Busy, busy, busy

If there is one common theme I am hearing from everyone lately is how "busy" they are.  They are busy, their kids are busy, their lives are just BUSY.  I ran into a friend of mine the other day and when I asked how she was, her response was this "Oh, we have just been so busy.  Our oldest is playing soccer, and both girls are doing karate 3 times a week and then I just signed them all up to do gymnastics - I don't know what I was thinking!  Oh, well, I'd rather they be busy than be bored."  I hear stories like this every day.  It made me tired just to hear all her kids were doing, but then I thought "what's wrong with being bored?"

Whenever I hear people say how busy they are, it always makes me wonder why, especially when it comes to our children.  We, as parents, control what they do and what they sign up for.  If I spend my summers running my kids around as much as I do in the fall, it's not summer.  I appreciate parents who want to expose their kids to camps and clinics during the summer - but every week?  Whatever happened to summers filled with sleeping in and playing in the yard and using our imagination?   During school, school is a priority.  If extra-curricular activities get in the way of school and family time, they are eliminated from our schedule.

There was a time in my life when I was busy.  Newly married, trying to start a business and make ends meet.  We were busy.  But we also missed out on a lot.  During that busy time I missed the final years of my dad's life.  But then after he died I became busy for a whole new set of reasons.  He was gone and I didn't want to have to think about it - so I stayed busy.  I was too busy to help my mom with the yard sale when she was moving out of their house.  Too busy to be there for my brother.  Too busy to go to church so I didn't have to face the One I was angry with.  Being busy gave me an excuse to delay things I just didn't want to have to deal with at the moment.

So whenever I hear how busy people are, I always wonder which of these categories they are falling into - busy because life is just that way, or because you are making life that way.  For most, it's the latter.  Oh sure, there are cases when families are busy because they are struggling to make ends meet and raise a family.  I get that.  But those families don't ever SAY they are busy.  They just are.  It's those that feel the need spend 15 minutes telling me all the things they are doing when I didn't even ask; those that are too busy to see some family, but see others every week; the ones that are too busy to help at church or school but have time to do other things.  Those are the people that make me wonder if busyness is just an excuse for something deeper going on.  It makes me wonder because I've been there and I know what it looks like.

Back to School!

Today was the first day of school for my 5th grader (choke!) and my little Kindergartener.  Never in my deepest prayers could I have imagined this day going so great!  David was actually looking forward to going back, and Jason was climbing the walls this morning with excitement (and he is not an early riser!). 

He was so excited to be able to wear what big brother was wearing, and to finally be at the same school.  It was so sweet for all of us to be able to walk in together.  Jason found his cubby and hung up his bookbag.  He then found his seat and said "hey" to all his friends.  We said our goodbye's (right after Jason said he was going to break my camera if I took any more pictures!).

Then it was upstairs to David's room.  They switch classes in 5th grade, but they do have a home room.  He found his spot and settled in - he was very happy to have a lot of his buddies in his class.

I can't begin to say what Carmel Christian School has meant to our family.  To have both of my children so happy on the first day of school is a testament to what they do there.  It is home to them and for that, Rick and I are so grateful.

As we do every year, Rick and I gathered with lots of other parents in the parking lot outside our school and prayed.  It was such a beautiful experience to hear God's name lifted up in praise and worship - I held it together until then but then the tears started to flow.

I am so grateful to God for giving me my sons.  They are each unique in their own way and today I am so proud of them.  After picking them both up, Jason said "I think this is going to be my best year yet!"  and David was so happy and had lots of great stories to tell.  It is going to be an amazing year!

Marry the right person

Rick and I have been together for 24 years - married for 18.  He looked at me the other day and said "can you believe you met me just 6 short years from David's age now"?  Gulp..  I have thought about that a lot as our oldest child creeps up in age, and if I would want him to marry someone he meets when he is just 16 years old.  My initial reaction is - no.  But then I look at Rick and how blessed I have been to have him in my life all these years.  There is no doubt in my mind I married the person God intended for me.  There is no doubt in my mind that if God plans for David, or Jason, to meet their spouse at an early age, that it would work for them as well.  The key to any marriage is first - marry the right person.  You can read all the books, see all the counselors, and watch all the Dr. Phil's you want to help your marriage, but if you have married the wrong person it will not matter.

It's not to say that things have always been perfect in our marriage - they haven't.  We have had some bumps in the road that felt like we would never crawl out of.  But we have.  As God has gone before us, he has led us through the deep valleys up to the high mountain tops again.  It's trusting through the rough times that they will get better, and that you are working on it together.

I appreciate my husband so much.  It's not just the huge things he does for our family - and he does a LOT of huge things.  He works hard to run his companies in a way that honors God.  He manages his employees in a way that has created a loyalty to him that brings tears to my eyes.  His employees truly enjoy having him as a boss.  He also tries to honor his mother and father, and goes out of his way to look after my mother, especially after my father passed away.

