Murphy's Laws for Children

(I saw these on line and had to share)

Murphy’s Laws for Children:

• When you need to carry a child they will want to walk.
• When you want them to walk they will want to be carried.
• When you bring the stroller they will want to walk.
• When you forget the stroller they will want to ride.
• The more potential a food has for stains the greater the coverage area when it is hurled by a child.
• A child's favorite one day is never a favorite the next day (especially food). The intensity of the tantrum is directly proportional to the amount of people around to witness.
• If it's mine it's mine, if it's yours it's mine, if I like it is mine, if I can take it from you it is mine, if I am playing with something ALL of the pieces are mine, if I think it is mine it is, if I saw it first it's mine, if I had it then put it down it is still mine, if you had it then you put it down it is now mine, if it looks like the one I have at home it is mine, if it is broken it is yours.
• If I make a mess you must clean it up
• If I broke it, its your fault
• Soccer, Dance, Basketball, Softball, Piano, Girl(Boy)Scouts (etc.) is always on the same day with less then 5 minutes between.
• The more preparation time for the meal the less likely a child is to eat it.
• As soon as the child is in the car and the car has left the driveway the child will have to use the bathroom.
• The clothes/shoes you bought last week will not fit this week or will not be "cool" enough for this week.
• The greater the importance of the phone call the louder the tantrum the child will have.

and for my friends Nancy and Christy......as soon as your children get settled in to school, they will get sick and have to stay home.

The best granola snacks!

In my feeble attempt to get my boys to eat healthier, I found this recipe on Allrecipes.com for granola snacks. They are great and easy to make! Ingredients: 2-1/2 cups crispy rice cereal 2 cups quick cooking oats 1/2 cup raisins (my kids won't eat them, so I substituted mini chocolate chips!) 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup light corn syrup 1/2 cup crunchy peanut butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract Directions: 1. In a large bowl, stir together the rice cereal, oats and chocolate chips. Set aside. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. 2. Combine the brown sugar and corn syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat just until boiling then remove from heat and stir in peanut butter and vanilla until smooth. Pour over the cereal and oat mixture and mix well. 3. Press into the prepared pan using a spatula. Allow to cool, then cut into squares. Yummy! This is my boys attempt at being funny. Trust me, they DO like them!

My Olympic dreams are shattered

Last night, as I was in my normal routine of watching the Olympics with my bag of Cape Cod chips and ice cold sweet tea, I was struck by an interview NBC did of an American athlete competing in the hurdles (you know, where they run and jump over those things really fast). Anyway, the reporter was asking him how he was feeling, after dealing with appendicitis, torn ligaments, knee surgery and a heart transplant this year (ok, the heart transplant I made up). As I sat there, wiping my greasy hands on my pj's, I said to myself "what's your excuse"? I haven't had any of those things to deal with this year, and yet, I can't seem to get motivated to walk down to the weight room and get on the treadmill for 30 minutes. Yet, here he was, competing in the Olympics after all life threw at him this year. I'm sad to say, but I will never be an Olympian. I know, shocker! But hear me out. For years I would watch things on t.v. and say to myself "I still could do that if I wanted to....I just don't want to". There is something disturbingly powerful in those words. You reach an age though (and mine is 39) where you say "jeez, I couldn't do that even if I wanted to". This stinks, let me tell ya. To watch Michael Phelps swim and realize, rather depressingly, that you are old enough to be his mother, makes you want to cry. At least it did me. The other thing that hit me last night was that I have no determination - at least not that of an Olympic champion. To see this runner, and swimmers, and gymnasts, come back from injury after injury gave me pause. I'll be honest, if it's raining, I'm not running. No chance. No way. And if I'm really being open here, I will tell you right now there are days I pray for rain, just so I don't have to go. Heart of an Olympian....I think not. So the Olympics have been inspiring for many people. For me, not so much. It's just made me feel old, and weak, and well, lazy. Excuse me now while I run to get a chocolate milkshake to make myself feel better.

