It's time to talk about something other than the weather around here. Sheesh! Enough already! I became so excited that the temperature made it to 20 today, my daughter and I left the house without a coat. It was almost balmy.

While getting ready for church, Christina mentioned that she and Ethan would join me. I was surprised, as it had been awhile. It is not easy taking Ethan to church. We never know if he will be able to sit that long or how quiet he will be. The Sunday School class is not always prepared to have him. They like to have one person to devote just to him. As my thoughts pondered what the morning might bring a memory came in to focus.

Ethan is now 4 1/2. By next fall, he will be old enough for kindergarten. I remembered Christina's first day of school at age 5. Along with the usual worries of a first-time mom sending her first child off to school, I had an added concern. My daughter was going with her arm in a cast that went from her hand to just under her armpit.

We'd taken our vacation at the end of summer. Arizona, naturally, to visit grandparents and cousins. While the adults were enjoying some much needed conversation, the kids played happily in the bedroom. Thud! No screams or crying, so we figured everything must be ok. Out walked Christina. One arm was cradling the other. The injured arm was bent at a 90 degree angle right in the middle of her forearm-a place that doesn't normally move or bend. I don't think I've ever moved so fast in my life.

At the hospital, I found I could not look at her arm without feeling faint. I was sure the contents of my stomach would come spilling out at any moment. It didn't help that I was 10 weeks pregnant. Thankfully, she did not have to have surgery to put everything back in place. We returned to Colorado with a momento from Arizona-a plaster cast. It was heavy and quite a weight on her thin little arm.

The first day of school Christina sported her very decorated but bulky cast. I was delighted to see her smile at the end of her very long, 2 1/2 hour day. We chatted on the drive home as she told me about her new teacher, the activity centers and books they'd read.

At home I wondered about recess. I'd been concerned about the possibility of her getting hurt or falling and injuring her arm further. So I asked her.

Me: How did recess go? What did you do?

Christina: I sat on the sidewalk and watched the kids play.

My heart was saddened. Had I frightened her with my warnings to be careful? Was she afraid to play? Before I had a chance to ask, she began to explain.

Christina: You know what mom? I think I know what a kid in a wheelchair feels like.

Me: What?

Christina: When I was sitting on the sidewalk, I was watching the other kids play. They would run by, then go up the slide, slide down and then run by again. When they'd run by, they'd look at me. I think they didn't know if I could play or not. I think they saw my arm and were afraid to ask what was wrong, and so were afraid to play with me. So they just kept playing. I think that happens to people in wheelchairs. People are afraid to talk to them because they don't know what is wrong with them, so they just ignore them. I think that is what the other kids thought.

As I remembered my daughter as a 5 year old, my eyes blurred with tears. Here she was at almost 26, doing an amazing job caring for her disabled son, Ethan. Ethan who is nearly 5 himself. Was God preparing Christina at 5 for what was to come years later? I looked over at Ethan. He was laughing and playing with his puppy. What could God be preparing him for at this tender age?

Ah, the weather

First it was the blizzard-27 inches of snow. The following week, another blizzard & 18 inches of snow. The next week only 8 inches fell. A few days later winds were blasting up to 70 mph. It was blowing leftover snow making visibility 0 on some roads. Two days later it was gorgeous! Ok, there still ice and snow packed on the street and our yard is covered in snow, but I took my car out and drove with the top down. Afterall, it was 40 degrees. It was splashed with icy, dirty water, but I figured we'd survive. That was Tuesday. On Wednesday it was 65 degrees. I hand washed my car in the driveway. (Yes, the water ran until it met the icy snow mound at the end of the drive and formed a nice pool. But again, I didn't care. I was enjoying the sunshine.) Sadly, on Thursday the temperatures dropped. It was -1 degrees when the girls left for school on Friday. Things haven't changed much. I think the high was 4 degrees today. Tonight -8 and the interesting weather continues...but I still LOVE Colorado! (Variety-it's the spice of life.)

