Shelby, Alex, and Abby--
WISH YOU WERE HERE!!!!

FOR TODAY-April 30th, 2009

Outside my window...my 14 year old son, Alex, hobbling through the rain as he gets off the bus.  He had his cast removed this morning, and his foot and leg are still a bit tender. 

I am thinking...how many things I should be doing while the babies nap. 

I am thankful for...my 16 year old daughter's (Shelby) healing.  Final check-up with the oral surgeon was today, and now she can chew for the first time in six weeks!  Chicken tenders were her first food of choice.  

From the learning rooms...Got a letter from the school.  Shelby scored in the top 25% on her PSAT!  And she had been so worried that she would not do well. 

From the kitchen...guess I better get dinner started. 

I am wearing...denim shorts, striped polo shirt, bare feet

I am creating...helping hubby write and edit the Building Automation Systems curriculum he has been contracted to write, and then teach for two weeks. 

I am going...to D.C. with hubby while he teaches the BAS course!  We leave on Sunday and will be gone two weeks.  Mother's Day dinner will be at Mt. Vernon!   

I am reading...Beverly Lewis-The Preacher's Daughter

I am hoping...the trash not getting picked up today was an oversight on their part and not because I forgot to pay the bill.

I am hearing...the trash truck pull away, just as I typed the last line!!!!

Around the house...all is temporarily quiet.

One of my favorite things...Kissing sweet, chubby, baby cheeks.

A few plans for the rest of the week:  Finish hubby's curriculum, pack for trip to D.C. (leaving Sunday!), write next week's column for the papers, attend Saturday morning ladies' brunch at church where I get to introduce Lori Borgman!

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

In case you are wondering how to contract the Swine Flu:





These prompts are taken from a blog I was introduced to recently, called The Simple Woman's Daybook.   I think it will be great fun to follow, and encourage you to check it out! 

On Easter morning, Nathan called from the shower, "Is my suit ready?" 

I replied, "Well, I'm feeling too fat to dress up, and I figured since Alex has a cast and will be wearing khaki shorts, there's no reason for you to wear a suit."

"This is the best Easter ever!" was the enthusiastic response!

I told Alex he had to at least wear a shirt with a collar.  He chose one with a skull.  I started to say no, but then I figured, "Skull-Easter-Golgotha--I can live with it!"

The girls got new dresses, but the zipper on Shelby's broke that morning, so she just wore a sweater and skirt.

And Hudson had a new suit, tie, and dress shoes, but he couldn't wear the tie because his neck is too fat.  After we took the pictures and put him down, he was having a hard time walking in the shoes which caused him to fall.  Because of the suit jacket he couldn't reach his arms out to break the fall and ended up landing right on his forehead.  After the second goose egg, I took the jacket and shoes off.  

Phoebe was thrilled with her new clothes, but always resists having her picture taken when she is dressed up.  By the time we got to church, she was covered in the chocolate she had secretly stored in her new purse, and was tired of the shrug.  So, except for Abby, we all looked a bit bedraggled on Easter morning!   

Fortunately, God loves us in casual wear, chocolate-covered wear, half suits, fat clothes, and even skulls. 




















Because it's only fair....

Having a baby brother is so much fun!  But letting him help fold the laundry could become a bit embarrassing.  Especially if your mom takes a picture of him dragging your bra around and posts it on her blog!



Unfortunately, we missed the shot of him putting it on his head, but this is cute too!
Some day, he will hate this way more than big sister does right now!

I had kind of thought that as my kids got older, life would become less complicated.  However, it continues to be one thing after another!!  (see posts below on Shelby's surgery) Two weeks ago, I had a routine check up with my cardiologist.  My ekg showed a little glitch, so they asked me to stay for an echocardiogram.  I was going to be waiting for several hours, so Nathan left work and went home to stay with Abby, Phoebe, and Hudson so his mom could go to work.  

He had been home around an hour when the high school called to report that Alex had run into another guy while playing basketball in PE, and had possibly broken his foot.  They drove to an Indianapolis hospital, where I saw them while waiting for my test!   

Turns out my heart is perfect, praise the Lord!  I figured it was, but during those hours of waiting you start to imagine all sorts of possibilities.  Alex didn't fare so well.  His foot and ankle are broken.   At 6'5", he gets asked every day if he plays basketball.  I don't know how many times he has to say, "NO! I don't play basketball!"  Here's the proof!  (these are size 15 feet, in case anyone is wondering)









Doesn't every teenaged boy prefer a hot pink cast? 



He uses crutches at school, and leaves the shoe off because the shoe is NOT cool!




Due to swelling, the pink cast became too tight and his toes started bruising and feeling numb, so he now has a sporty black cast with metallic signatures.  I'll have to get that picture tonight. 

