The Best Days of My Life

These are the best days of your life, they say. 

And I wholeheartedly agree.

Except for those single years.  When I was free to run up and down mountains, have quiet moments, laugh with roommates late into the night, play my guitar and travel the world -- sharing the love of God with anyone I met.  Singing and playing piano on continents I learned of in Social Studies.  I knew God was going to use me for good, confident in the depths of His love.  The confirmation that somehow, my life would be forever involved in full-time ministry, was solidified. I went wherever my heart desired.  I knew nothing of fear.

My young self, in India.

Those were some good days.

Or the good days of finding the love of my life.  Staying up late, watching movies, building our repertoire of inside jokes, sharing our hearts, eating Mac 'N Cheese, saying 'I do' after 3 months of dating, while surrounded with amazing kids who were the best youth group kids we had yet to meet.  Hours and hours and days and days of worship  and teaching in youth ministry together.  Our calling to work in ministry together was a blessing.

Married!

Those were good days.  Really good.

Then, I think about putting all our earthly possessions in storage and entering the mission field around our two year wedding anniversary.  Oh, the things we learned, the countries we experienced and the lives that were impacted.  Ours changed the most.  Stretched in our inmost beings, we put "our" lives on hold.  Instead of biological children like all of our friends back home, we had orphans.  Instead of possessions, we lived in community, sharing all.  Instead of starting a savings account and building up a nest egg, we prayed for donations of simple things, like, tooth paste.  Our prayers ALWAYS answered.  Our lives forever ruined for the ordinary.  We will NEVER be the same again, thank God.

In Afghanistan, trying to make some wool.  Fail.

Difficult, soul-testing, heart-aching days, but really, really, really good days.

But these days?  I live in America, something I didn't want to do nor did I think I could ever do, without sinking into a materialistic, complacent, depressive lifestyle, because I had never met an American that didn't fall into one of those categories, if not all.  I've got my three best friends by my side.  I'm surrounded by a runny nose, cracker crumbs under my feet, fingerprints on everything sacred, newborn poop stains on all clothing, and crying that is volleyed between my two littles.  In some ways, I have settled, which is frustrating to me, but I know I need to enjoy this time.  I take turns with my faithful man, juggling what life is now.  Chubby wrists, pursed lips (that beg for kisses), two little minds begging for knowledge, 'neck hugs' and smiles just because I'm Mama.

Naptime with my sweet littles.

These really are the best days of my life. 

And I can hardly wait to see, in the years to come, how the best gets even better.

Wordless Wednesday: At the Zoo with Daddy

Enthralled with the chimpanzees at the zoo!

30 Day Marriage Challenge

I'm sure none of you ever nag your husbands like I do.  And you don't interrupt during a discussion to get your point across.  And you definitely go whole days without correcting your husband.  You know, because I never do those things!  *wink, wink*

My friend, Kelly, at 2 to 1 Odds posted this 30 Day Marriage Challenge.  The point of it is to follow the list and do the challenge allotted for that day.  Now, most of these things aren't that difficult to do. And most days, I generally don't have a problem with any of these things.  But some days I do. 

I admit, we have a pretty great marriage, but I can always spend more time encouraging my husband or listening to him.

The point isn't to do every single one of these things every day, but to be more conscious and maybe do something you wouldn't normally do...like, hug your husband three times in one day.   

30 Day Marriage Challenge.  Image source

If you want to join in this quest with me, set the photo above as your desktop background or print it out and put it on your fridge or some other spot where you'll be reminded of it.  As always, feel free to adapt some days or repeat other days.  

Don't get caught up in the legalism of it, but instead, remember, this is supposed to be a blessing to your marriage!  After all, what can it hurt? 

Wordless Wednesday: Daddy Built Me A Snow Tunnel!

Birthday Surprise: Honeymoon Hotel & The Civil Wars

If any of you remember, I happened to turn 30 earlier this month.  It wasn't emotional or anything and I survived turning an age that I remember my mother turning and thinking to myself at the time "Oh my gosh, she's SO old.  Almost, like, Grandma-old." 

Remember how I told you how I return gifts all.the.time so my husband had preemptively planned a birthday surprise for me that I wouldn't be able to return? 

Yeh.  He did an AH-MAZING job! 

He brought me to Minneapolis and sent me off to do whatever I wanted all day while he was at a workshop.  It was really fun to window shop for a couple of hours then spend the afternoon huddled in a small coffee shop reading blogs, studies and articles.  He thought I'd love several uninterrupted hours to get lost in the latest parenting and childbirth trends.  He was right!