I have the best kids ever! As a Christmas gift, they splurged and booked an overnight package-just the two of us, at the Brown Palace on our anniversary. We had to reschedule, as our anniversary was December 29th. That date coincided with the second blizzard and record amounts of snowfall in 2 weeks. As the rescheduled date drew near, there was again talk of yet another big snowstorm.

Michael and I contemplated changing the date yet again, but decided to just go anyway. I grumbled that we'd yet to be able to mill around downtown, see the city lights, walk the 16th Street mall, or take a carriage ride during the Christmas Season. It always seemed to be very cold or snowy the day we chose. Okay, we're wimps when it comes to the cold.

One of the kids asked, "well, why did you get married in December?" Um...err...well, that is just when it was convenient. (They all know why.) Besides, we lived in Arizona. It doesn't snow in Phoenix.

Friday morning it was snowing. Michael had to go into the office for a meeting. I figured I'd shovel our enormous driveway so we could get away early. Eight inches of newly fallen snow. I could do it. What I'd forgotten were the huge piles of snow along the side of the driveway. It wasn't a matter of just tossing the shovel fulls to the side. They had to be hoisted up a good 3 feet or more. The neighbors were probably laughing as they watched me scoop and attempt to throw. In an almost mocking way, the snow would tumble down the hill and back onto the driveway. I fought with the heavy wet stuff for a couple of hours. I only fell once on some ice, but I won.

Michael and I made it to our romantic getaway. Free valet parking, Rose-petal turn down with delicious truffles, an equisite dessert, a bottle of wine, an amazing breakfast in the elegant Ellyington restaurant, and at the "Top of the Brown." We had a wonderful time. Thanks kids!
(Room Service)

The Real Puppy Story

I posted a picture of Ethan and some puppies last week. He was just visiting the mamma dog and her 10 pups. Ethan is now the proud owner of a Boxer puppy, as is his Uncle Christopher. Here are a few pictures:


Hilary with Dazee and Daphne


Sarabeth helping Ethan with Dazee


A Boy & His Dog

The New Puppy

If you happened to be at my house sometime in the past two days, per chance you noticed a new pet. The kitchen is blocked off, as it is the only flooring with no carpet-so the perfect place to house a not-housetrained critter. Now if you ventured downstairs, as you might, quite possibly you saw another pet. RoboDog. Walking past you'd see Robodog standing in the middle of the room. You would be amazed at the performances of this not-so-cuddly pup. You would marvel at the pile of poop, just beneath the backside of the metal and plastic. How real it looked. And that mound, you would find, is scented just as if it had been freshly laid by its live counterpart.

Wait a minute! The father of the house would happen by and report that not only is that brown goo the real stuff , but it was not manufactured by the robotic dog. Someone had actually found this pile of poop and strategically placed RoboDog in order to trick someone into believing he was the guilty party. As the father questioned those present in the house, you probably heard a few muffled snickers. But nobody would have an idea how RoboDog did it.

There were still 2 absent members of the household. One of them must be the guilty party. Shortly after arriving, the first one home was questioned. Gales of laughter were heard. "Come on Dad, you have to admit, didn't it make you laugh just a little?" I might have cracked a wee smile. This is the sense of humor of a 19 year old. Now aren't you glad you didn't visit my house recently?

Surprise of 2006

Have you ever waited expectantly for something to happen? Something big? Have you sat in anticipation for what yet, you didn't really know but you knew it had to be good?

This was my experience that began at the end of 2004. As Christmas approached I couldn't shake the excitement that churned inside of me. I did not know what it was and I had no idea what was to come, nor was I planning anything. It was one of those God things where you just have a sense that He is up to something-and He was.

I knew I was greatly blessed. I'd been given so much and I was spiritually rich beyond anything I'd ever imagined. What more could I want? But inside I had this sense that I was about to be blessed in a physical, tangible way. A blessing I could grab hold of, something I could see with my eyes and not just my heart.