Some years ago, I was attending a meeting with several women when the conversation turned to mothers. It saddened me to hear many of them express anger and unforgiveness toward their moms for slights that, in the big scheme of things, truly were slight. Some had completely cut off contact, not even allowing them to spend time with their grandchildren. Ironically, every woman around the table claimed to be a Christian, and believed she was doing the right thing by angrily turning her back on her mother. I still haven’t figured out any scenario where Christ would find that acceptable, but the words I spoke that night were not well received. 

What they didn’t realize is that it had only been a short time since I had lost my own mom, tragically and unexpectedly at the age of 47. Our relationship had been somewhat tumultuous over the years. Even as an adult I still had a smart mouth, and was never hesitant to tell her what I thought about her very busy life that left very little time for me or her grandchildren.

A few days after she passed away, I was driving along, mentally rehearsing clever comebacks for when she would make this or that irritating remark, when it hit me ... she’s dead.

I suddenly realized that all the time and brain power I had used over the years, worrying about how she wasn’t exactly who I thought she should be, was completely and utterly wasted. I was going to have to find something new to mull around in my little brain. Perhaps I’d find something more noble, like how I should be developing my own life as a mother and Christian instead of worrying about someone else all the time. 

The bitterest pill life gives us to swallow is the knowledge of what might have been, had we not wallowed in our own foolishness. I realize now that I had the power to completely change our relationship; not to change her, but simply how I responded to her. 

I don’t want to give the impression that she was a bad person or a poor mother. Quite the opposite! She loved me deeply and once told me that I was the greatest blessing of her life. She was the hardest working person I have ever known, in spite of being in more pain than we could have imagined due to Sjogren’s Syndrome. 

She graduated from college with highest honors, earning her diploma while raising a family and working. She was an amazing seamstress who made most of my clothes, and crafted my bridesmaids’ dresses. She was a truly creative and intelligent person. 

She was also an amazing friend and elementary school teacher, as evidenced by 1,500 people who came to pay their respects, sharing stories with us in a receiving line that wound outside the door long after the funeral home was supposed to close. 

This Friday, April 10, will mark 11 years since my precious mother left us. It happened to fall on Good Friday that year too. I jokingly remarked, “Leave it to mom to die on the same day as Jesus Christ!” 

In my faith, Easter is a day of rejoicing, for we know that Christ the Lord has risen from the dead, and will take those who have chosen to be born into His family home to be with Him. For me, it is also a time to reflect on my actions and not to allow foolishness to affect the relationships God has purposefully placed in my life. 

The week before mom died, she came to my house for lunch. It was a beautiful spring break day. We sat on the front porch and she casually played with my hair while we talked. The kids were sitting on their great-grandma’s lap, listening to a story, and I thought, “This is how it should be! If only she could always be on spring break.” 

Before leaving, for no reason that was apparent at the time, she said through tears, “I have always loved you so much. When you were a little girl I hated leaving you at Grandma’s every day while I worked. I was always afraid that something would happen to you while I was gone.”  

The following Monday she taught a full day of school, but was having severe abdominal pain. My dad took her from the school to the ER where she was diagnosed with rapidly deteriorating Pneumococcal Sepsis — a result of not having a spleen, and not knowing she should have had annual pneumonia shots.  

She was in a coma and never recovered consciousness. I stood at her bedside where we sang hymns as she was slipping into eternity. At one point I asked my dad, “If she is going to Heaven, why doesn’t this feel more peaceful?” 

He pointed across the room and replied, “Don’t you see that angel sitting in the corner, waiting for us to finish saying good-bye?” 

I kissed her forehead and told her I loved her. Peace flooded the room, and then she was gone. One of the greatest women I have ever known, taken too soon. How thankful I am that some day we will have an eternity to make up for lost time. 

The last few weeks have been rather eventful.  The most notable event being Shelby's orthognathic surgery of two weeks ago.  I am pleased to announce the she is doing well, the swelling is subsiding, and she can now talk after having had her mouth wired shut for a week.  She will be on a liquid diet for at least 4 more weeks, but when she can finally eat she will be able to eat like everyone else--biting into a slice of pizza or a burger instead of cutting it up first.  She has never been able to bring her teeth together without dislocating her jaw.  This has caused severe headaches over the years, as well as issues with chewing.  With orthodontics they were able to spread her palate and move her teeth into position, and then with surgery they removed a portion of the back of her upper jaw and put screws and plates in her face.  It was quite an ordeal and she wonders why anyone would CHOOSE to undergo plastic surgery! 

Here she is as she normally looks:



Here she is a few hours after surgery:



Quite painful to say the least!  In a few more weeks I will post after pics so you can see her complete recovery. 

