Monday, March 31, 2008

Build a Jack

Nathan's bday gift from the 'big kids' was a trip to Build-a-Bear, not something you would guess to be on an 8-yr-old's wish list, but it was at the top. He was beyond excited and has dutifully put Jack in his spiderman pajamas everynight and playclothes every morning. Mammaw took him to buy underwear for Jack which we somehow overlooked during the first trip, plus another outfit during her weekend visit. Shortly after returning home from the mall, our neighbor came over to give Nate a $25 gift card to guess where--Build a Bear! I won't think about how that makes about $100 worth of stuff for a dog that has been purchased in the last week.

Here's how Jack went from a pile of fluff to a much loved puppy.

Nathan had a tough time choosing. The final 3 were a dog, a monkey, and a turtle. I'm really surprised the dog won since the turtle had the green thing going for it--Nathan's favorite color--but here he is getting stuffed with fluff and a heart because who would want a dog with no heart?

Next, a little air fluffing and brushing. Nathan thinks he needs to take Jack to the mall once a month for some grooming. Maybe if I promise to be quiet and patient while he brushes Jack, he'll promise to be quiet while I shop for clothes.....

Nathan is not known for his quick decision making abilities. It took quite a while to decide which outfits to purchase, then he had to decide which outfit to dress him in. I try very hard not to interfere in these minor decisions because I figure they're good practice for later in life when the big, important stuff comes along, but at this point we've been in the store for 45 minutes and I'm ready to be done.

But, one look at this happy face and it was all worth it!

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Nate is 8!

We were at the lake for Nathan's birthday which meant we had to haul of his gifts with us there and back. We also put him in charge of our activities on Thursday. Strange things happen when an 8 year old is orchestrating your day like me eating Cici's pizza and playing laser tag. We also went to Build a Bear--you'll get to meet Jack later, played putt-putt, and rode go-carts. Nathan started out on the rookie track but his legs were too short. Then he rode the family go-carts with Kevin, but he wasn't old enough to drive. Finally, he tried the junior carts and they were just right. Goldilocks would have been so proud.

Zac: Before and After


Zac has joined the braces club--kid #3 at our house to embrace the metal with the promise of a beautiful, straight smile after 18 - 24 months. He didn't really want his picture made, but I reminded him I was paying $151.45 per month for an eternity (at least it seems that way!) and I had earned (or paid) for the right to take his picture.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Spring Break!

The kids started their spring break last Friday. I have yet to start mine. Don't you think Congress should pass a labor law stating that all adults with children should automatically get spring break off also, with pay? Not likely to happen, so Kevin and I both took off tomorrow, which is also Nathan's birthday. We're heading to our friends' lakehouse for a few days and hopefully will get to rest and relax a little. And if there's a little shopping involved, I won't complain.

But before I can leave town I have to.....work today since I'm off tomorrow, bake Zac some cookies for him to snack on, pack, take the dog to the vet to get shots so Kevin can take her to the kennel, mail Nathan's party invitations, get off the computer so I can get started on this list.

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

An Indian visitor

Our special guest this weekend was a ministry partner from India. Kevin, of course, knows him well by now. He was here in the states last year about this time, but the kids and I were still in Texas. I was so excited to finally meet him. His ministry is a huge part of our ministry, and he's the one who helps coordinate the mission trips and basically keeps everyone out of danger which is a huge comfort to me when Kevin is there. We got to take him to dinner on Sat. night which was quite an experience. He was fascinated that we had to wait for a table. I enjoyed getting to hear more about India's culture and his family. It was also fun to watch him eat. He asked for hot sauce to go on top of his grilled catfish, then poured it all over. He ate a little bit, then added more Louisiana hot sauce. He admitted that he had never had anything to eat that was too spicy. He would be very bored with my cooking---the only heat I like is in the temperature category.

He also shared a lot about his ministry in our morning services and a luncheon afterwards. Here's a few facts about India you probably don't know that I found fascinating.
*In the state we are ministering, there are over 45,000 villages and 85 million people.
*Approx. 2 out of every 1,000 people is a Christian.
*Hindus worship over 30 million different gods.
*Most villages do not have clean water and drink from the Ganges where they also bathe, wash their clothes, and throw the ashes of their dead. His ministry is trying to provide wells to these villages and at the same time teach about the Living Water.
*This ministry has started 38 house churches in the last 2 years and has the goal of 1000 in the next three years. Sounds impossible, but when he speaks of this goal, his faith shines through and he's already giving God the glory for accomplishing it.
*Becoming a Christian in India sometimes means being shunned by your entire village and sometimes leads to physical harm.
Keep praying for India and our friend's ministry there as he trains church planters to go to their own villages and introduce them to someone most of them have never heard of--Jesus Christ.

