Freezing Birthday Weekend for the Oldest Member of Our Household

My husband is only 21 days older than I am, but he knows how I like to tease him for being older during those brief three weeks.  So today it begins again as today is his birthday!

I don't think he spent his birthday weekend quite like he could have hoped, though he loves spending time with his kids.  He and our boy went to a campground near the coast for the Y Guides Spring outing, and the weather turned bitter cold on Friday with lows in the 20s each night and highs in the 40s.  That makes for some rough unheated, uninsulated cabin camping.  Even so, they tried to enjoy all their outdoor activities.  Highlights for my son were the gnome hunt, collecting hundreds of fireballs, biking, and riding the zip line.  This zip line, however, runs over a river which was icy cold this weekend.  That brave little boy insisted that he and his dad both drop into the cold water from the zip line to earn a polar bear claw, so they experienced a degree of cold I have never known and hopefully never will.  The love a father has for his son is a beautiful thing as it drives a man to make great sacrifices for another, but I'm wondering if it doesn't make the man a little crazy too.  :-) Here are some pics from their frigid weekend.

I could not possibly recount all the ways my husband has sacrificed for our family, for he puts us before himself on a daily basis.  He does the same for others, and he is such a wonderful gift. (That makes gifts #1000, so I have now completed my 1000 gifts project, but may I never stop recounting all the blessings God places in our lives even though His presence alone should always be more than enough.) 

With those thoughts  in mind, I posted the following birthday wish to him on social media today.

When I first met this handsome guy, he was only going to be in town for two days before finishing his spring tour with the USNA glee club and then heading back to the USNA where he was a plebe. I didn't think I would ever see him again, so I asked him for a photo by which to remember him (no smart phones or selfies back then, kids), and he gave me this picture. Even though we rarely spoke over the next 8 years, I thanked God for him and prayed over him whenever I saw this senior photo which I kept on or in my desk. 

Now I don't need a photo by which to remember him, for we are one, and when he is not next to me, my thoughts are constantly with him. Today, he celebrates another birthday, and as I have done for the past 23 years and as his kids have done since they were old enough to pray, we are thanking God for the gift of this wonderful man. Happy Birthday!  (Read our full story here.)

"We always remember you when we pray and thank God for...you. When we pray to God our Father, we always thank him for the things you have done because of your faith. And we thank him for the work you have done because of your love. And we thank him that you continue to be strong because of your hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. " (1 Thessalonians 1:2-3)

 My daughter was apparently very excited about his birthday.  Waking up to find professional looking signs designed and printed by my daughter to distribute around the neighborhood, school, church, and basically the entire town inviting people to our house for a surprise birthday party for her father in which there would be food, live music, and dancing on a date & time she chose was quite a surprise indeed. She even generously shared my personal email address under the RSVP. I do love her heart for hospitality, and she knows how much her mama enjoys having guests over, but even so, asking permission first is usually better than seeking forgiveness later. And while she is an extrovert who thinks the more the merrier, the birthday guest of honor may have a different preference, especially after spending the weekend in a tiny cabin surrounded by 16 guys.

Our daughter wanted to make her daddy a birthday cake, so I laid out a bundt cake pan and the dry ingredients on Friday night and went to bed.  She was baking when I got up Saturday morning, but we were surprised to see how small the cake was after baking.  When your daughter makes a lemon pound cake for her daddy, and it looks more like a 1/2 pound cake (or a doughnut), you start to wonder how much of the batter she ate in the process.

I think the recipe she ended up using called for a loaf pan instead. Oops!

We told him that she put a lot of effort into making sure the cake had 50% less fat, 50% less sugar, and 50% less calories (in other words, 50% less cake) per slice. lol

In addition to cake, he has been receiving gifts from family members throughout the month and lots of cards including one signed by all my students who think he is the best ever after all I've told them.  The girls gushed over how well they had heard he could sing and over his smooth dance moves.  One guy drives the exact same car my husband previously drove (silver, manual transmission, Acura TSX), so he mentioned his great taste in cars.  One student even called him a "stud", and most said they really wanted to meet him.  I loved their comments.  I hope my husband did too.

The boys didn't miss much around here while they were gone.  We spent hours cleaning milk my son must have spilled in the refrigerator that left a horrible stink. I literally worked from 12 noon until 3am on lesson plans while my daughter played, read, went door to door raising money for the Stop Hunger Now project, created more freaky images she will regret some day....

