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I can't believe that I have a five year old!!! Kalea has brought so much joy and happiness to our lives. In honor of Kalea's birthday, I will list the top 10 things I love about her.
10. Her pal Andrew describes her as, "she's a girl, but she acts like a boy but she's still a girl.....and she kicks (said very admirably)!"
9. I LOVE how Kalea bonds with me over housework. She has such a heart to serve.
8. She is so eager to learn. She is always asking to do flashcards and to read with me.
7. Kalea loves going to the bookstore and the library.
6. Kalea's love for music and dancing makes life so much fun.
5. She's not afraid to jump into new situations and meet new people.
4. She loves playing outdoors and camping.
3. She loves getting her hands dirty and creating new things.
2. Kalea loves to cook.
1. I LOVE that the Lord has blessed our family with Kalea. I love that she is healthy and happy and growing bigger and wiser every year. I am so thankful for yet another year of her life. Happy birthday Peep!
We met up with my sister-in-law today at the Modern Art Museum in Fort Worth . Before we left the house, we had a family meeting so we could go over our expectations of the kids while they are inside the museum. We gave Nathan and Kalea the opportunity to list some ideas of how to behave on their own and then we discussed the rules in further detail. Keep your hands to yourselves, walking feet, and most importantly they were not allowed to look, touch or talk to each other. It seems like they are each fine individually, but together, they are out of control. It's like when you mix baking soda and vinegar together resulting in an explosion. Each ingredient is fine by itself, but together, they are a bubbling mess. As grown ups, I think we all have a vinegar to our baking soda. Some people's vinegar is drugs or alcohol, while for others it is more of a subtle distraction like Facebook, Warcraft or TV. In the same way Nathan and Kalea distract each other from behaving, there are things in our lives that keep us from focusing on God. It changes daily for me. Last year, it was problems at work (which in the end drew me to my knees), over the summer it was Facebook, and now it's just a general lack of focus due to post-holiday sleepiness. As long as we are expanding and bubbling everywhere, we will never reap the full blessings of following God's will for our lives. So, my brothers and sisters, keep your hands to yourselves, use your walking feet and whatever is your vinegar, don't look, touch or or talk to it. As Philippans 4:8-9 says:
"Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is praiseworthy- think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me- put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you."
If At First You Don't Succeed, Parachuting is NOT for YOU
About 3 or 4 years ago I was called to a job. It was one of those things that makes you shake in your boots and the calling is so strong that it haunts your every step and keeps you awake at night. It was the reason why I got the degree I got in college and my entire life's work was to prepare my heart for that job. The problem was that someone else had that job. It didn't take long, however, for that position to open up by a chain of events that even I would never have predicted. I prayed about it and the calling made my heart so restless that I was barely able to sleep on it before I was asking around about the position and put my application in for it. The next thing I knew, I found myself in an interview with a very jet lagged individual. A week or two later I found out that I didn't get chosen for the position. It was the first and only job that I ever interviewed for and didn't get hired. Another lady was hired. She lasted almost a year. Another man was hired, his stay didn't last long either. Eventually, Steve lost his job and we were uprooted from our home and our church family and I began my journey through Egypt. It was such a strange and devastating feeling to be called somewhere, to know without a doubt that I was supposed to be in that specific place and that specific time and to find myself on a completely different journey altogether. My point to all of this?
Isaiah 40:3-5 states: "A voice of one calling in the desert, 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for Him. Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight and the rough ways smooth. And all mankind will see God's salvation."
We all have valleys in our lives. My valley has been a 2-3 year journey of knowing that I must give up my housewife status and get a job. My valley started with a calling to do something that I feel very passionately about and having to sit back at watch people less passionate lose precious opportunity. My valley continued into Egypt where I moved away from everyone I knew and loved, got a job in a completely different universe where worked for someone who only saw the worst in me. She spent an entire year trying to ruin my professional record, accused me of things I would never dream of doing, and spread her lies and slander to everyone she knew. The entire time I walked through the valley, sometimes so weary I prayed morning would never come, but knowing that my hope would be found in God and God alone. God put people in my life who cheered me on from the sidelines. He carried my burdens for me and somehow, the darkness parted and I made it through. Part of making my paths straight is filling in those valleys of pain; to stop asking why, and to fall on my knees and THANK Him not only for carrying me through that valley, but for blessing me with a new job where I have an amazing boss, awesome co-workers and a class that couldn't be better. This is a new year and it's time to rid ourselves of our valleys, to let go of the pain and burdens of the past and move on. Only God can do that for us. This past Sunday my pastor mentioned that our spiritual lives were so much more important than shedding those last few pounds. Shouldn't people be lined up at the doors of our churches instead of filling up 24 Hour Fitness with goals that will never last?
