10 on Tuesday

10 Wonderful Things That Happened This Summer...

1. Henry turned 1
2. Pre-school Field Trips
3. Youth Convention
4. Julie got married
5. Cow Appreciation Day
6. Henry learned to walk
7. Rockingham County Fair
8. Ken and I celebrated 7 years of marriage
9. Aayana spends the night
10. Bunny chasing
    
    

Wednesday's Website

I have recently discovered the brilliance of "Cake Wrecks." This site is a collection of professionally designed cakes that have gone horribly wrong. Check it out, but go potty first and move far away from where the kids are sleeping!! I would submit my own wreck, but she only makes fun of professionals-not well meaning mommies who run out of cake mix!

10 on Tuesdays

I am trying out another site, so we'll see how this goes...
It's 10 on Tuesday, and there is a topic posted and you answer with of a list of 10 things. This week is "10 Simple Things That Make Me Happy." In no particular order...

1. Frances
2. Henry
3. sunshine
4. books
5. blogs
6. my Daddy's spaghetti
7. Fall
8. nap time
9. silly kids
10. Ken

Innocence

During prayer time this morning at school, I opened it up to the class to see if they had anything they wanted to pray about. A few weeks ago when I asked this question, one of my girls told us that her mouth hurt (she had a bad toothache). So we offered that up in prayer. Well today when I asked, the same girl spoke up again to tell us that her mouth didn't hurt anymore. *tears* WOW! I took a minute to think about how often we ask God for things and then forget to offer prayers of thanksgiving when a situation is resolved. This girl is not one that attends church regularly, or even hears about God at home. I am afraid that school is the only place where she hears any kind of Gospel at all. But she's got it! We need to seek God at all times-not just the bad ones. We need to have faith at all times-not just the good ones. Thank you K for opening my eyes today.

Not Me Mondays

I have been following MckMama and her blog a lot lately and she has started "Not Me Mondays." It started out a a funny list of things she swears she did not during the previous day. She has now turned it into a game, so I am playing.
This week I most certainly did not:

• Arrive late to work because I was checking my blogs for the day. If I was late for work (which would never happen, it would most certainly be for something important.


• Find a sippy cup from who-knows-when under my bed. I also did not consider washing such a disgusting item. I really did throw it away.


• Tell Frances it was "very late" so she would go to bed early and give me some peace. I have never considered preventing her from learning how to tell time so such a trick will work longer.


• Eat chips and salsa for dinner. I also never ate a popsicle for dinner either. I always eat healthy, complete meals.

How about you? What have you not done lately?

Friday Fill Ins

1. There is no need to scream, I can hear you just fine.
2. Where in the heck did the time go?
3. Getting dressed is all I managed to do.
4. Prospects for a productive weekend are not looking good.
5. "Control the chaos" is the message.
6. Simplicity and tranquility are nice concepts to dream about for some far off day in the future.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to getting the kids to bed, tomorrow my plans include park? mowing? getting ready for Sunday night? and Sunday, I want to have everything flow smoothly for the evening's classes!

Thankful Thursday

It has been a very busy, but fulfilling week. I told someone yesterday that if I can get through October 5th (Frances' birthday) then I might be able to rest-but only for a day or two because then the Christmas madness will start. I am trying to really reflect on thankfulness this week and dig deep. I feel like I have used up all the "easy" ones and that is actually good. Thinking hard about thankfulness could never be a bad thing!

This week I am thankful for:

