Praise

Psalm 31:22 "...you heard my cry for mercy when I called you for help."

Boy does He, dontcha know? This has been one of the harder weeks for me since Rob left. I've been very emotional, both down in the dumps and frustrated. I've blown my top more than a couple of times and have had to ask the kids for forgiveness for my reactions to them. But God does know my needs and, in addition to a phone call and e-mail made by friends, He sent me Patsy. Thank you God for Patsy, that she listened to you when you told her I needed an angel. Thank you Patsy for the ever so yummy food you brought today and for taking Gabe to church for me. You knew exactly what this pent-up-with-sick-kids-Mommy needed. God bless you.

Prayer Request

I just got an e-mail from a friend, her little girl Virginia has a temp of 104.7 and is being rushed to urgent care. Please take just a moment to send up a quick prayer for Virginia and her mommy and daddy. Thanks.

ETA: Virginia is doing much better. Came home later that day after some meds that worked to bring her temp down.

Face Lift

I have been pondering the problem of what to do with Gabe's ugly dresser for some time. Notice that it doesn't even have drawer pulls in all the right places in addition to being quite hideous. The drawer pulls each had two screws at intervals that they don't make two-screw drawer pulls anymore but I knew if I replaced them with one-screw drawer pulls the ugly remaining hole would show and I didn't think that merely painting it was going to be much of an improvement, but what then? Perusing some of my favorite blogs the other day gave me some inspiration. Check out this post at Homemade By Jill. She's great, I wish I had half her creativity.

So off I went to collect my jar of Mod Podge, sponge brushes, paper and drawer pulls.

Last night I thought I would just do one drawer to see how it went. I wasn't sure how long it would take, how easy it would be or how long Zion would sleep (Zion and glue products don't mix). It was actually incredibly easy. The first drawer does have a couple of bubbles that I didn't work out well enough but I actually ended up doing it while holding fussy Gideon and talking to Rob on the phone.

Holding infant while gluing - not handy!

Holding infant's burpcloth while gluing - handy!

I was able to paint on all three coats of Mod Podge last night before bed and this morning Gabe and I put on the new hardware. I carried the drawers upstairs where we reassembled and refilled his "new" dresser and - voila!

Gabe's "new" dresser. I'm still debating as to whether to do the side or the top.

The first thing Gabe did was to rehang his craft from VBS that he made two summers ago. It has a picture of his class which also had his best friend Abby in it so it's a treasure to him. And of course pose and say "hi" for the camera.

So what do you think of the end result? Should I do the top and/or side?

Well What D'Ya Know!

I'm not taking care of a sick baby today. Nope. I'm taking care of TWO sick babies. Yep. Sometime after putting Gideon to bed last night it became apparent that he had picked up Zion's cold. He was miserable all last night. Not really sleeping, having a hard time breathing through his nose, wanting to nurse but panicking the second he tries because he couldn't breath while eating.

What were you doing at 3AM? I was sitting in my living room with Gideon in my lap hand pumping breast milk and then feeding it to him via syringe. Poor little guy. I'm sure he had a fever but I don't have good luck with thermometers. Mine says his temp is 96.something. Yeah right.

This morning when I got out of bed my appearance rivaled Gary Busey's mug shot. Rest assured, I'm at least slightly better looking now having wiped the sleep out of my eyes, getting my contacts in and putting on some non-breast milk soaked clothes.

Zion slept from 5PM yesterday to 7-ish AM this morning. I looked at her and thought "wow, her nose cleared up - great!" Then she coughed. Nope. All that congestion just moved to her chest. Poor kid.

So say a prayer for their quick recovery and that Gabe and I don't get it also. That would really be not good.

Flashback Friday

This isn't too far back in time, just a little skip to the end of July. I took this on the way home after leaving Rob on base shortly before he left on his "little" trip. Aren't I a lucky gal that this is the view that I get when I'm on my way home. True that technically "my mountain" is a volcano and could go all Mt. St. Helens on us at any time but that just adds to its mystery and beauty.