I love the verse in Ephesians that begins: "Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think," (or can imagine...) I have a very creative, imaginative mind. I tried to envision a big gift for Christmas that would knock my socks off. I remembered a birthday when a friend unexpectedly dropped by with an equisite, bountiful plate of delicious 2 layer brownies. But I knew this would be a bigger surprise. But no matter how hard I tried, I felt I wasn't believing big enough. The only big object that I could come up with was a car. But who would give me a car? Besides, I already had a car-an 8 passenger Suburban. What could be bigger than that?

Christmas came. It was nice, but nothing big happened. The feeling of expectancy didn't leave. Another birthday passed and another Christmas approached. That Christmas/anniversary, Michael did surprise me with a new wedding ring. It was unlike anything I ever imagined I would own. It was big and beautiful, very different than the gold band placed on my finger when we exchanged vows.

The funny thing was, I felt like there was more. For those of you who dont' know me in real life, I have never been a material person. But I had this sense that the Lord was showing me His extravagance in a tangible way. I wasn't sure why, but who was I to question His goodness? As Valentine's Day approached I was sure that something incredible was about to happen. (Some of you may remember reading that it didn't.) But the big blessing didn't come until my birthday.

My socks were definately knocked off. Not only did I receive the gorgeous diamond and ruby earings I'd been admiring, but Michael bought me a brilliant Rio Yellow Convertible Sports Car. Now there are 2 reasons that this was so huge. The first was I do not ever remember owning a small car. I've driven the Suburban for 6 years, and the 12 years prior a full size Ford Van. Imagine a mother of 5 children driving a 2 passenger car with the top down, hair blowing without a care in the world.

The second reason is that my husband is very frugal with his money. Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined him buying me such a fun and seemingly frivolous, yet expensive car-just for fun and enjoyment. Money is important to Michael, it means security. For him to be so lavish, so extravagant could only mean one thing. He values me. I am more important than his money, than anything his money can buy. It tells me I am worth it. He is willing to sacrifice in order to see the joy and delight it gives me.

Mary at Owlhaven asked, "what's the best thing that happened to you this year that you could not have predicted a year ago? In other words, what was your best surprise in 2006?" And this was it.

Note to self, must get rid of the Santa hat.

Wordless Wednesday



For more Wordless Wednesdays...

Happy 53rd Birthday Michael!

In honor of my dear husband's birthday, I am writing 53 things about Michael.

53. Michael is 30 years older than his son.
52. He is 30 years younger than his dad.
51. I find I am still learning things about him.
50. Michael likes dark chocolate, but not milk chocolate.
49. He is so very patient with me and my quirkiness.
48. He is a tease and we all laugh at his sarcasm.
47. Michael actually enjoyed shoveling our new huge driveway after the blizzard.
46. He plays Power Rangers with Ethan.

45. He likes curly hair.
44. (I'm glad I have curly hair.)
43. He loves red hair.
42. (Did you notice I'm a redhead now? LOL.)
41. Michael has a gorgeous smile.
40. He works from home, where we share an office.
39. He takes me out to lunch at least once a week (and lets me get Starbucks whenever I want.)
38. He doesn't drink coffee.
37. Michael is trustworthy.
36. He enjoys mowing the lawn and doing yard work.
35. He has a riding lawn mower.

34. Isn't romantic by nature, so instead works very hard at it for me.
33. He never complains about how long it takes me to get ready to go somewhere.
32. He is a genius.
31. Is a member of mensa.
30. He doesn't like computer or video games, but enjoys a good challenge.
29. He has been an incredible provider for me and our 5 kids.

28. Michael is a wonderful father and an even better grandpa.
27. Loves to fly sail planes.
26. He isn't particularly fond of pets.
25. He lets me think I am right.
24. He is honest.
23. He used to be a gymnast.
22. He still has hair.
21. Michael compliments me often.
20. He has his pilot's license.