Nathan has started traveling again and made one trip to Nicaragua last month.  He and Alex are currently in Belize where Alex has been able to spend some time with our jungle friends, and attended a Belizean school.  It was 107 degrees there yesterday and he said the classrooms were incredibly hot!  I'm sure he will be almost thankful to return to his air-conditioned school next week...almost!

Alex doesn't get his picture taken often, but here is one we snapped while he was studying a couple of weeks ago.  He is a good student and maintains straight A's! 




Abby has been working hard to make sure she is ready to start seventh grade in public school next fall.  I am both nervous and excited for her.  I will miss having her around all the time as she is such a joy, but I also will enjoy not being responsible for anyone's education for a while.  After 11 years, a little break from homeschooling will be nice.  I'll have a few years before I start anything official with the little ones.

Here is Abby with her dear circle of friends. 




Phoebe and Hudson really keep us hopping!  Toddlers!!  They are just everywhere at once, aren't they?  But they also keep us laughing!  Unfortunately, Hudson had two trips to the ER this month.  The first time, Phoebe knocked over a folded step ladder and it knocked him right between the eyes.  He was not himself, and would not respond to me when I tickled or talked to him, but was getting back to his normal self by the time we got to the ER.  Praise the Lord! 

The second trip was due to a quickly developing high fever, rash, and cough.  But another praise, after nearly three weeks he is finally well!  It took forever to shake that cough. 

Here are my babies playing.



Here is what happens when you don't get a nap before lunch!



Phoebe loves playing with her best friend Sam---also a reversal baby and born only three weeks apart!



And finally....Hudson in a bit of a sour mood.  Could be the bib.  This is what happens when you have a big sister close in age.  Some things just shouldn't be handed down.  I believe he's thinking, "Yeah...I'll show YOU Little Miss Sunshine!"




It has been a busy week!  My nieces came Monday for a spring break visit, and left this afternoon.  Also, Shelby's friend came for an overnight stay, so I loaded up the whole bunch and met my sister and bub-in-law at Bub's Burgers in Carmel. Bub's Burgers Abby and Katie split the Big Ugly, topped off with sloppy waffle fries, and a shake, and are confident that next time they could each eat an entire Big Ugly and get their picture on the wall!  

At the moment, Alex and Nathan are in Belize, Shelby and Abby are spending the night at Grandma's, and the little ones are miraculously napping at the same time!!  So, I'm going to skedaddle off here and take advantage of the quiet!! 

Abby celebrated her twelfth birthday on March 7.  She invited three friends for a sleepover and we had pizza, mucho mango, and a blue cake with pink icing!  This time next year she will be a teenager!!  This time next year I will be the mother of THREE teenagers!!!!!!





Abby with her friends Rachel, Lizzie, and Faith




The BLUE cake with pink icing!  I must say I am very proud of this particular shade.  I didn't think it would turn out quite so well!

This year marked Abby's last homeschool Valentine party since she will be starting public school in the fall.  The older kids in our group played games and had pizza.  The younger kids decorated cupcakes, decorated valentine bags, and exchanged cards.  This was Phoebe's first ever homeschool activity!

Here is Phoebe getting her Dora the Explorer cards ready to hand out.



With the cupcake she decorated



Hudson enjoying a cupcake too!



Back home, checking out her loot!

Recently while at Sam's Club, I found a Serenity Journal.  It is a beautiful book and I couldn't resist picking one up.  They had a number of different topics, but something about the serenity one really appealed to me.  Serene moments are somewhat elusive at this stage of life, but I take a minute or two whenever I can to jot down only the thoughts that bring me feelings of peace. 

I started out by listing all the things I could think of that make me feel serene:

1.  When the bills are organized and paid.  (I tend to leave some mail in my van, some in my purse, some on the desk, etc.)
2.  When everyone is safe at home
3.  Snuggling in the morning with the babies and watching cartoons
4.  When I've righted wrongs
5.  When Nathan holds me and we talk late into the night
6.  When i'm looking at the stars
7.  When I remember that God is in control
8.  In Belize where I have no cares or responsibilities
9.  When night time falls and I've had a productive day
10.  When the kitchen is clean
11. When friends and family are seated around my dining room table
12. Hanging out at Parky's
13. When I've finished writing a particularly good article
14. While reading Scriptures
15. Singing hymns with fellow believers
16. Lunch with a girlfriend
17. After a good de-cluttering
18. Receiving kind notes or cards through snail mail or email
19. When I catch that first glimpse of Nathan at the Indianapolis airport when he returns from a business trip
20. Babies napping in my arms
21. Sitting in my dad's living room
22. The sound of chunky little feet pitter-pattering on the cold tile floor
23.  Lunch with friends at the Chinese restaurant on Sunday after church
24.  Watching my kids accomplish their pursuits
25.  Running into old friends