• My co-workers at church. Especially Valerie and Louisa. Louisa has put together a religious education committee and Valerie and I are the only members (as of right now). We get together every few weeks to talk about our work, but also to do a book/bible study. We are reading In the Name of Jesus: Reflections on Christian Leadership . It helps us to reflect on our duty to be servant leaders. It has also prompted some really deep discussion. We talked a lot about personal stuff yesterday and it felt very cleansing-it also helps us to know each other more deeply and work together better as a team.
• 5:30 AM. I know you won't believe me if you know me, but I am thankful for 5:30AM. Henry is still breastfeeding in the morning and before bedtime. This is the indefinite stage for us. Frances nursed this way until 17 months when I had to be out of town for a weekend and didn't think pumping was worth the work. She didn't complain when I put her to bed that week without nursing. It is just part of her nature to be easy going. I was sad that it was so easy to wean her. Well, Henry and I have spent two or three weekends apart. I pump while I am gone, and he either takes a bottle or not-but when I get back, we pick up where we left off. He doesn't ever ask to nurse during the day-he is quite content with a sippy cup (and he LOVES lemonade-just like his mommy!). But at night, once he is in his pajamas, he starts banging on my chest and he is ready to settle in for the night. Lately he has been waking up early (I need to push back his bedtime a little bit). It has been anywhere between 4:30 and 5:30. He doesn't so much as cry, but yell out. At 4:30, he will go back to sleep, but at 5:30, not so much. And neither will I at that point. So I get up and get him out of his crib. I feel his cold little legs against me because he always kicks his blanket off. We go out to the couch where I can snuggle up with him and my green fuzzy blanket, and he nurses. The house is quiet and dark. His legs warm up as they lie across my stomach. I can listen to his snurglley breathing (I just made up that word-I think you know what it means). He nurses until he goes back to sleep and then sometimes I just hold him. I know that all too soon (even now while he's awake) he won't let me hold him anymore. Sure I can pick him up, but I can't just hold him. This is our time and I am thankful for it.
• I am also thankful for me. I am trying to think of how to write this with the correct mix of humility and pride. It has been on my mind a lot lately and I am not sure how to write it. I said part of this in my book study yesterday and mentioned how it makes me feel silly. But here is goes anyway. I am proud of myself lately. Sure I still mess up and do stupid or unkind things, but lately I have stood up for myself in a few important ways. I have taught my preschoolers some things that make me proud. I have made a difference in some people's lives. Is it a "mom" thing or a "woman" thing to always try to hide in the background and pretend that you don't matter? Maybe it's just a "me" thing, but today I am feeling pretty thankful for who I am and what I do. In the youth ministry world, we joke about "9th grade boys" as being the silly, immature, epitome of who we are trying to reach. Last night, Ken and I took the kids out to eat. As I was walking into the restaurant, I saw one of my teens (a 9th grade boy!). Well there is a rule in youth ministry about letting teens acknowledge you first in public, so you don't embarrass them (or something like that), so I was ready for a smile and a nod; but this young man jumped up off the bench and gave me a hug! Then he said to his mom, "Look who's here!" At that moment I felt very proud to be an adult who can get that kind of positive reaction from a teenager in public. Teachers and ministers sometimes complain that they don't feel like they are accomplishing much, but this week I feel like I have made a difference.

Like mother, Like daughter

Frances found a stuffed blue giraffe while we were cleaning today. Initially she couldn't remember his name, but after a while she came running in the room, "It's Sparky!!" We had to take Sparky to the park and put him in the swings. He also jumped off of the play structures a few times. When it was time to go home she announced that Sparky was hungry. She got out the Boppy pillow and sat down on the couch to breastfeed him. Then she said, "All done?" and switched sides. Now she his reading him a book and coo-ing to him. She says it is time for her nap. What a good Mommy!!

Time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping...

...Into the future! I lost another week?!!? How does this happen. Last weekend was crazy busy because of the Diocesan Youth Council retreat in Abingdon. I am excited because we have a really awesome group of young people to work with this year! We drove home Sunday afternoon in time for me to turn around and rive over to church for our religious ed kick off. I think the night went rather well and I am glad to have things underway.

My mom wanted to make sure I posted a few pictures from when Henry and Frances stayed with them last weekend. These are the pumpkins that my brother, Alan, grew. They are huge!!

They spent a lot of time in the garden picking grapes, blueberries and raspberries. My mom commented several times on what a good eater Henry is. And he is, especially in contrast to Frances who has a very small appetite and eats very slowly.

He got a new a hat as well. Yes, that is the potty seat! I couldn't use any of the other pictures because they all have Frances in the background...p**ing. :)

This has been a good week, but busy. I have been spending a lot of time on getting things ready for church this Sunday. I am really excited about the way our program is turning out this year. Things are going well at the pre-school too. I am up to nine kids in my class-three boys and six girls. They usually get along really well and LOVE circle time in the mornings-especially the message time we do.
There was a fire at the ABC store across town which has created more work for Ken, but today he doesn't go into work until 4:15, so we had a nice morning of cleaning house and hanging out. The kids are sleeping now, so hopefully when they get up we will have the chance to do something fun.
Please pray for Frances and Henry who both have the "coffes" (That's what Frances calls it when she has a bad cough.) I have been giving them their allergy medicine as well as some breathing treatments. This happens about once a season, and it can be a miserable two weeks for the two of them (and consequently mom and dad too). They don't sleep well, or eat much or behave well at all.

theliebers

Create your own family sticker graphic at pYzam.com

Hello Mah Baby...update!

Since I got my new memory card for my camera, I got this amazing video of Frances singing her "orangutan song." Please see this for further explanation. She did it three times (with backstage prompting from me). Hopefully the third time is loud enough for you to hear. ACK-She's sideways!! Sorry, I don't know how to flip it (other than upgrading software...)