19. Is amazing with finances and has a gift for earning and investing.
18. He has the greenest lawn on the block (okay, with 1 exception.)

17. Is witty and great with puns.
16. He keeps our cars in great running order (and most of you know about the little gem of a car he bought me.)

15. Michael has been on a 100 mile bike ride.
14. He is a man of character and a man of his word.
13. He is generous.
12. He used to be a flight instructor.
11. He keeps me laughing with his sense of humor.

10. He likes to make me happy, and I am happy most of the time.
9. Michael appreciates anything and everything I cook.
8. Diet Pepsi is his favorite drink.
7. He watches T.V. to relax.
6. He lets me pick out whatever music I want to listen to.
5. Michael is honest in everything he does.
4. He is creative.
3. He is my partner in having fun.

2. He tells me he loves me every day.
1. He just keeps getting better and better.


Happy Birthday Michael!!!

When I was 6, my family attended a small Baptist Church. My brother and I were in the same Sunday School class since so few children went. He is 13 months older than I.

The Sunday before Christmas, the teacher asked, "Whose birthday is next Wednesday?" My brother immediately spoke up, "It's mine!" Mrs. Noel, the teacher of the primary grades very gently told him, "no, it isn't your birthday. Does anyone know the answer?"

"It IS my birthday." My brother insisted. "I will be 8." The teacher turned and looked sternly at him. I wanted to say something, but being so shy, I instead began nodding my head in agreement. His birthday was indeed on Wednesday."

Relenting, Mrs. Noel replied, "okay, it is Greg's birthday, but who else celebrates their birthday on Wednesday?" Without waiting for a response she answered her own question. "Class, next Wednesday is Jesus' birthday." As she continued to share the wonderment over this most magnificent event, my brother just looked sad.

As a child, how do you measure up to sharing a birthday with Jesus? Not only does Jesus' birth outshine yours, but then this Santa character comes in and presents gifts to everyone else on your birthday. Nobody wishes you a Happy Birthday. It is "Merry Christmas, oh, and Happy Birthday too."

My mom tried to be creative in celebrating Greg's birthday. I remember the time he had his birthday party in September. It was the beginning of the school year and he had friends over, birthday hats and birthday wrapping paper. I think he had fun, but I don't think he felt like it was "really" his birthday. My guess is that he felt slighted on his birthday. Too often he was handed a brightly wrapped Christmas gift from unsuspecting friends/relatives with the greeting, "Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday."

With the exception of that Christmas when I was 6, I didn't think much about his birthday being on Christmas. I don't recall ever celebrating it on Christmas.

Do you remember the November I met Michael?(Part One & Part 2) A few short weeks later, I was at his parents' home to celebrate his birthday. His mother always made a big deal out of his birthday. His falls on December 24th. His sister's is the 26th. Three days of birthday celebration.

As I'd grown accustomed to, I presented my gift to Michael. It was wrapped in beautiful Christmas paper. "Merry Christmas and Happy Birthday." I watched the look of shock and horror from the faces of his sisters. One of them spoke up. "It is Michael's birthday, not Christmas. You never wrap someone's birthday gift in Christmas paper." I was embarrassed, humiliated. I'd never given it much thought.

Talking with Michael, he said he'd never felt slighted in regards to his birthday being on Christmas Eve. Now I understood why. I never made the mistake of wrapping a December birthday gift in Christmas paper, nor did I hand a single gift with birthday and Christmas greetings together. I wonder how Jesus feels as we go about our celebrations, anticipation of Santa's arrival and all, and then throw in the token Christmas Eve attendance at church.

The Beauty of Colorado

The sun is already shining again. It stopped snowing a couple of hours ago. Here are some more photos:


El's car in the snow-you can see the side mirror


Starting to melt off the car a bit


Sunshine!