Welcome to 3rd Grade!

Well today started off great! David woke up in a great mood and didn't complain or cry the whole way to school. Daddy, Jason and I walked him to his new classroom, helped him put his stuff in his locker and kissed him goodbye. After dropping David off, we headed to the grassy area outside the school and prayed for the school year. This is a tradition we started in Kindergarten and opened it up to the school last year. Many parents (more than double last years) joined hands in a circle and prayed for our children, faculty and staff for this school year. God's presence was felt and I was so blessed to be a part of it. Even in this busy first day, the office staff (including the Headmaster) joined us. What a blessing it is to live in a country where you can still do this. How thankful I am for this school and all they mean to us.

One of the best things about today was when I picked David up a lunch time I asked him about his day and he said "my teacher is the nicest teacher I have ever met!". Thank you God for answered prayers.

The Last Official Day of Summer

Well, today marks the last day of summer for us as David starts school bright and early on Monday. To be honest, I have been incredibly sad this week. I really miss him when he is at school, and it's going to take a while to adjust to him being gone all day again. We have had the best summer I can ever remember as a family - maybe it's because we're in a place we love, maybe because it's smaller and we have been closer as a family, maybe because Daddy took off 2 weeks for vacation this summer to be with us. Whatever the reason, getting back on track is going to be hard for me. God bless my brother and sister in law today though. Pregnant and all, my sister in law has her 3 boys and my 2 at her house right now. They spent the night with them last night and my brother had something to do at the college he works at, so she's there by herself with all five boys and her newest one on the way. I'd be out of my mind, but that's where her and I are different. She loves being around all those kids and has so much more patience than I do. God bless her. It's been a quiet day and I've gotten a lot of reading done - which I love. But I am missing them both and am looking forward to having them home tonight. So after my body adjusts to the shock of getting up at 6 a.m. again on Monday, I will give myself some time to adjust. I also will be giving my little boy the week to adjust too. I don't push him that first week and we try to limit the after school activities (play dates, sports, etc.) until we all adjust. It's going to be enough of an adjustment just being in school all day - he'll be tired, but I think he will enjoy seeing his friends again though. He's my homebody - there is nowhere else he'd rather be than hanging out at home - and I love it. The youngest one goes back after Labor Day (why they can't coordinate these days is beyond me), so I'll have to find some things for him and I to do while big brother is at school. I have a feeling he's going to have a hard time adjusting to his best friend being gone.....so guess who's shoulder's it fall on to play with him?!?! You betcha! Honestly, I am truly sad to see this summer go. It's been a wonderful couple of months and we have drawn closer as a family than ever before. I am so thankful to the Lord for blessing us as he has, and my prayer as this school year begins is that this closeness will not only continue, but grow stronger. And may he bless this wonderful school year. May it be the best year yet!

Do people really change?