Later that afternoon we went out to eat and he brought me to our hotel.  The hotel we stayed at happened to be the very same hotel we stayed at on our honeymoon the night we got married!  How romantical, right?  He scored a million points for that one!

He still refused to tell me what my surprise was (as if all that wasn't enough already).  As we drove downtown later that night, getting ready to go to my big surprise that anticipation was killing me!  I could hardly wait and was so nervous I was shaking!  I was SO excited to see what he had planned.  He let me take a couple of guesses. Cirque du Soleil?  Rock N' Roll Dueling Pianos?  But I was wrong on all those guesses.

As we approached our destination, lights and people EVERYWHERE, he made me close my eyes.  Not that I would've noticed.  I was too excited and giddy. 

We parked our car and walked amongst tons of Tyler Perry fans (Tyler Perry was in town - should've guessed that one, too).  As we approached my surprise, he made me look down and he guided me along.  Suddenly we stopped and he told me to look up and this is what I saw:

The Civil Wars in concert!

My husband had not only pulled off the impossible (surprising me) but the incredible, by taking me to The Civil Wars!!!  The Civil Wars are quite possibly our favorite band right now and have restored my hope that there are some out there with pure talent in a music industry.  A music industry that perpetuates perfect pitch and beats, all brought forth by a computer.  The Civil Wars are raw, harmonious folk vocals, accompanied by a guitar and the occasional jaunt on the keys.   Pause: if you aren't familiar with The Civil Wars listen to this song.

I got tears in my eyes as I held his hand (obviously, I don't get out much) and we went up at got our tickets scanned.  I just kept smiling while we got our drinks and were seated in the beautiful State Theatre. 

The beautiful State Theatre, waiting for The Civil Wars to start!

As we sat and waited for the concert to begin, Dallas explained it all to me; how he had to delete any messages he wrote to people while coordinating this whole thing, how he changed his passwords so I wouldn't know anything and even how he used a new credit card to pay for our room at the hotel.

As he talked I remembered that The Civil Wars tour had sold out and wondered how he got not only tickets, but tickets about 10 rows up in the center aisle.  He told me it really was a miracle.  :-)

Milo Greene opened for them, and they were quite impressive.  I look forward to hearing more of them.  The Civil Wars stole the show with every single song.  Their performance of "Barton Hollow" left the whole theatre in uproarious applause.

In the end, my husband succeeded at surprising me, getting me a gift I would love and there's no way I'd want to return it!  It's a gift I'll never forget!  Thank you, Dallas!

At The Civil Wars concert.  Ignore the flash blasting our eyes in the dim theatre.

Wordless Wednesday: 2 years ago this week

2 years ago this week, I told my husband I had a bump on my tummy (or maybe in) and I needed him to check it out for me!

'Twas the morning of surgery...

I'm waiting at a hospital right now for my husband to come out of surgery.  Life has been a bit of a whirlwind the last week or so.

The day before our 10th wedding anniversary, Dallas called me to tell be that it was quite possible that he had tore his Achilles tendon playing basketball and I needed to come and pick him up. 

The ER doctor finally saw him and said it was most likely a sprain or a torn ligament.  Dallas knew better and all his symptoms were indicative of an Achilles injury.  I did a quick Google search about "how to tell if you ruptured your Achilles", which led to a simple video detailing the simple Simmonds' or Thompson test - which was clearly positive.  And also the fact that his Achilles was no longer prominent, when his other one was quite visible, left us scratching our heads as to why this doctor didn't think it was the Achilles. 

The next day, our 10 year wedding anniversary, we had a trip planned to leave our daughter for a couple of days, and celebrate in Minneapolis (I might blog more about my experience of leaving India behind later).  Even with this foot the way it was, we left with crutches, pain meds and ice packs. 

We had a great time, my gimpy boy and I! 

When we got home we spent the next 24 hours dealing with a sad little girl, who definitely let us know she did NOT appreciate us leaving! 

Dallas had an appointment planned in a nearby city for a second opinion and as it turned out his Achilles was ruptured and they planned surgery for first thing the next morning. 

Which would be today.  Right now.  As I write this, he is nearing the end of his surgery. 

I don't know about you, but hospitals can be quite depressing.  As I've been watching people come and go all morning, many have looks of worry.  Some people look fine.  Some people don't look too good at all.  You can tell some have spent so many hours in the sterile chamber and they don't have much life left. 

Dallas and I have spent the last week being grateful for his legs that work.  After using a wheelchair to get around in some malls on our getaway, our eyes were opened to a whole new world.  We've also been thankful that we have health care and several options for care.  Lastly, we've spent more time being aware of those hurting and dealing with physical ailments around us. 

Just a little Achilles injury.  Just a little wake up call.

