Then and Now

This post is for those readers who are not on Facebook but asked to see these photos.

The week before my 20-year high school reunion, classmates began changing their Facebook profile pictures to their senior year photo from high school. I eventually agreed to play along and posted this photo which generated more laughter on Facebook than any other photo I have ever posted.

THEN (circa 1990)

NOW (just before the 20-year reunion)

CFA Date Knight

I could probably list a hundred reasons why we love Chick-Fil-A, and their annual "Date Knight" for mothers and sons would certainly be one of them.  Here are a few photos from the event my son and I attended this month.  Most of these photos were provided by CFA's photographer.

We were surprised and plesaed to see some old friends from our previous neighborhood seated across from us.

My boy still loves receiving hugs from the CFA cow.

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Weird and wacky weeks wield wonders

We've had a series of strange events take place lately.  For example, last Thursday, my husband woke up to the sounds of a woman screaming in horror.  He feared that something terrible must be happening to this poor victim based upon her bloodcurdling cries.  So, he drove down the road to the source of the screams.  There, he found a woman alone in her driveway staring at the winding road.  He tried to calm her, and she eventually regained her composure long enough to explain that a car had just run over her dog.  The car kept speeding away without stopping to look back.  Later, her dog ran out of the house.  The dog seemed fine, but having witnessed the car hit her beloved pet completely dismantled her.

Then that evening, my husband went out into our backyard to move the sprinklers when a large doe turned the corner and ran right over him.  Thankfully he was not hurt, but I will never listen to the song, "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" the same again.  From now on,  my ears will surely hear these lyrics instead:

My man just got run over by a brown deer.
Coming out of our house Friday Eve. 
You may say there's no such thing as Bambi.
But as for me and Hubby, we believe.

On Friday, my bike ride was cut short when a major intersection in our neighborhood was blocked off by two firetrucks, a police car, and an ambulance signaling more drama in the 'hood.

We spent the weekend in my hometown for my high school reunion.  Being surrounded by so many long lost friends whom I haven't seen in over 20 years was bizarre.  I felt like I was 16 again all weekend. 

An exceptionally busy week rendered me sleep deprived and headache laden. By Thursday evening, I felt sick and exhausted.  So, I asked the kids to give me some space for a few quiet moments.  Instead of being hurt or angered by my request, they rushed off to the craft room.  They returned bearing cards, drawings, paper flowers, and silly smiles.

 

Our daughter likes to bring cheer by offering gifts.  Our son likes to draw pictures of flowers for others, but his specialty is making me laugh.

When I went to bed much later that evening, I found a "love" themed vase filled with more tissue flowers and another card lying on my bedside table. 

The following day it rained during our daughter's recess time at school, so she made me a "snow cone" during that time instead of playing outside.

I love the way my kids....
      .....take time to turn tiny trials into times of tender thoughtfulness.

A few more kid quotes

Shortly before bedtime the other day, my 4-year old said, "Let's go outside and play connect-the-dots with the stars."

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The kids have been learning the states and capitals over the past few weeks.  Whenever our daughter sees the name of a state or capital on a street sign, in a book, on an orange, etc. she likes to then state the corresponding capital or state.  When she saw the word "California" last week, she told me that the capital of California is "Scram-ma-mento". 

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While doing math with my 4-year old, I said, "Good job, buddy. You're so smart." 

He replied, "Smart? But I want to be wise."

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After our 4-year old recited one of his AWANA verses which reads, "He has made everything beautiful in its time" (Ecclesiastes 3:11), I asked him, "What is something beautiful that God has made?".

I expected him to say "flowers" or the "ocean", but instead he replied, "You, Mommy!"

Perhaps he should memorize Proverbs 31:30 next.

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While preparing for my 20-year high school reunion this past weekend, I spent a few moments reminiscing and coordinating logistics with my "bff" from middle school.  After middle school, she had gone on to become our beautiful homecoming queen and now maintains her good looks while enjoying an extravagant lifestyle in Manhattan.  She said she looked forward to meeting my children, but I warned her of their tendency to give copious amounts of affection.  Then I showed my 4-year old a photo of my friend and told him that he had her permission to give her a hug at the reunion if he would like.

He replied with a smile, "Oh yea, I'm so ready for her!"

