Ten years

Friday marks the 10th anniversary of my marriage. I won't be in front of a computer that day, or I would save my musings for then. Instead I hope to be soaking up lots and lots of sun on the same beach where said wedding took place 10 years ago! We are leaving tomorrow for South Padre for 4 days. Not exactly what Craig and I had daydreamed about when we sat and discussed where we saw ourselves in ten years, but I am happy to take it! Amazing how reality sets in, and dreams of a 10 day trip to Australia turn in to the actual trip to drop 2 kids off at my parents and spending three nights in a friend's condo cuz it's free.

I am so proud to say that I have now been married ten years. It wasn't a given, as that first year saw the "D" word thrown around a lot. But God has gotten us through some crappy stuff and revealed the multitude of benefits that come from honoring a promise. I love my husband, and feel lucky to have him love me. He's funny, and so smart, and works hard, and is so handsome. Perfect? No. Wonderful? Absolutely!

I won't be making any predictions about where we will be in 10 more years, except with each other.

Life is so short

One of my favorite singers, and the favorite of many people, Stephen Curtis Chapman, had a double horrible tragedy hit his family yesterday. His youngest daughter, Maria, 5, was killed yesterday when a car driven by her older brother hit her in their driveway. I can't imagine loosing a child. But then to think that they have to simultaneously grieve their daughter and comfort their son...beyond comprehension.

When I'm right...

I'm right! Those dumb shoes with the wheels, Heelies or Spinners or whatever you want to call them, were not a good idea for my son. At church yesterday, he marked up the entire building with rubber from the soles mixed with wheels marks. This was brought to my attention at least an hour after we had been there. I'm sure I don't even know half of the extent of the damage. Luckily it is just superficial, but we are using the YMCA with the understanding that we will take excellent care of it.

Then, at the VERY end of the VERY long day, Jonas stepped out of the car, took one step toward me, and lost his footing. Craig was on the other side of the car helping Carleigh out and all he heard was the thud of Jonas' head hitting the ground. I saw the instantaneous reaction on Jonas' face as he knew he was going to fall, and then saw his head actually bounce on the ground. It only bounced about an inch and he managed to keep it from hitting a second time, but the damage was done. Screams of pain ensued, followed quickly by Craig saying he was throwing away the shoes, which only made Jonas scream louder.

Jonas is ok today- we gave him Tylenol last night and iced his elbow (yes, the same one that caught the brunt of the last fall) and gave him a little TLC. Trying to repair the wound of Craig's threat to throw away the shoes, I told Jonas I would buy them from him. I will give him the money he spent on them to begin with, because I never should have let him buy the shoes in the first place. Immediately he said "Then can we go buy the real Heelies?". I answered "Yes- when you are 8."

Different personalities

We've decided that Carleigh is an instigator. We had game night a while back and we were playing Sequence for Kids. Instead of using playing cards, they use cards with animals to match the animals on the board. The goal is to get 4 in a row. Carleigh figured out within a few turns that she had more fun keeping Jonas from getting his 4 in a row than she did trying to find her own pattern on the board. Jonas would get so excited because he would see the chance to win in his next turn, only to have Carleigh see it too, and happily crush his idea by placing her own chip down first. Poor Jonas was miserable, while Carleigh was having a great time!

Another example, we like Taco Cabana. At some point we starting calling it Taco Banana to be funny. So that is what Carleigh calls it all the time. She would probably stop doing so, except it makes Jonas crazy. Without fail, she'll say "Banana" and he'll try to correct her with "It's Cabana, Carleigh". She just smiles and says Banana again. Jonas about looses his mind after 5 of these back and forth exchanges. He can't help that he is such a rule follower. He'll even spell it for her, as though that will make a difference. She knows exactly what she is doing, and keeps it up.

Final example- Jonas was in a cranky mood Saturday night after a long day, and was mad because we had told him Mother's Day was all about me. He was getting all upset about that, so Craig and I simply chuckled and wrote it off as exhaustion talking. He says "You need to stop laughing at me! That's rude!". Carleigh, in a complete dead pan voice, says "They aren't laughing. Laughing sounds like this-" and proceeds to break out in to a peal of laughter. Craig and I couldn't help ourselves- we busted out laughing, too.

Poor Jonas- he's going to have to learn soon how to ignore his little sister, or he's in for a lifetime of misery. He's her favorite target.

Meeting the neighbors Part 2

Yesterday was a big day in the life of our new house. We went out and saw the forms have been laid for the foundation, and we met our next door neighbors. The neighbors are Kent and Julia, and daughters Tina (7) and Valerie (4 months). Julia has a heavy accent, but I couldn't determine of what origin. They didn't chat long, as the baby was fussy, but Jonas, Carleigh and Tina hit it off in a matter of seconds! They said they hoped the house would done on time, as they need to have Tina in school. Julia doesn't drive. So- she and I may see a lot of each other, as we are both at home all day, and Tina and Jonas will go to school together.