In our town, there have been a couple car accidents that have severely injured many young people and have even claimed the life of one young girl.  I can't imagine what their families are dealing with, day in and day out, waiting for the slightest sign of improvement.  Waiting and wanting to hug their loved one, free of tubes. 

While I think and pray for my husband as he is in surgery right now, my heart is full of compassion and sympathy and well wishes for those around me who are hurting and restricted within these walls daily. 

Has there every been a time when you've been particularly thankful for your health? 

10 years ago today...



Dating - 2001 (we only dated a month before we got engaged)



...when you're healthy

...even if you get sick

...if we're dirt poor

...if we're loaded

...in all the good things

...in all bad things

...I'll be faithful

...I'll respect

...I'll honor

...I'll serve

...I'll love only you

...yes.

...I will.

...I do.



Married.  A little over 3 months after we started dating.

 What an amazing honor it's been to be married to this man for 10 years!  I wouldn't pick anyone else. 


He is the best husband for me.  He's crazy and makes me laugh.


At our friend's wedding reception. Dallas decided to to the Dumb & Dumber kiss on me!


His heart to serve God is unbeatable.


I couldn't imagine a day without his wisdom, encouragement and grace in my life.

He is so patient and he really is the most amazing Daddy!

I love you, Dallas!  Do you think we could get another 10 years x 8 together?

If you see a zombie mom...

*this was written on Monday, but in my zombieness I didn't get this published until today, Tuesday*

If you see a zombie mom, that'd be me.  Yep, hi there, I'm sleep deprived! 

And if you see a zombie dad, that's be my husband.  He says hello.

Forgoodnesssake, you'd think we had a newborn baby in our house, but no, we're actually the parents of an almost 15 month old little girl.  She's super cute.  Really, she is. 

She's also getting her molars, which makes for interesting sleep.

On top of that, we decided that since she's teething this would be an awesome time (sarcasm font) to see if she would possibly take a bottle in the middle of the night from her Dad, instead of me breastfeeding her. 

"What a horrible idea!" you say.  And I know that.

But see, it's actually a good idea because we're trying to get away for a night or two for our 10 year wedding anniversary coming up in a little over a week.  In order for us to 'get away', we need to leave our daughter overnight with someone else.  She still sometimes wakes in the night to nurse, so we wanted to see how she'd fare with a bottle at 5 AM from this someone else. 

Let's just say it wasn't good. 

I "slept" on the couch last night, while Dallas got our bed all to himself, something he probably enjoys because even though he is the largest member of our family, when the smallest member of our family joins us in bed at night, she takes up half of it because she insists on sleeping sideways.  She also insists on kicking him in the face (which, is hilarious), so a night with the bed all to himself is almost as grand as the Vikings winning a football game.  Obviously, neither happen very often.

This picture accurately depicts the average husband/wife bed....

And then you throw the kicking face toddler in there and it actually looks like this...

His lone enjoyment of our bed lasted for, um, maybe 15 minutes when the baby started crying way earlier than her normal middle of the night waking time.  Of course, my Mom Alert, which can standard with the growth of my uterus, kicked in and I laid silently on the couch, listening to the lil' drama mama in the room next door.  I really, really, really just wanted to solve the problem with my b00b...like, Hello!  I have the answer!  We can ALL be happy again! 

But I stayed out of sight on the living room couch.

The good news is that she did take the bottle.  The bad news is that she screamed for two hours before, after and during, resulting in zombie mom and zombie dad.

I guess this could quite possibly be called a 'real parent' now that we're finally experiencing some sleep deprivation.  We've been spoiled rotten and she's always been a great sleeper, so we actually got more sleep during the newborn stage of parenting than ever before in our lives!

I do have to give major props to Zombie Dad; two hours of a screaming 14-month old in the middle of the night is really equal to about 8 hours of sceaming baby in the daytime.  Yep, in the realm of parenting, nighttime woes are quadrupled.  My husband gets major points for last night for dancing with her, singing to her, cuddling her, bobbling her around and just all around loving the little zombie creator who did nothing but scream at the sight of him. 

We're going to try it again tonight, but so far the jury in our house is saying that it looks like India might join us for our anniversary trip because we definitely don't want this zombie-ness to consume another family member!  ;-)

Stay tuned for more Zombie Mom and Zombie Dad....

Wordless Wednesday: A girl & her Daddy

Sunshine 1st Birthday Party (pics and video)

What a day of celebration for our little girl!  After a long time of dreaming and planning and doing, the day to celebrate India's first year of life came!

But first, here is a picture of her last day as a technical baby!

And here she is on her actual birthday!

OK everyone, take me serious, because I am ONE!