Kids enjoying the carousel during the reunion picnic

Conquering the Corn Maze

It seems that our schedule is always full to overflowing when the golds and reds on the leaves begin showing.  I love the colors and temperatures that characterize the arrival of Autumn, but when fall comes, I do tend to fall behind on my blog updates.  I'll begin playing catchup by posting a few photos from a family outing we took to the corn maze during the first weekend of the Autumnal equinox.

The straw bale, rope, and corn mazes were fun, but the kids' favorite activity was playing in the corn pit.

Art Linkletter would have liked my kids

While riding in the car today, the 7-year old said, "Mom, when Daddy drives us places, he teaches us all about how cars work.  We've learned about acceleration verses speed, gear shafts, odometers, and tachometers."

Then the 4-year old said to his sister, "While driving to school to pick you up the other day while Mommy was at the dentist, he told me how the engine operates."

Then I reminded them that today they will learn their memory work for the week so they need to pipe down in order to hear the memory work songs that were playing in the vehicle's CD player.

Next, I overheard the kids whispering to one another.  Joey said,  "Maybe Mom just doesn't know anything about cars that she can teach us."

At this point, I was trying to decide which embarrassing photo of him

to post on my blog as payback.  Let's see, how about this one?

Toothless grin @ 9 months old

His sister came to my defense by saying, "No, surely she knows something about cars because she was once an engineer, remember?  Besides, I think she had to take a driving class in school."

Thanks for the attempt at giving props, honorable Lucy, Queen of Narnia.

Costume by Grandma

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Having your kids repeat words you've said in the past can bring either shame or blessing. This week it brought a blessing. After receiving the world's best good night hug from my 4-year old, he said, "I'll always love you Mom...but never forget that God loves you even more."

For that sweet comment, I think I'll post a more dignified photo of the boy.

11 months old

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Joey's father gave him a much needed haircut this week right before our scheduled Mother/Son "Date Knight" at Chick-Fil-A.  When I told Joey about our evening plans, he asked, "What's a date?"  So, my goal for the evening was to demonstrate for him an example of a respectable, Christ honoring date.

My date for the "knight" before his haircut

After our medieval themed date (accessories compliments of CFA)

After our date, this sweet knight ran up to me and give me a great big hug.  While he was still in my arms, I muttered, "How could someone like me end up with such a sweet, lovable, cute little boy?"  

He replied, "Because Daddy gives me really nice haircuts, that's why."

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Art Linkletter loved children for both their honesty and their innocent mistakes.  So since this post is dedicated to him, I'm afraid I must include one more snippet that that will end this blog post on less dignified note.  Our right-brained daughter loves to write imaginative tales.  She is always writing and illustrating creative stories and poems, but she usually chooses to ignore all the grammar and spelling rules I have been trying to drill into her brain over the past few years.  At times, I have read her stories aloud using the punctuation and spelling she used rather than than what I know she intended to convey so that she can understand that proper spelling and grammar are required to effectively communicate through writing.

This week, she created a small book about horses. However, she misspelled the title.  Thankfully, she did not misspell the word "horses" to the point that it correctly spelled a different word, but the error did resemble a less respectable word enough for me to require her to make a new cover with correct spelling before giving the assignment to her teacher.  I did not tell her why the misspelling bothered me so much this time, however.

The reason I often post blog entries about the amusing things my kids say and do is because these types of posts make me smile.  The health benefits of smiling are numerous (read more here), and I really need those benefits, so expect these types of posts to continue.

Little Lego Lover Builds a Robot All By Himself

One day last month, our 4-year old woke up before me and ventured into his daddy's Lego & computer equipment warehouse office. He decided that he wanted to build a Lego robot all by himself.  Upon waking up that day, I found him in his daddy's office looking over the instructions for the base assembly. 

He quickly assembled the base without any problems.

Then he consulted the Lego computer program for additional build instructions.

Finally, he selected the motions he wanted the robot to perform, received a few programming tips from his father, and programmed his robot.  He completed the entire project all by himself.  I'm convinced that the Lego company will continue to thrive for many more generations to come because all boys are born with LEGO skills ingrained inside their DNA.

