We were playing outside today when the toddlers discovered an old tire. 
Many years ago, when their teen siblings were small, the tire hung
from a giant tree and made a great swing!  




Phoebe was curious about it, but Hudson was downright perplexed. 
He knows things like this shouldn't by laying around the back yard. 



He did his best to rectify the situation, but the old tire wouldn't budge. 



In the meantime, Phoebe was helping herself to pears from one of our many pear trees. 
We used to have several apple and cherry trees as well, but
unfortunately they were lost in an ice storm. 





Sissy has the right idea!  I think I'll get me a pear and forget about that ol' tire! 



The sun is shining, the pears are ripe, and the toddlers are happy! 
Life is good! 

In July our older kids were going through a mirror maze in Branson.  Nathan and I planned to wait in the car with Hudson, but I instructed the kids to take Phoebe since "she's free anyway."  Phoebe's eyes became huge with excitement and she exclaimed,
"I THREE NOW?!" 
I hated to disappoint her, but she still had 7 weeks left until she would turn three.  She has been waiting ever so patiently, occasionally asking if she was three yet. 

Well, the day finally came!!! 

She had been talking for months about having a pink princess party.  After the cake was ordered, we went to the party store and filled our cart with princess party supplies.  Then we turned down the Dora the Explorer aisle and she went berserk!  So, we had a Dora theme with a princess cake, and a balloon from each to tie it all together!

The princess cake, made by my good friend Shelly Brown.  Shelly was one of my bridesmaids oh so many years ago!




She HAD to have this particular party hat.  Not a tiara, or a princess party hat, but a hot-pink, leopard print, fur-trimmed hat!






Lots of gifts!  Grandpa Lumpkin and Grandma Truitt in the background.






Phoebe has a unique connection with the teens from our church.  They all take such good care of her, and she loves them so!  Here are two of the six that came to her party.  Beau is on the left and Kegan on the right.  Kegan came home from college just in time for the party! 





Yes, Phoebe, NOW you are THREE!!!!!

Our anniversary was on Monday, August 24th.  We were planning to go away to celebrate, but we have a little one with croup, so we stayed close to home.  We started our day together with a delicious lunch at Weber Grill in downtown Indianapolis.  Then we headed down to little Nashville in Brown County Indiana and browsed the shops, enjoyed a wine tasting, and had our picture taken at an old-timey studio.   As we headed home we decided to try out a newer restaurant close to home, and I am so glad we did!  Carolina Grill The food and atmosphere were wonderful!

Here are some pics from eighteen years ago:






A castle cake for our fairy tale wedding!



My bridal party dressed in the most delicious shade of pink!  I'm pretty sure they loved these dresses so much that they still wear them!  They were handmade by my mother.







And here is what the years have done to us!!



Still loving life together!!  (The Jim Beam helps) 

I am pleased to announce that I have actually been published in a book!  So, to date, everything I've ever submitted has either been published or I'm still waiting to hear.   It's fun to have my articles printed weekly in newspapers, but having a book with my name and bio in it is an entirely different feeling.  I am a little disappointed that they took a lot of the "punch" out of the story, and it is somewhat poorly edited.  But hey!  It's a BOOK!   And I got a CHECK!  Here is the link if you are interested: Bedpan Banter

Now, if I could only manage to get my own book written and sent to a publisher or two! 

Today was back to school day!  I miss the days when school didn't start until after Labor Day.  That's the way it was when I was a kid, and that's the way we always did it while homeschooling.  For those that don't know, we homeschool the kids until junior high.  Shelby and Alex started in eighth grade, but Abby was lonely without them so she started in seventh.  So, today was her first day of public school, and she was SO excited!! 

Shelby is a junior this year.  She is an AMP mentor (not sure what the AMP stands for) so she had to be at school early to hand out schedules and help the newbies with their lockers.  This means she DROVE her car today instead of riding the bus!  I can't believe how quickly time moved to this point. 

This morning's outfit choice was a mix of 70's and 80's fashion.  Most notably--those are jelly shoes she is wearing!   Welcome back 1984!!  Woo hoo!





Alex is a freshman.  He had no concern whatsoever about his clothing choice.  When he came downstairs this morning I asked, "Is that what you're wearing on the first day of school?"  He replied, "Why?  The first day of school isn't any more special than any other day." 