We had a Sunshine Party last weekend in honor of our girl. 

Think: Mason jars, classy country, gentle yellow and white, fresh breeze, barbeque, lemonade, music, fresh blue water. 

Here were the invitations to her party!

We decorated and my Dad even turned on the fountains in the front of the house....

The entrance to the party

The Birthday Banner that took hours to make!

India, month by month!

Beautiful hydrangeas!

The sweet birthday girl was a bit overwhelmed with all the people and was pretty sober the whole party, but was very interested in someway, somehow, getting outside!

We not only celebrated her first birthday last weekend, but her Daddy led us all in dedicating her to the Lord.

Of course, since we knew I was pregnant, we've dedicated her to God, but it was great to do it corporately with our closest friends and family members!

For the dedication, everyone gathered, Dallas and I shared a little bit (and cried),and I played the piano and sang a song.

Then we all gathered around her and whoever wanted to was welcome to pray blessings over our little India girl. 

Her Daddy closed the prayer time.

We then went down to the beautiful lake for Barbeque and Sunshine Party! 

It was the perfect day for swimming!

For the 10 days previous to the party, the weather forecast was horrible, predicting rain, which isn't a great thing considering this was to be a Sunshine Party!  Thankfully, the weather completely changed course and we all had a great (but hot) party outside. 

We had some yummy snacks, while waiting for the Grillmaster!

Cold drinks on a HOT day!

Everyone had their own personalized Mason jar for drinks!

Then we ate, and celebrated with cupcakes!

The menu: brats, hamburger beans, chips and watermelon!

My homemade, slightly unstable cupcake stand. :)

Yellow cupcakes, with buttercream frosting and lemon curd filling!  YUM!

Then it was time for India to enjoy her first bites of cake (and sugar, really)! 

 Everyone gathered around to watch her delve into her cake....

But after one bite, she just thought it was more fun to throw pieces of fondant on the ground.  All the while, I'm going, "Child, it probably took me one hour just to roll that little piece of fondant out just right!"  Then she decided she didn't want the cake anywhere near her.  Next year, I'm not spending hours making her the perfect birthday cake.  She can just have a Twinkie.

Well, at least Dallas and I got to eat the cake in the days following the party.  Seriously, what kid doesn't like cake?  Probably the same kid who doesn't really like to eat more than a few bites of solid food.  My kid.

It was then time to open gifts!

She was very happy to get more Signing Time DVDs!



A cool money tree!  We're putting the money towards a wood play kitchen for her so she can cook with Mama!





Ultimately though, she was more interested in treating her cousin Xiomara as her doll.
 

Aren't they cute?  Her cousin Brooklynn was there as well, but I didn't get a good picture of the three of them! :(

It was a great few days to celebrate our baby.  The Sunshine Party was a perfect fit for our family and mostly, for India.  A lot of work, but worth it.  BUT, this will be the last party I throw for her of this magnitude.  


I think. ;)





Jealous on Valentine's Day

It's easy to be jealous on Valentine's Day.  I know I am finding myself wanting every holiday.


Whether you are single, dating, married or widowed, it's very easy to succumb to our human tendency towards covetousness.


When you hear about the billions of dollars Americans spend annually on Valentine's Day and hear how a man spends on average over $100 on this day, sometimes it's hard not to ask "Why not me?" and "Don't I deserve the best?"


I even found myself wishing selfishly for something today, momentarily forgetting that my husband and I don't normally buy each other gifts (let's admit, most Valentine's gifts are frivolous) in order to bless others and live not in excess.  We try to follow those rules mostly, but don't worry, we aren't legalistic about it.

But there is something in me that still wants things and at the same time battles with my convictions. 


It's not that I'm not worth celebrating; it's just that we've seen too many atrocities. People dying of starvation, kids that have been maimed by their own parents, boys held as sexual slaves in monasteries, girls exploited by foreign tourists, families digging through trash and landfills to feed their children, girls as young as six years old being married off, and people devastated by the dirty water that wreaks calamity in their community. 


And these things aren't just abroad, they are right next door to us.


After seeing all that, it's still hard, all these years later to justify fancy chocolate and flowers.


I've decided that today, instead of desiring things, I will choose to be grateful, for a husband, who loves me no matter how many days I forgo shaving my legs in the winter, and who exhibits gracious love to me every day of the year.  I will be thankful he is the same behind closed doors and encourages me to live for a greater purpose that will last longer than any gift.  I will be grateful that he chooses to give to those who really need gifts, and couldn't care less about earthly possessions.  I will be grateful that he doesn't raise his voice at me ever and he respects me. 


