of saying "I'm tired of putting forth the effort."
11. My sins do follow me and will continue to follow me until I confess and repent.
12. I am addicted to NKOTB so much that you can almost call it an obsession.
13. I focus too much on weight loss and not enough on being fit and healthy.
14. I am getting older...I'm not 18 anymore!
15. I must get at least 8 hours of sleep or I'm not exactly myself.
16. Coffee IS awesome! Told you I was getting older!
17. I am not alone with my feelings.
18. I read into things too much.
19. I CAN ask for help. They offered because they wanted to, not just because they knew I would say no.
20. Breakfast does make me feel better throughout the day.
21. I am a minority! Joe and I married when I was 19 and he was 20. According to statistics, we should be divorced, remarried going through another divorce OR living the stereotypical single life. Instead, we will be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary. I can honestly say I love him more now than I did then!
22. I do like getting flowers and small gifts. I never thought they really mattered but now I think it's just a nice way of saying I was thought about. (not meaning to sound shallow...and not talking about elaborate gifts. I used to think and say to Joe that they were pointless....see I feel like I have to explain now.)
23. Constantly saying the word "like" annoys me. "And, like, I, like, totally, like, do not like, like it when, like, people, like, do this. Like, you, like know what I, like, mean?
24. I am a rule follower (does this make me lame?)
25. When I stop and listen, I can hear so much.
Wow! This was really hard for me. I do not like talking about myself. I can talk about my husband, kids, friends or pretty much anything much better than I can talk about myself. Well...THAT'S ALL FOLKS!
Here are 25 things you might not know about me...
1. I am shy! I know I can talk to anyone but you have NO IDEA how many times I tell myself "you can do it!" Once that happens the shyness wears off.
2. I am scared of the dark but I LOVE to be in it as long as someone else is with me.
3. I am terrified of being all alone (especially at night time.)
4. I would rather hear sounds than pure silence, which is why I sleep with a fan at night.
5. If I have a story to share and I know in advance, I will practice it out loud over and over again to make sure I include every fact that I find interesting.
6. I tell the longest stories and I don't mean to. I just like to talk.
7. I am insecure.
8. I have the WORST memory! I NEVER intentionally forget something, it just happens!
9. I can look at you in the eye as you're talking but have the hardest time having eye to eye contact when it's me doing the talking (goes back to my insecurity)
10. I learn from my own mistakes and not from self help books or someone elses mistakes.
11. I purchased my wedding dress before I purchased my senior prom dress.
12. I do not know how to swim underwater without holding my nose.
13. I love organization, so much so that my DVDs are alphabetized and my clothes are categorized by colors in the Rainbow pattern!
14. As much as I love organization, I HATE cleaning! I wished we had a maid!
15. When I get nervous, I tug on my ears.
16. I am not good at keeping a conversation going and I sit and think about what to say.
17. I am not good at apologies. I feel like I can never make up for what I did.
18. I shave my arms! I do not like hair on my body!
19. I am a natural blond, especially before kids!
20. I wear kid shoes! Seriously! All of my tennis shoes are a size 3-3 1/2. I can wear a 5 1/2 in women's heels.
21. When I was little, I did not like my name so if I met a new person I would tell them that my name was either Monica or Tracy. By the way, I like my name now.
22. I've had 3 different last names!
23. When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a boy! All of my friends were boys so I didn't really know better. I even tried to potty like the boys. Now, I'm a high maintenance diva.
24. I cannot donate blood. I nearly died giving birth to our twins so they gave me a blood transfusion. Because of the transfusion and a blood clotting condition, I cannot give. So, side note: Please donate blood. It might just save someones life!
25. I hate confrontation. I want everyone to be happy and I struggle when they're not.
25 things I've come to know about myself:
1. The more I learn about Jesus, the more I learn about myself.
2. It's ok to admit you've made a mistake. People are more forgiving than I realized.
3. Loving Jesus more allows me to love others more.
4. I am a better person because of my husband.
5. I am a stronger person because of my children.
6. Believing in something that isn't true is still a lie, no matter how I word it.
7. I can be 100% of myself around the people that care.
8. Some people will never like me no matter how much I want them to.
9. If I put my mind to it, I can accomplish it.
10. I will not stop trying no matter how many times of saying "I'm tired of putting forth the effort."
11. My sins do follow me and will continue to follow me until I confess and repent.
12. I am addicted to NKOTB so much that you can almost call it an obsession.
13. I focus too much on weight loss and not enough on being fit and healthy.
14. I am getting older...I'm not 18 anymore!
15. I must get at least 8 hours of sleep or I'm not exactly myself.
16. Coffee IS awesome! Told you I was getting older!
17. I am not alone with my feelings.
18. I read into things too much.
19. I CAN ask for help. They offered because they wanted to, not just because they knew I would say no.
20. Breakfast does make me feel better throughout the day.
21. I am a minority! Joe and I married when I was 19 and he was 20. According to statistics, we should be divorced, remarried going through another divorce OR living the stereotypical single life. Instead, we will be celebrating our 10th wedding anniversary. I can honestly say I love him more now than I did then!