Sitting in the snow

Oh the weather outside is frightful,
but the fire is so delightful.
And since we've no place to go
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

So far, we have 34 inches of snow. It should stop snowing in the next 5-6 hours. Shopping? Tomorrow? Hmmm...maybe Saturday? I know, many of you would like to say to shop online. That is great, but packages won't be arriving, not even the U.S. mail came yesterday and won't be going out today. I know some parents who are going to be telling their children that Santa just couldn't get through the blizzard. We never did the Santa gig, but at the moment, I'm wondering if I could have gotten some mileage out of that one.

I haven't been off the front porch to get decent photos. The girls did some sledding yesterday. Michael shoveled every few hours so he wouldn't have the full 34 inches to shovel today.


4:00 Yesterday


8:00 This morning

(Edited)
I stepped out my back deck (yes, in my pajamas) to get a couple more photos. I know Christopher is missing the snow and wants to see it since he (hopefully) will fly in on Saturday. (I am so happy he wasn't flying in today or yesterday as the airport is shut and who knows if those people will make another flight.)




This is our covered deck. Because of the strong winds, the snow blew in to the door.


This is our back fence that is 5 feet tall.



I'm not just dreaming of a White Christmas anymore!

Christmas Shopping

I began my Christmas shopping yesterday and found out why it is NOT a good idea to wait so long to start. I thought I would attack it again today-early! I awoke at 6, as usual, then went to wake up my girls for school. When I opened my bedroom door, I could hear chatter. This is very unusual. It is rare that anyone awakens before me. I could see the glow of the television and gleeful sounds filling the room.

"What is going on?"

The girls were dancing around, arms linked. One had the phone to her ear conversing at the same time. Hilary ran up, grabbed me as she sang, "snow day, snow day!"

You've got to be kidding. My kids never get a snow day, well, once every 4 or 5 years. I looked out the window. There was a frosty dusting, but where was this snow that would cause such an interruption to my plans?

The girls assured me that it indeed was true. They showed me on the computer screen and again on the t.v.

Blizzard Warnings. 16-24 inches of snow expected.

Yikes! Doesn't anyone realize the students have final exams today? What about my Christmas shopping?

Looks like a good day to decorate that artificial tree we put together last night. It is our first fake tree ever. Where is the smell of Christmas? The tree is the one scent that lingers, unlike the freshly baked goodies. I love waking up and breathing in the outdoor air of pine. I'd settle for warm cookies today if I had the ingredients to bake them.

Time to reflect on the true meaning of Christmas. Our Savior's birth.


(It's beginning to snow.)

No Tree

Hmmm...I am not sure what we are going to do. We always buy a fresh cut Christmas Tree at the local grocery store. Since we were going to Christopher's graduation and would be out of town, we decided to get it when we returned. We went to purchase our tree and to our wonder and amazement there wasn't one in sight. We just might not have a tree this year. Sigh.

But here is a quick family photo after the graduation. (Of course I will speak more about that later.)

Wordless Wednesday

The Experiment



More Wordless Wednesdays
(Today is the day we leave to attend Christopher's graduation!!!! Won't be back online until Sunday.)

What is it like?

What is it like to have your Christmas shopping finished before December 1st, have your tree and lights glowing, and your entire house adorned with lovely holiday decor? Do you sit by the fireplace at night, sipping hot cider singing carols and enjoying those beautifully decorated cookies? Do you spend afternoons delivering packages and goodies to those less fortunate? Are you all decked out in red sweaters and gold, sharing with friends at Christmas Teas?

Okay, maybe this isn't anyone's life. And truthfully, I have nobody to blame but myself. I am very excited to be getting on the plane with the 6 other members of my family and leaving the chaos behind. The tree won't be up, the shopping won't be finished, err...started, cookies won't be baked. I've more important things to do this week.

Christopher is graduating from COLLEGE on Thursday. I know, it doesn't seem possible. High school graduation was a mere 3 1/2 years ago. But here he is. As always, I have much more to say about this, but am on a pretty tight schedule. So let me just shout:

Congratulations Christopher! I am so proud of you.