I've been pondering this thought for a few weeks now. This summer we've had a lot of time to spend with family and friends. I've gotten into deep conversations with some of them about how their lives, and the lives of their families, have changed over the years....and how they have not. Take for instance a friend of ours from Rick's Chapel Hill days. He was a mess in college (and shortly thereafter) because of all the family turmoil at home. Our friend did well in school, despite it, but he grew angry and bitter over how his parents treated him. It took him down roads that were quite long and hard to return from. We had dinner with him this weekend and I must say, I am so proud of him. He has a great apartment and a car that is paid off. He works for a great company training the disabled so they can get jobs. A true miracle. I also talked to a girlfriend last week who told me how her brother is a miracle story. After years of blaming his parents, and running up a nauseating amount of gambling debts, his parents sent him to rehab and then told him "this is it. You don't get your life straight after this, we are at peace that we have done everything for you." His mother, in a beautiful expression of trust in her heavenly father, laid her son at Jesus' feet. And walked away. He's a miracle. All cleaned up, and in a great relationship with his family now. So these conversations and other things that have happened over the summer have made me wonder Do people really change and if so, what elements have to be there in order to make it happen? There are a few things I noticed that were present in the lives of these people that helped them change their life: 1. God. It may sound simplistic, but no real, permanent change can come without a relationship with the one who created you. You can't do change, no matter how big or small, without him. Knowing who He is, how much he loves you is key. You also have to surround yourself with a bible study and a church family to balance you out. You can read the bible all you want - and you should - but it helps tremendously to hear someone translate certain things and have someone to go to for answers. 2. Humility. "But with humility comes wisdom" Proverbs 11:2. What a beautiful verse! This goes hand in hand with God. You can have God in your life, but if you're still "I'm right, everyone else is wrong" you'll get nowhere. If you think you have all the answers, you're not prone to listen to others, much less God. You hear your own voice and not others. Change doesn't work like that. You have to see there's a problem and know you need help. That's what being on your knees is all about. 3. Circle of Influence. This is a big one. If you're still hanging out with your drinking buddies and you're trying to stop drinking, guess what? Won't happen. Same goes for negativity, drugs, gambling, eating disorders, etc. Whatever it is, if you are still spending time with people that bring you down and don't encourage you, you'll never pull out of the mud. This can be really hard, because your friends or your family are familiar; they are comfortable. Not many people like to make new friends or join a new group when they are in the midst of change. But it is vitally important if you're going to do it. You have to surround yourself with people you want to become. Christ loving people. People that can help you, pray for you, and by the way they live - show you a different way to go about life. 4. Forgiveness. "Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. Col. 3:13 To me, forgiveness is the single most important thing you can do to change your life (with the exception of accepting Christ). It also is the hardest. The people we are called to forgive usually are the ones we scream "but they are supposed to asking ME for forgiveness!" Think about Jesus for a moment. If anyone in history had a right to say this, he did. He was perfect; without sin. The Savior of the world. The Son of God. He had come to save them all. Yet there he was, mocked, beaten, and hung on a cross to die. What did Jesus say when he was dying on the cross? "Forgive them Father". He, who was without sin, forgave. Who are we not to forgive? We are sinful people who are saved by one thing and one thing only - grace. Jesus didn't die so you can keep beating yourself up for past mistakes. He also didn't die so you could continue to blame your parents for not raising you right, or your boss for not valuing you, or your husband for not spending enough time with you. You see, the thing about unforgiveness is that it turns into resentment and then bitterness. You think you are punishing the people you hate by your anger, but in the end you drink the poison you poured for them. The people you are angry with go about their days, unfazed by, and sometimes even totally unaware, of your feelings. Even if you manage to effect them by your actions, no one is hurt more by bitterness than the one who holds it. The flip side of holding on to unforgiveness is that one day, you'll have to ask the one you hate and have been harboring resentment towards, to forgive you. I once heard somewhere that total forgiveness of someone means that you can invite them into your house for dinner. I don't buy that. Not entirely anyway. I have a family member that I loved growing up as a child, but that person can be very ugly to me now that we are older. I have forgiven them for how they have behaved in the past, but I don't want them in my life on a consistent basis. It is only when they are with another family member that I have to deal with them. I don't want to subject myself, or my family to their behavior. Does that mean I don't forgive them? No. But their behavior hasn't changed and it's a cycle I won't continue with them. I go back to our friend from college. He has forgiven his parents for the mistakes they made, but they haven't changed. They still make decisions that infuriate him. But he keeps his distance. He'll send them a card or maybe spend a few hours with them at Christmas, but that's it. He has created a comfortable emotional and physical distance from them in order to keep his sanity. Change is hard, but worth it in the end. What a beautiful testament to what God can do when someone looks to Him to change their life. I have seen so many people, their lives ruined because of destructive, repetitive behavior that they refuse to change. What about you? Do you know someone who has changed that you maybe thought never would? What things were present in their life that facilitated that change? I'd love to hear about it.