Tonight we'll eat leftover pizza and celebrate our love with gratefulness and will hopefully be able to bless others, not out of obligation or guilt, but out of genuine belief and love. 


Isn't that the reason for it all anyway?

All the things a SAHM should do!

I'm pretty much a SAHM (stay at home mom) and I LOVE it.  I do work, teaching piano lessons from my home and I help my mom about one day a week, but mostly, I'm home.

I had a lot of ideas of what it was going to be like to be home most hours of the day.  I thought about all the tasks I would accomplish and all the free time I would have.  Ahhhhh, what a luxurious life!

What??? You're laughing???  Pshh.

Here is a list of things I was going to do in all my spare time as a SAHM, and behind them is my list of accomplishments related to them. You'll see I've done real well.

- Clean my house. Everyday. Oh, it was going to be SO clean. Mopped floors, dusted baseboards, no cobwebs. (Ha! The dishes get done. Most days. Maybe more like every other day.)

- Bake scones, souffle, creme brulee and other fancy things that include cranberries, white chocolate and poached pears.  All things my friend Annalise does with two babies! (I'm still working on box brownies thankyouverymuch.)

- Or I was at least going to bake cookies. (Grocer's refrigerator section, frozen cookie dough. Yes and amen.)

- Drink tea, burn incense and worship God.  In my long hippie skirt, of course. (Does wearing my nursing pajamas while crying, "please God, help me with this crying baby" count?)

- Paint my bathroom. (No. It has to be cleaned first.)

- Bake treats for my piano students every other week or so. (I'm just glad I make it to piano lessons, dressed, mind you.)

- Visit and talk with my friends, Carma and Devora. (Hi, ladies. How ya doing?)

- Walk with my friend, April. (Yeah....)

- Play piano and sing with my friend Beth. (Beth and I did that. In 2009. Oh yeah, that was pre-India.)

- Go to the Y and workout.  Everyday.  With Jen, Beth and now Tami. (One time I did this!!)

- I was going to garden with my friend/neighbor Jessica. And probably look at interior decorating magazines with her. (I wave to her across the street as we come and go.)

- Make homemade bread. (The only bread we are eating is pre-sliced from a plastic bag.)

- Make lots more homemade food for that matter. (I have perfected "fancy" Mac N Cheese.  Mac N Cheese with lemon pepper.)

- Re-finish my kitchen table. (Tablecloth.)

- Sew curtains for our house, and toys and accessories for India. (Peeping toms are welcome. As are store bought toys.)

- Garden, garden, garden. (It's winter.  Sheesh, people.  I have HUGE plans for spring! You just wait!)

- Play piano, guitar and bass guitar. (I play piano. Have for years. Still playing the same songs I played years ago too.)

- Sell all my crap on eBay. (I have nothing to report on this.  I have however, bought a few things on eBay.)

- Do exercises videos while my baby plays alone on a blanket. (hahaha, "baby plays alone..." hahaha)

- Go out and shop at stores.  (If I was dressed, I would do this.)

- Look smokin' hot, nicely perfumed, dressed in an apron everyday when my husband came home to the smell of fresh baked cookies or bread.  Or creme brulee.  (Most days my glasses are still on as well as yesterday's smudged make-up. I also still smell of yesterday's spit-up.)

- Do my hair and make up everyday. (Does yesterday's make-up count?)

- Get dressed. Everyday.  In real clothes. (Pajamas.)

As you can see, I haven't been very productive as far as that list is concerned.  I guess didn't know that taking care of a baby would demand more time from me than when I worked before India was born. 

She wakes up from a nap, diaper change, time to nurse/check Facebook, puke on clothes, change clothes, start laundry, play, send an e-mail, eat a little bit of cold food(me), baby gets a hold of food and spills it everywhere, clean up spilled food, baby falls down, calm crying baby who bumped her head, put baby in carrier, begin dinner prep only to realize you don't have milk, google "milk replacement" and get sucked into a vegan website, answer phone, entertain baby, put clothes in the dryer, diaper explosion, diaper change, shush baby to sleep, clean up poo-splosion, baby prematurely wakes crying, shush her back to sleep, fold laundry, finish eating cold food, work on blog, start more laundry, baby wakes. I didn't even get to start on dinner, the dishes, the bills, or get the bathroom cleaned.  Repeat every 2-4 hours. 

Forget about souffle.  I just have my eyes set on a shower!

Ahhhhh, just think of all the time I'll have once I have a second baby and they can entertain each other.  I'll be free!  Yep, I'll save this list for then. ;-)

Truth be Told: Bed

I've decided to start Truth Be Told, which is basically a short post on the craptastic or not-so-cool or oops or promised I'd never do or failed events that I have in life, most of them related to parenting.   They can be posted anytime, any day, and I'll be sure to keep a composed list on the top tabs of my blog. I contemplated joining in on Not Me Monday, but I like the randomness of this.  I'm sure there will be a lot of these!