But he also does a lot of little things.  I remember when David was just starting to walk and we lived in a one story ranch house.  He was worried David would wake up and not be able to find our bedroom, so he bought nightlights to put around the house.  He has done that in every house we have had since.  He wants his boys, and me, to be able to find their way in the dark.  Even when we moved here, my shelf in my laundry room had a place so you can hang clothes to dry.  The wire, however, was slotted, not straight, so you couldn't slide your clothes around.  I noticed it every time I hung clothes to dry, but it's not like it was a big deal and I didn't say anything about it - I was happy to have a beautiful laundry room!  One day, without telling me, Rick measured the shelf, went to Lowe's and cut a new one.  He installed it and then told me that it was bugging him that the shelf wasn't right for me to hang clothes.

Today I am especially thankful for Rick.  I am noticing all the big, and small things he does to make our family function better, and make my life easier.  There should be another word stronger than "blessed".  Because I feel more than blessed today because I married the right person.

Bowling!

This weekend we took time to do something Rick loves to do - BOWL!  He was on the bowling team at Carolina and is still a really good bowler.  I remember when we were dating many a day sitting in a bowling alley watching him bowl.  It brought back lot of great memories and the kids had a great time.  (The bumpers helped that - I don't think they would have hit a single pin without them!)  I did pretty well, if I do say so myself!  It's amazing how expensive it is now - thankfully the kids were able to bowl free through the AMF summer program.  It was a lot of fun - and I wasn't too sore the next day either!

Jason waiting his turn.

I laughed at Jason when he was bowling.  Every time he threw the ball, he'd turn and run back - not even looking to see how many pins he knocked down.  I was proud of both my boys with their bowling "etiquette".  They would stand and wait to make sure the person beside them was finished before they walked up to roll the ball.  Very sweet.  Jason actually got a couple strikes and a few spares and bowled over 100 - pretty amazing!  It was a very fun day!

Random Pictures from vacation

My little Jedi's!  The toy store outside the cove at the beach was selling these light sabers - and not a kid passing by could pass them up.  Mine included.  They did have fun with them - and still do!



 Bike riding was a big hit in the mountains - my boys love riding with their dad!

This picture of David coming down the steep hill was right before he wiped out - big time!  Thankfully nothing was broken, but he got scraped and bruised up quite a bit.  Thank God for helmets!

Part IV - Banner Elk and Blueberry picking!

When we head to the mountains, summer or winter, one of Rick's spots to visit is Banner Elk and Beach Mountain.  According to my weatherman husband, it gets the most snow in the area - and he is usually right.  We have been caught in white out's traveling there in the winter - visibility so bad you can't see a foot in front of you.  Fun stuff! 

We always stop and eat at Sorrento's to get the best pizza in North Carolina.  Then we head up Beach Mountain and hang out. 

This year on the way there, I spotted a blueberry orchard where you can pick your own blueberries.  My kids are not huge fans of blueberries, but they had a lot of fun picking them.  I think it actually made them bigger fans of them - especially when they are covered in Cool Whip!

Part III - Blowing Rock

We had a great time in Blowing Rock - it is truly one of our favorite places to be as a family.  The weather was cool and breezy and made a nice change from the beach.  We ate breakfast on the porch of our condo, and of course, visited Kilwin's Ice Cream at least once a day!

Jason loves his chocolate ice cream!

David opted for a chocolate covered marshmallow!

Breakfast on the porch!

Jason loved trying to catch all the butterflies that were everywhere!

Part II - the mountains! Chimney Rock

On our way to Blowing Rock from the beach we stopped and hiked Chimney Rock.  It is a beautiful place that overlooks Lake Lure.  I am scared to death of heights - and Chimney Rock is high!  There are a lot of narrow walkways leading up the rock that I am not a big fan of.  Rick and I first visited Chimney Rock when we were dating.  It was cold and a little rainy that day and I remember being scared out of my wits climbing up there.  Needless to say I didn't make it, and wound up sliding back down those stairs on my rear end - holding on for dear life.  I was determined this time, however, to not chicken out in front of my boys.  I managed to climb all the way up!  Thankfully for me, some of the more narrow pathways were closed for renovations.  Rick and David climbed a little higher, while Jason and I hung out near the gift shop!  David even bought Jason a dog made from rock with his own money.  I was proud of him!

The beach or the mountains? Part I - the beach!

We usually go somewhere out of town for our summer vacation.  But this year, after buying the house, we decided to stay closer to home.  The question then became "the beach or the mountains?"  I am a big beach lover, but Rick prefers the mountains.  We haven't been to the beach in a long time as a family, so this year we decided to do both - the beach AND the mountains!  We are so fortunate to live a few hours from the beach and a couple of hours from the mountains.  So, we spent a few days in Hilton Head Island, then drove to Blowing Rock for a few days. 

Hilton Head is one of my favorite places to be - and we all had a great time.  I couldn't get the boys out of the ocean for 2 straight days!  The weather was great and the breeze from the ocean made the heat bearable.  We rented beach chairs and an umbrella on the beach - so nice not to lug chairs from the car.  Rick bought the boys a little body board to ride the waves - they had a blast!  Lots of outside fun, good food, and great family time.  Next stop....the mountains!