The backyard is as small as we expected, and the front is as big as we hoped. On our way home Craig and I agreed that we would need to do something with the fence as it will be our only scenery from our bathroom window and one of the kids' windows, as well as the back porch. I then got excited thinking about the vines we could grow, or the hanging baskets that lay flush with the fence we could set up. There won't be room for any trees, but that makes mowing easier, anyway! As I said before, it will be perfect for a slip n slide!

Wandering in the wilderness between right and left

Back when I started this blog, I touched on the recent election broo-ha-ha that is going on around us and my confusion about for whom I should vote, if at all. I read this article today that describes my concerns completely! It doesn't give me any solutions, but at least I know I'm not the only person out there who is torn between social conservatism and global awareness. I want to break the cycle of poverty and welfare dependence, but I don't want any innocent children to go hungry because their mom or dad didn't graduate from high school and can't get a job that pays more then $6 an hour. I don't want another innocent life taken before birth, but I don't want condoms handed out at junior high health classes. I think that homosexuality is a sin, but I also think that we live in a country based on freedom, and since most marriages are no longer religious convenants between God and two people anyway, why shouldn't two men who love each other get married? All I keep coming back to is that I can't change the world, but I can love my neighbors. And regardless of who is elected in November, I believe God is in charge, and again, all I can do is love my neighbors. And pray, constantly.

Random thoughts

Carleigh announced a few days ago that she wants to be a fire-fighter, a ballerina, and a drummer.
Jonas wants to be a police office and a drummer. As a mom who was a drummer in high school, I'm not sure why I'm not more proud!
Jonas had field day yesterday and brought home a first place ribbon, two second place ribbons, and a participant ribbon. I have no idea what the ribbons are for, as he described races like the hippity hop, the tire jump, and the baton race. What ever happened to the 50 yard dash? Regardless, I am happy for him!
Carleigh sprinted home in front of me from the bus stop this morning, and announced that she's fast because her Croc's are fast. I'll let her believe that.
Craig continues to work hard to impress his boss and build the business. This weekend will be long for him, as he will work his normal 7-6:30 today, then go set up a spinal screening booth at a concert in the park in Pearland. He did these last year and they were effective. But we also know from last year that he won't be home until after 10:30. Then tomorrow starts at 6:30 at the Pear Run- a 5k fun run in Pearland. He'll rush from that over to an elementary school where he will set up a spinal screening booth at their end-of-year carnival. He'll go to the office in time to see patients from 9-12:30, and then go back to the carnival to work until 4:00. It normally isn't this jam-packed, but his co-worker, Dr. Davis, has to go to a funeral tomorrow morning and will not be able to help with any of that stuff. Then Sunday our church has a Mother's Day picnic planned at the park, which will end with the moms leaving and the dads handling the kids. I feel like I should switch the roles this Sunday and let him have some time off. He's worked much harder than me this week!
Weight loss- I lost 2.5 pounds last week! This week has been harder. I want to reach my goal so badly, but I'm beginning to think it won't happen by the 29th.

Newsboys pics

As promised- here we are (Carleigh is in my arms and hiding her face) with the band. Jeff, Peter, Duncan and Paul. ( You can click on these to see them bigger)Jonas shows off his backstage pass.

A great shot of the band on stage.

The Newsboys!

We made the drive to Wichita Falls and it was worth every second, every mile! John Patterson, the son of Craig's patient, is not, as I previously stated, a roadie. He is the video producer for the band. I didn't realize I had demoted him! Anyway, he is a nice guy who went out of his way to make our experience awesome! Our seats were 8 rows from the stage. Super cool, eh? It got better...he got us backstage to meet the band by ourselves with no one else around! Super nice guys, sincere, seemed happy to meet us! I was a little starstruck, but not as bad as I feared. Carleigh was a hit, and turned shy, but everyone commented on how cute she is. Jonas did a great job and had a full on conversation with the drummer, Duncan. Then we made it back to our seats and the concert was amazing and fun. I'll get some photos uploaded soon.

Weight loss update

I haven't mentioned my weight-loss endeavor recently, but I certainly haven't abandoned it. I have managed to lose .5 pounds each week for the past two. How frustrating! Even though I am 8 pounds from my vacation goal (different than my forever goal, but more about that later) losing half a pound is dissapointing. With only 5 more chances to weigh in before May 29th, the day we start our vacation, I have to do better than that. So I joined Weight Watchers Online. I can't manage to ever get to the meetings (two kids, husband who works past 7 most nights and almost every Saturday...just doesn't work) and I sit in front of a computer every day, so it seems like a good fit. I've done WW before and it works for me. The Points tracker is a fantastic accountability tool. I started this on Sunday, and I think I've had a good week. I'll weigh in tomorrow and know for sure.