Fortunately, his lime green cast was removed Tuesday and he is sporting a simple splint for two more weeks.  He ended the last school year in a hot pink leg cast. 

Today's clothing choice--camouflage shorts from the closet floor, paired with a worn gray t-shirt leftover from his junior police academy days.  The name Truitt is proudly emblazoned with a permanent marker.  Size 15 shoes by New Balance. 







Abby...dear sweet Abigail.  Today was her first day of public school and she was so excited she got up 20 minutes earlier than planned!   I cannot believe she is in seventh grade.  I know she will love it, mainly for the friends and the clothes, but she will love it! 

Abby loves the 80's almost as much as I do!  She used to say she would NEVER wear pants with a narrow leg, but I knew eventually they would come back in style.  She is now the proud owner of a number of pairs of "skinny" jeans in an array of colors.  Today she is cute but low key. None of her usual sparkles or sequins, but she has her black Converse tennis shoes and a great book bag!  Her first book bag ever! 







Here Abby and Alex wait for the school bus.  I love that early morning chill and crisp smell! 




The bus was delayed a bit so we did a photo shoot.







Alex was not a willing participant in the photo shoot!



I promised I wouldn't stand outside and take pictures of them getting on the bus.  So, this photo was taken through two windows, so as not to embarrass anyone!   Abby's first time on the big yellow bus.  Awww!!!



Only 1 1/2 hours until I get to hear all about it!!

I wrote this article seven years ago for my weekly newspaper column.  I'm a little embarrassed by the quality of writing so it won't go on my website.  Fortunately, I have learned much over the years!   The reason I am posting it here is because it seems folks are always asking about ear candles, and it's too much for me to recount my experience over and over.  Now, I can simply direct them here!


Last weekend I had my first experience with ear candles. Have you seen these? They are hollow cones made out of cotton fabric and dipped in beeswax. You put the pointed end in your ear and set fire to the other end. As the “candle” burns toward your head, the smoke creates a vacuum and sucks the wax out of your ear.

 I am not opposed to trying remedies of a different sort. Taking a more natural approach to things is very appealing from time to time. We have tried various herbs, vitamins and concoctions over the years. Once my husband heard that eating charcoal would lower his cholesterol. He eagerly made a doctor’s appointment, feeling sure that his cholesterol was sky high. Imagine his surprise and disappointment when the levels came back normal. No chance to utilize the charcoal remedy. 
  
So, when I heard about ear candling, I knew we had to give it a try. All those years of Q-tip swabbing have taken its’ toll. I know the hazards of impacting wax into the ear, and going to the doctor for irrigation (maybe that should be “ear”igation) is pretty low on my list of priorities. But imagine just taking care of the problem in the comfort of your own home.  
  
I went to the health food store and bought fourteen candles, one set for each member of our family plus a few extras. I decided to try the candling first since everyone else was a little apprehensive about having fire that close to their head. 
  
I cut a hole in an aluminum pie plate, stuck the candle through it and laid down on the couch. I placed the cone in my ear with the tin plate resting against my cheek. Hubby lit the other end and we all waited to see what would happen. In the T.V. screen I could see the reflection of the fire burning towards my head. It was quite surprising how tall the flames got! 
   
Every time the kids looked my direction their eyes would become huge and they would say “OH!!!” in very loud, surprised voices. This would startle me and I would look anxiously at my husband for reassurance that the only thing burning was the candle. 
  
The process took about ten minutes. When it was finished I got a pair of scissors and slit the end open. Inside was the most amazing amount of amber goo I have ever seen. I couldn’t believe all that wax came out of my head! The children were duly impressed. My husband was slightly disgusted yet intrigued.
 
After I candled the other ear, we did my son, oldest daughter and husband. My five year old opted out. She couldn’t bear the responsibility of lying still for twenty minutes so that nothing would catch on fire. 
  
As I struck a match to light the torch sticking out of hubby’s ear, I couldn’t help but laugh. “What?!” he mumbled from under the pie plate. “Well,” I said as I let the match hover above his head, “I was just pondering how some of our single friends think that married life is boring. They obviously haven’t seen the way we spend our Saturday evenings!” 
  