My top 10 favorite things about Christmas vacation in no order whatsoever:
1. Going to Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, TN. We went to the bear pits and fed the bears, unintentionally ran a 5K in the snow, ate at Hardrock Cafe, bought a wooden sign, went to Magiquest, went on a trolley tour of lights, rode a sky tram up a mountain, and got into a snowball fight.
2. The snow in Virginia! Kalea and I played in the snow twice a day. It went up past my knees! It was so high that Kalea often sank every time she tried to make a snow angel. Steve lost his keys in the snow during a batched snow angel attempt.
3. Walking through the snow on the way to the Christmas Eve church service. There's something magical about walking on a snow lined path on the way to worship our Lord and Savior.
4. The PJ Fairy brought me some footie PJs that had built in sock monkey slippers.
5. Playing Wii with my family. It was hilarious and I am sure that my sister will never forget my 'amazing' singing. (I don't think that she will ever be able to listen to that song again with dying laughing.)
6. Eating at the Rusty Suppart and walking across the Inner Harbor to visit the Baltimore Science Center. I think my face froze off.
7. Sciport Louisana's Science Center's play area. The kids had a blast!
8. Getting to hang out with my family (mom, dad, brother, sisters and niece).
9. 2 weeks of not having to get up at 5AM.
10. Giving the kids cameras and going out to Grand Prairie lights. Kalea took 180 pictures!!!
365 Days of Taboggle
Sooo, if you're a Facebook friend, you've probably already noticed that Steve and I are participating in our crazy creation of 365 Days of Target. The videos may be silly, but watching the creation of the videos is what leaves me bewildered. This is the way Day 2 played out.
Steve: Nathan, take this camera and crawl through the maze of Christmas displays.
Nathan: (looking quite stunned) You want me to do what?!
Steve: Take the camera and just crawl through.
Nathan: (still looking stunned) .....won't I get in trouble?!
Steve: No, it's ok, just do it fast.....after that Target lady walks by.....
Nathan: (looks around, hesitates, and goes for it)
It goes back to the endless debate that I have in my mind. I've always wanted a traditional family with 2.5 kids, a white picket fence, and a dog named Spot that doesn't poop, bark, smell or bite. Those of you who know us, however, know that our family is anything but traditional. We roam the country all summer. We play in a punk rawk band, and we sometimes force our children out of their comfort zone to do silly things for the sake of art. We are busy....too busy. If there were ever a moment to stop and breath, it would only be for a second before we jump into a silly time consuming idea like going to Target for 365 days. Part of me wants to slow down and just be normal, but the other part knows that children of two very GT-minded teachers weren't put on earth to be normal. Kalea spent an hour one morning mixing and fixing a Rubics Cube a hundred times. She could live in a library and I catch her Google-ing things on my iphone; words that I didn't even know she could spell. Nathan can play drums as well as his daddy. He spends his spare time writing and illustrating books. So the endless debate inside my mind? Should I force normal-ness on my family? The world may never know......
Steve had a staff party that he didn't know about, so on the way home from church tonight we stopped by Starbucks to pick up a gift card for the present exchange. Not being able to resist the yummy goodness of a Decaf Pumpkin Spice Latte, I ordered up a tall cup of heaven to go with the gift card. As I opened the door to the car, Kalea looked up and yelled out with great delight, "COFFEEEEEEE!" Horrified, I looked over at Steve who cracked up laughing. "She's soooo going to be addicted to coffee when she grows up," Steve said between bouts of laughter. Unfortunately, her taste buds remember and her heart rejoices at the tasty treat that I give her every Friday morning. Decaf of course, and paid for by her Grandma's generous gift card, Kalea LOVES her weekly coffee. What is this world coming to? Stunted and caffeine driven, Kalea's generation is going to know and love high calorie, over priced coffee, and it's no body's fault, but us tired mommies who crave coffee and a break from the everyday world, so much that we invite their small children into the world of yummy coffee.
Today is Nathan's birthday!!! I am so thankful for his eight years of life. Here are eight things that I love about Nathan:1. His sense of humor cracks me up every day.2. He loves playing card games with me.3. He is a super great big brother!4. When Steve is gone, Nathan is always quick to help out.5. Nathan has a huge heart.6. He is a mad-phat drummer.7. I love how much energy Nathan has!8. Nathan is amazing, wonderful, funny, 90% head and hair- 10% arms and legs and I am so glad and happy that he is mine.I remember being 8 once. When I was 8, we had to write a story about going on an adventure. Although I was a decent writer, I was overcome with an insurmountable amount of writers block. Out of time and ideas, I quickly jotted down an old camp song. In the way things go with me, it turned out that it wasn't a normal writing assignment, but a city-wide writing contest. A few weeks later I was somewhat shocked to find that I had won first place in the city of Arlington for my wonderful jotting down of a camp song. Go figure!