Truth be told....


We contemplated going to be last night, a Friday night, at 7pm.  We made it to 10pm.  We are now the old couple with a kid, in bed at 10pm on a Friday night. Not-so-cool.  Promised I wouldn't do.


Feel free to share or blog about your Truth Be Told moment.... :-)

New Years Resolutions 2011

*I had this all ready to post on New Years, but with my Grandpa passing, I waited until now.  I hope you don't mind. :-)

Most people dislike New Years Resolutions. Why?  Well, mainly for two reasons. 

One, they don't want to conform to the general idea.  They don't want to be counted with the average person.  The idea of being an individual resonates with me in many other areas, but with New Years Resolutions, I'm ready to comply with the rest of society.

Secondly, they don't like the feeling of failure.  I think that is the most common reason.  Let me tell you - this recovering perfectionist understands!

Every year, around Thanksgiving, I begin to think about my goals for the upcoming year. 

Then, I set my New Years Resolutions and every year I fail at them.  I don't think I've ever succeeded in one.  Some of them over the years have been, but are not limited to:

• Working out
• Journaling
• Spending time reading the Bible daily
• Learn a new vocabulary word everyday (this was actually quite difficult)
• Keep my house clean (this was even MORE difficult)
• Write one snail mail letter or thank you a week
• Stop cussing (Ha, normally, just a few short months later I try to give this up for lent)

But I'm not defeated by my failures.  They served their time and purpose, and at least got me thinking (some of them months in advance) about areas in my life that I would like to see change. 

SO...

You want to know what this year's resolutions are?  Of course you do, that's why you're reading!

• Blog regularly.  I haven't decided on a "set" number of blog posts a month, but I do with to blog more often than last year.  Which shouldn't be hard considering I blogged more in the last four months of 2010 than I did in the previous eight combined.
• Shop less at Walmart!  I wish I could give up Walmart totally, but the cheap prices, oh the cheap prices.  And yes, I know why they are so cheap, and that is why I'm convicted to shop there less.  Instead, support WAHM (work at home moms) & their gorgeous creations, local businesses, and companies that help society, not hurt it. 
• Journal, journal and journal.  I love all my old journals, they are precious to me.  I have really neglected my personal journal since falling pregnant with India.  I also have a journal for her that I write in - milestones, notes of love, encouragement.  Someday, I want it to be filled with stories of her.
• Get rid of crap in my house.  You know what happens when you move from an apartment to a house? You get crap, and fill that house full of it.  Unless you are Salena or Vanessa  - then you don't.  I want to get rid of about a quarter of my stuff.  I mean, my baby can't even crawl yet, and my basement is full of toys for her!  And all the boxes of stuff I've been planning on selling on eBay?  Hello, garage sale.
• Stop being so mean to my husband.  I'm not always mean, but my husband is pretty sensitive, so I have to be careful how I say things.  I can be abrupt, and that hurts him.  I'm pretty curt or frank with him (whichever man you prefer lol!), and I need to pad my words more.  I've been working on this one for a while too.  *sigh*  I really am a work in progress.
• Make more of our stuff from GOOD products.  Clothes and accessories for India, window coverings, meals made from whole foods, more garden produce, homemade yogurt, sprouted bread, etc.

Ahhh, 2011 Resolutions are set!  Actually, maybe not set, because I love to add an extra one here or there.

Do you make New Years Resolutions?  If you do, what are they?  Have you ever stuck with any of your resolutions?

Back to life, back to reality

We are home after Christmas, an abscessed tooth, a trip to Africa, two blizzards, my Grandpa's death, his funeral, and various other things that I can't even remember because my brain is mush right now.  I'm hoping that maybe life will begin to get back to normal soon.  My mind is tired, my body is tired, and I'm people'd out.

I spent the last couple of days in the town where my Grandparents live, at my Grandpa's visitation and funeral.  It was a tough moment walking into the funeral home just in time to walk into the area where my Grandpa's body was lying, waiting to be mourned and viewed by us.

It's never a fun thing to listen to your family members weep.

My Grandpa's visitation was busy; over 750 people came to show their love and support for my Grandpa and his family, some people waiting in line for up to two hours to see my Grandpa and greet the family.  It was a long day for all of us.

My Grandpa is loved, that is for sure, and I'm thankful for every single person who stopped by the visitation or came to the funeral.  It was great to see so many extended family members and friends of my Grandparents, all of whom I haven't seen for years.

