Days I Live For

Some days my two toddlers test me to the point of insanity. I think they are conspiring to put me in a padded room somewhere wearing a straight jacket. Yesterday was one of those days. Every 5 minutes it was something. Sarah refused to pick up toys. I threatened everything shy of shipping that girl off to boarding school in Switzerland. Then, she wouldn't share. Then, she got awfully sassy with me when I tried to talk reasonably with her about sharing. Then, she hit her sister, and lied about it. Who taught the 3-year-old how to lie? Human nature kicking in, I guess. Rylee was into everything...climbing onto the kitchen table included. Then, she disappeared with the telephone...which I found 3 hours later in the oven of the toy kitchen. Then, she hit Sarah in the head with a ceramic coaster, and cried like she was dying when I scolded her. They didn't like each other yesterday, and they liked me even less, it seemed. My only reprieve was when Rylee took a nap, and Sarah sat quietly watching The Aristocats for a little while. I was in tears by 3:00 wondering where I had gone wrong. Did I wake up on the wrong side of the bed and my bad mood rubbed off on them? Was it too harsh for me to yell that if the toys didn't get put back in the toy box, I was going to give them away to a little girl who knew how to obey her Mommy? To which Sarah replied, "What is the little girl's name? Is it Lylah?" She totally missed the point. Had I been sassy and hateful with Sarah which, in turn, caused her to be sassy and hateful with me? She had to hear it from somewhere, right?
Then came Prince Daddy. Riding in on his white Ford pick-up. "It's beautiful outside." he says, "Take them out." I tell you, he is a genius sometimes. So, I did just that.
Instantly, a horrible morning turned into a wonderful afternoon, complete with flower picking, swinging, and playing a made-up game that Sarah named "Seek-tag". It's a cross between, you guessed it, Tag and Hide-and-Seek. You hide...but she has to know where you're hiding. Then she "finds" you and screams "TAG, YOU"RE IT!!" Then you chase her around and tag her. She hides, always in the same spot, behind the slide. And, the game goes on and on forever, or until I pass out on the grass. It was absolute bliss! We spent close to 3 hours in the back yard, and by the time we came back inside I had almost forgotten the stress of the first half of the day. They were my sweet girls again. Stinky with sweat, starving, and delightfully exhausted. Dinner, baths, story time, and bedtime went off without a hitch. And, as I sat on the sofa with a tall glass of Diet Mt. Dew, watching the Duggars, I thought, What a fun day! I want to do that again tomorrow. Ah, What a life!

How We Met

16 years old, on a Saturday night, all my friends are on dates. I am at home crying golf ball tears into my pillow while my Mom rubs my back and cries with me. And, I pray. "Lord, You know the man you have created for me. He is out there somewhere right now. Can you please send him to me soon? I am so tired of being the only one without a boyfriend." (I was a kid, what do you expect?) I was still praying that prayer 2 years and a few mistakes later.

Then, On November 30, 2001, after much protest, I agreed to go on a blind date with a "friend of a friend". Well, a blind "double" date, that is. After all, he could have been a serial killer or something. I believe those were my exact words. I did NOT want to date anyone. I was still nursing a broken heart from a high school romance gone terribly wrong. I wore a pair of Old Navy blue jeans (a size 8 HA!) and a red turtle neck sweater with a little sparkle to it. It was one of those days that my hair couldn't decide if it wanted to be curly or straight, so it ended up looking a little of both. I was nervous. My friends and I pulled into the Winn Dixie parking lot and I thought my heart was going to beat right out of my chest. My friend, Jennifer, thought that this guy and I would be "just perfect for each other". I guess she was smarter than I gave her credit for.

Then, he drives up, in a blue Chevy pick-up that is in my drive way right now. He swears it will be a classic someday. I know I had my nose pressed to the window of that white Mustang convertible like a kid looking through the window of a toy store. When he got out of the truck and came around to introduce himself, I knew! The moment I looked into those dazzling blue eyes, the eyes that our daughters have now, I knew that I would never spend another moment crying into a pillow wondering where "he" was. I was home!