....and created psychedelic back handspring videos like this one.

Oh, and I did take a break on Friday night for a mother/daughter yoga party with my favorite girl.  If we ever get serious about our workouts, however, we cannot invite Muffin.  She tends to get in the way. :-)

Muffin's 1st Birthday

Muffin's 1st birthday was on Sunday, March 22, and the way we celebrated and took lots of pics was almost comparable to our kids' first birthday parties.  That is one loved and spoiled rotten bunny.

Before and After

Cupcakes Anyone?

"Why bother blowing out the candle when whatcha gotta do is knock it down and outta da way?" - Muffin

One-Year-Old Cake Smash!

"All those humans busting around doin' crazy stuff tryin' to get people to notice um, and allz I gotta do is eat me some cupcake, and they be rubbing my ears, scratching my back, and letting me know that I am the queen around here." - Muffin

"Seriously, though, can't a bunee just nibble in peaz?" - Muffin

"Lawsy, people...have you no boundaries?" - Muffin

Birthday Party Games

Balloon stuck to the left

Balloon stuck to the right

On the top, be sure to hop

And dance right out of sight

Muffin didn't like this birthday party game very much. 

Obligatory 1st Year Easter Basket Photos

(With Commentary by Muffin)

"Oh brother, not the basket again!"

"The things I put up with in this family for some good eats."

"Whatcha lookin' at?"

 Party Decor by the Kids

 "What is it with these people? Rolling my hutch for my birthday is so yesterday, more like the 80s, people." - Muffin

Ordinary glimpses of the sacred and the humorous in any given day

A Bunny Funny
When a strong and stout home improvement contractor came by and opened our door, he was extremely startled when he saw an animal whiz by him. When he regained his composure, he could not figure out what it was for he might expect a dog or a cat, but it was smaller and moved in a very different eerie way. When I went and grabbed Muffin who had gotten loose from her cage and was now hiding from the stranger who had uttered a loud yelp, he heaved a sigh of relief to see it was only a bunny. So now I am wondering where I can get a large "Beware of Bunny" sign to warn newcomers.

Beware of Bunny

Finding Humor Through Trials
This past week has been a long series of most unfortunate events and false alarms, but I was at least hoping to receive good news when I go for a routine, non-invasive wellness check today. So imagine my surprise when I received a voice message informing me that my doctor has scheduled me for a colonoscopy today at 11. I followed up to see if they had the wrong number, and the receptionist laughed as she said, "Are you sure you don't want a colonoscopy today?" Overhearing, the kids asked, "What is that colon word you just said?" So I told them it was a very unpleasant medical diagnostic procedure. Still, they wanted more details, so I gave them the best clinical definition I could. Then the kids looked at each other while grimacing, and my daughter said to her little brother, "Sometimes, it's just best not to ask."

Access Ministry for Mom and Daughter
Speaking of trials and medical diagnostic testing, this little girl pictured below has been through more than most adults.  Her mother had some sort of infection during her pregnancy which resulted in Zoe being born with cerebral palsy, other brain issues, and severe eye nerve damage making her legally blind.  She was adopted from Taiwan into an amazing family with a tremendous passion for children with special needs. They currently have 2 biological children, 3 adopted siblings from Uganda and sweet Zoe from Taiwan.  Zoe's parents have since had another child, a son, and this family will be adopting him as well.  We love this family.  Before they ever had any children, they started a special needs ministry at our church, and my daughter and I have enjoyed serving as buddies to children with special needs as they are integrated into classes with all the other children in our church their same age.  This Zoe is a doll, and her smile melts my heart.  Despite her many challenges, she seems to relish her life and seems to know just how adorable she is in her new glasses.  But what is just as precious to me as sweet Zoe is watching my daughter love on her, care for her, and entertain her.  Thank you, Lord, for gifting our daughter with such compassion and love for all children, regardless of their color, background, need or gift. 

Y Guides for Father & Son
The guys recently enjoyed a fun afternoon of flying kites with hundreds of Y Guides from across the county.  They had much better weather on kite day than they did while camping.

Prayers For and With our Children
Sometimes we can peak into the hearts of children when we pray with them. Apparently our kids have a heart for missions because every evening at dinner when we choose a missionary for our prayer focus, the kids fight over whose turn it is to pray first. Okay, so perhaps that is an evidence of selfish, quarrelsome hearts, but at least they like to pray! And I have often told them to "pray first about everything".