Joey's robot only spins around in circles while firing pellets, but considering that he programmed it all by himself, I think he's well on his way to becoming a techie programmer, just like his Digital Age Dad.

Random Ramblings

Random ramblings regarding recent reflections:

1. Our son gets the award for the most wacky random quote of the week when he said to me, "Mom, when I was a baby in your tummy I thought the world was made of cotton balls."    
2. We've been working with the kids on their attitudes about chores and school work.  I got an encouraging report from our daughter's teacher today, and while the kids were doing their Saturday morning chores, I saw a marked improvement in attitude.   There's nothing quite like a little "par-tay" song to improve one's attitude.
   
   Exhibit A
   
   
3. Temperatures climbed back into the high 80s this past week.  So you can imagine my surprise when the kids woke me up Friday morning to tell me that the golf course was covered in snow.  What I discovered when I looked outside was obviously not snow, but the way the morning sunlight reflected off of the dew on the grass did give the greens a white hue.
4. Our community group (small group within our larger church life class) met last night.  This meeting was especially unique because our brave hosts encouraged us to bring our kids which is a first for our group.  Inviting kids was especially daring considering that the last time two of our kids played together, one ended up in the ER.  We just love this group and are so grateful for their company in any setting - even if that setting involves 13 energetic kids buzzing all around spewing chaos and giggles as they go.
5. The See You At the Pole™ Global Day of Prayer was held this past Wednesday.  It was a great privilege to stand with our daughter, her teachers, classmates, and other parents next to Old Glory and pray for her school, our community and our nation. Read more here.

God knows our anxious thoughts

This past week, I have taken delight in the fact that our infinite God knows our every thought and loves all of His children enough to care about their smallest concerns.

A Recent Example

When I relocated to a different state to get married over ten years ago, I eventually lost touch with one of my closest friends.  She served as my bridesmaid, but after my wedding (and hers that soon followed), the distance between us and busyness of life caused us to drift apart.

Our family recently decided to drive through her state on the way back from Disney World this fall, so I tried to contact her using the only email address I had for her with the hopes of planning a stop to see her, but that email address bounced. I hoped that I would eventually figure out an easy way to get her updated contact information.

The very next day after our homeschool co-op meeting, I received an "accidental email" from her.  As it turns out, she had also joined Classical Conversations (CC), the same homeschool co-op we have been involved in over the past 3 years.  (CC began in my home state but has spread across the U.S. and the world.) She belongs to a local CC chapter in her city.  She had sent out a mass email in which she provided a memory work music resource for the geography curriculum for this cycle (all groups study the same curriculum each year with the cycles repeating every three years), and had accidentally included me on the email distribution.  So, not only did we reconnect, but she also sent me a valuable resource that is very applicable for our current homeschooling studies.  It was as if God knew how difficult it may have been for me to find her updated contact info, so He redirected her email to me to ensure that we connected in person next month.

More Examples

I have been a tad depressed this past week regarding the accelerated aging taking place within me.  A recent skin age test indicated that I have the skin of someone 8 years older.  Having my son ask me if I was born when Bible characters were still alive (see previous post) did not help any.

My back and neck pains returned this past week as my knee pains have been worsening.  Walking, prolonged sitting, climbing stairs, squatting and lunging cause pain.  Running is impossible.  Staying active and running have been primary methods of stress management for me, so these prolonged pains have really made me feel old.  I have consulted with countless doctors and physical therapists with no real signs of improvement.  Last week, I took a neurospinal function test and in every category, my scores reflected the body of someone much older.   Hopefully, I have now found someone who can make a difference and bring about real improvement in those scores.  We test again in three months.

So, given that long introduction, today, God reminded once again that He knows my anxious thoughts.

"Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts." (Psalm 139:23)

I attended a mandatory training session for the wives of deacons this morning.  The speaker, Ann, spoke straight to my heart as she suggested to the wives that while our role as our husband's help mate in ministry is vital, God may choose to use us individually as well.

Lately, I have been reflecting on ministry fruitfulness. I often feel like my life had more purpose and spiritual fruit as a single woman than it does now.  That was a season when I could more easily devote all my time and attention to the Lord without all the distractions and busyness that comes with being a wife and a mother. While I know my new role is just as important and cherish my time discipling my children, I don't find that I have energy or time left for much ministry outside of the home after tending to the needs of my children and supporting my husband in his roles as worship leader with the praise team, life class teacher, and now, deacon.  There has been a yearning inside of me to do more for the kingdom while wondering how and when I'll ever find the time.