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Mini-Pro


Nathan finished his first season in Upward a couple of weeks ago. Kevin and Zac were his coaches and Katie was a cheerleader so you can guess how 8 Saturdays and Monday nights were spent. Nathan had an interesting season. After 4 games, he had scored a total of.....(drum roll)....... zero points. He had a couple of aggressive players on his team, so I think in his mind, his job was to get the ball to one of those two kids instead of trying to make the shot himself. Then he got a little incentive: someone offered him $5 for every basket he made the rest of the season which went like this:
Game 5--1 basket
Game 6--2 free throws and 2 baskets
Game 7--5 baskets
Game 8--3 baskets
Amazing what an incentive can do! I was concerned the pay-off was going to backfire. Nathan tends to be a perfectionist and if he hadn't scored any baskets, he would have taken it very hard and lamented about it for days. I wasn't given the opportunity to approve the offer, so I just had to hope for the best. Thankfully, we had a happy ending that gave him a little confidence, not to mention a new Wii game, a board game, and some Lego Star wars sets.

Katie's last year to be an Upward cheerleader...Years ago when she was in first grade, she became a Christian during one of her devotional times at practice.

Monday, March 10, 2008

Dishes, Set #4

I got new dishes! I'm so excited! No, the conversation about wedding showers didn't provoke me. I've been looking for some for about 6 months and finally committed to the set below. I was trying to remember how long I've had set #3, mainly to make myself feel better about the $150 I spent on the new ones. I honestly can't come up with a date, but I do know I bought them several years before Service Merchandise went out of business. If you're in your 20's, there is a good chance you don't even remember Service Merchandise. All my other dishes came from that store, a mecca of everything kitchen related. Possibly one reason it took me so long to purchase new ones is I was perplexed as to where to buy them. I've never bought dishes anywhere else. Target came to my rescue by having these which I think are adorable, if dishes can be adorable. I smile each time I get to use them even though I realized after I got home with them that the dinner plates are too tall for the dishwasher and have to be hand washed. But, I'm renting and this dishwasher is only temporary. My dishes will be with me a long time or at least until we break enough of them that I'm forced to by set #5.

Friday, March 7, 2008

My moral dilemma, #2

For my first moral dilemma, click here.

This is a picture of my stove. I hate it. I don't hate many things so this is a pretty strong statement coming from me. Since we are renting, I am powerless to do anything about it. It is ugly. It doesn't maintain a steady temperature in the oven. The burners smoke when I cook on them. I was cooking dinner a few nights ago and instead of my home being filled with the wonderful aromas of beef stroganoff, it was filled with smoke smelling of burnt mystery food. Thankfully, it was a warm day and I could open the back door to let the smokiness escape.

Here is my dilemma: is it wrong for me to hope that the stove will break and the owner will have to buy a new one? Since I am a Christian, when I hope for something; it is in all practicality a desire for God to orchestrate that thing, whatever it is. I don't necessarily want the owners to have to spend money buying a new stove but that's the only way I'm going to get one. What do you think?

Monday, March 3, 2008

Wedding Shower Do-overs

Some friends and I were talking recently about how we think we should get another wedding shower around our 15th or 20th anniversary since all the stuff we originally received is worn out by then. This would work out well for me since I'll be celebrating my 18th this summer. I think I've purchased 10 irons, 4 griddles, 6 crockpots, 3 blenders, and an unimaginable number of glasses since my wedding day.

This conversation then led me to think about what I still own from my original wedding gifts. I decided to ignore the 6 china plates, 3 cups and saucers, and various serving platters since they're only used sporadically. Actually, I never use my wedding china because I only have 6 plates. I have 6 people in my family so if I have guests, I don't have enough. And if I don't have guests, what's the point?

Anyway, the only things I could come up with were the country blue Rubbermaid silverware tray that still has the bright green Walmart price sticker on it(remember when stores actually used price tags??), a Corningware casserole dish--the french country design with the little basket of flowers, and a set of sheets that Katie uses on her bed because they've been washed so many times they're super soft. That's it. Nothing else from hundreds of wedding gifts that I was so excited about and spent hours writing thank you notes for. I think it's much more monumental to stay married for 18 years than just to get married. Anyone over the age of 18 can do that. Shouldn't I be rewarded for my commitment with another shower? I'll be waiting for my gifts in the mail around July 14. (Just kidding!)

Just call me Betty

Crocker, that is. I just spent 3 hours in my kitchen baking for my allergic-to-everything child. I had gotten behind in my baking which means he's been eating stuff he's not supposed to so I dedicated my afternoon to stocking the freezer. I successfully made 4 dozen muffins--2 dz. chocolate chip and 2 dz. apple cinnamon, a batch of brownies, and a batch of cookies--milk and white chocolate chip. I unsuccessfully made a loaf of bread. I was trying to be too effecient and use the bread machine which had been banned to the garage sale pile since the oven was busy with all the other goodies. Somehow I forgot the reason I booted the bread machine to begin with: the loaves come out squatty and heavy. They look like I took a regular loaf of bread and stepped on it, making it about 6 inches tall. I think I'll stick with my Kitchen Aid mixer (best purchase I made ever! Okay, maybe not ever, but it's up there in the top 10.) and loaf pans. Sadly, all this food will only last him about 2 weeks if I'm lucky.