The Thinking of a 14 Year Old

Hilary is sick. She's been sick. I've been pumping her full of drugs so she can keep dragging herself off to school and practice. She didn't want to miss the first basketball game tonight. Monday she stayed home. Tuesday she went to school. Wednesday a trip to the doctor. Thursday back to school.

Friday: I wake her up and can tell she's running a fever. It's 102. More medicine and I tell her she is not going to school and we are making another trip to the doctor.

An hour later, she comes upstairs wearing shorts.

"I don't know what to do." She looks like she might fall over any minute.

"What do you mean?" I'm wondering if she's going to ask if she can still go to the basketball game.

"Do I have to stay in bed under the covers?"

"What?"

"I am so hot, I don't think I can stand to lay under the covers anymore."

"Your fever is probably breaking, which makes you sweat and feel hot. Why would you stay under the blankets?"

"Because people say when you have a fever you should sweat it out."

I almost laughed out loud, but instead reassured her that it was ok if she didn't remain bundled in her bed. I have no idea who people are. I wish she'd quit listening to them. Maybe then she'd believe me when I tell her things instead of arguing what these people have told her.

Update: She has pneumonia

Videos

I know, I haven't been around much, but I have a good excuse. My family loves watching home videos. A few years back I began the painful process of transferring them to DVD. This takes a LONG time. (Somewhere in the neighborhood of 4 hours per DVD.) I believe I've completed 6 or 7 DVDs. It isn't a simple one-step process and 1 tape doesn't translate into 1 DVD-usually 2. We have 83 videotapes. I thought I could do this over Christmas break that year. Crazy!

So where am I going with all of this? My darling husband, Michael, decided the other day that HE would take on this monstrous task as a sort of Christmas gift to the family. What a wonderful, thoughtful gift! I forgot that my computer was required to do this. While this process is running, my computer becomes unfunctional for any other purpose. Since my multi-talented, multi-tasking counterpart is still asleep, thought I'd sneak on here and let you all know where I've been. I may not be around as much as I'd like to.

Hey, maybe I will get my Christmas shopping done in a timely fashion this year. Quite possibly those Christmas cards might ship before Christmas, cookies baking in the oven filling the house with delicious scents, decorations aglow...who am I kidding? It just wouldn't feel like Christmas if I didn't run around at the last minute like a crazed woman.

December 1st

How did that happen? Do the days get shorter as we get older? Everyone tells me it is just my imagination, but I think it must be true. I remember being in 1st grade. The school day was at least 10 hours long, no kidding. There is no way it was any shorter. My mom says no, it was only a 6 hour school day. Surely the school had 90 minute hours on their clocks.

I remember after 3 long months of school December would finally arrive. But was it really only 25 days until Christmas? It seemed like an eternity. I'm telling you, the days were twice as long.

December is here again. Yes, Christmas will be here in 25 days. No, that is not 25 long days. Those 25 days are the short ones. They whir past. If I am not careful, I will wake up tomorrow and it will be the 18th. I'll blink and suddenly it's Christmas Eve. How does this happen?

I want to go back to the good old days when time moves a little more slowly. I don't like waiting, but somewhere along the way I missed the average days. I went straight from long, drawn-out days to time warp speed, not-able-to-finish-anything. Trust me, when they say "Christmas is just around the corner," believe it. I just hope when I'm out shopping this afternoon I don't accidently run into it. I can't have time going any faster.

Quiz

I saw this quiz over at Rocks In My Dryer I realize I scored 100%, but that in no way reflects the grammar on this blog. I suppose I should pay closer attention or edit more, but then I'd never post anything.

Your Language Arts Grade: 100%

Way to go! You know not to trust the MS Grammar Check and you know "no" from "know." Now, go forth and spread the good word (or at least, the proper use of apostrophes).

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