Both kids regularly pray that we'll have a good time doing whatever we have planned the next day, so they must have fun-loving hearts (or they aspire to become party animals). But I'm not sure what to make of my son's most frequent prayer request, "Lord, please help all the kids in my class to NOT get their names written on the board tomorrow." I'm hoping it means he is a lover of righteousness and peace, but he could just have a big heart for troublemakers. I'm so glad Jesus has a heart for troublemakers like me. Pray on, y'all.
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I love what Ruth Bell Graham wrote as her standard for a husband.  I want to be faithful in praying that my son and my daughter's future husband will become this type of man, and I'm so thankful for the way my husband regularly models so many of these attributes for them.

Spring Break Musings

Two weeks of spring break should provide new teachers with two full weeks to catch up on lesson planing, right? Well...spring break is over, and the only thing close to lesson planning I've done is fill out an NCAA bracket for our stats class pool. I have, however, slept (a LOT), relaxed, served, played, cheered, visited, and completed every spring project on my list (such as purging every room in the house, coordinating major construction projects, completely catching up on scrapbooks, getting family members to our DC, dentist, and GP, hosting guests, celebrating & shopping for 11 birthdays this month, completing & filing our time consuming tax returns, cleaning baseboards, and even lining & reorganizing drawers). I've done anything and everything but school. I love these students with all my heart, but it is normal to take a "break" from the books when given the chance, or am I the only one with priorities so backwards?

Parenting Observations & Kid Quotes

With the kids home with me for two weeks, I had the opportunity to make more parenting observations and overhear their funny conversations.  (Gift #990)

You know your kids are beginning to empathize with you as a parent when they tell you, "We're going outside to get our crazy out."

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You know spring break has taken it's toll when Muffin is outside of her pen keeping watch over the kids who have put themselves into time out inside the bunny pen.

Muffin was introduced to a fan for the first time that day.

I was reminded of how photographers will use a fan in the studio to make the model's hair look like it's blowing in the wind. With Muffin, her ears just blow out to the side like the wings of an airplane. She does like the cool air blowing against her back side, though.

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Prayer should draw us nearer to God, so I find it ironic that our kids got into an argument over whose turn it is to pray first.

"..and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your servant just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20: 27-28)

True, dat!

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Whenever I serve something quick and easy for dinner, the kids are complimentary and leave few leftovers (especially if it is something unhealthy and/or processed). But when I spend hours creating a new recipe from scratch, I usually hear comments like I heard over spring break:

From the kids:

• "Did you sneak fish into those enchiladas? It sure doesn't taste like chicken."
• "It's too spicy. It doesn't look right. I can't eat this."

From my husband:

• "I like it, and since I love my wife, I will eat it all, thank you very much!"

I can't cook, but he still loves me anyway!  (Gift #991)

 ‪

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While cleaning, I found more evidence of how different girls are than boys, especially when it comes to written expression. Note how each signed a card for their dad.

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We had a big scare this past weekend when my hairdresser insisted I had lice.  So we dumped pesticides on all of us and insisted a friend who had been near us do so as well...threw out all our linens I had just washed, sanitized the entire house, and hardly slept with the sensation of bugs crawling all over us.  The next day, I got a second opinion since we didn't see any nits and could not figure out where we could have gotten it being in isolation so much during spring break.  We went to a certified lice treatment center, and the technician could not find a trace of anything...no bites, egg casings, nothing. Relieved, we resumed our busy schedule.  While in the waiting room, however, my son read that lice prefer clean, sweet smelling hair, so now he wants to know if he can get away with not washing his hair at all this week. Nice try, buddy!

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While driving through a new part of town, I mumbled, "These houses are so big that they make our house look like a hut." Then my 8-year-old said, "Mom, you told us not to compare ourselves with others because it either results in pride or envy but never does any good." So parents, even if your children do not obey your instruction, you know they are at least listening when they call you out on it.

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I am still enjoying my morning study of the book of Proverbs with the kids.  They say the most convicting things (see previous quote from my son about making comparisons). (Gift #992)

Yesterday

Me:        What does it mean to be "proud in heart" (vs. 16:5)?
               What's the difference between pride and self confidence?