One Word Answer

1. Where is your cell phone? Purse 2. Your significant other? sleeping 3. Your hair? highlighted 4. Your mother? exhausted 5. Your father? heaven 6. Your favorite thing? family 7. Your dream last night? scary 8. Your favorite drink? Tea 9. Your dream/goal? peace 10. The room you’re in? office 11. Your church? Carmel 12. Your fear? loss 13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? inspired 14. Where were you last night? home 15. What you’re not? inspired 16. Muffins? banana 17. One of your wish list items? Iphone 18. Where you grew up? Charlotte 19. The last thing you did? wrote 20. What are you wearing? p.j.'s 21. Your TV? on 22. Your pets? None 23. Your computer? connection 24. Your life? fantastic 25. Your mood? tired 26. Missing someone? Dad 27. Your car? Sienna 28. Something you’re not wearing? make-up 29. Favorite store? Joseph-Beth 30. Your summer? relaxing 31. Like(love) someone? many 32. Your favorite color? black 33. Last time you laughed? Today 34. Last time you cried? Today 35. Who will repost this? friends

The Olympics at midnight....

I cannot stop watching the Olympic Games. I don't remember a time, other than watching Mary Lou Retton and the US Gymnastics team in '84, when I was this engrossed in watching the Olympics. If you haven't seen the US Men's Swim Team compete in the 400 Meter Freestyle Relay (and I'm thinking if you're asleep, you haven't) watch it! You will totally be inspired.

While I am up this late, of course, the rest of my family is sleeping. My boys look so cute I had to take a picture of them:

Don't' ask about the gold silk pillow case. We bought a pair as part of our costume for VBS this year....and well......David just had to start sleeping on it!

How cute is this dog?! He looks like a real one protecting his master. Sweet!

Jason refuses to sleep with the covers on. I can put them on, him dead asleep, and 5 minutes later he has kicked them off. You take one of his animals away though....watch out! He will wake up, search for it, then go right back to sleep.

"You are the best Mom in the WORLD!"

Why is it the only time I hear these words are when I have agreed to take the boys to McDonalds, bought them a Matchbox car, or let them eat donuts for breakfast? Seriously. Friday I wanted to treat the boys to something special. They love going to the bookstore and getting a book or a small stuffed animal, so I was going to surprise them with that trip today. Until the arguing started. Then it became a threat: "You're not going to get your special surprise today unless you stop yelling at your brother"; "You're not going to get your special surprise today unless you stop whining!"; "You're going to be sad when your brother can get his surprise and you don't because you are not listening!", etc. Let me back track to say that on Thursday we stayed in all day. I don't even think we got out of our jammies. I did a lot of stuff around the house and we played games. When Daddy got home he made an awesome fort for the boys in their room and they slept in it that night. Hence the reason for the arguing and whining......at least in part.....to the lack of sleep. So we headed out to the mall. But first, I had a wicked craving for one of my favorite dishes - Chicken Fettuccine at Charley's in Cotswold. I have eaten there since they were at SouthPark and it is still my favorite place. The boys were none to happy to be going there first, and for lunch no less. They wanted Subway pizza. No dice! I was getting my special treat before they got theirs. We arrived at Cotswold and lo and behold, there is a ginormous toy store there now (it's been a while since we've been there). And of course, it's right beside the restaurant. So much for the bookstore today. We enjoyed our lunch (at least I did immensely) and off to the toy store we went. David wanted a stuffed dog and Jason picked out a stuffed tiger. They were happy and we even got ice cream afterwards. On the way home, David said "Mom, you are the best Mom in the world!". I told him how sweet it was of him to say that, and that I appreciated it. I then followed up with "I hope you don't think I'm the best Mom in the world only when I buy you something though. I don't know that that makes me the best Mom." He replied "Oh, no. You are the best Mom also because you kiss us and hug us and feed us and love us!" Gee, who can argue with that?

Friday's TOP TEN LIST

TOP TEN THINGS I LIKE ABOUT SUMMER:

10. sleeping in

9. no arguing over homework, what lunch to pack, reading time and going to bed early

8. hanging out at the pool

7. no schedule whatsoever

6. sleeping in

5. going on vacation as a family

4. staying up late

3. sleeping in

2. staying in our pajamas all day if we feel like it

and the Number 1 reason I love summer.........