22. I do like getting flowers and small gifts. I never thought they really mattered but now I think it's just a nice way of saying I was thought about. (not meaning to sound shallow...and not talking about elaborate gifts. I used to think and say to Joe that they were pointless....see I feel like I have to explain now.)
23. Constantly saying the word "like" annoys me. "And, like, I, like, totally, like, do not like, like it when, like, people, like, do this. Like, you, like know what I, like, mean?
24. I am a rule follower (does this make me lame?)
25. When I stop and listen, I can hear so much.
Wow! This was really hard for me. I do not like talking about myself. I can talk about my husband, kids, friends or pretty much anything much better than I can talk about myself. Well...THAT'S ALL FOLKS!
Friday, May 7, 2010
Happy Friday for Mom's
What a sweet day today has been. The boys school had a Mother's Day luncheon for all the mommy's of Kindergartners today. We waited until they allowed us to go down to the classrooms and then got to go in. The boys teacher, Mrs. Lavinka, had the room decorated so nice. She had a "big" chair for the moms and the children's little chairs for them. When we arrived to the classroom the kids were out playing while Mrs. Lavinka shared with us some ideas and a story. As I sat and listened to the story I tried to think of something else because I could feel the tears building up in my eyes. I didn't want to cry but I couldn't hold it any longer. As I looked around the room, I quickly noticed I wasn't the only mom trying to hold back tears and failing miserably. So, because this story is not only very sweet but it is so true. Here is the story:
A young mother writes: "I know you've written before about the empty-nest syndrome, that lonely period after the children are grown and gone. Right now I'm up to my eyeballs in laundry and muddy boots. The baby is teething; the boys are fighting. My husband just called and said to eat without him, and I fell off my diet. Lay it on me again, will you?"
OK. One of these days, you'll shout, "Why don't you kids grow up and act your age!" And they will. Or, "You guys get outside and find yourselves something to do . . . and don't slam the door!" And they won't.
You'll straighten up the boys' bedroom neat and tidy: bumper stickers discarded, bedspread tucked and smooth, toys displayed on the shelves. Hangers in the closet. Animals caged. And you'll say out loud, "Now I want it to stay this way." And it will.
You'll prepare a perfect dinner with a salad that hasn't been picked to death and a cake with no finger traces in the icing, and you'll say, "Now, there's a meal for company." And you'll eat it alone.
You'll say, "I want complete privacy on the phone. No dancing around. No demolition crews. Silence! Do you hear?" And you'll have it.
No more plastic tablecloths stained with spaghetti. No more bedspreads to protect the sofa from damp bottoms. No more gates to stumble over at the top of the basement steps. No more clothespins under the sofa. No more playpens to arrange a room around.
No more anxious nights under a vaporizer tent. No more sand on the sheets or Popeye movies in the bathroom. No more iron-on patches, rubber bands for ponytails, tight boots or wet knotted shoestrings.
Imagine. A lipstick with a point on it. No baby-sitter for New Year's Eve. Washing only once a week. Seeing a steak that isn't ground. Having your teeth cleaned without a baby on your lap.
No PTA meetings. No car pools. No blaring radios. No one washing her hair at 11 o'clock at night. Having your own roll of Scotch tape.
Think about it. No more Christmas presents out of toothpicks and library paste. No more sloppy oatmeal kisses. No more tooth fairy. No giggles in the dark. No knees to heal, no responsibility.
Only a voice crying, "Why don't you grow up?" and the silence echoing, "I did."
Erma Bombeck
I find myself crying just as I write the story. I get compliments all the time about how well mannered and well behaved my boys are and what a sweet baby Maggie is, but I am the first one to get on to them when they slip up and forget to do something. I have to stop and remember that my boys are a gift from God. They are not good children because I made them that way, they are good children because of God. I should not take the praise when someone compliments me but, give the praise to God. He deserves the glory! After all, I didn't make myself a mom. He allowed me to become one. He has guided me and shown me, even if it did mean learning from my own mistakes at times. I am so thankful to celebrate my 6th Mother's Day this coming Sunday. I love my children so much.