Ann challenged us to pray for God to give us divine appointments as we go about our daily routine.  She has found that by just simply making a conscious effort to speak to those around her at worship services has been a way of receiving those divine appointments.  She shared several examples such as the story of Amy (not her real name).  This young lady wore an expression of great despair, anxiety, and weariness.  Ann invited her to a quiet place to talk.  There the young woman poured out her heart and her troubles.  She was single, pregnant, trying to give up a drug addiction, and unsure what she believed about God.  She was homeless and helpless.  Ann comforted and encouraged her, and directed her to the people in our church who can provide her with much needed counseling and material resources from our church's benevolence ministry.

As Amy was leaving, Ann noticed that Amy's tattered shoes no longer fit and were causing her great discomfort.  So, Ann told her about our church's clothes "closet" and took her up to the large clothing area in search for shoes in Amy's size.  Ann silently prayed for the Lord to supply shoes that would fit.  When Amy saw the array of shoes, she was immediately drawn to one lovely pair in great condition.  Would they fit?  Amy said she wore an 8 wide.  Finding such a specialty size would take a miracle, but it just so happened that the first pair Amy selected were precisely her size.  Amy was blessed in a great way that day, but Ann thinks she was blessed even more. Experiencing God's miracles first hand is always so encouraging.  When we commit to be a blessing to someone, we will usually receive a blessing in return.

Speaking of blessings, as each woman left the training, the deacon ministry gave her two long stemmed red roses. 

With that lesson fresh in my mind, I asked the Lord to send me a divine appointment as I walked into the worship service following the training.  My husband was singing with the praise team so I tried not to be too distracted by his handsome face displayed on the big screens around the worship center.  When I turned my eyes away from my man to my God, I felt myself being ushered into God's presence.

After the wonderful worship time, I turned to the kind elderly gentleman seated next to me to speak a word of greeting and cheer to him.  With a warm smile, he looked at me and saw the children's program's security child pick-up slips in my hand.  He said, "Surely, you are not old enough to have children."  He asked my age and looked at me with great surprise when I told him.  I never thought I would thank the Lord for presbyopia, but age related loss of eyesight surely enabled that man to see me as a young girl instead of the middle aged woman that I am. I tried to bless him, but he gave me a blessing instead.  I was reminded that I should not be worrying over the passage of time and the effects of aging.  It's all relative, and it's all in God's hands.  I left the worship service with renewed hope for physical healing and a renewed focus on that which is eternal.

"Lift up your eyes to the heavens, look at the earth beneath; the heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment and its inhabitants die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail." (Isaiah 51:6)

As I was reflecting on Ann's presentation and the gentleman's comment, the Lord reminded me of the prayer of Jabez.  Jabez's mother choose the name "Jabez", which means "sorrow", because his birth caused her so much pain.

^"Jabez cried out to the God of Israel, 'Oh, that you would bless me and enlarge my territory! Let your hand be with me, and keep me from harm so that I will be free from pain.' And God granted his request."  (1 Chronicles 4:10)

I know how difficult it is to be effective in ministry when overcome by pain. I need to pray in faith as Jabez did.

Oh gracious God, please help me to be effective in my ministry as wife and mother.  In your timing and according to your will, please expand my ministry, and finally, please keep me from further injury that I might be free from pain.

Thank you, Lord, for knowing our hearts and loving us anyway.

Yet another reason why my children make me feel old

 

Joey (age 4):  Mom, if Nana is 70 now, she will be 71 next year.   
                       When she's done with the 70s, then she'll be 80.  
                       When she's done with the 80s, then she'll be 90.  
                       When she's done with the 90s, she'll be 100.  
                       When she's done with the 100s, she'll be 200.

Me:                People can't live to be 200.

Joey:              My great-great-great-great-grandmother did.
 
Me:               No son, life expectancy has actually increased since then.

Joey:            Moses lived that long.  In the Bible days people lived a really long time.  
                     Mom, were you born when the people in the Bible were still alive?