NO SCHOOL!

25 things about me

Since my friends are doing this, I figured....why not! 1. I am not a morning person. Ask my friends I carpool with - they will tell you I am not coherent before 10 a.m.. 2. My top 5 favorite places to be are: 1) Bentley's on 27th with my husband, corner table overlooking the city, 2) on the pull-out couch with my family, popcorn in hand, watching a great movie, 3) in bed first thing in the morning and not having anywhere to be, 4) lunch with a friend, 5) Charlotte Cafe, kids in school, with a great book all to myself. 3. I have never been happy with my weight, unless you count the times I look back at pictures from a few years ago - I'd kill to look like that again. Go figure. 4. I love to watch my boys sleep. 5. It took us almost 3 years to get pregnant with David. He's our miracle baby. I went to a fertility specialist one time to see if there was a problem. Prayed for weeks until I found out the insurance would pay for me to go back again. Made an appointment, went on vacation, got pregnant on vacation, never went back to the fertility specialist. 6. We were in the planning stages of trying to get pregnant when we found out we were pregnant with Jason. 7. I love pasta, bread and a good glass of wine. 8. I'm negative about myself, but positive about others. 9. I tell my husband everything. He's the vault. Nothing I say ever goes past him unless it's supposed to. 10. My dad died 13 years ago, suddenly. I miss him every day. 11. I wish I had spent more time with my brother when we were in our late teens, early twenties. 12. I like myself more now than any year prior to this. 13. My husband and I were high school sweethearts. Never broke up. He's stuck with me. He has made me a better wife, mother, daughter and woman. He encourages me, shapes me, challenges me, and loves me more than anyone else. 14. I love 1/2 sweet tea, 1/2 unsweet tea at McAlisters and Chic-Fil-A. 15. When Rick was taking me out to dinner to propose, my thoughts were elsewhere. I had just gotten another job offer and was stressed as to what I should do. We'd been dating 6 years, so it shouldn't have EVER been a surprise - but because I was self-absorbed at the moment - it was. I am grateful for that. 16. I don't like trying new things, unless it's with a friend. 17. I don't adapt to change very well. 18. Our families are close by and I am thankful for that every day. 19. My 93 year old grandmother has always been one of the most influential people in my life. She was a pastor's wife and raised 3 children. I love her dearly and am thankful she is still alive. 20. I love spending time with my nephews and watching our boys play together. 21. I have a very hard time being around people I don't know and large groups. I guess this doesn't make me a people person?! 22. I have my Series 6, 26, and 63 licenses that I studied hard for and am grateful my employer lets me keep them. 23. This year I am blogging, joined Facebook and bought an Ipod. Am I hip or what? 24. I love the Lord and know my strength comes from him. I admit that I don't spend enough time with him though. 25. I hate exercising, unless it's running with Nancy and we go to lunch afterwards. It's all about the reward to me!

Loving and letting go

This summer has been very different for me than in the previous 2 summers. First, we're in an apartment - a fact that I absolutely love. There is a lot to be said about feeling comfortable where you live. I'll post more about that later. The second thing that is so different for me this summer is - no MOPS. The previous 2 summers had been filled with phone calls, prayer, research, more prayer, typing letters and emails, asking people to help, much more prayer, etc. to get our meetings together. To say it was stressful was an understatement, and yet it was so rewarding. My summers were full with meetings, conversations with friends and church staff, and a deep, deep reliance upon the Lord to help me do what I couldn't do without him. This summer has been, well, boring. Don't get me wrong, I love boring. But what I hadn't expected was to feel somewhat lost. I like having things to do, people relying on me (other than my family, of course). I also hadn't expected to feel a sense of emptiness in the loss of this huge part of my life. I loved being a part of MOPS; I loved my girls that I worked along side; and I loved seeing a meeting come together and watching women be touched by what we did as a team - what the Lord did through us. It's very strange to see what was this huge part of my heart go on without me. Is it vanity? To think that these meetings could somehow survive, let alone thrive, without me being a part of it? I don't think so. It's much like being a mom. Your children rely on you daily for things - "Mom, where's my shoes; where's my book bag; can I have chicken again for dinner?" that it becomes a part of who you are as a mom - being there for them; answering every question, praying for them; loving them. But when they go off and lead their own lives, you're not needed as much any more. What a weird feeling that must be. What a deep emptiness must come with that. That's sort of how I feel this summer. As meetings are being held without my input, as new friendships are being formed, as speakers and leaders are being selected that I don't have a clue about, I have an empty-nest syndrome of my own. My friends will laugh at this post - especially the ones who counseled me through my years leading MOPS - and know how much I have loved this summer - and I have. But there still is a part of me that is sad. It makes me wonder what the Lord is going to fill that hole with - and how much I will be complaining about it again.