Of course, the picture doesn't do justice to how beautiful it really is - not to mention the fact that I took this while driving. Shh, don't tell anyone.

Oops. I think I just did.

Laugh A Little

Having a bad day? Well, fret no longer. Alex will have you fixed up in no time. Just go here - Hysterical, and laugh a little.

Another Contest

Wow, how cool. I found two contests in one day. Go here - free book, to find out how you can win, you guessed it, a free book. It's a book about keeping house so if you have a really messy house, like me right now, you can win it and then leave it out on the counter and maybe people will think you are at least interested in having a clean house.

A Giveaway

Go here to enter - Homemaking Bible Study. All you have to do is comment on the post. Then, if you post about it on your blog (like I have just now) and go back and comment that you have, it earns you an extra entry. How nice. :)

One Good Thing About Dinosaurs.

They make your kids want to eat eggs.



Are you scratching your head yet?

OK, Gabe has had an absolute obsession with The Land Before Time lately. In fact, he insists on being called Littlefoot, walks around on his hands and knees and begs food like a dog which I guess he really thinks is what a dinosaur does. I suppose that's because in the movies Littlefoot is frequently being fed "tree stars" by his grandparents who accepts them in a very dog-like fashion. Recently, we borrowed the second in the series which introduces a pair of maniacal egg stealing dinosaurs. They like to eat eggs. They don't want to eat anything except eggs. Gabe has suddenly taken to asking for eggs for his meals. Thank God and little cartoon struthiomimuses my son will eat something besides peanut butter and jelly sandwiches! Hmm, do you suppose if I let him watch The Flintstones I could get him to eat ribs?

Here you go, Gabe. Enjoy!

What I Need - An Update

I just had a few minutes to check my e-mail and noticed the solitary e-mail in my "spam" folder was from "Lonely Girl". She wanted to know if I wanted a date. Um. No. BUT - I do want someone to clean my shower. Can we make an arrangement for that? I very nearly opened the e-mail to write her a letter of desparation. Not of one who needs a one night stand date but of a mommy who needs a hand! Please come distract my children while I wash the dishes. Or run an errand for me. Better yet, stay HERE while I run an errand (though if you let me out of the house alone I can't say when you'll see me again). I am out of bread, milk and juice and I have sick kid and can't get to the store. Please, please, pretty please. Do you suppose if I responded with the plea to every e-mail from "Lonely Girl" and friends that I'd stay on their lists for very long? Who knows. Maybe "Lonely Girl" will decide she's needed more as a nanny and make a change for a better life. This could be a good thing for everyone.

*Edited to add, please know that I have a very odd sense of humor sometimes and, while I did have a rather crummy day, this was posted to make light of that fact. I feel much better now.

What I Need Today.

What I need today is a friend who lives nearby. Said friend is independantly wealthy so that she doesn't have to work (read, available to me at all times). She is also single (and blissfully happy about it) so that when I need her she doesn't have to abandon her own family. She loves that my house is messy and is not afraid of germs (because my daughter is sick today). It would be helpful too if she thinks I'm smart and funny. The conversations will just go so much better that way. It would also be great if she had the uncanny ability to realize when she is needed and when it is the perfect time to leave. Currently accepting applications. Position starts immediately - as in right this second. Seriously.

Positive Proof of Global Warming

I love this post "Positive Proof of Global Warming".

Sugar and Spice

Dainty.


Petite.


Cautious.


Quiet.


Clean.


Boring.


What do these words have in common? All of these are words that do NOT describe my daughter. The evidence...

Classy, Zion. Nice. Why do I suddenly get the feeling that a trip to the ER for foreign object removal is in our future?