A young mother writes: "I know you've written before about the empty-nest syndrome, that lonely period after the children are grown and gone. Right now I'm up to my eyeballs in laundry and muddy boots. The baby is teething; the boys are fighting. My husband just called and said to eat without him, and I fell off my diet. Lay it on me again, will you?"
OK. One of these days, you'll shout, "Why don't you kids grow up and act your age!" And they will. Or, "You guys get outside and find yourselves something to do . . . and don't slam the door!" And they won't.
You'll straighten up the boys' bedroom neat and tidy: bumper stickers discarded, bedspread tucked and smooth, toys displayed on the shelves. Hangers in the closet. Animals caged. And you'll say out loud, "Now I want it to stay this way." And it will.
You'll prepare a perfect dinner with a salad that hasn't been picked to death and a cake with no finger traces in the icing, and you'll say, "Now, there's a meal for company." And you'll eat it alone.
You'll say, "I want complete privacy on the phone. No dancing around. No demolition crews. Silence! Do you hear?" And you'll have it.
No more plastic tablecloths stained with spaghetti. No more bedspreads to protect the sofa from damp bottoms. No more gates to stumble over at the top of the basement steps. No more clothespins under the sofa. No more playpens to arrange a room around.
No more anxious nights under a vaporizer tent. No more sand on the sheets or Popeye movies in the bathroom. No more iron-on patches, rubber bands for ponytails, tight boots or wet knotted shoestrings.
Imagine. A lipstick with a point on it. No baby-sitter for New Year's Eve. Washing only once a week. Seeing a steak that isn't ground. Having your teeth cleaned without a baby on your lap.
No PTA meetings. No car pools. No blaring radios. No one washing her hair at 11 o'clock at night. Having your own roll of Scotch tape.
Think about it. No more Christmas presents out of toothpicks and library paste. No more sloppy oatmeal kisses. No more tooth fairy. No giggles in the dark. No knees to heal, no responsibility.
Only a voice crying, "Why don't you grow up?" and the silence echoing, "I did."
Erma Bombeck
I find myself crying just as I write the story. I get compliments all the time about how well mannered and well behaved my boys are and what a sweet baby Maggie is, but I am the first one to get on to them when they slip up and forget to do something. I have to stop and remember that my boys are a gift from God. They are not good children because I made them that way, they are good children because of God. I should not take the praise when someone compliments me but, give the praise to God. He deserves the glory! After all, I didn't make myself a mom. He allowed me to become one. He has guided me and shown me, even if it did mean learning from my own mistakes at times. I am so thankful to celebrate my 6th Mother's Day this coming Sunday. I love my children so much.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
Weighting Patiently
Huh? Weighting Patiently? That girl cannot spell! Hahaha! Oh but, yes, you get it...it has to do about...weight! Several months ago I was getting ready to go out of the house. I was ready to face the day. My make-up was on and I was having a good hair day (those are few and far between sometimes!) I made my final stop to the mirror where I could double check to make sure I looked decent. To my surprise, there was another woman looking back at me. She was chubby. She had chipmunk cheeks, Fred Flinstone feet. Her clothes were just about too tight and she looked sad. I did not recognize her at all. Not until one of my boys came up and gave me a hug. That other woman was me. I have never struggled with weight. On my wedding day (in my dress!!) I weighed 104! I gained a few pounds after being married but never topped 115. Then of course, got pregnant, and reached a weight of over 240 pounds. Yes I was pregnant with twins but come on, lets be realistic. Both of my babies added up to 12 pounds! It wasn't all pregnancy weight. I joined weight watchers after them and hit a weight that I was comfortable with. Then, we decided to try for Maggie and quit WW. Now that Joe and I are both at peace with not having any more children, I decided to give my weight loss one more chance. I am so excited! I have worked my booty off! I am now at my "comfortable" WW weight and still losing! I have a healthy body mass index and I have more energy. I have more confidence and I feel like I smile all the time. I am so excited. My ultimate goal is to become addicted to exercising (because I still battle with that one!) and have a passion for staying fit and healthy (which, I'm pretty much there!) The hardest thing for me to learn is that pounds don't shed by themselves. You have to change and wait patiently to see the results. So, today, I am patting myself on the back. I want to be around for a long time. I want to see my grandchildren...ONE DAY!
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