Teachable lessons from the sports world

Newsflash: Manny Ramirez has been traded to the Dodgers. This may not seem like a big deal to most - even to those of you who know who Manny Ramirez is. But in our house, this was a very big deal. Manny Ramirez is one of the best players the Boston Red Sox had, and they traded him this week in a last minute deal to the LA Dodgers. Now my oldest has been a huge fan of Manny since seeing him play at Fenway Park in Boston last year. When news of this trade broke, so did my son's heart. Being a girl, I didn't understand the full weight of this trade until I watched my son sit on the couch and cry - stating he would never be fan of the Red Sox again. So as my son sat curled up next to his dad and listened to Rick talk about how his heart broke when his hero, Reggie Jackson got traded from the Yankee's many years ago, I did what any good female mom would do - I went looking for the oreos to soothe my son's pain. The shock of this trade is slowly wearing off. The lessons from it, however, have not. You see, the reason Manny was traded was due to his lousy behavior. Trying to explain to an 8 year old that his hero isn't all he's cracked up to be is delicate area to tread on. Manny was traded because he just didn't want to play for the Red Sox - and he showed it every day. He was sick of them, and they were sick of him, and in a world where players can beat their girlfriends, get arrested for DUI and call Madonna their "soul mate" while still married to their wife won't get you traded, much less fired - the trading of Manny based solely on his behavior was a big deal. We tried - in "G" rated terms, to explain that to him. I don't know if our 8 year old got the whole significance of this - as a matter of fact - I'm sure he did not. But this week has provided lots of opportunities to put our sports "hero's" in their proper place. No sooner had we tackled the Manny trade when along came Steve Smith of the Panther's busting another team mates nose during scrimmage. His children attend our school. He was keynote speaker to the dad's last year. You get the picture. All in all, I think our son has a better understanding of professional sports, how the teams work, and that players - even Christian players, make big mistakes that need to be forgiven and hopefully learned from. But most importantly, my son realized again that his hero this week was the man sitting on the couch with him, arm wrapped tight around him, understanding how he felt, and reassuring him that it would be ok. As the only girl in this house, I am truly thankful for that moment - when Daddy did something I couldn't do as a Mom. He's my hero as well.

Monkeying around at Monkey Joe's

Jason's close buddy Toby had his 4th birthday and all he wanted to do was go to Monkey Joe's. So my friend Sarah and I met at Chic-Fil-A on Independence and then took all our kids to Monkey Joe's to play for a few hours. It was a lot of fun and the kids were worn out!

My child's cute little hiney - he insisted on going down each slide on his stomach!

Happy Birthday Toby! Sarah's kids are so adorable, I took as many pictures of them as I did my own.

Fun in the HOT sun

It is so unbelievably hot out there, so what is a family to do - go to the park! My husband has been off this week and we had lunch and went to Park Road Park Thursday afternoon for a little fun.

Park Road Park is where Rick and I would go and eat KFC when we were dating. It was a lot of fun to revisit this place and take our kids. The boys had a blast!

Plus it was a great time for me to try out my new camera! I love it!