In all the excitement of chasing down floating embers before they caught in the curtains, I almost forgot about hubby. I noticed the flames were getting pretty close to his pie plate when I remembered I had emptied the water bowl. I ran to the kitchen for a refill and quickly doused the candle before the aluminum pan became too hot! 
  
After each candling we would slit the ends open and compare our wax amounts. It probably goes without saying that my son had the most. Eight year old boys tend to accumulate ear wax like the underside of my couch collects dust.
  
I went to bed convinced that my hearing had improved even though my ears were slightly achy. I felt as though I had done a great service to my family by freeing them of the sticky mess inside their heads. 
  
Two days later hubby was researching ear candles on the internet. He read that most of the accumulation in the bottom of the candle is actually melted beeswax. I refused to believe him. So, we decided to resolve our dilemma by burning a candle without putting it in anyone’s ear. 
  
As I held the burning cone, I couldn’t help but think that was as close as I’d come to watching my money literally go up in smoke. When it had burned down to 1 ½ inches I cut the end open. I was terribly disappointed at the amount of brown wax gathered in the tip. 
  
I’d had such high hopes for this ear cleaning method, but the more I think about it, I have to wonder if all of that beeswax stays in the candle. Maybe some of it melted into my ear as the earwax was being removed. Wouldn’t that be ironic? I guess you could call it an even trade!

So, on Friday the older youth group kids were hanging out, playing football, bonfire, etc.  Alex came home around midnight with a swollen hand and pinky finger that wouldn't move.  The next morning we took him to the ER (I love St. Vincent's pediatric ER!) and found that the hand is broken.  We left with two prescriptions and a referral to the Hand Center where he will get a cast.

On Saturday the kids attended a youth group party called The Chase.  It was in the woods, there were hunters and clues, and all kinds of craziness.  Shelby was actually working, but business was slow so they let her off early and she went and joined The Chase.  Unfortunately for her it would have been better to stay at work.  She woke up this morning with the most horrifying rash I have ever seen.  The doctor couldn't see her today so I took her to the ER.  They said it doesn't look exactly like poison ivy, but they are treating it as such.  So, we left with two more prescriptions, an excuse for time off work,  and another medical bill on the horizon.  As we were leaving the doctor was kind enough to say, "Tell your brother I said hello!"   I told her I certainly hope this is the last of the siblings she will meet this week!! 

This is one cost of having kids for which you can't really plan or budget.  Who knew Alex would end last school year with a cast on his leg and start this year with a cast on his arm?  Or that Shelby would roll around in poison ivy while wearing shorts?   One thing is for sure....my plans for spending the week doing nothing but potty training and cookie baking just flew out the window!!  Life is never certain; especially when you are a mom!   But it sure is a blessing....even if the blessing is disguised in a funky rash and an arm cast.

On our family's first trip to Belize, over two years ago, we lived for two months in a house known around the neighborhood as the "tarantula yard."  The kids learned that after dark you can take a flashlight and go tarantula hunting, startling the tarantulas with the light and then picking them up.   They were excited to share this aspect of Belize with their youth group friends last month!

Here is a tarantula in the dark!




This is Stanley.  Stanley is a native of Belize and caretaker of the Camalote Camp.   He was kind enough to head up a tarantula hunt for our group.  Notice the above tarantula is now on Stanley's shoulder. 




At first the kids would only hold the tarantula in a cup.



Then they got a little braver and passed around a hat with the tarantula attached.

Abby


Alex




Then they got a little braver!

Foster Toft



And FINALLY...the girl who is petrified to be within 20 feet of a spider....the girl who NEVER went tarantula hunting when we lived in the tarantula yard....the girl who refused to walk onto the porch because there was a tarantula on the wall....the girl who cannot take a shower if there is a granddaddy long leg in the bathroom....made a break through!

Shelby!!




And that is proof of the power of peer pressure!!!

Belize Mission Trip



The week of June 7-14th we had the privilege of sharing Belize with our church family and Nathan's bluegrass group.  In total, there were 24 on the team.  Having the band gave us something to offer so that we were able to get into some unique venues to share the gospel.  They were even interviewed on Belize television!   Everyone was excited about seeing the huge upright bass!  I hope you enjoy the video.  It cuts off 7seconds early, so if you know the song just hum it to the end in your head.  lol  


The next video is of the different groups we worshiped with in Belize.  Nathan had been attending a Chinese speaking church and they held a special service on Tuesday night so that our group could share their culture.   It is a small group, but very diverse, with eveyrthing being translated in three languages. 