A Funny Thing Happened

My sister, the kids and I collected sea shells while we were at the beach remembering Grandma. Jamie thought it would be cool to use them to decorate stepping stones so on the way home we stopped by a craft store and bought the supplies. The next afternoon we got to work mixing the cement and filling the molds. Now here's the funny thing. I was tapping my mold to get the air out and somehow, I still don't know how, the cement splashed. It splashed and it splooshed and it sent a little glob right into my eye. Luckily I was only a few steps away from my sister's kitchen sink and was able to rinse my eye out immediately but not before my eye was wounded. Whether it was merely abraded or if I received a chemical burn (more likely because cement is caustic) I don't know but I ended up with a very red, ouchy eye for about five days. It was silly, I felt stupid, I also felt really annoyed that the directions that came with the stepping stone kits didn't actually warn a person to take precautions against this. So be warned - if you make these stones, wear protective eye wear! (End of Public Service Announcement.) At least the end result was pretty and now resides in my rose garden. Gabe was happy to demonstrate how well it does work as a stepping stone.

A Memorial

Shew, it has been a busy week and not much time for blogging. A week ago Saturday my sister and I hauled our kids to Whidbey Island and to our Grandparents old house there. Some of my sister and my fondest memories took place in this house and the beach it resides on.



But before we got there we had to ride the ferry. Just like when we were kids, now our kids make the crossing.


On the beach in front of the house we find a nice log to hang out on for a while. My sister and I tell our kids of how we played on this beach when we were young. How we used to hop from log to log all the way down the beach because the sand was "hot lava".

Initially Zion wasn't too sure of the sand. Maybe we spoke a little too much of hot lava, it's not really hot lava Baby Girl, it's OK to get down and play.
Gabe writes in the sand. My Grandfather's boat used to sit out there with the others. He used to take us fishing and to check on the crabpots. Though many memories of my childhood have turned to mist and dissipated, these never will.
Jamie and I in front of the house. I have a dream of owning this house some day.
Jamae and Zion cuddling for a while.
Gideon gets to curl his toes in the sand for the first time.


I'm a bit surprised that Gabe wasn't afraid of the seaweed.

Zion contemplates the great expanse of water. You can see that she still clutches her elephant.

Gideon enjoys the view too.
I remembered that my tripod still takes up residence in the back of my car so we get a picture of all of us. From left to right, Jamae is holding Gideon, Jamie stands with Gabe, Jessa holds Zion, and then me rushing in from setting the time on the camera - oh yeah, and what must be one of the neighbor's dogs.

The kids sitting on the bulkhead. I remember fishing from here during high tide.

Zion was playing on the beach when the dog came up and just lay right on her lap. I'm still thinking about getting a new family dog (I should say another family dog) maybe around the time of Zion's birthday. Yes, I'm crazy. Please help me to remember that it's probably the last thing I need right now.
The date of our memorial.

We wrote all our names in the sand including Grandma's.

After releasing her ashes into the water we take a moment to say our final goodbyes.

It seems appropriate to repost the poem used at her memorial that took place in Arizona.

GONE FROM MY SIGHT

I am standing upon the seashore. A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze and starts for the blue ocean. She is an object of beauty and strength. I stand and watch her until at length she hangs like a speck of white cloud just where the sea and sky come to mingle with each other.

Then someone at my side says: “There, she is gone!”

“Gone where?”

Gone from my sight, that is all. She is just as beautiful and strong as she was when she left my side and she is just as able to reach her destined port.

Her diminished size is in me, not in her. And just at the moment when someone at my side says: “There, she is gone!” there are other eyes watching her coming, and other voices ready to take up the glad shout: “Here she comes!” by Henry Van Dyke

New Music

I added a couple of new songs to my blog playlist (I also deleted a couple). The first that will play is Boom Boom Boom my John Lee Hooker. This is dedicated to Gideon. Tonight when I went to put his PJs on he was making a noise that sounded like "boom boom" so I started singing the "boom boom boom boom" part of the song and Gideon started cracking up. The more I did it the more he laughed. Gotta love it!