Friday Fill-Ins

1. If I was to walk into your life, you'd probably trip over all the toys that seem to follow me around!
2. Catch a bright star and place it in Frances and Henry's bedroom.
3. And you can send me dinner any night of the week.
4. With Frances around, I'm dealing with a memory that never forgets.
5. I'm the innocent bystander / Somehow I got stuck in this wonderful life.
6. What's keeping us apart isn't selfishness, it's the chaos of life.
7. And as for the weekend, tonight I’m looking forward to the DYC retreat, tomorrow my plans include the DYC retreat :) and Sunday, I want to leave the retreat in time to get home and get ready our religous ed kick-off!

Thankful Thursdays

I have missed a few Thursdays because of the busy-ness of life, so I am glad to get back into the habit. It is one think to think about your blessings, and another to take the time to write them out. I have limited myself to three per post simply because I want to write more about fewer tings rather than writing less about a lot of things (does that even make sense?)

• Today as I reflect I feel especially thankful for my digital camera. I know it doesn't always work and washing my memory card was not a good idea, but without it I wouldn't be able to save so many of the memories that I have here. Ken's mom has a magnet shaped like a camera that Frances loves to play with. She takes pictures with it and then turns it around to "look" at the picture she just took. She does this with imaginary cameras also. I think it is just amazing that we can be so instantly gratified with knowing that a shot came out (or didn't). I also love the video capabilities I have. I have a digital camcorder that I use for longer amounts of time, but just to catch a quick blurb, the camera is awesome!
• I am also thankful for my pre-schoolers. I hope I am not speaking too soon, but these kids are a delight! Right now I have 6 girls and two boys. The girls like to play princesses together and don't normally fight too much. The boys are both new to my classroom, so for right now all the toys are extra exciting to them. Maybe it is just the noticeable difference between 8 4-year olds and 20 older kids, but my room runs so much more smoothly now!
• Thirdly, I am thankful for new life. I have four friends right now that are pregnant (I am definitely NOT). Two of them are first time moms and two of them have other children, but all four of them are just a filled with the wonder and appreciation of life growing within them. How great is that!! What a miracle and a privilege that is granted to women who are allowed to create and grow a new life!! It kinda makes me want to be pregnant again...KINDA--not quite ready yet.

The View from the Peanut Gallery

Frances took these pictures on the way to school this morning. The trip is quite fascinating, can't you tell? Someday she'll be a famous photographer and support us in our old age.
Oh, and by the way...I bought a new memory card that works with my camera.

"Hi, Henry!"

"Where are we going?" Her booboo on her leg from the playground.

We don't need no stinkin' plumber!

Well this post was supposed to be about how awesome I am for fixing the day care toilets, but alas, I have only conquered one of them so far. I am taking a break from the second one, to think about what else might be wrong with it. Hopefully I will get back to it later today, because really there is not another good time for me to look at it.
But I did fix one of them! Yeah me!

Sherando Lake

We have lived in and around the Shenandoah Valley for about 10-12 years depending on if you count the years I was in college. Countless times we ave driven past signs for Sherando Lake, and not stopped. Well, yesterday that changed. Ken and I both had the day off for Labor Day so we decided to look it up and check it out. We are furious with ourselves that we didn't go sooner!!
For $8.00 we gained entrance to the park. After that everything was free. There is a really nice picnic area with tables and grills. We had lunch in this area and met some friends from church having a HUGE cookout. They had brought their own grill on a trailer! It was a monster!!!
After our lunch, we walked over to the swimming area. There is a nice sandy beach all along one side of the lake. We put out our mat and went down to the water. Henry wanted nothing to do with the water, despite this experience. He was terrified of the sand and the water. In fact, if you said the word "sand" to him he would start crying and clawing at you. (I tested it out a few times...) Frances, however, went straight in. She and Ken played in the water while I visited with some other friends from church that we met. Henry just sat on the mat and held on to me. I think part of it was due to the fact that he was tired. but I will not lie and say I wasn't disappointed. After a while, Ken and I switched and I got to go down to the water with Frances. It was cold, but no too bad after I finally got in. Then we built some sand creations up on the beach. Frances did not want to leave, but of course, we had to.
We went and checked out the campsites they have. They look very nice. We promised ourselves that we would head out there to go camping sometime (probably next summer). I can't believe this treasure has been 45 minutes down the road and we've ignored it all this time!!
PS I have no pictures because I washed my memory card in the washing machine (apparently that's not good for them). I am hoping to remember to buy one soon!