The last part of this video is of the youth rally we held on Saturday.  We had around 70 young people come out to the camp.  We taught the gospel as well as ministry type things they could use in their home churches.  We even gave recorder lessons and handed out 20 recorders for the young people to use in their churches.  The squeaky sound you hear at the end is one of the recorders being played! 



A montage of the various groups we were able to worship with in Belize.



The best and most fascinating part of the trip was watching everyone go out and use their various gifts and talents.  We had musicians, medical personnel, construction workers, evangelists, etc, etc.  We covered so many aspects of ministry in this one trip that it was amazing!  We didn't all stick together the whole time, but rather each person found the area in which they could be most used and they poured themselves into it.  It functioned exactly the way the Body of Christ is supposed to function--everyone going out to use their gifts and talents for the Lord, and then coming back together for fellowship and worship.  

Here are pictures from June 1-7th, before the mission team came to Belize.  Earlier pictures and an explanation of our time are in the previous post.  All the dates on the actual pictures are incorrect.

After spending our first night in a beach resort, going to the Bullfrog Inn in Belmopan was not fun.  We've stayed there many times, but this particular trip was a bit rough. After the second day there, I was trying to pull a stubborn Phoebe out of her carseat and she said, "I not going!"  I said, "Where aren't you going?"  She replied, "I not going to the beach!  I have to go THERE!"  And she pointed with disgust at our hotel. 

Here is our tiny little room.  No flowers and no origami towel swans!  The nasty brown carpet was actually pink, but I didn't know that until the last day when I moved the bedside table to retrieve my phone charger!  There was one day when Phoebe spilled a bottle of water.  I absorbed it with a towel that was white going down and dark brown coming up!



The only reason this picture is bright is due to the camera flash.  Each morning I had the feeling of drowning whenever I walked into this dark, small, BLUE bathroom.   We also spent the first three days with no hot water, so I also had BLUE babies!



Every day we asked housekeeping for three towels and washcloths.  Every day we would get a variation, but never what we asked for.  On Thursday we finally got three towels, three washcloths, and a two hand towel bonus!  I was so excited I took a picture. 




We adjusted to our creepy, cozy little room by spending as much time away from it as possible!  After Nathan went to work each day, the toddlers and I took our time enjoying a leisurely breakfast.  Hudson always ate scrambled eggs and fry jacks.



Phoebe enjoyed pancakes every morning.  Especially on the days when we got the bottle of syrup without the ants floating in it!




Nathan would pick us up for lunch and we would go to our friend Yesenya's restaurant.  She has some great food, and it is ridiculously low priced.





Every morning I would put the kids in the double stroller, which was quite an attraction down there, and we would go for a walk.  Even in the rain! 


 
One day I decided to take a shortcut to the store.  I took the path to the right.   Hudson lost a shoe, and all the jostling made Phoebe throw up her pancakes!




Fat, white babies are a sensation everywhere they go.  Folks don't even think twice about taking them from their stroller and walking around with them.  Fortunately, the kids are used to it and they don't ever put up a fuss.  These were all taken at the Chinese store we went to about every day.   My favorite Belizeans are Chinese.  They have such great senses of humor and are extremely friendly and helpful!





Although, after a while, the babies do get a little tired of all the handling.



We went to our favorite restaurant, Chon Saan Palace with our local friends who were helping plan the mission trip. 



NT and Joy Dellinger have been missionaries in Belize since the early 60s.  I feel blessed beyond measure to count them as friends!




Other dear friends that we have made are the Erazos.  When we are in their home, I feel as though I am with family.  Emilia cooks the most amazing foods for us, and was our cook for the entire week of the mission trip.   I joke about them being our "jungle" friends because I can't get over the fact that panthers roam through their front yard and their neighbor once killed a tiger in his yard.  They seemed surprised to find out that NO ONE ever kills a tiger in the U.S.  Here is a picture of Hudson on their porch.




Belize has become our home away from home, and that is due to the beautiful friendships we have made there!  I thank God for every one of them!