The next song that comes on is Convoy by CW Mcall. I got to talk to Rob tonight and he was telling me that they have to do some convoy training or some such thing. I asked if he'd ever heard the song Convoy and he hadn't so here it is for his, and your, enjoyment. My sister and I had this song on a 45 when we were growing up. Yes. That's right. A record. Not a cassette, CD or MP3. An actual record. A few of you will have to follow that link. While you do I'll try not to feel old.

A New Blog

I'm adding a new blog, actually two, to my list to the right. I've just learned of them yesterday and I hope that you'll visit them. The first is about the Nielson family, Mr. and Mrs. Nielson were in a small plane crash a few weeks ago and both were badly burned and need your prayers. I remember when my nephew was born and the doctors told my sister that he may die and they didn't know why. I was not angry at God or at the circumstances but for a few moments one day I was very angry with the World that people continued to shop and other such silliness when really what they should be doing was praying for my nephew. So let's keep reading updates on this family at c jane and pray for them continuously.

OK, so I guess I'm adding three blogs to the list. Scott and Carol Decker are right here in Washington and recently welcomed their second daughter into their family. Complications during pregnancy and delivery have resulted in some pretty serious medical issues for Carol. They too can use your prayers.

Thanks so much for your prayers, miracles still happen. "Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective." James 5:16

Love

Oh yes, I'm in love with this baby.

Friday

Thursday after Gideon's appointment I packed up kids and car and headed to my sister's house for the weekend. Friday morning early we all packed up again, this time with Jamie, Abby, and Jessa in tow and Jamae and friends following behind, to the Evergreen State Fair. The Fair closer to our current house may technically be bigger and older (one of the biggest and oldest in the COUNTRY in fact) but the Evergreen Fair is my favorite. It's the one we went to as kids and the way the animal barns and shows are organized means more horses and horse related events and I really like that. Also, they have the race track there and back in the day (read - before kids) we used to spend many, many weekends at that track. It's where my Dad raced and later, when he stopped racing to tend my mother's health, my sister and I still frequented the races (we're talking cars here). This visit to the Fair was strictly Fair, no horses, no cars but still tons of fun with the kiddos who much prefer fair food and rides.

We started off with the rides. Gabe and Abby share a plane.

Zoom!

Jessa was a sweetie and went on the rides with the kids when they couldn't go alone.

The little roller coaster was called "The Wacky Worm" or something to that effect.

When Gabe got off he said "Boy, that sure was a wacky worm!"

Gideon did what Gideon does - he fell asleep.

The weather called for rain so we came prepared. At least Gabe and Abby did, but Zion had the most fun with the umbrellas stealing them out of the stroller at every opportunity to play with them.

We didn't lose any money on the carnival games but the prizes sure were colorful.

The ferris wheel is one of my favorites but this is as close as I got this trip.

One of the treats we enjoyed is called Poffertjes. I hadn't seen them at any fair before but we went back for more after sharing one plate of these heavenly little pillows of dough. I think I might just have to get the special pan to make them in - yummy!

Zion was dancing and running around like mad which I guess isn't technically mad for Zion since it's more her normal.

Gabe and Abby got to meet one very, very tall cowboy.

While the other kids played Gideon got in some good Tantie time.

Gabe pleaded with Jamie nearly the entire day and finally got his cotton candy just before we left. When Gabe was 1 he absolutely refused to eat this stuff, I have a picture of that, too.

And Zion got to steal huge gulps of Jessa's slushy. Beware, if ever she begs a drink off of you, she can really put it down - and fast!

So there, that's our trip to the Fair in pictures. Our prayers were answered and the rain held off, in fact, I ended up with a bad sunburn. And home we went exhausted and dirty, the best way to end a day.

Sing. Sing A Song.

That's what Zion's doing. She and Gabe are watching The Land Before Time II: The Great Valley Adventure (WOW, that's a long name!) and the little dinos are singing "We're a family and you're one of us now..." which to Zion goes something like this "eww a eewwa a eee weww a aah NOW!" It's awesome.