We talked about everything that night. It felt like we had known each other all our lives. He told me of his plans and dreams. I told him of mine. We laughed and joked around. I laughed at him making up his own lyrics to the songs on the radio. He still does that. We went to a movie. Not that I can remember anything about it. I was too wrapped up in the excitement of it all to even notice that there were other people on the planet at that moment. It was just the two of us.

I floated in on a cloud right around curfew that night. 12:30 am. My Nana was sleeping over at our house. I guess the smile on my face gave me away too easily. Nana took one look at me and said, "He's the one, isn't he?" I will never forget that as long as I live. I argued, "Come on, Nana! It was just the first date! I don't know....GEEZ!" With a sarcastic roll of my 18-year-old eyes. But, in my heart, I knew it was true. And, I did know just that quickly.

That night, I cried golf ball tears into my pillow and prayed. Tears for the happiness and peace that overwhelmed me. "Thank you, Father, for sending him to me. I know that HE is the man that YOU created just for me. You sent him to me at just the right time!"

"He hath made every thing beautiful in His time: also He hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end."
Ecclesiastes 3:11

Company and Conversations

We had a great visit last week with my Mom (Nona). She came up on Tuesday and stayed until Thursday. We went shopping, made a cake, went to the salon, and just generally enjoyed each other's company. That is happiness. I cherish every second of quality time that we get to spend with her. It's not as frequent these days, but every child should want to devour every morsel of time they can get with a parent. Even at 27 years old, I still do. Nona taught Sarah how to lay across the swing on her belly and spin herself around until she is overwhelmed with joy and dizziness. A trick that Sarah was very excited to show everyone. Nona patiently let Rylee take her time warming up, and laughed like I haven't heard in quite some time at Rylee's class clown personality. It did my heart good. By the time Nona left, Rylee was blowing her kisses and waving bye-bye. In Rylee's world, that means, "Hey, you're alright. I'm cool with you now." This kind of visit with my Mom makes me happy and sad at the same time. Happy because I love her and love when she spends time with the girls...and me. Sad, because it makes me miss the visits that much more. All in all, good memories were made with Mom and my girls, and that is the most important thing. Psalm 113:9 always makes me think about my Mom.
"He maketh the barren woman to keep house and to be a joyful mother of children. Praise ye the Lord."
Following Mom's company, we had a weekend visit from Brian's parents (Gigi and PopPop). The girls were SO excited to see them. They immediately went into "show-off" mode, and the living room became center stage for all the singing,dancing, and goofing around that 2 little girls could manage at 9:30pm. To their delight, Gigi and PopPop were the perfect audience, laughing and applauding on cue, and encouraging encore performances. It was hilarious! Saturday was spent....can you guess? I'll give you a hint: September Saturday in the south. You got it...football. Brian and his dad worked on our back door early in the day, and all 4 of us girls watched Toy Story 2 (super cute movie). Then, I made a big pot of taco soup and 2 pans of cornbread. We all came in and after watching the Tide Roll in, we watched our beloved AU Tigers barely squeak out a 27-24 win against Clemson in OT. But, it was a win, nonetheless. So, Brian was still good company after the game was over. We won't talk about attitudes and outbursts during the game, because we all know SEC football brings out the crazy in people. We were sad to see Gigi and PopPop leave this afternoon. Their goodbye's brought on the meltdown of the century from Sarah, who was devastated that Gigi left without, of all things, giving her a mani/pedi. She cried for 30 minutes about her toenails not being pink. I tell you, that girl is ALL girl...through and through. But, no matter how I tried to soothe her, nothing worked. Finally, I took the hint that we all needed a nap. So, I put Rylee down for a nap in about 5 seconds, as usual. And, laid down in the bed with Sarah to rub her back and "talk" until she was calm enough to go to sleep. My 3 1/2 year old and I have some of our best conversations during nap time. This is the conversation that took place today:

Sarah (still snubbing and wiping tears): "I sure wish Gigi and PopPop would have stayed at my house."
Me: "I know. Me too. We love when they visit, don't we?"
Sarah: "Yeah. Why did they have to go to their house?"
Me: "Well, they have to go to work tomorrow, you know, just like Daddy."
Sarah: "Just like Daddy??"
Me: "Yep."
Sarah: "Mommy, where is your work?"
Me (thinking): "Well, my work is here. Mommy gets to stay here with you and sister."
Sarah: "Umm...Mommy?"
Me: "Yes?"
Sarah: "That is not work."
PAUSE....at this point, I am thinking and thanking. That little girl has such a simple way of making me look around and realize just how good I've got it. I was just about to respond to her with something like,"No, it's not really work. It's fun. It's the best thing in the world. I'm blessed that I don't have to 'work'. I get to play with dolls, swing on swing sets, color pictures, have tea parties, rock babies, and just be with these 2 beautiful girls all day, everyday. That's not 'work'." Thank you, Lord, for giving me the best job on the planet!
Then, Sarah brings it on home when she picks the conversation back up...
Sarah: "That is not work, Mommy...because, there is NO dirt."
Me (laughing hysterically): "You mean like Daddy?"
Sarah: "Just like Daddy."

She just doesn't know how much "dirt" there actually is. I mean, who washes Daddy's clothes, after all?!

Starting Something New

Why am I starting a blog?

There are a few reasons why I am starting a blog. The biggest reason being that I have an incredible husband and two beautiful daughters. Everyday they do or say something to amaze me and I am constantly saying to myself, "You should really write that down." So, I'm going to do just that. This may serve as more of a journal for myself than anything, but that will be ok, too.
Here are 50 things that you will learn about me from this new adventure in blogging:

1. I love my Saviour and love sharing Scripture that speaks to me throughout the day.
2. I pray a lot. I pray when I drive to the grocery store. I pray when I do laundry. I pray when I am rocking a baby to sleep.
3. If you ask me to pray for you, I WILL.
4. I love my husband and children fiercely. I will do anything for them. I would give my life for them.
5. I adore my family. I don't see them as often as I would like, but I think of them all the time.
6. I am a MOMMY. That is what I do. It is my calling.
7. I love doing lots of crafty things.
8. Making cakes.
9. Smocking precious little girl clothes.
10. Scrapbooking.
11. Seeing how many things we can do with paper plates, popsicle sticks, glue, and paint.
12. I had beautiful examples set for me.
13. I strive daily to set a beautiful example for others.
14. I love Diet Mt. Dew and Sour cream & onion potato chips.
15. I laugh more than I cry.
16. I'm ugly when I cry. But, sometimes it must be done.
17. My children look just like their Daddy and his family.
18. And, that is ok with me!
19. I am adopted.
20. I've never felt adopted.
21. I would love to adopt a child (or 2) someday.
22. I hate diets. But, I'm always on one.
23. I love to travel. Next on the list is Disney World.
24. I have brown eyes...which are dominant.
25. Both of our children have the prettiest blue eyes you've ever seen.
26. I love to cook.
27. I think that there is nothing more beautiful in this world than a Mother nursing her baby.
28. I am an Aunt to beautiful new twin girls.
29. I play the piano. Not very well. Just for fun.
30. I've learned to do all sorts of things from Youtube.
31. I miss my Daddy....everyday.
32. I am enormously proud of my husband.
33. He still gives me butterflies.
34. I think imperfection is beautiful.
35. Classical music (especially violins) makes me tear up with joy and sadness.
36. I love Rascal Flatts and Lady Antebellum.
37. I adore Anne of Green Gables. I always have.
38. I hate laundry with a passion.
39. I love going to church.
40. I hate getting everyone ready to go to church.
41. I have an Aunt that I call "Nana". She is not my grandmother. But, I love her like she is.
42. My house isn't perfect.
43. But, I love my house. Dust bunnies and all.
44. My husband does not. He likes CLEAN.
45. I want more children.
46. I would have 2 more and adopt 2.
47. I know we'll probably only have one more.
48. And, that will be ok. I think.
49. I desperately long to move 2 hours south of here. It is home.
50. I am learning to accept that home is wherever my 3 loves are. It's a work in progress.

"For I know that plans I have for you", declares the Lord, "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11