To all of you who have sent messages, texts, called, etc, THANK YOU!  Life was too crazy there for a bit, but I plan on responding to you soon!  I just need some time right now to regroup...

During the visitation, I received word that my husband, who was returning from Ghana, Africa, was now going to be delayed over night in New York, and most likely missing my Grandpa's funeral. His flight was set to arrive too close to the funeral, and I didn't know if I'd be able to make it to the airport and back in time for the funeral.  And I wasn't willing to take that chance!  Dallas was most likely, going to be stuck at the airport most of the day. I was upset, but couldn't do much about it. 

My godparents, Jim and Shirley (my cousin Matt's parents), came to the visitation, and when they heard that Dallas was delayed, Shirley volunteered to pick him up and drive him to the funeral since she was coming anyways!  It was so nice to have Dallas there for support, as we closed my Grandpa's coffin right before we proceeded into the funeral.

Ah yes, the funeral.  It went as well as a funeral could go.  My Uncle Bruce shared some great memories of my Grandpa, and he did such a good job describing my Grandpa and his life.  It was my favorite part of the funeral.

I learned a lot of things about my Grandpa.  One of the neatest things was the fact that in 52 years of marriage, he never once took off his wedding ring, not even during surgeries!  My Grandpa didn't go around oozing love songs, but that was his way of saying 'I love you' to my Grandma.  Precious.
My sister and I sang Amazing Grace, and thankfully we made it through it without crying.  That was miraculous.

The funeral was finished with my godmother Shirley's Dad singing my Grandpa's favorite song, Pisnicka Ceska (Song of Bohemia).  While it was being sung, I could hear the older people singing the song in Czech.  It was a wonderful sound. But at the same time, it was sad, as it was also signifying the soon to be end of a generation, as none of the grand kids could even pretend to sing even one word of the beautiful song.

The burial was of course difficult, especially while Taps was played and they handed my Grandma the flag that graced my Grandpa's coffin.  We were blessed with a light sprinkling of snow as we said our final farewells to my Grandpa's mortal body. 

I think the biggest shame in all of it was my Grandpa, the one we were all there celebrating, wasn't even there to receive all that love.  I decided I'm going to have and Un-Funeral when I get old.  Everyone that loves me will be invited to say their goodbyes and take lots of pictures with me.  And we'll eat ham sandwiches.  I told my cousin Jill about my plan and she said, "well, wouldn't everyone just cry?", implying how awkward it would be.  I guess she's right, but I'd rather be celebrated while I'm alive.

Dallas and I said our goodbyes, and the three of us, tired beyond all reason, and for all different reasons, took off, longing for our home.

Dallas had an amazing time in Ghana, and love it there!  We talked the whole four hour car ride home about it!  He loved the kids there and from everything that I have heard, they loved him the same!  There is NO doubt in my mind, that he would do an excellent job!  The kids gave Dallas a djembe drum, something he has wanted for years!  It's absolutely beautiful, and means so much to him already.

I also think it was fun for him to get to know the Korum's, a wonderful family who lives there and have been family friends since way before I was born. :-)

Dallas hit the ground running, straight to my Grandpa's funeral, and went right back to work this morning, and went right back to work this morning, and the day won't be done until late as we have small group tonight.  I do admire my husband's commitment to lead and guide others, in spite of his own tiredness!  BUT, we also haven't even done our own family Christmas yet....hopefully we'll get to that on Saturday!

I'm ready for life to settle down a bit.  I'm ready for normal naps, healthy food, cloth diapers (TMI - we have the worst poo-plosions with disposables and lots of stained clothes), some down time, and most of all just time to snuggle with my two favorite people in the world!

Love you all, and congratulations if you made it to the end of this emotionally scrambled blog post!  Thank you all for your support during this time. Back to regular blogging tomorrow!

A root canal, a flight and a blizzard

My husband was scheduled to leave for Ghana, Africa today to speak at a youth retreat. He spent a lot of time preparing for it, and was very excited to meet the kids he was going to be spending the next few days with. 

A possible glitch in our plans were two back-to-back storms, slated to hit us and quite possibly leave us debilitated for days, thereby hindering our trip to the airport, or even delaying a flight.

With the impending blizzard that was supposed to begin today, we were feeling pressure to make it to the airport and back home before the blizzard hit.  With the entire state talking about this nasty blizzard, my protective Dad decided he would be our chauffeur in his giant, diesel, four wheel drive pickup truck. 

I ended up scheduling my root canal on my abscessed tooth for the this morning, because my dentist is in a town on the way to the airport. That way Dallas and my Dad could watch India while I had the procedure done, and we could be on our way.  And we would save gas.