Speaking of tomorrow, I can't wait to see how our weekend turns out. We are leaving this afternoon to drive to the DFW area. We will be staying at my cousin's house. Tomorrow morning we are going to get all the cousins together (Jonas, Carleigh, Kelley, Cody, Jake, Jett, and Brooks) and go to the Dallas Arboretum to take some group pictures. Eventually those pictures will be framed and given as a giant collage to my parents. They will love it.

But we aren't just making this drive to snap photos. Craig has a patient whose son is a roadie for the band Newsboys. Newsboys happens to be Jonas' favorite band! I like them too, a lot. At the least, we have free tickets waiting for us at their concert tomorrow night. At the most, and we're still waiting for final confirmation on this, we have backstage VIP passes waiting for us!!!! I haven't said a word to Jonas, in case this falls through. But as we get closer I am getting very excited! I need to rehearse what I might say if we get to meet them, as I do not have a good track record with celebrities.

When we were in Jr High, Sara Penrod and I had gone skiing with my family, and we were souvenir shopping in Taos, NM. I slipped on some ice in front of a store and a man rushed out to make sure I was OK. Other than embarrassed, I was fine. He invited us in for some hot chocolate. He chatted with us for a minute about where we were from and our vacation, then he said good bye and left. We browsed the store and I ended up buying something (no memory of what). There was a flyer next to the cash register advertising a concert that weekend. The artist was Michael Martin Murphy, a country singer. I asked Sara "Doesn't he look familiar?" to which the cashier said "You were just talking to him. He owns this store and he's the guy who just gave you your drinks". So close!

And another brush with fame came when the band Third Day and Micheal W. Smith were signing autographs at an organized meet and greet at a local mall. I stood in line with all the other people and listened to an organizer say 5+ times "Don't try to shoot the breeze with these guys- there are a lot of you and we only have a limited amount of time." I took that to heart. As I quickly got Third Day's authographs and moved down the table to MWS, the guy behind me strikes up a conversation with the drummer of Third Day. MWS glances that way and sees the gap and says "How are you?" to me. Seems we had been given a few extra seconds and he decided to chat with me. Yep- I couldn't get out anything other than "Thank you!" and walked away. I heard MWS say to someone standing behind him "I guess she didn't want to talk to me!". DOH!

I did manage a civil and intelligent conversation with then Texas governor George W. Bush. His first High School graduation speech as governor was at my alma mater the year after I graduated. My dad, who has been in politics, was invited to a reception before the graduation to meet W. I went with him. He was polished and professional, diplomatic to be sure (glanced at my name tag and addressed me by my first name immediately) but very warm. I told him I had graduated the year before and he asked if I was going to college. I said yes, UNT, and he asked if I had made it to a Ranger's game. He was part owner of the baseball club at the time. I said yes, and then he signed a magnetic Ranger game schedule I had brought with me. Who knew I was shaking the hand of the man who would be president when both my children were born? Very cool.

So- tomorrow could go either way. I can't wait to get back and tell you how it goes, and hopefully post some pictures!

The worst 30 minutes of my life

Literally, I don't think I have ever been more afraid, sad, mad, and terrified in a span of 30 minutes as I was last night. Craig went outside to tell Jonas and Carleigh it was time to come inside, only to discover that he couldn't find Carleigh, and none of the other kids knew where she was either. I half-calmly walked around the center of our apartment complex, calling her name and checking the pools and playground. All the kids who know Carleigh were helping too- about 15 of them. After I made the full circle and Craig had too, I was no longer calm and began to imagine the worst. After 20 minutes I called 911. I was mortified- the idea that I was on the phone with the police because my adorable blonde blue eyed daughter was lost...even writing that makes my stomache drop. They said an officer was on the way and to take my cell phone and keep looking. At one point, either going up some stairs on when I finally found her, my forehead touched the ground because I have a scrape there today. I remember praying for calmness, but I also think I literally hit my knees in relief when she calmly walked out of a friend's apartment.
Turns out she had seen a friend and ran to her apartment and started watching a movie with her. I know this girl vaguely, but didn't know what apartment she lived in. They hadn't heard us calling for Carleigh because the tv was up and the doors and windows were closed. Her mom had happened to open the door to put something outside when Craig rode by on his bike yelling for Carleigh. She said "She's in here," and out walked the angel herself. It was about this time I rounded the corner and the police car drove through the gate. The officer was nothing but compassionate and nice. She made sure I was who I said I was and left. Carleigh didn't understand why she couldn't stay and finish the movie, but I had to get home and breathe.
I was much more upset with myself than with Carleigh. She's 4~ what am I thinking letting her play outside with only 8 and 10 year olds to look out for her? That's not their job! It's mine, and I failed. Thank God she is okay and she and Jonas both understand now why I've always said not to go in anyone's house without me knowing about it (Jonas was visibly shaken by all of this, too). I don't plan to permanently attach her to my hip from now on, but I do plan to be much more careful.