Tween:    I know! I know! Self confidence is when you know inside that you can do something.
               Pride is when you boast about it to others.

Me:         Who helps you do that something? Hey Look! They just painted that house bright blue!

Tween:    Mom! How dare you look at house paint when we're discussing God's holy word?"

#‎Humbled‬ ‪#‎Distracted‬ ‪#‎NotaMorningPerson‬ ‪#‎SpringBreakEndedTooSoon‬ ‪#‎SassyTween‬

Today

Tween:       "A gray head is a crown of glory; It is found in the way of righteousness." (Prov. 16:31)
                   Mom, I think God is telling you to stop dyeing your hair."

This verse led into a discussion of the sanctity of human life and how we must stand for both the unborn and the elderly when society treats them as if they are less sacred than anyone else. We talked about how important it is to show special honor and respect to the elderly not only for the wonderful wisdom they can share, but also because they are sacred, made in God's image . We must defend all human life. Then my 8-year-old said, "This world makes me so sad. The way some people treat the unborn and the elderly reminds me of when the pharaoh tried to kill all the male Hebrew babies out of fear the Hebrew people would grow large in number and rise up to overthrow him." Wow! Perhaps, I underestimate the power of a child's mind and need to show more respect for his age as well.

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Haircuts are a dramatic experience for our tween, so last time I took her to the most popular, trendy salon in town where she received a beautiful haircut, but she still cried with each snip that sent a lock of fried, sun-damaged hair cascading to the floor. This time, her most trusted confidant and friend, "Grandma Susan", came to the rescue by cutting her hair at home while Muffin comforted her, and this experience was all sunshine, roses, smiles, and relaxation, even as dark clouds surrounded our home and rain poured from the skies. (Gift #993)

Miracles

The fact that my husband would invite me to go running with him is nothing less than a miracle. The fact that I could even go running at all after the doctor said I would never run again and after 4 years of running restriction is yet another miracle. So, given that I have gone running at least 6 different times over the past few months without back pain and without significant knee pain and that two of those runs happened only because my husband invited me to go with him, what is the probability that God still works miracles? My stats students better know the answer to this one! (Gift #994)

The fact that my expert hair dresser saw lice, and then they magically disappeared is a miracle in my book because she is not the type to deceive me in that way. (Gift #995)  Although she did tell me to never contact her again when I told her the second opinion showed none whatsoever.  I notified her so she would not worry about any risks she may have been taken and so she could bring all the towels and scissors out of quarantine, but she took it as the rudest insult imaginable and will not let me apologize or make things right between us.   Thankfully, I've already found a new hair dresser who is like minded in faith and affordable. 

When Susan came over to visit our daughter (and cut her hair!), she kidded me about the state of our garage.  She knows I'm a neat freak (she is not!), so she was surprised to see our garage in such disarray.  All the sledding and winter weather activities plus the cold temperatures made it hard to get out there and organize everything.  I told her my husband had to organize it anyway because he would not like not knowing where all his tools went, but it may take forever for him to find the time, for he doesn't get a spring break.  Then the next day, he purged the garage, so I got my 3rd miracle for the week! (Gift #996)

I love the way my daughter respects, appreciates, and loves the miracle of God's creation, particularly with regard to animals. (Gift #997)

All things bright and beautiful,
All creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful:
The Lord God made them all. ‪#‎CritterLover‬

Bunny Happenings
Muffin was asked to serve as a prop for a professional photographer's Easter photo sessions.  As soon as I let her know about her modeling debut, she began primping for the occasion. :-)

We also gave her a bath to help her with the parts she could not reach.  Then I let her "hang out and dry" with  our daughter and the sight of them together was too precious not to photograph. (Gift #998)

Muffin did great during the 7 or 8 photo sessions, and she only tried to hop away into the woods once, and I managed to catch her.  Whew.  It was a gorgeous day and lots of fun for the kids as they played basketball and rode the photographer's zip-line while I help the photographer and took care of Muffin.   (Gift #999)

If you ever see a girl in a dress and barefooted while playing basketball like a pro or a boy on a zip line or shooting hoops in his dress shoes, then you know those kids are probably ours.

Here are some photos I took with Muffin in their yard and in the woods behind it between photo sessions.

Update:  The photographer just posted these photos from that day's spring shoot on her website.  The kids are gorgeous, but that bunny sure is cute, too. :-)