After my root canal was finished (which was my most painful to date because they couldn't numb me all the way because of the abscess), we had plenty of time to feed India and get me some breakfast with about 3 hours to spare until Dallas had to be dropped off at the airport. 

We planned perfectly.

We made our way towards the airport and decided to stop for lunch at a different Thai restaurant than the one we normally go to.  It was a horrible mistake!  My Dad ordered Stir Fried Potatoes with Beef and got a couple slices of beef, with a scoop of GRAVY, all on a bed of potato chips.  WHAT THE ???  I could write a blog post just about this because it was so horrendous.  I doubt my Dad will ever have Thai food again thanks to me.

As we left the "restaurant", Dallas decided to check the Delta website and found out his flight to Atlanta was delayed by two hours.  It took us a second to realize that because his flight was delayed, he would then miss his flight from Atlanta to Ghana. 

I've arranged enough international flights to know that this isn't a good situation because direct flights to countries like Ghana are hard to come by - especially over a holiday.

Deep pit in my stomach.

Dallas gets a hold of a Delta representative, who assures us that the next flight to Ghana is in 2 days, and he can have a spot on that flight. Dallas explains that he has to get on that flight from Atlanta tonight because he is speaker at a retreat, and it he needs to be there! She says every flight is booked and she can't help him.

She tells him sorry, but that's his only choice.


All the while, I'm whisper-yelling things like "but it's THEIR issue, they need to fix it" and "they better reimburse every penny of this flight and throw in additional vouchers" and "tell her you need a flight on another airline then - no exceptions".
 
It's a good thing Dallas had his bluetooth on, because I was about to reach up and grab the phone myself and start doing some Angry Wife talking.

Around this time, I updated my Facebook status, asking people to pray for me.  Well, it wasn't really for me, it was for the whole situation, but I couldn't explain that at the moment - and I didn't want our hosts to see anything and panic.  We were already all freaking out enough about the blizzard and the possibility of flight delays.

I also texted a couple of close friends some of the details and asked for their prayers.

My Dad, Dallas and I then talked for a second about stopping and contacting our hosts, but Dallas decides he wants to get to the airport as soon as possible and talk to someone face to face.  My Dad suggests that he call Delta again and try another representative, and Dallas does just that.

This representative does some digging, and comes up with a flight to Cincinnati, then finds a flight from Cincinnati to Atlanta. 

All in time for him to catch his original flight from Atlanta to Ghana!

Excitement!  Then we find out the flight to Cincinnati leaves at 3:10pm, and it's 2:15pm and we are stuck in traffic! 

EEK!

Another pit in my tummy!  

Dallas decides to take the flight anyway, as it's his only hope of getting to Ghana this year (ha ha), while I'm madly arranging Dallas' stuff and my Dad is trying to work his way quickly (in his ginormous truck) through traffic (in not the best weather)! 

While driving, I'm giving my nice, sweet, kind husband a talk about being aggressive. I even brought to his memory instances of times in our previous travels where I have been sweet, but aggressive and saved us from missing flights.  

2:27pm - We get to the airport, unload his luggage, swat him on the butt, and I tell him to HURRY!  And I told him I loved him too.  And maybe I didn't really swat him on the butt.  But now, I wish I would've because that would make this story a lot cooler.

I spend the next 40 minutes praying, sweating and hoping that he gets on that flight.  I know the chances are grim.  I can't bear to look at my phone after 3pm because I know soon I will hear if he made it or not. 

3:03pm - I receive a text.

"I made it....just barely."

At that moment, I was so happy!  Words can't describe it.

Our next hurdle of the day, battling the blizzard, was about to begin, but it was small in comparison to getting Dallas to Ghana! 

 

The drive home was fine until we hit a town a little over an hour away from our house.  The road was now covered in glare ice.  It took us a couple hours to get home, but we made it - SAFELY!  I'm so glad that my Dad was with, driving his big truck, and helping me stay level-headed when I wanted to stress in that dilemma.

A lot of things attempted to deter my husband from getting on that flight, but thankfully, the storm didn't interrupt his travel plans, he was gently aggressive, made all his connecting flights and is at this very moment, on a flight to Ghana!

Thank you to every single one of you who saw my post on Facebook and prayed for us - even when you had no idea what to pray!  I am SO grateful for your prayers!!!  I knew God knew exactly what we needed.  And I knew God knew exactly what these students needed! 

And PRAISE BE TO GOD, for looking out for all of us, for providing in what looked like grim circumstances, and answering the cries of our hearts.

Dallas will be a blessing to these guys.  I can't wait to see what God does in all of their lives.  After all the effort and opposition, I know it's going to be INCREDIBLE!